14 But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation,
spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that
readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains: 15 And
let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter
therein, to take any thing out of his house: 16 And
let him that is in the field not turn back again for to take up his garment. 17 But
woe to them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! 18 And
pray ye that your flight be not in the winter. 19 For
in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the
creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be. 20 And
except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but
for the elect's sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days. 21 And
then if any man shall say to you, Lo, here is Christ; or, lo, he is there;
believe him not: 22 For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and
shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect. 23 But
take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things. (Mark
13:14-23)
Theologians
invent terms that limit the understanding to their own
closed little circles. This doubtless makes them feel more privileged and
informed than the laity. Unfortunately for the theologians, the laity probably
have a better spiritual grasp of the meaning of Scripture than the theologians.
Take the term 'Eschatology.' There is no hint in the vernacular that would
reveal its meaning to the uninformed. It is the branch of theology that relates
to the End Times. Perhaps we should simply call it 'End Times' theology instead
of Eschatology. At any rate, there are sincere and scholarly men who
believe that the prophecies given in today's text to be events that are
happening contemporary with the prophecy being declared. (Preterism). There
are, as well, good and scholarly men who believe in a historical view of
prophecy which believes that events prophesied may be discovered in historical
events that have happened in the past, are presently happening, or will be
fulfilled in the future. The latter best defines my view of prophecy. Though
Jerusalem was trodden underfoot by the gentiles 38 years after our Lord spoke
this prophecy, I believe His prophecy of the end has much greater application.
We must regularly remind ourselves that we are in the penitential season of
Lent and realize that Christ came into the World as the Light thereof, and as
love personified; however, He also came bearing a warning and a Sword. We may
prefer to study of the sermons He gave by the Sea of Galilee or on the Mount,
but we must also harken to His dire warnings and counsel of evil that is to
come upon the earth. We do so knowing that we have a shelter from such evils in
the very Ark of our Salvation – the Lord Jesus Christ.
14 But when ye shall see the
abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it
ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea
flee to the mountains. Daniel makes clear reference to
this abomination of desolation in two places – Chapters 11 & 12. The
prophecy has application, I believe, to the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in
70 AD. It is a matter of curiosity to me that Daniel also refers to the agency
whereby this abomination is set up in the following terms: Neither shall
he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard
any god: for he shall magnify himself above all. (Dan
11:37)
When I was a young lad, the sin of homosexuality was never mentioned in my presence.
As a matter of fact, I did not come to realize it truly existed until my young
adulthood. America was a different nation in those days, but she has gone far
afield from the honor of God’s Word and obedience of it. Though it may not
relate to this prophecy (which, incidentally has been sealed until the time of
the end (Dan 12:4) so
that we may not clearly understand it until the very smoke of the world’s
destruction begins to rise from the plains and valleys) we certainly can admit
that the filthy sin of homosexuality is one that makes desolate, and we have
that abomination now standing in the Holy Place (pulpits of Episcopal
Churches). But the precise fulfillment, if not in whole than in part, occurred
under the siege engines of Titus. For historical purposes, reference may be
made to an apocryphal account which is true in its facts: Now the
fifteenth day of the month Casleu, in the hundred forty and fifth year, they
set up the abomination of desolation upon the altar, and builded idol altars
throughout the cities of Juda on every side. (1 Macc 1:54 Apocrypha)
This event occurred under the dominion of Alexander the Great in the
intervening years of the two Testaments.
15 And let him that is on the
housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take any thing
out of his house:
Perhaps we might quote from the Histories of Josephus to give a notion of how
terribly wicked the people of Jerusalem had become prior to the besiegement by
Titus Caesar: “……while their inclination to plunder was insatiable, as
was their zeal in searching the houses of the rich; and for the murdering of
the men, and abusing of the women, it was sport to them. They also devoured
what spoils they had taken, together with their blood, and indulged
themselves in feminine wantonness, without any disturbance, till they were
satiated therewith; while they decked their hair, and put on women's garments,
and were besmeared over with ointments; and that they might appear very comely,
they had paints under their eyes, and imitated not only the ornaments, but also
the lusts of women, and were guilty of such intolerable uncleanness, that they
invented unlawful pleasures of that sort. (Josephus,
Book IV, Chapter IX, Section 10) This
has a horrific similarity to modern day America! When Titus besieged the walls
of Jerusalem, he remained around the city for a short while, but then, for some
reason not known, he withdrew his armies for a time and gave the inhabitants a
brief pause for escape. Christ warns of the timeliness of the opportunity to
escape certain ruin and humiliation.
16 And let him that is in the field
not turn back again for to take up his garment.. The
destruction of Jerusalem was the judgment of God and it was far more horrific
than the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. This happened after the ascension
of Christ. Do you doubt that such judgment may be decreed against our own
unwalled cities and fertile prairies if we continue to rebel against God in our
wicked pursuits and evil lifestyles? Christ offers freedom and liberty in His
Bosom to us, but it is only granted when we accept His redemption and His
Lordship over our lives. Have we so done? Christ speaks again of the urgency to
come out of that evil city that practices ungodly religion.
17 But woe to them that are with
child, and to them that give suck in those days! 18 And pray ye that your flight be not
in the winter. The
sorrowful plight of women and children is difficult to fathom. Children were
actually stolen, or even sold by desperate mothers, as food for those whose
hunger had become unbearable. In our human weakness, we often delay and
postpone our intentions to get out of wicked institutions (the modern church
comes to mind), and winter was such a reason in the silly minds of the
inhabitants of Jerusalem to delay their fleeing the city. The restraints of the
Sabbath would also have given excuse for delay (Matt
24:20).
19 For
in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the
creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be. The
sufferings of Jerusalem were clearly acute as well as long lasting; however,
this prophecy seems to have relevance to an additional period of tribulation
since the following verse seems to indicate a far broader destruction than a
single city. Eating babies and rats denotes a horrible condition, but it will
get even worse once the walls are breached. Have the walls of America yet been
breached?
20 And except that the Lord had
shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect's sake, whom
he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days. This
is evidence that Christ is referring to more than the provincial city of
Jerusalem. Clearly, Jerusalem is an example of a wider and more general
evil that exists in the hearts of men. In the time of the end, John
compares Jerusalem to Sodom in referring to the demise of His two Witnesses: And
their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually
is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. (Rev
11:8)
Has America condoned and given legitimacy to the sodomy of Sodom?
The moment of
Christ’s passion and death loom before His eyes. He has dealt with us gently,
but now He must issue dire warnings of the pain and guilt of those whose sins
are not blotted out by His precious blood and sacrifice. His warnings are dire
and MUST be heeded if we are to escape the judgment coming upon the earth. 21 And
then if any man shall say to you, Lo, here is Christ; or, lo, he is there;
believe him not: 22 For false Christs and false
prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were
possible, even the elect. We
have the same infidels in our day, proliferating by the minute, who claim to
have an inside track on Christ and His blessings. Their gospel is a
prosperity gospel that results in no other prosperity than their own after they
have fleeced the pockets and purses of the gullible. The end times false
Christs (there are many) and false prophets will seemingly work great wonders
yet deceitfully. Their convincing powers will be sufficient to even deceive the
elect were it possible for a believer, knowledgeable of the Word, to be
deceived. Of course, if we prove all things by the Holy bible, we are immune to
the deception and wiles of the devil. The times are growing more and more
troublesome for those who truly believe. We are ridiculed in the media, stomped
upon by government, and trivialized by the modern church establishment. But,
please, read how these hypocritical wonders fare in the last chapters of
Revelation!
23 But take ye heed: behold, I have
foretold you all things. We
have been warned and we have read our General Orders! There can be no excuse
for our being deceived. Wherefore, if they shall say unto
you, Behold, He is in the desert; go not forth: behold, He is in the secret
chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and
shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. (Matthew
24:26-28) We have witnessed a number of false prophets who were
glaringly so of late. What about men knowing more than the Son when the end
shall come. I believe the false prophet declared his return to be slated for
last May (revised to October 2011). He, and we, is still here. What happened? I
have two books in my library, written by false prophets and culprits bent on
filthy lucre, who claimed Christ would return in 1988, and then in 1992
respectively. They made millions on gullible so-called Christians who were
deceived. I say ‘so-called’ Christians because I do not believe the Elect of
God can be so deceived by false prophets whose claims are so evidently beyond
the revealed Word of God. Please know that there is no place in Heaven for ‘casual’
Christians. We are to be diligent in our studies and our faith. What man
or woman takes their love for their espoused mate in a casual manner? Love
evokes diligence and action! If we are destroyed, either as individuals or as
nations, it shall be for lack of sincere knowledge. Heed the words of the
prophet Hosea: 6 My people are destroyed for lack of
knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that
thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I
will also forget thy children.
(Hosea 4:6)
NOTE: I often receive acclamation of friends when I reveal
the love of God and His Son Jesus in my devotional writings, but many are
reluctant to read warnings that are dire and have great facility in keeping in
the will of God. I must comment where comment is due and vital. I do write of
the Love of Christ (and it is beautiful), but I must also reveal those serious
warnings that God proclaims so that we may enjoy the beauty of the Word as
well. I have always loved my sons and daughters. I love many children today as
sons and daughters. But, although I love them mightily, I will not hesitate to
warn them of the dangers of playing in the street, or of promiscuous sex, or of
drugs and alcohol, or of a thousand other destructive behaviors that beckon to
them from the borders of the world. Would we ever say to a child, “O go ahead
and play in the street. I do not mind your doing so because I love you?” No!
We must speak the truth in love.
God always has!
