Time Of The Gentiles

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" rowspan="2" width=150 BGCOLOR="#9999FF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="04a76ba3.gif"> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id68.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Introduction"><U>Introduction</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id67.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Rapture"><U>The Rapture</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id66.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Rapture/Who When"><U>Rapture/Who & When</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id65.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Our Blessed Hope"><U>Our Blessed Hope</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id64.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Jews"><U>The Jews</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id63.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Isreal The Church"><U>Isreal & The Church</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id62.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Daniels Time Table"><U>Daniel's Time Table</U></A></div> <div> <B>Time Of The Gentiles</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id60.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Daniels 70th 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OF THE GENTILES</U></div> <bR> <div> A.     Introduction:  We are taking time to clear up misinformation about the end times </div> <div>      which has created fear and confusion among Christians.</div> <div>      1.     We have been focusing our study on the pretribulation rapture.</div> <div>           a.     In the past few lessons it may seem like we have digressed because we have </div> <div>                not directly discussed the rapture.  We have focused on the Jews.</div> <div>           b.     But, to properly understand end time events, you must look at the whole </div> <div>                Bible rather than just a few verses which seem to prove your point.</div> <div>           c.     When you get the big picture of end time events and see how much of it </div> <div>                has nothing to do with the Church, it adds support to the pretrib rapture. </div> <div>      2.     Much of what is going to happen at the end has nothing to do with the Church.  </div> <div>           That is a main reason why we won't be here for the tribulation.</div> <div>           a.     God has unfinished business with Israel (the Jews) which He will complete.</div> <div>           b.     God made specific promises to them which have not yet been fulfilled, but </div> <div>                which will be at the end. Gen 12:7; II Sam 7:12-17; Amos 9:14,15</div> <div>           c.     We want to look at the big picture to see where and how the rapture fits.</div> <bR> <div> B.     In 586 B.C. God allowed Babylon to overrun Israel, destroy Jerusalem, and carry </div> <div>      the Jews into captivity.  One of those taken into captivity was Daniel.                 </div> <div>      1.     67 years into captivity, Daniel came into possession of the Book of Jeremiah </div> <div>           and read that the Jews would be captive for 70 years. Jer 25:11; 29:10</div> <div>      2.     Daniel prayed to God, asking Him to forgive Israel's rebellion and fulfill His </div> <div>           promise to bring them back to their land.  In answer to Daniel's prayer, God </div> <div>           sent the angel Gabriel with a message. Dan 9:1-27</div> <div>           a.     God told Daniel He would deal with Israel for their sin and rebellion for </div> <div>                490 more years, and then establish the kingdom for Israel.</div> <div>           b.     490 is based on the number of sabbaths Israel neglected while in the land.</div> <div>      3.     In the prophecy, God gave Daniel certain historical events which can be used to </div> <div>           mark out the progress of those 490 years.  We can look back and clearly see </div> <div>           what events were predicted and when they happened.</div> <div>      4.     God said the 490 years would begin when the command was given to allow </div> <div>           Israel to return to the land and rebuild.  God then said how long it would be </div> <div>           from the time the order was given until the Messiah would be cut off. v24-26</div> <div>           a.     We know when the command was given to rebuild -- Nisan 1 (March 5), </div> <div>                444 B.C. (Neh 2:1-8).  We know Jesus was crucified in 33 A.D.</div> <div>           b.     That equals 483 years.   Bible years=360 days; must also count leap years.</div> <div>      5.     This prophecy can seem a little overwhelming because of the unusual way the </div> <div>           years are stated -- seventy weeks, threescore, etc.  But it is easy to sort out.</div> <div>           a.     Weeks = SHABUA (Hebrew) = a period of seven.  Seventy weeks = 70x7.</div> <div>           b.     Must tell from context if it means 7 days or 7 years.  70 weeks = 490 years.</div> <div>      6.     v26--Divides 490 years in two; Messiah will be cut off 434 years after what?</div> <div>           a.     We can look back and see that from the time the order was given to </div> <div>                rebuild Jerusalem until the temple was rebuilt was 49 years.</div> <div>           b.     From time the temple was finished until Jesus was crucified was 434 years.</div> <div>      7.     Gabriel told Daniel that after the Messiah was cut off the people of prince that </div> <div>           crucified Jesus would come and destroy the city and the sanctuary.</div> <div>           a. Less than forty years after Jesus was crucified Jerusalem was destroyed.</div> <div>           b.     In 70 A.D. three legions of Roman soldiers under the Emperor Titus </div> <div>                destroyed Jerusalem and the temple and scattered the Jews (deportation).</div> <div>      8.     From the command to rebuild the temple until Messiah was cut off covered 483 </div> <div>           of the 490 years God said He would deal with Israel for their sins, or 69 weeks.</div> <div>           a.     The final 7 years (70th week) of God's dealings with Israel is found in v27.</div> <div>           b.     9:27--This king will make a seven-year treaty with the people, but after </div> <div>                half that time, he will break his pledge and stop the Jews from all their </div> <div>                sacrifices and their offerings; then, as a climax to all his terrible deeds, the </div> <div>                Enemy shall utterly defile the sanctuary of God.  But in God's time and </div> <div>                plan,his judgment will be poured out upon this Evil One. (Living)</div> <div>      9.     This verse is unclear to us because these events have not happened yet.</div> <div>           a.     He (the prince of the people that crucified Jesus) a leader from the Roman </div> <div>                Empire, shall make a treaty with the Jews for seven years.  After three and </div> <div>                a half years he will commit an abomination of desolation</div> <div>           b.     An abomination of desolation: technical Jewish term; means to desecrate </div> <div>                the temple by bringing a Gentile or an unholy thing into the holy place (the </div> <div>                consecrated compartment where only an authorized priest could go).</div> <div>           c.     The temple has been defiled in Israel's past.  In June, 168 B.C. Antiochus </div> <div>                Epiphanes desecrated the temple.  He built an altar to Jupiter on the altar </div> <div>                of burnt offerings, dedicated the temple to Jupiter, and sacrificed a pig. </div> <div>           d.     But, Jesus tells us this particular event will happen at the time of the </div> <div>                greatest tribulation the world has ever seen. Matt 24:15-21</div> <div>      10.     The tribulation will be a seven year long period during which this promise (v27)</div> <div>           will be fulfilled (another lesson).  It has nothing to do with the Church.</div> <bR> <div> C.     The Book of Daniel has numerous prophecies,      and we can look back in history </div> <div>      and see the     fulfillment of many of them.</div> <div>      1.     Dan 11:1-39--lists numerous kings and their activities, down to assassinations </div> <div>           and marriages.  It describes conflicts between kings in the Middle East as </div> <div>           control of the area passed from Persian control (they took it from Babylon) to </div> <div>           the Greeks and finally to the Romans.</div> <div>           a.     It describes wars between Syria and Egypt --  with Israel trampled in the </div> <div>                middle.   All of these events have come to pass.  They are all verifiable. </div> <div>           b.     v40--Narrative switches to end times and a ruler who will dominate Israel,  </div> <div>                the Antichrist.  There is no reason to think it won't happen literally.</div> <div>      2.     In chapter 8:1-8 Daniel had a vision of a ram and a he goat.</div> <div>           a.     v20,21--The angel Gabriel interpreted the vision and said the ram was the </div> <div>                king of Medo-Persia and the he goat was the king of Greece.  The vision </div> <div>                was recorded about 553 B.C.  Medo-Persia won't come to power until 538 </div> <div>                B.C., and Greece won't come to power for 215 years (323 B.C.)</div> <div>           b.     v22--Alexander's kingdom was divided among four generals.</div> <div>           c.     Daniel is so accurate skeptics say it was written after these things occurred</div> <div>      3.     The Book of Daniel is an awesome book, but, it's no more awesome or reliable </div> <div>           than any other verse in the Bible.  If the end times teaching you're getting </div> <div>           doesn't increase your awe and admiration for God's word, your confidence in </div> <div>           His provision, His faithfulness, then you aren't getting good teaching.</div> <bR> <div> D.     Back to Matt 24 where Jesus connected Daniel's 70th week with the tribulation.</div> <div>      1.     Matt 24:1-3--Jesus told His disciples the temple was going to be destroyed.</div> <div>           In response, they asked Him several questions:  When will this happen, and </div> <div>           what will be the signs of your coming and the end of the world (AION = age)?</div> <div>           a.     These men would have been familiar with OT scriptures which said the </div> <div>                Messiah would set up the kingdom, but that just prior to the kingdom, this </div> <div>                present age would end with destruction. Zech 14:1-9; 12:1-3; 13:8,9          </div> <div>           b.     They no doubt thought that is what Jesus meant about the temple.</div> <div>      2.     They didn't realize they were asking Jesus a very complicated question. </div> <div>           a.     Jerusalem and the temple would be destroyed within 40 years by Rome.</div> <div>           b.     But, with the rejection of Jesus by the Jews, the offer of the kingdom was </div> <div>                postponed.  We now know that the postponement is at least almost 2,000 </div> <div>                years, and that a mystery has been revealed in that time -- the Church.</div> <div>      3.     Jesus answered the first question about Jerusalem in Luke 21:5-7; 20-24</div> <div>           a.     Jesus described the total destruction of Jerusalem by Rome on Aug 10, </div> <div>                70 A.D. -- the same day Babylon destroyed the city years earlier.</div> <div>           b.     Jesus gave them a warning sign.  When you see Jerusalem surrounded, get </div> <div>                out.  In May, 66 A.D.     the Romans surrounded the city.</div> <div>           c.     v21,23--It will be difficult, but get out while you can.  The Jewish </div> <div>                historian Josephus, in his writings, detailed the slaughter that occurred.</div> <div>           d.     v22--This destruction will be a fulfillment of Dan 9:26--The Chosen One </div> <div>                will be killed and have nothing.  And the people of the Ruler who is to </div> <div>                come will destroy the city and the holy place.  The end will come like a </div> <div>                flood.  Even to the end there will be war.  For the Lord has said that much </div> <div>                will be destroyed. (New Life)</div> <div>           e.     Since 70 A.D. Jerusalem has been a Gentile colony, the site of a temple to </div> <div>                a heathen god, fought over by Muslims and Christians during the </div> <div>                Crusades, a continuing source of conflict between Arabs and Jews.</div> <div>           f.     v24--That will continue until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.</div> <div>      4.     Matt 24:4-28--In answer to the disciples second question, Jesus lists the signs </div> <div>           which will warn Israel that the Second Coming of the Messiah is very near and </div> <div>           that the kingdom is once again being offered to them.</div> <div>           a.     These are not signs to the Church.  It doesn't exist yet.  The people to </div> <div>                whom Jesus is speaking know nothing about the Church.  Jesus is speaking </div> <div>                to Jews about things that pertain to Jews.</div> <div>           b.     Jesus is describing the tribulation which will precede His Second Coming </div> <div>                and will finish the plan for Israel revealed in Dan 9:27 -- the 70th week. </div> <bR> <div> E.     There is another important connection between the Book of Daniel and the Olivet </div> <div>      discourse (Matthew 24 and Luke 21).</div> <div>      1.     Luke 21:24--Jerusalem shall be conquered and trampled down by the Gentiles </div> <div>           until the period of Gentile triumph ends in God's good time. (Living)</div> <div>           a.     The times of the Gentiles = a period of time when Jerusalem (Israel) will </div> <div>                be controlled by Gentiles.  The period began with Babylon's overthrow of </div> <div>                Jerusalem in 586 B.C. and will continue until the Second Coming.</div> <div>           b.     The first ruler of the times of the Gentiles was Nebuchadnezzer and the </div> <div>                last will be the Antichrist.</div> <div>      2.     The Book of Daniel introduces the times of the Gentiles and contains a time </div> <div>           line of the Gentile nations which will rule Israel until the end.</div> <div>      3.     Dan 2:27-45--Daniel interpreted a dream had by Nebuchadnezzer.  The king </div> <div>           dreamed of a metallic statue that was eventually broken in pieces and destroyed </div> <div>           by a stone which became a mountain that filled the whole earth.</div> <div>           a.     Daniel explained the image.  The body parts represented four kingdoms -- </div> <div>                Babylon (the head of gold) and the three that would rise after it.</div> <div>           b.     We can study history and see what the other body parts are because three </div> <div>                other Gentile empires have ruled over Jerusalem through the centuries.</div> <div>                1.     Head of gold = Babylon, 606 B.C. to 538 B.C.</div> <div>                2.     Breast and arms of silver = Medo-Persia, 538 B.C. to 332 B.C.</div> <div>                3.     Belly and thighs of brass = Greece, 332 B.C. to 63 B.C.</div> <div>                4.     Legs of iron = Rome, 63 B.C. to 476 A.D.</div> <div>           c.     We have not yet seen the final form of the fourth kingdom -- feet and toes </div> <div>                of clay and iron.  It will be a revived Roman Empire. (another lesson)</div> <div>           d.     The Roman Empire was divided in two (east and west) in 395 A.D. </div> <div>                and was further divided after the Germanic invasions in 476 A.D., but </div> <div>                it has never been divided into 10 kingdoms. Dan 7:23,24</div> <div>           e.     Israel has not been free of Gentile control since Babylon and will not be </div> <div>                free until the times of the Gentiles are completed.</div> <div>      4.     The times of the Gentiles will be completed when the stone cut without hands </div> <div>           appears.  The stone is Jesus.  He will destroy the final Gentile kingdom (revived </div> <div>           Roman Empire) and set up His everlasting kingdom. Dan 2:34,35; 44,45</div> <div>      5.     Dan 7:1-7; 15-18--Daniel had a vision and saw the same Gentile powers from a </div> <div>           different point of view, and we get more clues as to their identity.</div> <div>           a.     Instead of a statue, Daniel sees four monstrous beasts come out of the sea.</div> <div>           b.     In prophetic scriptures, the sea often symbolizes Gentile nations or an </div> <div>                innumerable mass of people. Is 57:20,21  Daniel's four beasts:</div> <div>                1.     Lion with eagles wings = national symbol of Babylon.</div> <div>                2.     Bear (lopsided) = Medo-Persians.  Persia was the stronger, that's why </div> <div>                     the bear is lopsided.  Three ribs are Babylon, Medes, Persians.</div> <div>                3.     Leopard with four wings = Greece.  Leopard known for speed.  </div> <div>                     Alexander the Great conquered the world in a few months.  Four </div> <div>                     heads = the empire was divided among four of his generals.</div> <div>                4.     The fourth beast is not compared to any animal.  It has ten horns.</div> <div>                     Horn in prophetic scripture is a king. Dan 7:24</div> <div>           </div> <div> F.     Conclusion:  The Book of Daniel puts God's end times program on an amazing </div> <div>      time table.  God has given us a calendar to help us mark where in time we are:</div> <div>      The times of the Gentiles (four Gentile kingdoms which will dominate Israel) and </div> <div>      70 weeks (490 years) for Israel.</div> <div>      1.     Both of these time lines must be completed before the Messiah can establish </div> <div>           His everlasting kingdom.  Note -- neither one has anything to do with the </div> <div>           Church. Rom 11:25</div> <div>      2.     Where in time does all of this leave us?  The times of the Gentiles are 4/5s over </div> <div>           and 69 of Daniel's 70 weeks have taken place.  Jesus is coming!!</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id61_m.htm" TITLE="Time Of The Gentiles"><U>Back to Top</U></A><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#6633CC" FACE="Arial" > <script language="javascript" src="http://www.dataplain.com/cgi/js_counter.cgi?kannady"></script>  </FONT></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>