by John Holbrook Jr. A Biblical View, Blog #133 posted on December 21, 2022.
This blog is addressed to all Christians who have adopted the false doctrines of Dispensationalism. They undoubtedly do not realize it, but they have thereby put themselves on a path to perdition.
Lord God, I pray that you have mercy upon them. Open their eyes and unstop their ears that they might receive the truth and repudiate Dispensationalism.
All Christians should know that God sent his “only begotten” Son into his creation: (1) to become incarnate in a man, Jesus of Nazareth, the Promised Messiah of Israel; (2) to live a sinless life; (3) to die on a cross at Golgotha on Passover as the unique, one-time, all sufficient, never-to-be-repeated sacrifice to atone for all the sins of mankind from Creation to the Parousia;[1] (4) to spend three days in the grave; (5) to rise again on the first day of the Jewish week (Sunday) as the first fruits of the General Resurrection; and (6) to ascend into Heaven, where He now sits on the Throne of God and rules the heavens and the earth as the King of kings and Lord of lords. Despite knowing the foregoing, many Christians are unaware that many important changes occurred at the sixth hour (3:00 pm) on Passover in 33 AD or shortly thereafter.
First, the covenantal period changed – The Mosaic Covenantal Period (1464 BC to 33 AD) ended and the New Covenantal Period (33 AD to the Parousia) began. Clearly, the Mosaic Covenant was rendered obsolete forevermore.
Second, the Shekinah Glory moved – During the Mosaic Covenantal Period, the Shekinah Glory (a sign of God’s presence) dwelt in the Holy of Holies in the physical Temple[2] on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Then, when God’s Son died, the veil before the Holy of Holies in the Temple was rent from top to bottom, thereby indicating that the Shekinah Glory was leaving this place. Now, during the New Covenantal Period, the Shekinah Glory dwells in the spiritual Temple of the Holy Spirit[3] in the hearts of all believers, where it will remain forevermore. Clearly, the physical temple on the Temple Mount was rendered obsolete forevermore.
Third, the acceptable sacrifice to atone for sin changed – During the Mosaic Covenantal Period, God accepted the sacrifice of animals and birds as a temporary atonement for the sins of the Jewish people. Now, during the New Covenantal Period, God accepts only the sacrifice of his Son on Golgotha as the permanent atonement for the sins of mankind. Clearly, the sacrifice of animals and birds to atone for sin was rendered obsolete forevermore.
Indeed, after the Crucifixion, the sacrifice of animals and birds to atone for sin became the most egregious offense against God that mankind could devise. Daniel referred to it as “the abomination that makes desolate” [4] and God’s Son referred to it as the Abomination of Desolation.[5]
The first instance of it occurred during the 37-year period (33-70 AD) immediately following the Crucifixion, when the Sanhedrin ignored the sacrifice of God’s Son on Passover and had the priests continue the sacrifice of animals and birds in the physical temple on the Temple Mount, which resulted in (a) the utter destruction of Jerusalem and its Temple and (b) the banishment of the Jews from Judea for the next almost two millennia.
The second instance of it will occur in the End Time, when the Israelis will (a) rebuild the Temple of Solomon on the Temple Mount and (b) resume animal and bird sacrifices there,[6] which will result in the destruction, not just of Jerusalem and its temple, but of the current heavens and the current Earth
Fourth, the identity of God’s Chosen People changed – During the Mosaic Covenantal Period, God’s Chosen People were the physical or blood descendents of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the male members of the covenantal community were identified by the mark of circumcision.[7] Now, during the New Covenantal Period, God’s Chosen People are the spiritual descendents of Abraham, who is called “the father of the faithful,”[8] and the members of the covenantal community are identified by the mark of baptism.[9] The first members of the New Covenant community were obviously Jews, but they quickly learned that Gentiles could become members of it by (a) repenting of their sins, (b) professing faith in God’s Son, the Promised Messiah of Israel, as their Savior and Lord and (c) undergoing baptism.
Fifth, the meaning of “Israel” changed – During the Mosaic Covenantal Period, “Israel” meant the physical descendants of Abraham – i.e. the Jewish people or the Jewish nation. Now, during the New Covenantal Period, God distinguishes between (a) Abraham’s physical descendants and (b) Abraham’s spiritual descendants. Now there are two Israels: (1) Israel of the Spirit, which consists of (1a) believing Jews, who are the Faithful Remnant of Israel and reside in the Cultivated Olive Tree, and (1b) believing Gentiles, who are pruned from the Wild Olive Tree and grafted into the Cultivated Olive Tree; and (2) Israel of the Flesh, which consists of unbelieving Jews who are pruned from the Cultivated Olive Tree and cast away.[10]Unbelieving Gentiles reside in the Wild Olive Tree.
Sixth, the priestly order changed – During the Mosaic Covenantal Period, Israel was represented in the physical tabernacle or temple by priests of the Order of Aaron, who was (a) a descendant of Jacob’s son Levi, (b) the older brother of Moses, and (c) the first Levitical High Priest. All the Levitical priests were (a) blemished (sinful), mortal, and imperfect. Now, during the New Covenantal Period, “Israel of the Spirit” is represented in the spiritual Temple of the Holy Spirit by the Order of Melchisedek, who was (a) the King of Salem,[11] (b) the King of Peace,[12] (c) the priest of the Most High God,[13] and (d) the shadow of the High Priest to come, who would be unblemished (sinless), divine, and perfect in every respect – i.e. the Prince of Peace,[14] the Sun of Righteousness,[15] the Son of God, the Son of Man, and the Promised Messiah of Israel. Clearly, the Levitical priesthood became obsolete forevermore.
Seventh,a Spirit of Strong Delusion appeared – Early in the New Covenantal Period,[16] God sent a spirit of “strong delusion” into the world to test the faithfulness of those who profess that God’s Son is their Savior and Lord. Moreover, to leave us without excuse if we succumb to the spirit’s lies, God put a stern warning at the end of the following passage, in which (a) verses 3-10 describe the context of the offense and (b) verses 11-12 warn of the consequences of the offense:
3-Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 4-Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 5-Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? 6-And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. 7-For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 8-And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: 9-Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, 10-And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11-And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: 12-That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (KJV 2 Thessalonians 2:3-12)
Lastly, the Great Falling Away[17] began – With the arrival of the lying spirit, the Great Falling Away got underway, first (1) during the persecution of the early church by the Rabbinic Jews and Romans,[18] then (2) under the persecution of the Protestant churches by the Romanist church,[19] and lastly (3) under the persecution of the saints by the antichrist during the End Time, which I believe (3a) began with the appearance of the movement to rebuild the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem and to resume animal and bird sacrifices there to atone for sin,[20] and (3b) will culminate in the rise to prominence of the antichrist, who claims to be a true believer and God’s appointed head of the Universal Church, and who will become the head of a new world government, preside over the ratification of a treaty between the new world government and Israel, which will permit the Israelis to seize the Temple Mount, rebuild the temple, and resume sacrifices there, and initiate the persecution of the saints, who will refuse to acknowledge him as the head of the Church Universal and to support the Israelis in their rebuilding of the temple and their resumption of sacrifices there.[21]
If Dispensationalists stubbornly adhere to the lies of the deceiving spirit, they will join the Great Apostasy and be numbered among the Lost.
Almighty God, I beseech you, have mercy upon them and deliver them from that fate. Amen.
The End Time
The rise of the antichrist to global prominence and the 2nd instance of the Abomination of Desolation may be nearer that many of us realize.
Twenty years ago, I noticed that a movement (a) to rebuild the Temple of Solomon on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem and (b) to resume animal and bird sacrifices to atone for sin there had begun early in the twentieth century.[22]
Then on September 18, 2022, AllIsraelNews.com posted an article entitled “Does the arrival of five red heifers in Israel signal third temple, end times?” [23] The article asked a good question. It began with the following introductory paragraphs, accompanied by a photograph of the red heifers:
Five rabbi-approved red heifers arrived from Texas on Thursday to a ceremonious welcome at Ben-Gurion Airport – and touched off a whirlwind of speculation as to the prophetic significance of their presence in Israel and whether we are barreling toward a third-temple period or the “last days.”
The cows have been inspected by rabbis and were found to be red and unblemished, which means they are ritually pure for sacrifice as stipulated under the law of Moses. In order for someone following Mosaic law to become ritually pure, the ashes of a red heifer are required, according to the Book of Numbers.
“This is a requirement of the law that the Lord has commanded: Tell the Israelites to bring you a red heifer without defect or blemish and that has never been under a yoke.” Numbers 19:2.
The farmers, in Texas, knew enough of the requirements and did not tag the ears of these cows leaving them unblemished.
The five red heifers in quarantine in Israel
Finally on September 27, 2022, AllIsraelNews.com posted an article entitled “Red heifer sacrifice could take place in one year in Jerusalem,”[24] in which it explained how sacrifices can occur outside a temple precinct and suggested that they might start on the Mount of Olives as early as thirteen months from now.
Since I regard the resumption of animal and bird sacrifices to atone for sin as one of the “signs of the times” about which Jesus spoke in the Oliver Discourse, I think the End Time is upon us. Dispensationalists beware!
[1] Just as Abraham had accepted the will of God that he sacrifice his only son Isaac on an altar on Mount Moriah, and Isaac had voluntarily agreed to become a burnt offering there, so Jesus had accepted the will of God that He become a sacrifice for the sins of mankind on Mount Moriah, and He voluntarily hung on a cross there for six hours (9:00 am to 3:00 pm) on Passover in 33 AD. The benefits of His sacrifice, however, are conditional. They will be granted by God only to the men, women, and children who repent of their sins and accept his Son and their Savior and Lord.
[6] An effort to accomplish this objective is already underway. See Randall Price’s Ready to Rebuild – The Imminent Plan to Rebuild the Temple the Last Days Temple (1992), The Coming Last Days Temple (1999), and The Temple and Bible Prophecy – A Definitive Look at Its Past, Present, and Future (2005).
[7] Note that the Mosaic Covenant divided mankind into three groups: (a) Jewish covenant-keepers, (b) Jewish covenant breakers, and (c) Gentiles to whom the covenant did not apply (excepting in rare cases like Caleb, Rahab, and Ruth).
[9] Note that the New Covenant eventually divided mankind into three groups: (a) Christian covenant-keepers, (b) Christian covenant breakers, and (c) non-Christians who ignored or rejected the covenant.
[10]Unbelieving Gentiles remain in the Wild Olive Tree.
[11] Undoubtedly Jerusalem. Also salem means “shalom” or “God’s peace.”
[19] Particularly during the Great Tribulation that lasted 1,260 years (538-1798 AD), but also afterwards as well.
[20] Circa.1925 AD. Please note, however, that none but God-the-Father knows the timing of the End Time events.
[21] I speculate that the most likely End Time scenario is that (a) Babylon-the-Great (probably the USA) will be destroyed, thereby taking with it the UN headquarters in NYC, (b) a new UN headquarters will be built in Israel, (c) the antichrist, whom the Scriptures identify as the Romanist pope, will be appointed as its Secretary General, (d) the antichrist will preside over the ratification of a treaty between the UN and Israel permitting the Jews to seize the Temple Mount, rebuild the temple, and resume animal and bird sacrifices, (e) the world will be plunged into a time of terrible trouble and tribulation, and then (f) the end of the age will come with the Parousia, the General Resurrection, the Rapture of the Saints, the Battle of Armageddon, and the destruction of the old heavens and the old earth.
[22] See Randall Price’s Ready to Rebuild – The Imminent Plan to Rebuild the Temple the Last Days Temple (1992), The Coming Last Days Temple (1999), and The Temple and Bible Prophecy – A Definitive Look at Its Past, Present, and Future (2005).
