By Jim Stockstill

The Secret (Mystery) Church Revealed

August 24, 2023

The Holy Spirit identifies “Saints” throughout the Bible to refer to people who have accepted the rule of God in their lives

 

The Command (Law), Punishment, and Judgment

 

• Meaning of Numbers: The Number 7
• Blood Applied 7 Times for Sin
• Sabbath Rest for the Land
• The First Institution of 7 Times Punishment
• Warnings of Coming Judgment and Punishment
• Punishment Decreed
• Punishment Enforced

The Battle of Carchemish was fought about 605 BC between the armies of Egypt allied with the remnants of the army of the former Assyrian Empire against the armies of Babylonia, allied with the Medes, Persians, and Scythians.  Nebuchadrezzar soundly defeated Pharoh Necho’s troops and forced their withdrawal from Syria and Palestine.  After his father’s death on August 16, 605, Nebuchadnezzar returned to Babylon and ascended the throne within three weeks.

• Necho [H 3520]: Lame.

2 Chronicles 35:19-22 “19 In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah was this Passover kept. 20 After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple, Necho king of Egypt came up to fight against Charchemish by the Euphrates: and Josiah went out against him. 21 But he sent ambassadors to him, saying, What have I to do with thee, thou king of Judah? I come not against thee this day, but against the house wherewith I have war: for God commanded me to make haste: forbear thee from meddling with God, who is with me, that he destroy thee not. 22 Nevertheless Josiah would not turn his face from him, but disguised himself, that he might fight with him, and hearkened not unto the words of Necho from the mouth of God and came to fight in the valley of Megiddo.”

2 Chronicles 36:3-7 “3 And the king of Egypt put him down at Jerusalem and condemned the land in a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. 4 And the king of Egypt made Eliakim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem and turned his name to Jehoiakim. And Necho took Jehoahaz his brother and carried him to Egypt. 5 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem: and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord his God. 6 Against him came up Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and bound him in fetters, to carry him to Babylon. 7 Nebuchadnezzar also carried off the vessels of the house of the Lord to Babylon and put them in his temple at Babylon.”

 

70-Year Captivity Confirmed

 

The Three Sieges of Jerusalem [605, 597, and 586 BC]

 Timeline for Israel:

1 Kings 6:1

1406 to 967 BC = 439 years to King Solomon 967 to 605 BC = 362 years Solomon to First Siege

Definition in Hebrew of a Week

And again, the Law Seven (7) of Judgment/Punishment for Disobedience

 

The 70 Weeks of the Prophet Daniel

 

The Purpose of the 70 Weeks

 

Daniel 9:24

 

Breakdown of Verses 24-27

 

Daniel 9:24 “Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people [Israelites] and upon thy holy city [Jerusalem], to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.”

• Weeks [H 7620]: Heptad

Of the 800 + years in the promised land, Israel disobeyed the sabbatical rest of the land for 490 years.  The 70 weeks are confirmed in Leviticus, 2 Chronicles, and Jeremiah.

Daniel 9:25 “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.”

• Cyrus Helps the Exiles to Return 536 B.C.

• Cyrus and Darius Jews Allowed to Resume the Building [16-year delay] 520 B.C.

• 7^th Year of Artaxerxes: Decree to Restore the Local Government in Jerusalem 457 B.C.

Ezra 7:7-8 “7 Some of the Israelites, including priests, Levites, musicians, gatekeepers, and temple servants, also came up to Jerusalem in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes. 8 Ezra arrived in Jerusalem in the fifth month of the seventh year of the king.”

• 20^th Year of Artaxerxes: Decree to Finish Rebuilding the Temple, City, and Walls 445 B.C.

Artaxerxes Sends Nehemiah to Jerusalem [Cupbearer – was also his trusted food tester]

Why are [7 and 62] 69 weeks of 360-day years that total 173,880 days important in prophecy (Eschatology: last times)?

So far, we covered in Scripture, that the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem was given by Artaxerxes Longimanus on March 14, 445 B.C.[Sir Robert Anderson].  The emphasis in the verse on “the street” and “the wall” was to avoid confusion with other earlier mandates confined to rebuilding the Temple.

• Zechariah 9:9 “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.”

During the ministry of Jesus Christ, there were several occasions in which the people attempted to promote Him as king, but He carefully avoided it.

• John 6:14-15 “14 Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world. 15 When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone.”

The Triumphal Entry

Then, one day, Jesus set the timing and meticulously arranged the details to fulfill Daniel’s prophetic timeline.  On this particular day, he rode into the city of Jerusalem riding on a donkey, again, fulfilling another prophecy by Zechariah, the true Messiah would present Himself as king on the exact day and fashion prophesied.

The date for Daniel’s prophecy is the first year of Darius, which means that it occurred in the year 539 B.C. or about 66 or 67 years after the Jews initially went into exile to Babylonia.  More than 5 centuries before the triumphal entry through the sheep’s gate.

Psalm 118:25-29 “…will rejoice and be glad in it. 25 Save now, I beseech thee, O Lord: O Lord, I beseech thee, send now prosperity. 26 Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord: we have blessed you out of the house of the Lord. 27 God is the Lord, which hath showed us light: bind the sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the altar. 28 Thou art my God, and I will praise thee: thou art my God, I will exalt thee. 29 O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endures forever.” [Humor – the stones would cry out – “living stones,” Selah]

On [Nisan] April 10, 32 A.D. their Meshiach Nagid (Messiah the Prince) entered Jerusalem through the sheep gate exactly 173,880 days as foretold by Prince Gabriel fulfilling the seven “sevens” and sixty-two “sevens” – 69 sevens of weeks.

Daniel 9:25 “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.”

Seven Weeks of Years:         7 X 7 =          49 years        Time it took to rebuild Jerusalem

Sixty-two Weeks of Years:   62 X 7 =          434 years        Anointed One will be cut off after 62 weeks

            Total                           69                    483 years                                                       

  

The Break Between Verses 26 and 27

 

Daniel 9:26 “And after threescore and two weeks [62 weeks or 434 years] shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary, and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.”

 

Seven Weeks of Years:         7 X 7 =          49 years        Time it took to rebuild Jerusalem

Sixty-two Weeks of Years:   62 X 7 =          434 years        Anointed One will be cut off after 62 weeks

           

Total                           69 weeks        483 years        173,880 Exact days to triumphant entrance         

March 14, 445 B.C. to [Nisan 10^th/Sunday] April 6, 32 A.D. is the intervening period between the issuing decree by King Artaxerxes to rebuild Jerusalem (walls and streets) and the (cutting off) crucifixion of Jesus.

“…The prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary, and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.”

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Destruction Prophesied by Daniel and Confirmed by Jesus

Matthew 24:1-2 “1 And Jesus went out and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. 2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye, not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

• Titus (Vespasian) in 70 A.D. encircled Jerusalem with the three legions (the 5th Macedonian, 12th Thunderbolt, 15th Apollinaris) on the western side and a fourth (10th Legion of the Strait) on the Mount of Olives and completely leveled the city following a 5-month siege.

Concluding verse 26: The weeks [7 + 62] 69, years [49 and 434] 483, and 173,880 exact days were confirmed more than 500 years later as we read in Matthew 21.  Moreover, in order to make the Jewish Scriptures (Old Testament) available to the average Jewish reader, a project was sponsored by Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285–246 B.C.) to translate the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek.  Seventy scholars were commissioned to complete this work and their result is known as the “Septuagint” (“70”) translation.  (This is often abbreviated as “LXX.”) 300 years in print before the New Testament.

Daniel 9:27 “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week and in the midst of the week, he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.”

Confirm [H 1396]: To give strength as with a covenant.

Covenant [H 1285]: Treaty, alliance, or league.  Alliance as in the marriage of God.  More binding than a promise committed by fraud: Gibeonites: Joshua 9:14-15.

One week [H 7620]: seven, a period of days or years.  Specifically in Daniel, the Hebrew word is “heptad” or seven years.

Verse 27: He will enter into a binding and irrevocable covenant with the many for one week [seven years, the 70^th week of years, or 490 years].  But, in the middle of the week (31/2 years, 42 months, 1260 days, or time, times and half a time) he will stop the sacrifice and grain offerings and for the overspreading of abominations, he shall make it desolate.

Daniel 9:27 “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week [seven years] and in the midst of the week [3^1/2 years], he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.”

• Antiochus Epiphanes the Greek Hellenistic king ruled the Seleucid Empire from 175 BC until his death in 164 BC.  On Kislev 25, 167 BC, his military sacked Jerusalem and defiled the temple by sacrificing a sow on an altar erected to Zeus.  The desecration ended the temple sacrifices and triggered the Maccabean revolt.  Three years later, on Antiochus Epiphanes’ birthday, and the desecration of the temple, the Maccabees drove out the Greeks, cleansed the temple, and dedicated it on Kislev 25, 164 BC.

Between the prophetic word of Daniel and confirmed by Jesus regarding the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D., 38 years passed.  And from that time, more than 2,000 years have passed.

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Part 4: Saints of God and Rapture

 

Three Categories of Saints

 

The Holy Spirit identifies “Saints” throughout the Bible to refer to people who have accepted the rule of God in their lives and is a common word for believers of all ages.  There are three groups of saints who are divided by dispensations or periods of time.

In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God.  However, the use of the term saint depends on the context and denomination.  In Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Oriental Orthodox, and Lutheran doctrines, all of their faithful deceased in Heaven are considered to be saints, but some are considered worthy of greater honor or emulation.  Official ecclesiastical recognition, and consequently a public cult of veneration, is conferred on some denominational saints through the process of canonization in the Catholic Church or glorification in the Eastern Orthodox Church after their approval.

While the English word saint originated in Christianity, historians of religion tend to use the appellation “in a more general way to refer to the state of special holiness that many religions attribute to certain people,” referring to the Jewish Tzadik, the Islamic Walī, the Hindu rishi or Sikh Bhagat and guru, the Shintoist Kami, the Taoist Shengren, and the Buddhist arhat as saints.  Depending on the religion, saints are recognized either by official ecclesiastical declaration, as in the Catholic faith, or by popular acclamation.

The English word saint comes from the Latin Sanctus, with the Greek [G 40] equivalent being (Hagios) or most holy thing.  Hagios appears 229 times in the Greek New Testament, and its English translation 60 times in the corresponding text of the King James Version of the Bible.  As we will review, the Hebrew [H 6918] is used 12 times as it relates to individuals (not Jehovah).

The word Sanctus was originally a technical one in ancient Roman religion, but due to its globalized use in Christianity, the modern word saint is now also used as a translation of comparable terms for persons “worthy of veneration for their holiness or sanctity” in other religions.

First: Old Testament Saints

Psalm 85:1-9 “1 Lord, thou hast been favorable unto thy land: thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob. 2 Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin. Selah. 3 Thou hast taken away all thy wrath: thou hast turned thyself from the fierceness of thine anger. 4 Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger toward us to cease. 5 Wilt thou be angry with us forever? wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations? 6 Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee? 7 Shew us thy mercy, O Lord, and grant us thy salvation. 8 I will hear what God the Lord will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints, but let them not turn again to folly. 9 Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him; that glory may dwell in our land.”

Psalm 97:6-12 “6 The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory. 7 Confounded be all they that serve graven images, which boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods. 8 Zion heard and was glad, and the daughters of Judah rejoiced because of thy judgments, O Lord. 9 For thou, Lord, art high above all the earth: thou art exalted far above all gods. 10 Ye that love the Lord, hate evil: he preserves the souls of his saints; he delivered them out of the hand of the wicked. 11 Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart. 12 Rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.

• Saints [H2623]: Pious ones – devoted entirely to God.
• Righteous [6662]: Ethically in conduct and character towards God.

Jesus Speaking of John the Baptist

Matthew 11:8-11 “8 But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft raiment. Behold, they who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. 9 But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet. 10 For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee (Malachi 3:1). 11 Verily I say unto you, among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” Jewish translation: Yochanan the Immerser.

Matthew 11:13-14 “13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. 14 And if ye will receive it, this is Elias (Elijah), which was for to come.”

Jesus Speaking of the Law and Prophets

Luke 16:14-16 “14 And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him. 15 And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God. 16 The law and the prophets were until John since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presses into it. 17 And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle [G 2762 (2x): accents and diacritical points] of the law to fail.”

Luke 16:16-17 “16 Until John came, there were the Law and the Prophets; since then, the good news (the Gospel) of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone strives violently to go in [would force his own way rather than God’s way into it]. 17 Yet it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to fail and become void.”

• Until [G 2193]: Before the names of illustrious men by which a period of time is marked.

The Greatest of Men

According to his own words, John did not view himself as “great.”  Rather, he did not see himself worthy enough to baptize Jesus (Matthew 3:13–14) or even to carry or unlatch His sandals (Matthew 3:11).  Even as Yochanan the Immerser (Baptizo) of the Christ, his doubts and message of his disciples prompted the Lord’s revelation concerning (his cousin) John

• Matthew 3:3-5 “3 And asked Him, Are You the One Who was to come, or should we keep on expecting a different one? 4 And Jesus replied to them, Go and report to John what you hear and see: 5 The blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed (by healing) and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up and the poor have good news (the Gospel) preached to them.”

In studying Scripture and Bible history, Jesus called John the Baptist “the greatest,” John had the honor and privilege of being chosen by God as the forerunner to the Messiah.  John’s mission was to personally prepare the world for Christ’s arrival.  His ministry was prophesied in the Old Testament.

• Isaiah 40:3 “A voice of one who cries: Prepare in the wilderness the way of the Lord [clear away the obstacles]; make straight and smooth in the desert a highway for our God.”
• Malachi 3:1 “Behold, I send My messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me. And the Lord [the Messiah], whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; the Messenger or Angel of the covenant, Whom you desire, behold, He shall come, says the Lord of hosts.” [Matthew 11:10; Mark 1:2; Luke 1:76]

After Jesus arrived at the Jordon (the same place Israel crossed over into the promised land with Joshua/Jesus], John introduced Him to the world as the “Lamb of God” who would take away the sin of the world (John 1:35–36).  It was the fulfillment of the “Baptisma” (G 908: immersion/submersion) and the introduction of the Messiah that accredited Jesus before the Jewish crowds and leaders.  So, in context, in the Levitical lineage, a devout Nazarene [Numbers 6:1], and “the prophet of the Highest” [Luke 1:76] the “greatness” had to do with John’s unique position in history, not with any special talent, merit, or personal holiness.

• John the Baptist’s father [Zechariah] was a priest and therefore a Levite.  Luke captures the Davidic aspect of Christ by highlighting the fact that Christ was baptized (anointed in the Old Testament] by a Levite.  King David and all of his successors were anointed King Levites/prophets.  John the Baptist does the honor for Christ who is the Davidic King of all Israel.  Christ is anointed by the Father with the Holy Spirit through the instrumental action of the Levite John the Baptist.

John was also the “greatest” in that God had chosen him to break the 430 years of divine silence that had existed since the prophet Malachi.

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A quick lesson for Bereans and those interested in eschatology.

• Technically, Daniel 11 covers events in the “silent years”: 536 B.C. Medo-Persia and Greece, these two kingdoms occur, for the most part, during the intertestamental period.  The intertestamental period is the space of 400 years between Malachi and Matthew.  This is known as the 400 Years of Silence because there were no living prophets during this time.  But the details of the two kingdoms that were fulfilled during that time were prophesied in the Book of Daniel and so while we have no inspired accounts of the fulfillment of these kingdoms, they can be read in secular histories such as Herodotus and Jewish histories such as 1 and 2 Maccabees and later Josephus.

Nevertheless, even with an understanding of Daniel 11, John was the “anointed” [since in the womb of Elizabeth] bridge from the Old Testament to the New.  As Jesus stated, he was the last of the Old Testament prophets and stood on the cusp of a new dispensation – the Dispensation of Grace or the Age of the Church [Ekklesia/Ecclesia].  His preaching was the end of the Law and the beginning of the Promise.  He was the last in the extensive line of prophets who predicted Christ, yet he was the only one who would actually see Christ in the flesh.  Moses, Isaiah, and the rest of the prophets had pointed to a far-distant personage they could see only faintly.  John pointed at an actual human being who stood directly in front of him.  No other prophet had that privilege.

Jesus’ full statement in Matthew 11:11 is paradoxical: “Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist, yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” How can John be the greatest, if even the “least in the kingdom” is greater than John?  Again, the answer has to do with the Christian’s unique position in history, not with his personal merit.  John died without seeing the fullness of God’s plan in Christ.

• Mark 6:18-28 “18 For John had told Herod, It is not lawful, and you have no right to have your brother’s wife. 19 And Herodias was angry (enraged) with him and held a grudge against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not, 20 For Herod had [a reverential] fear of John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and [continually] kept him safe [under guard]. When he heard [John speak], he was very perplexed; and [yet] he heard him gladly. 21 But an opportune time came [for Herodias] when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his nobles and the high military commanders and chief men of Galilee. 22 For when the daughter of Herodias herself came in and danced, she pleased and fascinated Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, ask me for whatever you desire, and I will give it to you. 23 And he put himself under oath to her, Whatever you ask me, I will give it to you, even to the half of my kingdom. 24 Then she left the room and said to her mother, What shall I ask for [myself]? And she replied, the head of John the Baptist! 25 And she rushed back instantly to the king and requested, saying, I wish you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter. 26 And the king was deeply pained and grieved and exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests, he did not want to slight her. 27 And immediately the king sent off one [of the soldiers] of his bodyguard and gave him orders to bring [John’s] head. He went and beheaded him in prison 28 and brought his head on a platter and handed it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother.”

John never saw the crucifixion of Christ or His glorious resurrection.  Yet even the “least in the kingdom of heaven” knows of these events and understands their meaning.

The baptism of John was for acknowledgment and repentance of sin but was only the preparation for the baptism into the Lamb of God.

• Acts 19:1-7 “1 While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul went through the upper inland districts and came down to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. 2 And he asked them, Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed [on Jesus as the Christ]? And they said, No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit. 3 And he asked, Into what [baptism] then were you baptized? They said, Into John’s baptism. 4 And Paul said, John baptized with the baptism of repentance, continually telling the people that they should believe in the One Who was to come after him, that is, in Jesus [having a conviction full of joyful trust that He is Christ, the Messiah, and being obedient to Him]. 5 On hearing this they were baptized [again, this time] in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And as Paul laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them; and they spoke in [foreign, unknown] tongues (languages) and prophesied. 7 There were about twelve of them in all.”

The disciples of John in Corinth needed to hear the whole gospel; not just what John had taught.  They needed to be baptized “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” as Jesus instructed in Matthew 28:19.

As with the 11 disciples and close followers, they needed the baptism of the Holy Spirit as well.

• Luke 24:46-49 “46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: 47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 And ye are witnesses of these things. 49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.”

John was truly the greatest prophet of his era — the Old Testament time — yet Christians during the Dispensation of Grace or the Church Age have a much better perception of the complete work of Jesus Christ.

The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament

Psalm 51:10-19 “10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. 11 Cast me not away from thy presence and take not thy holy spirit from me.”

• [Take H 3947]: take away from, so as to deprive of, followed by accusative.  As Joseph and the prospect of Benjamin being taken away from Jacob.
  

Isiah 63:8-11 “8 For he said, Surely they are my people, children that will not lie, so he was their Savior. 9 In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them, and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old. 10 But they rebelled and vexed his holy Spirit, therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them. 11 Then he remembered the days of old, Moses, and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of his flock? where is he that put his holy Spirit within him?

Within [H 7130]: Rather, within it, i.e. His flock, the community.

Numbers 11:16-17, 25 “16 And the Lord said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knows to be the elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them unto the tabernacle of the congregation, that they may stand there with thee. 17 And I will come down and talk with thee there: and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not thyself alone. 25 And the Lord came down in a cloud, and spoke unto him, and took of the spirit that was upon him, and gave it unto the seventy elders: and it came to pass, that, when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied, and did not cease.”

1 Samuel 16:30 “Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So, Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.”

Haggai 2:5 “According to the word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remained among you: fear ye not.”

• Evil Spirit

1 Samuel 16:23 “And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took a harp, and played with his hand, so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.”

1 Samuel 18:10 “And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul’s hand.”

Old Testament Mention

• Daniel 2:18 “That they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.”
• Secret [H 7328 (9x) on in Daniel]: mystery
  

Second: New Testament Saints

Church Age – Dispensation of Grace

The second group is the Church [Ekklesia] age saints who are born again:

John 3:1-7 “1 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that you do, except God be with him. 3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.”

• [Again G 509]: from above, heaven.  See John 19:11, James 1:17, and James 3:15, 17.

1 Peter 1:23 “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which lives and abides forever.”

There are prominent scholars who believe these saints consist only of those saved between the Day of Pentecost and the Rapture of the Church.

• Acts 2:1-4 “1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
• Rapture – we will study and according to this school of thought depends on when the rapture occurs in their exegesis, hermeneutics.

New Testament Saints

Saints [G 40]: Agios. Set apart for God, as it were, exclusively his.  Under the influence of the Holy Spirit, they may be rendered, through (His) holiness, partakers of salvation in the Kingdom of God. 

Romans 1:5-7 “5 By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name 6 among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ: 7 To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

1 Corinthians 1:1-2 “1 Paul called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, 2 Unto the church of God, which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours.”

Stewards who are Faithful

• 1 Corinthians 4:1-2 “1 Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.”

Stewards [G 3623 (10x)]: Oikonomos as those to whom the counsels of God have been committed to be made known to men.  To whom the head of the house or proprietor has entrusted the management of his affairs, the care of receipts and expenditures, and the duty of dealing out the proper portion to every servant and even to the children not yet of age.

Faithful [G 4103]: Of persons who show themselves faithful in the transaction of business, the execution of commands, or the discharge of official duties:

Daniel 12:4 “But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words and seal up the book until the end of time; many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase.”

Mystery/Mysteries Revealed

Mystery/Mysteries [G 3466]: Mysterion, a hidden purpose or counsel, secret will.  Rabbinic writers – the mystic or hidden sense.

• Mysteries of the Kingdom [Matthew 13:11, Mark 4:11, and Luke 8:10]
• Mystery of God to be finished [Revelation 10:7]
• Mystery of Blindness of Israel [Romans 11:25-26]
• Mystery Babylon/Harlot [Revelation 17:5-7]
• Mystery of Lawlessness [2 Thessalonians 2:1-9]
• Mystery of Incarnation [1 Timothy 3:16 – Mystery of Godliness]
• 1 Timothy 3:16 “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”
• Mystery of the Headship of Christ [Ephesians 5:22-32]
• Mystery of the Change [Transform] of the Church [Ekklesia: 1 Corinthians 15:50-58] “rapture”

1 Corinthians 15:51 “Behold, I show you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed.

• Changed [G 236 (6x)]: Future to transform.  Cause one thing to cease and another to take its place.  Change or exchange one thing for another.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 “13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so, shall we ever be with the Lord. 18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.”

• Mystery of Church [the Body of Christ – the Ekklesia or Ecclesia]
  

Our study this session will focus on the latter, or as Paul stated three times to distinguish from the other apostles – “my gospel.”

• Romans 16:25 “Now to him that is of power to establish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began.” [1 Corinthians 3:10 and 2 Timothy 2:8]

First Mention: New Testament

Matthew 13:10-12 “10 And the disciples came, and said unto him, why speak thou unto them in parables? 11 He answered and said unto them because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them, it is not given. 12 For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.”

A key principle of understanding and knowledge.  He/she who values a thing (truth) and searches for a thing (truth) will be rewarded.

Matthew 13:16-17, 34-35 “16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see and your ears, for they hear. 17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear and have not heard them. 34 All these things spoke Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spoke he not unto them: 35 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.”

Ephesians 3:1-10 “1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, 2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: 3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, 4 whereby when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) 5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; 6 That the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel: 7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. 8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; 9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: 10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church [Ekklesia] the manifold wisdom of God.”

• Revelation [G 602]: A disclosure of truth, instruction, concerning things before that were unknown.

The Mystery of the Body of Christ

Ephesians 5:30-32 “30 For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. 31 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. 32 This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ [Christos] and the church [G 1577: Ekklesia].”

One Body with Many Members

1 Corinthians 12:12-13 “12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, and all were made to drink of one Spirit.”

Kings and Priest

• Melchizedek

Hebrews 7:1-3 “1 For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; 2 to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace; 3 without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abides a priest continually.”

• Yoshua, Hebrew, and Jesus in Greek

Psalm 110:1, 4-5 “1 The Lord said unto my Lord, sit thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool. 4 The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. 5 The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings on the day of his wrath.”

Hebrews 5:6, 8-10 “6 As he saith also in another place, thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchisedec. 8 though he were a Son yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; 9 and being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all of them that obey him; 10 called of God a high priest after the order of Melchisedec.” Hebrews 7:10-11, 15, 17, and 21.

Hebrews 10:19-21 “19 Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, which is to say, his flesh; 21 and having a high priest over the house of God.”

• Church Age Saints
  

1 Peter 2:4-5 “4 To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men but chosen of God, and precious, 5 ye also, as lively stones are built up a spiritual house, a holy [G 40: set apart] priesthood [G 2406 (2x): Priest of Kingly rank], to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.”

1 Peter 2:9-10 “9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal [G 935] priesthood [G 2406 (2x): Priest of Kingly rank], a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light 10 which in time past were not a people but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.”

Revelation 1:5-6 “5…and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood, 6 and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”

 

Blessings in Christ,

Joseph “Jim” Stockstill
“National War Council” – Founder and Chairman
Jim5555@nationalwarcouncil.org
P.O. Box 931
Argyle, TX 76226

nwc@nationalwarcouncil.org
Jim5555@nationalwarcouncil.org
Donations to National War Council

“He hath shown thee what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.”
Micah 6:8