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-Introduction -
By Tim Czapiewski
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Those familiar with the classic
interpretation of Daniel 11 wonder how I can jump over 2200 years to our
day and apply recent events formerly associated with the power of Greece
to this chapter. Below is my explanation. |
Before we
begin:
I have
observed in the
religious world that the good interpretations and the better
interpretations often conspire together and make intellectual war against the
best interpretations. Please do
not investigate this presentation with the thought in mind that
any
classic viewpoint must set itself at war with an idea that is new.
Consider that classic ideas are very similar to our old,
comfortable, and good fitting garments. That old garment is
certainly useful for certain occasions but that does not mean that
it is appropriate for
all occasions. And if you were required to stand before a great
and powerful figure such as the King of Heaven Himself,
wouldn't the thought cross your mind that your favorite old
garment might not be the most appropriate thing to wear for a once in a lifetime occasion? The following is a warning that Jesus has given to the
church of the last days concerning the wearing of garments.
"The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king,
which made a marriage for his son...And when the king came in to see the
guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he
saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding
garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the servants,
Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer
darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are
called, but few are chosen." (Matthew 22:2 & 11-14)
The man was not cast out of the
festival because he entered it stark naked. He was rejected from the
feast because he insisted on wearing
an item that HE WISHED to wear. The man willfully ignored the
established dress requirements. To better understand this illustration, we must understand the
nature of the eastern wedding feast. When a person was invited to a
festival, he was given a garment by the host. In
this instance, the host was a great king. The man who was cast out of
the festival should have realized that it was his duty to leave off the old garment and put on the new.
There was no excuse for this man’s negligence. Everyone knew that
entering a feast without wearing the proper attire was considered highly disrespectful. One would have to intend on “not” wearing
the garment provided by the King.
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So here is the relevant application
of the parable. If God's servants are to endure the great tribulation that Jesus predicted
is certain to come, His servants must develop an accurate mental picture
of the crisis in order to rise above the crisis. Jesus is indicating in
His parable that the old garment (our old mental pictures of the last
days) are inadequate. This is why the angel of Revelation 7:2-3
has postponed the crisis until the servants of God (those who are to
pass through the last days without seeing death) are properly "sealed". In
the parabolic language of Jesus, this means that God's servants must
leave behind of their old garments (old perspectives) and settle into garments that are
appropriate for the occasion. Our old garments (old perspectives) may
have served the church well in the past, but these old concepts will do the servants
of God a disservice when the final crisis begins. This means our old
perspectives will have to sit outside the feast on the prophetic coat
rack.
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God's people have been in this
position once before and they failed miserably. Long ago, the Jewish
church had expected that the Messiah would come with great
power and place the government of nations into the hands of the people
of Israel. Although this prophetic concept is certainly going to occur,
their expectation for the fulfillment of this event was off by 2000 years.
Church leaders had mingled the prophetic writings with ideas of their
own and this gave birth to many false views. The weight of these popular
teachings produced a unifying effect among the common people. Not even
the disciples could free themselves from many of the established
prophetic viewpoints and believed that Jesus Himself needed to correct
some of His viewpoints. Sadly, the only way the minds of the people
could be changed would be through a forceful campaign designed to
contradict the popular teachings. The only way the people were going to
perceive the progression of the Kingdom of God was by the setting aside
of their old garments (old concepts).
Jesus knew that this would surely
cause a shaking and create division among the ranks of the chosen
people. Jesus was feared by the leaders as an irresponsible and
dangerous man who brought disunity among them by striking against the
doctrines that bound them together. As signs and wonders were performed
in Christ's favor of the interpretations, the proud leaders refused to recalibrate their understanding
and poisoned the minds of the multitudes. Today, the church has come
full circle. We are standing on the threshold of prophetic events that
are
going to come crashing into the unsuspecting church with blinding force.
The great
religious leaders of today have mingled together human wisdom with Bible
prophecy and have created a deadly concoction. The church at large has
lost the art of personal consultation of the scriptures and are eagerly
rallying under the banner of the false teachings of men.
In the
providence of God, you may be receiving a timely forewarning in order to
research the matters I am bringing to light and “see if these things are
so”. (see Acts 17:11) The proper understanding of the
prophecy of Daniel eleven is hugely important to the church of the last days
and all who wish to endure them to the very end must be able to make a
distinction between the old light and the new.
"No
man also having drunk old wine straightway desireth new: for he saith,
'The old is better." (Luke 5:39)
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