The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible - Part Seventeen - M Dec 01, 2019 by: John Herbert | Series: The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible Audio Study Notes PDF https://s3.amazonaws.com/cornerstonejax/sermonfiles/T006_20191201.mp3 Refresh A Recap from the Sermon Heb 12:25 See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, 26 whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” We will continue with the survey of the Bible today by looking at the shaking of heaven and earth. The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday December 1st 2019 The Word of God A Survey of the Bible – Lesson 17M ‘What More Shall I Say?’ 1). Heb 12:25 See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, 26 whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” 27 Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire. We have seen in our past weeks of study just how important it is for us not to turn away from Him who speaks from heaven. And we have seen how turning away is characterized by a failure to act upon that which God has said and we have heard – Jas 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. Through Peter we are told – 1 Pe 2:21 For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: If we choose not to follow ‘His steps’ then we have in effect turned away from Him. And turning away in this way takes us into the realm of unbelief and disobedience. And to do so is equivalent to OT Israel refusing Him who spoke on earth. And we know that it was unbelief, because they refused Him who spoke on the earth, that prevented the first generation from receiving their inheritance in the land of their calling, causing them to be consumed in the wilderness – Heb 3:19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. Ro 11:20 Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear. Php 2:2 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; So, why should we fear? Well, for very good reason – Heb 4:11 Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account. We should fear in case we ‘fall according to the same example of disobedience’ as the first generation of Israel who perished in the wilderness – ‘Much more shall we not escape’. For us, this would be to fall from our high calling, our heavenly calling – The very thing the Lord said to the church of Ephesus who had left their first love – Re 2:4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent. As we then continue in Hebrews, we see in Hebrews 4:12, the Word of God, making a division between soul and spirit in conjunction with v13 where ‘all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.’ a). And giving an account takes us to the Judgment Seat where our works of faithful obedience or the absence of such works, because of having turned away from Him who speaks from heaven, will be judged. And judgment in these verses takes us back to - Heb 12:29 For our God is a consuming fire. And through this image of the ‘consuming fire’ we can make the connection with 1 Corinthians Chapter 3, which also deals with our judgment at Christ’s Judgment Seat – 1 Co 3:11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is. 14 If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. Fire is used to symbolize judgment, and according to the picture given in the Corinthians verses, the nature of our works will be revealed by fire, by judgment. And should our works prove to have been of wood, hay, straw, works apart from faith, because we turned away, because we fell from our high calling, then these will be burned up in the ‘consuming fire’ which is our God, and we will suffer the loss – the Word of God will separate our unredeemed soul from our redeemed spirit. The division will have been made with age lasting consequences. b). But should our works be of ‘gold, silver, precious stones’, works emanating from faith, then these will remain. God is still the consuming fire, but these works done in faithful obedience will not be consumed and we will receive a reward – the reward of the inheritance, the ‘so great salvation’. 2). When God spoke on the earth at Sinai and the sons of Jacob refused Him, His voice then shook the earth – Ex 19:18 Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. And I am sure the symbolism will not be lost on us. The Lord descended upon the mountain ‘in fire’ – fire again symbolizing judgment and the whole mountain quaked greatly. The mountain quaking greatly can only picture the kingdom that existed on the earth at the time, Satan’s kingdom, represented through Pharaoh and the power of Egypt. a). The earthly manifestation of this kingdom found itself in judgment, seen through the 10 plagues, whose rule was shaken through the presence of God and His adopted firstborn son, where the Pharaoh and the power of Egypt was destroyed in the Red Sea – Ex 24:16 Now the glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day He called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. 17 The sight of the glory of the Lord was like a consuming fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the children of Israel. Let’s keep in mind that it was at Sinai that the Theocracy began when the glory filled the Tabernacle – Ex 40:34 Then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35 And Moses was not able to enter the tabernacle of meeting, because the cloud rested above it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. It was through the establishment of the Theocracy that Israel was placed at the head of the nations with a view to Israel ruling over the nations of the earth from the land of their inheritance. b). The Theocracy continued from the days of Sinai until the Babylonian captivity when it came to an end and the times of the Gentiles were set in place – Lu 21:24 And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. Throughout the time of the Theocracy, which ended when the glory left the Temple in Jerusalem, Israel never accomplished the purpose for the nation’s deliverance from Egypt. c). But as we see from Luke 21:24, the time allotted to the Gentiles to rule within Satan’s kingdom on the earth will be fulfilled. It will come to an end - Ro 11:25 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. Paul also makes clear that Gentile world power has an expiration date. d). In the days of the establishment of the Theocracy at Sinai God shook the earth, but if we go back to the verses we began with this morning from Hebrews Chapter 12, we find but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” The writer of Hebrews, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, drew this promise from the Book of Haggai – Hag 2:5 ‘According to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, so My Spirit remains among you; do not fear!’ 6 “For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; 7 and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord of hosts. 8 ‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts. 9 ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the Lord of hosts.” Haggai prophesied to the Jewish people during the time of the re-building of the temple, following the Babylonian captivity. And although, contextually, we are looking at Israel’s partial return to the land and the re-building of the temple in that day, Haggai’s prophecy takes us all the way from the deliverance of the first generation from Egypt in v5, to the Millennial Kingdom in v9. e). The Book of Hebrews is a book about the inhabited world to come which will not be in subjection to angels and the writer of this Book under the Holy Spirit’s direction places Haggai’s prophecy within this context, making clear the timeframe in which this prophecy must be seen. f). Although Israel returned to the land following the Babylonian captivity, it was by no means all the nation, whereas in that future day, every Jew coming alive out of the Tribulation, wherever they are to be found, will return to the land – Jer 29:12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive. This is a promise we can take all the way back to Jacob – Ge 28:13 And behold, the Lord stood above it and said: “I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. 14 Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. 15 Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.” A promise confirmed to Jacob’s descendants – De 30:1 “Now it shall come to pass, when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, and you call them to mind among all the nations where the Lord your God drives you, 2 and you return to the Lord your God and obey His voice, according to all that I command you today, you and your children, with all your heart and with all your soul, 3 that the Lord your God will bring you back from captivity, and have compassion on you, and gather you again from all the nations where the Lord your God has scattered you. 4 If any of you are driven out to the farthest parts under heaven, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there He will bring you. And although the re-building of the temple took place it had nothing of the glory of Solomon’s temple, which foreshadowed the one to come, nor did the glory of God occupy it. The times of the Gentiles continued, even as they do now, but the promise remains that God will shake both heaven and earth, the sea and dry land and the glory of the latter temple, the Millennial temple built by Christ, will be greater than the former. g). At Sinai, God’s voice shook the earth, but the promise is that He will [it is a little while] shake heaven and earth – what will be shaken are the two realms of rulership; Satan and the fallen angels in the heavens and Gentile world power on the earth. And Haggai adds ‘the sea and dry land’, which is not a different shaking, but sets the timeframe for it. The ‘sea’ pictures the Gentile nations and the ‘dry land’ the nation of Israel. And as we know, the time for Israel’s shaking will be the Great Tribulation. This then is when heaven and earth will be shaken in fulfillment of the promise. 3). God’s purpose has always been for His 3 firstborn sons to rule within this particular province of His universal Kingdom, the earth and the heavens associated with it – Col 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. But before this can happen the search for the Bride must be completed and God’s wayward son, Israel, must be brought to repentance – Jer 30:7 Alas! For that day is great, So that none is like it; And it is the time of Jacob's trouble, But he shall be saved out of it. And the inheritance lost in the Garden must be redeemed for Christ’s Bride – Eph 1:13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. The price for the inheritance has already been paid and it will be redeemed through the judgment and overthrow of Gentile world power on the earth and the judgment and overthrow of the rulers of the darkness of this age in the heavens – Isa 24:19 The earth is violently broken, The earth is split open, The earth is shaken exceedingly. 20 The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, And shall totter like a hut; Its transgression shall be heavy upon it, And it will fall, and not rise again. 21 It shall come to pass in that day That the Lord will punish on high the host of exalted ones, And on the earth the kings of the earth. The graphic imagery here in v19-21 from Isaiah Chapter 24 serves to underline the horrific nature of the last 3 ½ years of Man’s Day. And in v21 we find the conclusion to the matter – the host of exalted ones and the kings of the earth God will punish. a). And the Lord spoke of exactly the same thing in answer to His disciples’ question, ‘Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?’ – Mt 24:29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. The events we see prophesied in Isaiah 24 and Matthew 24 are witnessed and recorded by John in the Book of the Revelation – Re 6:12 I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake [seismos – literally – the greatest shaking]; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. 13 And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. 14 Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. 15 And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, 16 and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” The imagery here in the Revelation is figurative not literal, although it does describe literal events as Satan and his angels will be cast out of heaven and every kingdom within the kingdom of Antichrist on the earth will be moved out of its place of rulership, just as we saw prophesied in Haggai Chapter 2 – Re 12:7 And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, 8 but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. 9 So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Gentile world power in its final form under Antichrist and Satan will be utterly destroyed as foreshadowed in the destruction of Egypt in the Red Sea, the times of the Gentiles will be fulfilled and the Kingdom of Christ will come – Da 2:31 “You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome. 32 This image's head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 34 You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth…………44 And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. 45 Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold—the great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure.” Mic 4:1 Now it shall come to pass in the latter days That the mountain of the Lord's house Shall be established on the top of the mountains, And shall be exalted above the hills; And peoples shall flow to it. 2 Many nations shall come and say, “Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths.” Re 11:15 Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!” 16 And the twenty-four elders who sat before God on their thrones fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying: “We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty, The One who is and who was and who is to come, Because You have taken Your great power and reigned. 18 The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come, And the time of the dead, that they should be judged, And that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, And those who fear Your name, small and great, And should destroy those who destroy the earth.” 19 Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail. This is the absolute certainty of what is to come in the very near future when God will shake the heaven and the earth, and this is the Kingdom that is on offer to us if we will choose to be doers of the Word and not hearers only. b). This is the Millennial Kingdom of Christ that can never be destroyed. Let’s remember where we began today - 27 Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire. Everything we see, know and understand about the present function of the world from its governance, its institutions, to climate change, is soon to be shaken and removed. That which will remain is the Kingdom that cannot be shaken, the Kingdom we are to receive – Isa 11:9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord As the waters cover the sea. 10 “And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, Who shall stand as a banner to the people; For the Gentiles shall seek Him, And His resting place shall be glorious.” Given all of this the writer of Hebrews exhorts us, ‘let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear’, remembering that if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven that ‘our God is a consuming fire’. c). But if we will hear His voice while it is still today and go on to perfection being doers of the Word, then we can look forward to joy inexpressible and full of glory as we receive the end of our faith, the salvation of our soul, when our hope will be realized through the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. More next time – if the Lord is willing. Ro 16:25 Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began 26 but now made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures made known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for obedience to the faith— 27 to God, alone wise, be glory through Jesus Christ forever. Amen. The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible - Part Seventeen - M Dec 01, 2019 Speaker: John Herbert Series: The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible Category: Sunday Morning https://s3.amazonaws.com/cornerstonejax/sermonfiles/T006_20191201.mp3 Download Audio x
Refresh A Recap from the Sermon Heb 12:25 See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, 26 whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” We will continue with the survey of the Bible today by looking at the shaking of heaven and earth. The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday December 1st 2019 The Word of God A Survey of the Bible – Lesson 17M ‘What More Shall I Say?’ 1). Heb 12:25 See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, 26 whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” 27 Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire. We have seen in our past weeks of study just how important it is for us not to turn away from Him who speaks from heaven. And we have seen how turning away is characterized by a failure to act upon that which God has said and we have heard – Jas 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. Through Peter we are told – 1 Pe 2:21 For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: If we choose not to follow ‘His steps’ then we have in effect turned away from Him. And turning away in this way takes us into the realm of unbelief and disobedience. And to do so is equivalent to OT Israel refusing Him who spoke on earth. And we know that it was unbelief, because they refused Him who spoke on the earth, that prevented the first generation from receiving their inheritance in the land of their calling, causing them to be consumed in the wilderness – Heb 3:19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. Ro 11:20 Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear. Php 2:2 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; So, why should we fear? Well, for very good reason – Heb 4:11 Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account. We should fear in case we ‘fall according to the same example of disobedience’ as the first generation of Israel who perished in the wilderness – ‘Much more shall we not escape’. For us, this would be to fall from our high calling, our heavenly calling – The very thing the Lord said to the church of Ephesus who had left their first love – Re 2:4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent. As we then continue in Hebrews, we see in Hebrews 4:12, the Word of God, making a division between soul and spirit in conjunction with v13 where ‘all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.’ a). And giving an account takes us to the Judgment Seat where our works of faithful obedience or the absence of such works, because of having turned away from Him who speaks from heaven, will be judged. And judgment in these verses takes us back to - Heb 12:29 For our God is a consuming fire. And through this image of the ‘consuming fire’ we can make the connection with 1 Corinthians Chapter 3, which also deals with our judgment at Christ’s Judgment Seat – 1 Co 3:11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is. 14 If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. Fire is used to symbolize judgment, and according to the picture given in the Corinthians verses, the nature of our works will be revealed by fire, by judgment. And should our works prove to have been of wood, hay, straw, works apart from faith, because we turned away, because we fell from our high calling, then these will be burned up in the ‘consuming fire’ which is our God, and we will suffer the loss – the Word of God will separate our unredeemed soul from our redeemed spirit. The division will have been made with age lasting consequences. b). But should our works be of ‘gold, silver, precious stones’, works emanating from faith, then these will remain. God is still the consuming fire, but these works done in faithful obedience will not be consumed and we will receive a reward – the reward of the inheritance, the ‘so great salvation’. 2). When God spoke on the earth at Sinai and the sons of Jacob refused Him, His voice then shook the earth – Ex 19:18 Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. And I am sure the symbolism will not be lost on us. The Lord descended upon the mountain ‘in fire’ – fire again symbolizing judgment and the whole mountain quaked greatly. The mountain quaking greatly can only picture the kingdom that existed on the earth at the time, Satan’s kingdom, represented through Pharaoh and the power of Egypt. a). The earthly manifestation of this kingdom found itself in judgment, seen through the 10 plagues, whose rule was shaken through the presence of God and His adopted firstborn son, where the Pharaoh and the power of Egypt was destroyed in the Red Sea – Ex 24:16 Now the glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day He called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. 17 The sight of the glory of the Lord was like a consuming fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the children of Israel. Let’s keep in mind that it was at Sinai that the Theocracy began when the glory filled the Tabernacle – Ex 40:34 Then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35 And Moses was not able to enter the tabernacle of meeting, because the cloud rested above it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. It was through the establishment of the Theocracy that Israel was placed at the head of the nations with a view to Israel ruling over the nations of the earth from the land of their inheritance. b). The Theocracy continued from the days of Sinai until the Babylonian captivity when it came to an end and the times of the Gentiles were set in place – Lu 21:24 And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. Throughout the time of the Theocracy, which ended when the glory left the Temple in Jerusalem, Israel never accomplished the purpose for the nation’s deliverance from Egypt. c). But as we see from Luke 21:24, the time allotted to the Gentiles to rule within Satan’s kingdom on the earth will be fulfilled. It will come to an end - Ro 11:25 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. Paul also makes clear that Gentile world power has an expiration date. d). In the days of the establishment of the Theocracy at Sinai God shook the earth, but if we go back to the verses we began with this morning from Hebrews Chapter 12, we find but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” The writer of Hebrews, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, drew this promise from the Book of Haggai – Hag 2:5 ‘According to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, so My Spirit remains among you; do not fear!’ 6 “For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; 7 and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord of hosts. 8 ‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts. 9 ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the Lord of hosts.” Haggai prophesied to the Jewish people during the time of the re-building of the temple, following the Babylonian captivity. And although, contextually, we are looking at Israel’s partial return to the land and the re-building of the temple in that day, Haggai’s prophecy takes us all the way from the deliverance of the first generation from Egypt in v5, to the Millennial Kingdom in v9. e). The Book of Hebrews is a book about the inhabited world to come which will not be in subjection to angels and the writer of this Book under the Holy Spirit’s direction places Haggai’s prophecy within this context, making clear the timeframe in which this prophecy must be seen. f). Although Israel returned to the land following the Babylonian captivity, it was by no means all the nation, whereas in that future day, every Jew coming alive out of the Tribulation, wherever they are to be found, will return to the land – Jer 29:12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive. This is a promise we can take all the way back to Jacob – Ge 28:13 And behold, the Lord stood above it and said: “I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. 14 Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. 15 Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.” A promise confirmed to Jacob’s descendants – De 30:1 “Now it shall come to pass, when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, and you call them to mind among all the nations where the Lord your God drives you, 2 and you return to the Lord your God and obey His voice, according to all that I command you today, you and your children, with all your heart and with all your soul, 3 that the Lord your God will bring you back from captivity, and have compassion on you, and gather you again from all the nations where the Lord your God has scattered you. 4 If any of you are driven out to the farthest parts under heaven, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there He will bring you. And although the re-building of the temple took place it had nothing of the glory of Solomon’s temple, which foreshadowed the one to come, nor did the glory of God occupy it. The times of the Gentiles continued, even as they do now, but the promise remains that God will shake both heaven and earth, the sea and dry land and the glory of the latter temple, the Millennial temple built by Christ, will be greater than the former. g). At Sinai, God’s voice shook the earth, but the promise is that He will [it is a little while] shake heaven and earth – what will be shaken are the two realms of rulership; Satan and the fallen angels in the heavens and Gentile world power on the earth. And Haggai adds ‘the sea and dry land’, which is not a different shaking, but sets the timeframe for it. The ‘sea’ pictures the Gentile nations and the ‘dry land’ the nation of Israel. And as we know, the time for Israel’s shaking will be the Great Tribulation. This then is when heaven and earth will be shaken in fulfillment of the promise. 3). God’s purpose has always been for His 3 firstborn sons to rule within this particular province of His universal Kingdom, the earth and the heavens associated with it – Col 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. But before this can happen the search for the Bride must be completed and God’s wayward son, Israel, must be brought to repentance – Jer 30:7 Alas! For that day is great, So that none is like it; And it is the time of Jacob's trouble, But he shall be saved out of it. And the inheritance lost in the Garden must be redeemed for Christ’s Bride – Eph 1:13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. The price for the inheritance has already been paid and it will be redeemed through the judgment and overthrow of Gentile world power on the earth and the judgment and overthrow of the rulers of the darkness of this age in the heavens – Isa 24:19 The earth is violently broken, The earth is split open, The earth is shaken exceedingly. 20 The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, And shall totter like a hut; Its transgression shall be heavy upon it, And it will fall, and not rise again. 21 It shall come to pass in that day That the Lord will punish on high the host of exalted ones, And on the earth the kings of the earth. The graphic imagery here in v19-21 from Isaiah Chapter 24 serves to underline the horrific nature of the last 3 ½ years of Man’s Day. And in v21 we find the conclusion to the matter – the host of exalted ones and the kings of the earth God will punish. a). And the Lord spoke of exactly the same thing in answer to His disciples’ question, ‘Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?’ – Mt 24:29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. The events we see prophesied in Isaiah 24 and Matthew 24 are witnessed and recorded by John in the Book of the Revelation – Re 6:12 I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake [seismos – literally – the greatest shaking]; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. 13 And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. 14 Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. 15 And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, 16 and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” The imagery here in the Revelation is figurative not literal, although it does describe literal events as Satan and his angels will be cast out of heaven and every kingdom within the kingdom of Antichrist on the earth will be moved out of its place of rulership, just as we saw prophesied in Haggai Chapter 2 – Re 12:7 And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, 8 but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. 9 So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Gentile world power in its final form under Antichrist and Satan will be utterly destroyed as foreshadowed in the destruction of Egypt in the Red Sea, the times of the Gentiles will be fulfilled and the Kingdom of Christ will come – Da 2:31 “You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome. 32 This image's head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 34 You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth…………44 And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. 45 Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold—the great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure.” Mic 4:1 Now it shall come to pass in the latter days That the mountain of the Lord's house Shall be established on the top of the mountains, And shall be exalted above the hills; And peoples shall flow to it. 2 Many nations shall come and say, “Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths.” Re 11:15 Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!” 16 And the twenty-four elders who sat before God on their thrones fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying: “We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty, The One who is and who was and who is to come, Because You have taken Your great power and reigned. 18 The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come, And the time of the dead, that they should be judged, And that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, And those who fear Your name, small and great, And should destroy those who destroy the earth.” 19 Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail. This is the absolute certainty of what is to come in the very near future when God will shake the heaven and the earth, and this is the Kingdom that is on offer to us if we will choose to be doers of the Word and not hearers only. b). This is the Millennial Kingdom of Christ that can never be destroyed. Let’s remember where we began today - 27 Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire. Everything we see, know and understand about the present function of the world from its governance, its institutions, to climate change, is soon to be shaken and removed. That which will remain is the Kingdom that cannot be shaken, the Kingdom we are to receive – Isa 11:9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord As the waters cover the sea. 10 “And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, Who shall stand as a banner to the people; For the Gentiles shall seek Him, And His resting place shall be glorious.” Given all of this the writer of Hebrews exhorts us, ‘let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear’, remembering that if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven that ‘our God is a consuming fire’. c). But if we will hear His voice while it is still today and go on to perfection being doers of the Word, then we can look forward to joy inexpressible and full of glory as we receive the end of our faith, the salvation of our soul, when our hope will be realized through the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. More next time – if the Lord is willing. Ro 16:25 Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began 26 but now made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures made known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for obedience to the faith— 27 to God, alone wise, be glory through Jesus Christ forever. Amen.