In Ancient Footsteps - Elul 2009 - Day 9 beginning at Sunset

Empowering the Believer with Biblical Answers
for the Spirit, Soul & Body

The Month of Elul - Have you met the King? 

The King of Kings is in the field!

Majestic, might, full of strength and power. This is how we see the King of Kings....add to that some - sometimes He seems unapproachable. But this month - it's different! He is waiting for us to come up to Him, t be with Him to reason with Him. Now is the time!

As we continue about the House of Israel -

“In the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes ... So was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria unto this day.”

The parable of the two sticks in Ezekiel 37:15-30 reveals that the coming reunion of the two houses will occur only at the end of the present age, just before the last great battle described in chapter 38. Similarly, it is when “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea,” that “the outcasts of Israel” and “the dispersed of Judah” are gathered together “from the four corners of the earth.” (Isaiah 11:9, 11, 13)

Some say that they were reunited in the land of Assyria shortly after their captivity began. If so, how can the separate sets of latter day promises be fulfilled to Judah and Israel if they were reunited 2700 years ago? Instead, we are told that they would be rejoined when they had “One Shepherd,” David’s Greater Son, the Messiah (Ezekiel 37:24; John 11:51-52), which awaits the full restoration of the Kingdom of Israel to her Messiah. Given this future time frame, the reunion could not yet have fully occurred. The Bible presents much additional evidence that the houses of Israel and Judah are still separate nations and peoples in our world today, and clearly identifies the “lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Matthew 10:5; 15:24)

Indeed, there are many clues to the identity of lost Israel from both the Bible and history. The Apocrypha tells us that they were conquered by Assyria and dispersed to an uninhabited land, “where never mankind dwelt” (2 Esdras 13:40-48), a good description of uninhabited Europe of that day. Isaiah 62:2 says that they would have “a new name.” They would become “a company of nations” (Genesis 17:5), “many nations” (Genesis 35:11), and would take the gospel “to the ends of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6). In fact, Ezekiel tells us that the dispersion of the house of Israel was God’s way of purifying this people: “I will scatter you among the nations and disperse you through the countries: and I will consume your uncleanness out of you.” (Ezekiel 22:15, Masoretic Text) They would have a new land, a new heart, a new Spirit, and a New Covenant. (2 Samuel 7:10, Ezekiel 36:24-26, Jeremiah 31:31) The result would be that God would use them to set right the earth. (Isaiah 42:3-7) Who could this people be in our modern world? The Bible gives us many clues, including the heraldic emblems associated with each of the tribes of Israel in Genesis 48 and Deuteronomy 33.

To learn more study the above scriptures or order the "Identity Crisis" and the "Great Church Audit" and discover who you really are in the House!

Continued tomorrow....

Cucumber, Fennel, Orange w/Pomegrante Seed Salad 

Serves 8

2 hothouse cucumbers, peeled and thinly sliced
1 large fennel bulb, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced
2 large naval oranges, zest and pith removed, halved and thinly sliced
2 bunches watercress or 8 ounces young spinach leaves
3 tablespoons sherry vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 cup olive oil
1 cup pomegranate seeds
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

Combine cucumbers, fennel, onion, oranges and watercress in large
shallow bowl. Whisk together vinegar, orange juice, honey and olive oil.
Toss with salad.

Sprinkle with pomegranate seeds and pine nuts.