Showing posts with label Shavuot. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shavuot. Show all posts

Friday, May 29, 2020

BOOK EXCERPT: “Seventh Dimension – The Prescience: A Young Adult Fantasy,” Shavuot and Coronavirus - Will God Heal Our Land Fifty Days After Passover




We were all locked up in our houses for Passover, in Israel, the United States, and around the world. This is the first time since the original Passover, when Moses lead the Israelites out of Egypt, that Passover has been a Festival when both Israelis and Christians have been hidden inside our homes.


I truly believe at Pentecost, or Shavuot, we will see something amazing happen. Will God heal our land? Will He send Covid-19 into oblivion?  

As a Christian, I'm praying for God to do a miracle, one that the critics will not be able to refute, one that even the naysayers will be forced to admit can only be from God.

Even if nothing happens, we have made a difference simply by praying. We have been obedient by acknowledging God's power and purpose in all of this. God allowed the coronavirus to infect our planet. In a twist of fate, the globalists got what they wanted - globalism in a pandemic.

But God takes the works of evil and uses it to glorify Him in a way that is profound and shocking. I know my Redeemer lives, and I know He is returning, perhaps sooner than many think. I'm excited to see the signs spoken of in the Bible harkening His soon return.

Below is an excerpt from Seventh Dimension - The Prescience, the fifth book in the Seventh Dimension Series, where Shale and Daniel, time travelers, experience the first Shavuot fifty days after Passover when Yeshua died on the cross for the salvation of all. 

The Jews rejected their Messiah. If only the Jews could recognize Yeshua’s death on the cross as The Holocaust, but God will open their eyes at the appointed time. Until then, Christians must occupy, sharing the Gospel, revealing God’s love, and acting as God’s ambassadors all over the world. Time is short. Expect miracles. Pray for the salvation of many.





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CHAPTER 26





THE CROWDED STREETS of the Upper City soon grabbed my attention as every blade of green grass and stone walkway was occupied.

Near the Temple Mount, a long procession of worshippers filled the courtyard. Hundreds of oxen decorated in flowery garlands were loaded down with fruits and grains. Children carried small baskets of figs and dates.

“This reminds me of an American parade,” I said.

Daniel waved his hand. “This is the festival of Shavuot, more commonly known to Christians as Pentecost.” As we neared the Temple entrance, the breathtaking view overwhelmed me. Thousands of visitors could fit inside the courtyard, not counting the animals. The crowd extended past the city 
gates and up the hills overlooking Jerusalem.

Daniel headed to the Temple entrance.

“Is it always like this?” I asked.

Daniel squeezed my hand. “Jewish travelers come from everywhere. It’s one of the three Jewish pilgrimages.”

How could Daniel share anything as significant as Jesus with Nidal here? Wouldn’t a quiet place be better? He spoke to Nidal, and I started to ask him to repeat it when the shofar blasted. Singing followed, and the praises of worshippers filled my ears. I caught some of the Hebrew words.

“He brought us to this place and has given us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey; and now, behold, I have brought the first fruits of the land which you, O Lord, have given me.”

“Let’s make our offering first, and then we’ll go to Solomon’s Porch,” Daniel said.

We waited our turn amongst hundreds of others. The air was cool despite the bright morning sun, and there was plenty of activity around us to fill the boredom of standing in line.

After waiting close to an hour, we made our offering. I’d never seen anything like this in America except at sporting events. Seeing humanity pressed in on all sides to worship was unprecedented. Getting students to attend our prayer meetings and Bible study at school paled in comparison.

Gradually at first, the wind began to stir. Soon it became stronger, but I was distracted by a woman’s voice. “Daniel!”

The voice was familiar. Seconds later, I recognized the young girl. Lilly waved her hand as she pressed toward us. I remembered Daniel praying with her in the synagogue over her father. Was she from this time or our future?

Daniel greeted her warmly. “Lilly, this is my betrothed, Shale.”

Lilly took my arm and nudged me as she shouted to Daniel. “Follow me. Peter and the disciples are at Solomon’s Porch. They have been here all morning praying.”

We picked our way through the masses as the wind increased. My anticipation mounted. However, it wasn’t a wild wind that blew. It went where it wanted.

“Daniel!” The wind circled over the Temple, descending as a whirlwind. I saw heaven open, and a voice that sounded like thunderous waters proclaimed, “And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

The disciples stood in a semicircle facing the crowd as hundreds gathered around. The Zephyr descended zigzagging through the Temple columns, and tongues of fire alighted upon the disciples and their followers.

Almost immediately, fire transformed them. Words of praise left their lips as hope danced on their faces. A supernatural peace settled over the Temple, and the disciples and others began to speak in tongues.

I heard English. How could that be? I lifted my eyes to heaven and raised my hands in celebration. Quite unexpectedly, I saw the risen Christ bathed in white light sitting on his throne.

Peter shouted for all to hear. “This Jesus has been exalted to the right hand of God, and we receive the Holy Spirit, that which you now see and hear.”

Several exclaimed, “I’m hearing you in my own tongue. How can that be?”

The people waved and stared as signs and wonders filled the Temple. Nidal shouted, “I’m hearing the words of Muhammad in Nepali. I’ve never heard Muhammad speak.”

I clasped Daniel’s arm, concerned that Nidal thought he was hearing Muhammad and not Jesus, but 

Daniel reassured me. “Let God speak.”

People were talking at once. I caught bits and pieces of several conversations.

“I’m hearing Peter in Arabic,” a foreigner exclaimed.

“I’m hearing him in Greek,” another shouted.

“Peter can’t speak Greek,” a woman interrupted. “He’s a fisherman from Galilee.”

“He’s speaking Aramaic,” another man said.

“Then why am I hearing him in Parthian?” a visitor asked. “I thought worship in the Temple was only in Hebrew.”

The crowd swelled around Solomon’s Porch as the winds of fire soared over the heads of eyewitnesses. The tongues alighted on some of the listeners, and they spoke in other languages. The multitude questioned each other. “Are these not Galileans? How is it that we’re hearing them in our own tongue?”

A few standing nearby mocked the disciples. “They are full of new wine.”

Fear crossed the faces of the Roman guards as they stared into the heavens. Nothing in their plethora of Roman gods could explain this event. Did they consider this was related to the death of Jesus whom they’d crucified seven weeks earlier?

I felt the electricity in the air—a supernatural kind that settled over the Temple environs. We were witnessing the fulfillment of the fourth of God’s seven festivals. The next festival to be fulfilled would be the Feast of Trumpets—and my thoughts ran amok contemplating that future event.

The murmurs increased, and I feared a riot might erupt. Then Peter stood on a table and addressed the onlookers. “Men of Judea and those who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and heed my words.

“For these men and women are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘It shall come to pass in the last days that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. Your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.’”

Peter raised his hands and quoted from God’s book. “‘And on my menservants and on my maidservants, I will pour out my spirit in those days, and they shall prophesy. I will show wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood and fire and vapor of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’”

I remembered my dream. The sun turning dark could be a solar eclipse, but what could a red moon mean except something in the atmosphere turning it red—like fire?

Peter explained what happened. “Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God, seven weeks ago, was put to death by crucifixion. On the third day, he rose from the dead. Even now in heaven, Christ sits on the throne.”

Peter said Jesus told them to wait in Jerusalem until he sent the gift of the Holy Spirit. Those present saw that outpouring. He quoted again from the Scriptures. “For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he said, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand, till I make your enemies your footstool.’”

Thousands on the Temple Mount heard Peter’s sermon, and many threw up their hands in contrite prayers of repentance. When the people realized the truth of Peter’s words, many hearts trembled with fear. Some asked, “What must we do?”

Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

Thousands came forward.

The mikvahs, large baths for ceremonial washing, were set up along the southern walls of the Temple Mount at the base of the double-gate stairs. Lines began to form. I’d never seen a turning to God by so many at one time. I leaned into Daniel. “This is the beginning of the church age.”

Daniel smiled. “I know.”

I glanced at Nidal who appeared stunned. Daniel draped his arm around his shoulder and spoke in his ear. I turned my attention to the Temple entrance. Some people were dispersing, unmoved by what they saw.

I shook my head in disbelief that anyone could walk away from God’s gift of the Holy Spirit. What else could God have done to show his perfect love to a perverse generation that missed his visitation? I remembered the words of Jesus, “For many are called, but few are chosen.”

After several minutes of intense discussion, Daniel relayed to me what Nidal said.

“Nidal wants to talk to me, and I can’t hear him here. Let’s go to another part of the Temple away from the noise.”

“Do you think he’ll tell you about your father?”

Daniel rubbed the nape of his neck. “If I don’t press too hard. He is quite shaken by what we’ve witnessed.”

Daniel led the way. I prayed as we walked that God would work a miracle. Since women weren’t allowed in the inner sanctum of the Temple, we stayed in the outer court. Daniel found a small portico, and we sat on some benches inside the columns that buttressed the wall.



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Saturday, June 3, 2017

BOOK EXCERPT: SEVENTH DIMENSION – THE PRESCIENCE: A Young Adult Fantasy, “Did Jesus Really Die on the Cross?”

Since the Jewish festival of Shavuot and the Christian religious day of Pentecost is upon us, I decided to share this excerpt from Seventh Dimension - The Prescience, which takes place on Pentecost in the first century. The question I asked myself before I wrote The Prescience was, what would happen if a Muslim convert from Hinduism heard Peter at Pentecost? What would be his reaction? 

God continues to encourage me with the editing as I finish my chemo treatments. I pray that this excerpt will help you to think about how you would witness to a Muslim. The excerpt includes one of the common questions that Muslims have about Christianity.  


The Berean Study Bible admonishes us:

So we aspire to please Him, whether we are here in this body or away from it. 10For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive his due for the things done in the body, whether good or bad. 11Therefore, since we know what it means to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is clear to God, and I hope it is clear to your conscience as well.


EXCERPT FROM THE PRESCIENCE


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Love motivated Jesus. He died for all of us. We deserve death, but Jesus died in our place so we could spend eternity with him.”

Nidal glanced down at his sandals and pushed a loose stone aside. “You know, Islam tells us that Jesus didn’t die on the cross.”
Daniel scooted up closer. “Do you know that no one in history, out of the thousands who were crucified by the Romans, survived the crucifixion?”

“What do you mean?” Nidal asked.

“There isn’t a single recorded case of anyone ever crucified by the Romans who came down off the cross alive. Every person who was crucified by the Romans died. Don’t you think that if one person, especially someone as controversial as Jesus, had managed to survive, it would have been widely known and reported? Plus, think of the eyewitnesses who saw Jesus die. The scriptures also tell us the Roman guard speared him in the side to make sure he was dead.”

Nidal reflected on Daniel’s words but remained quiet.



“Crucifixion is torture,” Daniel said, “and if by some chance Jesus did survive the crucifixion, do you think he could have made a full recovery based on the crude medical methods of this time period?”

“But how can you be sure?”

“As far as I know,” Daniel said, “there is very little dispute among most historians that Jesus died on the cross.”

“I wish I had a computer. I’d search it on Google, but I have a counterargument.”

Daniel brushed his hair back from his forehead. “What’s that?”

“I heard an Imam claim that Jesus’ body was replaced with the body of Judas.”

Daniel shook his head. “That would be impossible. Judas had already died when Jesus was crucified. The betrayer’s entails spilled out on the ground. That’s why the Jews had to sell the land. His blood had defiled it. Besides, dozens of people witnessed Jesus’ crucifixion, and Roman guards were present at his crucifixion the entire time.

“They took down Jesus’ dead body and gave it to his friends so they could prepare it for burial. They would have declared Jesus dead before they delivered his body to Joseph of Arimathea and the women.”


Daniel added. “Believe me when I tell you this. There is no way the Roman soldiers could have removed Jesus from the cross alive, retrieved the body of Judas that had been ripped wide open when he hung himself, and then nailed Judas to the cross in place of Jesus. That contradicts the historical record, and there were many people who stood by and watched. History would have recorded events differently.”
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