Final Preparations to Rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem
The following report sheds light on plans to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem after the Messiah will have come and authorized the plans by concluding a covenant with Israel:
The Temple Institute in Jerusalem has Spent Approximately $27,000,000 (27 Million Dollars) on Preparations for the Rebuilding of the Jewish Temple –
www.signsofthelastdays.comWe live at a time when the signs of the last days are literally being fulfilled right in front of our eyes. One of the most exciting signs that Bible prophecy students love to keep an eye on are preparations for the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple. In a previous article, we discussed how the Temple Institute in Jerusalem took a giant step towards the rebuilding of the Temple by beginning to rebuild the sacrificial altar. Now it has been revealed that the Temple Institute has already spent approximately $27,000,000 (27 million dollars) on preparations for the rebuilding of the Temple, and that the Temple Institute intends for this future Temple to be a house of prayer for all "monotheistic religions".
The executive director of the Temple Institute, Yehuda Glick, says that a large portion of the financial support for the Temple Institute actually comes from evangelical Christians... ''There are 70 million evangelical Christians around the world, and most of them have become Israel's strongest supporters.''
So what have all these funds gone toward so far? Well, the truth is that the Temple Institute has been extremely busy.
The Temple Institute Museum in Jerusalem's Old City contains solid gold service vessels, trumpets made of silver, garments to be worn by future priests made from golden thread, copper urns and many, many other items that have been painstakingly designed to Biblical specifications for use in the future Temple.So when will this Temple be built? According to Glick, it will depend on when the Messiah shows up... ''It could well be tomorrow, but it might be another 100 years, or even 400 years.''
Most Christians understand that Judaism believes that the third temple will be built upon the arrival of the Messiah, but what most Christians do not realize is that the Temple Institute envisions a future Temple that will be "a house of prayer open to all believers in the monotheistic faiths" - Christians, Muslims or Jews.In fact, Glick says that the Al-Aqsa mosque does not need to be removed for the new Temple to be built. ''Al-Aqsa can stay,'' Glick is quoted in The Age as saying. ''It's not even on the Temple Mount proper. But we intend to just build over the Dome of the Rock. We might be able to find a way to include it in the third temple.''
As surprising as this may be to many evangelical Christians, the truth is that Glick is far from alone in this belief. For example, a stunning article that was published in the leading journal of religious law in Israel envisioned a scenario under which a "holy revelation" is given to an "authentic prophet" who would authorize that the Temple be rebuilt in peaceful proximity to the Al-Aqsa mosque and nearby Christian shrines. This article echoed Glick's sentiments by discussing the potential for turning the Temple Mount into "God's Holy Mountain" - a "house of prayer" for all people (Isaiah 56:7).
In fact, there is even a Jewish website promoting a vision of "God's Holy Mountain" where all faiths would worship together:
www.godsholymountain.orgThis website depicts a harmonious future for the Temple Mount where Muslims, Christians and Jews mingle and pray between the Dome of the Rock and a rebuilt Jewish Temple.This project is headed up by Jewish members of the Interfaith Encounter Association. This organization is actively encouraging all three religions to adopt a new theological outlook which would allow all three faiths to worship on the Temple Mount.
Of course those of us who study the Scriptures know what God would think about such plans. But could the Antichrist someday pose as the Jewish Messiah and use such expectations to promote the use of the rebuilt Temple for his one world religion? It is something to think about.
In any event, preparations for the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple are heating up as never before, and as students of the prophecies of the last days this is something that we need to continually keep an eye on. (End of report.)
Comment
The multireligious thinking which is foundational to the campaign for the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem is exactly in accordance with the biblical account of the temple for the coming tribulation period. John says that in the end-time a false messiah will appear on the scene and that he will be followed and worshipped by the members of all religions: “And all the world marveled and followed the beast… and they worshiped the beast, saying, Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him? … And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation” (Rev. 13:2-7).
The Antichrist will not only be recognized by Israel as their Messiah-King (cf. John 5:43) but also by all nations of the world. This false prince of peace will be globally accepted and recognized as religious and political leader by way of formal treaties. The covenant with him will be in force for seven years, which is known in Israel as a year-week: “Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week, but in the middle of the week he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate” (Dan. 9:27).
At the beginning of the week all nations will be allowed to continue with their own religion on condition that all of them recognize, worship and follow the new world leader as their common messiah. The Antichrist will be Messiah to the Jews, Christ to the deceived Christians, Krishna to the Hindus, the fifth Buddha to the Buddhists, and the Imam Mahdi to the Muslims.
All the major religions will fully support this self-declared God-man – including deceived Christian churches which will operate virtually full strength after the rapture. These will be the churches that had previously rejected the virgin birth, deity and resurrection of the true Christ, together with various other fundamental Christian doctrines. Because of their spiritual treason against evangelical Christianity they will be committed followers of the false christ of all religions and fully express themselves in his global culture of sin. The Bible describes this false christ in terms of his true character as the “Antichrist” (1 John 2:18) and “the man of sin” (2 Thess. 2:3).
The Antichrist will be so strongly motivated by his propensity to self-deification that he will declare himself to be God in the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem at the mid-point of the seven-year tribulation. He will further exalt himself above all religions by raising his position from messiah to that of God. Paul describes him as the one “who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thess. 2:4).
After 3½ years he will not only order the termination of the daily sacrifices and offerings in the rebuilt temple, but also abolish other religions and have their places of worship demolished or gutted. The beast and the kings who rule with him “will hate the harlot, make her desolate and naked, eat her flesh and burn her with fire” (Rev. 17:16).
That will mark the end of the Antichrist’s association with the alliance of world religions, which John describes as “the mother of harlots” – an ecumenical body, or mother organization, to all the apostates (Rev. 17:5). At this moment the Antichrist will no longer be their common messiah but he and his image will have to be worshipped as the only God by all people.
A strict demand of worship will not only be imposed upon the Jews but also upon the followers of all other faiths: they will either have to worship the Antichrist and his image in the Most Holy of the temple as God, or be subjected to summary execution. The false prophet will globally enforce the worship of Satan and his false christ, and also have the occult power to make the image to speak: “He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed” (Rev. 13:15).
The Lord Jesus referred to this situation, when the Antichrist will defile the Most Holy place of the temple by placing his image there. The Jews who would refuse to bow their knees before the image and to worship the new world leader as God, will have to flee for their lives in great haste: “Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation [the false messiah and his image], spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place… then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains… For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those day were shortened, no flesh would be saved” (Matt. 24:15-22).
Long ago, Daniel referred to this end-time dictator and said: “And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation (the image of the beast)… Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god… he shall go out with great fury to destroy and annihilate many” (Dan. 11:31,36,44).
Israel’s continued national rejection of the deity and Messiahship of Jesus is paving the way for the conclusion of a covenant with the Antichrist. The true Messiah has warned them against the self-destructive acceptance of the false messiah and his demonic policy: “I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive” (John 5:43). They will conclude a covenant with death as this “other messiah” will go forth from Satan – one of his hidden, major objectives being to annihilate all Jews. The international community will welcome and support the conclusion of a covenant with the new world leader as they will all be deceived by his ecumenical thinking and false offer of peace.
Israel’s current approach to build a temple which will be a place of worship to all nations is part of the multireligious deception to which all people and faiths are presently subjected. It will lead to a covenant with the Antichrist, and he will give Israel the right to build a temple in which members of all faiths will be welcome.
This temple will offer the Antichrist the ideal opportunity to deceptively declare himself to be the universal “god of this age” (cf. 2 Cor. 4:4) and to demand the worship of all people. The orthodox sentiments of the Jews will suit him well, since the majority of Israelis wish to rebuild the temple because of their continued rejection of the true Messiah and His sacrifice on the cross. They want to reinstate Old Testament sacrifices for the atoning of their sins. These are the sacrifices which the Antichrist will ban when he declares himself as God in the temple.
It is incomprehensible that millions of Christians are contributing to the temple fund, since present efforts to rebuild the temple directly emanate from the continued rejection of Jesus as the Lamb of God who alone can take away the sins of the world through His once for all sacrifice (John 1:29). Since the crucifixion of Christ there was no need to resume the shadowy Old Testament sacrifices, “for it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins” (Heb. 10:4).
According to Ezekiel 40–44 a temple will indeed be built in Israel during the millennium, but that will only serve the purpose of referring back to the Lamb of God who, long ago, was slain for the redemption of humankind. The service in this temple will not be a substitute for the Lamb’s sacrifice on the cross.We are on the threshold of the rapture and the revelation of the false Christ of all faiths. Israel (with the exception of a small group of Messianic Jews) is preparing the way for him, as are all the apostatized Christian churches who have become unfaithful to the true Christ. The non-Christian religions have long been preparing for the coming of the false messiah. Shortly after the Antichrist’s withholder (the true church as a temple of the Holy Spirit) has been taken out of the way he will be revealed (2 Thess. 2:6-8). Then the Jewish temple which dates from the pre-Christian era will be rebuilt as the symbol of a Christ-rejecting new world order under the leadership of the Antichrist.
Final Preparations to Rebuild the Temple in Jerusa... (