Birth Pains of the Messiah Pt. 1

Pastor Samuel Tyler

Studying the prophetic scriptures you quickly see that there are many approaches or interpretations to the end time drama. The scripture states, But Jesus answered and said to them, “You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures nor the power of God. (Matthew 22:29 NASB) To correctly understand the Word of God requires study, meditation, and revelation. Within Christianity there a myriad of groups and denominations due to scriptural interpretation, practices, and tradition. Therefore, it should be expected that there would be various approaches to the prophetic scriptures. Much is said about the imminent return of the Lord at any moment. Truth states that until the church loves one another the world will not know that Jesus is Lord. We will continue to be a people with spots and blemishes in our lives until the love of God prevails in the church. (John 17:21; Ephesians 5:27) Until the time of the end much of what the prophetic scriptures expressed would misunderstood. And he said, “Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. (Daniel 12:9 NKJV) Jesus stated that prior to His coming there would be wars, famine, and increasing numbers of earthquakes. Related to these phenomena Jesus stated, But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs. (Matthew 24:8 NASB) Our nation is now experiencing war, terrorism, and earthquakes increasing at an alarming rate. As a nation 2012 has been a year of drought. Over sixty percent of the nation is affected. The heartland of the nation, the corn belt that feeds a major portion of the people’s of the earth, is experiencing the second worst drought in our history. The middle east is undergoing leadership changes in various nations. These are only a few of the many things that the prophets mentioned that would occur at this time. But Jesus stated these are only the beginnings of birth pains that would be experienced before the joy of new life (Jesus) coming into the earth. In May 1948 Israel became a nation according to Isaiah 66:8 with Zion travailing. Judaism teaches that in the Hebrew scripture there are four levels of understanding that must be considered. The link included gives a brief explanation of the levels of understanding that this explanation will rely upon:

http://www.rockingthefoundation.com/apps/articles/default.asp?articleid=13941&columnid=1568

The fundamentalal truth to understanding the return of the Lord is that the timing of His coming is revealed around the Old Covenant Festivals of the Lord. At Jesus’ first coming He fulfilled the spring harvest festivals. His second coming will fulfill the fall harvest festivals. Using the above approach to the scriptures I will employ all the levels of understanding discussed in the link. We have heard it said, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Hebrews 13:8 NKJV) Understanding the Old Covenant properly we find that God never changes. As gentile believers, not understanding the Hebrew language has caused us to function at a profound disadvantage when it comes to correctly approaching the content of the Old Testament. For example in both covenants what we call the new covenant should actually be translated the renewed covenant. (Hebrews 9:15; Jeremiah 31:31-34) In Galatians 3:13-18 it states that the original covenant was made with Abraham and the law was added at a later date to tutor God’s people until the fulfilling of the promise.The feasts of the Lord were instituted in the law to point and teach us about the two comings of Messiah. Included in the spring feasts are observances of Passover, the Feast of First Fruits and the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost.) Jesus came and we all acknowledge the fact that He came and was sacrificed during the Passover season. The Feast of First Fruits celebrates the resurrection of our Lord. Fifty days later the proof of His resurrection came in the fire of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. The fall feasts are prophetic declarations of the second coming of the Lord Jesus. The fall festivals include the Blowing of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, the Feast of Tabernacles, and the Rejoicing in Torah. Before He comes back the world undergoes a time period know as the birth pains of Messiah. This term was not introduced to the Hebrew people when Jesus made the statement. This term was first advanced by the rabbis many years prior to the appearing of the Lord. The term the birth pains of the Messiah is derived from several scriptural passages. Jeremiah states, Now these are the words that the Lord spoke concerning Israel and Judah. “For thus says the Lord: ‘We have heard a voice of trembling, Of fear, and not of peace. Ask now, and see, Whether a man is ever in labor with child? Man with his hands on his loins Like a woman in labor, And all faces turned pale? 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. (Jeremiah 30:4-7 NKJV) The salvation spoken of here is the Lord’ coming to rescue the covenant people while comparing it to a woman giving birth to a child.