Running To Win 15 Minute Version

Dr. Erwin W. Lutzer: Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and proctor of our faith.

Dave Lutzer: If a future antichrist is to desecrate a future temple in Jerusalem, then a future general contractor has a big job to do. Politics aside, rebuilding the temple would be a monumental event. As nations align for the end times, that rebuilding looks ever more possible. From the Moody Church in Chicago, this is Running to Win with Dr. Erwin Lutzer, whose clear teaching helps us make it across the finish line. Erwin Lutzer is in a series on seven signs of Christ's return. Today we're learning about sign number five, the temple rebuilt in Jerusalem. These days, some Jews are taking a temple rebuilding quite seriously.

Dr. Erwin W. Lutzer: The bottom line is you have people that are fanatically committed to the establishment of the temple. How in the world could it possibly happen? Well, one is, of course, that there might be some peace agreement and people might be able to say, look, let's let the Jews build a temple. They don't have to tear down the Dome of the Rock. Some people think that the temple was 100 excuse me, 300 ft north of the Dome of the Rock. Anyway, build the temple there and they can build a small one there and then you can have two houses of worship.

There's the Al-Aqsa Mosque, there's also the Dome of the Rock and let's have the temple too. Let's be lovey-dovey. Let's get along nicely. What are the chances of that? Uh very, very slim. Could we say maybe zero with a minus sign? At least that's the way it appears. Another possibility is there are those who say, oh, you know what's going to happen is there's going to be an earthquake and if the earthquake destroys the Dome of the Rock, it'll be a whole brand new day. Then we can have discussions as to who owns it and we won't have to tear it down.

God will tear it down. There's another possibility, and I suggest it only as a possibility. If it is true that there's going to be a world leader who's going to rise out of Europe and who's going to make a covenant of protection with Israel, who is going to be able to say, I will protect you against the foe, and he will appear to be a friend of Israel at first. Might it be that he has so much clout and so much political power, and this is one of the reasons that the people on the earth will worship him is because he seems to be able to even solve the Middle East crisis by having enough muscle to allow a temple, perhaps even at least a small one to be built in Jerusalem to give the Jews their own worship place.

And then later, three and a half years later, he breaks his covenant and he personally goes into Jerusalem and does in effect what Antiochus Epiphanes does and he establishes himself as the ruler, the god, as we just read in Second Thessalonians, where he in effect says, I'm taking over. I'm the one who is going to control the events of the world. I am God. And after that period of time, Jerusalem is trodden underfoot by the Gentiles for 42 months, as it says in the book of Revelation, until the glorious appearing of Jesus Christ on the Mount of Olives and the Mount of Olives splits in the middle, as we shall see in the final message of this series.

And Jesus Christ comes to rule and to reign. Now where will we be when that's happening? Well, the rapture could happen any moment. We could be taken up and then after that there may be several years for all of the political pieces to come together. Antichrist arises and the events that we've just talked about take place. But the bottom line is there are many people committed to the idea that Jerusalem needs a temple. Now it will not be there to worship the Lord Jesus Christ, you understand, because the Jewish people today as a whole there are many individual Jews who believe in Jesus, but as a nation and as a whole, they do not accept Christ as Messiah.

They want to establish their own worship. But in establishing that, they will be fulfilling an end time prophecy. Now let me give you a couple of words in conclusion. What lessons can we learn? First of all, a lesson regarding God and his judgment. When I think of this history, I'm reminded of the fact that here's God who chose the Jews. He loved them. He says, you I have chosen above all the families of the earth. What could be more beautiful than that? But even though they were chosen of God, he said because you've turned from me, I will take away your worship place and your land.

I will be the one to see to it that your temple will be destroyed. Do you know that Jesus actually talked about Titus as being God's armies? He says, the Lord sent forth his armies. He's predicting the destruction of Jerusalem. The Lord sent forth his armies and he destroyed their city. Wow. You mean just because God chose you and just because your special people, that doesn't mean that you are exempt from his judgment. I think of America today. We say, well, you know, we're America. We're founded with all of these Christian influences and look at all the good things we've done.

But we as a nation are also becoming idolatrous. We are turning from God and you never know when God might say you have crossed the line. I'm not making any predictions because I'll tell you some nations have become very, very rotten before they've crossed the line. But I also want to remind you that God judges us not just at the end in some cataclysmic judgment, but sin is always being judged. Sin is judged by the breakup of our families. Sin is being judged by the diseases that we have. There's always sin that is being judged immediately, even though there's also a future judgment to sin as well.

And we never know. We can't take God's blessings for granted. They are given to us as a gift and he may take them from us when he wills. That's the first lesson. The second lesson though is on the faithfulness of God, the faithfulness. I mean, here's God who throughout all these centuries, and if you studied the history of Jerusalem since the destruction of the temple, you know how many centuries there were. You know, there are centuries here when the Muslims were in charge. There were centuries here when the Turks were. There are centuries here when this took over and that took over and you just you're just dizzy and you're saying century after century after centuries the Jews were out of their homeland.

And yet God predicted, God predicted that I will give you the land as an everlasting possession. It was God who said these things and you can see that even though God may take his time, God works nonetheless consistently with his word and we see the faithfulness of God. Some of you individually are going through difficulties and trials today and you wonder how you can even face tomorrow. You say, how do I get through Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday with all of this pain? Well, I want you to know today that God walks with us and is faithful even in the midst of our difficulties.

He never leaves us. He never forsakes us. The scripture is clear. When you walk through the fire, I will be with you when you are in the floods. I'll be with you so that you will not drown. The faithfulness of God. A final conclusion and that is the jealousy of God, the jealousy. The Bible says God is a jealous God because he does not want rival worship. As a matter of fact, the reason as we mentioned that the temple was destroyed is because of that rival worship. And I need to ask you today, where is the temple of God?

The Shekhinah glory left after the first temple, as we mentioned a moment ago, it never came back during the time of Zerubbabel, so far as we know. It certainly is not there today. Where is this cloud of glory? Would you be surprised if I were to tell you that it is within your own heart and within your own body if you're a believer in Christ? The apostle Paul says that our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and he didn't use the word that means the outer court. He meant our body is the inner shrine.

our body is the holy of holies, he says. Now you know how protected the holy of holies was. Priests could only go in one day a year. It's not the kind of thing in which you wanted to drag anything that was unholy unless you were to desecrate it like some of the evil people did. My dear friend, that's exactly who we are though. When we're walking down the street, when we're riding the L, when we are traveling, whatever it is that we're doing, when we're working in the office with all of these pressures, it is God that lives in us.

As God has said, I will dwell in them and walk in them and they shall be my people, says the Lord. So you take God with you wherever you go and he dwells within you. I've given you that illustration, haven't I? Of an usher who stopped someone who was reading a trashy novel from coming into the church. And the usher I'm sure was doing his job, but actually the the building itself is not holy. Did you know that even this building is not holy. It is the people who are holy. And if there's something that you should not bring into the church sanctuary, it is something that you should never bring into your soul because it is within you that exists that holy of holies that God jealously wants us to guard.

Finally, let's go back to the Dome of the Rock one more time. It was there that Abraham was willing to sacrifice Isaac, you remember. Any how you know the story of how he lifted the knife to heaven and was willing to do it and God says, no, Abraham, don't do it. Now I know that thou fearst me because thou hast not withheld thy only son from me, God says. And then Abraham looked and there was a ram that was caught in the thicket and God says, offer the ram in the place of Isaac. And that actually is the best message that comes out of the city of Jerusalem.

The best message is that when Jesus died on the cross, just a few hundred yards really from where Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son, that when Jesus died there, he was a sacrifice for sinners and it is because of him that we can be forgiven and cleansed because God has provided for us a lamb who would take away the sins of the world. And if we believe in him, we shall be saved. If we reject him, we shall be lost forever. A word about the judgment of God, the faithfulness of God, but the jealousy of God of wanting us for himself and the wonder of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Let's bow in prayer. Our Father, we pray today that you might give us a great sense of your awesomeness and your sovereignty in the working of world events. And Lord, we look at Jerusalem today with all of its needs and we know that you are focused there because your word says that you've chosen Jerusalem as the place where you would put your name. And we pray for the believers in Jerusalem. We thank you that there are some. We pray all God that in that city we look forward to the time when the name of God shall be honored and then during the millennial kingdom, when many people shall go and say, come, let us go on to the mountain of the Lord onto the God of Jacob, for he will teach us his ways and we shall walk in his paths.

For the law shall go out from Zion and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. We long, Father, for that day when Christ is honored in that great city in Jesus' name. Amen.

Dr. Erwin W. Lutzer: Well, this is Pastor Lutzer. I can't help but think that there are many people listening right now who needed that message that Jesus Christ is the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. And if you're not sure of your salvation, if you're not sure that your faith and trust has been placed in Jesus Christ alone, do that right now. I'm holding in my hands a book entitled When Jesus Returns. It's actually a compilation of many different authors, all speaking about some aspect of prophecy. You might recognize names such as Jack Hibbs or Anne Graham Lotz.

This book is intended to give us hope in the midst of a chaotic world. It is a book on prophecy, but it's also a book on hope. For a gift of any amount, we're making it available for you because we're convinced it will help you on your spiritual journey. It's not a roadmap to indicate all of the events in sequence, but rather various aspects of prophecy that will bless you, encourage you and help you face the future.

Dave Lutzer: Erwin Lutzer concluding his message, The Temple Rebuilt in Jerusalem. The fifth sign in his series, Seven Signs of Christ's Return. Next time, we turn to sign number six, War in Israel. When Jesus returns, living in expectation of the end times, that's a book compiled by Jan Markell. It contains the best teachings on Bible prophecy from a wide range of authors. This book is our gift to you for your gift of any amount to support Running to Win. For full information, call us at 1 800 215 5 001. That's 1 800 215 5 001. Online, go to offer rtw.com.

That's offer rtw.com or write to us at Running to Win, Moody Church, 1635 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60614. Ask about When Jesus Returns. This is Dave Lutzer. Running to Win comes to you as a ministry of the Moody Church.