Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Joel and Daniel's prophetic vision of the Kingdom of Heaven

It's important fo me to keep reminding the reader...In order to understand the Kingdom of Heaven it is important to recognize the distinct difference between the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven:

The Kingdom of God is God's present rule over each individual believer. It is a divine nature restored in the heart of man through faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.

The Kingdom of Heaven is a future rule of Christ in the Millennial Reign where Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah are fulfilled. Believers in Christ at that time are given dominion on the earth like Adam had before the fall. When Christ comes back again He comes as the Messiah to establish His physical rule over a visible kingdom that begins in Israel.

Studies have shown that the Kingdom message to Israel was offered during Christ's earthly ministry. Due to the fact that the nation of Isreal as a whole "rejected" the Kingdom offered by Christ...that promised Kingdom was postponed until the Millennal Reign or what some call the 1000 year reign.

Here are some excellent prophecies of the Kingdom of Heaven, "Our future hope".

Kingdom of Heaven prophesied by Joel

The future Kingdom of Heaven is a restoration and deliverance from a cursed earth. In Joel chapter 1 the insect life (palmerworm, cankerworm, locust, and caterpillar) shows how the crops are destroyed in Israel. It shows how the soil and land affected under the curse also affects the agricultural life.

Joel 1:4...That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten.

Joel 1:17-18...The seed is rotten under their clods, the garners are laid desolate, the barns are broken down; for the corn is withered. How do the beasts groan! the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate.

The restoration in Joel chapter 2 shows that the curse has been removed. All agriculture is restored in Israel. The land flourishes; the vines and figs bring forth strength and the fruit trees blossom beautifully. This miraculous restoration actually occurs in the Kingdom of Heaven where Christ will restore every area of physical earth and its content, beginning in Israel.

Joel 2:22...Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field: for the pastures of the wilderness do spring, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine do yield their strength.

Joel 2:25...And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.

Joel 2:27...And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed

This promised restoration deals specifically with what Adam lost, which was the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven. Christ will restore them both!


Kingdom of Heaven prophesied in Daniel

The book of Daniel points out how Israel preserved its Messianic lineage during Gentile captivities through the pages of history. In Daniel chapter 2 Christ is described as the stone that smote the image and broke them into pieces. This prophecy directly relates to Divine Judgment and shows how Christ will subdue all nations, before He establishes His earthly Kingdom in Israel.

Dan 2:34... Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces

Dan 2:31-34...Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image*, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them:

*The Great Image in Daniel 2 is the Beast Kingdom, a Gentile one-world government that opposes Israel during the Great Tribulation, The beast is also mentioned in the Book of Revelations.

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