Thursday, July 24, 2014
Saturday, September 7, 2013
Daily ponderings about "The Messianic Movement's" Purpose in the World
What if the Messianic Movement (or Hebrew Roots or whatever you want to call it), has actually served its purpose? What if it's purpose was to influence the greater "church" steeped in "roman traditions" to talk about and consider their original origins in the Nation, People and Culture of Israel?
Is it possible that this is the main reason God raised up this Messianic Movement in the latter half of the 20th Century?
What are the implications of this reasoning on the "church"?
Is it possible that this is the main reason God raised up this Messianic Movement in the latter half of the 20th Century?
What are the implications of this reasoning on the "church"?
Here are some little known facts from the Bible about the most famous person in the history of the world.
Here are some little known facts from the Bible about the most famous person in the history of the world. (If you've never read the New Testament, your really an uninformed person!)
1. Jesus was happier than the people around Him. He was not a roaming Eeyore, crying and depressed about the state of mankind.
But of the Son he says,
“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever,
the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.
9 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you
with the OIL OF GLADNESS beyond your companions.” (Hebrews 1:8,9)
2. Jesus lived in a house (at least for a while). Some translations add “Levi” to the text due to the belief it must have been Levi’s house. But the original text doesn’t contain the word “Levi.” And since Levi had just left everything to follow Jesus, it is doubtful the house was his.
13 He went out again beside the sea, and all the crowd was coming to him, and he was teaching them. 14 And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him. 15 And as he reclined at table in HIS HOUSE, many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. (Mark 2:13-15)
3. Jesus had money. Judas was His treasurer. Broke people don’t have treasurers.
For some thought, because Judas had the MONEY BOX, that Jesus had said to him, “Buy those things we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor. (John 13:29)
4. Jesus got angry when religious people wanted to maintain their traditions instead of doing something cool that would display God’s power. This is actually the ONLY time the Bible says specifically that Jesus got angry although he was probably angry when he drove the money changers out of the temple.
4 Then He said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they kept silent. 5 And when He had looked around at them with ANGER, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. 6 Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him. (Mark 3:4-6)
5. Jesus never did anything for the poor. He never clothed anyone, housed anyone or opened a food bank. The closest thing He ever did for the poor was to feed the 5000 people who came to hear Him speak but forgot their lunch. He was not a Middle Eastern social worker. Jesus preached to the poor but did not give to the poor. Judas criticized Jesus for NOT giving money to the poor. (See Matthew 11:5, Luke 4:18, 7:22)
4 But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, who would betray Him, said, 5 “Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and GIVEN TO THE POOR?” (John 12:4,5)
6. Jesus wore nice clothes. His robe was worth so much money that soldiers gambled for it at His crucifixion.
They said therefore among themselves, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be,” that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says: “They divided My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.” Therefore the soldiers did these things. (John 19:24)
7. Jesus did not come primarily to be our example. He came to die for us. Jesus lived on earth for 33 years. His ministry lasted only 3 years. Twenty-five percent of the Gospels cover one week of Jesus’ life, the week He was crucified and rose again. That is the focus of the Gospels.
For the Son of Man has come to SAVE that which was lost. (Matthew 18:11)
8. Jesus’ first miracle was not very spiritual. He helped keep a party going. He provided refreshments at a wedding party. He helped His mother by turning water into wine and thereby keeping the party going. (John 2:1-12)
9. Jesus lived under the Old Testament, not the New Testament. The New Testament did not begin until after Jesus died.
16 For where there is a testament, there must also of necessity be the DEATH of the testator.17 For a testament is in force after men are dead, since it has no power at all while the testator lives. (Hebrews 9:16,17)
10. Jesus is coming back again to stand on The Mount of Olives and split it in half. The prophesies about His first coming were literal, so it stands to reason the prophesies about His second coming are also literal.
And in that day His FEET WILL STAND on the Mount of Olives,
Which faces Jerusalem on the east.
And the Mount of Olives shall be SPLIT IN TWO,
From east to west,
Making a very large valley;
Half of the mountain shall move toward the north
And half of it toward the south. (Zechariah 14:4)
11. Jesus didn’t come to make bad people good, but to make dead people alive. There is a difference.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have LIFE, and that they may have it more abundantly. (John 10:10)
even when we were dead in trespasses, made us ALIVE together with Christ, (Ephesians 2:5)
Also see Romans 6:11; Ephesians 2:1; Colossians 2:13.
Well, maybe you did already know this but most people don’t. I think it’s important that we depict Jesus accurately as possible based on scripture.
A few more for the fun of it...
1. Jesus was happier than the people around Him. He was not a roaming Eeyore, crying and depressed about the state of mankind.
But of the Son he says,
“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever,
the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.
9 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you
with the OIL OF GLADNESS beyond your companions.” (Hebrews 1:8,9)
2. Jesus lived in a house (at least for a while). Some translations add “Levi” to the text due to the belief it must have been Levi’s house. But the original text doesn’t contain the word “Levi.” And since Levi had just left everything to follow Jesus, it is doubtful the house was his.
13 He went out again beside the sea, and all the crowd was coming to him, and he was teaching them. 14 And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him. 15 And as he reclined at table in HIS HOUSE, many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. (Mark 2:13-15)
3. Jesus had money. Judas was His treasurer. Broke people don’t have treasurers.
For some thought, because Judas had the MONEY BOX, that Jesus had said to him, “Buy those things we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor. (John 13:29)
4. Jesus got angry when religious people wanted to maintain their traditions instead of doing something cool that would display God’s power. This is actually the ONLY time the Bible says specifically that Jesus got angry although he was probably angry when he drove the money changers out of the temple.
4 Then He said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they kept silent. 5 And when He had looked around at them with ANGER, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. 6 Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him. (Mark 3:4-6)
5. Jesus never did anything for the poor. He never clothed anyone, housed anyone or opened a food bank. The closest thing He ever did for the poor was to feed the 5000 people who came to hear Him speak but forgot their lunch. He was not a Middle Eastern social worker. Jesus preached to the poor but did not give to the poor. Judas criticized Jesus for NOT giving money to the poor. (See Matthew 11:5, Luke 4:18, 7:22)
4 But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, who would betray Him, said, 5 “Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and GIVEN TO THE POOR?” (John 12:4,5)
6. Jesus wore nice clothes. His robe was worth so much money that soldiers gambled for it at His crucifixion.
They said therefore among themselves, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be,” that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says: “They divided My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.” Therefore the soldiers did these things. (John 19:24)
7. Jesus did not come primarily to be our example. He came to die for us. Jesus lived on earth for 33 years. His ministry lasted only 3 years. Twenty-five percent of the Gospels cover one week of Jesus’ life, the week He was crucified and rose again. That is the focus of the Gospels.
For the Son of Man has come to SAVE that which was lost. (Matthew 18:11)
8. Jesus’ first miracle was not very spiritual. He helped keep a party going. He provided refreshments at a wedding party. He helped His mother by turning water into wine and thereby keeping the party going. (John 2:1-12)
9. Jesus lived under the Old Testament, not the New Testament. The New Testament did not begin until after Jesus died.
16 For where there is a testament, there must also of necessity be the DEATH of the testator.17 For a testament is in force after men are dead, since it has no power at all while the testator lives. (Hebrews 9:16,17)
10. Jesus is coming back again to stand on The Mount of Olives and split it in half. The prophesies about His first coming were literal, so it stands to reason the prophesies about His second coming are also literal.
And in that day His FEET WILL STAND on the Mount of Olives,
Which faces Jerusalem on the east.
And the Mount of Olives shall be SPLIT IN TWO,
From east to west,
Making a very large valley;
Half of the mountain shall move toward the north
And half of it toward the south. (Zechariah 14:4)
11. Jesus didn’t come to make bad people good, but to make dead people alive. There is a difference.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have LIFE, and that they may have it more abundantly. (John 10:10)
even when we were dead in trespasses, made us ALIVE together with Christ, (Ephesians 2:5)
Also see Romans 6:11; Ephesians 2:1; Colossians 2:13.
Well, maybe you did already know this but most people don’t. I think it’s important that we depict Jesus accurately as possible based on scripture.
A few more for the fun of it...
Yom Kippur/The Feast of Trumpets....Is this the day Jesus was actually born?
Is Today the actual day that Jesus was born???
Scientists tell me I am silly to look to the sky for signs. The church tells me I may be a pagan astrologer. Pagan astrologers tell me the sky is all about man. But the Creator gets the first and last word... and...
"God looks down from heaven upon the sons of men to see if there is anyone who understands." (Ps 53:2) and says, "I have made the sky for signs and changing administrations, and to demarcate days and years." They tell God's story not mine.
And on this day, the Feast of Trumpets (He always does things on His feast days and lunar calendar) a King was born and the sky trumpeted it just as John saw from God's eye view: "A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars and she was with child; and she cried out, being in labor and in pain to give birth" (Rev 12:1,2)
That woman is Virgo (the virgin) and there is only one time a year then this configuration is possible - the new moon in September - the Feast of Trumpets the 1st of Tishrei, Rosh Hashanah. And there was only one eligible year when the alignment was exactly as stated... 9/11-12 3 BC.
Tonight go look to the west at sunset. Better yet look on 9/9 when it will look more like in 3 BC.
Go tell it on the mountains!
More at www.starstory.me
Scientists tell me I am silly to look to the sky for signs. The church tells me I may be a pagan astrologer. Pagan astrologers tell me the sky is all about man. But the Creator gets the first and last word... and...
"God looks down from heaven upon the sons of men to see if there is anyone who understands." (Ps 53:2) and says, "I have made the sky for signs and changing administrations, and to demarcate days and years." They tell God's story not mine.
And on this day, the Feast of Trumpets (He always does things on His feast days and lunar calendar) a King was born and the sky trumpeted it just as John saw from God's eye view: "A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars and she was with child; and she cried out, being in labor and in pain to give birth" (Rev 12:1,2)
That woman is Virgo (the virgin) and there is only one time a year then this configuration is possible - the new moon in September - the Feast of Trumpets the 1st of Tishrei, Rosh Hashanah. And there was only one eligible year when the alignment was exactly as stated... 9/11-12 3 BC.
Tonight go look to the west at sunset. Better yet look on 9/9 when it will look more like in 3 BC.
Go tell it on the mountains!
More at www.starstory.me
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Time to Vote! Which Cover do YOU think is best for The New Messianic Version?
Time to Vote! Which Cover do YOU think is best for The New Messianic Version?
Vote in the comment section below!
-TOV
Vote in the comment section below!
-TOV
How to Successfully Self-Publish a Kindle eBook
| How to Successfully Self-Publish a Kindle eBook |  |
|
I am on sabbatical for the next few weeks. While I am gone, I have asked some of my favorite bloggers to stand in for me. This is a guest post from Jeff Goins. He is the author of Wrecked and his forthcoming memoir, The In-Between. You can follow Jeff on Twitter or find out more about him here.
If you want to get noticed in the digital age, waiting for someone to choose you is the worst strategy. You have everything you need to start sharing your message today—fingers, keyboard, and the Internet.
Even if they don’t consider themselves writers, most people dream of writing a book. And there’s never been a better time to do so. The stigma of self-publishing is fading away, replaced by countless success stories from first-time authors making a name for themselves.
How are they doing it? Simple. By publishing eBooks on Amazon.com.
Why Amazon?
Forget what you think you know about Amazon. It’s much more than an online shopping cart or web store. There’s a reason guys like Guy Kawasaki and Seth Godin have published exclusively to Amazon. It has a lot going for it:- Amazon is largest paid search engine in the world. People don’t Google things with their credit cards out, ready to buy, like they do with Amazon.
- Amazon dominates the book market.
- Amazon’s review system is an authority metric (even if someone plans to buy elsewhere).
- Amazon is a marketing machine. Once you start selling a certain number of copies, it refers your book to others who have never heard of you.
- Amazon makes it easy. You can publish elsewhere, but few places get your book online and ready in a matter of hours. When you publish first (and maybe exclusively) to Amazon, you concentrate your sales in a single place and can climb the best sellers lists faster.
Step 1: Write
When publishing an e-book, the first step is, of course, to write it. Think in terms of three drafts:- The “vomit draft.” This is just what it sounds like—you’re throwing up on the blank page. Certainly not the most warming image, but you get the idea. Here, you will write the Table of Contents, sketch out each chapter, and put down all your ideas, scenes, and stories. Don’t make it pretty; just make it.
- The review draft. This is where you spend some time developing what you want to say and how. At this point, you should share the work with a few close friends for feedback.
- The editorial draft. This is where you get help from a professional or close friend who knows not only grammar, but story structure and elements of style.
Step 2: Format and Design
Once you’ve written a book you’re proud of, here’s what to do next:- Format it for Kindle. You can try this yourself using a program called Calibre, or you can just pay someone to do it—which I recommend. If this is your life’s work, it’s worth paying a few hundred dollars to get it done right.
- Design the cover. Please don’t skimp on this or have your cousin Vinny who just discovered PhotoShop “take a whack at it.” If you’re on a budget, check out 99 Designs or Crowdspring, both affordable crowd-sourcing services. Ask for an image that is a JPEG file and at least 2500 pixels on the longest side with a height/weight ratio of 1.6 (what Amazon recommends in their publishing guidelines).
- Double check everything and have friends proofread for errors.
Step 3: Publish
How do you actually make your book available for sale on Amazon.com? This is, perhaps, the part that intimidates most people. And the truth is it shouldn’t. All it takes is twelve simple steps:- Go to kdp.amazon.com and sign in (you’ll need an Amazon account).
- Register your tax info for royalties.
- Click “Bookshelf” and then “Add new title.”
- Fill out the form, including book title, description, and keywords you want people to search to find your book.
- Upload the cover file (JPEG format).
- Upload the book file.
- Test your book with Amazon’s online viewer to make sure it looks right.
- Click “Save and continue” and advance to the “Rights and Pricing” page.
- Choose “Worldwide Rights.”
- Choose a 70% royalty rate and select your price, letting the international prices adjust based on the US price. Most e-books are priced $2.99-9.99 (this is what I recommend to maximize your royalty rate).
- Click Save and Publish.
- Amazon will email you when the book is ready, which may take 24–48 hours but often happens much more quickly.
Step 4: Promote
Now, you’re ready to tell the world about your book. But before you do that, you need some reviews. Reviews are important, because they’re your “social proof” that will legitimize your work to new readers.Before the book’s release, send the book to friends, family, and followers online who would be willing to leave a review. If you don’t know anyone who would be willing to do that, check out StoryCartel.com, a platform that helps authors get free, ethical reviews.
Once the book is published, remind your early readers to leave reviews. Expect 25-50% of those who promised, to actually comply. And they don’t all have to be 5-star reviews. In fact, having a few honest critiques of your work will give it a greater authority than a bunch of superficial praise.
People can leave reviews on Amazon only a few days before the book is published. So one way to get around this is to publish your book a week before you tell anyone about it. That way, you can build up a good amount of early reviews, which help sell the book to new readers. When it “officially” releases, you can then direct people to the page where they will see some glowing reviews of your work.
Step 5: Launch
After you get some reviews, it’s time to launch your e-book. Every book launch should be unique, but here are a few things that work every time:- Send an email to your list of friends, family, and/or blog subscribers, announcing the release of your book.
- Offer an incentive for those who buy the book. This can be a time-sensitive offer or ongoing opportunity. Andy Traub, who made over $20,000 in 90 days with an eBook, gave away the audiobook, 30-day email course, and exclusive membership to an online community with his book. Make it a no-brainer that people can’t pass up.
- Promote the book via word-of-mouth and social media. Clicktotweet.com is a great resource for hand-crafting messages that people can easily share. Another effective strategy is to use a launch team of volunteers to help you spread the word.
- Share your e-book with online forums and book directories. Kimanzi Constable, who sold over 80,000 copies of his books, said this was a key strategy.
- As the book begins to sell, tell people about it. This is called “social proof” and will create a snowball effect that can help you sell even more.
- Give the book away. Brandon Clements, who struggled to sell more than a few hundred copies of his novel in a year, decided to give away the e-book version. And in a week, over 60,000 people downloaded it. The next week, he sold another 2,000 copies.
The days of waiting years to be picked and published are over. So what are you waiting for? (For more help on self-publishing for Kindle, check out the Kindle Publishing Guide, which is free this week exclusively for Michael Hyatt readers.)
Question: What’s one question or tip you have about self-publishing? Click here to leave a comment.
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Join me in Arden Hills, MN August 7-10, 2013!
Wanna come see me in person? I'll be hanging out at The Holy Spirit Conference in Arden Hills, MN August 7-10 at North Heights Church. I've got a table, will be signing books and greeting people. If you show up at the right time you might get to meet my dad or maybe even my kids!
Information about the conference is at this Link:
http://www.lutheranrenewal.org/
Information about the conference is at this Link:
http://www.lutheranrenewal.org/
Thursday, August 1, 2013
How does this sound to you?
Looking for feedback. How does this sound to you?
“Tov Rose fills in the gaps of God the Father. The church has emphasized God the Son (Jesus) and God the Holy Spirit. But in the last days, the emphasis will be on understanding and knowing God the Father. Only someone with a Jewish understanding can bring us this end-time revelation [and Tov has done so].”
Sid Roth
Television Host
It's Supernatural! Television
www.SidRoth.org
Is there something missing from your Bible? Yes.
The New Messianic Version of the Bible is becoming increasingly popular among believers in Jesus because it answers many unexplained questions!
The New Messianic Version, challenges both Jews and Christians to see that the whole Bible is Jewish. It restores the names of people and places to their "Jewish" pronunciation, translates every name of people and places so that it reads much like an "Amplified Bible."
Author Tov Rose, "Today, Jewish people and Christians alike suffer a similar kind of blindness concerning the nature and person of God: They do not know their God. I know, that looks like an inflammatory statement, but please give me to the end of the book to present my case before passing judgment. There is a secret hidden in your Bible, and this is the only Bible that reveals it." This groundbreaking book answers the one question most Christians and Jewish people alike get wrong, "Who is the God of the Hebrew Bible?" Again, Tov, "If you said, 'God the Father' then you got it wrong, and I'm going to prove it to you."
"In the New Testament book of John 6:46 Jesus says, 'No man has seen The Father...' then who have people seen?"
This Version clearly shows you who the "author" really is, and it isn't God the Father. Tov, "Jesus said unto them, 'Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I AM.'"
The New Messianic Version clearly tells you which Old Testament Names of God represent the Father God, and which others represent The Son of God.
Jews are challenged by the implication that the Tanakh is an incomplete Bible without the New Testament understanding the Yeshua (Jesus) is the God of the Hebrew Bible. Christians are challenged with the fact that they are joined to the Jewish people through faith in the Jewish Messiah, Yeshua (Jesus). Christianity can only be truly understood only from a Jewish perspective, hatred of Jewish people (aka: Anti-Semitism), can have no place with followers of Jesus.
In short, The New Messianic Version restores the Jewish flavour and understanding of those first generation followers of Jesus.
Link: https://www.createspace.com/4380296
“Tov Rose fills in the gaps of God the Father. The church has emphasized God the Son (Jesus) and God the Holy Spirit. But in the last days, the emphasis will be on understanding and knowing God the Father. Only someone with a Jewish understanding can bring us this end-time revelation [and Tov has done so].”
Sid Roth
Television Host
It's Supernatural! Television
www.SidRoth.org
Is there something missing from your Bible? Yes.
The New Messianic Version of the Bible is becoming increasingly popular among believers in Jesus because it answers many unexplained questions!
The New Messianic Version, challenges both Jews and Christians to see that the whole Bible is Jewish. It restores the names of people and places to their "Jewish" pronunciation, translates every name of people and places so that it reads much like an "Amplified Bible."
Author Tov Rose, "Today, Jewish people and Christians alike suffer a similar kind of blindness concerning the nature and person of God: They do not know their God. I know, that looks like an inflammatory statement, but please give me to the end of the book to present my case before passing judgment. There is a secret hidden in your Bible, and this is the only Bible that reveals it." This groundbreaking book answers the one question most Christians and Jewish people alike get wrong, "Who is the God of the Hebrew Bible?" Again, Tov, "If you said, 'God the Father' then you got it wrong, and I'm going to prove it to you."
"In the New Testament book of John 6:46 Jesus says, 'No man has seen The Father...' then who have people seen?"
This Version clearly shows you who the "author" really is, and it isn't God the Father. Tov, "Jesus said unto them, 'Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I AM.'"
The New Messianic Version clearly tells you which Old Testament Names of God represent the Father God, and which others represent The Son of God.
Jews are challenged by the implication that the Tanakh is an incomplete Bible without the New Testament understanding the Yeshua (Jesus) is the God of the Hebrew Bible. Christians are challenged with the fact that they are joined to the Jewish people through faith in the Jewish Messiah, Yeshua (Jesus). Christianity can only be truly understood only from a Jewish perspective, hatred of Jewish people (aka: Anti-Semitism), can have no place with followers of Jesus.
In short, The New Messianic Version restores the Jewish flavour and understanding of those first generation followers of Jesus.
Link: https://www.createspace.com/4380296
New Seasons - New Things - New Blessings
Some of you know that I've been working for about 13 years on a translation of the Old Testament called The New Messianic Version. As I'm coming to the end of the hard work and publishing the first edition of this Bible I'm anticipating and have an expectation in my spirit of new things about to happen.
I don't know all of what is going to happen, but I do have a few leanings.
Would you join me in prayer?
Long held Expectations in the Lord are about to be "suddenly" fulfilled...
Blessings in Yeshua!
-TOV
I don't know all of what is going to happen, but I do have a few leanings.
Would you join me in prayer?
Long held Expectations in the Lord are about to be "suddenly" fulfilled...
Blessings in Yeshua!
-TOV
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Crucifixion Ain’t No Fiction: Three Hour Darkness Over the Entire World Confirmed by Historical Sources
Crucifixion. 1887 Painting by Russian Painter Vasily Vereshchagin.
“From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land. About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”). When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.” Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.” And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.
At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people. When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!””….Matthew 27
Crucifixion Ain’t No Fiction: Three Hour Darkness Over the Entire World Confirmed by Historical Sources v2
by Chris ParkerThe story of the longest day wherein the Lord caused the sun to stand still is recorded in Joshua 10:13 and reiterated in Habakkuk 3:11 and is discussed in my article “The Day the Sun Stood Still–Joshua’s Long Day”. Dr. Immanuel Velikovsky, in his 1950 book “WORLDS IN COLLISION, uncovered multiple worldwide sources that indicated that the event was historical; that it actually happened and was recorded in the history of peoples around the world. The fact that Velikovsky attributes the actual occurrence to a natural event rather than to a supernatural one is unimportant. The fact is that the record of the bible of this extraordinary event has been confirmed as true even by secular unbelievers.
What about the darkness that the bible tell us occurred at the crucifixion of Jesus Christ? All the accounts of the crucifixion in the gospels confirm that the unnatural darkness came upon the scene and spanned the hours between 12 noon and 3 o’clock P.M. Certain of the accounts describe the darkness as covering the “whole land”. However the Greek there could also have been interpreted as the “whole world”.
To get a bit technical, the Greek word is number G1093 and could be translated in the following ways:
1) arable land
2) the ground, the earth as a standing place
3) the main land as opposed to the sea or water
4) the earth as a whole
a) the earth as opposed to the heavens vb) the inhabited earth, the abode of men and animals
5) a country, land enclosed within fixed boundaries, a tract of land, territory, region
Whether there was darkness at noon in the middle of the day in just the “lands” around Jerusalem or over the entire world that unnatural darkness must have struck terror and wonder into the hearts of those who were engaged in the crucifixion of the Christ! Scholars both at the time and today like Velikovsky did with respect to Joshua’s longest day have tried to attribute the darkness to a natural event-namely to an eclipse. However, the Passover takes place at the wrong time of the month for a solar eclipse as we’ll discuss a bit later and at most an eclipse would last 8 or 9 minutes and not three hours. The fact that the three hours is a given as an actual event that needs to be explained by secular sources is an important confirmation of the historicity of the event.
If the darkness was indeed worldwide people experiencing it in other locations would have no clue as to why the darkness was occurring and peoples who were already in the darkness of their local time would not have noticed. The Jews and the Romans had reason to connect the dots however. These events (unnatural daytime darkness and earthquakes) even caused the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus to be frightened and to exclaim that “Surely he was the Son of God”.
The Jews on the other hand had even more reason to be afraid and to be concerned about the darkness. For almost 800 years the following prophecy of Amos had been read in the temple and in their synagogues”
“In that day,” declares the Sovereign Lord, “I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight.The naming of the exact time of the darkness and the reference to mourning for an only soon make it clear that the prophecy has to refer to the crucifixion of God’s son and the attendant darkness which the prophecy acknowledges will be over the whole world. The death of Christ was where the old law and its attendant religious festivals, ordinances and Holy days were “nailed to the cross”. In 70 A.D. the Jewish temple was destroyed which put an end to the sacrifices and the ability of the Jews to continue worshiping under the Mosaic Law.
I will turn your religious festivals into mourning and all your singing into weeping. I will make all of you wear sackcloth and shave your heads. I will make that time like mourning for an only son and the end of it like a bitter day. ….Amos Chapter 8 Around 750 BC
We have the biblical account of the crucifixion which mentions darkness for three hours and earthquakes and other occurrences. We have the biblical prophecy of Amos which predicted those events 750-800 years before they occurred in great detail. What about historical, non biblical sources?
Around A.D. 50, Thallus wrote a history of the Eastern Mediterranean world spanning the time of the Trojan War (1200-1300 B.C.) to his own time. The history itself apparently no longer exists but certain quotations from the work appear in the writings of others. Julius Africanus a historian writing about A.D. 220 was one such scholar who apparently had access to Thallus’ history. Thallus had a reference not to the crucifixion in his historical account but to the daytime darkness that occurred at that time. Africanus is quoted quoting the prior work and refuting the notion that the cause of the darkness could have been an eclipse:
“On the whole world there pressed a most fearful darkness; and the rocks were rent by an earthquake, and many places in Judea and other districts were thrown down. This darkness Thallus, in the third book of his History, calls, as appears to me without reason, an eclipse of the sun. For the Hebrews celebrate the Passover on the 14th day according to the moon, and the passion of our Savior falls on the day before the Passover; but an eclipse of the sun takes place only when the moon comes under the sun.“Tertullian, in his Apologeticus, tells the story of the darkness that had commenced at noon during the crucifixion; those who were unaware of the prediction, he says, “no doubt thought it an eclipse”. He suggests that the evidence is still available: “You yourselves have the account of the world-portent still in your archives.”
And it cannot happen at any other time but in the interval between the first day of the new moon and the last of the old, that is, at their junction: how then should an eclipse be supposed to happen when the moon is almost diametrically opposite the sun? Let opinion pass however; let it carry the majority with it; and let this portent of the world be deemed an eclipse of the sun, like others a portent only to the eye.
Phlegon records that, in the time of Tiberius Caesar, at full moon, there was a full eclipse of the sun from the sixth hour to the ninth–manifestly that one of which we speak. But what has an eclipse in common with an earthquake, the rending rocks, and the resurrection of the dead, and so great a perturbation throughout the universe? Surely no such event as this is recorded for a long period. (XVIII.1
The early historian and theologian, Rufinus of Aquileia (between 340 and 345 – 410), in his expanded work of Eusebius’ Ecclesiastical History, includes a part of the defense given to Maximinus by Lucian of Antioch, shortly before he suffered martyrdom in 312. Lucian, like Tertullian, was also convinced that an account of the darkness that accompanied the crucifixion could be found among Roman records. Ussher recorded Lucian’s corresponding statement given to Maximinus as, “Search your writings and you shall find that, in Pilate’s time, when Christ suffered, the sun was suddenly withdrawn and a darkness followed.”
The next prominent Christian historian after Eusebius, Paulus Orosius (375 – 418), wrote c. 417 that Jesus “voluntarily gave himself over to the Passion but through the impiety of the Jews, was apprehended and nailed to the cross, as a very great earthquake took place throughout the world, rocks upon mountains were split, and a great many parts of the largest cities fell by this extraordinary violence. On the same day also, at the sixth hour of the day, the Sun was entirely obscured and a loathsome night suddenly overshadowed the land, as it was said, ‘an impious age feared eternal night.’ Moreover, it was quite clear that neither the Moon nor the clouds stood in the way of the light of the Sun, so that it is reported that on that day the Moon, being fourteen days old, with the entire region of the heavens thrown in between, was farthest from the sight of the Sun, and the stars throughout the entire sky shone, then in the hours of the day or rather in that terrible night. To this, not only the authority of the Holy Gospels attest, but even some books of the Greeks.”"….Wikipedia
Many ancient historians writing shortly after the time of Christ freely acknowledged his existence but professed varying ideas about who he really was. For instance one ancient historian acknowledged his existence and even that he performed many miracles. He attributed these miracles to magic powers that he supposedly acquired while visiting Egypt.
Born around 54 A.D. Cornelius Tacitus was another noted Roman historian who noted The Crucifixion of Jesus. He stated that Jesus had been crucified by Pontius Pilate, and that Rome was in darkness during the reign of Tiberius the Caesar in AD.33.”
That’s about right.
Monday, July 15, 2013
YOGA and Christianity: Are They Compatible?
| |
|
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)