Well greetings friends. This is Herbert W Armstrong with the Good News of the World Tomorrow. The Truth About The Resurrection A Different Gospel What Jesus Taught The Transfiguration
Now, my friends, if you have a Bible, open it and see some surprises. And see how the Bible does not say what you thought it said, and how we have been taught to believe exactly the opposite. And how the teaching of Jesus Christ has been submerged and a different teaching altogether substituted.
They have accepted the name of Christ — they have preached about Him — they have preached about His person — they have exalted Him, while they have rejected the message that He brought. Open your Bible, see this with your own eyes. It's the most astonishing thing of our time, and it is about time we came to wake up and to realize the truth.
Now we had come here in Mark the eighth chapter to the thirty-eighth verse. Mark 8, verse 38. And Jesus is speaking, He said:
For "Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, [and of my words] in this adulterous and sinful generation; the Son of man shall also be ashamed of him" (Mark 8:38 American Standard Version)
I think we have only read part of that — most people. Most of them — "whosoever shall be ashamed of me" that He would reject and that He would be ashamed of before His Father, when He comes in His kingdom. But that isn't all that He said. He said:
"Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words..." (Mark 8:38)
They are not ashamed of Him, many of them, they have accepted Him — that is the professing Christians, They have accepted Him — they have professed Him. Of course a good many are even ashamed of Christ today, but the professing Christians are not. But they have denied His words.
Now one of His words that He said; we saw here just in the last few broadcasts in this series, of how Jesus had begun to teach them. "...that the Son of man must suffer many things [this is the thirty-first verse of this same chapter]...that the Son of man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and the scribes and be killed and after three days rise again. (Mark 8:31)
And they try to make it that in only half that time, He rose again. Not after three days, but less than that.
Now if you want the proof of that — don't be offended — just write in for our booklet that is free and there is no charge. All you have to do is go to the effort of sending in a letter or a post card. And it will come to you without any charge, on 'The Resurrection,' and will give you the proof.
I heard a broadcast here the other day; I don't remember where, who it was or anything about it. A preacher preaching and making statements out of whole cloth that the Bible says this and that and the Bible does not say one thing that man said, but exactly the opposite. He claimed that the Bible said Jesus was crucified on Friday and that the Bible says, and he said that Jesus rose on Sunday morning. And he quoted from; well let me see, I think I can remember what he quoted. I think it was, let me see, Mark 16. Mark 16 and I think he quoted from the first two and including the ninth verse.
Let's just read that, as a matter of interest. Let me just show you it does not say; he said that the Bible says that Jesus rose on Sunday. Mark 16:1-9. Now most people would believe that if a man says it says that and quotes where it is suppose to say it — most people will take it for granted that the man couldn't be deceiving them. But, you know the man that will do a thing like that knows that most of you people out there are just not going to take the effort — I wonder if he thinks you are lazy. At least he believes that you are too lazy to take the effort to read it with you own Bible and see whether it says what he claimed or not.
Now let's read it. "And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Salome, had bought sweet spices that they might come and anoint him. And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun." (Mark 16:1-2)
Now it's very early in the morning Sunday morning, this was. No question about that, it is the first day of the week.
"And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre? And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great. And entering into the sepulchre..." (Mark 16:3-5)
At sunrise Sunday morning and John's account says it was still yet dark. The sun was just beginning to rise, but had not risen high enough yet to light up the earth. It was still dark, but it was right at the rising of the sun. It was dawn the first day of the week. It was the rising of the sun.
Now, "...entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted. And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen..." (Mark 16:5-6)
It does not say He is rising. It said He is risen — that is past perfect tense! He already had risen, because He rose the night before. He did not rise on Sunday morning, but Sunday morning while it was yet dark at sunrise, at dawn — He is risen — He is not here at Sunday morning when they came, He was not there. That was not the resurrection. That was the first appearance of these people after the resurrection and their appearance was on Sunday morning, but the resurrection had already occurred. They found not the body of the Lord Jesus. He already had risen, He was not there.
"...he is not here: behold the place where they laid him. But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him, as he said unto you. And they went out quickly, and [they] fled from the sepulchre; for they trembled and were amazed: neither said they anything to any man; for they were afraid.
Now, here's verse 9. "Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils." (Mark 16:6-9)
Now He appeared to Mary Magdalene. I sent that sentence, without punctuation, and remember that the punctuation is a modern invention and was no punctuation, there were no commas, semi-colons, colons, or periods, or punctuation marks at the time that Mark wrote this gospel in the Greek language. And punctuation has been added by men, where the men believed, according to their teachings — right or wrong, false or true, that the comma ought to be. I sent this without any punctuation at all to the head of the department of English the University of Oregon. I asked for a diagram of this sentence and I asked, does the term 'first day of the week' describe when Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalene, or when He rose? And the answer was that the first day of the week describes when He appeared to Mary Magdalene and it was at a time after He rose. But it does not tell when He rose. He appeared to Mary Magdalene on the first day of the week.
Now then, on the first day of the week, this tells what condition Jesus was in or what He was doing. Does it say He was rising? NO! I want you to look at it. When the first day of the week came, Jesus was risen. And it is when Jesus WAS RISEN. 'Was risen' is past perfect tense. It is just like we saw up here above. Jesus was not here; " you seek Jesus which was crucified, he is not here — HE IS RISEN."
Now not 'is rising'. He is not here. He couldn't be rising. "He is not here, He is risen." Well 'is risen' is even past tense, but 'was risen' is still more past tense. When the first day of the week came along, Jesus WAS ALREADY RISEN, and if you know anything about the English language, you know that is true. It does not say was rising. It does not say, now the first day of the week Jesus did rise. There is absolutely nothing in this sentence that says there was any resurrection on the first day of the week. He had already risen when the first day of the week came along.
Now there you are. When are we going to get back to what the Bible says and quit twisting it and interpreting it and maligning it and throwing mud all over it and spitting on it like people do, by trying to deceive the people as to what it says?
I preach the same gospel that the apostle Paul took to the Gentiles. That, my friends, is the same gospel that Jesus Christ taught His disciples, because you will find that Paul said he didn't get what he had from any man. He got it directly from Jesus Christ. And over here in Galatians the apostle Paul explains where he got his gospel that he took to the Gentiles. He said that when God had called him, when it pleased God; verse 15 of the very first chapter.
"...when it pleased God... To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them that were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia and returned again unto Damascus. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days. But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord's brother. Now the things I write unto you behold, before God, I lie not." (Galatians 1:15-20)
And he had said over here in verse 8 and 9:
"...though we, or and angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." (Galatians 1:8)
And the curse is doubled and repeated in the next verse. Now coming down to the second chapter, Paul continues:
"Then [after] fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me [also]. And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them [the apostles now that had been taught of Christ, and had their gospel direct from Christ and what Christ taught them — he went up and communicated unto them, Paul says]...that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles..." (Galatians 2:2)
He didn't get it from men — he went to Arabia. He later said, "Have I not been with Christ? Have I not seen Christ?" Christ taught him this gospel the same as Christ taught it to the apostles. Now He communicates to them, the apostles, the gospel that He preached among the Gentiles.
Now then, drop down just a few verses and see whether it was the same or not, verse 9; well verse 7:
"But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter; (For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision [that is Israel] the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:) And when James, Cephas [that's Peter] and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave unto me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision." (Galatians 2:7-9)
They found that they all preached the same gospel exactly. Now Paul didn't get it from men, but it was the same gospel that Jesus taught His disciples, that the apostles went out and proclaimed and the same gospel that the apostle Paul preached to the Gentiles. That's what I preach, my friends, and why should it be strange in your ears? Why should you be astonished at this gospel? Because you haven't heard it, that is why. God have mercy on this generation.
Now then, let's continue this:
"Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words [why have they rejected His words?]...in this adulterous generation and sinful generation the Son of man also shall be ashamed of him, when he cometh in the glory of the Father with the holy angels." (Mark 8:38 ASV)
All the holy angels are coming with Him. Matthew 25 and beginning with verse 31, you'll find that all the holy angels are coming out of heaven with Jesus when He comes to earth. No human beings are coming out of heaven with Him. The human beings are not up in heaven.
They will rise — the dead in Christ will rise and meet Him in the air. They are down here on the earth. The dead in Christ are not up in heaven with Him. they are down in the earth and they'll rise up out of the earth and we which are alive at the time, that are in Christ shall be CHANGED — WE SHALL BE CONVERTED INSTANTANEOUSLY IN THE TWINKLING OF AN EYE (I Corinthians 15:52). This mortal will put on immortality. Yes, this human will become divine and we shall ascend and meet Him in the clouds with those that rise out of their graves, out of the ground. CHRIST IS COMING DOWN — THEY ARE GOING UP. At that time yet future.
"The hour is coming in which they that are [where?] in their graves [not up in heaven. In their graves] shall hear his voice and come forth. They that have done good unto the resurrection of life, they that have done bad or evil, unto the resurrection of judgment." (John 5:28-29 paraphrased)
That's what Jesus said, those are His words. Are you ashamed of those words? Do you believe other words? Do you believe the traditions of men? Do you believe the precepts of men? Are you ashamed of the words of Jesus Christ? If so, He'll be ashamed of you, when He comes into His kingdom — the Father's kingdom, with all the holy angels.
Now here we come now to the ninth chapter of Mark and the first verse, notice carefully:
"And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, there be some here of them that stand by, [which] shall in no wise taste of death, till they see the kingdom of God come with power." (Mark 9:1 ASV)
They are actually going to see the Kingdom of God come with power. Now He had taught them that the Kingdom of God would not immediately appear. He had said before Pilate, "My kingdom is not of this world" (John 18:36). He had said, because they thought the Kingdom of God would immediately appear, that He was the young nobleman that was going to a far country, and that's heaven of course, to receive for Himself a kingdom. And then to return and that the kingdom would be when He comes into His kingdom at His second coming; which is yet in the future. Then He would call His servants to an accounting. That's what He said in a parable of the nineteenth chapter of Luke.
So the Kingdom of God has not yet appeared — has not yet been set up on this earth. Not even yet now, and yet Jesus said that there were some standing there; at that time — way over 1900 years ago — that should not taste of death until they saw the Kingdom of God coming with power. How did that happen?
Now let's turn to Matthew's account. The same thing in Matthew is in the sixteenth chapter of Matthew and the twenty-eighth verse, let's begin there:
"Verily I say unto you [this is just Matthew's account of the same words... Verily I say unto you,] there be some of them that stand here, which shall no in no wise taste of death [people that were then living that would never die], till they see the Son of man coming in is kingdom." (Matthew 16:28 ASV)
Now they were to see the Kingdom of God, they were to see the Son of Man coming IN HIS KINGDOM. Are those people still living somewhere today? Christ has not yet come in the Second Coming. HE SAID UNTIL THEY SEE THE SON OF MAN COMING, until they see Him coming.
Now just before here in Mark's account that I read to you, He said He would be ashamed of those that are ashamed of His words — WHEN HE COMETH IN THE GLORY OF HIS FATHER, with the holy angels.
Now turning to see when that time is that He'll be ashamed of them. When He comes — when He is coming. Let me read this to you in Matthew 25 beginning with verse 31:
"When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of His glory." (Matthew 25:31)
My friends, I don't think anybody would claim that that has happened as yet.
"And before him shall be gathered all nations; and he shall separate them [all nations] one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats; And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, [and] the goats on the left [hand]. Then shall the King say [when He cometh, He is coming as a King — He is sitting on a throne. He is now a king. HE IS RULING THE WHOLE WORLD WHEN HE COMES. Here it is — He'll] say to them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared [yes the kingdom is the place prepared] inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." (Matthew 25:32-34 ASV)
Now that's when He rules. That's when He sits on His throne. That has not happened and Jesus said:
"I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall in no wise taste of death, until they see the Son of man COMING IN HIS KINGDOM." (Matthew 16:28 ASV)
That's when He sits on the throne. That's when the holy angels come with Him. That's when He will rule over all the nations of the earth and there were some standing there that were going to see it before they died. How do you explain that?
"And after six days, Jesus taketh with him, Peter, James, and John..." (Matthew 17:1 ASV)
Now the way men have divided it, that is Matthew 17 now. It is another chapter and the first verse. But, you know Matthew didn't divide it up into chapters. The way he wrote it and the way the Holy Spirit inspired it is the very next words and the thought in the story continues right on.
Jesus said that there were some standing there that would not die, would not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in HIS KINGDOM. (Matthew 16:28)
"And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, And he was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun..." (Matthew 17:1-2 ASV)
Now you look at the description of Christ as He is now up in heaven at the right hand of the Father. As He will be at His Second Coming. The only descriptions that you can see have His face shining as the sun and His eyes just blazing until a man couldn't stand it to look into His eyes — a mortal human man filled with sin. Not looking like an ordinary man.
And now here is Jesus Christ in front of those humans then, Peter, James, and John transfigured before them. "...and his face did shine as the sun, and his garments became white as the light. And behold, there appeared unto them [now notice...there appeared unto them] Moses and Elijah talking with him..." (Matthew 17:1-3 ASV) With Jesus, and Jesus transfigured in this magnificent manner!
Now continue verse 4: "And Peter answered and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, I will make here three tabernacles, one for thee and, one for Moses and, one for Elijah." (Matthew 17:4 ASV)
Now the tabernacle there, the word 'tabernacle' means a 'booth." Just a small booth. The word tabernacle, as it has been translated in the English of the old time, you know, when they translated the Bible, a few hundred years back — it had a meaning of a booth. Today we think of a tabernacle as a great place seating anywhere from ten to twenty thousand people or something like that. Or at least a thousand or more. But he meant just a little booth here. And he, of course he couldn't build a great big tabernacle in hurry, but the kind that this meant and was meant at the time this was written.
"...if thou wilt... [Peter said]...I will make here three tabernacles [or three booths], one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah."" (Matthew 17:4 ASV)
That was the type of the Feast of Tabernacles when they were always told to dwell in booths and they did it at this time. The disciples did it and Jesus did. And Jesus set us an example, and the Feast of Tabernacles was ordained forever. And we should be observing it today, and YOU'LL ALL HAVE TO OBSERVE IT WHEN JESUS COMES IN HIS KINGDOM.
If you'll turn to Zechariah 14 and read there the last part of it, you'll find that when Christ is King ruling on His throne, that all nations will have to come up, year after year to keep the Feast of Tabernacles and worship the Lord of Hosts. And if they don't come there will be no rain. And then if they don't come the next year, God will send a plague to force them to come. And all nations will have to finally keep the Feast of Tabernacles. (Zechariah 14: 16-19 paraphrased)
Now the church did keep the Feast of Tabernacles. The Gentiles under the apostle Paul kept the Feast of Tabernacles for hundreds of years as you can find in history after Christ. But you know, most of the organized religion of the world rejected that and began to call it Jewish, and that is what people say today. God have mercy on them in their ignorance.
Now, he was referring to that, because the Feast of Tabernacles, my friends, portrays the Kingdom of God during the Millennium — the millennial reign with Christ. That's what it pictures and they dwelt in tabernacles and that's why Peter thought of a tabernacle. Because here he was seeing the Kingdom of God — he was seeing just as if he had been taken into the Millennium. And here was Christ, now in His kingdom. And here right with Him appeared Moses and Elijah talking with Him. How do you explain this?
Let's go on, it's explained: "While he was yet speaking behold a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud saying, [this was God the Father], This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him." (Matthew 17:5 ASV)
He said, "Hear ye him," that's what God said. God had sent Christ. God Almighty had sent Christ with a message. And God Almighty the Father said, hear Him; hear His message; listen to His words; believe the gospel He preaches!
Men accepted Him. They accepted His person, they exalted Christ, but they denied His message and you people today have been taught to deny it and taught that the message of Christ is wrong. God Almighty with His word said, "Hear him." Why won't you hear Him today, my friends? Why won't you hear Him? When you don't you are disobeying this command of God the Father.
God said, "...hear ye him and when the disciples heard it they fell on their face [would that you would do it, my friends, when you hear those words repeated], and they were sore afraid [and you ought to be]. And Jesus came and he touched them and said, Arise and be not afraid. And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one, save Jesus only." (Matthew 17:2-8 ASV)
Now they looked around — there wasn't a soul there. Now did they imagine all of this? What is the answer? There were men that were standing there when Jesus said those words. They did not die till they saw Christ in His kingdom and Moses and Elijah there talking with Him — and Jesus transfigured. What is the answer? Read the next verse, verse 9, Matthew 17:
"And as they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them [these disciples] saying tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen from the dead." (Matthew 17:9)
Tell what — tell the vision to no man. In vision they saw Christ transfigured in His kingdom. In vision, they saw Moses and Elijah standing before Him. But when the vision was gone, they looked and there was nobody there. Now actually the Kingdom didn't occur — in actual fact, but they saw it. Jesus didn't say the Kingdom of God would appear on earth — at that time I mean. Jesus didn't say, "Verily I say unto you there be some standing here or that stand by, which shall in no wise taste death until the Kingdom of God comes." He didn't say that. He said there be some of you standing here that will not die, till they SEE the Kingdom of God — and they saw it in a vision. There's the answer.
The Bible makes itself plain. The Bible interprets the Bible. Take Matthew's account here, Matthew said — this is now the sixteenth chapter the twenty-eighth verse:
"There [be] some of them that stand here which shall in no wise taste of death [till what?], till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom." (Matthew 16:28 ASV)
He didn't say till the Son of man comes in His kingdom. Oh no, they died long before He is to come. He hasn't come yet. But THEY DID SEE IT, in a vision. And that's exactly what He said — and it happened — and that's the answer. And the Bible gives its own explanation and it is very plain, if we will take the Bible as it is.
"Jesus said, tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen from the dead." (Matthew 17:9 ASV)
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