Certain Jews truly want a third temple, but . . .
Remaining Bricks of the Church of God on Jerusalem’s Western Hill
Various Jews in Israel are fervently working on trying to have another temple:
I went to visit the Jewish Quarter in the Old City of Jerusalem to see how the preparations for the establishment of the new temple were getting on. For hundreds of Israelis, the task of renewing the temple has become the job of their lives. It is about time, so they believe, to establish the Third Temple in its proper place — right on the site where the First Temple and the Second Temple were once standing before being destroyed. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/06/buildng-third-temple-jerusalem.html#ixzz2Zb0eoMp7
What many do not realize is that a lot of the bricks from the last Jewish temple were used to build the Church of God on Jerusalem’s Western Hill , and that contrary to certain Protestant (and sadly some in the COG), Bible prophecy does not require a Jewish temple in Jerusalem before Jesus will return. The Man of Sin of 2 Thessalonians 2 can sit elsewhere to fulfill 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4.
Some believe that a particular ‘red heifer is a sign:
TORAH CONDITION FOR 3RD TEMPLE NOW MET?
Institute reports required ‘red heifer’ being raised in U.S.
The Jerusalem-based Temple Institute has taken on the goal of rebuilding the Third Jewish Temple, regarded by Jews and Christians as a precursor to the coming of the Messiah.
The plan is guaranteed to provoke world conflict, since the Islamic Dome of the Rock now sits on the presumed Temple site…
The organization posted a video this month showing what appears to be a perfect red heifer that is being raised at an unidentified location in the United States.
“In truth, the fate of the entire world depends on the red heifer,” the institute says.
“For G-d has ordained that its ashes alone are the single missing ingredient for the reinstatement of biblical purity – and thereafter, the rebuilding of the Holy Temple.”
The Temple Institute says purification with the red heifer “reminds us that man has the potential to rise above his transitory physical existence, with all its false sense of hopelessness and misery … the impurity of death.” http://www.wnd.com/2014/06/torah-condition-for-3rd-temple-now-met/#pTyWBvkkroch6Mub.99
Finding a red heifer is like finding a needle in a hay stack. But early this week some overly industrious Jew managed to do just that in the United States of America.
This finding is all the more intriguing considering that on the coming Sabbath (Shabbat) Jews will read in the synagogues the Torah portion that begins with one of the mysterious commandment of the Red Heifer: “Tell the Israelites to procure for you a red heifer that is free from every blemish and defect and on which no yoke has ever been laid…” (Num. 19:2ff).
The Red Heifer is an extremely rare creature. According to Jewish tradition, during the two thousand years from the time this commandment was given until the destruction of the Second Temple in the first century AD, only nine red cows that met the biblical criteria were ever found.
For a cow to be a Red Heifer it has to be without blemish, one that was never put to work and completely reddish. Jewish law requires keeping the young cow under strict care until it reaches three years old. During this time, leaning on the cow, riding it even once or even putting a piece of cloth on its back disqualifies it from becoming a Red Heifer…
The discovery of a red calf that could potentially become a Red Heifer excites many Jews who believe that Moses prepared the first Red Heifer and Messiah will prepare the last one.
The possibility of finding a real Red Heifer prompted the Temple Institute to make the logistic preparations needed for bringing the American calf to Israel and to train priests that will perform this sacred and rare sacrificial ceremony.
At least in theory, this calf could help Jews sufficiently purify themselves to engage in real Temple activities. For now, however, believers will have to chew their nails for at least two and a half years before it will be known whether or not this import is the Red Heifer. http://www.israeltoday.co.il/NewsItem/tabid/178/nid/24701/Default.aspx?hp=popular_posts
August 9, 2015
Red heifers were slaughtered as sacrifices in the Temple and the ashes were used in purification rituals, especially for people who had become impure through contact with dead bodies.
The Temple Institute is a 28-year-old organization that has built more than 70 artifacts that can be used when a Third Temple is built. Its latest project is to import frozen embryos from Red Angus cattle in the United States to create a herd of kosher red heifers in Israel.
“People have this understanding that the red heifer is something otherworldly or it is really rare,” explained Rabbi Chaim Richman, the international director and co-founder of the Temple Institute. “But really there are hundreds or even thousands of red-colored cattle of different species that would qualify.” …
“Ultimately, in order for there to be a kosher red heifer, it must be arranged from birth,” explained Richman. “The animal must be supervised, watched, and cared for.”
The Temple Mount is in the process of importing frozen embryos from Red Angus cows in the United States – deemed most likely to create progeny that are completely red – in order to create the first herd of red heifers for ritual use in Israel. It is called a “red heifer” because the cow must be female, but it can never have given birth. …
Richman said that the organization’s focus on building ritual objects ready for use in the Third Temple does not have a messianic agenda and does not aim to hasten an eschatological end of days. Richman points out that one-third of the 613 commandments of Judaism are related to the Temple.
“Our motivation for doing this is the same motivation for keeping Shabbat, which is because God commanded us to do it,” he said. “The idea is to do our best to fulfill the mandate of the Jewish people.”
More than one million people have visited the Temple Institute’s exhibition of the 70 ritual objects it has built according to specifications in the Torah. Richman said these objects, including the future red heifer, are not models but rather are fully kosher for use in the Third Temple. http://www.timesofisrael.com/red-heifer-temple-institute/
Now let’s notice the view of some Jews about the ramifications of a new temple:
Schwartz, Cohen and Glick are all confident that once the Third Temple is erected, the world will become a fundamentally different place. The Lord would then bestow on Earth great abundance and there would no longer be anyone in need of charity.
“Those who do not feel what is going to happen are either blind or stupid, or ungrateful,” Glick noted, clearly annoyed with me, having noticed the skeptical expression on my face. “There has never been anything like that in the history of the human race; the return of an exiled people to its homeland is unique in human annals. It is all written in the Torah. And the last, supreme stage will be the construction of the temple.” http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/06/buildng-third-temple-jerusalem.html#ixzz2Zb18AyW6
The above position reminds me of what the Fatimists (people who believe that the messages from the ‘Lady of Fatima’ are divine and reveal God’s new plan to save humanity) say will happen if Russia is consecrated to “the immaculate heart of Mary.” Basically, the Fatimists believe that act would also bring about peace and great abundance. But neither of those physical acts will save humanity–it will take the return of Jesus Christ and the establishment of the Kingdom of God and not some human action to usher in the millennial peace.
As far as a physical temple in Jerusalem goes, here is what the late Herbert W. Armstrong wrote:
God made a prophecy in the third chapter of Malachy…Continuing, “…shall suddenly come to His temple…” What kind of temple is He coming to? Are the Jews going to tear down the Dome of the Rock and build a new temple? Oh, no!… A holy temple! Christ is coming to His church! Christ is coming to His temple! Do we see that? The church is the temple. “…in whom ye are also builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.” (Armstrong, Herbert W. Congress of Leading Ministers Hears Defined and Reemphasized Spiritual Organization of Church. Worldwide News, March 6, 1981, p. 10)
Some no longer agree with him about that, but I believe he was right and that can be shown from what the Bible also teaches (Why is a Jewish Temple in Jerusalem Not Required?).
This does not mean that a Jewish temple cannot be built, only that it is not required to be built before Jesus returns. The Bible (Ezra 3:6) and Jewish religious leaders agree that animal sacrifices (which the Bible says will resume as it teaches that they will later be stopped per Daniel 9:27;11:31) can occur without a Jewish temple. Only an altar in the area is required (cf. Ezra 3:2-6) and the Jews already have one of those (for details, see Why is a Jewish Temple in Jerusalem Not Required?).
A reader forwarded the following, which if true, will have ramifications on this matter between the Israelis and the USA:
The Obama administration has quietly presented a plan in which the Palestinian Authority and Jordan will receive sovereignty over the Temple Mount while Israel will retain the land below the Western Wall, according to a senior PA negotiator speaking to WND…
The proposed plan is part of the basis for U.S.-brokered talks that are set to resume in Washington next week after Secretary of State John Kerry announced that both Israel and PA President Mahmoud Abbas have agreed to open negotiations aimed at creating a Palestinian state.
Israel has not agreed to the U.S. plan over the Temple Mount, with details still open for discussion, stated the PA negotiator.
http://www.wnd.com/2013/07/secret-obama-plan-forfeits-temple-mount-to-palestinians/#MOVA4q3xHXGpHyg1.99
So, this is another potential stumbling block. The Jews and the Muslims have differing plans for the area.
While the Jews push for another temple, and may possibly get one, they also tend to push for the ability to do animal sacrifices. At some point in time, the sacrifices will begin, but will be stopped (Daniel 9:27,11:31). And that will be not be a sign of peace and prosperity, but a sign that the Great Tribulation is about to begin (Matthew 24:15-23).
Some items of possibly related interest may include:
Why is a Jewish Temple in Jerusalem Not Required? Although people like Timothy LaHaye teach a third Jewish temple is required, who is ‘the temple of God” in the New Testament? Does the Bible require a rebuilt Jewish Temple? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Por qué no se requiere un templo judío en Jerusalén? Here is a link to a sermon titled The Temple, Prophecy, and the Work.
The Red Heifer, Jewish Beliefs, and the End of the World The Temple Institute is watching a ‘red heifer.’ Why might this be important in the sequence of end time events? Here is a related link in the Spanish language Novilla roja descubierta en EE.UU. e Instituto del Templo está interesado en ella. Here is a related video in English The Red Heifer and the End of the World.
Location of the Prophesied Physical Temple Leroy Neff gives his rationalse for the location of the coming temple.
Church of God on Jerusalem’s Western Hill Could this building, often referred to as the Cenacle, possibly have been the oldest actual Christian church building?
Does the ‘Cenacle’ deal have prophetic ramifications? After a 20 year negotiation, the Church of Rome has negotiated the right to have Catholic mass in the building known as the Cenacle. It is in the area where the Church of God on Jerusalem’s Western Hill once stood. This is believed to be the location of the earliest Christian church building. How does the Bible define the ‘temple of God’ in the New Testament? Could this be the area where the ‘man of sin’ will sit in the “temple of God’ that Bible prophecy discusses in 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4? This is a YouTube video.
Jerusalem: Past, Present, and Future What does the Bible say about Jerusalem and its future? Is Jerusalem going to be divided and eliminated? Is Jesus returning to the area of Jerusalem? There is also a related YouTube video you can watch titled Jerusalem To be divided and eliminated.
Mary, the Mother of Jesus and the Apparitions Do you know much about Mary? Are the apparitions real? What happened at Fatima? What might they mean for the rise of the ecumenical religion of Antichrist? Are Protestants moving towards Mary? How do the Eastern/Greek Orthodox view Mary? How might Mary view her adorers? Here is a link to a YouTube video Marian Apparitions May Fulfill Prophecy.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God was the Emphasis of Jesus and the Early Church Did you know that? Do you even know what the gospel of the kingdom is all about? You can also see a YouTube video sermon The Gospel of the Kingdom.
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2013, 2014, or 2015? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? See also the video The Great Tribulation Will Not Begin Before 2017.
Just What Do You Mean the Kingdom of God? A booklet that was written by Herbert Armstrong answers questions about the Kingdom.
Who is the Man of Sin of 2 Thessalonians 2? Is this the King of the North, the ten-horned beast of Revelation 13:1-11, or the two-horned Beast of Revelation 13:12-16? Some rely on traditions, but what does the Bible teach? Here is a related link in Spanish/español: ¿Quién es el Hombre de Pecado de 2 Tesalonicenses 2? Here is a version in Mandarin: 主编： 谁是’大罪人’？Here is a link to a related YouTube video, in English, titled Who is the Man of Sin?
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