Looking to the Eastern Sky

Matthew 24:32-35

When one begins reading verse 32, you would wonder if you had picked up the farmers magazine and turned to the part on growing fig trees.  One of the dangers in reading the Bible is not asking the question, Lord, what is the lesson You have for me?  The “Fig Tree” in the Bible has many messages for us, so what is the Lord teaching us this time?

Do you recall Adam and Eve after they had rebelled against God’s command, their eyes were open and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths?  (Genesis 3:7)   We know that God killed an animal and made clothes for them, it required the shading of blood to cover sin.  It brings to mind Hebrews 9:22, “In deed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.” 

The prophet Ezekiel was given this information almost 600 years before Christ or Messiah showed up in the flesh on planet earth.  The book of Ezekiel is often referred to as a mystery book; it is much like Daniel and Revelation.  It gives prophesy of the departure of the glory of the Lord from the temple in chapters 10:16-18 & 11:23.  The fall of Jerusalem in chapter 33:21 and the building of a new sanctuary in chapters 40-42 and the returning of the glory of the Lord in chapter 43:4-5 and in chapter 44:3-4.

“Sometime in the sixth or seventh century, the Byzantines rebuilt the Eastern Gate. The exact year they did so remains a matter of debate. However, for our purposes, what happened after it was rebuilt is of much greater importance. In the year 1541, the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman I sealed the Eastern Gate. Historians disagree as to why he did this, but legend abound that, learning of the prophecies which predicted the Messiah’s entrance through the Eastern Gate, Suleiman tried his best to make sure it wouldn’t happen during his reign. And just in case a sealed entrance didn’t thwart the Messiah’s coming, Muslim built a cemetery directly in front of the gate – conventional wisdom being that a Jewish Holy man would never defile himself by walking through a Muslim cemetery.
It’s been over 465 years since Suleiman sealed the Eastern Gate, and despite numerous well-documented attempts to open it, the gate has remained sealed just as the Lord proclaimed to Ezekiel over 2,600 years ago.” (Britt Gillette Titled “The Messiah’s Gate”)
I must give you one more bit of history, and I’ve lost the authors name, but it is very well done.

An amazing analogy!

“If we go back in time to the end of WW2 and about 1945, the Jews under great difficulty and opposition began to filter back into Palestine. In symbol we could liken this to the planting of the branch. Three years later, in a similar way to the tree, the first buds appeared. In 1948 the time when the first young fruits would appear on a literal tree planted three years earlier, the state of Israel was proclaimed by the United Nations. And not only that, it was in May 1948, which would have been the time of the appearance of the young fruit on the natural fruit trees.

There is a most significant prophecy for us today related to the fig tree. It comes from the Messiah's prophecy on the Mt of Olives. It is recorded in both the gospel of Matthew and the gospel of Luke. It is only a short prophecy, like a hidden gem, but it is most significant for we who are living in the last days. It relates to the coming Kingdom.”

“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.”  (Matthew 24:32-34 ESV)

We should be looking to the eastern sky, for Jesus is a promise keeper.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice