It is important to understand what is scripturally meant by “born again” and “being saved.” BORN AGAIN The phrase “born again” is found in John 3:3. “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” A more accurate translation for “born again” is “begotten from above.” It does not describe a second birth. It refers to the changed relationship with God when the power and influence of His holy spirit is given to us. Being begotten from above is a process of our spiritual development: God first calls us to follow Jesus. If we accept the call the next step is to dedicate, or consecrate, our lives to doing God’s will. God then “begets” us with His holy spirit. The term “begets” is taken from the natural birth process where a life is first conceived (or begotten) and after growth and development is finally born. A faithful Christian’s life is similar to this natural process. Receiving the holy spirit is the begettal part. We are now considered “sons of God” as described in 1 John 3:2: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” Our spiritual growth and maturity as Christians is compared to a gestation period. Finally, after a life of devoted service to God and growth in the image of Christ, we are “born” as spirit beings. Spiritual growth and birth are described by the Apostle Paul in Romans 2:7: “To them who by patient continuance in well doing (the growth) seek for glory, honor and immortality, eternal life (the birth).” So, when Jesus said we must be born again, he meant that a life of faithfulness to God would result in a heavenly reward and a spirit birth. BEING SAVED Being saved not only describes the process a Christian experiences but also has an application to mankind. That aspect is alluded to in 1 Corinthians 15:22: “For as in Adam ALL die, even so in Christ shall ALL be made alive.” Being saved is not limited to Christians who live in this age. The purpose of the coming Millennium will be to raise mankind from the dead and give them a full opportunity to believe and dedicate themselves to God. The scriptures indicate that mankind will be given 1,000 years to grow and development without the influence of Satan or corrupt worldly influences (See Revelation 20:1-4). This process for the world is mentioned in 1 Timothy 2:3-6: “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.”  In the coming age, Jesus will act as the mediator between God and mankind. He (and his faithful followers of this age) will teach the world to love righteousness and consecrate their lives to God. The word “ransom” can also be translated “corresponding price.” This shows us that the sacrifice of Jesus’ life was a corresponding price for Adam as described in 1 Corinthians 15:22. It describes a one-for one exchange: the life of Jesus for the life of Adam. By purchasing Adam, the father of mankind, Jesus then also purchased the entire race. This gives him the authority to resurrect all the descendants of Adam. Remember then, that being “begotten from above” describes the work of the holy spirit in the life of a Christian. “Being saved” describes the greater work of saving not only Christians but the entire world. These comprise the two ages of salvation.

2 Kings 13:20 records the death of Elisha, a prophet of God. Elisha’s death came during the reigns of Joash, a king of Israel, who is also referred to as Jehoash (in verse 25). 2 Kings 13:10-13 provides a brief overview of Joash. Joash did “evil in the sight of Jehovah” (verse 11), meaning Joash led the nation of Israel into idol worship instead of faithful worship to God. Verse 14-21 describes an event that took place during the reign of Joash. Throughout the sriptures, there are many descriptions of God using foreign armies to overtake Israel as a punishment for their idolatry (Judges 3-4, as examples). The invasion of Israel by the Moabites, briefly described in verse 20, may have been just such a punishment for the idolatry practiced by Israel under Joash’s reign. Verse 21 opens with a burial scene. The burial scene takes place near the sepulcher of Elisha, who had died some short time prior to the events in verse 21. The party performing the burial service is identified only as “they.” The scriptures do not clearly identify who the “they” are. A reasonable interpretation, though, is that the burial party is a group of Israelites. Verse 20 describing Elisha’s death indicates “they” buried him. This clearly refers to the Israelites, adding strength to the interpretation that the “they” in verse 21 also refers to the Israelites. As verse 21 continues, the burial party is interrupted by an approaching group. The party aborts the burial and instead lowers the body into Elisha’s sepulcher. Once lowered, the body touched Elisha’s bones, and the man was “revived” and “stood up on his feet.” One interpretation of this account is that the revival of the man may have been facilitated by God as a reminder to Israel of His power in an attempt to draw the nation’s collective mind from idols back to God. Elisha’s death occurred a relatively short time before the events in verse 21, so the connection of Elisha as being one of God’s prophets was undoubtedly fresh in the minds of the Israelites. By causing one who was dead to be revived upon touching the bones of one of His recognized prophets, God may have been reminding the Israelites of His power. Another possible interpretation of this account may be as a picture of future events. Elisha is sometimes thought of as a picture of the “ancient worthies” as described in Hebrews 11. The ancient worthies are a class of God’s faithful ones from the days of the Old Testament. This class is anticipated to have a special interaction with Israel in God’s future kingdom, and will assist with bringing Israel as a nation back to full obedience to God. Today, Israel has been re-established as a full and thriving nation. However, the nation as a whole still does not fully recognize God as the architect of their re-establishment. During the coming years, biblical prophecy indicates that Israel will be forced to see God as their salvation and return fully to Him in all things (Ezekiel 38,39). Consider 2 Kings 13:21 in this context. A group of Israelites attempting to bury one of their own could picture the nation of Israel attempting to “bury” a part of their national identity that recognizes God as their true leader and salvation. In the scripture, the man revives back to life after coming into contact with Elisha’s bones. This may picture that “buried” part of Israel reviving to full vigor after coming in direct contact with God’s power. The thought of Elisha as a picture of the Ancient Worthies, with whom Israel will have a special relationship, seems to have a special appropriateness. Contact with the actual David or Abraham from the Bible, once dead but then resurrected to full human perfection, would serve as a powerful sign to Israel. Just as in the original scene where God may have used the revival of the man in an attempt to remind Israel of His power and bring them back to Him, a greater picture of the later Israel being drawn back to God by a display of His power could possibly be applied to this scene. Interpreting any events in the Bible as a “picture” – unless the scriptures themselves specifically call out events as representing something else – should always be done with an extreme degree of caution. Although the two interpretations of the events in 2 Kings 13:21 presented here seem to be in harmony with the greater scriptural testimony, these suggested pictures should be viewed as just that – suggestions. The certainty is that as the sure plan of God unfolds in front of us, both Israel and all mankind will surely find more and more reason to be drawn back to our all-loving, all-wise and all-powerful Creator.

We know that as the Lamb of God who corresponded to the original Passover lamb, Jesus died in the Jewish month of Nisan on the 14th day. For the 10 years of the governorship of Pontius Pilate, under whom Jesus died, there is only a single year per the rules of the Jewish calendar, in which Nisan 14 fell on a Friday – 33 AD, so this is the year Jesus died. The Jewish Passover is determined by the lunar cycle. There was a partial lunar eclipse on Friday, April 1, AD 33 (Gregorian calendar) or April 3, AD 33 (Julian calendar) or Nisan 14, 3793 (Hebrew calendar), the date of Jesus’ crucifixion. We know Jesus was about 30 years of age when he was baptized, per Luke 3:23: “Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry.” According to Jewish tradition and law, he would not have been able to teach in the synagogue until attaining the age of 30 (Numbers 4:3). Four scriptures in John (2:13; 5:1; 6:4 and 12:1) suggest that Jesus made four distinct pilgrimages to Jerusalem for observance of the Passover during his ministry and was crucified during the fourth commemoration. This supports the thought that his ministry was at least three years and can be further collaborated by the prophecy in Daniel 9:25-27 of Christ, the anointed one, being “cut-off” in the midst of the seventieth week of Israel’s favor. This puts his birth in the year 2 BC. (That is the proper date and has been discussed with good evidence for more than a century. However, another popular date put Jesus’ birth at 4 BC because it was thought that the Herod who decreed the death of the innocents had died in 4 BC. However, we now know that the actual time of Herod’s death was in the early months of 1 BC, thus removing the objection to Jesus’ birth in 2 BC.) Thus, if Jesus was born around October of 2 BC and baptized around October of 29 AD, then 2 + 29 – 1 = 30 years of age at his baptism. (When calculating across the BC/AD divide, the answer needs to be adjusted by 1 to account for the absence of a year “zero.”) Four years later in October of 33AD, he would be 34 years of age. But as he died 1/2 a year before October of 33AD, in the spring of that year, he would have been 33 1/2 years old. By our counting he would be said to be 33.

Quoting from the (American) Native American culture website, powwow.com: “A dream catcher is a handmade willow hoop woven to a web or literally, a net. They can include feathers and beads, and they’re traditionally suspended on cradles as a form of armor and protection. It is believed that dream catchers originated with Asibaikaashi, who was known as the Spider Woman. She was a custodian of all of the Ojibwe infants and adults. …Ojibwe women started weaving magical webs for the infants…as a medium of protection. These charms hung above the children’s beds to catch any bad dreams or other harm that might be present. …the web absorbs bad dreams at night and discharges them during the day. The feathers, on the other hand, act like ladders allowing good dreams to descend on the infant or adult who is sleeping. Believing in things like good luck charms goes as far back as ancient Egypt, Rome and Greece. Today you might hear of people carrying crystals, statues, rabbit’s feet, four leaf clovers or wearing “evil eye” jewelry. None of these things has the power to bring luck or offer protection from evil. They are just lifeless objects! In 2 Corinthians 5:20, the Apostle Paul describes a Christian as being an ambassador for Christ. An ambassador is someone who represents his country in a foreign land. As Christians, we represent Jesus. People watch what we say and do. We wouldn’t want them to associate good luck charms with our faith. We don’t want these superstitious customs associated with following Jesus. Putting our faith in these items distracts us from our Christianity. We should leave these sorts of things behind because we want to put our faith in God’s wisdom rather than ordinary, powerless objects. 1 Corinthians 10:31: (NASB) “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” Doing all to the glory of God should be our standard of what we do, say and think, and even what we wear, carry with us, or what decorates our homes. Instead of making, possessing or wearing charms for protection or luck, we should be symbolically wearing the armor of God, as described in Ephesians 6:14-18: (GNT) “So stand ready, with truth as a belt tight around your waist, with righteousness as your breastplate, and as your shoes the readiness to announce the Good News of peace. At all times carry faith as a shield; …And accept salvation as a helmet, and the word of God as the sword which the spirit gives you.” Through the holy spirit – God’s invisible power and influence – faithful Christians study the Bible, pray, and are blessed with wisdom from God, not luck. They have what He has allowed in their lives. They want to accept whatever His will is for them. When we have God’s protection, we do not rely on so-called “magical” objects. Our Christian faith is not about objects; it is about our dedication, loyalty, and living righteously…humbly and faithfully accepting God’s overruling in our lives. Good luck charms and superstitious “protection” devices like a dreamcatcher do not have power, but God and Jesus do. The faithful Christian’s protection comes from above – not from superstitious objects like dreamcatchers. To claim such things as decoration or just for fun would be inappropriate for the Christian.

Jehoiakim was a king of Judah, also called Eliakim. He was made king by the king of Egypt, who conquered his brother Jehoahaz, who went to Egypt as a captive and evidently died there. 2 Chronicles 36:4, “And the king of Egypt made Eliakim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem, and turned his name to Jehoiakim. And Necho took Jehoahaz his brother, and carried him to Egypt.” Jehoiakim “did evil in the Lord’s sight” (2 Kings 23:37) and the people remained idolatrous. Jehoiakim later surrendered to Nebuchadnezzar after the famous “Battle of Carchemish,” a victory of Nebuchadnezzar over the Egyptian forces that had marched northward to the Euphrates to withstand Babylon. Jeremiah 46:2 speaks of this battle, “Against Egypt, against the army of Pharaohnecho king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah.” This “fourth” year is given in Daniel 1:1 as the “third year,” Daniel using an accession year reckoning, and Jeremiah a non-accession year reckoning. (That is, Daniel counts the year a king came to the throne as year “zero,” or “accession,” and the next year as “one” – Jeremiah counted that as year “one.” Same year, two different ways of numbering it.) At this time, Daniel and his three Hebrew friends, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego went captive with Daniel. At the same time, Nebuchadnezzar bound Jehoiakim for captivity also, but evidently released him on agreement that Jehoiakim would be subordinate and faithful to Nebuchadnezzar. Thus 2 Chronicles 36:5,6, “Jehoiakim was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem: and he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD his God. Against him came up Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and bound him in fetters (chains), to carry him to Babylon.” But evidently he then released Jehoiakim on agreement to govern Jerusalem on behalf of Nebuchadnezzar. However, Jehoiakim later revolted and asserted his independence. Jehoiakim died at Jerusalem after an 11-year reign, and his son Jehoiachin became king – but only for three months – before Nebuchadnezzar returned, Jehoiachin surrendered and was taken captive to Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar then replaced Jehoiachin with his (Jehoiachin’s) uncle, Zedekiah, son of King Josiah. Zedekiah ruled then for 11 years, but he also rebelled from Nebuchadnezzar, who thus returned, captured the city, burned the temple, put out the eyes of Zedekiah and took him to Babylon where he died. Meanwhile Jehoiachin as captive in Babylon remained so until the passing of Nebuchadnezzar. Then the son of Nebuchadnezzar, Amel-Marduk (the “Evil-Merodach” of 2 kings 25:27) elevated Jehoiachin from his bondage, treated him well and cared for him for the remainder of his years. 2 Kings 25:27-30, “And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, that Evilmerodach king of Babylon in the year that he began to reign did lift up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah out of prison; and he spake kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon; and changed his prison garments: and he did eat bread continually before him all the days of his life. And his allowance was a continual allowance given him of the king, a daily rate for every day, all the days of his life.” As it turned out, this Jehoiachin was the ancestor of Jesus.

Yes, Saul knew of Jesus before his conversion. The Apostle Paul, who was known as Saul before his conversion, was a well-known Pharisee who studied under Gamaliel, a famous Jewish rabbi and a leader in the Jewish Sanhedrin (Acts 2:33). The Pharisees heard of Jesus’ activities, and they came up with the plan to kill Jesus. We presume Saul would have heard of this plan. In Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, he wrote something that might suggest he knew Jesus: 2 Corinthians 5:16, “Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.” On the road to Damascus, something so incredible happened that it changed the course of the Apostle Paul’s life, shaping the history of Christianity. By this time, the crucified and risen Jesus had appeared to several disciples. Saul, later called Paul, was a Pharisee – a Jewish leader, religious and educated in the Law. He was zealous for God and sincerely believed that the Christian movement was dangerous to the Jewish faith. He thought he was serving God by persecuting and eliminating Christians. He went to the high priest to request letters addressed to the synagogues in the city of Damascus. These letters asked for cooperation in arresting followers of Jesus, so Saul could bring them back to Jerusalem in chains. Acts 9:3-6 (Life Application Study Bible, NLT) says, “As he was nearing Damascus on this mission, a brilliant light from heaven suddenly beamed down upon him! He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, ‘Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?’ ‘Who are you, sir?’ Saul asked. And the voice replied, ‘I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting! Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you are to do.’” After Saul saw the supernatural light and heard the voice, he was convinced that Jesus had been resurrected from the dead. Saul was blind for three days after this miraculous experience, and he didn’t eat or drink anything. In a vision, Jesus spoke to a follower named Ananias, assigning him to go to Saul and restore his sight. Ananias told Saul that Jesus had sent him to get his sight back and be filled with the holy spirit, and when he laid his hands on Saul, instantly something like fish scales fell from his eyes, and he could see again. After this miracle, he was baptized. At first, the apostles didn’t trust him; they thought he was only pretending to be a believer! When Barnabas told the other apostles how Saul had boldly preached the name of Jesus in Damascus, they accepted him, and he became the 12th Apostle of Jesus, replacing Judas. The account of his conversion is told three times to three different audiences. See Acts 9:3-7 (to those hearing or reading the book of Acts), Acts 22:6-9 (to a Jewish mob who physically attacked Saul) and Acts 26:13-16 (to King Agrippa). Paul was not shy to admit the sinful mistakes of his past.

The two spellings are Nebuchadnezzar, and Nebuchadrezzar — “n” and “r” different in each case. In Hebrew, these two letters are interchanged from time to time. Thus these two forms both refer to the same person. In the books of 1 and 2 Kings, Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, and Daniel it is always with an “n.” In Ezekiel, it is always with an “r.” In Jeremiah, it is 10 times with “n” and 31 times with “r” — but always the same person intended. Something similar happens with Achan and Achar — always “Achan” in Joshua, but “Achar” in 1 Chronicles 2:7, “Achar, the troubler of Israel.”

We caution not to get too caught up on the specific legalities of labeling each sin, as both are God-dishonoring and closely related scripturally with idolatry. Generally, fornication is understood to mean sex between people who are not married to each other. Adultery is sex between a married person and someone other than their spouse. While all adultery is fornication, all fornication is not adultery. Sexuality has a sacred and honorable place is God’s plan. But when taken out of that sacred place, it becomes evil and dark: Hebrews 13:4: (NASB 1995) Marriage is to be held in honor among all, and the marriage bed is to be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge. In the sight of God, the marriage covenant requires wholehearted commitment, exclusivity, and unswerving loyalty to one’s partner. Jesus adds, So that they are no more two, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. Matthew 19:6 Self-control, a fruit of the spirit in Galatians 5, is required. Pre-marital and extra-marital sex is a sin, and marriage is to be held in honor. Since the Christian marriage is also an earthly picture that symbolizes the heavenly union of Christ and his bride, when marital problems arise it is the obligation of both parties to prayerfully ask the Lord for guidance to find a way to set matters right. When a person strays and engages in fornication outside the marriage covenant, he or she is not respecting God’s sacred laws. Anyone who honors God’s laws and is willing to sacrifice his or her own desires to do God’s will, will not engage in fornication, whether married or single. There are five words that describe immorality/fornication in the New Testament. They are all related and tell a complete story. Each of these five words have the word “porn” in them, related to our English word “pornography.” They all involve walking away from God – being idolatrous. Such immorality – like all sin – eventually leads to a dead end of godless actions. Fornication is normalized and even encouraged in our world today, but that does not change what it means to God! While we have the free will choice to do and say whatever we want, we are either acting in accordance with God’s sacred standards or we are running far away from them. No matter where you look in the Bible, fornication is a heinous sin before God. It violates the sacredness and holiness of any Christian’s life. To confess, repent and ask forgiveness is required. Can we fall from grace after having been called to be sons of God and heirs with Jesus and after having been enlightened by the holy spirit? Yes, it is possible if those who have dedicated their lives to following Christ then renounce the sacrifice of Jesus and go back into the world to sin (Hebrews 6:4-6). The path without repentance and change leads to what the Bible calls “second death” (2 Peter 2:22). However, our God is merciful and will accept our sincere repentance for these kinds of sins. (1 John 1:9). The Parable of the Lost Sheep (Luke 15:4-7) teaches us that the extent of God’s love and desire to save every lost “sheep.” When one is recovered, not only does God rejoice, but all the angels rejoice with Him.

Jesus was a man of peace, who healed the sick and stood up for righteousness at every turn as God’s representative. He carried out his mission perfectly, preaching about God’s kingdom and dying as a ransom for Adam. On the night he was arrested, he told his disciples to buy swords. Some misunderstand this scripture to mean that Jesus supported violence. Could that be true? Absolutely not! Let’s first look at the account in Luke where Jesus said in the Upper Room, (Luke 22:36, NASB 1995) “…whoever has no sword is to sell his coat and buy one.” Now let’s set the scene: He and his disciples are in the Garden of Gethsemane, and Jesus knows the time has come when he would be betrayed by Judas, taken as a prisoner, and then crucified the next day. But there was something the group who came to arrest him did not know – that Jesus was able to ask his Father to send him legions of angels for his defense and protection. Therefore, it was necessary for Jesus to show that he willingly allowed himself to be captured. The swords were there to give the impression that Jesus COULD HAVE defended himself, but he did not – he clearly went voluntarily to die for all of humankind. Had there not been weapons present, it would have looked as though he had had no choice but to go with them, and that’s not the lesson we are to take from this account. Another reason we know Jesus did not support violence is because of what happened when Peter, attempting to defend Jesus, (ironically with one of those swords), cut off the ear of the high priest’s servant, named Malchus. In Matthew, we read, “‘Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, ‘for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.’” Then Jesus miraculously healed the servant’s ear – a perfect example of what it means to love your enemies! In his darkest hour, they came to arrest this peaceful man with swords and clubs as though he was a dangerous criminal. He knew the terrible treatment that was to come, yet his thoughts were of the safety of his disciples. He said (John 18:8, NIV), “… if you are looking for me, then let these men go.” So, why did Jesus tell his disciples to buy swords? Because it was necessary to show that his capture was not made by force, but that he voluntarily allowed himself to be taken and crucified. The swords were intended only for show – a demonstration – and not for a true defense, even though impulsive Peter ended up using one. But kind-hearted Jesus reprimanded him for that action and healed the wound Peter had caused. Jesus never supported violence, but instead was a perfect example to us of peace and love.

There is a great blessing in knowing we need God. When we realize our need for God, we see that He is the source of all truth. (John 17:17) When we realize our need for God, we see that we are born in sin and that He has provided us deliverance and redemption through Jesus, His son. (Romans 3:23;  John 3:16) When we realize our need for God, we see that everyone needs Him, and that He has provided a plan that reaches out to every member of our human family through a resurrection on a new earth under the rulership of Jesus and his “bride,” his faithful followers. When we realize our need for God, we can hear and respond to His invitation to totally surrender our lives to Him as symbolic “living sacrifices,” dying to our own will and living in delight to do His will. (Romans 12:1; Psalm 40:8) When we realize our need for God, we see that He is the provider of all our need. We realize He is able to satisfy our needs in HIS way, His best way, according to His riches of glory in Christ Jesus.  (Philippians 4:19) When we live faithfully in this personal relationship to the Father through our personal relationship with Christ, the kingdom of heaven is ours. We can look forward to our part in heavenly glory, blessing every person who has died in Adam with earthly life, healing and instruction in truth, pointing the way to Jesus as personal Savior and supporting and instructing people in overcoming their old habits. (Revelation 1:6; 21:1-5; Isaiah 35) When we realize our need for God, we see He is the source of Truth, Provision and Deliverance from sin and death for ourselves and for all. We see that our relationship with our heavenly Father and our Lord Jesus Christ are the most fulfilling of all relationships. When we realize how God has supplied all these needs, we live a purpose-driven and fulfilling life, now and for eternity. (Ephesians 2:6-7) And that is the epitome of being blessed!