MIXED MULTITUDES
OR
Various EMOTIONS
SUNDAY FEB. 28, 2021
Scripture To Consider:
“Now some of them from Jerusalem said, ‘Is this not He whom they seek to kill? But look! He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ? However, we know where this Man is from: but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from.’”
“Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, ‘You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know. But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me.’”
“Therefore, they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come. And many of the people believed on Him, and said, ‘When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?’ The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Jesus.”
“Then Jesus said to them, ‘I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me. You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come.’ Then the Jews said among themselves, ‘Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him? Does He intend to go to the dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? What is this thing that He said, ‘You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come’?’” John 7.25-36
Something To Consider:
The statement made by some of the mixed multitude, “But when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from”, was not a totally accurate statement. The Old testament foretold the location of the birth of Christ to be in Bethlehem. This was verified by Herod’s killing of so many innocent infants at the time of Jesus’ birth.
Certainly, the wide spread murdering of all male babies two years and under was an incident that was not easily forgotten. What might not have been common knowledge was the fact that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. This information might not have been publicized by Joseph and Mary due to the massacre of so many children.
Something Else To Consider:
Another problem arose that created various emotions when Jesus claimed to be sent from heaven and from the Father. And that truth did not register into the thought process of the Jewish religious leaders’ thinking. They had been deceived due to their listening more to oral traditions and mystical theories than what the Word of God declared concerning the first coming of Christ.
And the same is so true concerning the second coming of Christ. Most agree to the second coming of Christ, but there are mixed emotions among the mixed multitudes concerning the timing of the second coming of Jesus Christ! And that difference of opinion will continue right up until the Antichrist is revealed and stands in the newly yet to be built Jewish temple and declares himself to be God and to be worshipped as God.
Something More To Consider:
There were various emotions everywhere Jesus went, as there are various emotions whenever and wherever the message of Jesus is preached today. And after warning the people of His soon departure, the religious leaders made cynical remarks about what they did not understand. The same takes place today when you attempt to teach the truth of the second coming being after the tribulation. People prefer to think of their being removed from the earth before perilous times are unleashed. But the spreading of lies cannot and will not alter the truth!
But the encouraging end result was that even in the midst of a mixed multitude with various emotions, many claimed to believe in Jesus. Can the same be said of us living in the midst of mixed multitudes and various emotions in this 21st century generation? For the majority of religious leaders and religious denominations as well as non-denominations prefer teaching and preaching a pre-tribulation theory of the second coming of Jesus Christ.
But the Word of God does not in any way teach a pre-tribulation doctrine and therefore it will lead many if not most into their being deceived, offended, and their departing from the faith. I understand that the false teaching of a pre-tribulation rapture is more appealing, but it is a false interpretation of Scripture and is setting millions of people up for a tremendous disappointment.
Jesus declared in John 18.37; “For this cause [or end result] I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” And never once did Jesus teach the slightest hint of a pre-tribulation rapture in all of Matthew chapter 24.
A Few Final Words:
On the contrary, it was not until verse 29 of Jesus’ discourse on end time events, that He proclaimed the timing of His end time return. Jesus instructed for all the world to understand; “Immediately after the tribulation of those days [the end times Jesus had been warning of in Matthew 24 thus far and in advance] the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.”
Then Jesus further predicted; “Then [after the tribulation of those days] the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then [after the tribulation of those days, according to Jesus] all the tribes [different nationalities] of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man [Jesus] coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”
And finally, according to Jesus, in the very next verse of Matthew 24.31, Jesus affirmed; “And He [Jesus] will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet [at the last trumpet], and they [His angels] will gather together His elect [Christ’s born-again enduring to the end saints] from the four winds [north, south, east, and west of the earth], from one end of heaven to the other [after the tribulation of those days].”
Jesus Christ’s first earthly coming created various emotions among the mixed multitudes, while His second coming will seal the eternal fate of every person with various emotions whether for or against what Jesus has taught. According to John, “And many of the people believed in Jesus, and said, ‘When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?”
When Jesus returns, the greatest of all signs will be accomplished. The gathering of all enduring to the end true believers in Jesus, whether dead or alive, will be His crowning end time event promised in advance. Of which mixed multitude will we belong?
Prayer:
Our Father in heaven, may we be among those who believe in Jesus as we live in a world of mixed emotions concerning Your Son and Your Word. In Him Always, Amen!
According to Jesus 