Leen Ritmeyer - The Power of Bible Places and their Lessons for Us - Class 5 - Bethabara beyond Jordan

Automatically transcribed. Accuracy is good but not perfect, and words are sometimes wrong. Trust the audio over the text.

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   This is a 2010 Ontario Winter Bible school. Our speaker for the second session is Brother Lane Rittmeyer from Cardiff, Wales. His theme for the week is The Power of Bible Places and their Lessons For us. This is his 5th class and the subject for this class is Bethabara Beyond Jordan. A reading was taken from Joshua Chapter 3. Dear brilliant sisters in the Lord Jesus Christ and young people, yesterday we left Jesus sitting under the oak of the Teacher, sitting on the wall of that well in fulfilment of the that old promise of which Jacob made with son Joseph. Joseph is a fruitful bow by a well whose branches or whose daughters go over the wall.

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   And here was Jesus Christ sitting at the well of Jacob, and preached in the gospel for the first time to the Gentiles. And the whole scene was so exciting by the sisters, because under his feet were the idols of the House of Jacob buried on the ground, and the bones of Joseph, and also, I believe the bones of his brothers. Just one or two words to go back about a perplexing passage in Acts Chapter 7, because there were some questions about this. If you go back to Exodus 7 and verse 15 you need to read this correctly because it is a bit difficult. It says in Acts 7 and verse 15 that Jacob went down into Egypt and died.

3. 1:44

   He and our fathers. That passage is telling us that Jacob died in the land of Egypt. He died there, but also the fathers died there. That means to say Reuben and Simeon, Judah, Levi, then, and so on. All those people died in Egypt. But we know, of course, from Genesis chapter 50 that Jacob had commanded his sons to bury him in Hebron in the tomb of Machpelah.

4. 2:15

   And we have a very, very broad account of the whole Israelite tribe coming out of Egypt, stopping at the threshing floor of Attad, of the traffic threshing. Floor of mourning. And Jacob Behringer in the tomb of Machpelah in Hebron, Abramiz, and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca. And Jacob was now going to be united there with Leah, that is, in Hebron. But the next verse says.

5. 2:45

   And were carried over him. Well, the but I don’t say anything bad about the King James after this wonderful address we had last night. But they did miss out the word they but you find in all the other translations the NIV actually says. And their bones were carried over into Shechem, Whose bones? The bones of the Fathers, because Jacob was already buried in Hebron.

6. 3:14

   Now imagine them, the tribe of Joseph, Ephraim and Naza, carrying those bones of Joseph, as we are told. They were put in a box and they carry them all through the. Buildings and bury them under the oak of the teacher. But do you think that the other tribes who’d have left their tribal fathers behind? Although we aren’t told.

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   In Genesis, that is the case. In Acts Chapter 7, we’ve got added revelation. That the other patriarchs were also brought over and SNF, he says, I don’t like the NFA, but in this case they’re very good and their bodies were carried over into Shechem. Second difficulty. They were laid in the sepulchre that Abraham bought for a sum of money after sons of Emor. There’s no record of Abraham buying that piece of land, but we know from Genesis chapter 12 that he came to the oak of the Teacher and he built an altar there. Now you cannot just build an alt on anybody else’s ground. You’re only allowed to build on your own ground. So Abraham must have bought that oak, the land just around the tree of the the oak of the teacher, and build an alt on his own piece of land.

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   But this passage reminds us very much of what it says in Joshua chapter 24. Let’s go back to Joshua chapter 20. 4. And that’s another difficulty

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   where it says in verse 32 the bones of Joseph is the children of Israel brought about of Egypt. Buried a in. Shechem in the parcel of ground which Jacob bought, Otto, sons of Amor, the father of Shechem. So here we say that Jacob bought it. In Acts we see that Abram bought it.

10. 5:05

    Our problem is Brendan says that if. In the Middle East, I can see that still today that people fight over property. There are Jewish houses occupied by Arabs and the Jews are claiming it back. Abram must have bought a small piece of land not to dwell in because God didn’t give him as much as a foot breath to actually to as an inheritance to set up a camp and to live there, but just for a burial place and to a place to build an arty.

11. 5:33

    But if you don’t stay in that piece of land, well, the other people will take it over, starting with squatters and then making up some kind of document. This is my piece of land. So Jacob had to buy it again. And that’s the listener I tried to bring out last time. But if you’ve been given an inheritance, if you don’t stay there, like the sons of Jacob, we’re not feeling their flock in their Fallas inheritance.

12. 5:56

    They were in downtown. Then we can lose it and it’s very hard to get it back again. And I’m sure that when Jacob wants to have it back again, he had to buy it again for a special frame, a special price. Because you are my friend, as they say in the Middle East. Yes.

13. 6:10

    So there’s, there’s no, there’s no contradiction between the Genesis and the Joshua count and the acts of the apostle. We just need to understand that we are told in Acts Chapter 7 that. The bones of the fathers, Reuben and Simeon and Levi and so on were also buried in Shechem. Not in Hebron where Jacob was buried, but in Shechem.

14. 6:34

    And that is the beautiful picture and scissor. There’s Jesus sitting at the well there. There’s all the idols, idols of the House of Jacob under his feet, the idols which Joshua buried under the oak of the tree where the law was written, under this, on the stones under that oak of the teacher, and the bones of Joseph and his brethren under his feet as well. I’m thinking that when Mary came to visit Elizabeth, the babe jumped in the room for joy, and I can imagine that the bones of Joseph were just rattling for joy. Then Jesus was sitting there just above them and they’re telling the gospel, extending the gospel message to this Gentile woman, this woman of erepute, just like Dyna was a corrupt woman where Jesus extended, got mercy to the Gentile also.

15. 7:20

    And there is no more beautiful picture as the teachers sitting there on that particular place where where Jacob had built as well and where the fathers are all buried. But today I want to go to Beth Abarra Joshua. Chapter 3 for me is one of the most exciting chapters in the Bible by the sisters because it tells us how the Israelites finally, after 40 years in the wilderness, entered the land of Israel. And we are there now.

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    We hope that soon Christ will come back. And we will. Also enter into the lands. It’s interesting that it says that the children of Israel had to keep a distance of 2000 cubits. Not as it says in the good news. Good news by about a. Mile because you lose the whole type of 2000 cubits Christ was the first one to cross that river of death typified by the ark because as soon as the. Feet of the priest that carried the ark touched the water. The waters were cut off so the water stopped flowing into death, into the Dead Sea itself.

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    We’ve seen that beautiful and powerful picture. The teaching aid of the River Jordan descended from life into death. But now that road to death was cut right across by the Ark, The waters dried up and the children of Israel had to go on foot behind them on dry land. But look at that first four there.

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    Shall be a space between you and it, about 2000 cubits by measure. Come not near and to it, that you may know the way by which you must go, for you have not passed its way heretofore. And we also gladly says we need to learn the way how Christ lived his life and crossed that river of death and entered into eternal life.

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    And we’ve been given 40 years, a lifetime. So use every day of your life to learn this way, because we haven’t been there yet. We haven’t been raised from the dead. And that beautiful picture took place in Bait Abara. You see an aerial photograph taken from more or less above Jerusalem. A bit further to the West is Vadiguard, going down to where Jericho is, and here we’ve got the river Jordan going right through, and the other plains, the Kikai of Moab, where the camp official was, and the one crossing place is Beit Abagah.

20. 9:46

    Let’s go to John chapter 1. There we read, when John the Baptist says in verse 26, I baptize with water. But as standards run among you whom ye know not, he it is who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoes leched, I am not worthy to undlose. These things were done in Baitabaga beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.

21. 10:26

    And the next day John sees Jesus coming unto him, and says, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. And so he baptised him right there in Bait Abara. Now the name Bait Abara means the place of. Crossing. It was the exact same place where the Israelite crossed in Joshua chapter 3 on dry land right there as you can see on the picture. And they entered into the promised land, and that’s where. Christ was baptised.

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    He could not have been baptised in in any other place. Brethren and sisters. And he’s been there many times in his life. If you follow his journeys, he often spent time here in Bethebara or he crossed over in Bethebara even before he was born. She went Mary. Was more or less sent by Gabriel the Angel to go to Elizabeth. She went from Nazareth, crossed over the other side Jordan, and even today there’s a crossing here opposite Beth Chan. John the batter was usually baptizing in Anon next to Salem, and the other crossing here is Beitabara opposite Jericho. So when Mary went to Elizabeth in Hebron, they crossed over Beitabara, and then three months later she went back. Then again she had to cross Beitabara. When Jesus was about to be born, they again went from Nazareth. They crossed over here, they crossed back at Beita Bahra, went over Jericho, Jerusalem and to Bethlehem for Jesus to be born.

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    And then when Jesus was baptised, you know John de Bateau is usually baptising here, aiming into Salem, but he had to come down specially the Jordan River to meet Christ at the place of crossing, the place where the Israelites crossed to have Jesus baptised there. Celebrating the sisters, it’s a very important place in the life of.

24. 12:29

    Jesus. And as soon as he as he was baptised, what what happened? He was tempted in the wilderness. So when he was baptised here, he crossed the River Jordan because he baptised on the other side. And then he went. To the to to the wilderness just near Jericho. To be tempted. Let’s go to Matthew chapter 4 and see the associations which Jesus makes. In Matthew chapter 4, he was just baptized in Beita Bahra and then was Jesus LED up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

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    And then he had fasted 40 days of 40 nights. He was aft which of hungered. And when the tempter came to me, he said, If thou be the Son of God, commanded these stones be made bread? But he answered and said, it is written, Men shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that takes procedures out of the mouth of God.

26. 13:30

    Why did you say of these stones Jesus can make bread and why does he quote? Deuteronomy in this particular place. Let’s go to Joshua chapter 4. Let me see the same phrase being used then. Which tells us they’re not just ordinary stones in Joshua chapter 4. After the children of Israel had crossed the river Jordan and then Joshua commanded them.

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    In verse seven, he says when the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the convent of Yabba, then it passed over Jordan, then the waters were cut off. And these stones, which stones, these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel. Because he had commanded right in the beginning of the chapter, it came to pass when all the people were clean passed over Jordan and Yah was speaking to Joshua saying so it’s God’s command. Take 12 men out of the people, one of every tribe and man, and commanded them, saying, Take the hands out of the midst of the Jordan, out of the place where the priest feet stood firm 12 Stones.

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    And carry them over with you, and leave them in the lodging place where you shall lodge this night. And so they did. And as it says in verse 7, these stones shall be from memorial unto the children of Israel forever. And Jesus said, or the tempter said to genius, if they’ll be the Son of God, command that these stones be made, bred the stones that were taken up out of the river Jordan from under the feet of the priests who carried the ark of the covenant. They were a type of of Israel, of spiritual Israel. They were taken out of that river of death, out of the descender, and they were standing there on the side of the Jordan.

29. 15:28

    When Jesus saw that he knew exactly what they meant. That was Israel. He could turn them into bread, but not for himself. And why did she quote Deuteronomy? Breaded sisters, of course. You can quote Deuteronomy at any time. But the book of Deuteronomy was written exactly at the same spot. Where did Moses write the book of Deuteronomy? Go to Deuteronomy chapter 31.

30. 16:04

    Because while they were there in the plain of Jordan, we read in verse 9 that Moses wrote this law and delivered it unto the priest, the sons of Levi, which bare the ark of the covenant of Yahuah, and unto all the elders of Israel. And so the law was written there because they were in the plain of Jordan. And so we see that Jesus knew exactly what had happened there in the past, and He used it to explain who He was Himself and what He came to do.

31. 16:42

    He would not have known what to do if he hadn’t read the scriptures, and he used it at full advantage. But then on another journey, he crossed again. But whenever you went to Jerusalem, he again crossed over by Tabara. Let’s go to John chapter 10. In John chapter 10. Now he was in in Galilee and we read there that verse 22 and it was at Jerusalem, the feast of dedication, and it was winter. But how did Jesus get?

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    From Galilee into Jerusalem, into the Temple again, He came From Capernaum, where he lived. He went through the same Jordan Valley, crossed over at Citopolis Becham. And he crossed over back again at Bethabara and even up to today, those are the two major crossings between Israel and and Jordan. So that is why he had to be beyond Jordan. He always went back to the place. Where he was baptised and then he went to Bethany. Here you can see Bethany because he came up from Jericho from Bethabara.

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    He went over this road to Bethany, which is right here, and I’ve lived myself for two years in Bethany and I used to walk up the back of the Mount of Olives to go to work here, right at the Temple Mount. But whenever Jesus went there to Chosen, he always stayed at the House of his friends.

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    And that is a lovely thing to do by the sisters, to always stay with friends and not with other people in the world. But then after Jesus had been in Jerusalem at the Feast of Dedication, then he went back again to Jordan. Look at verse 40 of the same chapter 10.

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    That was after he had raised up. Now it was before he raised the plane in verse 40, when they sought to take him in verse 40, that he went away again beyond Jordan, unto the place where John at first. Baptised and there he abode, he went back by the Sisters time and again to the place where he was baptised. And it is a very good example for us also because when we find ourselves in difficult circumstances, when. We have difficulty in our faith.

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    Then go back to the time we were baptised. Jesus said to the Ephesians, You have lost your first love. Remember that love you had. When we were baptised, when we were enthusiastic, we were willing to work for the truth, go back to that place, to that time you were baptised because Jesus did it time and again. So he was baptised in a very special place. But it says in verse 40 he went beyond Jordan. So he crossed it back to Barra and he stayed there beyond Jordan.

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    Why would he stay there? What was there beyond Jordan? Now look at this map. Brethren, sisters, we’ve just been reading Joshua Chapter 20. Joshua chapter 3. Now here we’ve got the end of the Dead Sea. Here’s the River Jordan coming down and flowing into the Dead Sea. That’s where we all end up unless we follow the Ark. Which crossed the river of death and by Tabara and cut off those waters, but he was the camp of Israel that was beyond Jordan. That says Jesus went beyond Jordan and he went to the place where the camp of Israel was, unless we we should always be there.

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    Bradley, Sisters in our Eccleses. Or in our. Families around the readings around the word of God, be in Bible schools, be go to Sunday school lessons, go to Bible classes, go to the break of breath and don’t forsake the assembling of ourselves together because Jesus did all the time. He went back to the camp of Israel. Now the important embeddedness is, as we’ve already seen, that river of death started at Mount Hermon and we followed. How that snow melted and created the river Jordan, how it goes down into the Sea of Galilee and so on. And then at the time of Joshua in chapter 3, we read that the Jordan overflowed its banks.

39. 21:30

    Normally it is. Just a small river about, well say from from this world to that world. You can just get a few trees across and you can walk across. But then the Jordan overflows its banks, as this picture shows, which was taken in 1894. It is in places by the a kilometre wide, a very fast flowing stream, and you couldn’t cross it with your little ones and with your animals.

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    Those two spies which Joshua sent out would have been extremely good swimmers not to end up into the Dead Sea, so. The amazing thing was that as soon as the feet of the priest who carried the arch of the government touched the waters, the waters flow. They stopped flowing. All the way back from Adam. Now, Adam, let me just go back to this place. Adam is located from 25 kilometres further up the river. So the water stopped here and it didn’t flow back. Water doesn’t flow back and the Bible doesn’t say so it says the water stood on the heap.

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    Now I’ve tried it once before, but I can’t get water standing up on the heap. It just, it just flows away. But you know that the last time that the waters of the Jordan were cut off was in 1927, and for 12 hours there was no water flowing at all. The records going back to the time of The Crusaders that the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan were cut off in between 10 and 16 hours, that would have been just enough time for the Israelites to cross that river.

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    And this is how it happened. The Jordan meanders through the riverbed, which is quite wide, about a kilometre wide or sometimes 2. And that meandering court of River Jordan undercuts huge mountainsides. And through the years it, it scours out underneath the mountainside. And as you can see on this picture, a huge chunk of mountains about to fall into the river. If you get a larger chunk of mountain to fall in, it creates a dam right across the River Jordan. That is exactly, according to the records, what happened in 1927.

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    So the waters were then cut off. The water that was there flowed out until it was finished. And then when you get a river coming down and a huge Bank of dam going right across, then the water piles itself up on the heap, as it were, until it reaches the top of that collapse and then starts flowing again.

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    That is what the Bible tells us. And that happens only when there’s an earthquake. We read a lot about earthquakes and I believe that. As it says, God’s works are finished from the foundation of the earth. The fault lines and the tectonic plates have been built into the earth crust right from creation to be used by God at the right time. It just needs to trigger to set off an earthquake. The mountain falls down and the waters were cut off. It’s happened so many times in recent history. Then we have an earthquake after there’s a secondary earthquake. We just read about Christchurch and you know, we know there’s an ecclesia there and we know people there. They had an A terrible earthquake a few months ago. And now they had another one last week when Jericho was destroyed and they were blowing the trumpets. Or you can blow a trumpet as hard as you want to wear this, but the wall won’t fall down.

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    But yet we do believe the scriptures in archaeology, we don’t only study what the city looked like, but also how it was destroyed. And there’s no doubt in my mind that the walls of Jericho were destroyed by an earthquake because it’s like kind of a circular wall. Usually the walls are pushed inwards by the battery ramps from the outside. But the walls of Jericho all fell outside that only epithet, an earthquake.

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    So the second tremor caused the walls of Jericho to to to fall down. And it doesn’t take away from the power of God, it increases. The power and the foreknowledge of God whose works were finished from the foundation of the work. It just needs a little trigger at the right time at the right spot for that to happen. And that is very, very powerful.

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    And so if you follow Christ, then we can also reach the promised land and we won’t have to be swept down into the Dead Sea. So began by saying that that Jesus went to Bethabara. After he was rejected by his fellow Jews in Jerusalem. And I’m sure Ben assisted the Benin event, left Jerusalem because they rejected him and he walked down the road to Jericho and he crossed over better by her that his. Mind went back to a very similar event. Go to Second Samuel, chapter 15.

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    There was a time when King David was rejected his own son Absalom. Rebelled against him and they, he set up Israel against their own king, against David. And if he followed this, it’s too much to do right now, but follow this route of David. He says he was in Jerusalem. He crossed the river, the Kedron Valley and went up to Mount of Olives. There’s only one place where he can do that, Jesus. After he, he had the last step, he crossed the Kedron Valley and that’s where Gethsemane is now.

49. 27:04

    Jesus went up again. David also, he went up the same path of the Mount of Olives and then as you can see in first chapter 15, as it’s a second Samuel, I mean first Samuel

50. 27:22

    there it says when David left Jerusalem, verse 23, all the country that was a loud voice and all the people passed over. The King also himself passed over the Brook Kidron just like Jesus did. 1000 years later and all the people passed over toward the way of the wilderness that is over the Mount of Olives. As you can read later on in the chapter, it goes down to Jericho and he crossed over Beta Barra and then to live with Barzilay the Gileadite.

51. 27:52

    And then he came back in chapter 17 and in verse 22 when the king had heard that. Abstrom was dead and the army was defeated, and David rose and all the people that were with him, and they passed over Jordan by morning light elect not one of them that had none not gone over Jordan.

52. 28:21

    So David had to flee, but he came back the second time as king when? They suggested that they should simulate to death that. Do you not know that today I’m king in Israel? He was king already before. But now you. Begin he was made king the second time Jesus also to flee from Jerusalem, but not free to go away from Jerusalem. He went to the same place where David had to flee as well. Knowing that David came back as a king and when Jesus. Comes back, he will come back as king also because in in chapter 19 you can see where those people met the king. In verse 15 it says the king returned and came to Jordan and Julah came to Gilgal to go to meet the king to conduct the king over Jordan.

53. 29:15

    Well, Gilgal’s by the Telothis was circumcised after they crossed the river Jordan. It’s all happening in that very, very same place. So brave and sisters, Jesus knew all about those stones when he said to the Pharisees, the generation of Vipers, you say we were able to our father, but of course they were of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And he thinking about David where to flee and he came back the second time as king.

54. 29:45

    What a wonderful thing, brethren and sisters, that happened, but something else happened at the very same place. That would have gone through the mind of Jesus every time he was invite a Bara. He would have thought about the river being cut off, opening the way into eternal life. He would have thought about David’s fleeing and coming back that same way. But it was something else.

55. 30:08

    Brethren and sisters, let’s go to Two Kings chapter. 2. There we have Elijah preparing to go away, and it was with Elijah. Now in verse one, where did they meet? In Gilgal? First one of Two Kings, chapter 2. First two, they’re going to Bethel where Jacob built an altar. And then there was the.

56. 30:48

    The sons of the prophets were there. But then he went back in verse 4 to Jericho, and the verse 6 elite is sent to him. Terry, I pray here for Yahweh sent me to the Jordan. Now from Jericho to Jordan there’s only one way, that is to Beth Abarra, where Jesus was baptised later on. And So what happened in verse 11? And it came to pass, as they still went on and told them beyond there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder, and Elijah went up by a whirlwind. Into heaven, as this picture kind of showed it. So do you see all the associations? Bradley sisters in Baitabaya.

57. 31:30

    So when Jesus was baptised there, he would have remembered all the events that took place in that one particular place. And that’s why he had to be baptised there. There’s no other way. It it it stopped the river of death and it is the. Way to heaven, as it were. Not that Elijah went to heaven where God dwells because Christ is the first born from the dead, but then that when Jesus went, and he often stayed there in the camp of Israel beyond Jordan.

58. 31:58

    That Moses had written the book of Deuteronomy. So remember it’s written in 2nd Corinthians 1 and verse three and five, that God is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the fathers of mercies and the God of all comfort, who comforted us with All in all our tribulation. That we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble by the comfort where we ourselves are comforted of God. For the sufferings of Christ abound in us. So our consolation also abounded by Christ. But when Christ was in trouble, he went to Beto Barrera. When we are in trouble, go to where the camp of Israel go back to the ecclesia.

59. 32:34

    Remember the day of your baptism, because that is all typified in the place where Jesus was baptised. And then there’s another thing. Jesus went up in John 11 and verse 3. Let’s go to John, Chapter 11.

60. 32:57

    And we hear that that Lazarus was dead in verse three, while Jesus was beyond Jordan, where the camp of Israel was, his sister sent unto him, and saying, Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick. He heard it in the camp of Israel. When Jesus heard that, he said. When he heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby. But in verse 6, we’ve read that when he heard therefore that he was six, he about two days still in the same place where he was. He heard about Lazas.

61. 33:39

    Lazas may have died already when they were walking down to him, but he stayed there for two more days. But keep your hand in John Chapter 11 and go to Hosea chapter. 6. Says Come and let us return unto Yahweh, for he has torn and he will heal us. He has smitten and he will bind us up.

62. 34:08

    After 2 days will he revive us and takes one the Jesus? Stayed there for two days and took one day to walk up to Jerusalem and in the third day. He shall raise us up and we shall live in His sight, and then shall we know, if we follow on to know Yahweh, His going forth is prepared as the morning. He shall come unto us as the rain, as the Latin, the former rain upon the earth.

63. 34:32

    So Jesus waited till the 3rd day because the third day is the type of the Kingdom. Brethren, the sisters, that’s. When we all hope to be raised. From the dead, so Jesus, when then from, but from beyond Jordan, where the camp official was, he crossed the place of baptism. Then he went to Bethany, where he raised up the Lord, where he raised up Lazarus. And that must have been so powerful by the sisters, because the lesson of Beit Abbara is the lesson of the resurrection, not. Being swept into the Dead Sea but entered into the Kingdom. It’s a lesson of the resurrection typified by Elijah going up to heaven, being taken away from the earth at least. And so Jesus had reflected on the resurrection by the sisters. In Beto Barra and now he himself was going to experience the power of resurrection to encourage him to lay down his own life.

64. 35:35

    Because that raising of Lazarus would have given him the strength to cross that river Jordan that leads to death once more before he went up for the last time in Jerusalem. Because after he crossed his river, he did only once more when he went to the place of a school, as we will see tomorrow.

65. 35:55

    So he would have walked up, as we saw before, from Jericho and go to Bethany where Lazarus was. Now the name Bethany people have different ideas about it I believe. It means the. House of Felix, because Martha and Mary and Lazarus, although we’re all very, very different in character, Martha always busy, Mary sitting at the feet of Jesus, and Lazarus was one that sat at the table with Jesus. That’s where all the discourses took place. All those wonderful conversations were the sisters at the table of Jesus and Lazarus was there at the table of Jesus.

66. 36:35

    He was one of one of his friends. He could have a conversation about the truth with. When we sit round the table, what do we talk about bread and sisters? Do we talk about the truth? Is that table the table of our Lord? Not just to break bread and drink wine, but to be at the table of Jesus is to. Listen to him and to.

67. 36:52

    Speak about the things that are so important. It was in the. House of the Good Figs. That came back from in the time of Ezra and Nehemiah, because those figs God says in Jeremiah 24, I will bring again to this land. I will build them and not pull them down. I will plant them and not pluck them up and I will give them a heart to.

68. 37:15

    Know me and Martha and Mary and Lazarus. Knew Jesus. Mary anointed his feet for his burial. She was the. Only woman on that understood why Jesus had to die when the sisters, but they are the heart to know him and to know God, that I am Yao and they shall be my people and I’ll be the Elrim, for they shall return unto me with their whole heart like we just read in Osia chapter 6. So when sisters, Jesus loved to be in the House of good figs, and that is where we must be.

69. 37:51

    Don’t think, oh I don’t like that brother and I don’t like that sister because we are all so different. Just like Martha was different from Mary and especially so different from Lazarus. Pregnant sisters. God has chosen each and every one of us. The only thing we can do is talk among each other.

70. 38:09

    Like Malachi says, those that fear the hours speak often one to another. Not about the holidays you’re going to go to, not about the snow that falls in this countryside or about other things, but about the. Things of God, our table conversation should be interesting, just as the table conversation as the Lord Jesus Christ must have been very interesting as well.

71. 38:30

    Let’s go to Chapter 11. Because now Lazarus was raised from the dead and Jesus experienced the power of the resurrection. Must have been so comforting. But how did the Jews react, brain and sisters, to the resurrection, to the raising of Lazarus? Well, look at verse 53 of Chapter 11. Then from that day forth, they took counsel together for to put him to death. That’s all the Jews could do.

72. 39:04

    That’s. All they wanted to do to get rid of him, the man who could raise somebody, somebody from the dead. What did Jesus do? It’s the only reference we have in all of the four gospels. Verse 54. Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews, but He went thence into a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his disciples. Did he go to the city of Ephraim because he was afraid of the sun?

73. 39:37

    Adrian because although they sought him, they couldn’t even find him? Did He go to Egypt because they were afraid of Herod? Jesus full well trusted in His Father that He would preserve Him till He paid that final price on the cross by my sisters. But why did He go to a city called Ephraim?

74. 39:56

    And where is that city? He went there not because He was afraid of the Pharisees. He went there to be strengthened by my sisters by what happened in that particular place in the past, in the Old Testament. You see, we don’t read about a city called Ephraim anywhere else in the Scriptures, but we do know that it is most likely a city which is nowadays in the West Bank called ET Tyben, a city that is less than about 30 kilometres NE of Jerusalem. It’s on the edge of the desert that goes down into into the Jordan Valley.

75. 40:38

    It used to be a city of Sumeria. But in 145 BC it was ceded to Judea because it presumably had a Jewish population at the time, and then its name was changed to Ephraim. From what? From a very similar. Sounding name the place was called Ofra. Cheers went to Ofra of the Abias rights.

76. 41:05

    Renamed A-frame about a century and a half before Jesus went there. It was a city in Joshua 18 and verse 23 that belonged to the Benjamites.

77. 41:32

    It says in verse 21. Now the cities of the tribe of the children of Benjamin, according to their families, were Jericho. We know where that is. And then Beth Hokla, that is Whitehall, Gilgalis, very close to River Jordan and the valley of Kezis and Beth Arabah, Bethabahra, same place where we’ve been talking about Zemran and Bethel and Avin, Empara and Ofra, that city was.

78. 41:57

    Renamed Ephraim in the time of Christ. Now what is the reason why Jesus went there just before he went on his last journey to be crucified? How about in Who Lived in OFRA? Let’s go to Judges Chapter 6.

79. 42:24

    And that is why I believe Jesus went to Ofra, renamed Ephraim in that time. And then we have in verse 11, there came an Angel of Yahwah and sat under the oak, not the oak of the teacher, but a very important place, the oak which is in Ofra that pertain to Joashi Abizrid and the Saint Gideon thrashed beat by the wine press to hide it from the Midianites. And it’s so.

80. 42:56

    Clearly in this illustrated in this place. Well, here’s the modern city of Ephraim, known for its Tiber beer. By the way, there’s some churches, there’s a Christian population there. And you can look. Out over the fields, the surroundings of Ephraim. And here you can see why was Gideon threshing wheat by the Vine Press.

81. 43:19

    That is not a very productive way of threshing, because threshing is all done on the. Top of the mountain because you need a wind to blow the chaff away, but you can see it for miles around. Where’s the vine press located? Well, you need to bring your grapes to the wine press. You don’t need to thread them with your ground.

82. 43:40

    Doesn’t matter the way you do it. What’s the easiest way to carry grapes down into the valley where the wine press would be located? But to thresh wheat where there’s no wind was a very hard job. But he did it just to preserve food for his family, brethren and sisters. So there was the Angel, and he strengthened him to go and fight against the Midianites. Gideon wasn’t up to the task.

83. 44:04

    What did he say in verse 13? O my Adon, if Yahweh be with us, why then is all this befallen us? And there are all the signs which our fathers told us of saying, did not Yahweh bring us up out of Egypt? But now Yahweh has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites. And then Yahweh, that’s the Angel, looked upon him and said, go in this thy might.

84. 44:29

    What was the might of Gideon? He believed that Yahweh has brought up the children of Israel out of Egypt. That runs right through the Scriptures and that’s what we believe also. And then he asked for a sign, and he told him to bring an offering in verse 20. Verse 19, Gideon went in and made ready a kid and unleavened cakes of an ether of flour. The flesh he put in the basket.

85. 44:57

    He put the broth in the pot and brought it out onto him under the oak and presented it. The Angel of Elohim said onto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, lay them on this rock and pour out the broth. And he did so. And the Angel of Yawa put forth the end of the staff which was in his hand, touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and there rose up fire out of the rock, consumed the flesh and unleavened cakes.

86. 45:19

    Then the Angel of Yawa departed out of his sight. His sacrifice was accepted by the sisters. It was a totally a holy burnt sacrifice, a sin offering. So he was he Gideon, he believed that God had brought him out of the House of sin at the House of Egypt and he brought his sacrifice and that was accepted. Now he did all sorts of things for the sisters because he cast down the altar of Baal in verse a bit later in this in the chapter, we see that he built an altar and then he cast down the altar of Baal.

87. 45:56

    And then the people of the city gathered themselves against him, went to Abyei’s father, said he must be put to death. So he was Gideon, who believed that God brought him out of Egypt. He brought his sacrifice. He was going to be killed by the men of his city, and he was. Helped by his father. Jesus also was.

88. 46:15

    Helped by his. Father so that death did not prevail over him. That was after he destroyed the altar of Baal and Jesus. Also, he fought against a tradition that nullified the word of God. He instituted a new covenant which was based on his. Sacrifice because the people had said in verse 30 of the previous chapter that he should die, but he was saved by his father.

89. 46:38

    Father, a beautiful type of God saving his son. That’s why Jesus wanted to be there. But then he asked for a sign before he went out to battle. In verse 36 of chapter 6, Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou has said, we’ll put a fleece.

90. 46:59

    It’s not a. Fleece. And here it is the fleece which fleece, the fleece of that sin offering which he had brought in front of the Angel, in which which was accepted. Now he took that fleece which represented that sacrificial animal. He put it in the floor, the threshing floor. He says, If dew be only on the fleece and dry on the earth beside it, then I shall know that thou would save Israel by mine hand, as thou are said. And it was so.

91. 47:27

    So what he did is he took that fleece of war and he put it, and the dew came only on the fleece, but not on the floor or the dew represent Breton sisters. As Moses said dew, and as Jacob said, dew is a blessing from heaven. That blessing first came only on that sacrificial animal.

92. 47:51

    Only Christ is the first begotten of the dead. He was the first one that was blessed, but it doesn’t stop there. Christ is not the only one that is going to be saved because keeping us for a second sign. Look at verse 39. He says let not thine anger be hot against me now speak but this ones let me prove I pray to this one. This ones with the fleece, let it now be dry upon the fleece only.

93. 48:16

    And all the ground platter be it you. And it was so God hearken to him, because the signs he asked for were in accordance with the purpose of God to save Christ first from the dead, and then when he comes back, the resurrection will take place. Like all of us on the floor and then we get our blessing also. So it’s a wonderful type.

94. 48:40

    He asked for and God hearkened unto him. Then he brought the man 22,000 to the to the well of Kharat. There were 20. 2000 people who said whoever is afraid go away. He says 10,000 left. He brought him to the water and all the people that drank, scooping up the water but remaining vigilant, those are the ones that he could work with. We all need to be watched for as Jesus said. Therefore watch because you know not what hour your Lord will come.

95. 49:13

    And chagrot means the bell of trembling. People were fearful and all those 22,000 that were afraid. They they went away who swear is fearful afraid, let him return and depart Early says in revelation, that the fearful. And the unbelieving and all liars shall have no part. They have a part in the lake that burns this fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

96. 49:34

    It’s our Jesus that it’s your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom. There’s nothing to be afraid of by the sisters. And then we have got this victory over the Midianites. How did they achieve the victory? They broke the jars and the light was shining out of only 300 people. Go to 2nd Corinthians chapter 4. I said in verse 6, the God who commanded the light to shine out of the darkness has shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. That’s the light that’s shone out when when those earthen vessels were broken.

97. 50:33

    We for seven we have this treasure in earthen vessels. That the Excellency of the power may be of God and not of us. We are those urban vessels, pregnant sisters, but we should have the light burning in us, because when these vessels will be broken at the resurrection and mortality will be soloed up of immortality, then our light will shine out and.

98. 50:53

    All the enemies of God, they will be scattered. And then in Chapter 7 of Judges, let’s go back to Judges. We see the. Victory of Gideon, he called the men of Ephraim and where did they go? By the sisters. It’s fantastic to see because in verse after they’ve broken those pictures and they said the sword of young, the sword of Gideon, then Gideon in verse 24, they send messengers throughout all Ephraim saying come down against the Midianites and take them before the waters of Beta Bahra and Jordan. That’s what they went to, to overcome their enemies. They went to Beit a Barra.

99. 51:45

    All the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and took the waters of Beta, Barra, and Jordan, And they took the two Prince of the Midianites, Orab and Zeb. They slew Orab, and upon upon the rock of Orab and Zeb they slew by the wine presence of Zeb, pursued Midian, and brought the heads of Orab and Gideon and Zeb to Gideon on the other side Jordan. In the camp of.

100. 52:05

     Look at this, brothers and sisters. So Jesus went to Ofra. This is the road. This is the road from Tiber’s to Discord nowadays as Ofra, the city of Prime, where Jesus went. And Jesus also went to Bethabara. He walked here over this path on the top of the mountains, following the victorious army of Gideon going to Bethabara. He must have been buoyed up by all that had happened in this place, the village of Ephraim, where he went to. He didn’t go there.

101. 52:40

     Because he was afraid of the Pharisees, he went there to meditate on the story of Gideon and his faith and his victory, and that is a wonderful thing to remember. Brothers and sisters, you read Psalm 83 at Eulesian and you will see it’s a type of the Kingdom to come. That still it was difficult for Jesus because he says in Luke 12 and 50 I have a baptized, a baptism to be baptized with and how am I straightened till it be accomplished.

102. 53:12

     God helped him by sending an Angel in the Garden of Eden, but also by visiting those places and reflecting on the history of Israel which is full of types of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now it is interesting that if you follow. The root of Jesus, when he went back from Ephraim and he went to Bethabara. Now first of all, Jesus heals the 10 lepers and only one came back to thank him.

103. 53:44

     It’s a lesser for us, brethren. Sisters, we all do work and we all help one another, but how often do you get a thank you? It’s so important, brethren, sister, to show our gratitude for all the work which our brethren and sisters are doing for us. It doesn’t matter where it is, a sister who makes a cup of tea for us, or a brother who serves, or a brother who does other things better.

104. 54:05

     Sisters, it is important to be thankful. That was the lesson Jesus taught just before he went for the last time up to Jerusalem. And he blesses little children. That’s what He should do. We should look after our young children, bring them up as Abram did. He commanded his children that they should fear Yahweh because then we can bring them into the Kingdom.

105. 54:26

     Brethren, Sisters. But when he went there in Luke 17, there’s something else very, very interesting just before he crossed over, because he went back to the place of the camp of Israel. And in Luke 17, I mean it is not recorded, but this took place exactly when just before he came to Jericho. You see in in chapter 19 he is in Jericho, but just before that when he must have been at Beto Barra. He says as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the days of the Son of Man that it eat they drank their marriage wise. They were given in marriage until the day that Noah entered into the ark, the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise, as it was in the days of Lot, they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they build it. But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brains them from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even so shall it be in the days when the Son of Man is revealed. In that day, he which be on the housetop and is tough in the house, let him not come down to take it away. He is in the field.

106. 55:41

     Let him likewise not return back. Remember Lot’s wife? Where was Jesus when he settled? By his sisters? He was right beside Sodom because. Sodom was where you heard the lecture, right opposite Jericho. He came down from the city of Ephraim. He crossed over. Better virus. Stay in the camp, professor, right beside Sodom. And he taught him again the lesson of Sodom. It’s a lesson which you need to be reminded of by the sisters time and time again.

107. 56:14

     And then he crossed for the last time in Baitabarah to go up to Jerusalem. So what are all the associations with the place which we have learned? It was the place where the camp of Israel was located. It was the place where Deuteronomy. Scroll was written. It was the place where the waters were cut off. When the Israelites entered the Promised Land, the Ark of the Covenant went before them.

108. 56:36

     Since we may learn the way by which we may go. The 12 Stones were taken out of the river of death, and all the males were circumcised. Because in the Kingdom all flesh will be cut off. The Passover will be kept. Because Jesus will complete the Passover. When you eat, when you drink it new with us in his Kingdom, He’ll drink that last cup. He will take us to Himself.

109. 56:56

     For a people, He would have reminded himself of Gideon’s victory. He would have reminded himself when David fled over Beto Barra from his son Absalom. But he came back the second time as King Elijah went up to her whirlwind. It was the place where Jesus was baptised and he started his ministry and it’s a place where he overcame temptation. What a powerful place by the sisters that must have been and then before.

110. 57:23

     He went to the place of a skull. He came to Bethany again. It was like his second home. He needed the encouragement of his friends, of Martha, Mary and Lazarus. He made their home a base for the last few days of his life before he went to his cross. And must have given Jesus so much comfort, brethren, sister, to stay with his brethren and his sisters during those last in those dreadful days.

111. 57:52

     But Jesus having loved his friends, he was going to show them the ultimate love, which true friendship on which true friendship should be based. Jesus says in John 15, Greater love has no man that this that a man lay down his life or his friends. Ye are my friends, he says to all of us. If you do whatsoever I command you, that, then always, brethren, says, obey the commandments of Christ, so that we also may be counted among his friends.