A character appears in the book of Genesis who has been the subject of mystery, of wonder, of speculation. His name as given in Scripture is Melchizedek. Who is Melchizedek, and why should his identity matter to you?
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In his “Second Annual Message” to Congress of December 1, 1862 President Abraham Lincoln proposed a plan for amendments to the Constitution to end slavery in the United States, with concessions he hoped would bring an end to the Civil War and reconcile the rebel states to the Union. In September of 1862 Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation, as an executive order which changed the legal status of enslaved persons in states in rebellion against the United States as of January 1, 1863, giving any enslaved persons in those states the status of free men or women under United States law. The Emancipation Proclamation applied only to slaves living in the rebel states, or serving in any segment of the executive branch of the U.S. government. However, it encouraged or required six states to abolish slavery during the war, including three Confederate states which had largely come under control of the Union army, and three Union border states. It also freed slaves living in other rebel areas which had been occupied by the Union. The plan for the Constitutional amendments proposed in 1862 was never acted on.
The plan was different from the thirteenth Constitutional amendment Lincoln championed in 1864-65 to permanently and immediately end slavery in the United States. By late 1864 the defeat of the Confederacy by Union forces was eminent, negating any rationale for concessions in the ending of slavery for political reasons. The thirteenth amendment was passed by Congress in January 1865, about two and a half months before General Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, which effectively ended the Civil War. The thirteenth amendment had been ratified by a sufficient number of states to become law by December 6, 1865.
In his “Second Annual Message,” early in the Civil War, when things weren’t going so well for the Union army (cf. Battle Cry of Freedom, James M. McPherson, pp. 560-561), Lincoln described the United States as “the last, best hope of earth.” William Lee Miller, a professor of ethics, who has taught at several universities, in his book “Lincoln’s Virtues,” states the following concerning the phrase “the last, best hope of earth”:
In the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America, it’s stated: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
“Unalienable rights” implies rights that cannot be surrendered. But the fact is God can grant these rights, and he can take them away.
Adam and Eve surrendered the right to life through their sin, as has their progeny (cf. Romans 5:12). Most of humankind have been enslaved to sin since the time of Adam and Eve, through the choices they made and that their progeny have continued to make (cf. John 8:34). God liberated Israel from slavery in Egypt. But God removed them from their homeland and they were enslaved for a time by the Assyrians as a result of their unremitting sins (cf. 2 Kings 17).
It’s been suggested that it would be better to state that we have the right to pursue peace, God’s way. The Hebrew word often translated peace is not limited to an absence of war, but encompasses the idea of general welfare. “The Hebrew word [often translated peace] is shalom…, meaning, primarily, ‘soundness,’ ‘health,’ but coming also to signify ‘prosperity,’ well-being in general, all good in relation to both man and God.” (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, “Peace”).
We are to pursue peace. “Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace [shalom] and pursue it” (Psalm 34:14). Under the rule of Jesus Christ, all nations will have a single government. There will be no war to destroy economies and impoverish nations. And there will be a single economic system based on God’s laws.
“Now it shall come to pass in the latter days That the mountain of the Lord’s house Shall be established on the top of the mountains, And shall be exalted above the hills; And all nations shall flow to it. Many people shall come and say, ‘Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths.’ For out of Zion shall go forth the law, And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, And rebuke many people; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore” (Isaiah 2:2-4).
Note that the meaning of shalom includes prosperity, financial security, as well as other aspects of security.
What is the key to financial security, the key to prosperity, the key to a life of abundance?
The Bible reveals the answers to these questions, which we will explore, from the perspective of the economy, or economic system, of the Kingdom of God, which will be established when the Messiah, Jesus Christ, returns to the earth and establishes his direct rulership over it (Daniel 7:13-14; Revelation 11:15).
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The festivals God commanded in the Bible and his Sabbaths have prophetic implications which form an outline of God’s plan for mankind, as we’ve discussed in previous articles.
“Then do not let anyone judge you in eating, or in drinking, or in respect of a feast, or the new moon, or of sabbaths, which are a shadow of coming things, but the body is of Christ” (Colossians 2:16-17, Green’s Literal Translation).
The word “is” is in italics, because the Greek has no word for “is” in verse 17. It should read, “which are a shadow of coming things [or things to come – KJV], but the body of Christ” (his Church, of which he is the head; Colossians 1:18, 24).
“Shadow,” is translated from the Greek, skia, shadow, sketch, outline. Notice the Sabbaths “Are,” [not were], estin, present indicative. This implies continuing action. The Sabbaths, and the feasts of God, are now and continue to be a shadow of things to come. In other words, they have prophetic significance.
In previous articles we discussed the weekly Sabbath along with the festivals which occur in the early part of the year, namely the Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and the Feast of Pentecost.
Now we will proceed to the fall festival season, beginning with the Feast of Trumpets.
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About a third of the people in the world claim to be Christian. Yet festivals of the Bible, such as Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread have little or no meaning to most of them. In this article we continue our discussion of how the Bible’s festivals and holy days picture the plan of God with a discussion of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
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