Last week during our Bahá'í Prayer Evening I asked a question concerning the meaning of the recitation of the Greatest Name 95 times each day. This morning I received an answer which I would like to share with you here.
Monday, December 7, 2009
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Religion x Science
Religion must stand the analysis of reason. It must agree with scientific fact and proof so that science will sanction religion and religion fortify science. Both are indissolubly welded and joined in reality.
Abdu’l-Bahá
Friday, November 27, 2009
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Monday, November 23, 2009
Friday, November 13, 2009
Two Messiahs were prophesied
Source: Rocky Mountain Baha'is
God created man, but man has a choice about whether to worship his Creator. In Noah’s time, God wanted to destroy man due to his unwillingness to turn to Him and obey His laws: “And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth. And God said to Noah, ‘I have determined to make an end of all flesh; for the earth is filled with violence through them; behold, I will destroy them with the earth.’” (Gen. 6:12-13)
After Noah found favor with God, Noah’s descendants to multiplied, leading to the coming of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the twelve tribes of Israel. God made and renewed a Covenant between Himself and those who worshipped Him: He would their God and bless them, as long as they would be His people, worship Him and obey His laws.
People have never been strong on keeping the Covenant between God and man, and have broken it repeatedly. King Solomon broke it and lead the twelve tribes of Israel to break the Covenant by worshipping the idols of the Pagans. The twelve tribes were taken into captivity and the authors of the books toward the end of the Old Testament found themselves praying to God to renew His Covenant with the Israelites once again. Many of these authors had visions of future times, when people would be saved by a Messiah.
The word Messiah means “anointed one.” Kings are anointed when they take the throne. It was sometimes prophesied that this king would be seated on an earthly throne, the throne of David, and other times it was foretold that this king would suffer and die for the sins of the people. In both scenarios, it was promised that the people would be brought back under the Covenant, and they would be saved. Following are some of the Old Testament prophecies for the coming of the Messiah.
Prophecy for the date for the coming of Jesus:
“Know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one….” (Dan. 9:25)
Prophecy for the coming of the Messiah to deliver the people:
“At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people…. at that time your people shall be delivered….” (Dan. 12:1)
Prophecy for the coming of Jesus in Bethelehem:
“But you, O Bethlehem… from you shall come forth… one who is to be ruler in Israel….” (Micah 5:2)
Prophecy for the coming of the Messiah seated on the throne of David, who would reign over of government of peace on earth:
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder…. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David, and over his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and for evermore” (Isaiah 9:6-7)
Prophecy for the name of Jesus:
“Behold, a young woman shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Imman’u-el.” (Isaiah 7:13)
Matthew explains the above prophecy:
“‘…she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet [Isaiah]: ‘Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel’ (which means, God with us).” (Matt. 1:21-23)
Prophecy for the way Jesus would suffer and die for the sins of the people:
“He was oppressed, and he was afflicted… like a lamb that is led to the slaughter…. By oppression and judgment he was taken away; …he poured out his soul to death, and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” (Isaiah 53:7, 8 & 12)
Prophecy for the way the throne of David would last forever:
“Thou hast said, ‘I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant: ‘I will establish your descendants for ever, and build your throne for all generations.’” (Psalm 89:3-4)
Prophecy for the way the throne of David would be God’s throne on earth, and last forever:
“And I will make him the first-born, the highest of the kings of the earth. My steadfast love I will keep for him for ever, and my covenant will stand firm for him. I will establish his line for ever and his throne as the days of the heavens.” (Psalm 89:27-29)
Prophecy for the coming of the Messiah or the “Glory of the Lord,” seated in the throne of David:
“…the glory of the LORD entered the temple… and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the temple…. I heard one speaking to me out of the temple; and he said to me, ‘…this is the place of my throne and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the people of Israel for ever.’” (Ezek. 43:4-7).
Prophecy for the coming of the Messiah to Mount Carmel in Israel:
“…the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord, the majesty of our God.” (Isaiah 35:1-2)
The problem is, Jesus was of the lineage of David, but he was not of the lineage of Davidic Kings seated on the throne of David. Jesus was not destined to reign forevermore on the throne of David, even though his disciples wanted him to:
“Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.” (John 6:15)
Jesus said his kingdom was not of this world:
“Pilate… said to him, ‘Are you the King of the Jews?’ …Jesus answered, ‘My kingship is not of this world… my kingship is not from the world.’” (John 18:33, 36)
Paul foretold in his letter to the Hebrews, that Jesus would reign from heaven, and not on earth, but that he would return, not to deal with sin, but to save those who waited for his return:
“For Christ has entered, not into a sanctuary made with hands, a copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. …he has appeared once for all at the end of the age to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. …so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” (Heb. 9:24, 26, 29)
So it is the appearance of the Messiah “a second time” that will save the people.
Who will this Messiah be, and what will He save them from?
This is the purpose of this site: to show you that the prophecies for the coming of the Messiah for “a second time” have all been fulfilled by a prophet titled “The Glory of the Lord,” or “Baha’u'llah.”
“Baha” means “Glory;” “u” means “of;” and “llah” or ”Allah” means “the Lord.” The prophet of the Baha’i faith is Baha’u'llah, and the document on this site titled “The Proofs for the Bab and Baha’u'llah — A Baha’i fireside,” explains in detail how Baha’u'llah fulfilled the prophecies for the coming of a Messiah seated on the throne of David. When followed, these teachings will result in the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth.
And what will He save the people from? Baha’u'llah’s teachings will not be established on earth unless and until mankind is pure-hearted, and they will not become pure-hearted until they are baptized by fire. So the people need to be saved from being burned up in the baptism by fire. This fire will be a one-hour nuclear war, when 1/3 of mankind is burned up:
“I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry; he will BAPTIZE you with the Holy Spirit and with FIRE” (Matt. 3:11)
“John answered them all, ‘I baptize you with water; but he who is mightier than I is coming, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie; he will BAPTIZE you with the Holy Spirit and with FIRE.’” (Luke 3:16)
“‘Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphra’tes.’ So the four angels were released, who had been held ready for the HOUR, the day, the month, and the year, to KILL A THIRD OF MANKIND.” (Rev. 9:14-15)
“By these three plagues a THIRD OF MANKIND WAS KILLED, by the FIRE and smoke and sulphur issuing from their mouths.” (Rev. 9:18)
“In ONE HOUR has thy judgment come.” (Rev. 18:10)
“In ONE HOUR all this wealth has been laid waste.” (Rev. 18:17)
“In ONE HOUR she has been laid waste.” (Rev. 18:19)
Therefore, the second Messiah, Baha’u'llah, has come to SAVE THOSE WHO ARE EAGERLY WAITING FOR HIM (Heb. 9:29) from the oncoming nuclear war and the catastrophes that will accompany it. You must SAVE YOURSELVES both physically and spiritually. Spiritually, your salvation lies in entering into the Covenant between God and man as it has been renewed for these times by Baha’u'llah. Physically, you must save yourself by preparing for nuclear war by locating yourself in a safe area, away from the cities and in the mountains, and by building a fallout shelter and equipping it with radiological monitoring equipment, proper sanitation, ventilation and food. Hiding in fallout shelters is foretold by Isaiah as hiding in rocks, caverns, clefts of cliffs and in caves.
“Enter into the rock, and hide in the dust from before the terror of the LORD, and from the glory of his majesty.” (Isaiah 2:10)
“And men shall enter the caves of the rocks and the holes of the ground, from before the terror of the LORD, and from the glory of his majesty, when he rises to terrify the earth.” (Isaiah 2:19)
“…enter the caverns of the rocks and the clefts of the cliffs, from before the terror of the LORD, and from the glory of his majesty, when he rises to terrify the earth.” (Isaiah 2:21)
“So if thou be a man of communion and prayer, soar upon the wings of assistance from Holy Souls….” (Baha’u'llah, The Seven Valleys, p. 17)
Choose or “elect” to become one of those who both see and understand this message and warning, and take assistance from the writings of Baha’u'llah. Become one of the souls who gathers the pure-hearted souls who are “eagerly waiting for him.” Educate and save yourself, and help educate and save others from the four winds of destruction that are soon to ravage mankind. The four winds of destruction are let loose starting at the River Euphrates. The River Euphrates runs parallel to the southern border of Iraq. Chaos is growing day by day in Iraq. The time to act is now. This all my happen sooner thank you think.
“And if the Lord had not shortened the days, no human being would be saved; but for the sake of the elect whom he chose, he shortened the days…. And then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.” (Mark 13:20, 27)
“And if those days had not been shortened, no human being would be saved; but for the sake of the elect hose days will be shortened….. and he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect rom the four winds [of destruction], from one end of heaven to the other.” (Matt. 24:22, 31)
Who is the Son of God?
Source: Rocky Mountain Bahá'í
Jesus of Nazareth, who was also the “son of God,” came to earth long ago and some day he’ll come back again, right? Well, the actual soul of Jesus will not return. One must understand what is meant by return. It is the return of the spirit of the message from God. For proof that Christians accept John the Baptist as the return of Elijah, see the article on this site called “John the Baptist.”
One must also understand that the prophet Himself, in this case Jesus, is known for the message he delivered from God. Therefore, one must be clear on the fact that the “son of God” was a message from God that, when believed and understood, was the source of a spiritual closeness to God that can be likened to the spiritual closeness between a father and his son. Through belief in, and comprehension of Jesus’ teachings, we can all become sons of God.
According to the New Testament, the son of God was a “Spirit of God” that descended upon Jesus. The Bible says:
“Behold, the heavens were opened and he saw theSpirit of God descending like a dove, and ‘alighting upon him; and lo, a voice from heaven, saying, ‘Thisis my beloved Son.”’ (Matt. 3:16—17).
Behold, this Spirit of God that has descended like a dove and alighted upon Jesus, is God’s beloved Son. If Jesus of Nazareth’s physical presence alone was the Son of God, why didn’t a voice just speak from heaven and tell Jesus he was the beloved son? Why did the Spirit of God have to alight upon Him first? It was because this Spirit of God was the “beloved Son,” and Jesus was designated to deliver the spirit of these teachings to the world. Thus he was the beloved son because he brought this Spirit of God that was titled “the son of God,” to the people on earth.
This Spirit of God is the Revelation that Jesus revealed to man, revealing God’s thoughts to man. He was the speaker of the Words of God, or the Logos. The Hebrew meaning of the word Logos is, “the thoughts of God, as can be expressed in words.” The title of this Revelation is the “Son of God” Revelation. That is also a title for Jesus, the one who delivered this message. But one must not confuse Jesus with the Revelation from God that Jesus brought.
The “Son of God” Revelation is like a manna come down from heaven, the bread. John 6:63 says that this bread is the teachings of God, the bread of life, that gives life indeed, that is, eternal life. One must not only eat, but digest and understand the teachings. This is why the analogy to the bread is made. One must ingest, digest, and understand the words of God.
The wine, John says, is belief in these teachings. The wine also symbolizes that one must believe to the point of accepting martyrdom and death rather than recanting their belief before man for any worldly benefit. The wine is also a symbol of the Covenant(s) that God makes with man, the primary Covenant being that He will be our God, and we will be His people, even His sons, the sons of God. To believe in the teachings of Jesus makes one a Son of God.
Thus, the difference between Jesus and the Spirit of God that alighted upon Jesus, is that this Spirit is the Spirit of God, and Jesus reflects it, like a pure, and perfect mirror. But Jesus, being the mirror, or like the lamp that emanates light, is not the light itself. The light is the Holy Spirit of God. So through Jesus’ teachings or words, the presence of this Spirit of God, the son of God, became known.
One must never confuse the lamp or mirror, with the light itself. People do this all the time. They worship an image, rather than the Essence of God. I am not saying the prophets aren’t Manifestations of God, nor am I diminishing them in any way by making this true and realistic distinction between the deliverer of a message (Jesus), the message itself (the Revelation of the Son of God), and the author of the message (God).
It can be understood by this example: the mailman isn’t designated “the mailman” until he gets a job delivering the mail. Likewise, Jesus wasn’t designated the “Son-of-God” man until he got the job delivering, reflecting, or manifesting, the Spirit of the Son of God.
I’m not saying Jesus didn’t have the Holy Spirit from the time of conception. This is right in the Bible. When Mary found she was with child, the angel came to her and told her the child was of the Holy Spirit. The Manifestations of God all have the Holy Spirit from the time of conception, which is why they are so erudite as children. However, it is not until they are “anointed” by the Holy Spirit, that their mission begins. Jesus’ mission began when the Spirit of God descended upon Him and designated Him to be the Son of God, when he was thirty years old.
Paul states clearly that Jesus was designated the son of God (just as the mailman is designated the mailman when he gets a job delivering the mail):
“…his Son, who was…designated Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness” [i.e., the Holy Spirit] (Rom. 1:3)
If Jesus wasn’t delivering the Spirit of the Son of God, then how could he give away the power to become a Son of God?
“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God” (John 1:12).
Jesus could give away the power to be a Son of God because other men could come to and believe in this Spirit of the Son of God through the words Jesusspoke.
Jesus said if you came to Him you wouldn’t hunger (John 6:35). But why? How does coming to Jesus make, your hunger go away? What food is this?
Jesus said, “my flesh is food indeed” (John 6:55), and “he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life” (John 6:54).
Jesus then goes on to say, however, “the flesh is of no avail” (John 6:63). Here is a contradiction. First Jesus says if people desire eternal life, then they should eat his flesh. But then he says the flesh is of no avail! There must be some symbolism or parable involved here. Indeed, Mark said Jesus “did not speak to them without a parable” (Mark 4:34).
There is a distinction between the physical flesh of Jesus—the man who was “descended from David according to the flesh” (Rom. 1:3) and the spiritual “flesh” of the Spirit of the Son of God.
When you eat the flesh of the words of the Spirit of the Son of God, and drink of the blood of these samewords, you are satisfying your hunger and thirst bycoming to him and believing in him: “he who comesto me shall not hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst” (John 6:35).
So eating the flesh of the words Jesus spoke was the same as eating of the bread that came down from heaven, or coming to him and his teachings, and “drinking the blood” of the words Jesus spoke, is referring to believing in Him and in the Covenant that He made with His believers.
That Covenant was that one day, He would return to establish the Kingdom of God the Father on earth.
Hebrews 9:
[19] For when every commandment of the law had been declared by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people,
[20] saying, “This is the blood of the covenant which God commanded you.”
[21] And in the same way he sprinkled with the blood both the tent and all the vessels used in worship.
[22] Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.
[23] Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
[24] For Christ has entered, not into a sanctuary made with hands, a copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.
[25] Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the Holy Place yearly with blood not his own;
[26] for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the age to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.
[27] And just as it is appointed for men to die once, and after that comes judgment,
[28] so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
We know now that Him returning in the Glory of God the Father was His return in Baha’u'llah, the prophet of the Baha’i faith. So to turn to Baha’u'llah and to help establish the laws, ordinances and teachings that He brought for the Kingdom of God on earth, is being firm in the Covenant that Jesus made with His believers. Also, we know that the establisher of the Baha’i faith has showed us that the meaning of Isaiah 2, is that we must protect ourselves in fallout shelters during the upcoming nuclear war, thus ”saving” ourselves from this destruction:
Isaiah 2:
[2] It shall come to pass in the latter days
[now] that the mountain of the house of the LORD
[the house of the Lord is the Universal House of Justice brought by Baha’u'llah as the international congress of nations that will settle disputes between nations around the conference table through consultation and the laws of God] shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and shall be raised above the hills;
and all the nations shall flow to it,
[3] and many peoples shall come, and say:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.”
For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
[4] He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide for many peoples; and 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 any more.
[5] O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the LORD.
[6] For thou hast rejected thy people, the house of Jacob, because they are full of diviners from the east
and of soothsayers like the Philistines, and they strike hands with foreigners.
[7] Their land is filled with silver and gold, and there is no end to their treasures; their land is filled with horses, and there is no end to their chariots.
[8] Their land is filled with idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their own fingers have made.
[9] So man is humbled, and men are brought low –
forgive them not!
[10] Enter into the rock,
and hide in the dust
from before the terror of the LORD,
and from the glory of his majesty.
[11] The haughty looks of man shall be brought low,
and the pride of men shall be humbled;
and the LORD alone will be exalted
in that day.
[12] For the LORD of hosts has a day
against all that is proud and lofty,
against all that is lifted up and high;
[17] And the haughtiness of man shall be humbled,
and the pride of men shall be brought low;
and the LORD alone will be exalted in that day.
[18] And the idols shall utterly pass away.
[19] And men shall enter the caves of the rocks
and the holes of the ground,
from before the terror of the LORD,
and from the glory of his majesty,
when he rises to terrify the earth.
[20] In that day men will cast forth
their idols of silver and their idols of gold,
which they made for themselves to worship,
to the moles and to the bats,
[21] to enter the caverns of the rocks
and the clefts of the cliffs,
from before the terror of the LORD,
and from the glory of his majesty,
when he rises to terrify the earth.Jesus also said, “I am the bread of life” (John 6:48), and, “he who eats this bread will live forever” (John 6:58). But what is this “bread of life” that Jesus spoke of and claimed to be? It was his teachings.
This meaning is assigned elsewhere. Jesus warned the disciples to “beware of the leaven of the bread of the Pharisees and Sadducees” (Matt. 16:6). Then Matthew pointed out that “he did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees” (Matt. 16:12).
According to Matthew, when the heavens were opened after John the Baptist baptized Jesus, the only thing that came down from heaven was the “Spirit of God” that alighted upon Jesus (Matt. 3:16). Therefore, when Jesus said, “I am the bread thatcame down from heaven,” the word “I” could only be referring to this Spirit of God that alighted upon Him like a dove, because that was the ONLY thing thatcame down from heaven!
Jesus said, “He who is of God hears the words of God” (John 8:47).
But how did the words of God become known in the world? They became known when Jesus, enlightened by the Spirit of the Son of God, spoke the words of God.
God told Moses that Jesus would be the speaker of the word, in the book of Deuteronomy:
And the Lord said to me, ‘. .I will raise up for them aprophet like you (like Moses) from among their brethren; and I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him’ (Deut. 18:18)
In Acts 7:37 Paul confirms that this verse is a prophetic reference to Jesus, who was a “prophet,”just as Moses was a prophet (Deut. 18:18). Matthew also clearly states that Jesus was a prophet:
This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth of Galilee. (Matt. 21:11)
William Smith, in his Dictionary of the Bible, defines the meaning of the word “prophet:”
The ordinary Hebrew word for prophet is “nabi,” derived from a verb signifying “to bubble forth” like a fountain. Hence the word means, “One who announces or pours forth the declarations of God.…” Prophecy comprehends three things: prediction;singing the dictate of the Spirit and understanding and explaining the mysterious, hidden sense of Scripture, by an immediate illumination and motion of the Spirit (Dictionary of the Bible, William Smith, p. 550).
It could therefore be said that Jesus was “singing by the dictate of’ the Spirit.” But, by the dictate of what Spirit? By the dictate of the Spirit of the Son of God, of course!
The corrupt Christian clergy deny that Jesus was a prophet of God, however. They state rather that He was God Himself — God-incarnate. I go into the corruption that the Roman empire infused indelibly into Christianity, in other documents on this site.http://www.rockymountainbahai.com/the-new-testament/debunking-christian-mythologies-a-bahai-fireside/
But suffice it to say, the concept that Jesus is God Himself, rather than a prophet of God speaking by the dictates of the Holy Spirit from God, proclaiming the One, True, Invisible God, rather than trying to take the place of God, is something that the Roman emporers decided in hurried ways, and then made into law, without regard for the truth. This law was enforced at the punishment of death.
The first man to be crowned head of the Holy Roman Empire was Charlemagne around 800 A.D., and he went around with the crucifix in one hand, and the sword in the other, on behalf of the Holy Roman Empire, and subdued the mass of the Europeans under his corrupt regime. His corrupt regime was in opposition to the Iconoclast movement that was taking place in the eastern Roman Empire (Turkey), spreading to the western Roman Empire (Europe).
The Iconoclast movement was the Roman Empire’s response to the Moslems coming up and not only conquering the Romans, but converting them to Islam. The Moslems would shout epitaphs at the Christians: “Idolators! Idolators!”
The Emperor of the Roman Empire thus responded with the Idol-breaking Movement, or the Iconoclast Movement, sending out a bunch of street thugs from down by the river, to smash up all the: 1. Statues, 2. Stained glass windows, and 3. Paintings of idols. This was absolutely against the wishes of the Romans in Rome, and so Charlemagne and his cohorts revolted. They wanted to save their beautiful and ancient idols because they were pieces of antiquity. Thus they formed the Holy Roman Empire around their opposition to the destruction of their idols.
At that point, pagans came flocking into the Christian church. The bishop of Rome claimed ascendancy above all the bishops of the Roman Empire, and made himself the Pope, or Papa of all the bishops. To spread this corruption, Charlemagne went out and killed anyone who would not submit. Not until Guttenberg in Germany published the Bible in the 1400s, did the people have an inkling about the Pope’s regime being corrupt.
This explains the motives behind the Germanic tribes eventually “protesting,” the corruption of the Pope’s Holy Roman Empire. They became “Protestants.” Luther and the Lutherans from Germany were first, then others; John Calvin formed the Methodists; the “Prebetyrs” had a twist on Luthernism called the “Prebyterians,” and so on.
King Henry the VIII of England was still Catholic, not a Protestant, but when the Pope wouldn’t grant him permission to divorce his wives, he made himself the head of the the Church of England, and called it the Anglican church. So this was a version of the Pope’s religion, with a twist, and that was, the King of England played the role of the Supreme Bishop instead of the Pope.
But however much they protested, the Protestants did not refrain from swallowing the main pill of poison of the Catholic Pope, and that was, the “Jesus is God” pill.
But I digress, and back to the subject.
One way the Christian clergy go about upholding the corruption of the truth is by teaching that Jesus IS the Word of God, when in actuality, Jesus spoke The Word of God. They twist the first part of the gospel of John that reads like this: “In the beginning was theWord, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1-2).
Then later John says, “And the Word became flesh” (John 1:15).
Because John says the Word is God, and then he says the Word “became flesh,” the clergy falsely conclude that Jesus was God-incarnate. This is so they can keep believing Jesus is God, and they don’t have to go against all these years of corrupt tradition that teaches this idea. This conclusion is contrary to the rest of the teachings in the Bible, however. I have already shown how this is so, by pointing out that Jesus was the speaker of the Word of God, and not the Word itself.
To look deeper into these verses in the beginning of the book of John about how: …in the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, and the Word was God, and later, … the Words became flesh; one must take into consideration the fact that the Bible was originally written in a different language. The original text of these verses used the Hebrew word Logos, and later the Greek word “Logos” in place of the English word “Word.” The Hebrew meaning of the word “Logos” means “The Divine thought, as can be expressed in a word” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance with Greek and Hebrew Dictionaries). Later, the Greeks had the meaning of the work Logos as “the thought of MAN as can be expressed in words.” This slips man in there instead of God. So the Greek interpretation of this verse corrupts the Hebrew and true meaning of this verse.
If we were to substitute the true, original, Hebrew definition of the word Logos, the beginning of the book of John would read:
In the beginning was the Divine thought as can be expressed in a word, and the Divine thoughts as can be expressed in words were with God, and the Divine thoughts as can be expressed in Words wereGod.
In other words, all that man, who is finite and who will never be able to comprehend the infinite God, is able to understand about God is that which is explained to him in the words spoken by the prophets.Then the verse in John would go on to say:
And the thoughts of God as can be expressed in words became flesh.
The way these words became flesh was by the Spirit of the Son of God alighting on Jesus, and then by Jesus speaking the words that described this spirit, to others.
The clergy has firmly established this untruth about Jesus being God-incarnate in the minds of the people by having them recite over and over, the false Nicene Creed and the false Apostles Creed which were passed in 325 A.D. by the Roman Emporer Constantine. He hurriedly had the priestcraft write this creed as a way to unify and subdue his kingdom. This was made into law as a ploy to maintain the unity of the empire. In no way was it intended to establish the truth of Christianity. It served Constantine’s purposes to meld Christianity with paganism, because these creeds unified the Christians and pagans into one, unifying them and making them easier to control. These creeds testify that God is three, that Jesus is God incarnate, and other such lies.
Actually, later Constantine’s mother and sister convinced him that his creeds, the Nicene Creed and the Apostles Creed, did not establish the truth about Christianity, and he later actually became a true Christian. Abdu’l-Baha talks of this. Nevertheless, the damage was done. The false Nicene Creed goes like this, and it is recited as a main part of doctrine in most Protestant churches. It absolutely opens wide the people’s mouths and pours in the “male bovine excrement.”
I believe in one God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible; And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God; Light of Light, Very God of Very God; Begotten, not made; Who for us men, and for our salvation, came down from heaven; And wasincarnate by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin Mary, and was made man….”
(The Nicene Creed)
First of all, the way Jesus was “begotten of His father before all worlds” was in the mind of God, or in the Logos — not in the flesh.
Second, this creed states that Jesus is “God of God,” when I have already proven using scriptures, that “God is not man…or a son of man” (Num. 23:19).
Third, Jesus wasn’t God “come down from heaven.” Rather, the Spirit of God [Holy Spirit] in the potency of the beloved Son descended from heaven and alighted upon Jesus (Matt. 3:16—17). When you believe in that Spirit, and you eat of it, digest and understand it, and drink or the blood or wine of it, meaning you believe in it, you, too, become as close to God as if you were His very own son.
Paul explains in his letter to the Galatians that you are then grafted into the family of God, into the blessed lineages that are the family of God, that you are “Abraham’s offspring,” and “heirs, according to promise,” of all the blessings of the Kingdom of God.
Jesus told us to pray for the coming of the Kingdom of God on earth, and that is the only thing he really asked us to pray for. “Our Father, Who Art in heaven…. Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done, onEARTH, as it is in heaven.” True Christians have their children say this prayer as they tuck their children in at night.
Jesus said three things about Himself and heaven: he said he was in heaven, he came from heaven and he goes to heaven:
“I have come down from heaven (John 6:38).
…the son of man which is in heaven (John 3:13).
I go to the Father (John 14:12), …my Father which isin heaven (Matt. 16:17).
Therefore, if Jesus was in heaven, and he came from heaven, and he was going to heaven, then the heaven he was referring to must have been a condition and not a place.
The American Heritage Dictionary puts forth one definition of the word “heaven” as being the “abode of God, the angels, and the souls of those who are granted salvation.” This is the heaven that Jesus dwelt in spiritually, even while on earth. He was enlightened with the Spirit of God from heaven, and therefore he could claim to be “in heaven.”
Last, the Bible doesn’t say, “God was made man,” as the Nicene Creed says. In fact, the Bible says just the opposite: “God is not a man” (Num. 23:19).
Rather, the Bible says, “the Word became flesh” (John 1:14). There is a big difference between “God was made man” (corrupt Nicene Creed), and “the Word became flesh” (The Bible). The way the “word became flesh” was by Jesus being the speaker of the Wordand not by Jesus being God-incarnate.
The false Nicene Creed states that Jesus was God-incarnate. But the word “incarnate” appears nowhere in the Bible. Jesus was a prophet of God who spoke by the dictates of the Spirit of the Son of God. God’s prophet is not a god before God. God is a “jealous God” (Exodus 20:5), and He wants his people to have “no other gods” (Exodus 20:3). Jesus was a prophet of God, and not God, made man. This fact is reiterated over and over:
“This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth of Galilee” (Matt. 21:11).
“And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High” (Luke 1:76).
“And he (Jesus) said, ‘Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his own country’” (Luke 4:24).
“…the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other” (Deut. 4:39).
“Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone” (Luke 18:19).
“God is spirit” (John 4:24).
“God is not man…or a son of man” (Num. 23:19).
According to Henry Halley, author of Halley’s BibleHandbook, the “Son of man” was Jesus’ favorite title for Himself, and it occurs about 70 times in the Gospels. If Jesus is God-incarnate as the corrupt Christian clergy claim, why would the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible) state so clearly that God is not a son of man?
Some might argue that Jesus is God because he said, “I am in the Father and the Father in me” (John 14:11).
However, Jesus then goes on to say “I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you” (John 14:20), Therefore, does that mean you are God also? Of course not!
Another way the corrupt Christian clergy go about falsely rationalizing the idea that Jesus was God-incarnate is by quoting Jesus’ statement: “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58).
They use this verse in conjunction with these verses:
Then Moses said to God, “If I come to people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I am has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 2:13—14)
The corrupt Christian clergy say that because God called Himself “I am,” and Jesus said, “…before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58), therefore Jesus is God. But let’s take this statement in context, using the text quoted in the footnotes of the Bible:
Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad. Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, has Abraham seen you?” Jesus said to them “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:56-58).
As I explained before, Jesus was the speaker of the Word of God. John says that Word of God existed in the beginning (John 1:1). Therefore, the words Jesus would speak to man existed in the plan of God even before Abraham was, and Abraham, being enlightened by God, saw the day when the words of the Spirit of the Son of God would be spoken by Jesus. There is no time or space in the realms of God. Sometimes those absorbed in those realms understand this where we do not. This is not to say they are wrong and we are right, only that we are finite in terms of our ability to understand the infinite realms of God.
Also, if the fact that Jesus said, “I am,” proves that Jesus is God, does that also mean Paul is God because he said, “I am what I am” (I Cor. 15:10)? Of course not! Jesus was not God and neither was Paul.
A final argument that the corrupt Christian clergy use to prove Jesus was God-incarnate, is this. At one point in Jesus’ ministry the Jews took up stones to stone Jesus. They did this because
“…you, being a man, make yourself God” (John 10:33).
The corrupt clergy say that because the Jews stoned Jesus for making Himself God, therefore Jesus did make Himself God. But in looking further into this passage we find that rather than claiming to be God Himself, Jesus claimed to be the Son of God:
“…do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God?’” (John 10:36).
Jesus was the speaker of the word of God. The words he spoke were in the “Spirit of the Son of God.” One who believes in those words is given the power to become a son of God also. Therefore, the Son of God is a spirit of closeness to God that is understood and reflected by those who come to and believe in the words that were spoken by Jesus. This is a simple truth that has been corrupted and lost.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
The Proofs for the Bab and Baha’u'llah
Source: Rocky Mountain Bahá'í
The second Christ, Baha’u’llah has come, and He fulfills the prophecies for the Prince of Peace. In order to show you to show you his proofs, we first had to clear away some cobwebs and see what kind of a world Baha’u’llah comes to, and why the people of the world have not accepted Him. No wonder Baha’u’llah was arrested, no wonder He was put in prison, no wonder the clergy today reject Him – their religion has been corrupted.
Note: The clearing away of cobwebs is referring to information at the following links:
We will now look at how the criteria we used to prove Jesus prophesied name, date, address, and mission – also proves Baha’u’llah. If these criteria prove Jesus, the same criteria applied to Baha’u’llah would prove Baha’u’llah. First, let’s look at where Baha’u’llah was prophesied by name from the lips of no less than Jesus Himself. Now if Jesus tells us that Baha’u’llah is coming, who is it to say that He’s wrong? What Christian could say that He didn’t know what He’s talking about? If He says Baha’u’llah is going to come, why would anybody say anything different.Jesus prophesied Baha’u’llah by name in Mark 8:38:For whosoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels. (See also Matthew 16:27, Luke 9: 26 ). Jesus spoke Aramaic – the language of the Middle East in His time. So when Jesus spoke of the “Glory of the Father,” he didn’t use the English for this but rather the Aramaic, word which is “Baha’u’llah.”Jesus says the “Son of man” is going to return in “Baha’u’llah,” meaning that this “glory of the Father” is going to be a man – the son of a man – and He’s going to have holy angels. These holy angels are those that were martyred for the sake of Baha’u’llah’s Revelation, just as the apostles were martyred at the time of Jesus.This is like the name prophecy for Jesus, in which He was prophesied to come as “Immanuel,” and He came in the name “Jesus” which meant the same thing in a different language. In our Bible we have the words “Glory of the Father,” which means the same as ‘Baha’u’llah.” “Baha’u’llah” is the way to say “the glory of God the Father” in Arabic, Persian and in the Aramaic language Jesus spoke (Baha=glory, u’llah is short for “of Allah”= of God the Father).This is a very important proof, but perhaps other people have had the name Baha’u’llah. Therefore, we need to see what address is prophesied for the coming of Baha’u’llah.The 43rd chapter of Ezekiel gives this address. Ezekiel was a prophet who wrote his visions down while in Babylonian captivity. Ezekiel spoke language of his captors, which was Aramaic, and so he originally wrote his book in Aramaic.In giving the following excerpts from Ezekiel’s vision I will reinsert some of the original Aramaic words Ezekiel used. Where Ezekiel writes “gate,” I will re-insert the Aramaic word for “gate,” which is “Bab.” and where Ezekiel refers to “the Glory of God” or “the Glory of the Lord, ” I will re-insert the original Aramaic word, which is “Baha’u’llah”
“Afterwards he brought me to the Bab, the Bab facing east.” (Ezekiel 43:1).
The forerunner of Baha’u’llah was called “the Bab;” The Bab (1819-1850) was the John the Baptist for Baha’u’llah. Thus Ezekiel literally prophesied the Bab by name. The Bab spent His last days awaiting execution in various prisons in Adhirbayjan, in the northwestern corner of Iran. While imprisoned in the Castle of Chihriq, the Bab gathered together all of His writings that were in His possession, His pen-case, His seals, and His rings, and had them delivered to Baha’u’llah, who lived a journey of several days east in Tehran. So the Bab, in facing the Promised One He foretold, was facing east.
“And behold, Baha’u’llah of Israel came from the east” (Ezekiel 43:2).
Here Ezekiel literally mentions Baha’u’llah by name in Aramaic. Baha’u’llah was born in Tehran, which is east of Tabriz, where the Bab was executed, and which is also very far east of the Euphrates, the ancient dividing line between the Middle East and the East. Baha’u’llah was exiled from Tehran in Persia as a prisoner, and was taken in chains to the prison of Akka near Mt. Carmel in Israel. Thus Baha’u’llah cane to Israel form the East, fulfilling this prophecy.
“and the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with his Baha.” (Ezekiel 43:2).In the 17th chapter of the Book of Revelations, the “many waters” means many peoples, nations and tongues. Baha’u’llah’s Revelation is not for just a certain country or a certain people, but rather it is for the oneness of mankind. Baha’u’llah’s first principle is the oneness of the world of humanity. Thus the whole earth will shine with His Baha (Glory or Splendor).
“And the vision I saw was like the vision which I had seen when he came to destroy the city, and like the vision I had seen by the river Chebar; and I fell upon my face.”
Here Ezekiel fall on his face in thanksgiving to God. Ezekiel sees the Great manifestation, Baha’u’llah, who the whole Bible talks about, who all the religion talk about – the One who will establish universal peace and unite all of humanity in brotherhood in the Kingdom of God on earth.“As Baha’u’llah entered the temple by the Bab facing east, the Spirit lifted me up, and brought me into the inner court…. (Ezekiel 43:4)
Baha’u’llah entered the temple by the Bab. Just as Jesus entered into His ministry through His forerunner John the Baptist, Baha’u’llah entered into His ministry through his forerunner the Bab.“…And behold, Baha’u’llah filled the temple. While the man was standing beside me, I heard one speaking to me out of the temple; and he said to me, ‘Son of man, this is the place of my throne and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the people of Israel forever. “‘ (Ezekiel 43:6-7).
The Revelation of Baha’u’llah fills the Temple. The one speaking from out of the Temple in this vision is the person Baha’u’llah – we know this is a man because he speaks of Israel as the place of the “soles of his feet.” The throne that Baha’u’llah speaks of is David’s throne. Baha’u’llah sat on the throne of David as a direct male lineal descendant of King David through the Exilarchs (exiled Davidic monarchs). The Baha’i World Center is on Mt. Carmel in Haifa, Israel, which is now the permanent seat of David’s throne.
Just as Jesus was prophesied to be born in Bethlehem, Baha’u’llah was prophesied to come from the East to Israel. And Baha’u’llah had a forerunner by the name of the Bab, just as Jesus had a forerunner by the name of John the Baptist. So here we have Baha’u’llah’s address. There is more prophecy for His address in the 35th chapter of the book of Isaiah:
“The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, the desert shall rejoice and blossom; like the crocus it shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord [Baha’u’llah], and the majesty of our God.” (Isaiah 35:1-2).Here it says that the desert will blossom like a crocus. When Baha’u’llah, the Glory of the Lord, was brought to Israel, He was placed in the prison at Akka. Akka sits right across the bay of Haifa from lt. Carmel. Akka was the foulest prison of the Turkish empire – people would say that if a bird were to fly over Akka, it would die from the stench. The prisoners were kept in pestilential conditions, and many died after a short time. In addition, it was a barren land, without cultivation.
After Baha’u’llah’s exile to Akka in 1868, thousands of His followers from Iran and Baghdad visited Him there, and they started cultivating the land, planting flowers, and bringing in irrigation. Later on the Jews started settling Palestine, since in 1844, the Sultan of Turkey had lifted the ban of Omar and allowed the Jews to enter Jerusalem again, and in 1868, the Jews were allowed to buy land there once again. These Jews rapidly began irrigating the entire country. If you should go to Mt. Carmel today, you would find it to be one of the most beautiful spots in the world. While Palestine, and Akka and Mt. Carmel in particular, were without cultivation at the time of Baha’u’llah, since His coming the desert has literally blossomed. And after Baha’u’llah was given a release from prison, He pitched His tent on Mt. Carmel with His Son ‘Abdu’l-Baha and laid out the site for the universal government of the Kingdom of God on earth.
Baha’u’llah completely fulfilled the prophecy of the address. He was exiled to Mt. Carmel and Sharon – the name for Israel’s Mediterranean seacoast adjoining Mt. Carmel. Just as Jesus was prophesied to be born in Bethlehem, here Isaiah specifies that Baha’u’llah will come from the East to Israel. Isaiah say that Sharon and Carmel will see the Glory of the Lord – Baha’u’llah.
We can see that the prophesied address for Baha’u’llah is even more detailed than the address for Jesus. In fact, there are myriad’s of prophecies about the coming of Baha’u’llah, but for the sake of brevity we will just be looking at the essential name, address, date and mission prophecies.
We will now look at the date prophecies, which are very important. There might have been someone else named Baha’u’llah, and he might have come from Iran to Israel, so we need to get this in the framework of when. Let’s start with the book of Matthew, where the disciples ask Jesus about the date of His return:
“As he [Jesus] sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will this be and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?” – (Matthew 24: 3; RSV)
Here the disciples ask Jesus three questions: when are you coming, what will be the sign of your coming and what is the sign of the close of the age? Jesus then gives many signs which you can read on your own, but we will focus on the conclusive sign He gives for the close of the age:
“So when you see the desolating sacrilege spoken of by the prophet, Daniel; standing in the holy place (let the reader understand).” (Matthew 24:15; RSV).
Here Jesus Himself doesn’t give you the date, but he says to turn to the book of Daniel, the book that gave the date for Jesus Himself, for the date at which the Second Christ will come. Jesus tells us to go to the chapter which speaks of the desolating sacrilege and the holy place. This is as follows:“Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to the one that spoke, ‘For how long is the vision concerning the continual burnt offering, the transgression that makes desolate, and the giving over of the sanctuary and host to be trampled under foot?’ And he said to him, ‘For two thousand and three hundred evenings and mornings; then the sanctuary shall be restored to its rightful state.” (Daniel 8:13-14).
Here Daniel mentions the “transgression that makes desolate,” and also the “sanctuary.” These are the “desolating sacrilege” and the “holy place” that Jesus told us to look fort so we know we’re in the right place.
In the 43rd chapter of Ezekiel we read about the temple. Ezekiel was a high priest, and he was concerned with the re-establishment of the temple. He told us that the re-establishment of the temple would be the coming of the Bab and Baha’u’llah. Here Daniel tells us about the sanctuary of the temple being restored to its rightful state.
When Nebuchadnezzar took the Jews into captivity, he removed the ark of the Covenant from the Holy of Holies and brought it to Babylon where it was lost. After this the Jews rebuilt the temple and the sanctuary, but they lacked the ark of the Covenant to complete the Holy of Holies. So the Jews wanted to know when their sanctuary would be fully restored. In the above prophecy, Daniel says this will be in 2300 days, and since in prophecy each day is a year, these are 2300 years.
These 2300 years start from the time that the abomination of desolation came to an end – 457 B.C., when the edict was issued to restore and rebuild Jerusalem. From 457 B.C. to the birth of Jesus gives us 456 years. This leaves 1844 years left over, which means that the 2300 years come to an end in 1844 A.D. This is the date Jesus indicates that the sanctuary would be restored.
Under the Law of Moses, the sanctuary was cleansed with the blood of sheep and goats. According to the 7th, 8th, and 9th, chapters of the Book of Hebrews, Jesus cleansed the sanctuary not with the blood of sheep and goats but with his own blood. But now we are looking for the birth of the Kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven that Jesus told us to pray for, so we’re looking for the cleansing of the sanctuary on earth. The date we are given is 1844.
Baha’u’llah’s forerunner the Bab started the Baha’i calendar in 1844. The Bab made His proclamation on May 23, 1844. But He started the calendar on March 21, 1844. According to the Book of Ezra, King Artaxerxes’ order to rebuild Jerusalem was given on March 21, the first day of the first month of the Persian calendar, which started with the vernal equinox (Ezra 7:9). March 21, 1844, is the starting of the Baha’i calendar, which occurs exactly 2300 years from the order to restore and rebuild Jerusalem issued by Artaxerxes.
The Bab purified the sanctuary by being killed six years after His mission started. The Bab was shot with 750 bullets in an execution arranged by the clergy, just as the clergy was behind Jesus’ execution. In addition, 10,000 of the Bab’s followers were martyred with Him in the course of His mission, shedding their blood to cleanse the sanctuary.
The Book of Jude says (verse 14):And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all of their ungodly deeds, which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches, which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.
10, 000 of the Bab’s followers were martyred in Persia, practically down to the last one. They were killed in the most inhuman manner – they were split apart, their enemies drove holes in their flesh, put lighted candles in the holes, and made them run down the street with horseshoes nailed to their feet, they put rings in their noses and paraded them through the streets naked, and so on. These martyrs sacrificed themselves so that the holy Revelation of God would be established in the world.
Yet despite these great sacrifices, today the peoples of the world remain sunk in the depths of paganism, following Satan, and their leader is seated on the throne of Nimrod or Satan, wearing the fish hat in Rome. So you can’t expect much from the majority of the people. That’s why there will be a great calamity in the world before the people awake and accept the Revelation of God for this age.
Having seen the date prophecy for the Bab, let’s turn to the 12th chapter of Daniel which gives us some more important dates. Of course, a lot of Christians read this next chapter but the poor Christians are under the delusion of Satan, so how can they understand anything?
“At that time, shall arise Michael the great prince. who has charge of your people.” (Daniel 12:1).The word Michael means “one like God.” Each of the Manifestations are mirrors which reflect God – they are ‘like God” because they reflect God. Thus this “Michael” refers to a Manifestation. He is the “great prince” because He’s a direct descendant of King David and is seated on the throne of David.
“And there will be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation, till that time.” (Daniel 12:1).
Jesus said something similar:
“For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be, and if those days had not been shortened, no human being would be saved.” (Matthew 24:21-22).
Has there ever been so much trouble in the world? We’ve made instruments of war by which within an hour, two thirds of mankind will be dead. How terrible this age in its problems. The people have been coalesced together by rapid transit and rapid communication. You can go around the world in no time, while before most people never got more than 30 miles from their home and they did this mostly on foot. While today, we’re all thrown together, and this has caused all the different ideologies, religions and concepts to clash together, giving us a very dangerous situation, especially considering the trouble in the Middle East. The great trouble in the Middle East is the starting of Armageddon.
“But at that time your people shall be delivered, every one whose name shall be found written in the book.” (Daniel 12:1).
Everyone that turns to Baha’u’llah’s Covenant will be delivered – God’s people. And all those who are in paganism and the various Covenant-breaking sects and denominations are going to get their medicine, too, whatever that may be.
“And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.” (Daniel 12:2).
Those who “sleep in the dust of the earth” are the materialist. Practically everyone is a materialist, abiding by the “get mine while I can get it” way of life. Some of these people will get away from the paganism, awake to become believers in the Second Messiah Baha’u’llah, and will win everlasting life, while some will not awake until the bombs drop and the destruction is about to fall upon them. but they’ll awake to shame and everlasting contempt.
“And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.” (Daniel 12:3).The wise are they who use their intellect to know the truth. They don’t just believe on faith. They don’t just follow some false leader. The wise decide for themselves whether something is true. Most of the Christians say you should believe on faith, and you don’t need any proof. But the wise judge justly, by proof.
“But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, until the time of the end.” (Daniel 12:3).
The book of Daniel was sealed, meaning no one would understand what it means until the time of the end.
“Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.” (Daniel 12:4)
There has never been a time in history with so much intercontinental travel and communication, and with such great expansion of knowledge as is going on today.
“Then I Daniel looked, and behold, two others stood, one on this bank of the stream and one on that bank of the stream. And I said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream, ‘ How long shall it be till the end of these wonders? ‘ The man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream, raised his right hand and his left hand toward heaven; and I heard him swear by him who lives for ever that it would be for a time, two times, and half a time;” (Daniel 12:5-7)Daniel is receiving a date here. He gives the date as “a time, two times, and a half a time.” This gives us three and a half times. A time is a circle, and a circle is the length of time it takes to get back to the beginning. It doesn’t matter how large or small the circle is, it always consists of 360 degrees. We have three and a half times; so 360 multiplied by three and a half is 1260.
The Bab and Baha’u’llah came in Iran, where they use the Arabian lunar calendar. This calendar begins with Muhammad’s flight from Meca to Medina, which is called the Hegira. 1260 on the Muslim calendar is the same as 1844 on the Christian calendar, when the Bab made His proclamation. 1844 A.D. is the same as 1260 A.H. (After the Hegira). On May 23, 1844 which is 1260 A.H., the Bab made His proclamation. So here we have the date for the Bab, this time on the Arabic calendar as 1260. We’re approaching the date for Baha’u’llah, so let’s continue on.
“..and that when the shattering of the power of the holy people comes to an end, all these things would accomplished.” (Daniel 12:7).
The shattering of the power of the holy people who follow the Manifestation of God continues today, but it will be over soon.
“I heard, but I did not understand. Then I said, ‘O my lord, what shall be the issue of these things?’ He said, ‘Go your way, Daniel, for the words are shut up and sealed until the time of the end.’” (Daniel 12:8-9).
Here Daniel says, ‘God, I don’t understand all this!” God means by His reply, “Those words are sealed until the time of the end when they will be fulfilled, and those who fulfill it will explain what it means.
In fact, numerous Christian writers figured out the date 1844, and this date was also discovered in the chronological time line in the Great Pyramid of Giza, but they didn’t understand what it meant.
In 1844 the Bab closed the door to the prophetic age and opened the door to the age of fulfillment. The word “Bab” means “door” or “gate.” On the very day of the Bab’s proclamation, the inventor Samuel Morse sent from Baltimore to Washington the world’s first telegraph message. Morse’s message read, “See what God hath wrought.” Since the date of the Bab, all the countries of the world have become connected through communication and transportation. Since the date of the Bab, a whole new world has unfolded with the railroad, the steamship, the air plane, the forms of rapid communication – the horse and buggy is gone. The Promised One, the Door came in 1844, and He opened the door to this age. They asked Jesus, when would be the close of the age, and He refers us to Daniel who says 1844. Are we going to call Jesus a liar, Daniel a liar, God a liar?
Now we’re going to get the date for Baha’u’llah:
“Many shall purify themselves, and make themselves pure and be refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly, and none of the wicked shall understand; but those who are wise shall understand” (Daniel 12:10).
Here we see none of the wicked will understand. Who are the wicked? The ones that refuse to use their intellect to understand. God gave you your intellect to understand – but if you don’t use your intellect and you just follow a clergyman that is corrupted with Satan you’ll end up in the den of Satan. You have to use your intellect.
None of the wicked will understand, but the wise will understand – the wise are those that use their intellect.
The clergy says, “You don’t want to use your intellect, you have to go by the heart.” But the intellect must lead the heart. The heart is not intelligent, it’s liable to love anything. We have to be guided by the intellect. God tells us the wise shall understand.
“And from the time that the continual burnt offering is taken away and the abomination that makes desolate is set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.” (Daniel 12:11)
When Muhammad came, He did away with all types of “burnt offerings” or sacrifices, including the Eucharist which existed in Christianity. Thus the beginning of this date prophecy refers to the proclamation of Muhammad, which was 10 years before the start of the Arabic calendar. The “abomination that makes desolate” refers to treachery committed against Muhammad by Jewish tribes during a battle, after which Muhammad changed the direction of prayer from Jerusalem to Mecca, thus making the holy city of the Jews desolate.
From the proclamation of Muhammad to the proclamation of Baha’u’llah was exactly 1290 years (In prophecy a day equals a year, so 1290 days equal 1290 years). The proclamation of Baha’u’llah was on April 21, 1863. This proclamation was 1,290 years on the Muslim lunar calendar from the proclamation of Muhammad 10 years before the Hegira. The date in 1863 A.D. when Baha’u’llah proclaimed himself was near the beginning or the Muslim year 1280 A.H. 1280 plus the 10 years back to when Muhammad proclaimed Himself 10 years before the start of the Muslim calendar gives us 1290 years. Thus Daniel gives us the date for Baha’u’llah.
So here we have just seen the dates for the close of the age and the coming of the Second Christ which Jesus said we should refer to Daniel for. Now we have Baha’u’llah’s name, His address, and His date, but we still need to see what mission is prophesied for the Second Christ. We find this in the second chapter of the book of Isaiah:“It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be raised above the hills and all the nations shall flow to it…” (Isaiah 2:2)
This prophecy is for the latter days, which we are in today. This mountain is Mt. Carmel, the seat of the International Baha’i Center where the Universal House of Justice will be established. The King James Version says that the mountain of the Lord’s house will be “established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills;” this exaltation is a spiritual height rather than a physical height. All the nations shall flow to it, meaning that all the people will come into the Kingdom and will flow to this International Center on top of Mt. Carmel.
“… and many peoples shall come, and say: ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.’” (Isaiah 2:3).
Contrary to the Christian triune God, the God of Jacob is the One Invisible God that created everything. The peoples of the world will flow to the One True Invisible God of Jacob, Isaac, and Abraham, not to the pagan trinity.
“For out of Zion shall go forth the Law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” (Isaiah 2:3).
Baha’u’llah, the Prince of Peace, established that there will be a Universal House of Justice with the Davidic Kingship as the President or head of it. This kingship will exist as long as there is life on this planet. “Zion” is the city of David, thus with the Davidic King descended from David through Baha’u’llah being the President of the Universal House of Justice, the law will go forth form Zion.The word “Jerusalem” means “City of Peace.” This does not pertain to the city named Jerusalem in Israel, but to the “New Jerusalem” which comes from God out of heaven as seen in the Book of Revelations ( Revelations 21:10). This heavenly Jerusalem is the new Revelation for a civilization of peace – the law that Baha’u’llah brings.
“He shall judge between the nations and shall decide for many peoples.” (Isaiah 2:4 ) .
Baha’u’llah prescribes the formation of an international Tribunal in which all the nations will simultaneously disarm and settle their differences and their boundaries over a council table. After settling their boundaries, they will make covenant of peace among themselves. The people will then elect secondary Houses of Justice in every nation, and these Houses of Justice will elect a Universal House of Justice. The Davidic King descended from Baha’u’llah will be the Guardian or President of the Universal House of Justice.“And they shall beat their swords in to ploughshares and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” (Isaiah 2:4).
Baha’u’llah came to put an end to war, set up the Universal House of Justice on top of Mt. Carmel and have all the nations flow to it or become members of it. This House of Justice will not be set up until after the catastrophe which is imminent. Following this catastrophe, the United States, England, France and Russia will become the first Baha’i States. They will set up an International Tribunal or World Court which will be an interim body until the establishment of the Universal House of Justice. The other nations will join this body as they become Baha’i, and by the end of this century, everybody in the world will be Baha’i. All the nations will belong to the Universal House of Justice on the top of Mt. Carmel, and we’ll have a thousand years of peace.
Now let’s turn to the ninth chapter of Isaiah, the sixth verse:
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder, and his name will be called, ‘Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
During Christmas, Christians often place a sign over the nativity scene reading, “Unto us a child is born…” in reference to this prophecy. They attribute this prophecy to Jesus Christ. Well, we have to agree that Jesus didn’t come out of the sky – he was born from his mother. This is the only part of the prophecy, however, that could possibly refer to Jesus.
The prophecy says “the government will be upon his shoulder.” Jesus was a carpenter’s son, and certainly the government was not upon his shoulder. In fact, the only thing Jesus said about government was,” Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (Luke 20:25).
Also, this prophecy says this person will be the Prince of Peace . What Jesus said regarding this subject is that He didn’t come to bring peace, but a sword (Matthew 10:34). If Jesus would have claimed to be the Prince of Peace, He would have been the biggest failure in history, as there has been nothing but war from the time of Jesus until today.
Jesus never claimed the title of the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, but rather He said He was the Son. He said He would return in “the Glory of the Father,” and here He is referring to Baha’u’llah, who is the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Isaiah uses the words “Mighty God” to refer to Baha’u’llah because each of the Manifestations reflect God, as a mirror reflects the sun. Baha’u’llah reflects God in the Glory of the Father, and therefore, we have a greater concept of God through Baha’u’llah than through any of the previous Manifestations. This is because the mental capacity of the people of this age is much greater than ever before in history. For instance, Jesus said, “I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth.” (John 16:13). And Baha’u’llah has come to bring us into this greatest Revelation of God.
Isaiah continues:
“Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David, and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and for evermore.” (Isaiah 9:7).
Isaiah says “of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end.” Certainly there was no peace during Jesus’ age, but once Baha’u’llah’s peace is established there will be no end to it. There will also be no end to the increase of Baha’u’llah’s government, as all the peoples of the world will belong to it.
But the main thing Isaiah mentions is that this government will be “upon the throne of David and over his kingdom.’ That is, God will rule from the throne of David. God doesn’t talk to us from a great voice in the sky – He doesn’t shout down at us with a megaphone. He always talks to us through a person. And God has chosen a kingship that he set up long ago at the time of King David to look over his kingdom. God told David in His Covenant that his kingship would last forever. The Holy Spirit also told this to David’s sons Nathan and Solomon. This appears in Psalm 89 and many other places throughout the Bible. This throne has existed all the way down to the present time, and now it will be the head of the Universal house of Justice.
Isaiah says that this kingdom will be established with righteousness and with justice for evermore, meaning the Universal House of Justice will be established and will maintain peace as long as there is life on this planet.
Now let’s turn to the eleventh chapter of Isaiah (These verses will be taken from the King James Version of the Bible):
“And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots… (Isaiah 11:1).
Jesse is the father of David. The “stem of Jesse” is his penis. Out of the father of David is going to come David, or specifically, a “rod,” which is the scepter a king holds in his hand. This son of Jesse is King David, and the Kingship is the everlasting kingship of David.
The root of Jesse from which the “Branch shall grow out” appears in the latter days. The tenth verse of this chapter explains: “And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse,” meaning today, in the latter days.The root of Jesse is Baha’u’llah, who is the Manifestation of God seated on David’s throne, and the Branch is Baha’u’llah’s Son ‘Abdu’l-Baha. So these next verses in Isaiah about the Branch refer to ‘Abdu’l-Baha:
“And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out his roots: And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord, and shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord; and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears…” (Isaiah 11:2-3)
In other words, ‘Abdu’l-Baha is not going to establish justice in the world personally, but in His Will and Testament He delineates the institution of the Universal House of Justice with the Guardian at its head, which will bring justice to the world.
But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them (Isaiah 11: 4-6).
Here Isaiah speaks of the justice which will come into the world. For the first time in the world, we’re going to have justice. Each Manifestation emphasizes a particular quality of God. For instance, Moses emphasized the law, Buddha – enlightenment, Zoroaster – purity, Krishna – detachment, Mohammed was a Comforter, Jesus emphasized love, but we’ve never had justice in the world. The Universal House of Justice prescribed by Baha’u’llah and delineated by ‘Abdu’l-Baha will establish justice.
In this prophecy Isaiah mentions all sorts of animals living together in harmony. But if a lion were to literally lay down with a lamb, the lamb would probably wake up in the lion’s stomach. Some Christian sects, such as the Jehovah’s witnesses, actually think the animals will change. They try to interpret these prophecies though they don’t understand a thing in the Bible. These animals are symbols of nations, like the lion is the symbol of Great Britain and the eagle is the symbol of America. The nations of the world, which have been at war since the time of Nimrod, are going to lie down together in peace and harmony. This will be due to the establishment of the Universal House of Justice which ‘Abdu’l-Baha delineates in His Will and Testament.
Isaiah says “a little child shall lead them.” This little child is the United States. The United States brought a whole new concept of government. The original founders of the United States came from oppressive religious conditions in Europe where they were forced to believe whatever the clergy taught, often at the point of death. They escaped this and set up a government with separation of church and state, the different areas of the country joined only by political union. This was in order that the diverse sects and denominations could live in harmony together without a religious conflagration. This concept caused a unity in the United States which allowed the country to reach great heights of development.
Now every country in the world has some form of separation of church and state, following after the United-States. The United States is “the little child that leads” because although it is one of the last of the great nations to have formed, it leads the world in religious freedom.
“And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the suckling child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand – on thee cockatrice’s den. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11: 7-9)In other words, all of the conflict in the world today is going to be done away with. This will follow the great catastrophe that is upon us. The people of the world will turn to the Revelation of Baha’u’llah and ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s Universal House of Justice with the Guardian, or Davidic King, at its head.
With all the world at peace, we can turn our gaze to greater things than what we’ re occupied with now. We can focus on the arts and sciences, the betterment of the mind and the development of spirituality, the education of the children. This earth will become a paradise, a rose garden. Everyone will be able to fully engage in the craft, art or science in which he or she is interested. The people won’t have to work long hours at small pay because computers and machines will produce most of the goods . People will have time to spend on becoming spiritual. Today it’s dog eat dog, and we’re supporting a trillion dollar military budget each year, with the funds for this budget coming out of the pockets of the poor. The poor of the world don’t have enough to eat and they don’t have enough to clothe themselves with because they’re paying for this tremendous military arsenal of nuclear armaments. So the Revelation of Baha’u’llah brings a whole new world, which has been promised by God in His book.
“And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.” (Isaiah 11:10).
The gentiles will seek the ensign of the nations, Baha’u’llah, because Baha’u’llah’s Son ‘Abdu’l-Baha adopted a gentile, Mason Remey, as His son. This son was appointed by the first Guardian Shoghi Effendi to be the next Guardian and the successor to the Davidic Kingship. Thus the Davidic Kingship switches from the tribe of Judah to the gentiles. This fulfills the prophecy of Genesis 49:10, which says that the scepter will not depart from the physical descendancy of Judah until the coming of Shiloh, and to Shiloh will be the gathering of the people. That is, when the scepter passes from the tribe of Judah to the gentiles, all the people will be gathered.
“And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathyro, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.” (Isaiah 11:11).
That is, the Lord will take His hand a second time to gather together all of Israel. The first gathering of Israel took place by the hand of Baha’u’llah. The twelve tribes of Israel divided after the death of Solomon, and they never were united back together again. Two hundred years after Solomon in 721 B.C., the northern ten tribes were taken captive into Assyria and Media, and they became known as the ten lost tribes of Israel. The other two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, were taken captive to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar in 606 B.C. and 586 B.C. They remained in Babylon for 70 years. Some of them returned to Jerusalem after 70 years; Jesus Christ was descended from these Jews. But the great mass of Jews remained in Babylon with the Exilarch, the exiled Davidic King, who was the direct male ancestor of Baha’u’llah.
Nebuchadnezzar’s son Evil-Merodach had set up the exiled throne of David in Babylon. Baha’u’llah’s father sat on the throne of David, and so did his father, and his father before his, back to the Kings of Israel through the Exilarchs and all the way back to David himself.
After Baha’u’llah made His proclamation in 1863, He was taken as a prisoner to Israel. As He was taken with about 70 family members and close adherents to Israel through the lands to which the ten tribes of Israel had been scattered in ancient times, thousands of people became believers. Many of these believers were descended from the ten lost tribes who had been lost in identity by being converted to Zoroastrianism and Islam over the ages. Baha’u’llah and His family were of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin; as a descendant of David, Baha’u’llah Himself was of the tribe of Judah. A remnant of these lost ten tribes accepted Baha’u’llah and went with Him to Israel. They joined Him and His other followers, thus reuniting the twelve tribes. This was the first gathering of Israel.
Baha’u’llah extends this gathering through His Covenant anyone who accepts Baha’u’llah’s Covenant is grafted into the twelve tribes of Israel under it’s new name Baha’i. The Baha’i Faith has spread to every nation, language and people of the world. But with the passing of the Guardian Shoghi Effendi, the Hands of the Cause, who were administrative aids to Shoghi Effendi, broke the Covenant and tried to do away with God’s kingdom. These Hands set up a republic of God, incorporated, to replace the Kingdom of God revealed by Baha’u’llah. The Hands hoodwinked the people into following the republic they created. Thus the Hands violation resulted in the scattering of the people. That is why Isaiah says they will be gathered a second time. This is going on now, and this is the purpose of this paper: to bring those Baha’is who were scattered, and also the whole world into the Baha’i Faith, which is the Kingdom of God on earth.
First, we will have 144,000 people. This is the number given in the Book of Revelations for the number of the elect who are sealed with the sign of God upon their foreheads – meaning they will comprehend this message with their intellect. The minute there are 144,000 believers, there will be a thermonuclear war. The Book of Revelations says the four winds of destruction will be held back until we have the 144,000 from the twelve tribes of Israel – this number representing twelve thousand people for each tribe (Revelations 7: 3-8). The Baha’i Faith is Israel under its new name, as Baha’u’llah gathered the twelve tribes; thus everyone who accepts the Baha’i Faith becomes part of the twelve tribes. Before the bombs drop, the whole world will hear via the news media this message of the Kingdom. When this message of the Kingdom reaches the air waves, those pure enough in heart to accept it will arise, and will come into the Kingdom very rapidly.
The mission of Baha’u’llah is to bring the Kingdom of God on earth that Jesus Christ told us to pray for. This kingdom will be upon the Davidic throne, Baha’u’llah being a direct descendant of King David through the Exilarchs, His father having sat on the throne of David in Mazanderan, Iran. Baha’u’llah fulfills the same prophecies. He came in the name that was prophesied by Jesus, Ezekiel and Isaiah – in fact, Baha’u’llah’s name appears throughout the Bible as “the Glory of God,” “the Glory of the Lord,” or “the Glory of the Father.” Ezekiel and Jesus didn’t speak English, but rather Aramaic, so they literally said “Baha’u’llah.” The name Baha’u’llah” has been prophesied, and this was fulfilled in Baha’u’llah’s coming
Baha’u’llah fulfilled the prophecy of the address. He was exiled from the East to Israel, to Sharon and Mt. Carmel, and Carmel was to blossom as a flower, which was all fulfilled.
Three dates were given pertaining to the coming of Baha’u’llah. The eighth chapter of Daniel gives the 2300 year prophecy which brings us to 1844, as it was 2300 years from the order to restore and rebuild Jerusalem to the coming of the Bab. They asked Jesus when the close of the age was and when He would return, and Jesus said refer to Daniel, we turn to the eighth chapter of Daniel and he gives us 1844. The Bab came in 1844, closing the door to the prophetic age and opening the door to the age of fulfillment. The 12th chapter of Daniel gives the date of 1260 on the Muslim calendar, which is 1844 on the Christian calendar – when the Bab made His proclamation.Then Daniel gives us another date – the 1290 years, which is the amount of time between the proclamation of Muhammad ten years before the Hegira to the proclamation of Baha’u’llah 1290 years later on the Muslim calendar, on April 21, 1863.
And now for the second gathering of Israel, Daniel gives us a third date, which is the 1335 days (Daniel 12: 12). ‘Abdu’l-Baha says this should be figured from the victory of Muhammad, which was in 628 A. D. 1335 years from 628 A. D. brings us to 1963 A. D. Abdu’l-Baha also said this prophecy would be fulfilled exactly 100 years from Baha’u’llah’s proclamation. Exactly 100 years from Baha’u’llah’s a proclamation, on April 21, 1963, there was a man who fulfilled this prophecy, which is also the prophecy for the man of the 3rd chapter of Zechariah. This man, is the 7th Angel of the Book of Revelations, and he is alive today. The 7th Angel is sounding his trumpet, as prophesied in Revelations, meaning he is broadcasting this message of the kingdom to the world to gather the 144,000. Before looking at the role of and the proofs for the 7th Angel, we will need to look at the Covenant of Baha’u’llah. This absolutely essential, all-important subject of the Covenant will be treated in a forthcoming writing.
So in conclusion, there might have been other people named Baha’u’llah, and they might have come from the East to Israel, but Baha’u’llah did it in chains. If Baha’u’llah did this as a free person, people might say this was the work of an impostor to fulfill prophecy. But Baha’u’llah had no control over this – He was brought in chains from the East to Israel, first under the Persian Government then under the Turkish Government. Baha’u’llah came in the prophesied name, the address, the date, and Baha’u’llah did one more thing – He fulfilled the mission of the Reigning Messiah seated upon David’s throne. There’s the calling card. This calling card is the method God gives us in order that we may know for sure if a person is from God or is an impostor.There are a whole lot of people saying they are the Christ. There are a whole lot of people claiming to be the Promised One. The Christians are waiting for Him to come out of the sky – the pathetic Christians, that is. We, on the other hand, use our intellect and we look at these prophecies. We see that He’s going to come from the East to Israel – He’s not going to come out of the sky. Baha’u’llah fulfills the prophecies for the Prince of Peace. Eventually all the people on the planet will become followers of Baha’u’llah. And the 144,000 people who accept Baha’u’llah’s Revelation before the catastrophes will be essential in establishing the Kingdom of God on earth.
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