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The Amazing Story of Hanukkah And Miracle Of The Endless Oil

We begin the story of Hanukkah during the reign of the Greek king, Alexander the Great. Alexander conquered Syria, Egypt and the Land of Israel and annexed them into his kingdom. He was a benevolent king who allowed the people in all of his lands to continue to observe their own religious beliefs and customs.

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They began in the Temple, clearing it of all pagan idols and building a new altar. The golden Menorah has been stolen by the Syrians and Greeks so the Maccabees made a new one from what they could find.

“Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?” Exodus 15:11 (KJV)

In the beginning. We begin the story of Hanukkah during the reign of the Greek king, Alexander the Great. Alexander conquered Syria, Egypt and the Land of Israel and annexed them into his kingdom. He was a benevolent king who allowed the people in all of his lands to continue to observe their own religious beliefs and customs. Nevertheless, during this time of quiet, many Jews chose to assimilate into Greek culture. This group was termed Hellenistic Jews.

Alexander’s empire divided

When Alexander the Great died, his Empire was divided amongst his generals. The Land of Israel has given to Seleucus. For over 100 years the Jews were afforded much of the same privileges and rights as other citizens of the Empire. However, Antiochus III, the great-greatgrandson of Seleucus, was forced to fight a costly war against the Romans. As a result the Jewish people fell out of favor with Antiochus III and thus the beginning of the end of equality for the Jews in the Syrian-Greek Empire.

In 174 BCE Antiochus III’s son, Antiochus IV, began his reign over the Empire. He was a harsh and cruel king; a tyrant of reckless nature and contemptuous of religions and customs that were not his own.

Antiochus IV – the cruel king

Antiochus IV wanted to unite his kingdom under his religion, worship of the Greek idol Zeus. Within the Empire he stifled all Jewish Law. He removed the righteous High Priest Yochanan from the Temple in Jerusalem. Yochanan was replaced with his brother Joshua – a Hellenistic Jew who called himself by the Greek name Jason. Jason used his position as High Priest to infect the priesthood and the Jewish people with the traditions and religion of the Greeks. Jason was soon replaced by another named Menelaus who defiled the Temple with the worship of Greek idols.

ISRAEL’S National Anthem – HATIKVAH

Yochanan was outraged by his brother’s behavior and that of Menelaus. When Antiochus IV was away fighting a war against Egypt Yochanan began to rally the Jews to disobey the new customs and religion being forced on them. The Jewish people were afraid of Antiochus’ reprisals and mostly did nothing. However, when the Romans spread a rumor that Antiochus IV had been killed, the Jewish people rebelled against Menelaus causing him to flee.

Much to the horror of the Jews, Antiochus returned from battle alive and enraged by Roman meddling and Jewish rebellion. He ordered his army to strike out against the Jews killing thousands. Antiochus IV then ordered a series of extremely harsh decrees against the Jewish people and religion.

All Jewish worship was forbidden. All Scrolls of the Law were confiscated and burned. Observation of Shabbat, the Brit Milah, and abiding by Kashrut were all prohibited under penalty of death. As the soldiers went town to town ravaging the Land of Israel they forced Jewish inhabitants to worship their pagan idols and eat the flesh of pigs. Many complied, but some refused and died for their beliefs.

One day Antiochus’ soldiers arrived in a town called Modiin just outside Jerusalem. An old, great priest named Mattiyahu was an inhabitant of this town. The soidiers built an altar to their pagan idols in the center of town and ordered Mattiyahu to worship at it. Mattiyahu refused. A Hellenistic Jew approached the altar to offer a sacrifice. Mattiyahu took out his sword and killed him, and his sons and neighbors sprang on the Greek soldiers killing or chasing them away.

Mattiyahu knew when Antiochus IV heard of this rebellion there would be a heavy price to pay. He fled together with his sons and neighbors to the hills of Judah. Here they lived in the caves and encouraged all loyal and courageous Jews to join them. They formed legions and would carefully leave the caves to attach outposts of Greek and Syrian soldiers and destroy pagan altars.

When old Mattiyahu was on his deathbed, he called his sons together. He encouraged them to defend God’s Torah. He asked that the tactical leader be Shimon the Wise and in battle the leader be Judah the Strong. Judah was known as Maccabee – a contraction for “Mi Kamocha Ba’eilim HaShem” translated as “Who is like you, O God.” This was sung to God by Moses and the Israelites after God parted the Red Sea giving them safe passage and destroying the Egyptians (Exodus 15:11).

Rise of the Maccabees, and the fall of Antiochus

Judah’s followers became known as “The Maccabees” and caused great havoc to the Empire. Eventually Antiochus sent one of his best generals to wipe out this little band of Jewish fighters. Even though the Empire’s army was much better equipped and greater in number, the Maccabees were triumphant in battle again and again.

Antiochus IV realized that he needed to put an end to this rebellion once and for all. He sent an army of 40,000 men in to the Judean hills. When Judah and the Maccabees heard the army coming they cried, “Let us fight to the death in defense of our souls and our Temple!” The Maccabees fought with God in their hearts and the honor of Judaism in their souls. They fought for their Torah and for their Temple. After a series of bloody battles, it was done. They had defeated the powerful army of Antiochus.

With their victory, the Maccabees climbed a mountain outside Jerusalem and looked upon the city. On the 25th of Kislev they descended the mountain to liberate Jerusalem and reclaim their Temple. As they marched into the Holy City they were distressed by what they saw – idols, impurity, and filth everywhere. They entered the Holy Temple and were shocked to see the same. Jerusalem and the the Temple needed to be made Holy again for God.

The miracle of the endless oil

They began in the Temple, clearing it of all pagan idols and building a new altar. The golden Menorah has been stolen by the Syrians and Greeks so the Maccabees made a new one from what they could find. They wanted in light the Menorah to rededicate the Temple to the One True God. They rummaged though the ruins seeking a flask of sanctified oil, but all had been defiled. Finally, they found a small jug in which the Kohen seal was still intact.

They carefully poured the oil into their makeshift Menorah even though they realized that there was only enough oil for one day. They also realized that it would take eight days to sanctify more oil for the Temple. Nevertheless, the Maccabees had faith and dedicated the Holy Temple and lit the Menorah.

Then a great miracle occurred. The oil burned through the first night an on to the second, then on to the third. The oil continued to burn for eight nights until more oil was ready for the Temple. This miracle proved that God was with the Maccabees all along. They fought for what they believed and held fast in face of death with God at their side. Their faith in God and the Torah never wavered and God showed them His Divine presence.


 

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THE BIBLE BELIEVERS SUNDAY SERVICE: For God So Loved The World

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John 3:16 in your King James Bible gives you Paul’s gospel in a single verse and can save your soul in the time it takes to read it, and believe it!

One of the most amazing things about John 3:16, the verse that I got saved on 35 years ago, is that it makes the connection between John’s gospel and Paul’s gospel. John 3:16 shows us how to get saved in perfect harmony with 1 Corinthians 15:1-4. Paul tells you what the gospel is, and John shows you how to apply it. Earlier in John 3, Jesus gives us the qualification for salvation in the Kingdom of God – Ye MUST be born again! In Acts 28, Luke tells us that our apostle Paul preached the gospel of the Kingdom of God.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 (KJB)

For whatever reason, and it honestly escapes me, many Bible believers fail or refuse to make this very important scriptural connection between Paul’s gospel and John’s gospel. Today we will make that connection so wonderfully clear and so gloriously plain that you’d have to work to miss it.

SUNDAY SERVICE STUDY NOTES: For God So Loved The World

For God So Loved The World

I. The Source Of Salvation: The Love Of God

John 3:16 (KJB)
“For God so loved the world…”

Key Points:

  • Salvation begins with God, not man.
  • The motive behind redemption is love, not human merit.
  • God’s love extends to the world, meaning all mankind.

“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 (KJB)

“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John 4:10 (KJB)

II. The Gift Of Salvation: God Gave His Son

John 3:16 (KJB)
“…that he gave his only begotten Son…”

Key Points:

  • Salvation is a gift, not something earned.
  • The price of redemption was the Son of God.
  • Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son, unique and divine.

“Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.” 2 Corinthians 9:15 (KJB)

“In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;” Ephesians 1:7 (KJB)

III. The Simplicity Of Salvation: Believe

John 3:16 (KJB)
“…that whosoever believeth in him…”

Key Points:

  • Salvation is offered to whosoever.
  • The condition is belief, not works.
  • Faith must be placed in Him—Jesus Christ.

“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” Acts 16:31 (KJB)

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Ephesians 2:8–9 (KJB)

IV. The Escape From Judgment: Should Not Perish

John 3:16 (KJB)
“…should not perish…”

Key Points:

  • Without Christ, man is already condemned.
  • Hell is the eternal destination for the lost.
  • Jesus Christ is the only escape from perishing.

“He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already…” John 3:18 (KJB)

“And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.” Revelation 20:14 (KJB)

V. The Promise Of Salvation: Everlasting Life

John 3:16 (KJB)
“…but have everlasting life.”

Key Points:

  • Eternal life is present possession for the believer.
  • Salvation is everlasting, not temporary.
  • This life is found only in Jesus Christ.

“And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.” 1 John 5:11 (KJB)

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.” John 6:47 (KJB)

Conclusion: The Greatest Invitation Ever Given

John 3:16 reveals five great truths:

  • God’s Love — The motive of salvation
  • God’s Gift — The Son given for sinners
  • God’s Condition — Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
  • God’s Warning — Perish without Christ
  • God’s Promise — Everlasting life

“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John 4:10 (KJB)

“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9 (KJB)

“Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” Romans 3:24-26 (KJB)

“For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” Titus 3:3-7 (KJB)

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 (KJB)

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20 (KJB)

Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church

When you contribute to this fundraising effort, you are helping us to do what the Lord called us to do. The money you send in goes primarily to the overall daily operations of this site. When people ask for Bibles, we send them out at no charge. When people write in and say how much they would like gospel tracts but cannot afford them, we send them a box at no cost to them for either the tracts or the shipping, no matter where they are in the world. We have a Gospel Billboard program. We are now broadcasting Bible studies, Podcasts and a Sunday Service 5 times a week, thanks to your generous donations. All this is possible because YOU pray for us, YOU support us, and YOU give so we can continue growing.

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But whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Time is short and we need your help right now. The Lord has given us an open door with a tremendous ‘course’ for us to fulfill that will create an excellent experience at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please pray for our efforts, and if the Lord leads you to donate, be as generous as possible. The war is REAL, the battle HOT and the time is SHORTTO THE FIGHT!!!

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)

“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB

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Donald Trump

The Middle East Powder Keg Is Exploding: Trump’s Iran War Spreads as More US Troops Die, Children Are Killed in School Blast, US Baghdad Embassy Is Hit

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Trump Knew Iran Could Close the Strait of Hormuz But Went to War Anyway as 13 US Servicemembers Now Lie Dead and Missiles Strike US Embassy in Baghdad

War always begins with speeches about strength and victory, but it inevitably ends with funerals. Only weeks into Donald Trump’s war with Iran, the first grim receipts are already arriving. Thirteen American servicemembers are dead, a girls’ school in Minab lies in ruins with the bodies of children pulled from the rubble, and now missiles are landing inside the heavily fortified compound of the United States embassy in Baghdad. What was promised as an ‘easy victory’ against Tehran is already morphing into the kind of widening Middle East war that history tells us ends in heart-rending misery and unbelievable destruction.

But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.” Daniel 11:44 (KJB)

When Trump ordered American forces into open conflict with Iran, he knew exactly what the risks were. Military planners had warned for decades that if Tehran ever felt cornered, the retaliation would not stay contained within Iran’s borders. It would spread through the region like fire through dry brush — through Iraq, through the Persian Gulf, and through the narrow choke point of the Strait of Hormuz. Now that warning is becoming a stark reality. In fact, things are so bad that Trump is now sending 5,000 US Marines to be the first boots on the ground to try and wrest control of the situation back out of the hands of the Iranians. Based on recent troop deployments and warship relocations, this war could easily last well into winter and beyond. I want very much to see the United States win this thing and get our troops home quickly, but things are not trending in that direction.

As of mid-March 13th U.S. servicemembers have been killed and others seriously wounded as the conflict intensifies. The number has climbed steadily as Iran-aligned militias across the region launch drones, rockets, and missiles at American positions. But the most haunting images of this war are not coming from a battlefield. They’re coming from the rubble of a school in the Iranian city of Minab.

An explosion tore through the Shajareh Tayyebeh elementary school, collapsing the building and killing roughly 170 children and teachers, most of them young schoolgirls. Early reports say the blast was caused by a U.S. Tomahawk cruise missile strike based on faulty intelligence, and the Pentagon has already announced an investigation. The result was one of the darkest moments of the conflict so far. Rows of small coffins, parents digging through concrete with bare hands, and classrooms turned into graves. Meanwhile the war itself continues to spread.

Iran has threatened to choke off the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow passage through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply flows. If that waterway is closed, the economic shock would ripple across the entire planet almost instantly. And the violence is no longer limited to Iran.

Missiles have now struck inside the U.S. embassy compound in Baghdad, a clear warning that Iran’s network of proxy militias across Iraq has entered the fight. Attacks like this are designed to do one thing: expand the battlefield and drag the United States deeper into the region. This is how Middle East wars spiral out of control in the blink of an eye. They begin with targeted strikes and promises of quick victories. But every retaliation demands another response, every escalation invites another counterstrike, and before long the conflict spreads far beyond the place where it started.

The Strait of Hormuz is now under threat. American forces across the Middle East are on high alert. Iranian proxy groups are mobilizing from Iraq to the Gulf. Missiles are hitting diplomatic compounds. And the war is still only in its opening weeks. History has shown us again and again that once wars in the Middle East begin to widen across borders, they become far harder to contain than the leaders who launched them ever imagined. And right now, the signs of that widening conflict are everywhere. Pray for our president that he would get saved, and then that the Holy Spirit would give him some much-needed wisdom and discernment because, if not, we’re going to find ourselves smack in the middle of World War Trump.

Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church

When you contribute to this fundraising effort, you are helping us to do what the Lord called us to do. The money you send in goes primarily to the overall daily operations of this site. When people ask for Bibles, we send them out at no charge. When people write in and say how much they would like gospel tracts but cannot afford them, we send them a box at no cost to them for either the tracts or the shipping, no matter where they are in the world. We have a Gospel Billboard program. We are now broadcasting Bible studies, Podcasts and a Sunday Service 5 times a week, thanks to your generous donations. All this is possible because YOU pray for us, YOU support us, and YOU give so we can continue growing.

nteb-free-king-james-bible-program-750-550

But whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Time is short and we need your help right now. The Lord has given us an open door with a tremendous ‘course’ for us to fulfill that will create an excellent experience at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please pray for our efforts, and if the Lord leads you to donate, be as generous as possible. The war is REAL, the battle HOT and the time is SHORTTO THE FIGHT!!!

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)

“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB

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Donald Trump

BOOTS ON THE GROUND! President Trump Orders 5,000 Marines To Deploy To The Strait Of Hormuz As His War With Iran Grows Harder To Contain

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Donald Trump has deployed thousands of US Marines to the Strait of Hormuz amid mounting fears that America is set to put troops on the ground as the world’s oil supply is strangled.

The Strait of Hormuz is not just another stretch of water on a map. It is the narrow artery through which nearly a fifth of the world’s oil supply must pass, and when tension builds there the entire global system begins to shake. Now thousands of U.S. Marines and additional naval forces are being moved toward the region as the possibility of confrontation with Iran grows, and the world is once again staring at the Middle East powder keg. World War 3, anyone?

“For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.” Matthew 24:7,8 (KJB)

When America starts moving Marines and warships into position around the Persian Gulf, that is not routine diplomacy. That is the unmistakable language of military preparation. It means the Pentagon — the Department of War — is positioning pieces on the chessboard in case the crisis around the Strait of Hormuz erupts into open conflict. Iran knows exactly where the leverage is. If the regime in Tehran ever seriously attempts to choke off the Strait of Hormuz, it would send oil prices skyrocketing overnight and slam the global economy into chaos. That is why the United States has historically treated that narrow waterway as a line that cannot be crossed. The question now is whether the current escalation is a show of force meant to deter Iran, or the opening chapter of something much larger.

Every warship sent to the Persian Gulf, every Marine deployment, every rising confrontation between Iran, Israel, and the West pushes the world another step closer to the moment when the Middle East explodes into the final series of conflicts the Bible describes. But while the world watches the Strait of Hormuz and wonders if another war is about to begin, the born-again Church is watching for something else entirely.

Trump deploys 5,000 Marines into Hormuz tinderbox as boots on the ground fears grow after 13 US troops die in Iran war carnage

FROM THE UK DAILY MAIL: Secretary of War Pete Hegseth approved a request by US Central Command for the deployment of a Marine expeditionary unit, typically including several warships and 5,000 troops, three officials told the Wall Street Journal. The Japan-based USS Tripoli, an amphibious assault ship, and its attached Marines are now headed for the Middle East, where they join other Marines already in the fight, the officials said.

The war spiraled on Friday as the US death toll climbed to 13 troops, domestic gas prices soared to $3.60 per gallon and Iran’s security chief Ali Larijani defiantly taunted Trump on the streets of Tehran. The bolstered deployment comes as the Trump administration weighs seizing Iran’s Kharg Island, around 16 miles off the mainland in the Persian Gulf, which handles 90 percent of the Islamic regime’s fuel exports.

Trump told Fox News Radio Friday about taking control of the island: ‘It’s not high on the list, but it’s one of so many different things, and I can change my mind in seconds.’

Hegseth earlier lashed out at reporters at a press briefing at the Pentagon, slamming ‘fake headlines’ about the war and claiming ‘we’re dealing with’ the Strait, adding ‘you don’t need to worry about it.’ All six service members aboard a refueling aircraft that crashed in Iraq were confirmed dead as the stalemate in the Strait deepened.

The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker went down in western Iraq after a mid-air collision in friendly airspace at around 2pm ET Thursday, with four crew members initially confirmed dead.

US Central Command confirmed Friday that two further crew members died after rescue efforts failed. The second aircraft involved in the collision landed safely, sustaining minor damage to its tail. The six were not immediately identified as the military informed next of kin, bringing the US death toll in the Iran war to 13 after seven service members were killed in a drone strike on a Kuwaiti base on the second day of fighting. READ MORE

Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church

When you contribute to this fundraising effort, you are helping us to do what the Lord called us to do. The money you send in goes primarily to the overall daily operations of this site. When people ask for Bibles, we send them out at no charge. When people write in and say how much they would like gospel tracts but cannot afford them, we send them a box at no cost to them for either the tracts or the shipping, no matter where they are in the world. We have a Gospel Billboard program. We are now broadcasting Bible studies, Podcasts and a Sunday Service 5 times a week, thanks to your generous donations. All this is possible because YOU pray for us, YOU support us, and YOU give so we can continue growing.

nteb-free-king-james-bible-program-750-550

But whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Time is short and we need your help right now. The Lord has given us an open door with a tremendous ‘course’ for us to fulfill that will create an excellent experience at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please pray for our efforts, and if the Lord leads you to donate, be as generous as possible. The war is REAL, the battle HOT and the time is SHORTTO THE FIGHT!!!

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)

“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB

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