Is the good news Jesus taught only about going to heaven?
Isaiah 60: 1 Arise, shine; for you light is
come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon you. 2 For, behold, the
darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the
LORD shall arise upon you, and his glory shall be seen upon you. 3 And
the Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of
your rising. 4 Lift up your eyes round about, and see: all they gather
themselves together, they come to you: your sons shall come from far,
and your daughters shall be nursed at your side. 5 Then you will see,
and flow together, and your heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because
the abundance of the sea (meaning the nations)
shall be converted to you, the wealth of the Nations shall come to you.
Isaiah 54:1 Sing, O barren, you that did not bear; break forth into
singing, and cry aloud, you that did not travail with child: for more
are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife,
says the LORD. 2 Enlarge the place of your tent, and let them stretch
forth the curtains of your habitations: spare not, lengthen your cords,
and strengthen your stakes; 3 For you shall break forth on the right
hand and on the left; and your decedents shall inherit the Nations, and
make the desolate cities to be inhabited.
Isaiah 42:Behold my servant, (the messiah) whom I
uphold; my elect, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit on him:
he shall bring forth justice to the Nations. 2 He shall not cry, nor
lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. 3 A bruised reed
shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall
bring forth justice to truth. 4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged,
till he have set justice in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his
law.
Psalm 22:27 All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the
LORD: and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. 28
For the kingdom is the LORD'S: and he is the governor among the nations.
Those were prophecies about this current age we live in where billions
have\are coming to Christ and their influence has created a growing free
world. That is what inheriting the nations means.
Isaiah 65:17 For, behold, I create new heavens
and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into
mind.18 But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for,
behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. 19 And I
will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of
weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying. 20 There
shall be no more thence an infant that dies in days, nor an old man that
hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old;
but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed. 21 And they
shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards,
and eat the fruit of them. 22 They shall not build, and another inhabit;
they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the
days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their
hands.8 23 They shall not labor in vain, nor bring forth children for
trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their
offspring with them.
That is a prophecy of the nature of the free world believers
would create. Nations with great prosperity, due to the rule of law and
property rights that republics based in objective truth are to secure.
Long life, low infant mortality rates and the end of legal slavery. Not
a supernatural utopia though because sinners are still there.
Isaiah 29;18 And in that day shall the deaf
hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of
obscurity, and out of darkness. 19 The meek also shall increase their
joy in the LORD, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of
Israel. 20 For the terrible one (kings, emperors, dictators war
lords, world conquerors) is brought to nothing.....
That is a prophecy about the Bible empowering mankind through
the influence of real Christians to begin to end the many thousands of
year's rule of oppressors, winning their freedom. The Bible illegally
starting making its way into the hands of the general public 570 years
ago.
Psalm 72:3 The mountains shall bring peace to
the people, and the little hills, by righteousness. 4 He shall judge the
poor of the people, he shall save the children of the needy, and shall
break in pieces the oppressor...... 14 He shall redeem their soul
from deceit and violence: and precious shall their blood be in his
sight.
This is a prophecy of the reign of the messiah's influence on
earth. The mountains and hills are illustrations of nations that have
adopted varying degrees of Biblical principle to govern their nations
by- through the influence of the Gospel and righteousness. Notice again,
not a utopia because the blood of the poor and innocent is still being
spilled. But as we have been witnessing for centuries now. The nations
most influenced by the Gospel and the Bible are crushing the worlds
oppressors.
Isaiah 11:6 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 fatted calf together; and a little child shall lead
them. 7 And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie
down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 And the
sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child
shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den. 9 They shall not hurt nor
destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the
knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.
This is a prophecy of the nations, illustrated as animals laying
down with one another and doing mutually beneficial business instead of
warring with each other to steal fruits of the neighbors labors. The
little child illustrates the people of of God, their influence leading
them in this. If you are dumbfounded at why conservative Christians
think President Trump is sent by God. This is why. He somehow, someway
has this vision and that is something God can use.
Isaiah 2:2 And it shall come to pass in the
last days, that the mountain of the LORD's house shall be established in
the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all
nations shall flow to it. 3 And many people shall go and say, Come you,
and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of
Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths:
for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from
Jerusalem. 4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many
people: 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 anymore.
This is a prophecy of the Lord's house, which illustrates his
people, being the greatest influence on earth among other influences,
even above all the nations. Where have people been going now for 2000
years to be taught of the Lord's ways and to walk in his paths? To a
true believer, or a church or the Bible. All arisen out of
Jerusalem\Zion which was God's Normandy beach head for his
invasion of planet earth. The prophecy of beating their swords and
spears into farming instruments is the New Testaments parable of the
sower. This ever expanding ever lasting invisible government on earth is
spread through the farmer sowing God's Word into peoples hearts rather
than through the sword.
Daniel 7:22 Until the Ancient of days came, and
judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came
that the saints possessed the kingdom....27 And the kingdom and
dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall
be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is
an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.
1st Corinthians 6: 2 Don't not know that the saints shall judge the
world?
These are prophecies about the world accepting the judgment of
the saints about right and wrong, truth and lies, how we should live our
lives and what kind of governments we should have. It did not mean those
judgments will consistently be lived up to or that they will not be
warred against. It just means those judgments will be the dominate
influence in the world. If you compare the ancient world in which these
prophecies were written to todays world. You can clearly see this is the
case. This is also a prophecy of when all this good news prophecy will
begin to happen in the earth. Daniel 2 & 7 and Revelation are prophecies
about an age of oppression of true believers everywhere measured by four
empires. Babylonion, Medo\Perisan, Greek and Roman empires. From 597 BC
when Babylon conquered Judea until 1453 AD when what had been the
capitol of the Roman Empire since 333 AD, Constantinople fell. That was
right when the European printing press was invented which enabled the
Bible to illegally make its way into the hands of the general public.
Isaiah 54:11 O you afflicted, tossed with
tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay your stones with fair
colors, and lay your foundations with sapphires. 12 And I will make your
windows of agates, and your gates of carbuncles, and all your borders of
pleasant stones. 13 And all your children shall be taught of the LORD;
and great shall be the peace of your children. 14 In righteousness shall
you be established: you shall be far from oppression; for you shall not
fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near you. 15 Behold, they
shall surely gather together, but not by me: whoever shall gather
together against you shall fall for your sake. 16 Behold, I have created
the smith that blows the coals in the fire, and that brings forth an
instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy. 17 No
weapon that is formed against you shall prosper; and every tongue that
shall rise against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the
heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me,
said the LORD.
This is a prophecy, like many of the others listed here of the
New Jerusalem which illustrates God's people of all nations, Jew and
Gentile coming out of that age of oppression into this current age and
creating a free world to live in. Notice again; not a supernatural
utopia. There has been and will be opposition and wars trying to stop
billions coming to Christ and a growing free world for them to live in.
But that opposition is failing.
And finally, for those whose focus is on the modern state of Israel:
Isaiah 19:23 In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt
to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian
into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians. 24 In
that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a
blessing in the midst of the land: 25 Whom the LORD of hosts shall
bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my
hands, and Israel mine inheritance.
This is a prophecy of tens of millions of Arabs, Israelis,
Syrians and Egyptians coming to Christ and that influnce transforming
the region.
Is the New Testament void of these prophecies?
The answer to that is a resounding no! It's just these things were 1400 years away from coming to pass to the extent of Bible reading people being able to create a free world. A world where all the earthly promises of God made to a 100 generations of saints, not fulfilled in their generations, could finally come to pass in free nations. It is a matter of fact that things got even worse for the true believer after the messiah came. But that does not mean there was no NT prophecy about it. As we will see.
Luke 2:10 And the angel said to them, Fear not:
for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to
all people. 11 For to you is born this day in the city of David a
Savior, which is Christ the Lord.......13 And suddenly there was with
the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
Luke 1:67 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and
prophesied, saying, 68 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he has
visited and redeemed his people, 69 And has raised up an horn of
salvation for us in the house of his servant David; 70 As he spoke by
the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:
71 That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all
that hate us; 72 To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to
remember his holy covenant; 73 The oath which he swore to our father
Abraham, 74 That he would grant to us, that we being delivered out of
the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear, 75 In holiness and
righteousness before him, all the days of our life.
Notice the same theme as the OT prophecies. Peace, joy,
deliverance from oppressors, the ability to serve God freely. But it was
not going to be so for them was it? The mass murdering started right
right away when Herod killed all the babies in Bethlehem trying to
eliminate the messiah. They were all headed into great tribulations.
This is why the New Testament, written to the people of the first
century focused on the what would be happening to them.
John 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the
world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be
saved.
The Greek word for world in this verse is kosmos. The Greek word
for condemn basically means to pass a judicial sentence and carry that
sentence out. The word saved is in the general sense because the kosmos
cannot be given eternal life. It means healed, preserved, delivered out
of a place danger into a place of safety. So the passage literally says
God sent Jesus to heal the world rather than condemning it to
destruction some day.
Revelation 22: 1 And he showed me a pure river
of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God
and of the Lamb. 2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side
of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of
fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree
were for the healing of the nations.
John 7: 37 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and
cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come to me, and drink. 38 He
that believes on me, as the scripture has said, out of his belly shall
flow rivers of living water. 39 (But this spoke he of the Spirit, which
they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet
given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.
These are prophecies of Holy Spirit and the Word of God healing
the nations. But how could they do that without the peoples having
Bibles to read as their guide? Isaiah 61:8 .....and I
will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant
with them.
Jesus's parables about this kingdom were his
main vehicle for teaching about these prophecies. Follow the links to
read an article on my web page about each one.
The parable of the sower- Teaching how these prophecies would be
fulfilled by sowing the Word.
The parables of the yeast and mustered seed:
Teaching how the world
would someday be full of the knowledge of God.
The parable of the good seed: Teaching about who will inherit the
kingdom of God.
The parable of the pearl of great price or treasure hidden in a field:
Teaching that this treasure is this prophesied kingdom.
The parable of the laborers hired to work in the field: Teaching that
all believers will inherit eternal life but the pioneers bringing the
Gospel suffer the most while those building on their labors and
sufferings that went before end up being the recipients of these
good news prophesies and promises.
Finally,
the parable of John the Baptist: Teaching how the republics in
this era built on a foundation of the principles of the word of God will
be greater in every measure than Ancient Israel.
But what of end time prophecy?
The Bible's end time prophecy, all of it, is about the end of specific nations, empires and ages. Here are some proof texts of that. The entities and eras that are ending are all named in the Bible yet ignored in pop culture prophecy teachings. They have nothing to do with the end of the physical world as we know it. Revelations 19 is the coming of the Lord at the end of the Roman Empire in 1453 AD in judgment and to begin the fulfillment of all these promises and prophesies about the free world. That is why Revelation 20 is the exact opposite of what everyone is portraying it. The thousand years is simply an illustration of God's kingdom. it has nothing to do with a time period. The devil is bound to the degree that people and nations reject his lies and embrace the truth. Hell is a real place but the lake of fire in this prophecy is illustrating destruction, mostly in war. Death and hell that ruled over all the nations along with the Roman empire is cast into it as an illustration of its rule over the nations ending. The resurrections in this prophecy are not speaking about dead bodies rising up out the ground but the dead apart from Christ in all the nations hearing the gospel and being raised to new life. That is the first resurrection. The second death are those who refuse the grace of God and end up in hell. Gog and Magog are prophecies of the nations, people, political movements and ideologies that would arise after the Roman Empire ends to war against the expansion of the influence of Christ. How they would be defeated in political and shooting wars and no longer allowed to oppress the peoples. Just as we have been witnessing the last 500 years with entities like the Holy Roman empire, the Kaisers, the Nazi's, the Communists, the Imperial Japanese. The New Jerusalem is God's people no longer living under oppression and healing the world.
Can you see how great this news was to the world that lived under the perpetual dictatorship of kings, emperors and world conquerors? Whose average life span was in the 40's and who were forced by these governments to worship idols in a grand scheme to separate them from heavens influence? Where 1\3 to 1\2 the worlds population were the property of others and you served the king or you were dead? Where the elites lived in luxury but the masses in abject poverty? It was the best of the best news and here we are living it out in a free world built on their labors and sufferings complaining about the present evil and blaming it on false teachings of our own creation about the end times. Faith in the end times will bring nothing but the end times. But it will just be the end times of your nation as Christ will continue building and expanding his invisible government of influence on earth. Embrace the good news. Put your faith in it. We are saved by faith in the truth. The sword of the Holy Spirit to overcome the evil's we are facing today is the truth of God's Word.
These verses I have shared are just snippets taken in context from whole chapters of prophecy about this great news. I have a book that goes over dozens of these chapters called The Bible's Prophecy About The Free World. One third of the 300 large print pages of this book is scripture, of these prophecies. Please support the truth getting out there by purchasing the book sold on any booksellers website. You can even read the first four chapters by clicking on look inside or read sample.
Remember how the discouraged disciples did not recognize Jesus on the road after he was resurrected and how Jesus shared the prophecies of his death and resurrection with them? This was beyond their grasp intellectually but when Jesus was revealed to them later they said. "Did not our hearts burn within us as he shared the scriptures with us?" Don't ignore that. I know by experience how these prophecies light up the inside of the human spirit even though intellectually people are just not grasping it because their heads are so full of the garbage they have been taught. That was just what was happening to these disciples. Their spirits were lit up by the truth of God's Word but their heads were so full of the garbage the world, the things things they just witnessed about Jesus being murdered, and their religious beliefs in them that they could not even recognize it was Jesus talking to them. What you sense with these prophecies is the the Holy Spirit bearing witness to the truth of them in your spirit. Leave yourself open to further interaction and revelation on the matter and be courageous about it. This is not for the faint of heart where you just get fall back to what you thought you already knew. All your questions can be answered in time and a huge jump-start to it all would be my book rather than the multitude of teachers out there contraindicating these prophecies. God bless.
Galatians 5:1 It is for (political) freedom that Christ has set you free from sin.
(Paraphrase)
© Daniel Martinovich 2025