EZEKIEL BIBLE STUDIES COURSE
The End of the Age and Its Restoration
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Matthew the Fulfillment of Ezekiel’s
Prophecy
(Matthew 1-28)
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Matthew recorded the words of Jesus when He
said, ". . . I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not
prevail against it."
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What did Jesus mean by the "church"
(the only gospel writer to use the term)?
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What did He mean by "the
gates of hell?"
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Why does Matthew put a strong emphasis upon the end
of the age?
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Is it coincidental that Matthew’s theme is the "kingdom
of God" (mentioned 51 times — twice as many as any other gospel)?
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Is it accidental that Matthew’s gospel declares Jesus to be the
"King of the Jews."
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Is it significant to point out that the
phrase (or its equivalent) "that it might be fulfilled which was
spoken by the prophet" occurs 16 times in his record)?
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What is the
story behind the gospel as recorded by Matthew?"
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Matthew
ends with a similar statement as Ezekiel,
"Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of age." — YHAH
Shammah
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An Outline of Matthew Indicating the
Fulfillment of the Prophecies of Ezekiel
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Matthew offers the most systematic
teaching of Jesus in the New Testament. Its emphasis is on the fulfillment
of the Old Testament prophecy. In it the promises of God contained in the
prophets are recalled and their fulfillment in Jesus Christ is announced.
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The
structure of the gospel contains five major sections
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Each
of the sections, in turn, consists of three items:
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Stories of the
life of Jesus
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Samples of the
preaching and teaching of Jesus
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A concluding
phrase, "When Jesus had ended" (7:28; 11:1;
13:53; 19:1, and 26:1).
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Matthew
is full of clues that it was written to convince Jewish readers
that Jesus was the "Messiah."
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Makes no attempt to
translate or explain Jewish words and practices.
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Quotes more frequently
from the Old Testament than does any other gospel.
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Jesus is portrayed as a descended of
the three great figures of the Old Testament but as surpassing
them.
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Abraham |
Jesus
genealogy is traced back to Abraham, the father of the
faithful.
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Moses |
Jesus
appears as the royal teacher whose authority exceeds
that of Moses.
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David |
Jesus
fulfills the hopes of David: like David born in
Bethlehem (Mentioned 5 times in Chapter 2), recognized
as the "son of David" (5 times, 9:27; 12:23;
15:22; 21:9; and 21:15), but He is David’s Lord
(22:41-46).
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Five
Major Sections of Matthew
(Did the author intend to
give the Jewish readers
a new Torah, the five books of the law?")
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(Introduction:
The Story of the Birth of Jesus -- Chapters 1-2)
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Section
One — Chapters 1:1-7:28
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| Chapters
3-4 |
Temptation and
beginning
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| Chapters 5-7 |
Sermon on the Mount (Jesus contrasted the
laws given by Moses with the Kingdom of God, which is
presented in Himself — two recurring phrases,
"You have heard that it was said of old . . . but I
say to you."
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Section
Two — Chapters 8:1-11:1
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| Chapters
8-9 |
Series of
Miracles
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| Chapter
10 |
Teaching to
His disciples concerning missions and suffering
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Section
Three — Chapters 11:2-13:53
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| Chapters
11-12 |
Stories
that emphasizes the differences between the ways of the
kingdom and the ways of the world
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| Chapter
13 |
Parables
on the nature of the kingdom
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Section
Four — Chapters 13:54-19:1
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| Chapters
14-17 |
Miracles,
debates, and conflicts
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| Chapter
18 |
Words
of counsel by Jesus to His disciples about the Christian
life
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Section
Five — Chapters 19:2-26:1
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| Chapters
19-22 |
Clashes
between Jesus and religious leaders
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| Chapter
23 |
Denounces
the scribes and the Pharisees
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| Chapter
24 |
Teaches
about the end of the age
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| Chapter
25 |
Three
parables on Judgment
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(Conclusion:
Betrayal, Arrest, Crucifixion, and Resurrection -- Chapters
26-28)
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Order
Ezekiel Series Now
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EZEKIEL BIBLE STUDIES COURSE
The End of the Age and Its Restoration
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Ezekiel's
Wheel Within the Wheel
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Understanding Life in the Three World Views
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Eastern
Mind Set
Goal of Life: Impersonal Nothing
Becoming One With the
Invisible Everything
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Western
Mind Set
Goal of Life: Enhancement of self
Personal Satisfaction to
the Ultimate Degree
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Judeo-Christian
Mind Set
Goal of Life: Glory of God
Encountering the Glory of God
in the Connections of Life
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The
Ramification of Ezekiel's Wheel Within the Wheel
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Introduction to Ezekiel
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The morning of doom was dawning,
the rod had blossomed, and pride had budded from the abominations of the
Children of Israel in the holy temple. Violation of the inner sanctuary
would bring destruction to the city and to the land. When Israel was
in the depth of their distress during the midnight of their captivity,
however, Ezekiel received a glorious vision of the coming morning when
their city would be restored. The vision of the new city was given which
such awe-inspiring detail and such imposing grander that it could not but
bring hope and assurance of the return of the glory of God to their city.
The prophecies of Ezekiel is more than just the struggles of the Children
of Israel to be set free from their captivity and to be returned to their
Promised Land. It is the legend of every man, of every tribe of
people, and of every nation. It is the story of mankind coming back
to their homeland, to their city, and to their sanctuary.
Ultimately, it is to experience the temple not made with hands, Jesus
Christ.
In Chapters 1-3, Ezekiel described his visions of God with its
consequential charge of prophetic utterances to the people of God. In
Chapters 4-24, he announced the judgments of God upon the nation of
Israel, the city of Jerusalem, and the sanctuary of the temple. In
Chapters 25-32, he foresaw the destruction of the neighboring nations of
Israel for their rejoicing and ridicule over Israel’s fall. In Chapters
33-39, Ezekiel turned to the actually destruction of the temple, the fall
of the city, and the completion of Israel’s captivity. Finally, in
Chapters 40-48, the promise of a greater sanctuary, of a greater city, and
of a greater nation to come is given by Ezekiel.
Behind what is occurring on the surface of physical events, there is an
underlying development of the mystery of life. The physical events are not
just happening, freaks of nature. They are following the divine plan of
the created world: the sunset, the midnight, the sunrise, and the new day.
As Jesus said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of
wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it
bringeth forth much fruit" (John 12:24). Life always follows the
sequence of events in the mystery of life.
Experiencing the good life is simple: live in harmony with the ways of
life. The human dilemma decrees
that there will always be sunlight, sunset, midnight, and sunrise. The
seed will always fall to the ground and die.
Midnights will come.
The good life depends not on the
midnights but rather how you are responding to the ways of life as you go
through the midnights. You can either live through them in peace and
rest or by tossing and turning. Life can either be heavenly or
hellish.
The prophecies of Ezekiel reveal the
secrets of the mystery of experiencing the good life.
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Table
of Contents
(Click on each
sessions for an introduction of the session)
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