HIGH PRIEST SELECTED; JEWISH TEMPLE SERVICE COULD BE REINSTATED IN ONE WEEK
by David Cloud
(Friday Church News Notes, September 16, 2016, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)
Preparations for the Third Temple continue. The Jewish Sanhedrin has recommended Rabbi Baruch Kahane as the next Kohen Gadol (high priest) in case political conditions change and Jews have access to the Temple Mount for sacrifices. Kahane “is confident that if that should happen, Temple service could begin in less than one week” (“High Priest Is Chosen,” Breaking Israel News, Aug. 29, 2016). The Temple Institute, founded in 1986, has fashioned the necessary items for the temple, including priestly garments, the high priest’s golden crown costing $30,000, the high priest’s breastplate with its 12 precious stones inscribed with the names of the tribes of Israel, a copper laver, an incense altar, silver trumpets, gold- and silver-plated shofars, harps, and many other things. Of special interest is the menorah that was fashioned from 95 pounds of pure gold. In December 2007 the menorah was moved to an outside location on the Western Wall Plaza across from the Temple Mount, where it sits today awaiting the building of the Third Temple. The Temple Institute has also created a registry of priests and established a priest training school. In Jewish tradition, the rebuilding of the temple is associated with the coming of the Messiah. According to Maimonides (also called Rambam), the highest rabbinical authority, any Jew that starts rebuilding the temple is a potential Messiah. Shimon ben Kosiba was considered a Messiah in the second century when he led a revolt to recapture Jerusalem and build the temple. Ben Kosiba was named Bar Kokhba (“Son of the Star”) based on the Messianic prophecy of Numbers 24:17, and a coin was struck depicting the temple with the Ark of the Covenant inside and the Messianic star on the roof. By this tradition, it is possible to see how the Antichrist will be looked upon as the Messiah. On a visit to the Temple Institute a few years ago, a representative said: “We are waiting for a Messiah. In Jewish tradition, we believe that in every generation there is someone who can be the Messiah. The question is who will he be. The answer is only someone who does specific things can be called the Messiah. The one who brings Israel back to Israel. The one who builds the temple again. The one who makes Israel go according to the commandments. After that he can be called the Messiah.” This is a description of the Messiah as a Super Problem Solver, which is exactly how the Antichrist will present himself at first. It is important to understand that the Jews are not looking for a Saviour Messiah to take away their sins. When we asked a Reformed Jewish American rabbi in Jerusalem, “How do you purge your sins?” and he replied, “We ask God for forgiveness through prayer and through actions.” He said that to interpret Leviticus 17:11 as meaning that man needs a literal blood sacrifice to be acceptable to God is false. The Jews stumbled at the Lamb of God 2,000 years ago. They were looking for a Messiah to save them from Rome, not a Messiah to die for their sins. They wanted a king, not a Saviour, and nothing has changed in that regard.