ON THE DAY of Pentecost Peter preached the resurrection of Christ and continued to do so afterwards. The result was that many Jews believed and joined with the Apostles in prayer and fellowship. Then one day as Peter and John were going to the Temple they passed an impotent man who asked for alms. Peter said:
“Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength” (Acts 3:6-7).
Some have supposed that the gate called beautiful is the same as the Golden Gate in the east wall of the Temple Mount but there is no historical record to support this. The Temple was demolished by the Romans and the walls around the Temple Mount were rebuilt hundreds of years later. Acts 3:11 indicates that the Gate Beautiful was near Solomon’s Porch.
The Eastern Gate, called the Golden Gate, however is important in Scripture and is the only gate in the eastern wall around the Temple Mount. This Eastern Gate is mentioned in scripture by Ezekiel for when he saw the vision of the glory of God as it departed from the Temple in his day it was clearly in the outer wall facing the Mount of Olives. Ezekiel described the glory of God departing from “the threshold of the house” and then from the “east gate of the Lord’s House” and finally “it stood upon the mountain which is on the east of the city” which is the Mount of Olives (Ezek.9:3; 10:18;11:23).
When Ezekiel described the future Temple to be built when Christ returns he saw the glory of God returning “from the way of the east … by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east … and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house” (Ezek.43:2-4).
So the eastern gate to the Temple was where the glory of departed and where it will return when Christ comes back to reign. Then the throne of God and the presence of God will be established in the millennial Temple and God will “dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever” (Ezek.43:7,9).
The eastern gate of the Temple Mount today is bricked up. There is no open gate in the eastern wall that surrounds the Temple Mount. In the 6th or 7th century the wall was built and was bricked up but the Crusaders opened it until 1541 when the Ottoman Turk Sultan Suleiman sealed the entrance with 16 feet of concrete in order to prevent Messiah from returning through that Gate. Also he placed a cemetry along the eastern wall because he believed Messiah would not walk through a cemetry.
Perhaps he knew the scripture: “Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.” (Ps.24:8-9).
The Bible indicates that after Christ returns and the Millennial Temple has been built to the specifications in Ezekiel chapters 40 to 46, then the glory of God will fill the Temple just as it did at the dedication of Solomon’s Temple (2Chron.7:1-3).
Isaiah graphically described Jerusalem when the glory of God will appear there in the last days.
“The Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the LORD. As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the LORD; My spirit that is upon thee …” (Isa.59:20-21),
“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side” (Isa.60:1:-4).
When Christ returns and builds His Temple the light of the glory of God will be so bright at Jerusalem that they will not have need for electricity; the whole city will be lit up by the visible presence of God. It will be so spectacular that the kings of the earth will go up to Jerusalem to see the glory of God for we read:
“The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.
Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever…” (Isa.60:19-21).
All false religions have their gods but none can manifest their presence like the Living God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob: the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
To Jacob as he fled from Esau he saw heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending; Moses at the burning bush heard the voice of Jehovah and he spent 40 days and 40 nights in His present on fiery Mount Sinai. For 40 years the Israelites daily saw the pillar of cloud and fire that led them through the wilderness to Canaan.
Then down through the centuries God spoke to men who were prophets of God; to Joshua, Samuel, David, Elijah, Elisha and many more. And most of all He sent His Beloved Son for years to reveal Himself to an unbelieving world.
Now as we approach the end of the age we are witnessing the fulfilment of the prophecies. All other gods are fakes; demonic counterfeits. Paul wrote:
“But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God” (1Cor.10:20).
The glory of God is seen in the resurrection of Christ from the grave. No greater proof could be given than for the Son of God to say,
“Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father. (John 10:17-18).
Neither Allah or Buddha or the Virgin Mary or any other saint or false god could raise themselves from the grave on an appointed day. The glory of the Almighty can alone be seen in the person of Jesus Christ because He is the Living God! And in the 1,000 years of Christ’s future reign on earth His glory will shine visibly over Jerusalem continually for all the nations to behold!
Peter James and John were on the Mount of Transfiguration (Mt Hermon), when they were given the vision of the Lord returning in his kingdom. They saw Him “transfigured before them: His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment was white as light” (Matt.17:2).
The glory of God is a wonder to all who believe on Christ but to those who have not believed it will strike terror in their hearts. At the end of this life the Christian will behold the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2Cor.4:6); we shall see Him and be like Him “for we shall see Him as He is” (1John 3:2) but at the end of the millennial kingdom of Christ on earth the unsaved from all ages will be raised to behold with terror the glory of God on a great white throne “and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them” (Rev.20:11).
Our eternal destiny is determined by a simple choice –
Live for Christ, you live again;
Live for self, you live in vain.
Oh my dear friend, now is the acceptable time. Seek the Lord in simple faith before it is forever too late. You will see Christ in His glory and be like Him or you will hear His fearful words, “Depart from me, ye that work iniquity,”
BY
John Ecob
