Progress Report for www.kingdominbible

December 2010

Dear Subscribers,

I pray that you are joyful, fruitful, and growing in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior. I am writing in the sixty-eighth Christmas season since I first preached. Many years of studying and explaining God’s Word—that delightful masterwork with countless jewels! Always discovering something fresh. Always clarifying neglected or misunderstood Scriptures. Sometimes getting a helpful comment! Here I report on some of my KIB activities, finished or started, in 2010.

My best critic is the one who urged me to make many of my writings available—my youngest son, Brad. Brad set up this website and keeps it going, also my computers. And he makes the HTML project possible. Thank you, Brad, for so much you do out of love for your father and the Lord’s Word!

A. I added the following new or revised files.

1. “What is Zion in Isaiah 40-66?” (11 pp.) An inductive study answering eleven questions, which start with these three:

·  By what other names is this troubled Zion labeled?

·  How is Zion related to the Lord?

·  What has been Zion’s general past history?

One of the final conclusions is that Zion must be identified to some extent with ethnic Israel. Therefore, many promises in Isaiah Part II can ultimately be fulfilled only to that nation on earth, not to the present church nor in heaven.

2. “Some Scriptural Summaries of the Gospel” (2 pp.) An appendix to my Survey of Romans. It shows that gospel summaries, even in Romans, especially reflect the first three Gospels.

3. “Jesus is the Christ” (9 pp.) A sermon showing that Jesus as Messiah means He is the One God has anointed to rule. That—and not His divinity, pre-existence, virgin birth, or the purpose of His death—is the most basic and common gospel summary in the New Testament.

4. “Will the Church Go Through the Great Tribulation?” (28 pp.) I had to change my answer, for reasons such as these:

·  There will be only one parousia (Second Coming of Messiah).

·  Several passages put earth as goal of the Rapture; no passage unequivocally puts heaven.

·  The Book of Revelation has no clear indication of the Rapture before the Lord comes and sets up His kingdom in chapters 19-20.

5. “The Gospel of John: Messiah’s Signs & Men’s Responses” (54 pp., minor changes) Surveys John as a dramatic presentation emphasizing the foundations of the new creation.

6. “Does the Bible Teach that All Men Are Immortal” (31 pp.) God “alone is immortal” (1 Tim. 6:16). However, “orthodox” teaching now considers man immortal, too–and eternal punishment as long-lasting as eternal life. None of the early Fathers so taught before A.D. 155. Study must start in Genesis, where our death and eternal life are both essentially physical.

B. I expect to add the following files soon.

1. “Will God Eternally Bless Ethnic Israel? A Critique of ‘Replacement Theology’” (21 pp.) Refutes five arguments used to favor RT, offers nine arguments against it. Two appendixes: “Israel and the New Covenant” and “The Kingdom Described in Ezekiel 40-48.”

2. “The Coming of Jesus’ Eternal Kingdom According to the Book of Revelation” (65 pp.) All of Revelation was written for the churches. Starting in chapter 4, it describes the future events that will lead to the Lord’s kingdom. Starting in chapter 19, it describes the Lord’s Second Coming and two stages of His kingdom. Key points include the structure of the book (such as, bowls nested in the last trumpet; trumpets nested in the last seal), the inauguration of the kingdom (including the resurrection/Rapture) in chapter 20, and the fact that the new heaven and new earth begins with the millennium.

C. I have started these projects for 2011.

1. Renewing the HTML project, which has been dormant. Using HTML we can “merge” Scripture files with corresponding studies in order to provide instant access to those Scriptures. We have prepared many Scripture files, and Melissa Sartain is learning to work with HTML.

2. Revising my course which surveys the kingdom throughout the Bible. Though the main pattern will not change, I have resolved many of my questions.

Yours for His glory,

John Hepp, Jr.