|
|
|
The Carcase and the Eagles What was Jesus talking about in that prophecy? By Ken Raggio Matthew 24:28 For
wheresoever the carcase is, there will
the eagles be gathered together. And
they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them,
Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.
The New International Version, among others, translates the same word VULTURES. Thayer's definition of the Greek "aetos" includes this note: "Since eagles do not usually go in quest of carrion, this probably refers to a vulture which resembled an eagle." A vulture is a fowl that preys on the carcases of other dead animals. To what was Jesus alluding when he warned the the vultures would gather wherever the carcase is? In the verses immediately before these comments, Jesus warned of FALSE CHRISTS whom He said would come on the scene in the last days. He warned His followers NOT to go after them. Only vultures would go after them because they were already dead. This brings into focus Jesus' earlier remarks from Matthew 23:27, "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness." False religionists are then likened both to whited sepulchres, carcases, and dead men's bones. Regardless of how real they look, there is NO TRUE LIFE IN THEM! Jesus' remarks were scathing judgments on those false prophets, false Christs AND all those who would go after them. The CARCASE is the empty shell of a false prophet, or a false Christ. The VULTURES are the pathetic people who chase after the the false prophets, false Christs and false religionists. One of the definitions of CARCASS is "remains from which the substance or character is gone". This is a similar indictment to Peter’s references to evil men who were "wells without water" (2 Peter 2:17), and Jude’s reference to "clouds… without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever." (Jude 1:12-13) All these are warnings to you and me against following phony spiritual leaders who do not have the real goods of Biblical truth. Can anyone argue that we are completely surrounded nowadays by shallow, empty, and misguided ministers and ministries of every conceivable kind? John said, "If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds," (II John 1:10,11). Dear friends, there is only one way to legitimize a man's ministry. Does it manifest the Truth, the whole Truth, and nothing but the Truth? Anything less is suspect. The Word of God is the only standard by which any minister or ministry may be accurately judged. Granted, we all make mistakes, but at the core of our lives there should be a solid foundation of doctrinal soundness. Any time you or I discover fundamental flaws in a man or church's doctrine, we should earnestly seek the Lord for leadership to a ministry that will not mislead us and threaten our eternal salvation, where we can live for God in a doctrinally legitimate and spiritually stable environment. Let us not be among the vultures who feed on empty carcases. We have no need of watered-down, ecumenical religion. We have a True and Living Christ and a True and Living Gospel to believe. And only that Truth of Jesus Christ can ever make us free. I am continually writing new content for this site. Please return often for more material, and tell your friends about www.kenraggio.com , too! THANKS! And God bless you! Ken Raggio 
Click here for BOOKS and VIDEOS by Ken Raggio ALL ARTICLES WRITTEN BY KEN RAGGIO, Copyright 1988-2008 Articles may not be republished on the Internet without express permission. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Thanks for coming by! |