My Understanding of The True God - Cathrine Thomas (robert munsch read aloud TXT) 📗

branch of a tree”; colloquially it means “Troublemaker”. Is this not relevant to Jeremiah 23:5: “Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous shoot”, to Zechariah 3:8: “behold, I will bring forth My servant the Shoot”,

to Zechariah 6:12: “Behold, a man whose name is the Shoot, and who shall shoot up out of his place, and build the temple of the LORD”,

to Isaiah 11:1: “And there shall come forth a shoot out of the stock of Jesse, and a twig shall grow forth out of his roots”, and

 

to Isaiah 53:2: “he shot up right forth as a sapling South Africa by Nelson Mandela., and as a root out of a dry ground”?

There are other names given to Nelson Mandela: Tata (Father): Genesis 17:4: Abraham “the father of nations”. Is not Mandela some one like Abraham? Madiba: the Xhosa name meaning “having respect”: did Mandela not show respect? Was he not shown respect?

Another interesting name is “the rainbow nation”, which has been given to South Africa by Nelson Mandela.

There are so many things that point to Nelson Mandela as the Messiah, or the Servant of God: the Branch will be his name; he will take his people out of bondage, from slavery; the Messiah says that he has done this all in vain: if we look at what Nelson Mandela did and compare it with what is now happening in South Africa, we must also wonder whether it was not all in vain; our own kind are now destroying what he suffered for.

For example, Nelson Mandela opened a trust account to enable children to learn, but now, not only have adults stolen from the trust account, but also schools that were built and books that were given are now being destroyed by striking children and uneducated adults who do not care about Nelson Mandela’s Honour. Children are destroying schools by burning them down. Why has our country gone backwards? Nelson Mandela took us out of slavery, and yet what has happened since?

Isaiah 49 explains that the Messiah/God’s Servant, the Branch, will bring righteousness, will bring his people out of slavery, and not claim to be God. But you will not know that he is the Messiah.

Will South Africa ever be able to go back to apartheid? No, we shall never be able to do this. Let us also take note of how this has affected the rest of the world: most countries have followed South Africa’s example, except the United States of America: Donald Trump considers all countries, other than the United States, to be inferior: he is going to build a wall around America. I wish that there were an earthquake to separate America from Mexico and the wall would fall on the Mexico side. America will never ever be a country like South Africa: we have a beautiful country, and the world will not argue that point.
We are, however, going through difficult times in South Africa: for instance, the issue of the land claims in our country or the racial divisions in our land. But, if we could survive before, why can’t we do it again?

It distresses me that Nelson Mandela was put in prison for twenty-seven years: I did not even know who Mandala was until he was released from prison! But, now, after all he has accomplished, why are we not able to stand together, rebuild our country, and show that Nelson Mandela’s legacy will live forever?

Daniel 9:22-27 tell us that Gabriel told Daniel that it would take “troublous times” “to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sin”:
22. And he made me to understand, and taked with me, and said: ’O Daniel, I am now come forth to make thee skilful of understanding.
23. At the beginning of thy supplications a word went forth, and I am come to declare it; for thou art greatly beloved; therefore look into the word, and understand the vision.
24. Seventy weeks are decreed upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sin, and to forgive iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal vision and prophet, and to anoint the most holy place.
25. Know therefore and discern, that from the going forth of the word to restore and to build Jerusalem unto one anointed, a prince, shall be seven weeks; and for threescore and two weeks, it shall be built again, with broad place and moat, but in troublous times.

Let us think for a while about “the seven weeks” and the “threescore and two weeks”. Nelson Mandela met F.W. de Klerk for the first time on 15 December 1989, and on the 2 February 1990 (seven weeks after) the African National Congress was unbanned. On 4 December 1988 Nelson Mandela was taken from Robben Island to a cottage in Cape Town and on 11 February 1990 (sixty-two weeks later) he was released from prison.

Daniel was told that there would be “troublous times”: Nelson Mandela had “troublous times’: some of his own people said that he had sold them to the whites.

26. And after the threescore and two weeks shall an anointed one be cut off, and be no more; and the people of a prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; but his end shall be with a flood; and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.
27. And he shall make a firm covenant with many for one week; and for half of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the offering to cease; and upon the wing of detestable things shall be that which causeth appalment; and that until the extermination wholly determined be poured out upon that which causeth appalment.'

Isaiah 63:10 may be relevant also:

But they rebelled, and grieved His holy spirit; therefore He was turned to be their enemy, Himself fought against them.
Is this not what happened to Nelson Mandela? Many people criticised his early leadership.

We must accept that true change from evil to good takes time and does not happen immediately, but the following scriptural passages tell us that the Day of Judgement will come, as well as “the covenant of peace … an everlasting covenant”:

Daniel 12:2. And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt.

Ezekiel 37:

12. Therefore prophesy, and say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, O My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel.
13. And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, and caused you to come up out of your graves, O My people.
14. And I will put My spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I will place you in your own land; and ye shall know that I the LORD have spoken, and performed it, saith the LORD.'
15. And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying:
16. 'And thou, son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it: For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions; then take another stick, and write upon it: For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and of all the house of Israel his companions;
17. and join them for thee one to another into one stick, that they may become one in thy hand.
18. And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying: Wilt thou not tell us what thou meanest by these?
19. say into them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his companions; and I will put them unto him together with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in My hand.
20. And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thy hand before their eyes.
21. And say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, whither they are gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land;
22. and I will make them one nation in the land, upon the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be king to them all; and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all;
23. neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions; but I will save them out of all their dwelling-places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them; so shall they be My people, and I will be their God.
24. And My servant David shall be king over them, and they all shall have one shepherd; they shall also walk in Mine ordinances, and observe My statutes, and do them.
25. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob My servant, wherein your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, they, and their children, and their children's children, for ever; and David My servant shall be their prince for ever.
26. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them--it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; and I will establish them, and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in the midst of them for ever.
27. My dwelling-place also shall be over them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. And the nations shall know that I am the LORD that sanctify Israel, when My sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for ever.'
The Lord tells Ezekiel: ”My servant David shall be king” for ever. It is not even the Messiah who will rule. And it will be the Jews God that will we will seek, and draw the nations together, as Zechariah 8:23 tells us: “Thus saith the LORD of hosts: In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold, out of all the languages of the nations, shall even take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying: We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”
Bear in mind, it tells us that the Lord will join the stick Joseph and stick of Judah and make them one in his hand verse 19. Verse 22. Neither shall the kingdoms be divided any more at all.
19: say into them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his companions; and I will put them unto him together with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in My hand.
22. and I will make them one nation in the land, upon the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be king to them all; and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all;

Nelson Mandela instituted the Truth and Reconciliation Commission with the purpose of fostering reconciliation and national unity. He changed what Afrikaans people called the Day of the Vow (16 December) to the Day of Reconciliation. It was his purpose to reconcile all people into national unity. In his book, LONG WALK TO FREEDOM, he makes it clear that his plan was to bring unity. Like Moses, he took his people out of slavery. Moses brought the Law of God to his people, and we have broken the Law of God ever since. Has Nelson Mandela not brought us out of disunity and Apartheid and brought us into unity and democracy?