Moses and the Undertaker

Bible Book: Deuteronomy 34 : 1-12

Subject: Memorial Day; Death

Introduction

Dr. Richard Lee writes, “America’s Founding Fathers gave us the country’s founding documents, such as the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and others. In order for them to form such documents, they had to lean upon some common understanding of law, government, social order and a basic moral code. These understandings sprang from a common acceptance of what has come to be known as the Judeo-Christian Ethic.

The term ‘Judeo-Christian’ refers to the influence of the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament on one’s system of values, laws and ethical code.”[1]

Catherine Millard writes, “The Inner Courtroom of the Supreme Court shows four marble bas-relief panels beneath the ceiling on each of the four walls. Each has a particular story to tell. The pane directly above the bench where [the] Chief Justice . . . and the eight Associate Justices are seated depicts, ‘The Power of Government,’ and ‘The Majesty of the Law.’ Between these two allegorical figures, the Ten Commandments stand out in a position of prominence. . . . ‘Justice the Guardian of Liberty,’ is the title of the East pediment of the building, A stark reminder of the origin and basis for our American legal system is depicted in the central figure of Moses holding the two tables of the Old Testament Law, one in either hand.”[2] A relief plaque of Moses is in the Chamber of the United States House of Representatives. It is one of twenty three marble plaques placed there at the time of remodeling in 1949-1950.[3]

Over time Decoration Day turned into Memorial Day, a day to honor deceased soldiers from the World War I and then all other wars. In 1971 Memorial Day was officially recognized as a national holiday.[4] “Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in service of the United States of America. It was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11. ‘The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village and hamlet churchyard in the land,’ he proclaimed. . . . On the first Decoration Day, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, and 5,000 participants decorated the graves of the 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried there.”[5]

“The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery stands atop a hill overlooking Washington, D.C. On March 4, 1921, Congress approved the burial of an unidentified American soldier from World War I in the plaza of the new Memorial Amphitheater. . . . Inscribed on the back of the Tomb are the words: Here rests in honored glory an American soldier known but to God”.[6]

Dr. Ivor Powell (1910-1998) writes, “God gave to the church an example of His care for the work of His servants. When Moses died, the Lord became an undertaker.”[7] Dr. Herbert Lockyer, Sr. (1886-1984) writes, “Moses is the only man in all history who had God as his undertaker.”[8] Dr. Lockyer writes, “We then read that ‘God buried him’ (34:6), the only one of the human race to have had this honor. Jesus was buried by His friends—Moses had God as his undertaker.”[9]

Exodus 17:1-7 reads, “Then all the congregation of the children of Israel set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, ‘Give us water, that we may drink.’ So Moses said to them, ‘Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the Lord?’ And the people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses, and said, ‘Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?’ So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, ‘What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me!’ And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Go on before the people, and take with you some of the elders of Israel. Also take in your hand your rod with which you struck the river, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.’ And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. So he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, ‘Is the Lord among us or not?’”

Later, we read in Numbers 20:2-13, “Now there was no water for the congregation; so they gathered together against Moses and Aaron. And the people contended with Moses and spoke, saying: ‘If only we had died when our brethren died before the Lord! Why have you brought up the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness, that we and our animals should die here? And why have you made us come up out of Egypt, to bring us to this evil place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates; nor is there any water to drink.’ So Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and they fell on their faces. And the glory of the Lord appeared to them. Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water; thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals.’ So Moses took the rod from before the Lord as He commanded him. And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock; and he said to them, ‘Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?’ Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank. Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, ‘Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.’ This was the water of Meribah, because the children of Israel contended with the Lord, and He was hallowed among them.” (Emphasis mine) Psalm 106:32-33 reads, “They angered Him also at the waters of strife, So that it went ill with Moses on account of them; Because they rebelled against His Spirit, So that he spoke rashly with his lips.” This was an act of pride, presumption, and profanity, not to mention it unfavorably marked his personal testimony for Christ and unfortunately marred the picture and type of Christ. 1 Corinthians 10:1-4 reads, “Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.”

Don Fleming of Belmont, Queensland, Australia, explains, “Moses showed no bitterness at being refused entry into the land, but was concerned only that Israel have a godly leader (Num 27:12-17; cf. Deut 3:23-28). . . .

Moses was a prophet, one who brought God’s message to the people of his time, and this was well demonstrated in his final messages to his people (Deut 18:18; cf. 6:1-9). He wanted the people to remind themselves constantly of the law's requirements by memorizing a song he had written for them (Deut 31:30; 32:44-46) and by conducting periodic readings of the law (Deut 31:10-12).

Shortly before he died, Moses announced his prophetic blessings on the various tribes of Israel (Deut 33:1-29).”[10] Deuteronomy 34:1-12 reads, “Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is across from Jericho. And the Lord showed him all the land of Gilead as far as Dan, all Naphtali and the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea, the South, and the plain of the Valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees, as far as Zoar. Then the Lord said to him, ‘This is the land of which I swore to give Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ I have caused you to see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there.’ So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord. And He buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth Peor; but no one knows his grave to this day. Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died. His eyes were not dim nor his natural vigor diminished. And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days. So the days of weeping and mourning for Moses ended. Now Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him; so the children of Israel heeded him, and did as the Lord had commanded Moses. But since then there has not arisen in Israel a prophet like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face, in all the signs and wonders which the Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt, before Pharaoh, before all his servants, and in all his land, and by all that mighty power and all the great terror which Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.”

From the Baker Commentary on the Bible we read, “Moses climbs Mount Nebo alone, from the plains of Moab by the Dead Sea to the top of Pisgah, a jagged ridge to the west, from where he will be able to view the Promised Land. . . . God buries him (v. 6) in some unknown valley or depression on Mount Nebo, so that greater glory might be ascribed to God. A hundred and twenty years old (v. 7) is not an unreasonable age, even though in Egypt ‘a hundred and ten’ was an accolade of highest honor to someone who had done an outstanding work in his life, no matter what his actual age at death may have been.”[11]

Dr. F. B. Meyer (1847-1929) writes, “After such a life it was meet that Moses should have a death and burial unparalleled in the story of mankind; and we do not wonder that poet, painter, and preacher, have found in that lonely death on Pisgah’s summit a theme worthy of their noblest powers.”[12]

Note three things about Moses, the man of God.

I. Note the Undimmed vision of Moses.

Deuteronomy 34:7 reads, “His eyes were not dim. . .” Normally, physical eyesight begins to dim before 120 years of age, but God allowed Moses to clearly see what he missed from the vantage point of Mount Nebo. Dr. Walter A. Elwell, professor emeritus of biblical and theological studies at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois, shares, “The panoramic view turns counterclockwise, beginning with a look northward toward Gilead (which is already conquered), to Dan (at the headwaters of the Jordan River), across to Naphtali with its mountains on the western side of the Upper Jordan, down through Ephraim and Manasseh (south of the Valley of Jezreel), to Judah, possibly seeing the western sea (the Mediterranean) in the distance beyond Judah, the Negeb in the southern part of Judah, and the whole Arabah, in the immediate foreground below him, to the north and south of the Dead Sea. Moses is permitted to see the land, but not enter it. Later, Moses will stand with Elijah and with Christ on one of these mountain peaks (cf. Matt. 17:3; Mark 9:4; Luke 9:30-31).”[13]

In a spiritual sense, we read in Hebrews 11:23-29, “By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king’s command. By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them. By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned.” (Emphasis mine)

II. Note the Undiminished vigor of Moses.

Deuteronomy 34:7 reads, “. . . nor his natural vigor diminished.” Remember, Psalm 90 is a prayer of Moses. He prays, “Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, Or ever You had formed the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God. You turn man to destruction, And say, ‘Return, O children of men.’ For a thousand years in Your sight Are like yesterday when it is past, And like a watch in the night. You carry them away like a flood; They are like a sleep. In the morning they are like grass which grows up: In the morning it flourishes and grows up; In the evening it is cut down and withers. For we have been consumed by Your anger, And by Your wrath we are terrified. You have set our iniquities before You, Our secret sins in the light of Your countenance. For all our days have passed away in Your wrath; We finish our years like a sigh. The days of our lives are seventy years; And if by reason of strength they are eighty years, Yet their boast is only labor and sorrow; For it is soon cut off, and we fly away. Who knows the power of Your anger? For as the fear of You, so is Your wrath. So teach us to number our days, That we may gain a heart of wisdom. Return, O Lord! How long? And have compassion on Your servants. Oh, satisfy us early with Your mercy, That we may rejoice and be glad all our days! Make us glad according to the days in which You have afflicted us, The years in which we have seen evil. Let Your work appear to Your servants, And Your glory to their children. And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, And establish the work of our hands for us; Yes, establish the work of our hands.”

III. Note the “Undimensioned” vita of Moses.

“Undimensioned” means “not dimensioned; dimensionless” or “lacking dimensions”.[14] Remember the eternal element of the impact of your life. Only God can determine the dimension of our life. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary the term “vita” means “a brief biographical sketch.”[15] Moses’ vita found in Deuteronomy 34:7-12 reads as follows: “Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died. His eyes were not dim nor his natural vigor diminished. And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days. So the days of weeping and mourning for Moses ended. Now Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him; so the children of Israel heeded him, and did as the Lord had commanded Moses. But since then there has not arisen in Israel a prophet like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face, in all the signs and wonders which the Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt, before Pharaoh, before all his servants, and in all his land, and by all that mighty power and all the great terror which Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.”

When you read the resume of a man of God remember the eternal dimension is not always reflected by the writer. Due in part to the fact that we can’t see the full effect of our words and deeds. It is impossible for us to calculate the extent of the life and ministry of Moses.

Moses remembered as a leader. Deuteronomy 18:15-22 reads, “The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brethren. Him you shall hear, according to all you desired of the Lord your God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, nor let me see this great fire anymore, lest I die.’ ‘And the Lord said to me: ‘What they have spoken is good. I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him. And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of him. But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die.’’ And if you say in your heart, ‘How shall we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?’— when a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.” (Emphasis mine) The phrase “a Prophet like me” refers to Jesus Christ. Acts 3:22-26 reads, “For Moses truly said to the fathers, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear in all things, whatever He says to you. And it shall be that every soul who will not hear that Prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.’ Yes, and all the prophets, from Samuel and those who follow, as many as have spoken, have also foretold these days. You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.”

Moses remembered as a lawgiver. After he received the Ten Commandments from God on Mt. Sinai we read in Exodus 32:19, “So it was, as soon as he came near the camp, that he saw the calf and the dancing. So Moses’ anger became hot, and he cast the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain.” Rev. George Rawlinson (1812-1902), Camden Professor of Ancient History at the University of Oxford, explains, “In Egypt, the dancers appear to have been professionals of a degraded class, and the dancing itself to have been always sensual and indecent; while in Syria, Asia Minor, and Babylon, dancing was a wild orgy, at once licentious and productive of a species of phrenzy. We must suspect that it was this sort of dancing in which the Israelites were engaged - whence the terrible anger of Moses. He saw idolatry before his eyes, and idolatry with its worst accompaniments. In the extremity of his anger, he cast the tables out of his hands, dashed them violently against the ground, and brake them. For this act he is never reprehended. It is viewed as the natural outcome of a righteous indignation, provoked by the extreme wickedness of the people. We must bear this in mind when we come to consider the justice or injustice of the punishment which he proceeded to inflict on them for their sin (vers. 26-29).”[16]

We must make certain our “righteous indignation” is truly righteous indignation. Remember, God commanded Moses to strike the rock the first time (Exodus 17:1-7) and the second time He commanded Moses to speak to the rock to provide water for the people (Numbers 20:2-13). Because Moses stuck the rock the second time, he was not allowed to enter the Promised Land with the children of Israel. Matthew 17:3 records the fact that Moses and Elijah were on the Mount of Transfiguration (1 Peter 1:16-21 and Romans 3:21). Then Jesus took Peter, James, and John up “to a high mountain”’. Rev. Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892) explains, “The name of the 'high mountain' can never be known; for those who knew the locality have left no information. Tabor, if you please; Hermon, if you prefer it. No one can decide.”[17] No doubt Moses was able at this time to put his foot down in the land of promise. David writes in Psalm 103:6-14, “The Lord executes righteousness And justice for all who are oppressed. He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the children of Israel. The Lord is merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. He will not always strive with us, Nor will He keep His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; As far as the east is from the west, So far has He moved our transgressions from us. As a father pities his children, So the Lord pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.”

Dr. F. B. Meyer writes, “The Law came by Moses; and Moses stands on the plains of history as the embodiment, as he was also the vehicle, of the moral law, whether given from Sinai or written on the fleshy tablets of the human heart.

It was in perfect keeping with this conception that there was no decay in his natural vigor. His eye was as a falcon’s, his step lithe and elastic, his bearing erect. He did not die of disease, or amid the decrepitude of old age; ‘he was not, because God took him.’ Time had only made him venerable, but not weak. And thus he represents GOD’s holy law, which cannot grow outworn or weak, but always abides in its pristine and perfect strength, though it cannot bring us into GOD’s rest.”[18]

Moses remembered as a liaison. Note the prayers of Moses for the people. Exodus 32:7-14, 30-32 reads, “And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Go, get down! For your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypt have corrupted themselves. They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them. They have made themselves a molded calf, and worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, ‘This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!’’ And the Lord said to Moses, ‘I have seen this people, and indeed it is a stiff-necked people! Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation.’ Then Moses pleaded with the Lord his God, and said: ‘Lord, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians speak, and say, ‘He brought them out to harm them, to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your fierce wrath, and relent from this harm to Your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven; and all this land that I have spoken of I give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’’ So the Lord relented from the harm which He said He would do to His people. . . . Now it came to pass on the next day that Moses said to the people, ‘You have committed a great sin. So now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.’ Then Moses returned to the Lord and said, ‘Oh, these people have committed a great sin, and have made for themselves a god of gold! Yet now, if You will forgive their sin—but if not, I pray, blot me out of Your book which You have written.’”

Paul the Apostle writes in Romans 9:1-5, “I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen.” Jesus did just that for all of us. 1 Timothy 2:5-6 reads, “For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.”

Conclusion

Dr. Arno C. Gaebelein (1861-1945) writes, “The home-going of this great man of God is beyond description. What a scene it must have been when he ascended Nebo to the top of Pisgah! And the Lord met him there and showed him the land and said: ‘This is the land, which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying, I will give it unto thy seed. I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither.’ What vision it must have been! What peace and joy must have filled the heart of the servant of God! Then he died. Jewish tradition has woven many stories around this event. One, however, is so beautiful that we must mention it. ‘At God’s command Moses crossed his hands over his breast and closed his eyes; and God took away his soul with a kiss. Then heaven and earth and the starry world began to weep for Moses.’

And the Lord buried Moses. How and where is unrevealed. Jude informs us that Michael, the archangel, contended with the devil about the body of Moses. No doubt Satan tried to bring the buried body to light and to seduce Israel to worship the body of their departed leader. What honor Jehovah put after all upon His servant! He is the only one who was buried by the Lord, and he appeared on the Mount of Transfiguration with the Lord. And the beautiful testimony concerning him by the Spirit of God at the end of this book! ‘And there arose not a prophet since in Israel whom the Lord knew face to face.’

May it please God to bless this book and its many lessons to our hearts. May He grant unto us to live and walk dependent upon and obedient to His Word.”[19]
Dr. Vance Havner (1901-1986) writes, “So believers today may look for the Uptaker rather than the undertaker.”[20] As the marquee on the church sign recently read, “When the trumpet sounds I’m outta here.” May we keep this in mind when we think about Moses and the Undertaker.

[1]Richard Lee, “Seven Principles of the Judeo-Christian Ethic” Accessed: 05/24/15 http://www.sermoncentral.com/articlec.asp?article=Richard-Lee-7-Principles-Judeo-Christian-Ethic&Page=2&ac=&csplit=9060 .

[2]Catherine Millard, God’s Signature Over the Nation’s Capital: Evidence of Your Christian Heritage (New Wilmington, PA: SonRise Publications, 1988), 34.

[3]Architect of the Capitol, “Moses” Washington, DC Accessed: 05/24/15 http://www.aoc.gov/capitol-hill/relief-portrait-plaques-lawgivers/moses .

[4]“Topics in Chronicling America-Memorial Day/Decoration Day,” The Library of Congress, Accessed: 05/16/15 http://www.loc.gov/rr/news/topics/memorialday.html .

[5]“Memorial Day,” History, Accessed: 05/16/15 http://www.usmemorialday.org/?page_id=2 .

[6]Arlington National Cemetery, The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Accessed: 05/24/15 http://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Explore-the-Cemetery/Tomb-of-the-Unknown-Soldier .

[7]Ivor Powell, Honey from the Rock: Spiritual Refreshment from the Rock of Ages (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Academic, 1996), 84.

[8]Herbert Lockyer, Sr., Dying, Death, and Destiny: A Book of Hope (New Kensington, PA: Whitaker House, 2012), Chapter 4.

[9]Herbert Lockyer, All the Miracles of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1988), 80.

[10]Don Fleming, AMG Concise Bible Dictionary, (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publications, 2004), 303.

[12]F. B. Meyer, Moses: Servant of the Lord (New York, NY: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1894), 185.

[13]Baker, Elwell, 129.

[14]Wiktionary, Accessed: 05/15/15 http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/undimensioned .

[15]Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Accessed: 05/14/15 http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vita .

[16]The Pulpit Commentary, ed. H. D. M. Spence & Joseph S. Exell, Exodus, Vol. 2 (London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co., Ltd., 1895), 334.

[17]Charles H. Spurgeon, The Gospel of the Kingdom: A Popular Exposition of the Gospel According to Matthew (London: Passmore and Alabaster, 1893), 139.

[18]Meyer, Moses, 190.

[19]Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible – Vol. 2: Joshua to Chronicles (New York, NY: Publication Office “Our Hope”, 1913), 440-441.

[20]Vance Havner, Havner’s Reflections on Prophecy, comp. Michael Catt, “The Next Great Event,” [Charlotte Observer] (Albany, GA: Sherwood Communications Group, n.d.), 9. Accessed: 05/14/15 http://vancehavner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Havners-Reflections-on-Prophecy.pdf .

Dr. Franklin L. Kirksey, pastor First Baptist Church of Spanish Fort 30775 Jay Drive Spanish Fort, Alabama 36527

Author of Don’t Miss the Revival! Messages for Revival and Spiritual Awakening from Isaiah and

Sound Biblical Preaching: Giving the Bible a Voice [Both available on Amazon.com in hardcover, paperback and eBook]