Beautiful Star of Bethlehem - It Will Shine Again

Stars come in various sizes, shapes, ages andonce does the Bible say that the sign that will
brilliance. It is their brightness that is the mostappear will belong to only Jesus Christ. Whether
noted of all their attributes. Astronomers stillthat sign will be brighter than the Star of
engage a system for measuring the brightness ofBethlehem or not is a matter of conjecture but
a star that was developed by one of their ownwhat follows it will be a blinding and brilliant light. In
named Hipparchus at about 120 BC. The scale hethe center of that living light will be the person of
developed rates the brilliance of stars from 1 to 6.the Lord Jesus Christ. It is appropriate that Christ
One is the brightest and six the faintest. Theis referred to as "the bright and morning star"
brightest stars are said to be of the firstRevelation 22:16.
magnitude. The brightest star in the skies today isAs I sat alone one day pondering the course of
Sirius and it is rated a 1.42. Hipparchus method ofmy life. I was searching for some real answers
rating the luminescence of the stars is used toand one of them I considered was faith in God.
this very day.After carefully examining this in my heart I spoke
The Star of Bethlehem falls outside of Hipparchusup and talked to God. I won't relate every detail
method. It was apparently a one time event. Ithere but as I spoke to God He appeared to me,
was never seen before and there is little reasonby He, I do mean Jesus Christ.
to believe it will ever happen again. The accountI was afraid to tell anyone of this experience for
of the Star of Bethlehem is found only in theover a year or so. I didn't want to be labeled as a
second chapter of the Gospel of Matthew.religious fanatic. What's more is up to that time in
Hundreds or perhaps thousands of people sawmy life I was convinced that no one saw visions
the brilliant star pulsating in the eastern skies. Theanymore. I could not describe adequately how
stir it created was so great that it reached thebrilliant the vision was and up to now the best I've
ears of Herod, a man, who later was to becomebeen able to come up with is that Jesus face
the King of Judea. The Romans did not allowshined with a visible but brilliant uncreated light that
anyone to be called a king throughout their empireleave mere words to weak to describe. It had no
except by special dispensation. Herod successfullyheat or harmful effects but it made the sun look
wrangled the title from the Roman senatedim. Only once have I ever seen anything to equal
through great coercion, which bespeaks of histhe brilliance of that vision. That was to come as
manic megalomania.a second vision a year or so later.
Herod called upon his scribes and priests to verifyAs a new believer I was often disturbed by
for him where the Christ child was to be born.dreams, hundreds of them like so many
When the scribes reported that the star and theTechnicolor previews of coming events. Most of
scriptures coincided for the little town ofthem were about daily events and had to do with
Bethlehem Herod was satisfied with the reportme or people in my immediate surroundings.
and began scheming to kill the Christ child. HerodSome, however, were far more significant. A few
had no plan to give up any power to another king,of them are clearly about events in the near
Messiah or not.future but of those that had to do with
It is said that other than the cross upon whichsomething current, not one was ever wrong. Out
Christ was crucified, the Star of Bethlehem is theof them all one stands out as the most significant.
most widely known Christian symbol in the world.It was this single vision that propelled me into a
There is yet to come one new symbol or signlifelong study of biblical eschatology. (Second
that will far exceed the attention given to thecoming of Christ)
Star of Bethlehem. It may very well be the crossWhen I finally stopped being afraid of the visions
again used symbolically but it will have theit was because I began to realize that they were
distinction of being the most noticed epiphany orgiven for the telling not the hiding. I have seen
sign in history. Plainly said, no one in this world willmen and women scoff at my visions and I've
miss it. What will this great sign be?seen them give their lives to Christ on the spot
The sign will be seen universally on bothafter listening to me. Regardless of the outcome I
hemispheres. This raises the question of how ahave always taken strength from something my
bright sign can be seen in broad daylight. Godformer pastor and friend Dr. Richard Land once
wants no one to miss this one so he makes suretold me. He said, "A man with an experience is
there is no broad daylight when this sign appears.never at the mercy of a man with an argument."
He also won't allow anyone to think it is a closeAll of the details of my greatest vision are
encounter from other planets, the arrival of somecontained in an article I wrote entitled "Do People
other deity or so called avatar like Buddha orSee Visions Anymore." I haven't enough space
Mohammed. The sign belongs to only Jesus Christhere to relate all the details of that particular
and no one will miss this fact.vision but I must tell at least one part of it.
Immediately after the tribulation of those daysWe will ever grow the pictures of the Star of
shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall notBethlehem in our imaginations. Those who love
give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven,God and await the return of Christ to the earth
and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:will also stretch their imaginations to their limits
And then shall appear the sign of the Son of mantrying to envision what the arrival of "The Great
in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earthand Morning Star" will actually look like. I may have
mourn, and they shall see the Son of man comingbeen blessed with a preview of that great event
in the clouds of heaven with power and greatand one aspect of it will be unforgettable to me
glory. Matthew 24: 29-30until my last breath.
Stage one is the blocking of the daylight. StageAs I watched events transpire on earth and in
two is the sign perhaps the cross. Why thethe heavens. The most awe inspiring sight of all
cross? Whether atheist, agnostic, Muslim, Buddhist,was when a brilliant living light came swirling
angel or devil no one in this world does not knowdownward to the earth to finally land in the place
that the cross represents Jesus Christ. Stagewhere the oriental and occidental races of the
three is the actual appearance of Jesus himself.earth meet, Jerusalem. The purity, brilliance and
He will not be coming to suffer and die or tolife contained in that light were beyond all the
reason with nations or call people to believe, he iswords I have in my vocabulary to this day.
coming to remove all power from the hands ofPerhaps that is why I will say no more at this
men (at last) and sit as ruler of the earth.juncture and leave the rest to your imagination
More than a half dozen times the Bible says thatand to a verse or two of the old and lovely
the moon will be dark red like the color of bloodgospel tune written by Alger M. Pace and R. Fisher
and something will obscure the sun as the LordBoyce called Beautiful Star of Bethlehem.
returns to make things right on the earth. Only