Revelation

Firstborn exhaustive study guide notes Revelation 1:5

2011-09-14T06:52:00.000-05:00

These raw notes enable a student to look through the scripture references from the Old Testament, Apocryphal books, New Testament and see two of the very finest lexicons available (L & N, BDAG). This will enable the student to get a far deeper grasp of the meaning of Rev. 1:5 without the answer being spoon-fed.

Enjoy!

Searching Greek Lemma of πρωτοτόκos (firstborn)
Here are all hits for OT/NT and Apocrypha

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At the bottom of the list I am including the lexical entries for this word also.
I hope this helps!

Gen. 4:4
Gen. 10:15
Gen. 22:21
Gen. 25:13, 25
Gen. 27:19, 32
Gen. 35:23
Gen. 36:15
Gen. 38:6f
Gen. 41:51
Gen. 43:33
Gen. 46:8
Gen. 48:18
Gen. 49:3
Exod. 4:22f
Exod. 6:14
Exod. 11:5
Exod. 12:12, 29
Exod. 13:2, 13, 15
Exod. 22:28
Exod. 34:19f
Lev. 27:26
Num. 1:20
Num. 3:2, 12f, 40ff, 45f, 50
Num. 8:16ff
Num. 18:15, 17
Num. 26:5
Num. 33:4
Deut. 12:6, 17
Deut. 14:23
Deut. 15:19
Deut. 21:15ff
Deut. 33:17
Jos. 6:26
Jos. 17:1
Jda. 8:20
Jdg. 8:20
1 Sam. 8:2
1 Sam. 14:49
2 Sam. 3:2
2 Sam. 13:21
2 Sam. 19:44
1 Ki. 16:34
2 Ki. 3:27
1 Chr. 1:29
1 Chr. 2:3, 13, 25, 27, 42, 50
1 Chr. 3:1, 15
1 Chr. 4:4
1 Chr. 5:1, 3, 12
1 Chr. 6:13
1 Chr. 8:1, 30, 38f
1 Chr. 9:5, 31, 36, 44
1 Chr. 26:2, 4, 6, 10
2 Chr. 21:3
Neh. 10:37
Tob. 5:14 Apocrypha
4 Ma. 15:18 Apocrypha
Ps. 77:51
Ps. 88:28
Ps. 104:36
Ps. 134:8
Ps. 135:10
Wis. 18:13
Ps. Sol. 13:9 Apocrypha
Ps. Sol. 18:4 Apocrypha
Mic. 6:7
Zech. 12:10
Jer. 38:9
Ezek. 44:30
Lk. 2:7
Rom. 8:29
Col. 1:15, 18
Heb. 1:6
Heb. 11:28
Heb. 12:23
Rev. 1:5

From Louw & Nida's Semantical Domain Greek Lexicon
5565 πρωτότοκος ον
(a) firstborn 10.43
(b) existing before 13.79
(c) superior 87.47

10.43 πρωτότοκος, ον: pertaining to being a firstborn child (normally in contexts speaking of people but also used in reference to domestic animals) - 'firstborn.' ἔτεκεν τὸν υἱὸν αὐτῆς τὸν πρωτότοκον 'she gave birth to her firstborn son' Lk 2.7.
In Jewish society the rights and responsibilities of being a firstborn son resulted in considerable prestige and status. The firstborn son, for example, received twice as much in inheritance as any other offspring.
The use of πρωτότοκος 'firstborn' does not imply in Greek that other children were also born to a woman, though in a number of languages one would never use 'firstborn' unless other children followed. Such an individual would be spoken of merely as 'the only child.' It is also frequently necessary to employ an appropriate qualifier for 'firstborn' in order to mark clearly the fact that it is 'a firstborn son' rather than 'a firstborn daughter.'
The figurative meaning of πρωτότοκος in the messianic title πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως 'firstborn of all creation' (Col 1.1 may be interpreted as 'existing before all creation' (see 13.79) or 'existing superior to all creation' (see 87.47).

13.79 πρωτότοκος, ον: pertaining to existing prior to something else - 'existing first, existing before.' πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως 'existing before all creation' or 'existing before anything was created' Col 1.15. It is possible to understand πρωτότοκος in Col 1.15 as 'superior in status' (see 87.47). See also discussion at 10.43.

87.47 πρωτότοκος, ον: pertaining to existing superior to all else of the same or related class - 'superior to, above all.' πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως 'existing superior to all creation' Col 1.15. For another interpretation of πρωτότοκος in Col 1.15, see 13.79; see also discussion at 10.43.

And from BDAG's famous massive Greek Lexicon you have the following entries.

6400 πρωτότοκος
• πρωτότοκος, ον (πρῶτος, τόκος; Sb 6647 [5 BC; s. WMichaelis in 2a: p. 314f]; Kaibel 460, 4; 730, 3; PLips 28, 16; PGM 36, 312; Anth. 8, 34; 9, 213; LXX; TestReub, JosAs; SibOr 3, 627 Philo, Cher. 54 al.; Jos., Ant. 4, 71; Just., Tat., Mel., Iren.) ‘firstborn, heir apparent’.

1. lit. pert. to birth order, firstborn ὁ υἱὸς ὁ πρ. (PLips loc. cit. υἱὸν γνήσιον καὶ πρωτότοκον; Gen 25:25 al. LXX; JosAs 1:11; Σὴθ τρίτος, οὐ π. ἐστίν Did., Gen 147, 7) Mt 1:25 v.l.; Lk 2:7 (JFrey, La signification du terme πρ. d’après une inscription juive: Biblica 2, 1930, 373-90; CIJ II 1510, 6; Boffo, Iscrizioni 156-65; New Docs 163); cp. B 13:5 (Gen 48:18 ). τὰ πρ. the firstborn=all the firstborn (τὰ πρ. Ex 22:28; Num 18:15 al.; Just., D. 84, 1; 111, 3) Hb 11:28 (cp. Ex 11:5). τὰ πρ. τῶν προβάτων the firstborn of the sheep 1 Cl 4:1 (Gen 4:4). The special status enjoyed by a firstborn son as heir apparent in Israel is an implicit component of πρ. in ref. to such a son and plays a dominant role in

2. pert. to having special status associated with a firstborn, firstborn, fig. ext. of 1

a. of Christ, as the firstborn of a new humanity which is to be glorified, as its exalted Lord is glorified πρωτότοκος ἐν πολλοῖς ἀδελφοῖς Ro 8:29. Also simply πρωτότοκος Hb 1:6; cp. Rv 2:8 v.l. This expr., which is admirably suited to describe Jesus as the one coming forth fr. God to found the new community of believers, is also used in some instances where the force of the element -τοκος appears at first glance to be uncertain, but s. comment on status at end of 1 (cp. the originally polytheistic Naassene psalm in Hippol., Ref. 5, 10, 1 and also Ex 4:22; Ps. 88:28) (ὁ) πρ. (ἐκ) τῶν νεκρῶν Col 1:18; Rv 1:5. πρ. πάσης κτίσεως Col 1:15 (cp. Orig., C. Cels. 6, 17, 38; Theoph. Ant. 2, 22 [p. 154, 18]; s. JGewiess, Christus u. d. Heil nach d. Kol.: diss. Breslau ’32; ECerny, Firstborn of Every Creature [Col 1:15]: diss. Baltimore ’38; Romualdus, Studia Cath. 18, ’42, 155-71; WMichaelis, D. Beitrag d. LXX zur Bedeutungsgeschichte von πρ.: ADebrunner Festschr. ’54, 313-20, ZST 23, ’54, 137-57; AArgyle, ET 66, ’54, 61f, cp. 124f, 318f; NKehl, D. Christushymnus im Kol., ’67, 82-98).

b. of ordinary humans

α. of God’s people (JosAs 21:3 Ἰωσὴφ … ἐστὶν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ὁ πρ.) of the assembly of the firstborn (s. Ex 4:22) in heaven ἐκκλησία πρωτοτόκων Hb 12:23. Some interpret this phrase as a ref. to angels. On the various interpretations s. OMichel, comm. ad loc.

β. of a notorious dissident πρωτότοκος τοῦ Σατανᾶ Pol 7:1 (NDahl, D. Erstgeborene Satans u. d. Vater des Teufels: EHaenchen Festschr., ’64, 70-84). Specif. of Marcion acc. to a saying of Polycarp, EpilMosq 3 (cp. Iren. 3, 3, 4 [Harv. II 14, 2]); s. also the corresp. Hebr. expr. in HZucker, Studien z. jüd. Selbstverwaltg. im Altert. ’36, 135.—DELG s.v. τίκτω B. M-M. EDNT. TW. Spicq. Sv.

For an extended study, you could look at Jewish Intertestamental Literature in Greek, first century non religious Jewish writings in Greek, and the Early Church Fathers up to about 350 or 400 AD. Since you know English, many of these resources are accessible online for free~

The City God Lives In (Rev. 21:9-22:21)

2006-08-05T14:04:00.000-05:00

The City God Lives In
Revelation 21:9-22:21

Initial view of the city: God’s glorious presence establishes the completed community of the redeemed. Revelation 21:9-14

9 One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, "Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb." 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. 11 It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. 13 There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. 14 The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

Hears one thing.
Sees the interpretation of what was heard (same pattern throughout Revlation)

Measurements: God’s permanent presence secures the perfected redeemed community.
Revelation 21:15-17

15 The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. 16 The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. 17 He measured its wall and it was 144 cubits thick, by man's measurement, which the angel was using.

:Materials: God’s presence causes the perfected, redeemed community to reflect God’s glory. Revelation 21:18-21

18 The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. 19 The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.

The background of the precious stones. See Exodus 28:17-20; 39:8-14

NIV Exodus 28:17 Then mount four rows of precious stones on it. In the first row there shall be a ruby, a topaz and a beryl; 18 in the second row a turquoise, a sapphire and an emerald; 19 in the third row a jacinth, an agate and an amethyst; 20 in the fourth row a chrysolite, an onyx and a jasper. Mount them in gold filigree settings.

(For an indepth article on this, see Beale NIGTC Revelation)

Differently named stones are semantic equivalents.

See also Lamentations 4:1-2

NIV Lamentations 4:1 How the gold has lost its luster, the fine gold become dull! The sacred gems are scattered at the head of every street. 2 How the precious sons of Zion, once worth their weight in gold, are now considered as pots of clay, the work of a potter's hands!
Squareness of the city and the ephod/high priest allusion.

Internal Features: False believers are excluded. True believers caused to enter into direct praise and worship.

Isaiah 60:3, 5, 11. the nature of this is international (all nations).

NIV Isaiah 60:3 Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. 4 "Lift up your eyes and look about you: All assemble and come to you; your sons come from afar, and your daughters are carried on the arm. 5 Then you will look and be radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy; the wealth on the seas will be brought to you, to you the riches of the nations will come.

NIV Isaiah 60:11 Your gates will always stand open, they will never be shut, day or night, so that men may bring you the wealth of the nations-- their kings led in triumphal procession.

Psalm 72:11

NIV Psalm 72:11 All kings will bow down to him and all nations will serve him.

The Great White Throne & The New Introduced Rev 20:11 to 21:8 (July 22, 2006)

2006-07-30T04:52:00.000-05:00

Death is only a comma to a Christian, not a period.

The devil gives his best first and saves his worst for last. But the Lord saves the best for last! (A. Rogers)

Please remember these are simply my unedited guideline/notes. The audio files are available online usually within a few days of these notes being posted.
ESV Revelation 20:11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. (Rev 1:4 & Rev 2:13 & & Rev 3:21 & Rev 4:2 & Rev 5:7 & 1 Kings 10:18-20 & Dan 7:9-10 & Eze. 1:26-28 & Rev 6:12-17) From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. 13 And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. 14 Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

ESV Psalm 114:1 When Israel went out from Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of strange language, 2 Judah became his sanctuary, Israel his dominion. 3 The sea looked and fled; Jordan turned back. 4 The mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs. 5 What ails you, O sea, that you flee? O Jordan, that you turn back? 6 O mountains, that you skip like rams? O hills, like lambs? 7 Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob, 8 who turns the rock into a pool of water, the flint into a spring of water.

ESV Exodus 32:32 But now, if you will forgive their sin--but if not, please blot me out of your book that you have written."

Regarding persecutors of the righteous…
ESV Psalm 69:28 Let them be blotted out of the book of the living; let them not be enrolled among the righteous.

Regarding the time of the resurrection of the dead..
NIV Daniel 12:1 "At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people-- everyone whose name is found written in the book-- will be delivered. 2 Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.

Rev. 20:11-15
The Final Judgment will happen at the end of this world’s history.
All people will be resurrected and brought to stand before God.
All their works will be judged.
Those found guilty of breaking God’s law will be consigned to eternal punishment.

NIV Daniel 7:9 "As I looked, "thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze. 10 A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before him. Thousands upon thousands attended him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The court was seated, and the books were opened.

NIV Matthew 25:31 "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' 37 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' 41 "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' 44 "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' 45 "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' 46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

Rev 21:1-8
The Faithful enter into intimate communion with God-in the new creation.
The Unfaithful will be excluded from this communion.

ESV 2 Chronicles 7:1 As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. 2 And the priests could not enter the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD's house. 3 When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the LORD on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying, "For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever."

21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." 5 And he who was seated on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." Also he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true." 6 And he said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. 7 The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. 8 But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."

Jesus Freak Story

Christ Himself is our inheritance. To be with Him is the ultimate joy.

Heaven is being with You.

I’ve heard stories of heaven. Pavement made of gold. Ageless beauty forever that never grows old.
But if I got there only to find out Jesus you were not up there….good bye wings, angel things.
Heaven is being with you. There’s nothing I’d rather do.
There is nothing better. Knowing You is heaven. There is nothing better. Loving You forever.
Jesus!

Last week we were challenged by Voice of the Martyrs.

We are asked to help the faithful when they are in need.
ESV Philippians 4:3 Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.

Action Pack Opportunity…

If you were looking for this post earlier, my apologies. Our internet modem was blown out by a storm and I have not been able to get online as much. Hope to have all that fixed in a few days. Thanks for your patience.

The Great Promise (Revelation 20:1-10)

2006-07-09T22:57:00.000-05:00

The beginning of the seventh and final cycle of judgment.

The Millennium: The Great Promise

Background points:

ESV Genesis 2:17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."

NIV Genesis 5:5 Altogether, Adam lived 930 years, and then he died.

Was the bible wrong? Adam didn't die in the 'day' he ate of the tree did he?

The Book of Jubilees-sometimes called the Lesser Genesis, is an ancient Jewish religious work. It reworks material found in the Biblical books of Genesis and Exodus in the light of traditionalist concerns of some 2nd century BC Jews. It was well known to early Christian writers in the East and the West. Later it was so thoroughly suppressed that no complete Greek or Latin version has survived. It is part of the Jewish midrash, canonic for the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, and considered apocryphal by Protestant, Roman Catholic, and most Eastern Orthodox Christians.

The Book of Jubilees claims to present "the history of the division of the days of the Law, of the events of the years, the year-weeks, and the jubilees of the world" as secretly revealed to Moses (in addition to the Torah or "Law") while Moses was on Mount Sinai for forty days and forty nights. The chronology given in Jubilees is based on multiples of 7; the 'jubilees' are periods of forty-nine years, seven 'year-weeks', into which all of time has been divided. According to the author of Jubilees, all customs and all human destiny are determined by God's decree.
The book of Jubliees 23:27-30 says that a thousand year period represents the complete perfection of the eternal time of blessing for God’s people….and essentially concludes that the coming Messiah must achieve what Adam did not achieve because Adam did not live one thousand years.

1 Enoch & Barnabas also concur with a symbolic use of the term 1,000/day connecting Psalm 90 with interpreting the end of the age.

ESV Psalm 90:1 A Prayer of Moses, the man of God. Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations. 2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. 3 You return man to dust and say, "Return, O children of man!" 4 For a thousand years in your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night. 5 You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning:

Adam did die in the 'day' he ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil...if we see things with Psalm 90:4 in mind. Did the Lord mean 1,000 years as a 'day' in Gen. 2:17? Note Adam did not live 1,000 years. No man in Genesis lived 1,000...the oldest living man was Methuselah.

NIV Genesis 5:27 Altogether, Methuselah lived 969 years, and then he died.

Adam could not live for 1,000 years because he ate of the tree. Christ's rule for 1,000 yrs symbolizes in part that Jesus Christ accomplishes what Adam or any other man could never accomplish. The 1,000 year period represents that which the first Adam could never complete. Jesus, the last Adam, does what the first Adam could not.
And so 1,000 years is not just a figure picked out of the air. It's an allusion to Adam's incompleteness...to Adam's death. Adam did die in the 'day' he ate of the fruit. Jesus will not just live, but He rules for this time period. It makes one think of eternal life...which is what Adam was kept from. Christ brings eternal life...the wiping away of death. It's a glorious thing.

Cross link with the Greek text of Rev 20...a passage on relief from suffering (akin to Psalm 90).

NIV Job 10:5 Are your days like those of a mortal or your years like those of a man,

NIV 2 Peter 3:3 First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say, "Where is this 'coming' he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation." 5 But they deliberately forget that long ago by God's word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. 6 By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. 7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. 8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. 11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. 13 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.

Here Peter talks about the symbolism of one thousand years during a discussion about the ‘day of the Lord’. This means that Psalm 90 applies to the topic of the day of the Lord precisely because Peter specifically connects it. Not only that, but Psalm 90:4 says a thousand years are as a day ….or as a watch in the night…(3-4 hours)…a term taken from Vineyard workers who were assigned to stand at a watchtower during the night to overlook the Vineyard. Their job was to prevent thieves from stealing or foxes from eating the fruit. The watchman would split the night into shifts…3 or 4 hour shifts so that no one was required to stay up all night long. A thousand years could be as a watch or a shift in the watchtower during the night to the Lord.

Peter flips it also…he says a day is like a thousand years…and a thousand years are like a day.

So the only places in the NT that discuss one thousand years both deal with the end of the age....and Peter's use specifically ties the concept to Psalm 90. Since John wrote after Peter, it's very possible that John knew his readers had Peter's letter...so he did not feel it was necessary to explain the link to Psalm 90. Peter had already done that...years before. There was also a culture of understanding of this linkage.

NIV Jude 1:14 Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: "See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones 15 to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against him." 16 These men are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage. 17 But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. 18 They said to you, "In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires." 19 These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit. 20 But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. 21 Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

The same document, 1st Enoch, an ancient Jewish apocalyptic letter, interpreted the seven days of creation as paralleling the 7,000 years of earth’s history. He said that after six thousand years there would be a one thousand year rest. Then the end would come and the 8th day (8 thousand year mark) would begin a new world. From reading Peter & Jude we can see that the early church leaders not only were familiar with this letter, but quoted from it in scripture!! That means we should consider carefully what it says, even though it is not scripture. The most critical thing to take away from Enoch is that the notion of viewing 1,000 years as symbolic, rather than literal, was embedded into the early church.

Old Testament things that were spiritually interpreted by the Christians:

1) The Kingdom is in you
2) Sacrifical lamb
3) Crossing the Red Sea: Baptism is freedom for spiritual Egypt
4) Crossing the Jordon River: Baptism is resurrecting to newness of life
5) Tithing: Shifted from the temple in Jerusalem to the local prophet
6) Temple: ‘You are the temple of the Living God’
7) Chosen people: ‘You are a chosen people
8) Priesthood: You are a royal priesthood

The general approach to the OT was to spiritualize it in the church. This is why the gnostics became a danger. Gnostics taught that Jesus himself was a spirit, not a real man…and they spiritualized everything to the extreme. 1 John was written against gnosticism. Over time eventually the approach to opposing gnosticism included an effort by Irenaeus in the late 2nd century that pressed a literal interpretation of Revelation. For a few hundred years then Apostolic Fathers of the church debated the millennium until Augustine in the 4th century convincingly argued John meant it to be interpreted symbolically. The debate did not resurface again until the reformation period.

The oldest copy of the new testament has a few additional books added onto it which were ancient inspiring Christian books that all early Christians read, but most did not consider Barnabas to be scripture-although apparently Oriental Orthodox Church has argued for it's inclusion.

'Barnabas'-not the real author-in the Ten Commandments section the author deals with the concept of the sabbath. He interprets the six days of creation to parallel six thousand years…and teaches that the word day signifies a thousand years. He teaches that the seventh day is a one thousand year time when the Son shall come and abolish the time of the Lawless One…and shall judge the ungodly, change the sun and moon and stars and bring rest.

Two views:

Millennium started with the Church age.
1) God has limited Satan’s deceptive powers.
2) Christians who are deceased are already reigning in heaven.
3) At the end of the Church age Satan will have a deception resurgence.
4) The thousand years are symbolic for the total span of the church age.
5) The rule of Christ is not physical/earthly, it is spiritual through the church.

Millennium
1) There is coming a period of Christ’s total rule on the earth
2) It has not started yet.
3) The thousand year reign may be literally a thousand years.

First view says we have authority over Satan now because his ability to deceive is bound/limited.

Satan would annihilate the church if he could.

The binding of Satan pertains to his deceiving ability.

The binding pertains to those who are sealed in Christ. The full number of those called to be brought into Christ’s Kingdom. Satan is bound from deceiving them. When their full number is brought in, THEN Satan deceives the remaining members of the nations which sets up the final judgment.

The Millennium started for deceased saints during the church age by the resurrection of their souls, placing them in the heavenly condition of having authority with Christ as priests and kings over spiritual death.

Points to compare Rev 12:7-11 and 20:1-6
1) heavenly scene
2) angelic battle against Satan
3) Satan cast
4) Angel’s evil opponent called the great dragon
5) Satan & a little or short time
6) Satan’s fall…triggers Kingdom of Christ and his saints
7) Saints kingship based on the fall of Satan AND their faithfulness even to death…Holding to their testimony/word of God

The resurrection is directly linked to the casting down of Satan. The earthly even of Christ’s resurrection has a heavenly counterpart with Michale casting Satan out of heaven.

We have spiritual power over the devil and his forces because of Christ’s resurrection from the dead. This power is sealed, unbreakable. We are able to stand against the wiles of the devil because Christ rose from the dead.

At the final conclusion of time, Satan will be released to deceive the nations again, so that they will attempt to annihilate the church. 20:7-10

God is sovereign.

Satan’s efforts are futile.
God only needs an angel to bind Satan.
Satan’s final thrust of deceit proves the justice of God’s eternal judgment once and for all.

These messages on Revelation are compiled from my own meditations and reflections on studies from the Greek NT, commentators like Beale, Poythress, Osborne and others listed in my recommended reading list as well as encyclopaedic references available online such as wikipedia.com or archeological sites online including bibleplaces.com and any other site linked to this site on my links section. I appreciate the input of everyone who has helped me grow in my understanding of Revelation.

The Judge & Warrior Messiah (19:11-21)

2006-07-06T09:30:00.000-05:00

The Judge & Warrior Messiah
An expositonal sermon
Revelation 19:11-21
By David Bielby

NIV Revelation 4:1 After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this."

NIV Revelation 11:19 Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm.

NIV Revelation 15:5 After this I looked and in heaven the temple, that is, the tabernacle of the Testimony, was opened.

NIV Revelation 19:11 I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war.

Note the repetition. Note the progression.

Repetition with a shifting focus towards the climax of history.

Cycle 1: 7 Seals we have an allusion to the final battle in Rev 8:1 when we read about the pregnant silence in heaven for about half an hour. NIV Revelation 8:1 When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. 2 And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets. 3 Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar before the throne. 4 The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the angel's hand. 5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.

Cycle 2: 7 Trumpets there is more revelation on the final aspect of this present age.
NIV Revelation 11:15 The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever." 16 And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying: "We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. 18 The nations were angry; and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great-- and for destroying those who destroy the earth." 19 Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm.

Cycle 3: 7 symbolic histories: The same portion of history is repeated, but with more detail.

NAU Revelation 14:14 Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and sitting on the cloud was one like a son of man, having a golden crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand. 15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying out with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, "Put in your sickle and reap, for the hour to reap has come, because the harvest of the earth is ripe." 16 Then He who sat on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth, and the earth was reaped. 17 And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, and he also had a sharp sickle. 18 Then another angel, the one who has power over fire, came out from the altar; and he called with a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, "Put in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, because her grapes are ripe." 19 So the angel swung his sickle to the earth and gathered the clusters from the vine of the earth, and threw them into the great wine press of the wrath of God. 20 And the wine press was trodden outside the city, and blood came out from the wine press, up to the horses' bridles, for a distance of two hundred miles.

Cycle 4: 7 bowls: Once again the seventh part focuses on the final conclusion of this age.
A shifting focus…here it is on Babylon!
NIV Revelation 16:17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, "It is done!" 18 Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since man has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. 19 The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath. 20 Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found. 21 From the sky huge hailstones of about a hundred pounds each fell upon men. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible.

Cycle 5: 7 Msgs The judgment on Babylon is the focus of this segment. Again it concludes with a devastation.

NIV Revelation 18:21 Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said: "With such violence the great city of Babylon will be thrown down, never to be found again. 22 The music of harpists and musicians, flute players and trumpeters, will never be heard in you again. No workman of any trade will ever be found in you again. The sound of a millstone will never be heard in you again. 23 The light of a lamp will never shine in you again. The voice of bridegroom and bride will never be heard in you again. Your merchants were the world's great men. By your magic spell all the nations were led astray. 24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of the saints, and of all who have been killed on the earth."

Cycle 6: White Horse Judgment: Beast & False prophet are sent to the Lake of fire.
The repetition of what is going to happen with a shifting focus continues on through this glorious book called Revelation.

NIV Revelation 19:19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 21 The rest of them were killed with the sword that came out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.

NLT Colossians 3:1 Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God's right hand. 2 Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. 3 For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory. 5 So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don't be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. 6 Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming. 7 You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world. 8 But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. 9 Don't lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. 10 Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. 11 In this new life, it doesn't matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us. 12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.

What are you going to wear? Who are you riding with? Who do you choose?

The rider of the white horse is Jesus.

1:12
Eyes are a flame of fire

Rev 1:14
NIV Revelation 2:18 "To the angel of the church in Thyatira write: These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze.

Many crowns contrasts the Dragon 12:3 (7 crowns) and the beast of the sea 13:1 with 10 crowns.
The Dragon & beast claim to have full and sovereign authority…but they will be proven NOT to possess these qualities.

1:13

Whose blood has stained Christ’s robe? Is it the blood of the cross? Is it the blood of the martyrs whom Christ has stood faithfully with as they were murdered for their faith? It’s probably the blood of his enemies who stand against him at the end of the age.

NIV Isaiah 63:1 Who is this coming from Edom, from Bozrah, with his garments stained crimson? Who is this, robed in splendor, striding forward in the greatness of his strength? "It is I, speaking in righteousness, mighty to save." 2 Why are your garments red, like those of one treading the winepress? 3 "I have trodden the winepress alone; from the nations no one was with me. I trampled them in my anger and trod them down in my wrath; their blood spattered my garments, and I stained all my clothing. 4 For the day of vengeance was in my heart, and the year of my redemption has come. 5 I looked, but there was no one to help, I was appalled that no one gave support; so my own arm worked salvation for me, and my own wrath sustained me. 6 I trampled the nations in my anger; in my wrath I made them drunk and poured their blood on the ground."

1:14 Messianic Army clothed in fine linen and on white horses.

NIV Revelation 17:14 They will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings-- and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers."

NIV Jude 1:14 Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: "See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones 15 to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against him."

Divine retaliation…Vengeance is mine says the Lord….only Christ’s robe seems to be dipped in blood.

Wrath: Judgment: Striking the nations. Rod of iron: These terms of endearment signify final judgment of the world is now the total focus of Revelation.

NIV Psalm 2:1 Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? 2 The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the LORD and against his Anointed One. 3 "Let us break their chains," they say, "and throw off their fetters." 4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. 5 Then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, 6 "I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill." 7 I will proclaim the decree of the LORD: He said to me, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father. 8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery." 10 Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. 11 Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling. 12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

ANY VIEW OF GOD THAT ELIMINATES JUDGMENT AND HIS HATRED OF SIN IN THE INTEREST OF AN EMASCULATED DOCTRINE OF SENTIMENTAL AFFECTION FINDS NO SUPPORT IN THE STRONG AND VIRILE REALISM OF THE APOCALYPSE.

19:17-18
Barclay, Sweet & Roloff call this exceedingly crass or ghastly. One writer says this bloodthirsty picture is far more in line with OT expectations than with the gospel of Jesus. See Ezekiel 39:17-20.

NIV Ezekiel 39:17 "Son of man, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: Call out to every kind of bird and all the wild animals: 'Assemble and come together from all around to the sacrifice I am preparing for you, the great sacrifice on the mountains of Israel. There you will eat flesh and drink blood. 18 You will eat the flesh of mighty men and drink the blood of the princes of the earth as if they were rams and lambs, goats and bulls-- all of them fattened animals from Bashan. 19 At the sacrifice I am preparing for you, you will eat fat till you are glutted and drink blood till you are drunk. 20 At my table you will eat your fill of horses and riders, mighty men and soldiers of every kind,' declares the Sovereign LORD.

Rev 19:17-18 does dovetail well with Ezekiel 39.
It is NOT true, however, that with the coming of the gospel age that the God of the OT decided to prove to people that he really was a gentleman after all and so dispensed with any further recourse to judgment. The good news is that people need not bear the just punishment due their sin, bu t that Another has paid the price on their behalf. Only when people refuse forgiveness must they bear the penalty for their wickedness.

Beast is the personification of secular power in its opposition to the church.

The false prophet represents the role of false religion in persuading people to worship the antiChristian power.

The destruction of those who persecute the church is meant to encourage those being persecuted, that no matter what happens, God will vindicate them.

A) We can trust in Christ because he will vindicate all those who suffer for His sake.
B) We can trust in Christ because He will overcome the enemies of our souls.
C) We can trust in Christ because the devil and his system will be brought down in the end.
D) We can choose to be riders with Christ now…so that at the end of the age we are found among the faithful and true who ride with him!
E) Make your choice to be a rider with Christ.
F) Apply the gospel to your life…as Paul teaches in Colossians 3:12. Eph 4 and other places…put off the ways of death and put on the garments of Christ…the clothing of compassion, kindness, humility.

God Judges Rome (Babylon) {Government & Economy} Revelation 17 to 19:10

2006-06-26T00:14:00.000-05:00

Judgment on the world’s economic system
Revelation 17:1-19:10

Seven Parts of Judgment Against Babylon

What is Babylon? Some have said that this is Jerusalem. Some have said it is America. Some have said it is the Roman Catholic Church.
Most reasonable view is that it refers to the Roman Empire and the city of Rome during John’s day. The global economy in their day was driven massively by Rome’s economic demands for ship loads of luxuries brought in from all over the world on a daily basis. Everything from slaves to exotic animals or extraordinary supplies and materials were brought into Rome via the ship routes on a daily basis.

Rome ruled what was commonly called the world in John’s day.

The principles we extract from this passage apply directly to our situation today with America. And they apply to every major world economic empire that will come into power.

a. Symbolic actors 17:1-6
b. Six msgs of destruction 17:7-18:19
a’. Promise for the saints 18:20
bb. Seventh msg of destruction 18:21-24
a”. Seven-fold joy response 19:1-10
1. 19:1-2
2. vs. 3
3. vs. 4
4. vs. 5
5. vs. 6-8
6. vs. 9
7. vs. 10

The a" is a difference from the four previous cycles of judgment. None of them had this additional segment.

We should embrace God's judging of governments and economies with rejoicing because:

The righteous man notices the house of evil and he hates it.

The hatred of evil is the beginning of wisdom.

Wisdom is supreme…though it costs all you have get understanding. Prov. 4:7

How does Babylon rule?
Babylon is part of Satan’s kingdom.

Two elements in this passage:
1) Beast vs. 2) Prostitute (Babylon)
Fear vs. Lustful Desire
Passive vs. Active
Retreating vs. Advancing
Avoiding Pain vs. Gaining Pleasure

These are all counterfeits to God’s Kingdom and His incredible offer.
The Beast turns and destroys the prostitute. Sometimes God uses evil to destroy evil. Babylon judged Jerusalem 600 years before John wrote, and Babylon was wicked!
God then in turn judged wicked Babylon.

The High and mighty love power & luxury.

Loving comfort and hating all destruction is a false sentimentality. (Poythress)

Wickedness needs to be destroyed.

Therefore heaven rejoices at the fall of wickedness.

How does God judge Babylon? (represents governmental and economic world systems which will climax with one system at the end of the age)

3 separate angelic msgs of doom
17:7-18 Fallen
18:1-3 Fallen
18:4-8 Come out of her

3 laments of those commited to Babylon
18:9-10 Governmental Leaders
18:11-17a Business Leaders
18:17b-19 Transportation Industry

1 Command to Rejoice
18:20
1 Pronouncement that Babylon’s Fall is permanent

Satan attacks with power & persecution

NIV 1 Peter 4:3 For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do-- living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. 4 They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation, and they heap abuse on you.

NIV 1 Peter 2:12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

The world called Christians atheists for refusing to worship any known idols or the emperor of Rome. The world called Christians haters of mankind for refusing to indulge in the luxurious and lust-filled life Roman’s shared in common.
What was true in the first century church is still true today in variations.

God judges Babylon because she murdered His people.

NIV Genesis 12:3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."

Beast/State or governmental power
Prostitute/Economic prosperity and pleasure

These two things often are hijacked by Satan and used to

Compare to Romans 13:1-6

What can we learn today?

We must not compromise with the world system. We must keep ourselves pure from the fear of governmental oppression and from the lust of the world.

Recognize we are at war with the Kingdom of darkness, which will try to hi-jack the world economies and governments to destroy us. Pray for our governments.

1 Timothy 2:1-4

Seven Bowls of Wrath (Revelation 15-16)

2006-06-12T16:14:00.000-05:00

Introduction:

Al Zarqawi’s death…a rejoicing over the end of his radical acts of terror. Is it ok to rejoice over anyone’s death? Why or why not?

We have been studying the book of Revelation since February 12. As we continue to study this glorious finale of the bible, we have seven purposes we aim to accomplish as a fellowship.

Our overall goal: To experience Jesus & help others experience Jesus

Our vision is to grow a life-giving, kingdom-minded Church in Bloomington-Normal that transforms Central Illinois and all nations with the good news of Jesus Christ.

Current Goals: Seven goals have emerged in this series.

To ignite a passion for God’s word through studying the climax of all scripture.

To help people encounter Jesus Himself…who is the focus of the book of Revelation.

To help our congregation read, listen to and keep the message of Revelation, which will bring us a promised blessing.

To develop a theology for enduring persecution so people live with the future in mind today as a motive for disciplined living now.

To cultivate endurance and holiness in each member.

To challenge and enlist each member of the Church to do at least one ministry with all their heart.

To inspire Christ honoring worship.

Some people have trouble with the idea of seeking Jesus. That’s because some people stumble over the idea of evil in the world. How can God exist or be good if He exists and allow so much evil in the world? The idea of a just and loving God doesn’t compute with the reality of evil we see all around us. Our goal
To help people encounter Jesus Himself…who is the focus of the book of Revelation….is aided by today’s message. When we are done today you should have stronger inspiration to help people encounter Jesus. You should be equipped with one of the strong biblical answers to the accusation that God cannot be just and loving because He allows so much heinous evil in the world today.

A) Scene
1. Seven Bowls parallel the seven seals and seven trumpets.
2. Egyptian plagues background
3. Temple scene, priests and bowls
a. Sea of glass/Red Sea background
D-Day illustration (if you didn’t know about our immediate history, this phrase would be cryptic to you)
b. Song of Moses
Columbus Day (if you didn’t know about our early history, this holiday would be meaningless to you)
c. All nations worship
d. Angels in OT priestly clothing

If you don’t know about the Old Testament priestly clothing requirements, this would go right past you.
1. Exodus 28:42
2. Leviticus 16:4

NIV Leviticus 16:4 He is to put on the sacred linen tunic, with linen undergarments next to his body; he is to tie the linen sash around him and put on the linen turban. These are sacred garments; so he must bathe himself with water before he puts them on.

Angels in the Son of Man’s priestly clothing emphasizes holiness
and Temple service.

e. Smoke typifies God’s anger

Jewish writers between Malachi and Matthew had developed a view on the Seven angels standing before God’s throne. Their names were listed and ranks given. Michael was believed to be the first angel…and the first four were set apart, one for each side of the throne. The other three were also in the presence of God. First four seals, then first four trumpets and also first four bowls all are set apart out of the seven in the same pattern.

The statement in

NIV Revelation 8:2 And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets….NOTE the phrase ‘the seven angels’…rather than simply seven angels. This is probably John’s validation of the Jewish view about the seven angels before God.

The throne scene in Revelation is mixed with the Temple of God. The angels are wearing priest garments from the OT.

Remember Moses made a tabernacle. He drew up plans based on what God showed him exactly.

4 Now if He were on earth, He would not be a priest at all, since there are those who offer the gifts according to the Law; 5 who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, just as Moses was warned by God when he was about to erect the tabernacle; for, "SEE," He says, "THAT YOU MAKE all things ACCORDING TO THE PATTERN WHICH WAS SHOWN YOU ON THE MOUNTAIN."

We can learn about the heavenly situation by studying the earthly copy. Details are given in Leviticus and Exodus. When we understand that Leviticus is a copy of heavenly things, it suddenly is no longer a dry book, but full of excitement and inspiring insight into heaven.

Explain what is happening with the seven bowls of wrath….

Mark of the Beast.

Unholy Counterfeit Trinity
Dragon…who is this?
Beast …who is this?
False Prophet….who is this?

NIV 2 Thessalonians 2:9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, 10 and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.

NIV Revelation 13:13 And he performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in full view of men. 14 Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 He was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.

NIV Revelation 16:15 "Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed."

NIV Matthew 24:42 "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

NIV 1 Thessalonians 5:2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.

If as some people teach, the rapture happens at Revelation 4:1, then why do we have this exhortation to watch for Christ’s catching away in the middle of Revelation 16? Some say that this verse doesn’t belong here, others say it demonstrates the theory that the rapture happens 7 years before Christ’s return is incorrect. I would agree with that…the rapture cannot happen before the final intense period of persecution against the church which is coupled with the final judgments poured out on the persecutors of the church. No, this specifically challenges us to be watchful and alert and to keep on praying. Nakedness is a reference to our behavior. Cloth yourselves with humility…put on Christ and be forgiving…not bursting out with anger or slander or any other work of the flesh. Be completely humble, grateful and joyful.

7th Bowl parallels the end of history as we know it.
Removal of islands/mountain parallels

7th seal parallels 7th bowl

NAU Revelation 6:14 The sky was split apart like a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.

7th trumpet parallels 7th seal & 7th bowl

NIV Revelation 11:19 Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm.

NIV Hebrews 12:24 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. 25 See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, "Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens." 27 The words "once more" indicate the removing of what can be shaken-- that is, created things-- so that what cannot be shaken may remain.

NIV Hebrews 4:7 Therefore God again set a certain day, calling it Today, when a long time later he spoke through David, as was said before: "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts."

Judgment brings to our natural minds a somberness and sadness. But from the perspective of Revelation, judgment triggers worship. This is because the justice of God is displayed. It is also because those persecuted for their faith in Christ are finally vindicated.

Justice of God….If God is a good God how can He allow so much evil in this world?

Vindication of Saints…if God is a good God how can He let so many bad things happen to His people without doing anything about it? Why do bad things happen to good people?

God is delaying total justice until the end of the age. God will certainly dish out complete justice. He will vindicate all the martyred and suffering saints when all is completed.

We can have confidence in God. We are not wasting our lives by putting all of our confidence in Christ. We will be vindicated for every sacrifice. We identify with Christ and receive righteousness. Any suffering that we endure as His body will be vindicated…that is the evil doers will be punished and the righteous will be rewarded.

Symbolic History Revelation 12

2006-06-06T12:09:00.000-05:00

Sometimes God speaks in the Bible with regular language, sometimes with poetry, sometimes through parables, sometimes through legal and technical terms, and sometimes through symbols. Sometimes God takes real events and people from the Old Testament and turns them into symbols for the New Testament. Moses’ serpent lifted up (Numbers 21) became a symbol pointing to Jesus’ lifted up on the cross.
(See John 3:14-16)

Rev. 1:1 uses the same Greek word Jesus used in John 3. In Rev. 1:1 we are told that the angel is signifying to John the truths he is given. This is one reason why we need to look at Revelation with the idea that it ‘signifies or symbolizes’ truth. It is not history written in advance like the Bible’s historical books talk about the past. It is an error to approach Revelation with the mindset that everything should be interpreted literally whenever possible. Quite the opposite is true. When the Bible tells us an angel is ‘signifying’ things, we need to look for symbolism. One example is the 'Seven Spirits of God' in Rev. 1. Are we to say there are 7 Holy Spirits? NO! We should ask the question, what does 7 symbolize because we were told in Rev. 1:1 that the angel is signifying things…NOT giving literal descriptions. We should ask what is Revelation signifying for every portion we read.

If we do that, we see AMAZING truths woven throughout Revelation.
This book which had been mystery becomes so very exciting! Is John alluding to the OT? Is he alluding to the cross of Christ?
If you bear those questions in mind, Revelation will sparkle in your heart!

See the blog on Ha Dei Genesthai.

So what? The Kingdom of the Son of Man started during Roman times. The book of Revelation depicts the Kingdom as not fully come, and not something we are only waiting for to come, but as something that has come and whose fulness is coming still!

The Joseph Principle: Two different dreams with the same pattern and msg: Same thing to show that it cannot change. Repetition in prophetic language means unchangeableness. Heaven has set this thing and it will surely happen. Gen 41: 25 Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, "The dreams of Pharaoh are one and the same. God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do…32 The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon.

Does the Joseph principle appear not only in the first book of the bible but also in the last book?

Show outline of Revelation

Outline for Revelation adapted from Poythress

A. The Judge 1:12-20
B. Promises and warnings for the churches 2:1-3:22
A’. Judgment on the world 4:1-22:5
BB. Final promised blessing 21:9-22:5

Inside Judgment on the world

A. Recompensor-Creator 4:1-11
B. Six cycles of judgment 5:1-19:21
1. Seven Seals 5:1-8:1
2. Seven Trumpets 8:2-11:19
3. Seven Histories 12:1-14:20
4. Seven Bowls 15:1-16:21
5. Seven Babylon Msgs 17:1-19:10
6. White Horse Judgment 19:11-21

A’. Promise for the Saints 20:1-10
BB. 7th Cycle of Judgment The White Throne 20:11-21:8

Each of the above parts has another group of scripture inside them that follows the A, B, A’, BB pattern. See pg 62-63 in ‘The Returning King’ by Poythress for details. In addition to these patterns, other patterns exist in the form of mirror-like patterns.

NAU Revelation 5:10 "You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth."

NAU Revelation 11:15 Then the seventh angel sounded; and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever."

NAU Revelation 12:10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, "Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.

NIV Revelation 12:1 A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2 She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. 3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on his heads. 4 His tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that he might devour her child the moment it was born. 5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter. And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. 6 The woman fled into the desert to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days. 7 And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down-- that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. 10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: "Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. 11 They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. 12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short." 13 When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the desert, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent's reach. 15 Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. 16 But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make war against the rest of her offspring-- those who obey God's commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus.

1. Who is the woman in this story?
Is it Mary or is it God’s Faithful People?

2. Who is the Enormous Red Dragon?
3. Who is the child the dragon wanted to devour?
4. Who is Michael?
5. What changes as the dragon is thrown out of heaven?
The Kingdom announcement
6. Who does the dragon go off to make war against?
He lost his place in heaven and hates those destined there
7. What in particular makes the dragon angry?
Keeping Christ’s commandments (summed up by repent, faith & love)
Holding onto Christ’s testimony?
8. Where in the New Testament do we see the commandments of God specified?
Matthew 28:20a…teaching them to observe all that I commanded you…."
9. What is the testimony of Jesus?
NAU 1 Timothy 6:12 Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 13 I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate, 14 that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 which He will bring about at the proper time-- He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, 16 who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.

1 Tim 2:5-7

5 For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time. 7 For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying) as a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

NAU Revelation 1:9 I, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.

Challenges from Revelation 12

1) Recognize you have an enemy…the devil and his Kingdom
2) Recognize we have a greater army of angels
3) Recognize the devil’s river of lies
4) Stand in God’s river!
5) Drench yourself in the words of Jesus
6) Drench yourself in the testimony of Jesus
7) Set your sails to suffer for Christ’s testimony if necessary
8) Anticipate Jesus: The Kingdom which started in Roman times is growing & will fully come at Christ’s return!

How to read Revelation

2006-06-02T16:04:00.000-05:00

The Seven Trumpets (Rev 8-11)

2006-05-28T22:16:00.000-05:00

Message notes from May 28, 2006

The Seven Trumpets…

God responds to the saints prayers by using angels to execute judgments on the persecuting world, leading up to the last judgment.

In the Old testament interruption of heavenly light (stars) shows judgment because of a failure to keep the covenant of God.

Key Historical Components

1) Jericho’s Trumpets
At their blast the walls of an entire city collapsed, signalling God’s judgment
And Israel’s victory over Jericho.

2) The Plagues of Egypt
1st Trumpet & 7th Plague of Egypt…hail mixed with lightening and thunder
Exo 9:13-35

Fire is added and blood
See Joel 2:30-31

ESV Joel 2:30 "And I will show awonders in the heavens and aon the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. 31 aThe sun shall be turned to darkness, band the moon to blood, cbefore the great and awesome day of the LORD comes.

2nd Trumpet and 1st Plague (Exo. 7:14-21)
Moses’ staff in Nile turns water to blood

3rd Trumpet and 1st Plague again destroying water

4th Trumpet and 9th Plague darkness struck for three days…no one could see Stars were darkened.

3) The Babylonian Captivity

4) Intertestamental Jewish Apocalyptic Literature

(Seven Angels…including Michael & Gabriel who are mentioned in the bible)

Parallels between the 7 trumpets and the 7 seals

The verses follow a pattern

A) Recompense
B) Six Judgments
A) Promise for the Church
BB) Seventh Judgment

This follows the overall pattern of the whole book of Revelation
A) 1:12-20 Judge
B) 2:1-3:22 Church
A) 4:1-21:8 Judgment
BB) 21:9-22:5 Final Blessing

First Four Judgments are grouped. This is interesting because the first four angels in Jewish literature were grouped also.

There is a section for the Church and then a final judgment that echoes the end of the age is given.

Contrasts between the 7 Trumpets and the 7 Bowls coming

1/3 vs total devastation

The background for the Seven Trumpets includes Ezekiel 5

ESV Ezekiel 5:1 "And you, aO son of man, take a bsharp sword. Use it as ca barber's razor and dpass it over your head and your beard. Then take balances for weighing and divide the hair. 2 aA third part you shall burn in the fire bin the midst of the city, cwhen the days of the siege are completed. And a third part you shall take and strike with the sword all around the city. dAnd a third part you shall scatter to the wind, and eI will unsheathe the sword after them. 3 aAnd you shall take from these a small number and bind them in the skirts of your robe. 4 aAnd of these again you shall take some and cast them into the midst of the fire and burn them in the fire. From there a fire will come out into all the house of Israel.

This is the OT background for the concept of 1/3 being used in judgment. The context in Ezekiel is in reference to Jerusalem when she was destroyed by Babylon. The action that drove Daniel into captivity in Babylon…where he wrote the book of Daniel…which contains all the background perspective for the book of Revelation.

The concept of 1/3 is symbolic…it all goes back to Ezekiel 4:1 where Ezekiel is prophesying through a clay model of Jerusalem. He is playing war with toy sieges and is required by God to lay down next to this clay model as a sign to Israel. He does this for a 390 days on one side and 40 on the other. The 1/3 judgment means total destruction. That is what happened to Jerusalem.
Nebuchadnezzar completely destroyed Solomon’s Temple and the city.

So the 1/3 contrast may symbolize complete destruction, especially in light of the Old Testament background to this concept. In Revelation numbers are symbolic, so I think we should see this as symbolizing complete destruction of the world. However, if we take it literally, which I don’t think we should, just try to imagine what would happen in the world if 1/3 of the earth, vegetation, trees, salt & fresh water were destroyed?

The Seven Angels in Jewish apocalyptic literature were commonly known and named. Two of them are referred to by name in the scriptures. John’s readers most likely knew these seven angels by name, but we don’t know for sure.

They were viewed as the seven archangels who stood before the throne of God! Gabriel & Michael and five others.

In the Jewish Encyclopedia Online we read:

With Michael, Gabriel is mentioned by name in the Book of Daniel, where he explains to Daniel his visions (Dan. viii. 16-26, ix. 21-27). He appears to Zacharias, and announces to Mary that she is about to have a son whose name shall be "Jesus" (Luke i. 19-31). Gabriel is one of the four angels that stand at the four sides of God's throne and serve as guardian angels of the four parts of the globe (Enoch, ix. 1; comp. Kautzsch, "Die Apokryphen und Pseudepigraphen des Alten Testaments," ii. 240, note). The four angels, Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, and Raphael, who are still invoked in the evening prayer, are often mentioned together (Enoch, xl. 6, liv. 6; Sibyllines, ii. 214 et seq.; "Legend of Zechariah," vi. 2-6

Three Woes separate last three trumpets and these three are focused not on the environment, but on people instead.

These four disprove the security of the earth. God’s omnipotence over all of creation, and the futility of turning against Him are demonstrated.

1) The material world is no answer.
2) Business trade (sea and river transportation) & food
3) Universe is not the answer (stars in the sky)
4) Living only for this world is folly. Earthly things will fail so do not dare to
live by or for them. Live wisely.

5th Trumpet Locusts….8th plague locusts

Demons are commissioned to torment hardened unbelievers by further impoverishing their soulds and reminding them of their hopeless spiritual plight. (9:1-12)

6th Trumpet army (four angels bound at Euphrates River)
Demons are commissioned to judge hardened unbelievers by ensuring the final punishment of some through deception until death, leaving the deceived remainder unrepentant (9:13-21)

The paradox of mourning over judgments you have prayed for to come.
Vengeance is not for us, but for the Lord. We are to pray for it in certain circumstances….which produces a mix of sorrow and joy when the answer comes.

11:1-13 God’s decree ensures His pressence with His people and our effective witness. This causes our ‘ironic’ defeat…which is really an ‘ironic’ victory….and results in the horrible judgment of the oppressors of the church.

He will protect us during all persecution and judgment from losing Him…but not necessarily from losing everything else in this world.

The Two witnesses in the middle of this horrible time call the world to repentence and are to warn the world of the coming wrath of God. These two witnesses represent the prophetic power packed testimony that the gospel of the Kingdom is true and that Jesus Christ is the savior and just judge of the world.

If the two witnesses represent the church, then the death of these two witnesses represents the death of the visible church at the end of her time to be a witness to the world.

God vindicates us by the resurrection from the dead and the final judgment of our enemies.

7th Trumpet storm compared with Exodus 19

ESV Exodus 19:16 On the morning of the athird day there were cthunders and lightnings and ba thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud ctrumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp dtrembled. 17 Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. 18 Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. 19 And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder.

God establishes His Kingdom FULLY and executes FINAL judgment.

Some day heaven will stop saying Holy Holy Holy is the Lord God almighty who was and is and is to come….and we all will say…

"We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was, for you have taken your great power and begun to reign.

Notes are accumulated from Osborne, Beale, Poythress and Mounce’s commentaries on Revelation except as noted.
Please see my reviews and recommended reading list on Amazon.com for bibliographical information.

The Judgment & Redemption of God Rev 5:1 to 8:1

2006-05-21T15:22:00.000-05:00

Patterns in Revelation

SEVEN Judgment Descriptons

1) Seven Seals 5:1-8:1
2) Seven Trumpets 8:2-11:19
3) Seven symbolic histories 12:1-14:20
4) Seven bowls 15:1-16:21
5) Seven msgs against Babylon 17:1-19:10
6) The White Horse Judgment 19:11-21
7) The White Throne Judgment 20:11-21:8

The Joseph Principle: Two dreams: Same thing to show that it cannot change. Duplicity in prophetic language means unchangeable. Heaven has set this thing and it will surely happen.

Gen 41: 25 Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, "The dreams of Pharaoh are one and the same. God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. 26 The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads of grain are seven years; it is one and the same dream. 27 The seven lean, ugly cows that came up afterward are seven years, and so are the seven worthless heads of grain scorched by the east wind: They are seven years of famine. 28 "It is just as I said to Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do. 29 Seven years of great abundance are coming throughout the land of Egypt, 30 but seven years of famine will follow them. Then all the abundance in Egypt will be forgotten, and the famine will ravage the land. 31 The abundance in the land will not be remembered, because the famine that follows it will be so severe. 32 The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon.

Descriptions are of the same essential thing over and over again from differing perspectives. If God has set something in heaven, then He will communicate it more than once prophetically so that we will know it is set in heaven. If He is inviting us to pray for change, often He will give something in only one form or dream. The dream may recurr until we get the picture, but often it is the SAME dream. In Revelation, we have varying pictures of the SAME thing. In light of the Joseph principle, we should expect this if we are dealing with the sovereign conclusion of history.

The Time Warp Principle: God speaks about history, present activity and future activity in symbolic form when giving Apocalyptic messages. Jesus’ birth is described in Revelation 12. It feels like he is describing a future event. But in reality it happened many years before he had the vision. There is a time warp effect in Revelation (Apocalypse).

Because of this, many people believe in Preterism. The idea that John is describing stuff that happened in either the immediate future or his immediate past. Others think Revelation is only about the future. But Revelation is about the Kingdom Daniel prophecied would begin during the Roman empire. (Dan. 2:28-45)

The Daniel 2 Paradigm: 2:28 & 45

Bear in mind the message is about the Kingdom of God starting during the Roman Empire. KEY CONCEPT

Marvelous patterns in Revelation. Here is only

Basic judgment cycle has a literary pattern. A B A BB

A-Recompense 5:1-14
B-Judgment 6:1-17 Six judgments
A’-Promise for the Church 7:1-17
BB-Seventh judgment 8:1

Our current passage:

A-Recompense: 5:1-14 The Throne of God and the four living Creatures with Christ as the opener of the seals.
B-Pro & Con for the white horse of the first seal…
A’-Hope for the Church expressed in symbolic form.
Dan is missing. Joseph is not a tribe along with is son. The numbers were seen as symbolic.
The church is called spiritual Israel.

NIV 1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

The synagogues that were persecuting the seven churches are called the synagogue of Satan. Smyrna & Philadelphia (2:9 & 3:9)

Jude 1:14b "bBehold, the Lord came with 1many thousands of His holy ones, 15 ato execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which bungodly sinners have spoken against Him." 1

NAU 1 John 4:17 By this, alove is perfected with us, so that we may have bconfidence in cthe day of judgment; because das He is, so also are we in this world.

NIV 2 Peter 3:7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

NAU Acts 24:25 But as he was discussing arighteousness, bself-control and cthe judgment to come, Felix became frightened and said, "Go away for the present, and when I find time I will summon you."

NIV Matthew 12:36 But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.
NIV John 5:20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, to your amazement he will show him even greater things than these. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it. 22 Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him. 24 "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. 25 I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself. 27 And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man. 28 "Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29 and come out-- those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.

Jesus Christ will initiate judgment.

Conquest (First Horse)
Slaughter (Unrest & Persecution) Second Horse
Famine Third Horse
Death Fourth Horse

Fifth seal: Cry for justice from the martyrs. Includes sovereignty of God and predetermined number.
Sixth seal: Seven types of people suggests complete judgment as does the announcement of the ‘Great Day of their wrath’ in 6:17.
Seventh Seal: 8:1 silence….related to God’s Judgment NIV Zephaniah 1:7 Be silent before the Sovereign LORD, for the day of the LORD is near. The LORD has prepared a sacrifice; he has consecrated those he has invited. NIV Habakkuk 2:20 But the LORD is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him."

Silence relates to God’s presence in the Temple, Final Judgment & the awesomeness of God. All John reveals about that in this cycle is silence. A pregnant foreshadow of the descriptions he will elaborate on in the following cycles of judgment to come.

Challenges in light of these truths:

1) Bear in mind that
If you don’t know Christ, you must turn to Him now.
If you know Christ, this world must be thoroughly shaken, so trust only in God (Hebrews 12:25-29)

NIV Hebrews 12:25 See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, "Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens." {26 Haggai 2:6} 27 The words "once more" indicate the removing of what can be shaken-- that is, created things-- so that what cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29 for our "God is a consuming fire." {29 Deut. 4:24}

NIV Luke 12:32 "Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

NIV 1 Corinthians 7:29 What I mean, brothers, is that the time is short. From now on those who have wives should live as if they had none; 30 those who mourn, as if they did not; those who are happy, as if they were not; those who buy something, as if it were not theirs to keep; 31 those who use the things of the world, as if not engrossed in them. For this world in its present form is passing away.

Let concern of the future not drive us into hiding and fleeing, but to repentance.

Gen 3:8 like Adam and Eve…only fleeing & hiding can come into their minds…

Know Christ will preserve you even if you lose your physical life in this world.
Many identify the great tribulation with a final period of persecution shortly before the second coming, but tribulations for Christians happen throughout Church history and are more widespread today than ever before.

NIV 2 Thessalonians 1:5 All this is evidence that God's judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6 God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you
NIV 2 Timothy 3:1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.

It will increase while the Kingdom also increases. There will be an increase of God’s Kingdom (Dan 2) and an increase of evil that parallels it.

NIV Romans 5:20 The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, 21 so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

We are to be driven by the fear of the Lord & concern for the reality that this world will be shaken. So we must burn with the presence of the Holy Spirit as witnesses for Jesus in this world. Unafraid of persecution. Unafraid of personal loss. Totally confident in Christ who is our redeemer and the judge of the world!

HA DEI GENESTHAI

2006-05-15T20:45:00.000-05:00

The phrase HA DEI GENESTHAI appears only four times in the bible (LXX/GNT). In Daniel 2:28, 45, Revelation 1:1, 22:6.

In a sense it is a normal phrase that means simply 'what must happen' or 'what will come to pass'. In the same way the english phrase 'in the beginning' is a simple phrase. But in Johanine style, as John 1:1 reminds the reader of Genesis 1:1, so the Revelation 1:1 & 22:6 little phrase HA DEI GENESTHAI just happens to point to the book-ends of Daniels famous encounter with Nebuchadnezzar ini Daniel 2:28-45.

As John adjusts the Daniel phrase by stripping away the future prepositional phrase (in the future or last days) from Daniel 2:28, John adds in the phrase 'shortly'. This means that what Daniel saw as a future event (700 years later), John sees as beginning shortly.

In Daniel 2:28 it reads

HA DEI GENESTHAI EP ESKATWN TWN EMERWN (what must happen in the last days)

In Revelation 1:1 it reads

HA DEI GENESTHAI EN TAKEI (what must happen shortly)

This is very much like Jesus' statement 'Repent for the Kingdom of God is 'at hand'.
The phrase references nearness or the idea that it is really beginning now.
What was 700 years off in the future for Daniel (the coming Kingdom) was now beginning in John's eyes...so he cannot say it quite like Daniel did...no he changes the text to reflect the fact that it's come upon us. As one studies the Greek text of Revelation one will see hundreds of allusions to Daniel 2, 7 and other passages. So it's really not a surprise to see this. Yet we must come to grips with the implication of it.

We should use the Daniel vision which John points to with this grammatical neon arrow as an interpretive guide for the book of Revelation. Basically Daniel tells Nebuchadnezzar that there will be four Kingdoms (which most agree turned out to be the Babylonians, Persians, Greeks and then Romans). During the reign of the fourth kingdom, God would set up a Kingdom that would grow and grow and never end.

Therefore, Daniel predicts that God's Kingdom would start during the Roman empire. John is saying....these things are starting shortly. In fact the Kingdom of God was announced by Jesus. It was launched by Him and officially started growing via his 11 disciples who met with Him during the resurrection appearances.

We now know that the Kingdom of God has been growing ever since the first century. So Daniel's prediction was and still is true! Yet how does this affect our view of Revelation?

Well, if John gives us a clue, it is that the book of Revelation is about the establishing of the Kingdom that Daniel prophecied about in Daniel 2:28-45.

When you contemplate what is inside these grammatical neon arrows in Daniel 2, we can see clearly Revelation is not just about the end of the world. No it is about the establishing of the Kingdom of God, even in the midst of suffering and persecution...and the continuation of that Kingdom up to the very end! It is about that which has been made...and is coming! Note the switching back and forth of past and present or future tenses as in Revelation 5:10.

NAU Revelation 5:10 "You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth." (NOTE 'THE ALREADY' BUT 'NOT YET' DYNAMIC)

Essentially the phrase HA DEI GENESTHAI then is a pair of grammatical neon arrows pointing to the fact that Revelation is about the inauguration of a Kingdom which will continue on and on and on...never being defeated. And John would say, especially in the event that the members of the Kingdom are martyred for their faith...ironically even in death we still win!

Revelation 5 The Lion who is the 'slain' Lamb is God

2006-05-14T19:28:00.000-05:00

NIV Revelation 5:1 Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. 2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, "Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?" 3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. 4 I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. 5 Then one of the elders said to me, "Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals." 6 Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits {6 Or the sevenfold Spirit} of God sent out into all the earth. 7 He came and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. 8 And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. 9 And they sang a new song: "You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. 10 You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth." 11 Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. 12 In a loud voice they sang: "Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!" 13 Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!" 14 The four living creatures said, "Amen," and the elders fell down and worshiped.

The throne: A throne for judgment and redemption: God is glorified because He is beginning to execute His sovereignty over creation through Christ’s death. The beginning and eventual completion of judgment is pictured in this scene, triggering an amazing worship scene.

The book: Could be a codex (book) or a scroll. Scholars really don’t know. Whatever the case, this book contains God’s plan of Judgment AND redemption as well as the testament that names an inheritance to be received.

Lion & Lamb: The Lion from the tribe of Judah overcame! The fact that He is standing shows his resurrection is vital to the overcoming. But the present victorious effect of the Lamb’s overcoming slows from the truth that the Lamb continues to stand as a ‘slain’ Lamb. The tense here expresses the idea that he has a continued condition as a result of a past action…he is slain…because he was slain..even though he is now resurrection. The evidence of his death remains evident in Him.

There is irony in the fact that the Lion overcame not by tearing his enemies to pieces, but by being slain as a Lamb.

The reason the Lamb is chosen is because the only way to start this new Kingdom which is unlike the other Kingdoms men have created (like the Roman empire)….is through the sufferng of the cross!!!! Jesus was physically defeated, but spiritually victorious. This is the fate that awaited some of John’s readers (like Polycarp the martyr who was living in one of the cities John wrote to). It is also the fate of thousands of Christians today…some of God’s people around the world are called to endure even physical defeat, but are promised spiritual victory. We are not fools for enduring suffering in this life by identifying with Christ.

Testament: Executed upon the death of someone…Roman style of testaments matches what John was given in this vision.…
1) Contents were summarized on the back 2) Roman wills had to be witnessed by seven witnesses. 3) Only on the death of the testator could a will be unsealed and the legal promise of the inheritance be executed. 4) A trustworthy executor would put the will into legal effect.

NIV Daniel 12:4 But you, Daniel, close up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will go here and there to increase knowledge."

About 700 years separated Daniel from John.

NIV Revelation 22:10 Then he told me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near.

Dan 2:28, 45 compared in Greek text to Rev 1:1 & 22:6 shows that Revelation is about the fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecies which were for the end times…but now in John’s day have begun to be fulfilled. John replaces Daniels (for the end phrases) with Jesus style statements about the Kingdom is ‘at hand’. In other words, the last days have begun. Christ announced the Kingdom that Daniel prophecied about. John pictures it’s beginning in Revelation along with it’s final consummation at the end of the age.

Vision: Jesus’ mission was to purchase men for God from every tribe, language, people and nation.
So our mission is to touch every tribe, language, people and nation with the gospel of Christ by making and sending disciples to all nations.

As we line up our lives with the Father’s heart, we can expect heaven’s full interaction with our efforts & lives.

Worthy: Jesus is worthy because he triumphed. What does it mean to triumph?
Ironic overcoming Lamb. The Lamb is the sacrifice lamb the entire levitical sacrificial system of the OT pointed towards.
His triumph was dying quietly in the greatest of agony and torment on the cross.

Worship: uncountable hosts of angels and people worship Jesus in a circle around the Throne of God!
Worship focuses on the exceptional value of Jesus…He is superior to all others. He is worth worshipping…
1) Slain-a reference to His ironic, triumphant death! Christ’s death is His triumph.

How to worship?
Songs about His value directed to Him…
Songs reflecting His ironic triumph
Ascribe all power to Him. (supernatural power or military force)
Ascribe all wealth to Him (abundance or riches)
Ascribe all wisdom to Him. (insight)

God is just. He will deal with all evil in perfect righteousness. God will give eternal reward to all who triumph over the powers of darkness, even if you lose everything you have in this life…including your very own life!! So it is worth enduring all forms of temptation and pressure because our God is an awesome God who has already started judging the enemies of our souls…and this judgment will eventually be completed at the end of the age!

FIVE CHARGES TO THE CHURCH FROM MEDITATING ON REVELATION 5
1) Orient your life around the throne of God.
2) Set your life compass to synchronize with God’s vision—not one you made up for yourself.
3) Include outreach to every people, language, tribe and nation in your personal vision.
4) Stand and worship Jesus…recalling why Jesus is worthy! “SLAIN”
5) Worship Jesus in as many ways as you can! (not to gain, but to give)

Revelation 4 Why should we worship God?

2006-04-30T23:54:00.000-05:00

NIV Revelation 4:1 After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this." 2 At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. 3 And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian. A rainbow, resembling an emerald, encircled the throne. 4 Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads. 5 From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. Before the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits {5 Or the sevenfold Spirit} of God. 6 Also before the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal. In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back. 7 The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. 8 Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come." 9 Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: 11 "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being."

What do we learn from Revelation 4?

In the book, Passion for Jesus, by Mike Bickle, we are told to take Revelation 4 and use this chapter to imagine in our minds the throne of God. (Mike's book is a great book, except for the teaching I've singled out for comment in these notes-I am very grateful for Mike's influencne in my life. He was my pastor for years and is a man of God. The reason I bring this point up is because his teaching on this is known in my congregation and I feel a responsibility to correct it).

Mike teaches people to pray to the image in their minds. This is not how we should use this passage. A couple of reasons include: 1) The passage does not tell us to do this. 2) The Road Runner cartoon show of a painting of the road runner held up. In the cartoon the road runner made a painting of himself. The coyote who was always trying to catch him was deceived by the image...and rushes through the painting only to find himself falling off a cliff. This is the net effect of creating an image in your mind using Revelation 4. The image is not God...and one ends up praying to their own imagination. We should not use this passage as an image creator for our prayer life as Passion for Jesus teaches.

So then what do we learn from this passage?

hAGIOS-(holy) opposite of common. Separated for God’s purpose.
Koinos-(fellowship) opposite of hAGIOS.

Separated for God. Separated from common use. Separated from evil.
Filled with godliness. Filled with radiating Divine power & life.

Both positive and negative.

hAXIOS (worthy) on strictly bringing up the other beam of the scales, equivalent;

Context is King….

Rev 1 to 3 is not a separate book from Rev 4. Rev 4 is meant to follow 1 to 3. 1 to 3 are about God ruling supreme as His people face persecution and even death for being Christians. 1 is the vision of Christ. 2 and 3 are challenges to overcome persecution.

Rev 5 is about the worthiness of Jesus in stark contrast to the rest of us.

Christ’s worthiness has been proven through the worst persecution imaginable.

The Cross is Christ’s crown of victory. He was the victor because he was faithful
even to death.

The challenge to be victorious to all seven churches is nothing short of a challenge to be faithful even to death (NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS TO US IN THIS LIFE).

So Revelation 4 is an inspiration to those facing persecution. It is an inspiration and comfort for the suffering and the intimidated Christian. We see these things.

God is glorified:

He is the Sovereign Judge of all the universe.
He is infinitely holy.
He is the Creator of all things.
He sustains all things.
He knows the affairs of men and guides us through all situations.

'Ha De Genesthai' appears as it does in Revelation 4:1 only in these verses in the Greek LXX (Theod) and the Greek NT. This is significant primarily because of the dream Daniel interprets for Nebuchadnezzar. This dream is about the coming Kingdom of God. The huge difference in Revelation 1:1 & 22:6 is that John adds a little phrase that essentially means 'it's starting'. That phrase in Greek 'en taxei' has been misinterpreted by some futurists to mean 'speedily' not in the sense of quickly..but in the sense that when it happens, it will happen quickly or speedily.
But what John is saying there is that the Kingdom revelation is about to begin.

These leaves us with only a couple of options. Either everything in the book of Revelation as prophesied happened in the first century or early second....OR...those things began and are continuing to unfold as time goes on. They will culminate at the end of the age. Anyway, here are the verses with the phrase 'Ha De Genesthai' which means 'what will happen'.

NIV Daniel 2:28 but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come. Your dream and the visions that passed through your mind as you lay on your bed are these:

NIV Daniel 2:29 "As you were lying there, O king, your mind turned to things to come, and the revealer of mysteries showed you what is going to happen.

NIV Daniel 2:45 This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands-- a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces. "The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and the interpretation is trustworthy."

NIV Revelation 1:1 The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,

NIV Revelation 4:1 After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this."

NIV Revelation 22:6 The angel said to me, "These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place."

Dan 2:29 & 45

Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar....read the story from Daniel 2.

NIV Daniel 2:28 but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come. Your dream and the visions that passed through your mind as you lay on your bed are these: 29 "As you were lying there, O king, your mind turned to things to come, and the revealer of mysteries showed you what is going to happen. 30 As for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because I have greater wisdom than other living men, but so that you, O king, may know the interpretation and that you may understand what went through your mind. 31 "You looked, O king, and there before you stood a large statue-- an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. 32 The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. 34 While you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were broken to pieces at the same time and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth. 36 "This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king. 37 You, O king, are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; 38 in your hands he has placed mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds of the air. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold. 39 "After you, another kingdom will rise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. 40 Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron-- for iron breaks and smashes everything-- and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. 41 Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay. 44 "In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. 45 This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands-- a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces. "The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and the interpretation is trustworthy."

God is the Sovereign Judge of all the universe.
He is infinitely holy.
He is the Creator of all things.
He sustains all things.

He knows the affairs of men and guides us through all situations resulting in final justice.

He knows what is happening to us & will bring justice in the end.

These truths inspire us to worship God!

'Meta Tauta' & Revelation 4:1

2006-04-25T00:59:00.000-05:00

Quoting Beale's NIGTC on Revelation because his view on this phrase lines up with what I believe the passage means....referring to the often quoted NT Greek phrase here "META TAUTA".

From pages 316 & 317 (NIGTC Revelation) he says this:

Just as Daniel 7 and Ezekiel 1 commence with introductory vision phraseology, so Revelation 4 begins "afer these things I saw, and behold". Several OT visionary passages are analogous to vs 1a where 'EIDON' (I saw) and 'IDOU' (behold) are combined so that the wording could b e seen as commonplace in such contexts as (Zech 2:1, 5; 5:1, 9; 6:1; Ezek. 1:4; 2:9; 8:2, 4, 10; 10:1, 9 Jer. 44:23-26; Zech 1:8; 4:2). However, it is more than coincidence that v. 1a has its closest and almost exact verbal analogy in Daniel 7:6a, 7a (MT).

Meta Tauta (after these things) does not place the events within the visions in chs. 4-5ff after the events narraated in chs. 1-3. It indicates rather only that a new vision is coming after the vision in chs. 1-3. This is the order in which John saw the visions but not necessarily the historical order of their occurrence as events. The phrase is also used in this way in subsequent sectios of the book (7:1, 9; 15:5;
18:1; 19:1)

Your place & His presence

2006-04-23T21:47:00.000-05:00

Fulfilling Your Destiny In Christ’s Kingdom
Enjoying the presence of Christ
Revelation 3:14-22

NIV Colossians 2:1 I want you to know how much I am struggling for you and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not met me personally.

Colossians 4:12ff
Epaphras, who is one of your number, a bondslave of Jesus Christ, sends you his greetings, always laboring earnestly for you in his prayers, that you may stand perfect and fully assured in all the will of God. 13 For I bear him witness that he has a deep concern for you and for those who are in Laodicea and Hierapolis. 14 Luke, the beloved physician, sends you his greetings, and also Demas. 15 Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea and also Nympha and the church that is in her house. 16 And when this letter is read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans; and you, for your part read my letter that is coming from Laodicea.

NIV Revelation 3:14 "To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

These are the words of the Amen,
the faithful and true witness,
the ruler of God's creation.

NIV Revelation 1:5 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood,

NIV Colossians 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

The most Christological statement in all of Revelation (Mounce).

15 I know your deeds,

Perfect Tense…Fully knows…has complete knowledge….if you will…

Christ evaluates the works of His people while we are alive and does not leave us in a poor state. He challenges His church to bear fruit for Him that will stand the test of heaven.

that you are neither cold nor hot.

Look to the cliffs from Hieropolis…the calcium laden cliffs…the beautiful cliffs with what was hot spring water six miles away but now is lukewarm.

Look to the cool springs of Colossae! Refreshing their people, but nothing like that in Laodicea…physically or spiritually.

I wish you were either one or the other!

16 So, because you are lukewarm-- neither hot nor cold—

Did the lukewarm waters contain an abundance of bacteria that made people physically ill?

I am about to spit you out of my mouth. Literally vomit…like when one becomes sick and cannot prevent themselves from puking.

17 You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth

and do not need a thing.'

In 60 AD earthquake assistance was offered to a number of cities in the Lycus Valley. Laodicea was so wealthy that they turned down the Roman aid, saying they had plenty of money and didn’t need any help. Laodicea was famous for their banking industry where gold was kept.

The sheep farmers in Laodicea had carefully cultivated a breed of sheep who had very soft & luxurious black wool that was prized throughout the ancient world.
Their fame for soft luxurious black wool also helped make Laodicea famous and wealthy.

The locals in Laodicea had also cultivated a special medical school that manufactured two key products. One was a spikenard ointment for treating people’s ears. The other was a salve for treating peoples eyes. The Laodiceans were famous for these two products and were proud of their city and it’s special accomplishments.

Does the Church tend to be shaped by the good things of whatever city she is located within?

But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.
REALIZE Is the key word….they did not realize their condition. If one realizes his problem he can go to the Lord in prayer for the solution.

18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich;
He’s talking about spiritual riches…Faith that is proven true through trials.

NIV Isaiah 55:1 "Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. 2 Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare. 3 Give ear and come to me; hear me, that your soul may live.

and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness;

NAS Revelation 7:14 And I said to him, "My lord, you know." And he said to me, "These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Faithfulness in the face of trials and tribulation even to the point of death for Christ.

NIV Colossians 3:12 Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. 15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

NIV Ephesians 4:22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. 25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26 "In your anger do not sin": {26 Psalm 4:4} Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold. 28 He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need. 29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.

NIV 2 Peter 1:5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins. 10 Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall,

19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline.

So be earnest,
Continual Present Tense

and repent.
Snapshot Aorist Tense--it's a global one time event..not continual as the other verb is.

20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock.
The traditional evangelistic use is understandable…but this is written to the church!!

The irony of it all!! Those who have given their hearts to Jesus refuse to dine with Christ. Jesus who is the one they claim lives in their hearts, is standing outside the door of their lives knocking and hoping to come in for a real relationship.

Dining in the ancient world was the main meal of the evening. It was a time of cultivating real friendship and represented what the bible calls ‘Koinonia’ or biblical fellowship. In our world it is expressed when we ‘hang out’ with each other outside of Church meetings that are formally scheduled. It’s the love quotient in healthy churches which is one of the intangeables that you cannot engineer or construct. Jesus was rejected from the dining time of the people which means they were like Sunday morning Christians…

If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. 21

Metaphor of hearing has a double connotation: Those who cannot hear this are being judged right now. Those who can are being offered a chance to change.
Not only that they can experience the daily presence of Christ in their lives.

To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.

It has a view to the future promise of the Kingdom…but Jesus wants us to experience the dining with Him and the being seated with Him NOW…

NAS Luke 22:25 aAnd He said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who have authority over them are called 'Benefactors.' 26 "But not so with you, abut let him who is the greatest among you become as bthe youngest, and the leader as the servant. 27 "For awho is greater, the one who reclines at the table, or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at the table? But bI am among you as the one who serves. 28 "And you are those who have stood by Me in My atrials; 29 and just as My Father has granted Me a akingdom, I grant you 30 that you may aeat and drink at My table in My bkingdom, and cyou will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 31 "Simon, Simon, behold, aSatan has 1demanded permission to bsift you like wheat; 32 but I ahave prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, bstrengthen your brothers." 33 aAnd he said to Him, "Lord, with You I am ready to go both to prison and to death!" 34 And He said, "I say to you, Peter, the cock will not crow today until you have denied three times that you know Me."

NIV Matthew 19:28 Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

22 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."

One line summary of the seven letters from Mounce's Commentary on Revelation (NICNT).

1) Ephesus—recapture your first love.
2) Smyrna---don’t be afraid of suffering
3) Pergamum---watch out for doctrinal compromise
4) Thyatira---watch out for moral compromise
5) Sardis---spiritual deadness-while looking alive
6) Philadelphia---hold on
7) Laodicea---lukewarmness

Know what God wants you to be and to do in His Kingdom! Do what God has called you to do IN HIS WAY.

The way of the Lord is critical…being clothed with Christ…enjoying the presence and constant fellowship of Christ…

Opening your heart to just hang out with Jesus…to enjoy an extended meal with Him…and giving yourself to be one who bears the presence of the Holy Spirit…as a lamp burning brightly to testify in the darkness of the glory of Jesus.

The Key & The Crown

2006-04-18T08:38:00.000-05:00

Four thoughts as your dig into this section of Revelation.

1) Do look into the bible with an open heart & mind…it is an amazing book.
2) Decide to make changes in your life today.
3) Depend on Jesus for your strength to change.
4) Devote yourself 100% to Christ, His Kingdom, His Church, & His ministry. The door is open for you today. Ministries & functions today.

Please remember these notes are many times just keywords or verses I use to keep myself focused during preaching. We hope to have digital files up soon for each message as it was preached.

Philadelphia
NIV Revelation 3:7 "To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. 8 I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. 9 I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars-- I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. 10 Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth. 11 I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. 12 Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name. 13 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Excommunicated from the local Jewish synagogue…early Christians found themselves locked out of their local house of worship. What was the message that had gotten them into so much trouble? It was the claim that Jesus was the long awaited for Messiah. The claim that Jesus’ death and resurrection fulfilled the law of Moses. The claim that there was a new covenant…and that only by trusting in Jesus could one have access to God & His Kingdom.

Key-Access to the Kingdom-Synagogue’s had rejected them. But Christ is who matters.

Matt. 16:19; Lk. 11:52; Rev. 1:18; 3:7; 9:1; 20:1

NIV Matthew 16:19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

NIV Luke 11:52 "Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering."

NIV Revelation 1:18 I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.

NIV Revelation 3:7 "To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.

NIV Revelation 9:1 The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss.

NIV Revelation 20:1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain.

Crown-Authority & Suffering…Ironic Authority (it is so ironic because He is THE king).
NIV Matthew 27:29 and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand and knelt in front of him and mocked him. "Hail, king of the Jews!" they said.

NIV Mark 15:17 They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him.

NIV John 19:2 The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe

NIV Acts 6:5 This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism.

8 Now Stephen, a man full of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people.

9 Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)-- Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia. These men began to argue with Stephen,

NIV 1 Corinthians 9:25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

NIV Philippians 4:1 Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!

NIV 1 Thessalonians 2:19 For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you?

NIV 2 Timothy 4:8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-- and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

NIV James 1:12 Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

NIV 1 Peter 5:4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.

Smyrna NIV Revelation 2:10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.

NIV Revelation 3:11 I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.

NIV Revelation 4:4 Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads.

10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:

Four lessons of this passage:

1) You have done well to persevere…so hang in there baby!
2) Jesus will strengthen you to do even more!
3) Jesus says: Press on because you will inherit eternal fellowship with Him!
4) Make the crown your aim!

Four more things to consider from this passage:
5) Do look into the bible with an open heart & mind…it is an amazing book.
6) Decide to make changes in your life today.
7) Depend on Jesus for your strength to change.
8) Devote yourself 100% to Christ, His Kingdom, His Church, & His ministry. The door is open for you today.

The Six Points from Jesus to Sardis

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1) Watch and pray lest you fall into temptation and into sin.

NAU Matthew 14:25 And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea.

The ancients had what was called a watch…a time period (3 or 4 hours) where a security guard was posted to look over the farm or vineyard to make sure no one stole anything from the farm. The security guard was called a watchman and was positioned in a strategic place in a watchtower. This was a perfect spot to watch over the whole farm to see if there was any suspicious activity going on. The watchman was responsible to sound an alarm depending on the type of problem that occurred.

Because thieves would often come at night under cover of darkness, the watchman worked at night. The temptation was to fall asleep and not be aware of dastardly deeds happening all around him.

Jesus calls us to watch and to pray so that we don’t fall into temptation.

NAU Matthew 26:38 Then He said to them, "My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me." 39 And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will." 40 And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, "So, you men could not keep watch with Me for one hour?

a. Sex addict researcher and specialist Doug Weiss discovered that Christians who have a daily early morning prayer time find personal victory over their sexual addiction more frequently than those who sleep through a morning devotional time.

b. The watchman on the wall metaphor…guarding what we have in Christ is a biblical parallel to prayer, receiving revelation & prophesy.
NAU Ezekiel 3:16 At the end of seven days the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 17 "Son of man, I have appointed you a watchman to the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from My mouth, warn them from Me. 18 "When I say to the wicked, 'You will surely die,' and you do not warn him or speak out to warn the wicked from his wicked way that he may live, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand.

c. This term watch also referred to guarding against forgetting the covenant with God that Israel had made.
NAU Deuteronomy 6:10 "Then it shall come about when the LORD your God brings you into the land which He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you, great and splendid cities which you did not build, 11 and houses full of all good things which you did not fill, and hewn cisterns which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant, and you eat and are satisfied, 12 then watch yourself, that you do not forget the LORD who brought you from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 13 "You shall fear only the LORD your God; and you shall worship Him and swear by His name. 14 "You shall not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who surround you,

d. Spiritual leaders in the church have a special call to watch over the flock of God.
NAU Hebrews 13:17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you.

1) Watch & Pray: When has the Lord called you to watch & pray? Shake yourself awake and resolve to make that your number one priority!

2) Dying works are not always to be cast aside…strengthen what is dying Jesus says to Sardis!

3) Remember-Stir up your recollection of the covenant with God we have in Christ Jesus…the gospel.Deut 6:12 then watch yourself, that you do not forget the LORD who brought you from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

4) Be intentional about your remembrance of what Christ has done for you. It’s not ‘stuff I already know’…NO it’s the life of the kingdom…the message of the Cross. The gospel! Cherish it and trace over it in your mind. Martin Luther said every Christian should read from the book of Romans daily…why? Because he believed the gospel covenant with Christ that we have is so important we must keep it fresh in our minds.

5) Guard those things….value & protect what you have in Christ!! Don’t take things for granted.

6) Repent-simply change your ways to reflect Jesus where-ever you are lacking.
MOTIVATIONS: WARNING-JESUS MAY VISIT US EARLY FOR OUR OWN LOSS AND DESTRUCTION…A THIEF IN THE NIGHT IS A VEILED THREAT.

EXCEPTIONS: A FEW ARE NOT SINNING. YOU CAN BE ONE OF THOSE…MAKE THAT YOUR GOAL TO WALK SPOTLESSLY BEFORE CHRIST IN HIS POWER.

MOTIVATIONS: WHITE GARMENTS: ETERNAL RIGHTEOUSNESS…NAME NOT ERASED…IS THE EQUIVALENT TO HAVING YOUR NAME CONFESSED.

DOUBLE IMPACT OF ‘LET HIM WHO HAS EARS…”

This phrase means two things…if you don’t understand, then judgment is already falling on you even by this word. If you do understand, then by the mercy of God you have a chance to repent before Christ visits this congregation in judgment.
So find your post…listen with the alertness of a prophet to find the ‘word of the Lord’ every day. Pray for the flock and for those the Lord has put into your care. Protect and walk in the mercy of God.

The keyword is ‘Finish well’ by

Six points of Sardis applied to us today generally!

Watching & praying
Strengthening those things that are dying
Remember our precious blood covenant with Christ
Intentionally & gratefully recalling what Jesus has done for us
Guarding our spiritual treasures in Christ-can one not help thinking of Ephesians 1?
Make changes…’anything Lord-have your way with me!’ attitude and prayer

My prayer: Lord Jesus...I repent of sleeping when you have called me to watch and pray. I repent of not strengthening the things around me that seem to be dying spiritually. I repent of not cherishing the gospel message and the truth of your sacrifice for me. I choose now to be grateful and intentional about what you have done for us all. Please help me to guard and to obey everything that you have said to us. Help me to change anything in my life that you want me to change. I put on the altar all my hopes and dreams and aspirations and even my own life. I am willing to do whatever you call me to do.

In the name of Jesus, Amen!

My general take on Revelation 3:1-6

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NAU Revelation 3:1 "To the angel of the church in Sardis write:
Probably the angel who God positioned in Sardis to oversee the Kingdom
activities in that area.

He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this:

Seven is symbolic representing fulness or completeness.
The fulness of the Holy Spirit. The whole host of angels serving the Church.

'I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead.

Knowing here intimates complete knowledge.
Façade or reputation of righteousness & life. Spiritual slumber/death.

2 'Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die;

Term here is to be watchful….wake up is an interpretation.

for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.

Ancient Sardis had a temple, one of the four largest temples ever built in their time period. It was never completed and in 17 AD was covered partially by an earthquake that destroyed much of Sardis.

3 'So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent.

Sardian believers were called to build a temple to the Lord…not a physical temple, but a Spiritual temple…they themselves being the living stones of that temple.

They had heard the gospel….they had received the gospel.
They were keeping Christ’s commands. They had repented of their sins and were known as followers of Jesus…yet they were now in danger of losing their focus. They were dying…sleeping.

Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you.

Jesus will come as a thief in the night at the end of the age. But this is a specific warning that he will visit Sardis in judgment before that final day.

4 'But you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments; and they will walk with Me in white, for they are worthy.

Jesus seems to have a remnant every where…even in the most difficult places.

5 'He who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the book of life,

Double irony…overcoming is usually or sometimes a precursor to death! The negative statement that refers to the LifeBook means citizenry in the ancient city…we are citizens of heaven. All scripture is useful for doctrine (including apocalyptic scripture). This does seem to imply that some may have their names struck from the LifeBook in heaven. Otherwise, what is the point of telling some that their name would not be struck from the book. However, the focus here is on encouraging the overcomers. So the point is a weak one and does not by itself establish a clear theological truth for either side of this hotly debated doctrine (in my view). So we should focus on the point of the passage...which is to be watchful!

and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.

There is no greater thing in our future than to hear the Lord Jesus happily identify us before His father in heaven as one whom He knows!!

6 'He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'

Double meaning here…if you don’t hear…you are being judged right now. If you do hear, and you have been spiritually slumbering, this is your day! An opportunity from heaven to change before it’s too late.

Key idea of this passage: We tend to fall asleep when we are called to be watching & praying. We tend to take for granted our security when we should be on guard and should have our spiritual radar running. We should always be watchful. The idea is to faithfully try to discern what God is doing among us now...what is He emphasizing in His word...what is His word to the Church right now...what is the enemy of our Kingdom up to and how can we prevent the losses to the Kingdom that watchman on the walls are there to help prevent. Those who faithfully watch overcome temptation in their lives as well. I see these lines of thought bound to the six commands John gives us in this letter to the angel of Sardis. See more on my next blog as to what those commands are and what they mean.

Finishing Well: An Exposition on Revelation 3:1-6 (Sardis) Intro

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King Croesus

The expression "as rich as Croesus" comes from the legendary wealth of the king who reigned from 560 to 546 BC over Lydia in western Asia Minor. Gold from the mines and from the sands of the River Pactolus filled his coffers to overflowing. The Lydians in the time of Croesus, it is believed, were the first people to mint coins as money. Archeologists discovered 300 goldsmith crucibles during the 1960’s in Sardis digs. (see Yamauchi, “The Archeology of the NT Cities in W. Asia Minor” by Baker Books).

The fame of the splendid court of Croesus at Sardis attracted many visitors. One of these, according to a legend, was Solon, the lawgiver of the Greeks. The king proudly displayed his treasures and asked Solon who was the happiest man that he had met. Solon named two or three obscure men who had lived and died happily. Croesus was surprised and angry and said: "Man of Athens, dost thou count my happiness as nothing?" "In truth," replied Solon, "I count no man happy until his death, for no man can know what the gods may have in store for him."

There was indeed great misfortune in store for Croesus. Cyrus the Great of Persia, extending his vast domains, was soon threatening the kingdom of Lydia. Croesus consulted the oracle of Delphi in Greece. The oracle replied: "If Croesus goes to war he will destroy a great empire." So Croesus went out to meet the army of Cyrus and was utterly defeated, he destroyed his own great empire.

After retreating from the battle Croesus went back to Sardis to the strong high place of the city. This place had only one entrance which was protected on three sides by 1500 foot cliffs. With only one side to watch, King Croesus relaxed thinking that there was no way for King Cyrus to capture his city. However, a single Persian soldier scaled the cliffs of Sardis and slipped into the city as a thief in the night, and opened the city gates. The result was that Cyrus’ army was able to walk straight into the city. He quickly surprised and captured the whole city of Sardis. The Persians accomplished what no one thought was possible. And so an ancient saying developed which was ‘capturing Sardis’ which meant to do the impossible! When someone did a spectacular feat, some would say that he ‘captured Sardis’. Amazingly the story repeated itself about three hundred years later. So by the time of the bible, Sardis had twice been captured by soldiers who had secretly slipped up the cliffs of Sardis and opened the gates from the inside during the night.

The old story goes on to relate that Cyrus ordered Croesus to be burned alive. When Croesus saw the flames creeping upward to consume him, he remembered the words of the wise Solon and cried out, "O Solon! Solon! Solon!" Supposedly Cyrus was so moved by the story of how Solon had warned the proud king that he ordered Croesus to be released. Cyrus asked to Croesus why he shouted Solon's name, and Croesus asked him another question "what your soldiers are doing now?", showing the Persian soldiers taking all the treasures and destroying everything; Cyrus replied "They are plundering your city"; then Croesus said "They are not plundering my city, it's your city now and your soldiers are destroying your city". After that short conversation Cyrus the Great stopped his soldiers.

The modern city of Sart is what remains of the ancient city of Sardis. It is located near the ancient ruins of Sardi. Retaining the same name, only shortened.

(taken from ‘www.allaboutturkey.com’ and Yamauchi’s book ‘The Arch. of he NT Cities in W. Asia Minor’ & other commentaries)

Too Tolerant? April 2006 Letter to my Congregation

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Suppose you got a letter in the mail from a very spiritual friend and leader who used to visit your Church years ago? What if it included a prophetic vision about the greatness of Christ…and encouragement from Jesus that we were faithful Christians, filled with love, a persevering faith, and that we had a long string of good deeds credited to our names in heaven.

And then the prophetic word changed to say that Jesus was issuing us a warning. We were guilty of being too tolerant! We failed to challenge bad doctrine. The result was that some people were getting mixed up with greed and immorality. This is exactly what was happening in Thyatira. Look closely at Revelation 2:18-29. They were too tolerant! The apostle John was warning them! Are we like them? Have we become too tolerant in this ‘tolerance driven world’?

One key is sound doctrine! Paul told Timothy to watch his life AND his doctrine closely. He then would not only save himself, but also his hearers. The Holy Spirit challenges us to dig deeper into God’s Holy Scripture. Drink in the deep truths of the faith. Don’t let yourself be compromised at work or anywhere else. Be willing to stand for what is true even if it costs you your job! There is a place for healthy tolerance. At the same time, there is a place for opposing wrong behavior. We are called to a holy, humble and burning love for Jesus Christ!

Lord Jesus, awaken my heart to pursue you. Enable us to love you. Help us to catch fire for you and to burn brightly for your glory’s sake. In Jesus’ name we ask these things. Amen.

Tolerance, Thyatira & Today

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The topic of tolerance pops up in the passage on Thyatira (Revelation 2:18-29).

Revelation 2:20 'But I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they commit acts of immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.

Typically when people talk about tolerance today they are referring to these three areas:

• Gender issues
• Race issues
• Gay rights

The contemporary view of tolerance - that all beliefs and lifestyles really are equally valid, has two huge problems:

(1) If there is no real truth, there is no reason for me to be tolerant
Contemporary tolerance is like a cartoon character who has run over the edge of the cliff, and is still running for all he is worth, without yet realizing that there is nothing underneath him holding him up.

(2) If there is no real truth, we cannot place any limits on tolerance
If you are not a follower of Christ, I would like to ask you to suspend your disbelief for a moment, and ask yourself this:

• What if the message of the Bible really is true after all?
• What if there really is a God who made us?
• What if we are morally accountable to him?
• What if he holds our future in his hands?
• What if our greatest problem is that we are in the wrong before him - that we are morally guilty?
• What if this God has, at great cost to himself, sent his only son to live and die on the Earth to deal with the problem of our guilt and separation from him - to make it possible for us to become his children?
**

It’s in this context that Jesus speaks to the Church a warning from Heaven!
A) You have good deeds…in fact more than when you started out!
B) You possess love
C) You have a real faith
D) You are servants!!
E) You are persevering!
BUT-You are guilty of tolerating a false teacher….who produces two errors
1) Immorality (which was connected to the banquets the guilds hosted
Which sometimes developed a Mardis Gras atmosphere
2) Food sacrificed to idols (which was connected to mixing Christianity
With other religions

The greatest danger we face in the world today is not necessarily from Muslim teachers who advocate our death. It may be from Pastors/Prophets & Teachers in Bloomington/Normal who advocate a mixture of ‘tolerance’ and ‘support’ for other religions & other moral lifestyles (such as homosexuality).
If we tolerate and/or support churches that support homosexuality or that support ‘interfaith, pluralistic views’ then we are guilty of path of Jezebel.

Tolerance is a funny thing. We are to tolerate all kinds of things in the world, but when it comes to believers and those who claim to follow Jesus, we are to tighten up our belts.

1 Corinthians 5:1-13
there is immorality among you, and immorality of such a kind as does not exist even among the Gentiles, that someone has his father's wife. 2 You have become arrogant and have not mourned instead, so that the one who had done this deed would be removed from your midst. 3 For I, on my part, though absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged him who has so committed this, as though I were present. 4 In the name of our Lord Jesus, when you are assembled, and I with you in spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus, 5 I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. 6 Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough? 7 Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. 8 Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. 9 I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; 10 I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. 11 But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler-- not even to eat with such a one. 12 For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? 13 But those who are outside, God judges. REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG YOURSELVES

Note the theme of 'deeds' in this passage. It ties in with

NAU Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.

We march to the beat of a different drum. We are NOT of this world…even though live in it.
This means we do NOT succomb to the charge of ‘arrogance, intolerance & bigotry’ that the world levels against us. It means we DO hold ourselves to higher standards than the world around us. It means we cannot ‘wink at’ or joke about the immorality around us…but we must extract it from our midst…we set high goals for the church!

Christ commends the church for its Christian works of witness, condemns it for its permissive spirit of idolatrous compromise, and exhorts it to overcome this in order not to be judged, but to inherit end-time rule together with Christ.

What do you tolerate that you know is evil? How should we draw a line abhorring evil without rejecting people?

Jude 1:22 And have mercy on some, who are doubting; 23 save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh.

The essence of this message on tolerance is that the church in Thyatira tolerated (and perhaps even supported-see Osborne on Revelation) Jezebel. The result was a spiritual (and I believe physical) adultery by getting involved in the local pagan temple feasts that the trade guilds held in Thyatira. These feasts sometimes would develop into a Mardis Gras style feast where the attendees participated in immoral acts.

If we mix Christian doctrine with worldly values and beliefs, especially the belief that tolerance is the 'king value' of all values...and that tolerance means NOT disagreeing with others...then we become 'milk toast' Christians. We become just another way to God.

Jesus claimed to be the only true way to God. We must humbly proclaim Christ's exclusive claim to be the one and only true God.

**that section was by David Couchman

Pergamum: Rev 2:12-17 Removing Balaam's Error From the Church

2006-03-19T16:25:00.000-06:00

Pergamum: Revelation 2:12-17 Removing Greed & Immorality From The Church

http://www.vcfbn.org/audio/index.php?p=Revelation Click on this link and select part
six to hear this msg.

NIV Revelation 2:12 "To the angel of the church in Pergamum write: These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword. 13 I know where you live-- where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city-- where Satan lives.

14 Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: You have people there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols and by committing sexual immorality. 15 Likewise you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.

16 Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.

17 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.

Balaam’s error:

NLT Jude 1:11 What sorrow awaits them! For they follow in the footsteps of Cain, who killed his brother. Like Balaam, they deceive people for money. And like Korah, they perish in their rebellion.

NLT 2 Peter 2:15 They have wandered off the right road and followed the footsteps of Balaam son of Beor, who loved to earn money by doing wrong. 16 But Balaam was stopped from his mad course when his donkey rebuked him with a human voice. 17 These people are as useless as dried-up springs or as mist blown away by the wind. They are doomed to blackest darkness. 18 They brag about themselves with empty, foolish boasting. With an appeal to twisted sexual desires, they lure back into sin those who have barely escaped from a lifestyle of deception.

Some uses of the sword in Revelation.

NIV Revelation 1:16 In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.

IV Revelation 19:15 Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron scepter." He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.

NLT Revelation 19:21 Their entire army was killed by the sharp sword that came from the mouth of the one riding the white horse. And the vultures all gorged themselves on the dead bodies.

Some uses of the sword in the bible.

NIV Genesis 3:24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

NIV 1 Samuel 17:51 David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine's sword and drew it from the scabbard. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword. When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran.

Key point in this message:
Pergamum was a place of immorality mixed with temple worship (pagan temples). Some teachers, driven by a desire for money, had developed some teachings that permitted Christians to participate in the temple worship (pagan).

John uses the Balaam story, to warn them. As the angel of the Lord stood before Balaam to strike him down, he warns the Pergamum believers that if they do not stop tolerating the false teachers among them, the Lord Jesus will come to oppose them in Pergamum.
Resistance from the devil (they were living where Satan’s throne was located) is one thing. Resistance from the Lord Jesus is a whole other thing.

The reference to hidden manna as a reward may indicate the believers in Pergamum were suffering from a lack of food. The pressure from loss of jobs and homes due to persecution could have caused a food shortage in the church. The idea is that Christ is the high priest in the heavenly temple. He offers manna from the ark of the covenant which is in the holy of holies. This manna will never run out. Their food is spiritual food that will nourish them forever.

Not only that, but Jesus the high priest offers them honor in the temple. Peter said, you are living stones being built up together to be the temple of the Lord. Here Jesus offers those who overcome (stay faithful to Christ even to the point of martyrdom) a place of honor in this heavenly temple. Archeologists tell us that Pergamum had pink granite quaries. We are told that the Pergamum city imported white stone of marble to make signs and to honor individuals. One of these is pictured at www.bibleplaces.com and shows the place of honor that Jesus offers to those overcoming.

The principles to live here include rejecting compromise with the world in order to gain financially. Another princple includes rejection of immorality. Jesus calls the church to purity of motives. Purity from greed, lust for money and immoral practices associated with pagan temple worship.

For more information read at Vern Poythress’ commentary on Revelation 2:12-17 on the link associated with this site.

Getting through the toughest of times:

2006-03-13T20:47:00.000-06:00

NIV Revelation 2:8 "To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. 9 I know your afflictions and your poverty-- yet you are rich! I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death.

Getting through the toughest of times: Christ does rebuke some churches and correct sometimes, but for Smyrna he commends them without rebuke or correction for endurance. He simply encourages them to be faithful because even more difficult times are ahead….and that their faithful endurance through those times will result in their inheritance of eternal life & heavenly reward!

ESV Revelation 2:8 "And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write:
God speaks to us and He speaks also through angels when he wants to make a special point.

'The words of the first and the last,
Special claim to deity

(Sometimes all my notes contain are a key word or phrase...which triggers a series of thoughts for me to preach for a few minutes. the above phrase...special claim to deity is one of those. I go on to flesh out the concept spontaneously in my sermons. We hope to have the digital mp3 files online soon.

ESV Isaiah 41:4 Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he.

ESV Isaiah 44:6 Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: "I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god.

ESV Isaiah 48:12 "Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I called! I am he; I am the first, and I am the last.

ESV Revelation 1:17-18 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, "Fear not, I am the first and the last,
and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.

ESV Revelation 22:13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."

NOTE THAT EACH LETTER HAS LINKS INTO THE 'EPISTOLARY FRAME OF REVELATION' showing that the seven letters are really part of the 'frame' of this amazing document we call Revelation.

Jesus claims to be Jehovah God…the God of the Old Testament. This is one of the clinching statements of the New Testament to prove Jesus’ deity.

Why does Jesus say this to the Smyrneans and not to the Ephesians?
Smyrna’s history as being the first city in Asia Minor…

First to have Roman blessing.
First in beauty.
First in allegiance to Rome.
First to have a Roman Temple for Imperial worship.
Their coins in Smyrna read “First in size and beauty in Asia”

John knew a young man in the Church in Smyrna named Polycarp.
Polycarp grew spiritually and in 115 A.D. became the bishop of the Church in Smyrna.
He was most likely a leader or maybe a strong member when Revelation was written to Smyrna. No doubt he read John's letter many times.

Borrowed from another place on the net...
There was a competition between Smyrna & Ephesus. Which of these is the greatest? Two of the seven churches of Revelation were in a similar situation. Ephesus was a great city but so was Smyrna. Ephesus always considered it was number one in all of Asia. Each city was zealous for first place. But, Smyrna printed on their coins: "First in Asia in size and beauty." So what a friendly competition there. So, we're going to talk about church number two today. Smyrna was a beautiful city. It had a really nice harbor. The harbor was deeper than the harbor of Ephesus. It wasn't all choked up with silt like their's was. And it had a narrow entrance that in time of war they could stretch a great chain across the entrance to that harbor and protect it.

Smyrna was situated at the foot of Mt. Pagus, a low hill, on top of which was a famous temple, the temple of Zeus. A street of "gold" wound its way up the slopes much like a lovely necklace. So, this was a beautiful city. Almost 200,000 people lived in Smyrna in Jesus' day. Today there may be 700,000 in that city. This city is not called Smyrna anymore, it's called Izmir by the Turks. Of the seven churches listed here in Revelation, only Smyrna remains today. The others are mostly ruins. For years, even in modern times this city had more Christians than any other city in Turkey. So, this is a famous church.

who died and came to life.
The cross (death & resurrection) is the power point of the Kingdom.
Reference always to the death & resurrection of Christ
Christ’s death & resurrection divides history, brings us deliverance & is foremost on Jesus’ lips.

ESV Colossians 3:3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

NAU Romans 14:8 for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.

Ties into the vision of Jesus in chapter one again. Died & came to life.

Smyrna was dead. It had been destroyed in 545 BC. 310 years later the city was rebuilt…and has continued to this very day!! (called Izmir today…and the population has grown from 200,000 in biblical times to about 3.5 million today…being the third largest metropolitan community in modern Turkey. Izmir is Turkish for Smyrna…so it retains the same name to this day!!

Why else did Jesus point this out to the Church in Smyrna?

9 "'I know your tribulation and your poverty
Two options: A) Means Christ knows everything. B) Is simply meant to encourage the Smyrneans who are about to suffer

Difficulty & poverty do not mean these people were wrong in any way. Poverty in Revelation is often associated with persecution.

( but you are rich)
Not physical riches, spiritual riches.

ESV James 2:5 Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?

ESV 2 Corinthians 6:1 Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 2 For he says, "In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you." Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. 3 We put no obstacle in anyone's way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, 4 but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, 5 beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; 6 by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love, 7 by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; 8 through honor and dishonor, through slander and praise. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; 9 as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; 10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.

and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.

Jews were accusing Christians of not being real Jews so that their ability to organize worship services would be revoked by the Roman authorities (Jews had secured special privileges to organize synagogues around the world…they were the only religion allowed to that in ancient Roman empire during this time.

Rev. 3:9

NIV John 8:30 Even as he spoke, many put their faith in him. 31 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." 33 They answered him, "We are Abraham's descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?" 34 Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. 35 Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know you are Abraham's descendants. Yet you are ready to kill me, because you have no room for my word. 38 I am telling you what I have seen in the Father's presence, and you do what you have heard from your father." 39 "Abraham is our father," they answered. "If you were Abraham's children," said Jesus, "then you would do the things Abraham did. 40 As it is, you are determined to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham did not do such things. 41 You are doing the things your own father does." "We are not illegitimate children," they protested. "The only Father we have is God himself." 42 Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now am here. I have not come on my own; but he sent me. 43 Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. 44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me! 46 Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don't you believe me? 47 He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God."

10 Do not fear what you are about to suffer.
They had every reason to fear from a natural perspective. Smyrna was the most loyal City to Rome in Asia Minor. Smyrna was the guardian of the ancient temple to Tiberius.

Knowing this, the Jews had excommunicated the Christians from the sanctioned Synagogues.

NIV Matthew 10:28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison,
Prison was a holding place for trial, not typically a punishment. The punishment was usually something horrible…sometimes death.

that you may be tested,
God uses difficult situations to transform our character.
If you jump off the potters wheel when he is softening you up with water, you will harden and then you will be reprocessed from the beginning again…it’s best to learn

To endure hardship like a good soldier of Jesus Christ rather than to try to escape from

The situation.
and for ten days you will have tribulation.

NIV Daniel 1:14 So he agreed to this and tested them for ten days.

We don’t really know what he meant by this…if it was ted days, years or a short period of time.

Be faithful unto death, THE IRONIC VICTORY
Jesus seeks faith filled hearts even in the face of death.

and I will give you the crown of life.

NIV 1 Corinthians 9:25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

The laurel wreath crown of a victor in
Competition. A champions crown.

Zech 6:13 It is he who shall build the temple of the LORD and shall bear royal honor, and shall sit and rule on his throne. And there shall be a priest on his throne, and the counsel of peace shall be between them both."' 14 And the crown shall be in the temple of the LORD as a reminder to Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Hen the son of Zephaniah.

11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

The one who conquers THE IRONIC VICTORY IS CALLED ‘The one who conquers’

will not be hurt by the second death.'
This refers not to a ceasing to exist, but to eternal torment as
The rest of scripture teaches.

NIV Revelation 20:6 Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.

ESV Revelation 21:8 But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."

Polycarp - A Father of the Christian Church
Polycarp is a celebrated figure in the history of Christianity. A direct pupil of the apostle John, Polycarp lived between 70 and 155 A.D., connecting him to both the biblical apostles and the age of the early church fathers. Several ancient sources document the contributions of Polycarp to Christianity, including his letters written to the church at Philippi, in which he encourages the members to remain strong in their faith and to flee from materialism. He also instructs the members in the proper handling of financial dishonesty that was creeping into the church. Polycarp served as the bishop of the church at Smyrna (modern day Izmir), and was recognized as one of the early combatants of Christian heresies. He rejected the teachings of Marcion, an influential heretic who tried to create a "new brand" of Christianity by redefining God and rejecting Old Testament teachings. In his well-known thesis, Polycarp combats Gnostic heresies that were beginning to spread throughout the Christian church.

Polycarp - A Martyr for Truth

Polycarp's greatest contribution to Christianity may be his martyred death. His martyrdom stands as one of the most well documented events of antiquity. The emperors of Rome had unleashed bitter attacks against the Christians during this period, and members of the early church recorded many of the persecutions and deaths. Polycarp was arrested on the charge of being a Christian -- a member of a politically dangerous cult whose rapid growth needed to be stopped. Amidst an angry mob, the Roman proconsul took pity on such a gentle old man and urged Polycarp to proclaim, "Caesar is Lord". If only Polycarp would make this declaration and offer a small pinch of incense to Caesar's statue he would escape torture and death. To this Polycarp responded, "Eighty-six years I have served Christ, and He never did me any wrong. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?" Steadfast in his stand for Christ, Polycarp refused to compromise his beliefs, and thus, was burned alive at the stake.
Polycarp - A Relevant Testimony for our Lives

Polycarp's martyrdom is historical reality. He died for one reason - his unyielding faith in the Lord, Jesus Christ. Yet Polycarp's well-recorded death is only one of many lives that were given to reveal and proclaim the truth of Jesus Christ. In light of the cruel and torturous deaths of the first and second generation Christians, all theories that Christianity is a fabricated myth, created for the personal gain of its followers, must be rejected. Even today, many will die for a belief, but none will die for a lie. God allows the deaths of His saints not because He is a helpless or indifferent Lord, but because their deaths are powerful declarations of the free gift of life that is offered to us through the Person of Jesus Christ. If you have any doubts about the truth of Christ as revealed in the Bible, reexamine the biblical text in light of the willful deaths of nearly all of its writers, men who were eyewitnesses to Christ's life and ministry. Polycarp, like many other Christians to this day, was only able to die for Christ because he lived for Christ. His life was radically transformed by the work of the Holy Spirit -- the desires, worries, pains and fears of this world no longer bound him. Polycarp's life and death provides an inspirational example for all Christians. He gave his earthly life for Christ, and in the midst of his sacrifice, he gained eternal life.
Contextualiztion & Application

For those being persecuted…

a. Remember those in prison as if you yourself were in prison with them.
b. Review your life for any compromise
c. Be faithful to the point of death…the ironic conqueror!

Their example can inspire us when we go through hard times, to have the vision of being more than conquerors!

Smyrneans are an example to us of God’s faithful people enduring earthly difficulties with an eye for eternal reward of eternal life & the crown of life.

NAU Revelation 2:8 "And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: The first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life, says this: 9 'I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich), and the blasphemy by those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 'Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 'He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death.'

NLT Revelation 2:8 "Write this letter to the angel of the church in Smyrna. This is the message from the one who is the First and the Last, who was dead but is now alive: 9 "I know about your suffering and your poverty-- but you are rich! I know the blasphemy of those opposing you. They say they are Jews, but they are not, because their synagogue belongs to Satan. 10 Don't be afraid of what you are about to suffer. The devil will throw some of you into prison to test you. You will suffer for ten days. But if you remain faithful even when facing death, I will give you the crown of life. 11 "Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches. Whoever is victorious will not be harmed by the second death.

Ephesian Call To Repent

2006-03-06T11:08:00.001-06:00

sermon Notes from March 5, 2006 by David Bielby

The Letter to the angel in the Church in Ephesus. Revelation 2:1-7

2:1 Is the angel in 2:1 the 'minister of the church in Ephesus, or the 'prevailing spirit' of the church in Ephesus, or some sort of ministering/guardian angel assigned to the church in Ephesus?

A few thoughts on that:

1) The word angel is used throughout the book of Revelation in reference to real angelic beings from heaven. It is never used in reference to a minister or prevailing spirit.

2) A popular book that most Christians read in their day was the 'shepherd of Hermas' in which a prophet in the church in Rome has regular interaction with an angel. He writes it down to share with others. So the idea that angels would visit and interact with members of the church about issues the church needed, was certainly heard of in their day.

3) When the Kingdom has fully come, we believers will judge the angels. NAU 1 Corinthians 6:3 Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life? Revelation is a book about the coming Kingdom crashing into this life of ours NOW. So for John to receive instructions from a heavenly angel while he is 'in the Spirit' experiencing the fulness of the Kingdom of God...and for that angel to tell him to write to angels stationed in specific places on the earth, only furthers the very issue that Revelation is provoking. That issue is specifically that God's Kingdom is coming in its fulness and nothing can stop it...in fact some who seem to be defeated now via persecution and even martyrdom are the conquering victors!

4) The influence of modernity on theologians and pastors is probably responsible for the view that John cannot mean a real angel. He must mean the pastor of a local church or leading bishop.

John means angel here (imo) as it does in all other uses of the term angel in Revelation.

It fits with the culture of the early churches, the theological perspective of Revelation that the future coming Kingdom is already being experienced NOW...and the doctrine that human beings in that day will be elevated to a place of judging angels. When we examine the effect of modernism on Christianity, we can see an 'anti-supernatural' bias that seems to be more of the real purpose in redefining this as a minister or bishop or prevailing spirit than to take what John says as what he says.here.

Who is this letter to: Ephesus.
1) On the coast of the Aegean Sea at the port of the river Cayster. There was a trade route from Ephesus to the north that had the seven churches on it. Patmos was an island off to the west of Ephesus. John had been in Ephesus and was removed by exile to Patmos.

Ephesus: Flourishing center of trade for Asia Minor. Rome's most important city for trade in the empire. The Roman traveler who landed at Ephesus would proceed up a magnificent avenue thirty-five feet wide and lined with columns hat led from the harbor to the city center. Ephesus was part of the kingdom of Pergamm, which was given to Rome in 133 B.C., perhaps 235 years before John wrote Revelation. So it was a mature Roman controlled city, fully loyal to the emperor of Rome. Ephesus had a population similar to Peoria, which made it a major city in ancient times. It had three great trade routes (Roman Roads) which went all the way from the west end of Turkey today to Iraq!! Ephesus had a major stadium, marketplace and a theater that rested on the slope of a local mountain with a beautiful view that overlooked the harbor. This theater could seat 25,000 people!

Temples were built to three Roman emporers, and a temple was built hundreds of years before John's time to Artemis (Diana in Latin) which was one of the seven great wonders of the ancient world. This temple was four times the size of the Parthenon!!!! (60 feet high, 220 feet wide, and 425 feet long). It had 127 marble pillars, 36 of them overlaid with gold.

Ephesians started converting to Christianiy when Aquila and Priscilla came in about 52 A.D.. A few years later Paul spent a couple years in Ephesus. Later he posted Timothy there, who apparently stayed in Ephesus for the rest of his life. The Apostle John was the most noted resident of Ephesus.

Ephesus was a very loyal Roman city with ruling Roman governors visiting from time to time in order to hold court sessions where they would try important cases & dispense justice. As such, when the emporers of Rome started to modify the system in Rome to require sacrifices to the emperor, and oathes of declaration that they were gods, Ephesus fell in step with a passion. Building three temples to Roman emperors, Ephesus brought much pressure to bear on the Churches because of the exclusive beliefs of the Christians.

The Ephesian church was started in about 52 AD. John is writing in about 95 AD. So this church had been around for awhile. Perhaps 43 years now. Many people were being raised as Christians in the church, and some of them who were raised as believers, were now raising their own families. They had cultivated a strong faith. They knew the truth and were discerners of false itinerant ministers (apostles who did not live what they were preaching). They were used to hostility towards their faith. The culture was beginning to become more and more demanding. The new emperor in Rome was promoting and requiring his subjects to worship him. Soon Christians would be flushed out of the city of Ephesus and put to death if they did not submit to emperor worship.

A fantastic mosaic, artistry prophetically woven throughout the book. Scholars think that John meditated on many old testament passages and that this is the fruit of his meditation.

For example, John uses a greek word TADE in 2:1 that is only used in Acts 21 in the NT. But it is used throughout Revelation. Interestingly it is used a lot in Ezekiel, Isaiah and Jeremiah. Because of things like this AND because of a myriad of allusions to the OT (like the seven golden lampstands alluding to the seven golden lamps in the OT Temple), scholars believe John meditated on the OT extensively after he saw the visions he writes about and that he intentionally connected these things with terms and phrases in the OT. This is one of many linguistic cues to help us look to the Old Testament Prophets when trying to understand Revelation (not to current newscasts).

I think that is only part of the picture. I think the same God, who created the same heavens that Ezekiel saw, the same Spirit that Jeremiah prophesied by, and that confronted Isaiah is the one who brought John to the realm where he could also see and experience something that God has written. Something that is so incredible that only the Holy Spirit could reveal to someone. Not something that some man on an island in the Aegean Sea thought up on his own. This is the climax of God's word. It's the grand finale of the scripture. We should expect to see all the threads of God's word culminating here (if God wrote the bible).

Chapter One gives an incredible vision about the Son of Man, the anointed Messiah, Jesus Christ walking among the Churches who are symbolically seen as the golden lamps in the Temple.

Each letter ties into a piece of the vision from Revelation 1. Each letter of the seven churches cues off one identifying characteristic of Jesus. In the letters, Jesus is bringing out a unique characteristic of himself. Just having Jesus reveal some part of His nature to us is itself an invitation to know Him better. An answer to the cry of our hearts...to know Him more and more.

In the letter to the Ephesians Jesus identifies himself as the One who keeps the seven stars in his right hand...and who walks among the seven golden lampstands. What was the most famous feature in Ephesus as a city? The temple to Artemis. It was the city with a massive temple. Jesus refers to the temple in heaven...and the fact that the Church in Ephesus is part of the 'golden lampstands'. This means His Kingdom is superior to the natural reality around them.

Then each letter closes with an allusion to something that comes later in Revelation.
tree of Life...Christ died on a tree of death so that we can taste of the tree of Life.

Those who overcome...who conquer the fear of witnessing for Christ in a city where the death penalty was sometimes given for a failure to worship the emperor...zeal of first love is NOT just about loving Jesus. It's not just about recapturing a warm feeling for Christ in our hearts. It is specifically about being so in love with Christ that we stand for Him in a hostile environment where it could cost us all we own...and even our very lives.

He who overcomes: This phrase repeats in Revelation.

He who has an ear, let him hear

This phrase repeats in Revelation

Mat 11:15 IS AN EXAMPLE VERSE...THE PHRASE ANNOUNCES JUDGEMENT ON THOSE WHO ARE UNABLE TO RECEIVE WHILE ANNOUNCES TRANSFORMATION FOR THOSE WHO ARE ABLE TO RECEIVE.

Perhaps the entire point of Revelation starts to be uncovered in 2:7

To overcome brings the blessing of God's presence near to you! There really is nothing better than that in all of heaven.

Nicolaitans-The Nicolaitans taught that some degree of participation in the idolatrous culture of Ephesus was permissible. The temptations and even pressures to become so involved were great since the city's life was dominated by the pagan temples. There were thousands of priests and priestesses serving in the temple precints. The city's economy depended on the trade associated with the temple. The city was also called the 'Temple warden of two temples to the emporers. So the church's resistance to internal pressures to compromise with idolatry was commendable.

Enduring, testing and rejecting false teachers....not growing weary in well-doing...persevering!

30 years before Paul had warned the Ephesians about false teachers coming...
Acts 20:28-32, 1 Tim 1:3-11; 4:1-8; 6:2-7, 20-21; 2 Tim 3:1-7. In vs 2 & 3 we see that Jesus approves of the Ephesians responses to Paul's prophetic warnings. For about 30 years the Ephesians have withstood false doctrine from the left and the right. In their defense of the truth it seems they eventually deemphasized the gifts of the Holy Spirit, especially prophetic giftings in the realm of witnessing for Christ.

The Ephesians pursued inner purity with vigilance, and was maintained well into the second century as can be seen by Ignatius' letter to the Ephesians later on.

What happened in John's time was that the church no longer was expressing their zealous love for Jesus by witnessing for Him in the world.

The removal of the lampstand does not mean loss of salvation. It means the removing of that congregation as a congregation.

Included in the idea of leaving one's first love is the suppression of spiritual gifts which were needed for the Christian community to h ave a powerful witness in a city full of temples and priests/priestesses. Rev 11:3-7 and 10 shows the witnessing for Christ is specifically carried out through the exercise of a prophetic ministry. It is not just the use of spiritual gifts that are suppressed, but sharing of the gospel message...and more central, a quenching of one's love for Christ (which is proven to exist when we obey the great commission to stand up for Christ no matter what the cost).

The coming of Christ does not refer to the return of Christ at the end of the age, but to a specific visit by Him for the purpose of judging the Ephesian church.

NAU Isaiah 6:9 He said, "Go, and tell this people: 'Keep on listening, but do not perceive; Keep on looking, but do not understand.' 10 "Render the hearts of this people insensitive, Their ears dull, And their eyes dim, Otherwise they might see with their eyes, Hear with their ears, Understand with their hearts, And return and be healed."

NAU Ezekiel 3:27 "But when I speak to you, I will open your mouth and you will say to them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD.' He who hears, let him hear; and he who refuses, let him refuse; for they are a rebellious house.

NAU Ezekiel 12:2 "Son of man, you live in the midst of the rebellious house, who have eyes to see but do not see, ears to hear but do not hear; for they are a rebellious house.

NAU Psalm 115:3 But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases. 4 Their idols are silver and gold, The work of man's hands. 5 They have mouths, but they cannot speak; They have eyes, but they cannot see; 6 They have ears, but they cannot hear; They have noses, but they cannot smell; 7 They have hands, but they cannot feel; They have feet, but they cannot walk; They cannot make a sound with their throat. 8 Those who make them will become like them, Everyone who trusts in them.

You become like those whom you focus your worship on.

The phrase let him who has ears, let him hear, is a code in scripture for let the ones who are open to God come and learn while those who are not open to God will be hardened and brought closer to their doom.

NAU Matthew 13:9 "He who has ears, let him hear." 10 And the disciples came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?" 11 Jesus answered them, "To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. 12 "For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. 13 "Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14 "In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says, 'YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND; YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE; 15 FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS BECOME DULL, WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY HEAR, AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES, OTHERWISE THEY WOULD SEE WITH THEIR EYES, HEAR WITH THEIR EARS, AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEART AND RETURN, AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.' 16 "But blessed are your yes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.

What has ears to hear but cannot hear? The idols in the temples all over Ephesus!!

Those who worship idols become deaf and blind like the idols they worship. Those who live on 'every word that proceeds from the mouth of God' and who worship Jesus can hear what God is saying prophetically to the church. They have discerned error from truth....false teachers from true teachers and are now being called to stir up their love for Christ...use the power of the Spirit to be burning, prophetic witnesses for the one who sits on the throne and who sees, hears and knows all their works.

There is a play on the term works here. Jesus knows the works of the Ephesians. Jesus knows the works of the Nicolaitans. Jesus will speak about works to almost all of the seven churches. Later in Revelation the concept of works is brought up in

NAU Revelation 9:20 The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk;

Martyrs (those who conquer) are blessed because of their works.
NAU Revelation 14:13 And I heard a voice from heaven, saying, "Write, 'Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on!'" "Yes," says the Spirit, "so that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow with them."

Jesus is worshipped because of His works.
NAU Revelation 15:3 And they sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, "Great and marvelous are Your works, O Lord God, the Almighty; Righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations!

Bowls of wrath poured out because of a failure to repent from bad works.
NAU Revelation 16:11 and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds.

Babylon is judged for her works
NAU Revelation 18:6 "Pay her back even as she has paid, and give back to her double according to her deeds; in the cup which she has mixed, mix twice as much for her.

Judgment is dealt out regarding the works of individuals.

NAU Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.

NAU Revelation 20:13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds.

This theme connected with Christ's return & the conclusion of the book of Revelation.
NAU Revelation 22:12 "Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done.

John's Incredible Encounter With Jesus

2006-02-19T13:43:00.000-06:00

Revelation 1:9-20 “John’s Incredible Encounter With Jesus”
Sermon Notes by David Bielby
Vineyard Christian Fellowship of Bloomington/Normal
Introduction: Remember to interpret Revelation with the Old Testament, NOT with current events.

This post is laid out with a textual portion from our passage. Then preaching commentary follows the textual portion given. At the end of this blog the challenges to the congregation are laid out in CAPITAL LETTERS. There are several worth praying through. An mp3 file will be available on the net soon. Until then these notes are all we have available.

ESV Revelation 1:9 I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus,

Partner is from a Greek word that is almost the same as fellowship. Note the humility in his presentation.

Tribulation & patient endurance are par for the course when God’s Kingdom is breakingthrough.

... was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.

When we live for God, things don’t always go well. When things don’t go well God sometimes moves more mightily because we are listening to Him.

vs. 10 I was in the Spirit

ESV Matthew 3:11 "I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.

ESV Matthew 12:28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

ESV Matthew 22:43 He said to them, "How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls him Lord, saying,

ESV John 4:23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."

ESV Acts 1:5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now."

ESV Acts 11:16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, 'John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.'

ESV Romans 2:29 But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.

ESV Romans 8:9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.

ESV Romans 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

ESV 1 Corinthians 12:3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says "Jesus is accursed!" and no one can say "Jesus is Lord" except in the Holy Spirit.

ESV Ephesians 2:22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

ESV Ephesians 5:18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,

ESV Ephesians 6:18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,

ESV 1 Thessalonians 1:5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.

ESV 1 Peter 1:12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.

ESV Jude 1:20 But you, beloved, build yourselves up in your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit;

ESV Revelation 1:10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet

ESV Revelation 4:2 At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.

ESV Revelation 17:3 And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns.

ESV Revelation 21:10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God,

So this phrase means that John was experiencing the presence of the Holy Spirit similar to the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
We can learn a lot from this little phrase. How does one get ‘in the Spirit’? What does the bible say about this?

on the Lord's day,
The Lord’s day was not the Jewish Sabbaath. It was the day Jesus rose from the dead. Sunday.

and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet 11 saying,

"Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches,
We know there were at least ten Churches in Asia Minor at that time. Why only seven?

to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea."

12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me
NLT Revelation 1:12 When I turned to see who was speaking to me, I saw seven gold lampstands.

and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands,
Sees the seven Churches.
ESV Exodus 25:37 You shall make seven lamps for it. And the lamps shall be set up so as to give light on the space in front of it.
In the Tabernacle of Moses, God had him make seven golden lampstands into the shape of a manorah. This prophetically points to the Church. Although Moses and Israel did not understand this, God’s plan was encoded into the foundation of the bible.
This little phrase immediately ties Revelation to the OT Temple symbolized with Christ and the Church universal.

ESV Zechariah 4:2 And he said to me, "What do you see?" I said, "I see, and behold, a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl on the top of it, and seven lamps on it, with seven lips on each of the lamps that are on the top of it.

13 and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man
This pictures Christ standing in the midst of those seven Churches &
Christ standing in the midst of the Church worldwide…including us today.
All of this is pictured in the heavenly temple…which we are the temple of the Holy Spirit.

ESV Matthew 28:20b “…And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Christ faithfully remains beside the Church, and with each local church, whether we are in good shape or bad shape. He is there speaking encouragement and correction as needed.

Son of Man phrase:

ESV Ezekiel 1:26 And above the expanse over their heads there was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like sapphire; and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with a human appearance. 27 And upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. And downward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness around him. 28 Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking.

ESV Daniel 7:13 I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him.

This term Son of Man Jesus uses of Himself.
ESV Matthew 9:6 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins"- he then said to the paralytic- "Rise, pick up your bed and go home."

It has to do with His Divinity in human flesh. God the Son incarnate as a fully human being.

clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest
Priestly garb…the golden sash around his chest was a sign of a high priest (Josephus). Again we have Jesus in the Temple…now designated as the High Priest.

14 The hairs of his head were white like wool, as white as snow.

ESV Matthew 28:1 Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.

Note this was on a Sunday morning also…and His appearance resembles the appearance John saw…same effect and the same phrase: Don’t be afraid…or do not fear.

His eyes were like a flame of fire,

NIV Revelation 19:12 His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself.

15 his feet were like burnished bronze,
refined in a furnace,

NIV Ezekiel 1:27 I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him.

and his voice was like the roar of many waters.
ESV Ezekiel 1:24 And when they went, I heard the sound of their wings like the sound of many waters, like the sound of the Almighty, a sound of tumult like the sound of an army. When they stood still, they let down their wings.
The four living Creatures have this sound…which is a reflection of Christ. Pointing again to the fact that Jesus is
God Himself.

16 In his right hand he held seven stars,
These are angels who are posted to minister to local churches.

NIV 1 Corinthians 6:3 Do you not know that we will judge angels?

Amazing that John sees the angelic realm and writes about it so matter of factly.

from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword,
Truth that separates good from bad and brings encouragement and judgment.

ESV Isaiah 49:2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me a polished arrow; in his quiver he hid me away.
Christ is the warrior of the Kingdom of Heaven. This image is a Warrior. He is the High Priest of the Temple…which is the Church of the Living God.

ESV Matthew 17:2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light.
and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
The transfiguration pointed to this state…which John saw before Christ died. Now he sees this again!!

17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead.
John has been ‘struck’ by the presence of Christ.

But he laid his right hand on me, saying,
ESV Genesis 48:14 And Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on the head of Ephraim, who was the younger, and his left hand on the head of Manasseh, crossing his hands (for Manasseh was the firstborn).

"Fear not, I am the first and the last,

NIV Isaiah 41:4 Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the LORD-- with the first of them and with the last-- I am he."
NIV Isaiah 44:6 "This is what the LORD says-- Israel's King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.

NIV Isaiah 48:12 "Listen to me, O Jacob, Israel, whom I have called: I am he; I am the first and I am the last.

(SEE ALSO ISAIAH 11:2 for the seven flames that I believe John saw burning on the seven golden lampstands).

18 and the living one.

NIV Revelation 2:8 "To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again.

I died, and behold I am alive forevermore,

and I have the keys of Death and Hades.

NIV Job 38:17 Have the gates of death been shown to you? Have you seen the gates of the shadow of death?

NIV Matthew 16:19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

19 Write therefore the things that you have seen,

(those that are and those that are to take place after this) This is the key to the entire book.

Those that are represents the Kingdom which is already functioning on the earth because of Christ’s atoning sacrifice.

Those that are to take place after this refers to the coming Kingdom which John is to encourage the churches to anticipate.

The climax of the bible…the return of Christ.

20 As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand,
and the seven golden lampstands,
the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches,
and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

WE MUST TURN TO SEEK JESUS’.
HE IS WITH US. THIS SAME JESUS IS THE ONE WE WORSHIP

HE IS HERE TO AWAKEN US AS A CHURCH
HE CALLS US TO BE A BRIGHTLY BURNING LAMPSTAND.

HE IS OUR HIGH PRIEST, MINISTERING TO US.
LAMPSTANDS: FILLED WITH OIL REGULARLY. TRIMMED AND CLEANED BY THE PRIEST.
WE ARE TO BE BURNING WITNESSES OF THE MOST HOLY PRESENCE OF CHRIST…THE IMAGE IS OF HIS HOLY TEMPLE. WE ARE CALLED TO BE FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT. TO BE IN THE SPIRIT AS JOHN WAS. ESV Ephesians 5:18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to

Five Views of Revelation & Rev. 1:1-8

2006-02-13T07:36:00.000-06:00

Introduction:

My story: Revelation has always been a closed book for me. (See previous blog on Revelation.

See how the bible handles the number seven. Many times it is symbolic.
Bible visions-see how the bible uses the term seven.

ESV Genesis 29:18 Jacob loved Rachel. And he said, "I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel."

ESV Genesis 41:1 After two whole years, Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing by the Nile, 2 and behold, there came up out of the Nile seven cows attractive and plump, and they fed in the reed grass. 3 And behold, seven other cows, ugly and thin, came up out of the Nile after them, and stood by the other cows on the bank of the Nile. 4 And the ugly, thin cows ate up the seven attractive, plump cows. And Pharaoh awoke. 5 And he fell asleep and dreamed a second time. And behold, seven ears of grain, plump and good, were growing on one stalk. 6 And behold, after them sprouted seven ears, thin and blighted by the east wind. 7 And the thin ears swallowed up the seven plump, full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and behold, it was a dream.

God showed Pharaoh what he was about to do…and it came to pass.
Multiple dreams seemed real to Pharaoh…Cows are real. Cornstalks are real…but these real things were symbolic in Pharaoh’s dreams. In fact both dreams said the same thing each in a different way. The fact that the message was repeated had significance.

32 And the doubling of Pharaoh's dream means that the thing is fixed by God, and God will shortly bring it about.

NAU Jonah 1:1 The word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai saying, 2 "Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and cry against it, for their wickedness has come up before Me."

Jonah understood that God’s mercy could be appealed to and result in the termination of judgment as in Ninevah’s case. Since he hated Ninevah, he didn’t want them to receive God’s mercy. Prophetic visions are typically an invitation to repent.
When God speaks usually this gives people who hear it a chance to respond in repentance.

Why? Because God loves us and wants us to turn to Him.

In Revelation we have recurring themes or visions which may be depicting the same thing over and over again. For example we have seven seals
Seven trumpets and seven bowls which seem to be speaking about the same thing.

Following Joseph’s doctrine that when God repeats something through different matching visions, the thing is set for sure in heaven and is not an invitation to pray for repentance, but rather a prophecy which one is to prepare to go through.

Five views on Revelation:

1) AD 70 It all happened in the first century when Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans. (Preterist view) This view has trouble because Jerusalem was destroyed…but the Romans did not destroy the world…as Revelation depicts. This view has to spiritualize Israel to represent the whole world. In reality John seems to work things the other way by applying words once taken for Israel as for the nations. (Look on him who they have pierced…). This view also dates Revelation earlier than the early church believed Revelation was written. A tendency to spiritualize the resurrection in Revelation is a problem with most preterists. We cannot accept that concept.

2) None of it happened yet (except the first 3 chapters)…but is going to happen at the very end of the age. And it is to be understood literally unless John says something is symbolic. (Futurist view)

This view has given birth to a long history of teachings which have proven to be false…for example Mussilini was claimed to be the anti-Christ…or Hal Lindsey claimed in the 1970’s that the end of the world would come by 1990 or 2000 at the very latest.
Jack Van Impe constantly claiming that certain pieces of news are tied to certain portions of the book of Revelation, etc…

The popular aspect of this view did not exist in Christian history and flows out of a perspective on the bible called dispensationalism-which started just in the last 150 years or so. Besides a long history of bad teachings famously signaled by the 1988 theories…this view tends to read a book that presents itself as symbolism as if it were literal. That’s a sure recipe to get things mixed up.

This view is extremely popular among certain evangelical groups with some movements requiring pastors embrace this perspective on Revelation to receive ordination papers (A/G & others). One huge problem with this view, (besides it’s history of incorrectly identifying current events with linkages to scripture prophecies) is that it turns chapters 4-22 into far off future events with no practical application for the seven churches in Asia Minor. Yet John did write to those seven churches. I just cannot believe that the bulk of the book was NOT written for the seven churches in Asia Minor as well as for the whole church.

3) It is basically all symbolism. None of it is meant to affirm any specific historical activity in the past or future….but is meant to speak about God’s triumph over evil in a pictoral form. (Idealist) This view seems to ignore some very real ties to history in the first century. There are some amazing connections with historical events in Revelation. This view has problems with that. There are passages which seem to clearly point to the future, which the idealist may have problems embracing.

4) Revelation lays out Christian history in advance in a pictoral form. (Historical)
I don’t think this view is taken very seriously because the layout has changed over the centuries to mean different things.

5) (Kingdom View) Revelation symbolically depicts the Kingdom of God breaking through initially in the first century & climaxing with the triumph of Jesus at the very end of the age. As the Kingdom expands and wages war against the kingdom of darkness.

Some of it reflects biblical history, the context of the first century-the time of persecution by the Roman Empire-and it is written in symbolic form…so it should be interpreted symbolically unless it’s very clear that the passage is not symbolic…and it is speaking about things that were inaugurated in the first century AND extend through out Christian history culminating at the end of the age when Christ returns. The key to all of this is recalling what God has already accomplished in Christ. With the Kingdom view, Revelation is viewed as a book designed to embolden Christian witness even in the face of suffering.

We should look for all the themes of the bible to culminate in the book of Revelation since it is the conclusion of the bible.(Ecclectic)

Our basic premise is that we should NOT look at current events in news to figure out where we are in the book of Revelation…we should look to the bible to interpret the bible. So if the bible gives us clues that match a passage in Revelation we should zoom in on those clues to see if there is further insight from God on how to interpret Revelation. Further-we should NOT be afraid of viewing things symbolically because John the Apostle gives us clear reasons to believe that things will be presented symbolically.

NAU Revelation 1:1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants, the things which must soon take place; and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John, 2 who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 3 Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near. (See Mark 1:15 & Matthew 4:17)

Revelation-apocalypse-unveiling of spiritual truth.

God to Jesus.
Jesus to angel.
Angel to John.
John to Seven Churches.
Seven Churches to the Church everywhere.

Blessing=Happiness

Challenge to be bold witnesses in the middle of persecution which will bring joy to them.

Festivals in Asia Minor (Ephesus and other places) started under Domitian’s rule.
Temples & civic centers eventually brought a situation similar to Shadrach, Meshack and Abednego in Daniel 3…where they were required to bow down to show allegiance to the emporer or die. This cultural transformation in Asia Minor happened at the very end of the first century A.D. There is no evidence that Nero’s persecution of Christians in 70 A.D. extended beyond Rome…and so the idea that Nero’s time period was the setting is usually rejected. Parades going by homes that were expected to have sacrifices to Domitian out in front of them as a sign of loyalty to Roman rule. Failure to comply was seen as treason! Punishment could be severe especially as whole communities vied to prove they were ‘good citizens’. Christians could be seen as ruining their reputation as a community. Guilds, trading partners, civic centers, temples all started requiring ALL citizens to pay religious homage to Domitian. He was the first Roman emporer to require this…and it really started around 95 A.D.

4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia:

There really were seven churches in Asia Minor. There were even more…and Paul had preached the gospel in all the region of Asia Minor so churches had been started in that region which were slowly evangelizing everyone there. (Romans 15:19)

Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come,

NAU Exodus 3:14 God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"

and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne,

The term seven has a history in the bible of being symbolic…meaning completeness or fulness. Seven lambs to complete a contract in Genesis…seven years of blessing…seven years of starving…seven days of Creation, etc…here John sees seven spirits AND this speaks of the completeness of the Holy Spirit. (There is One Spirit). Visionary experiences are NOT meant to be taken literally unless the Lord makes it clear that they are literal. So we do not believe the Holy Spirit has seven persons. What John says he saw is exactly what he saw. We interpret this as the fulness of the Holy Spirit. So this refers to the Holy Spirit of God.

5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead,
and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood-- 6

Great themes of the bible condensed into this passage.

ESV Psalm 89:27 And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.

Developed from:
NIV 2 Samuel 7:13 He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with the rod of men, with floggings inflicted by men. 15 But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.'"

NAU 1 Peter 2:1 Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, 2 like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation, 3 if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord. 4 And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father-- to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Revelation is built on the presumption that Christ’s Kingdom has been launched! Revelation is not just about the future…it is about what God has already done in Christ…and about being a witness for Christ’s Gospel in a wicked world.

7 BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of
the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.

ESV Zechariah 12:9 And on that day I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. 10 "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. 11 On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.

Here the Apostle John takes an OT prophecy where Israel is to mourn …and applies it to all the nations. The shaping of OT prophecies as symbolism for the nations is a clue that things spoken of in the OT pertaining to Israel are going to happen through the church and for all nations.

8 "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."

The Alpha and Omega is like saying the A and the Z…which means eternal or from the beginning to the end…

Key lessons in Revelation 1:1-8

To be a witness in the face of persecution brings joy to believers because Christ is ruling over the kings of men.

You can trust in Jesus even if you must die for your faith.

Vs 1-3 summarize the entire book.

When you see heaven’s perspective on the whole bible, you are inspired to obey Christ and you are filled with joy.

Critical to understanding Revelation is the concept ‘already, not yet’. The Kingdom is here and is still coming here.

The Trinity is seen greeting the Seven Churches!!

The Son’s salvation work has ushered the church into a new status. (1:4-8)

The Spirit is the one who empowers the Church to be effective as a witness. A burning lamp of testimony to Jesus in the world. See Zech 4 on the seven lamps. Isa 11:2

Christ will be seen clearly as God Himself by the end of Rev 1.

God the Father’s rule & Christ’s rule are to be our source of grace & peace NOT the security of this world we live in.

How to study Revelation

2006-02-06T13:20:00.000-06:00

In 1988 a semi-panic swept some Christian churches that believe strongly in the message of the book of Revelation. A book about why the rapture was going to occur in September of 1988 contained 88 reasons why this had to happen. One pastor from a prominent pentecostal denomination went on the air openly promoting the concepts of that book in the summer and fall of 1988. My old pastor held bible studies on the book. Many people were promoting the concept with an urgency.

Time proved the whole exercise was in the same spirit as the Y2K panic that caused so many organizations to store up supplies because of the 'shut down' that was coming.

The author of the popular Left Behind series (Tim Lahaye) has published predictions that Christ's return would probably happen by 1990 and no later than 2000. We heard for years that the European Union was the 10 nations which would bring in the Anti-Christ. We heard how it was in the works...with fearful predictions that a great evil was lurking as a giant computer was built to track everyone in the world. We have heard so many prophesies...and some denominations have hardened stances on these doctrines. If you do not embrace a Pre-tribulational Pre-Millennial view then you are a 'liberal' and cannot be a member or a pastor in some organizations!!!

Why is it that Christians who hold to this view continue to hold to their views?

I believe the answer is simple. They approach the book of Revelation with a false set of presumptions. Those presumptions do not fit the kind of material that is in the book of Revelation. Those presumptions also do not match with ancient church history. They are relatively contemporary.

What do I mean? The kind of material in a book/letter shapes how we interpret it.

For example, in Ephesians 5:21 through 6:9 we have what is called 'Household Rules'. This passage follows an ancient pattern for laying out ethics of household management. Dr. M. Luther pointed this out about 500 years ago. So when studying the section in Ephesians 5 & 6 one can see a progression of verbs chosen for the 'Household Rules'...very light verb for wife and husband relationships...stronger verbage for children and parents....and strong verbs for slaves/masters. The kind of letter shapes how we read it.

We really should look very carefully at the opening paragraphs of Revelation to see what kind of material we have. In chapter one, we have several cues in the first three verses which give us clear understanding on how to interpret Revelation. At the same time as looking at literary form, we should also check connections and allusions to the rest of John's writings, the NT and the OT. Then we look outside the OT/NT to see how ancient believers and non-believers (in some cases) understood or used certain phrases and terms.

So in other words...scripture should interpret scripture. We should use scripture to understand scripture.

On top of all of that, since John introduces his material as prophetic visions, then we must look at how visions are given and received in the OT/NT. Visions are not the same as writing history. Therefore the basic premise is that we should seek spiritual interpretations and the symbolic meaning RATHER than the literal meaning of a passage.

In visions, literally real objects often take on spiritual meanings. For example, when Pharoah had two dreams, Joseph interpreted them for him. In those dreams literally real objects (cows) did surreal things AND represented something completely different that cows. They represented years.

IF something in Revelation (a series of prophetic visions) lines up with another prophetic vision or passage in the bible, then we must look at that passage to see if there are clues to the meaning in Revelation. This process is called hermeneutics. We should NOT assume everything is in the future for us..and just pick things out of the news that seem to match. Instead we should look backwards to the scriptures arleady written to see what was being highlighted by the Holy Spirit's vision that would be hightlighted by John's Revelation. The existing scripture on a given topic should 'inform' or interpret Revelation if possible. In many many cases this is the classic error of so many. Instead of looking in scripture to help interpret scripture, they read the newspapers voraciously for some prophetic clues to how it's going to happen in our generation.

Our aim is not to promote one of the views of Revelation. Our aim is to work through the book section by section, searching for clues to what the book means. It is a wonderful book.

Since there are so many views on Revelation, why study it? Basically God's word is effective for correction, reproof, building us up and enabling us to live for God. This includes all of God's word. This includes Revelation. On top of that there is a special blessing for reading, listening to and obeying all that the book contains.

So we are embarking on a study of this wonderful book. Please join us!

In preparation

2006-02-01T15:37:00.000-06:00

Recently a study came out showing that over 99% of mega Church pastors do not preach on the end times. I must be crazy then to be preparing a series through the book of Revelation. However, I feel the Lord leading me to do this...so here it goes. I've been studying Revelation in preparation for this course for over three weeks now. I have to say that it's really interesting...and I feel the Lord's presence resting on me as I study. Hope to have more later.