The Book of Revelation, Part 3

Transcript from show #275.

(Please note that the transcripts are written pretty well as they were delivered on air).

Radio Show Opening Narrative

This program continues on a series on the Book of Revelation, level 1, based on the e-book Timing Revelation. As mentioned previously the Lord gave me a vision a few months ago, in the middle of the night, of a chart outlining the events of the book of revelation. Within a few days I produced that chart and then went on further to write and write the 100-page e-book that goes along with this chart that the Lord gave me.

The e-book is available on this web site, which you can find throughout the pages. But I am here sharing a summary of it and interesting excerpts from the book in the next while because a lot of people are wondering “where are we in the events of the end times?” and “Are we now in the tribulation?”

And just a note of caution here... when it comes to the book of Revelation, no one can read it, understand it and interpret it completely from beginning to end at this time. We learn more and more about the details and how every verse and chapter fit together as we move year by year toward the very end. We can only try and do our best, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to put the work together.

God knew all this... nevertheless, in spite of our short comings, as we all put efforts to come up with added and corrected pieces and details, we are directed by the Word of God to read this book. It is so important, we are told that we will get a blessing for our obedience to that.

"Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand."

So always read this book with an open mind and patience.

Narrative 1

So I continue from the last program on the current series of the Book of Revelation, based on the e-book Timing Revelation available on my web site.

In part 1 of the series, I gave an overview of the whole book of Revelation. And last week, in part 2, I covered chapter 1, and skipped chapters 2 & 3 for now which is about the comment from the Lord on the 7 churches...

This week begins from chapter 5 and we'll see how far we'll get as the Holy Spirit leads.

I did mention about the 8 parts of the events of the book of revelation that I charted based on the vision the Lord gave me which I included in the e-book Timing Revelation, which is very helpful in understanding the events of the end times...

and I want to restate the scriptures I quoted last week on the the whole renewal of the universe as we know it, for which the whole creation groans and awaits, according to the Word of God:

(Quoted from the good old King James Version of the Bible.)

Romans 8:22, “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.”

Romans 8:23, ”And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even (or that is) we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.”

Isaiah 34:4, “And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree.”

And Revelation 6:14, “And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.” (Revelation 6:14)

We'll get back into all that right after this opening music, prayer and worship...

(Music interlude on the live radio show)

Let us pray...
The Lord's Prayer...
Praise God Doxology...
Worship Music...

Narrative 2

So, let's get back to our reading of the book of revelation series...

Just before we go there, here's a note on the subject of the rapture...

It is interesting to hear so many people today talking about “a coming revival”. However the Bible does not mention a revival happening in the end times before the rapture.

On the contrary it speaks of a great apostasy. Jesus himself, referring to the end times, said it would be as in the days of Noah. If you recall there were eight righteous people just before the flood.

Jesus asked, “Will I find faith when I return?” (Luke 18:8). This does not mean there will be only eight people but there will be few – a remnant, the Bible calls it--compared to the population at the time. However there is revival going on even now in many places around the world.

Alright, let's get back to the message/study of today.

Chapter 5
The Sealed Book
(Transition between the present and the future things to come)

Verses 1 to 4,

1."And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.

2.And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?

3.And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.

4.And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon."

The book is of course a scroll of the ancient times sealed with seven seals so that its content could not be known until God the father appointed the time. The seven seals represent the scroll as being a legal document that could only be opened after the death of the signatory.

Who is this signatory? Christ who died for the sin of the world.

John wept but not for long... he would hear from the elders about the One who is worthy to open the book, and recognize Him as the One he has known personally during His earthly ministry.

Verses 5 to 7,

The Lion and the Lamb

5."And one of the elders said unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.

6.And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.

7.And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne."

So, the “Lion of the tribe of Judah” and the “Root of David” immediately identifies the One from Israel. And that One is the Lamb, or Jesus Christ Himself.

He is the Lamb who was slain for our redemption but is very much alive now. The seven horns and the seven eyes speak of His power and wisdom, characteristics of the Spirit we saw earlier.

The Liberty Commentary Bible says: “The act described here represents and includes all that the Revelation will yet unfold. It is that for which creation (that is, the world of humanity) and the church especially have been waiting through all the centuries.”

And I would add here Israel also.

Verses 8 to 14:

8."And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.

9.And they sung a new song, saying, You are worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for you were slain, and have redeemed us to God by your blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;

10.And have made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

11.And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;

12.Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.

13.And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sits upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.

14.And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that lives for ever and ever."

So, the golden vials full of odours (incense) are the prayers of the saints. The place erupted with spontaneous bursts of acclamation and song from the four beasts, the twenty-four elders, the angels by the ten thousands, all in magnificent choirs of music, loud voices and worship.

(Music interlude on the live radio show)

Station ID

Narrative #3

So getting back into the the book of Revelation... we'll move into chapter 6 in a moment...

In this chapter we will see the “what is to come” in the future things that will take place in the 7-years Tribulation period, right after the rapture of the Church.

How much time after the rapture will all these things begin to take place? We don't know but it cannot be long because when the rapture takes place, the earth will be in chaos. That is when the antichrist will make his entrance. He could be one of the political leaders of a nation, or the united nations, -- or from anywhere unexpedted -- who will come forward to use this catastrophic event to show himself as a man able to bring peace.

This initial pseudo-peace will not last long. The first seal depicts the antichrist showing himself on the white horse. This is satan's impersonation of the real Christ coming on a white horse in Revelation 19. During this time the people of the world will be deceived, including the Jewish people of Israel who will be offered a peace agreement supposedly to end all other
agreements.

By the second seal, we see the red horse which represents the end of the false peace, which turns into civil wars, then the black horse of famine and the pale horse of great deaths (third and fourth seals).

In this chapter we go from celebration in heaven to great darkness in the earth as we look at the judgments of the seals, the trumpets and the bowls (or vials) to come -- the judgments that will be poured out onto the unrepentant world.

The judgments of the seals will kill 1/3 of the world's population, and the trumpets will kill another 1/3. This is a summary of what will take place in the following chapters covering the 7-years Tribulation. Throughout these series of seven judgments, as those on earth might think the worst is over, then will begin the next judgments worse than the previous.

It is helpful to understand what this time of Tribulation is about. There are several theories on when the 7-years Tribulation will begin.

When we speak of the 7-years Tribulation, it refers to the seven years spoken of by Daniel which will come in the very end times. This is the time when God deals with Israel; that's why the church is not here at that time. It is to complete the transgression of sins, to make reconciliation with God's people and to bring everlasting righteousness. (Daniel 9:24).

So let's get back again to Chapter 6:

The announcement of future things to come in the 7-years Tribulation.

(This is the first 3-1/2 years of the 7-years Tribulation).

The seven years are comprised of two periods—the first 3-1/2 years and the last 3-1/2 years.

The first 3-1/2 years are when the antichrist will seem to make peace with the world and Israel. The last 3-1/2 years will be the destruction “like never seen before” after the “abomination of desolation” in the middle of the 7-years period, spoken of by our Lord in Matthew 24:15. More on this later.

The first seal... The white horse:

v.1."And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come
and see.

2. And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer."

So, as we have already seen, the first seal presents a white horse. Now, at first glance some people may think this is the Lord Jesus, because of the white horse; yes Jesus does come back on a white horse but that is not until the very end (Revelation 19:11).

This white horse here represents the antichrist who comes in imitation of Christ – the devil himself. The liar and deceiver comes here as a false peace maker. He comes to conquer the world to himself.

The second seal... The Red horse:

v.3."And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.

4.And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword."

So, the second seal bringing forth a red horse speaks of war, killing and bloodshed.

This speaks of civil war. As the antichrist expands his ten-nation power base
conquering the remaining nations of the world, it goes from “peace” in the world to civil war between the people of each kingdom, "kingdom against kingdom and nation against nation..." (Matthew 24:7).

Next we will look at the third seal, the black horse

(Music interlude on the live radio show)

Narrative #4

The third seal... The Black horse:

5."And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand.

6.And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine."

So, the rider on the black horse holds in his hand what represents commerce.

Dark times will follow worldwide wars with worldwide famines and starvation. A measure of wheat, and three measures of barley will cost a day's wage each; these being the necessities for life. Oil and wine will be luxuries reserved for the rich.

The fourth seal... The Pale horse:

7."And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.

8. And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth."

So, someone asked “Why was hell sitting on the horse with death?” Well it's not. Notice it actually says death was sitting on the horse, and hell was following after.

First, death occurs and then hell receives its victim(s) – unless of course those individuals had received the free gift from the grace of the Christ who was sacrificed in His first coming for the salvation of mankind.

Here we are told that one fourth of the earth will be killed.

The fifth seal... Those slain for the Word of God:

9."And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:

10. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, do you not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?

11. And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow servants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled."

So, John gets a glance of what is going on in heaven about events to take place in the future.

“I saw under the altar the souls of them...” this passage is difficult to understand. However following are some points I gleaned from the Liberty Bible Commentary on this passage.

Because this scene is located “under the altar” it represents the saints from the previous time of the Temple (i.e. Israel). This is because the altar was the appointed place of sacrifice.

John on Patmos would understand this quite well. We are told that “How long” is the well-known prayer of Jewish saints often found in the imprecatory prayer (to invoke evil or curse upon one's enemies) and other psalms. These souls crying out for revenge on the persecutors are redeemed because they are given white robes which indicates they are justified by God. In this case, my take on this would be that they are awaiting the completeness of the judgment of the 7-years Tribulation.

Others say that these are simply martyred saints who came out from the tribulation having given their blood for their testimony, who now stand under the altar of incense crying out their prayers for justice under the altar of incense as we have seen earlier.

Either way, it has to do with the prayers of all the saints which were upon the altar before the throne, as we will read confirmed later in chapter 8, verse 3. For now, God's wrath must continue to be poured out in order to give more time for more sinners to turn to Him. They were told here “to rest a short while longer until their fellow servants also and their brethren of the last part of the Tribulation period will have been slain.”

(Music interlude on the live radio show)

Narrative 5

As I said at the beginning I will skip over the letters to the churches at this time and will get back to it at the very end.

So we'll move on through to chapter 4, where John is called up to heaven;

(And this is the Transition between the present things to the future things to come).

Chapter 4
Verses 1 to 11
Vision around God's throne

1."After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will show you things which must be hereafter.

2.And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.

3.And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.

4.And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.

5.And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God."

So, we are given a description of the vision that John experienced, which is totally awesome and literally “out of this world”.

Chapter 4 is believed by the born-again church to be representing the time of the
rapture, (v. 2). From this point on the church is not mentioned any more. This is confirmed by it's location within the timing of the events of the end times. More on this later in another program.

It is customary for John to tell his audience whenever a group is observed or arrives on the heavenly seen.

Here the 24 elders of verse 4 are the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 apostles according to many reliable commentaries and old manuscripts (for example Victorinus in his “Commentary on the Apocalypse”. And these 24 have just arrived out of the Rapture along with multitude others. (Liberty Bible Commentary). Again we'll get to this further later on.

The word “crowns” which they had been given are spephanos in the Greek which represent crowns of victory, rather than diadema for crowns of kingship

The seven Spirits of God that we have already seen in Rev.4-5 is quoted again here representing the Holy Spirit in His completeness and perfection. We read about the Spirit of the Lord which shall rest upon Jesus in Isaiah 11:2 .

And verses 6 to 11

6."And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind

7.And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.

8.And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

9.And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the
throne, who lives for ever and ever,

10.The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that lives for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

11.You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for you have created all things, and for your pleasure they are and were created."

So, what we read here is all in confirmation to the vision of Ezekiel in chapters 1 and 10.

Notice the characteristic of the God who sits on the throne, given Him by the four beasts: holiness. He is totally sinless and perfect. He was for ever, He is now. And He will be forever.

The 24 elders join in to worship and praise in honour of this magnificent Creator of all things.

And we have run out of time again... but I will pick up from here next week.

As I mentioned in previous programs, we don't hear many sermons on this subject of the end times in our churches today. But it is important because people want to know, they want some answers, although we don't know everything yet – and that's probably a good thing...

however so much is happening so quickly right now that we just need to know for the sake of keeping peace in our heart – Jesus used to say all the time, "peace, be of good cheers, fear not", and that's what we say to all today...

but the Word of God also tells us that we must be ready for the return of Christ; and first the Rapture will take place, (and that can happen anytime now, anytime at all), there need no further prophecies to take place first, it's all up to God the Father, when He says, Ok, this is it... then the trumpet will sound and

“... the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

“Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

“Wherefore comfort one another with these words. (Thessalonians 4:16-18).

The message at this time is still that we are sinners in need of repentance... if we haven't made peace with our Saviour.

It must still be subject to telling the truth in our witness, within the context of each of our testimonies, and preaching, and that's the key – knowing when and how to witness to each unsaved person we come in contact with; we must always approach that prayerfully, wisely and with the fear of the Lord. And for that we've got to be in the Word in order to know what it says...

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Prov. 9:19) -- and of knowledge and understanding. The fear of the Lord comes up some 808 times in the Word of God within various context.

Wow, what a message from the Holy Spirit for us today.

(Music interlude on the live radio show)

Narrative 6

And for those who don't know God personally, you've never asked the Lord into your heart and life, but the Holy Spirit has touched you today... you can come to Him right now through Jesus Christ who is the mediator between man and God, the One who is the Way, the Truth and the Life... that is everything we need in life... have you ever thought about this? We want the way, the truth, and the life.

As per His own words in the book of John 14... “Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth and the life: no man comes unto the Father but by me.”

A beautiful passage of scripture John 14...

verse 1- "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

v.2- In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

3- And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

4- And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

5- Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?

6- Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

7- If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him....

And it goes on then about the promise of the Holy Spirit, in that same chapter, you've got to read it...

Oh if you don't know the Lord, you've never asked Him into your life... if you want the free gift of salvation, redemption, pardon from your sin... if you want a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, the God of Creation... just say this prayer:

Lord I come to you right now for I have heard the Gospel and believe that it is true and powerful... I repent of my sin, of my separation from you, I turn my life around and give it to you right now, come into my heart, be my Lord and Saviour, make me a forgiven child of God today...

Music: and this was Beulah Land by the great voices of the Petersen's from a youtube video.

Yes Jesus has gone to prepare a place for us, and He said, “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself; that where I am you may be also".

If you said that prayer above, and meant it in your heart sincerely, He has received you and you are now a born-again child of God. It is important that you tell someone as a witness and confirmation of your new turning point this day, and that you join a Bible-believing church in your community, where you can worship God with other Bible-believing Christians, hear the word of God and grow in your new-found faith – or your renewed and re-dedicated faith.

Closing Narrative…

Before I dismiss the service today, I want to read to you the Blessing that was read to the people of God in Numbers 6:24-26 which is the benediction from God to you today:

“The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.'

I hope and pray that you will come back next Sunday at SpiritFM.ca, 7 am and 7 pm pacific time. And if you want to hear the service again at any time, you can go to my website at TimingRevelation.com, and click on the Radio Shows navigational tab along the left. The replays are available there for five weeks, then they are transcribed into articles as new radio shows are put up.

I encourage you to go to your Bible and read further on the scriptures that were given throughout the program today. And if you like these programs and you've been blessed, call or write the station and let them know... if you said the prayer and have accepted the Lord or you've been healed or touched in some way by the Holy Spirit, write to me on the contact form of this web site...

and this web site is also where you will find the Free Offer of the “Christian Growth and Maturity Chart” that I talked to you about last week... you will see the graphic on any page called “Get your free CGM Chart”, click on it and it will take you to a page that will tell you about it and how you can subscribe to my newsletter to get your free copy of the Chart sent to you.

Until next week, Maranatha, the Lord is coming, very soon. Goodbye and Blessing.

Click here for the music "Our God is an awesome God"...

/DMH

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Blessings,