REVELATION DECODED: Recent Episodes
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For the last couple of centuries we have been fed one predominant view of the Book of Revelation. This particular view has done nothing but make false claims and predictions which have been wrong, well, 100% of the time. Is Revelation really that obscure and unfathomable?! (calling itself the "Revelation of Jesus", how is it it's the most difficult of all books to understand? We have always read the Book of Revelation with the powerful, deeply rooted and engrained conclusion in our minds that it is a handbook to the end of the world, and the apocalyptic and cataclysmic final judgment on all humanity for all time.
I had always assumed it, you have always assumed it, we all have assumed it with no reason whatsoever to question it. After all, it seemed pretty plain to us all, that it speaks with a force and finality that blisters the imagination and sears the soul, with all the judgments, devastation, destruction and death. It HAD to be about the end of the world in our future right?
I submit to you that this should not, and is not the case. The first century Christian Jew who read this book, understood it, believed it and ACTED on it. And they are the reason we call ourselves Christians 2000 years later! Think you know the Book of Revelation? Not hardly. Come and see.
Awesome intro music "Motherlode" by Loopster Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com), Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
REVELATION 6:12-17
12 I looked when He broke the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood; 13 and the stars of the sky fell to the earth, as a fig tree casts its unripe figs when shaken by a great wind. 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. 15 Then the kings of the earth and the great men and the [m]commanders and the rich and the strong and every slave and free man hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains; 16 and they *said to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the [n]presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; 17 for the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
REVELATION 6:12-17
12 I looked when He broke the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood; 13 and the stars of the sky fell to the earth, as a fig tree casts its unripe figs when shaken by a great wind. 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. 15 Then the kings of the earth and the great men and the [m]commanders and the rich and the strong and every slave and free man hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains; 16 and they *said to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the [n]presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; 17 for the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
REVELATION CHAPTER 4:1-11 - JOIN US AS WE APPROACH THE THRONEROOM OF GOD WITH THE APOSTLE JOHN.
REVELATION CHAPTER SIX - WE WILL SEE OUR LORD, JESUS CHRIST, THE KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS BEGIN TO BREAK THE SEALS AND UNLEASH THE DREADED HORSEMEN!
The Rapture is one of the most taught and cherished doctrines of the body of Christ. We see our most beloved and best Bible teachers teach fervently and passionately about the rapture: Chuck Smith, Greg Laurie, Billy Graham, John MacArthur, David Jeremiah, our Pastor and countless others. The majority of Bible teachers today teach this doctrine. That is a formidable obstacle to try to manage. Who would ever think to question any of these guys? Why would you? While never truly accepting it, I never understood it either because I had no clue we were even allowed to question whether it is true or not.
- The Rapture is one of the most taught and cherished doctrines of the body of Christ. We see our most beloved and best Bible teachers teach fervently and passionately about the rapture: Chuck Smith, Greg Laurie, Billy Graham, John MacArthur, David Jeremiah, our Pastor and countless others. The majority of Bible teachers today teach this doctrine. That is a formidable obstacle to try to manage. Who would ever think to question any of these guys? Why would you? While never truly accepting it, I never understood it either because I had no clue we were even allowed to question whether it is true or not.
The Rapture is one of the most taught and cherished doctrines of the body of Christ. We see our most beloved and best Bible teachers teach fervently and passionately about the rapture: Chuck Smith, Greg Laurie, Billy Graham, John MacArthur, David Jeremiah, our Pastor and countless others. The majority of Bible teachers today teach this doctrine. That is a formidable obstacle to try to manage. Who would ever think to question any of these guys? Why would you? While never truly accepting it, I never understood it either because I had no clue we were even allowed to question whether it is true or not.
The Letter to Philadelphia7 “Write to the angel of the church in Philadelphia:
“The Holy One, the True One, the One who has the key of David, who opens and no one will close, and closes and no one opens says: 8 I know your works. Because you have limited strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name, look, I have placed before you an open door that no one is able to close. 9 Take note! I will make those from the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews and are not, but are lying—note this—I will make them come and bow down at your feet, and they will know that I have loved you. 10 Because you have kept My command to endure,[g] I will also keep you from the hour of testing that is going to come over the whole world to test those who live on the earth. 11 I am coming quickly. Hold on to what you have, so that no one takes your crown. 12 The victor: I will make him a pillar in the sanctuary of My God, and he will never go out again. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God—the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God—and My new name.
13 “Anyone who has an ear should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches". REVELATION 3:7-12
The Letter to Philadelphia7 “Write to the angel of the church in Philadelphia:
“The Holy One, the True One, the One who has the key of David, who opens and no one will close, and closes and no one opens says: 8 I know your works. Because you have limited strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name, look, I have placed before you an open door that no one is able to close. 9 Take note! I will make those from the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews and are not, but are lying—note this—I will make them come and bow down at your feet, and they will know that I have loved you. 10 Because you have kept My command to endure,[g] I will also keep you from the hour of testing that is going to come over the whole world to test those who live on the earth. 11 I am coming quickly. Hold on to what you have, so that no one takes your crown. 12 The victor: I will make him a pillar in the sanctuary of My God, and he will never go out again. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God—the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God—and My new name.
13 “Anyone who has an ear should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.
Message to Sardis3 “To the angel of the church in Sardis write:
He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, [a]but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God. 3 So remember [b]what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. 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. 4 But you have a few [c]people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments; and they will walk with Me in white, for they are worthy. 5 He who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. 6 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. Revelation 3:1-6
12 “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write:
The One who has the sharp two-edged sword says this:
13 ‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is; and you hold fast My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. 14 But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality. 15 So you also have some who in the same way hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Therefore repent; or else I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war 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, to him I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and a new name written on the stone which no one knows but he who receives it. REVELATION 2:12-17
18 “And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write:
The Son of God, who has [g]eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet are like burnished bronze, says this:
19 ‘I know your deeds, and your love and faith and service and [h]perseverance, and that your [i]deeds of late are greater than [j]at first. 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. 21 I gave her time to repent, and she does not want to repent of her immorality. 22 Behold, I will throw her [k]on a bed of sickness, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of [l]her deeds. 23 And I will kill her children with [m]pestilence, and all the churches will know that I am He who searches the [n]minds and hearts; and I will give to each one of you according to your deeds. 24 But I say to you, the rest who are in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not known the deep things of Satan, as they call them—I place no other burden on you. 25 Nevertheless what you have, hold fast until I come. 26 He who overcomes, and he who keeps My deeds until the end, to him I will give authority over the [o]nations; 27 and he shall [p]rule them with a rod of iron, as the vessels of the potter are broken to pieces, as I also have received authority from My Father; 28 and I will give him the morning star. 29 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ REVELATION 2:18-29
8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write:
The first and the last, who [e]was dead, and has come to life, says this:
8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: the first and the last, who [e]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. [f]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.’ REVELATION 2:8-11
There is a spiritual mistake many of us commit in our fervent and zealous walk with GOD…a mistake that was made all the way from Adam and Eve, to the people of Israel, to the Ephesian Church, and even stretches through the eons to our Churches today. What is that mistake?
These are not impressions or inspired applications. These are the very words of GOD HIMSELF, ALMIGHTY and SOVERIGN, speaking HIS own words for all to hear and receive. Do we truly understand that here is the Exalted, Resurrected Christ, almost 30 years after HIS life, death and Resurrection, now appears to one of HIS apostles and dictates to him a “progress report” on how HE sees the condition of HIS churches are?
Why does the LORD choose to present HIMSELF in the exact same way HE does to Daniel the Prophet? Because just like in the case of Daniel, specifically in the fulfilled prophecies in Daniel 7 through 12, GOD gives Daniel a consummately accurate (down to the minutest detail) outline of history, pertinent to the redemption purpose and narrative of GOD, an unmistakable outline of history prophesied before it took place to allow the people of Israel to be able to discern the times and epochs and recognize the coming of their MESSIAH. To ensure that believing Jews such as Simeon and Anna, and any Jew who lived for GOD by the power of the Holy Spirit, would not miss the time of “their visitation” as Jesus condemned the unbelieving Jews of doing.
It may sound strange to many of us that the “great tribulation” may be behind us. The view that it has already happened to the Jews in AD 70 was common throughout Church history, but over the last hundred years or so, many Bible-believing groups have adopted the view most of us have heard and believed most of our lives: that the great tribulation will happen to Israel (or to everyone, including Christians) in the future, and probably in the near future.
Most Dispensationalists believe that the Church will be "raptured" out of the world before the great tribulation takes place; while another segment: Post-tribulation Dispensationalists and Traditional Non-dispensational Premillennialists believe that the Church will go through the great tribulation still to take place.
Orthodox preterists believe that Jesus teaches it took place in A.D. 70, and Christians did not go through it.
we have been relentlessly taught all our Christian lives that there HAS TO BE a so-called “GREAT TRIBULATION” coming down upon the entire world in the near future. (The “near” future being over thousands of years.) A seven year tribulation the likes of which the world, or all humanity has never seen. A final, epic, and cataclysmic judgment upon the entire world for its sins and transgressions against GOD. This is our great vindication, our ultimate justification; our final “thumbing of the nose” to all those who perpetrated their evil will and lifestyles and flaunted their sins before the entire world and forced it down our collective throats. We get to have the last cosmic laugh. But...what if we have the focus all wrong?
The shocking truth we are about to carefully examine and consider is that the judgment Jesus is calling down upon “those who pierced HIM” in Revelation, is the judgment and punishment of those first century Jews who not only rejected Messiah, and demanded HIS torture and death upon a Roman cross, but also tried to wipe HIS New Testament Church off the face of the earth by any and all means necessary.
The shocking truth we are about to carefully examine and consider is that the judgment Jesus is calling down upon “those who pierced HIM” in Revelation, is the judgment and punishment of those first century Jews who not only rejected Messiah, and demanded HIS torture and death upon a Roman cross, but also tried to wipe HIS New Testament Church off the face of the earth by any and all means necessary.
WOW. This is a powerful segment of Scripture. It is almost unthinkable that this event would refer to anything but the second coming and final return of Jesus right? With phrases like “HE’s COMING in the clouds” and “EVERY eye will see HIM” and “ALL the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him” how could it possibly refer to anything else but the return of Jesus?
We see the Apostle John introduce the GOD that inspired Revelation to the entire Church. An identification that would not be mistaken or confused by any true believer. This is also how we know for a fact that the Book of Revelation is in complete agreement and harmony with the rest of the Bible. John starts off with a description of GOD that cannot be duplicated or appropriated by any other religion or spiritual construct in the entire history of the planet even until today. This is the one defining mark and the pillar of our faith: we know it as the blessed and Holy Trinity.
In the day Revelation was written, most of all, you had to know WHO you belonged to and WHY. There was no middle ground and or compromise. (Matthew 12:30) And what was at stake here? Your reputation? Your life and situation? NO. Nothing other than the Testimony of Jesus Christ.
In all centuries past, there has been almost unanimous agreement among Bible believing commentators that “this generation” means the generation of Jews who lived between AD 30 and AD 70. We know that one man for sure got to see it. A man who did not die until after AD 98, almost 30 years after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. A man who, as it happens, was referenced by Jesus when HE said to the Apostle Peter, “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow Me!” (John 21:22) That was the Apostle John. As it turns out, he did! Amen!
Everybody has an Eschatology, that is, an idea of what the future and even the end of the earth looks like. Hollywood has tried to portray their views on the end of the world and the future of humanity since the beginning. We see it all around in popular culture. In fact, the top three movie genres you will see almost endlessly produced yearly involve extraterrestrials, demonic possessions, and apocalypse themes. When the world makes predictions and gets them wrong, we just call them “kooks” and move on. When Christians get it wrong, the world doesn’t blame the Christian, it blames the GOD of the Bible. Before any Christians can call other people kooks for making false prophecies and predictions, we need to clean out and get our own house in order.
What kind of book is Revelation? Is it an epistle? Is it a prophetic book only? Is it "apocalyptic" literature? YES; all of the above. Are you reading it and understanding it like a first century Jew or a 21st century Christian?
What difference does it make anyway? Oh...just ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD. COME AND SEE.
DOES IT TRULY MATTER WHEN THE BOOK OF REVELATION WAS WRITTEN? YOU BET IT DOES. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE NON-STOP CHURNING OF FALSE PROPHECIES AND PREDICTIONS OR THE SOLID FAITH OF THE WORD OF GOD WHICH CAN NEVER BE WRONG. COME AND SEE.
How important is it that we know exactly who wrote the Book of Revelation? I submit that it is all Important! We Must know who is feeding the sheep and exactly what they are being fed. Have you ever wondered how we know whether a prophecy spoken in GOD's name is true or not? SIMPLE. GOD has always provided us the fulfillment in no uncertain terms so we don't have to run around for centuries trying to figure it out. Yet...out of every prophet and prophecy in the Scriptures, GOD allows us to run around so utterly lost, confused and chaotic concerning the greatest prophet in the Scriptures, JESUS?! Do we truly believe GOD left our LORD’s prophecies for just anyone who feels like it to come along and try to match up and determine their fulfillments by random chance, luck or coincidence for the last 2000 years? How is that working out for us?
In the next lesson we discuss the disputed authorship of Revelation and when it was truly written. Find out why this TRULY matters. Think you KNOW Revelation? COME AND SEE.
IN THIS FIRST INTRODUCTION LESSON, WE TAKE A CLOSE LOOK AT THE PROBLEM OF BIBLE TEACHERS AND AUTHORS MAKING COUNTLESS PREDICTIONS OF THE END TIMES, THE RAPTURE, THE GREAT TRIBULATION OVER THE LAST FEW CENTURIS AND HAVING THE DISTICNTION OF BEING WRONG 100% OF THE TIME. iS THE BIBLE WRONG? OR COULD IT BE THE METHODOLOGY THEY ARE USING TO INTERPRET THE BOOK OF REVELATION?