And those who had conquered the beast. Revelation 15:2-4

Posted on 11/21/2015 by remso

The Apostle John described what he saw – good news mixed with bad; bad only in the regard that those on the earth at this time will have to endure more tortuous wrath.

Question: What do you believe? If you are “non-religious” – meaning you refuse to take part in any religion, as you are a religion unto yourself, then you either have no idea what to believe; or, you merely refuse anything that conflicts with you personal moral standard. You noted that I said you are a religion unto yourself, that is because you have a moral standard upon which your personal religious system is based. To prove you have a moral standard consider a few examples and ask yourself how you would honestly react:

  • To someone raping your wife or little daughter?

  • If someone stole your drugs or personal belongings?

  • To someone trying to kill you?

Why would it matter to you? It matters because you have a moral standard and there are some things that are just not right, even to you.

The next, and obvious question is, upon whom or what do you base your moral standard, because all standards have some baseline of good. Think about a particular food you like to eat; have you had some that causes you to think back on it with fondness? Of course you have. It then becomes the standard upon which you decide if something called by the same name is good or not, because you have a baseline upon which you judge something.

Since you have a moral standard, then do you declare that standard to others? If you contrived your own standard for living, it may sound something like this, touch my stuff and I will kill you. Admittedly, there is no attractive draw to your religion, but it is a common mantra among those who also include the idea that what is yours is mine, and not surprisingly, you are found in scripture:

2 Timothy 3:1-5 ESV But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. (2) For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, (3) heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, (4) treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, (5) having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. ..”

(I wanted to sound like Norm Geisler: normangeisler.net, or Ravi Zacharias: RZIM.org, giving you a clear, profound definition, but I did not have time, nor do I have the enthusiasm to do so. I kept thinking about man left to his own inclinations, because that seems to the theme without God. Most believe that they are making the decision to be or do good on their own, however scripture does not tells us that.)

Gen 6:5-7 LITV And Jehovah saw that the evil of man was great on the earth, and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the day long. (6) And Jehovah repented that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved to His heart. (7) And Jehovah said, I will wipe off man whom I have created from the face of the earth, from man to beast, to the creeping thing and to the birds of the heavens; for I repent that I made them.

Genesis chapter 6 describes man making his own decisions, and it was not good. Sure there were exceptions, like Methuselah, Enoch, and Noah’s family. But do you realize that the entire time Noah worked on that ark he was telling people about the character of God and what was coming. They all had the option of joining him. How many followed Noah and God? NONE.

The obvious point I am making here, is that God is the moral standard, and if you were honest, you would admit that you know that. I know you know that because an aspect of the original sin was to know good and evil. Since God is good, then you do know Him and are going to be held responsible for that knowledge. Doesn’t that just suck!

God did an amazing thing for the people who walk upon this earth; since they choose to ignore his moral standard, something he knew they would do, he sent his own son to die in our place, on a cross, at the hands of the Jewish high priest, just as prophecy said he would. God had to do that because Adam, the first man, chose to flex his own moral standard and apparently tweaked our DNA in the process. From that moment forward we have all had a preference toward doing our own thing, some just take it farther than the others and in time they are killed or caught.

So this amazing, unselfish act by God, bought us out from under the penalty of that brokenness we have within us. We no longer have to pay the penalty of death for our sins (as far as God is concerned), but we now have to make a decision, what will we do with the Son who died on our behalf. We have to either accept this Jesus, as the Son, the Sacrifice, and the Savior, OR, we reject him.

And this brings me back to my question, what do you believe?

If you believe that Jesus Christ is your salvation, that is a good thing; that makes you a follower. As a follower, we have the promise that he will come again (soon) and extract those that are his out of here before God pours out his wrath upon those that have rejected Him. The bad news is that Jesus himself said that those who choose to follow him will have tribulations in this world. There is no escape from the evil that people will commit, and much of that will be in the name of their religion. And there is little relief, for most, from the pains of scratching out an existence. Yeah, I know, there are always exceptions, but the filthy rich will have their day of judgment as well – I see them described in my bible as well.

This seven years of wrath is filled not only God’s judgment being poured out on earth, but the extreme violence that man can and will perform upon their fellow-man.

In my last post I focused on verse one of Revelation 15, (NIV) “I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues–last, because with them God’s wrath is completed.” I noted that this does not give the reader any precise time frame, but if we are to read chronologically, this is a continuation of the wrath, but when it is done there will be a glorious end.

Inserted into this pain and destruction are three verses that exude God’s magnificence.

Reflection of fire in glass

Reflection of fire in glass

Rev 15:2-4 ESV And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire–and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. (3) And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations! (4) Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

This sea of glass mingled with fire might be the same as Rev 4:6 AMP And in front of the throne there was also what looked like a transparent glassy sea, as if of crystal..” However, they are clearly different in description.

“and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands.”

Who do we see standing beside the sea of glass?

“Those who had conquered the beast the and its image and the number of its name”

We need to stop and ponder this a moment. What is one of the first things prominent within this sentence?

“Those who had conquered the beast”

Why should this demand any special consideration?

  1. As followers of Christ, just as the disciples were, what is our method of operation? To answer that you need to consider what James and John were willing to do.

Luke 9:52-56 ESV And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of the Samaritans, to make preparations for him. (53) But the people did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem. (54) And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” (55) KJV But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. (56) For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.

(Take note: Infiltration and the watering down of something to the point that you no longer hold that belief tightly, but merely accept what you hear as truth, is subtle. An example of this just presented itself to me as I was looking at translations, trying to find one that clearly conveyed the destructive nature of James and John’s question, while demonstrating the character of God that Jesus was living out in front of them. If you paid attention, you noticed in the verse above that I switched translations when I got to verse fifty-five. Why do that? Because in the ESV, which I use with frequency, it merely says: “But he turned and rebuked them. (56) And they went on to another village.” Why, it might as well tell us that they stopped to pick daisies along the way. The ESV stripped the power right out of the moment, and it eliminated your ability to see the true nature of not only God, but our mission here on earth.)

A second verse to take note of comes from Matthew’s gospel.

Matthew 10:16 AMP Behold, I am sending you out like sheep in the midst of wolves; be wary and wise as serpents, and be innocent (harmless, guileless, and without falsity) as doves.

Jesus never told us to be mindless, spineless sheep. However, we do have the admonition to be wary, and strangely, wise like a serpent. Since we really only have the one serpent for an example – Satan in the garden, his actions prove that he listened and thought through some of God’s reasons for the express purpose of watering them down with some twisted logic.

(The Greek word for wise, as used by Matthew, also means thoughtful, or discreet.)

How do I apply that to my life as a believer?

Paul had something to say about that.

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 KJV (4) (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds😉 (5) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

So you are to analyze what is being said. Not only what the “world” dishes out, but anything the “Church” tosses out as truth, as well. Things sometimes sound logical. As I pointed out, this twisting of the truth worked for Satan.

(Since the church is really the people who form it, then the admonition is to pay attention to everything thrown at you. Your ability to judge quickly is in proportion to your understanding of God’s Word, and that only comes through your thoughtful reading of scripture.)

Look at what Paul says in his letter to the church in Corinth once again: “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God”

  • Casting down – is the Greek word kathaireo, and it gives us two levels of approach “to lower (or with violence) demolish”. Some things just need to be pushed down and out-of-the-way, but some ideas and teachings need to be destroyed and demolished. (This applies to the voices in your head as well.) Keep in mind that we are using God’s word as the basis for assessment, not our opinion.

  • Imaginations means to reason. No one is asking you to stop thinking. Just stop thinking on things that destroy God’s character and diminish his love for you, because God will never stop loving you, and you certainly can’t destroy his character. You take in enough garbage and you might destroy how you think about God, and your own good will toward him.

  • Every high thing – are the things man has lifted up. At least once a week I hear about a “pastor” or a collection of them, exalting some new governmental atrocity, as though God had changed His heart and we are to now accept it as normal.

  • That exalts itself against the knowledge of God – This seems to imply that it is raising itself up. The Greek word also defines the word as exalt self. Any thinking person can take this two ways, and neither are good in the context of this verse.

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 goes on to tell us to be “innocent (harmless, guileless, and without falsity) as doves.” Doves seem to do little else besides eat and make cooing sounds. The question really is, how do I blend all these attributes in one package: Wary; wise, and harmless in appearance? My answer to that question is, just allow God to deal with that in us. That is why we have His Word and the Holy Spirit – remember: the Holy Spirit will lead you and guide you into all truth.

John 16:13 KJV Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

  1. Again, our passage in Revelation 15:2 says, “Those who had conquered the beast the and its image and the number of its name”.

    Of the thousands in the Middle East who have been tortured and lost their lives, how many were victorious or conquered the beast? It is hard to perceive of any, unless of course standing their ground, and not denying the name of the Lord is really what we are talking about here.

    The problem is, the human mind does not perceive conquering in that way; it sees the beast as done away with and gone. Where is the problem with that? The problem in seeing this as a destruction of the beast lies in the fact that the beast is only truly dispatched when Jesus returns to earth and physically casts the beast and the false prophet into the lake of fire.

    What then does it mean to conquer?

    Since conquer is the Greek word nikaō / nik-ah’-o, and means to subdue (literally or figuratively): – conquer, overcome, prevail, get the victory.

    “they overcame him by the blood of the lamb and the word of their testimony”

    It becomes a little easier to see that we do something to that effect when we apply some faith to our lives.

  2. One last thing on Revelation 15:2. It speaks of conquering not just the beast, but the image, and the number of its name.

    The beast/Antichrist does not even present itself until the church is removed from the earth. Okay, fine, I will show you.

2 Thessalonians 2:7-8 ESV (7) For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. (8) And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.

[The word restrain was also translated as let or letteth. Let is old English for hinder, prevent. In Greek it is katecho and means to hold down (fast). Much like a policeman might.]

How does one conquer what they cannot see?

Let me explain. In Revelation 13 we get a tremendous amount of information, however, it is rather cryptic, and like the decoder rings we used to get as children, you have to decipher the code by going back through scripture, comparing terminology.

By the time we get to Revelation 13:11 we have already seen a multi-headed beast arise from the sea. While this aspect of the sea throws some people, by doing our homework we can figure that it merely means a vast quantity of people spread over a wide area. Verse 11 presents us with another beast, but it rises out of the earth. Again it is coming out of a people group, but the reference to earth tells us that it is from a locale. While all these things play a role, the important aspect for people living during this time period (the seven years of God’s wrath and judgment), is what it does.

Revelation 13:11-18 ESV (11) Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. (12) It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. (13) It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, (14) and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. (15) And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. (16) Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, (17) so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. (18) This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.

If I only consider the imagery of the first and second beasts I have no way of visualizing what I am looking for outside of some bizarre mythical characterization. I will give you some clues to understand this mess.

  • Beast number one – Revelation 13:1-2 GNB “… Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads; on each of its horns there was a crown, and on each of its heads there was a name that was insulting to God. (2) The beast looked like a leopard, with feet like a bear’s feet and a mouth like a lion’s mouth. The dragon gave the beast his own power, his throne, and his vast authority.” The prophet Daniel had problems with this as well, and he asked for an explanation. What he got was that it was empires, and the Babylonian empire was the first. So, in this form, it is ruling bodies or governments. Can a Caliphate fit the description of a ruling body or government? Certainly.

  • In Revelation 13:3, one of its heads sustains what the world perceives as a mortal wound. In other words the world thinks this ruling body is dead. Why would the “world” care, unless it affected their economy, or was a threat to their safety. Well there was an entity like this. It started around 640 A.D., and continued being a thorn in the world’s flesh until 1924. This was the succession of Islamic caliphates; the last being the Ottoman empire.

  • Out of this particular empire – No, scripture does not specifically label the empire, but we have some great clues – comes a spokesman, (a mouth.) This is the Antichrist we see in scripture. (A common description of this spokesman says that he makes a seven-year peace treaty with Israel, and we anticipate someone doing that. But that is not what scripture tells us. It says he makes a seven-year treaty with many. We just assumed that Israel would be included. The things that have alerted the Christian community is the fact that America leadership has turned its back on Israel, while making treaties with the sworn enemy of Israel – Iran. Someone is making treaties, for something we never thought we would see is Russia and China inserting themselves in Syria.) Some have speculated that the American President is the Antichrist. I do not think so, but the White House posted a picture on their twitter account showing Obama holding a crown, and there is a bow lying on the floor in front of his feet. This is symbology that we see in Revelation 6:2. Those that republished the photo say that it is Photoshop’ed but note that the White House may be trying to say something by publishing it.

  • The second beast – another man who quickly represents all that the beast is and wants – rises up from the earth. If we are talking about the Muslim world, then I suspect this person will come out of one of those nations.

    Numbers 24:14-23 ESV And now, behold, I am going to my people. Come, I will let you know what this people will do to your people in the latter days.” (15) And he took up his discourse and said, “The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor, the oracle of the man whose eye is opened, (16) the oracle of him who hears the words of God, and knows the knowledge of the Most High, who sees the vision of the Almighty, falling down with his eyes uncovered: (17) I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near: a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel; it shall crush the forehead of Moab and break down all the sons of Sheth. (18) Edom shall be dispossessed; Seir also, his enemies, shall be dispossessed. Israel is doing valiantly. (19) And one from Jacob shall exercise dominion and destroy the survivors of cities!” (20) Then he looked on Amalek and took up his discourse and said, “Amalek was the first among the nations, but its end is utter destruction.” (21) And he looked on the Kenite, and took up his discourse and said, “Enduring is your dwelling place, and your nest is set in the rock. (22) Nevertheless, Kain shall be burned when Asshur takes you away captive.” (23) And he took up his discourse and said, “Alas, who shall live when God does this?

     

    Moab, Edom and Sheth (people of the east). Interesting isn’t it? The prophet Isaiah also mentions Moab’s utter destruction.

    Isaiah 25:9-10 ESV It will be said on that day, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the LORD; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.” (10) For the hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain, and Moab shall be trampled down in his place, as straw is trampled down in a dunghill.

     

    So in a sense the beast out of the earth represents someone more local for the Muslim community. Therefore I expect this man coming out of the Middle East.

  • This second beast – Islam calls him Jesus, just as we do – shows up around the 1260 day mark within the time of God’s wrath. Because of the signs he performs, he is believed by many, and he causes many to convert to Islam. He will also create an image of the beast. Remember how the beast is introduced to us as a seven headed monstrosity. Since these multiple empires have a common theme, that theme may be Allah. Allah was a creation of Muhammad, therefore no one knows what he looks. Nonetheless, this “beast” makes an image, animates it, and causes everyone to worship it. Those refusing to worship the beast, and the image of the beast, and take its mark, are killed. (Pay attention to this, there are three parts to it, not just the taking of an “rfid” chip.)

Jewish high priest wearing a hoshen, and Levit...

Jewish high priest wearing a hoshen, and Levites in ancient Judah. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

So I am overcoming a beast, which I am not even sure what it looks like, and, its image and number of its name.

Because of the chronology and the known entrance of the second beast, I can guarantee that these who are portrayed as standing around the sea of glass mixed with fire, were well aware of who each of these enemies are. Since I kinda covered the image aspect in the bullet-ed overview section, I want to talk about something I noticed, and it is this phrase – the number of its name.

Our first encounter with this cryptic description is found in Revelation 13. I want you to see the typical representation first and then the Amplified because in a strange way, the Amplified may shed a little light. However I cannot explain either of these adequately, and this playing with numbers is Gematria and confusing at best.

Revelation 13:18 ESV This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.

Revelation 13:18 AMP Here is [room for] discernment [a call for the wisdom of interpretation]. Let anyone who has intelligence (penetration and insight enough) calculate the number of the beast, for it is a human number [the number of a certain man]; his number is 666.

As I pondered this phrase: “those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name,” it occurs to me that this could convey the number, in total, of those who march under the orders or name of this entity/beast. Since this verse 15:2 makes no directive to interpret “the number of its name” I felt compelled to look up the Greek words.

number – G706 – arithmos/ar-ith-mos’ – From G142; a number (as reckoned up): – number.

of his name – G3686 – onoma/on’-om-ah – From a presumed derivative of the base of G1097 (compare G3685); a ?name? (literally or figuratively), (authority, character): – called, (+ sur-) name (-d).

If the central core of the multi-headed beast we see in Revelation 13 is Islam, then the name may well be Allah and the rules of engagement come from the Qur’an. The number, and as we can see from the Greek, is a calculated quantity. The implication of that is an overwhelming quantity. Is this starting to make sense to anyone? An overwhelming quantity of people, submitted to Allah, running around the world, killing anyone who does not submit.

Wow, that sounds like Islam to me.

Ask yourself why any of this is important. If, you are a believer, and not just the person who says, “I go to church”, but you have an active exuberance for Christ. That means you personally know, the one who died on the cross and rose again, fulfilling God’s promises so that you might have an abundant life. It also means you have a lively hope in his return which is specifically to catch his church away. That catching away is intentional so that those who are part of that church, and still alive here on earth at that time would not have to go through the wrath that is coming.

If by some chance, the rapture has come and you are reading this, then know this – His love and arms are still extended to you. The Holy Spirit of God is in the earth drawing you to him. Accept his love for you, turn your life over to him, and you will be received into the kingdom. That’s the good news. The bad news is that some crazed group of people will probably kill you for taking a stance for Christ instead of the god they are pushing. Stand your ground and shortly you will find yourself standing before the one who has loved you since the beginning of time.

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What are some of the signs that tell us we are in the last days?

Posted on 11/17/2015 by remso

English: Jesus entering Jerusalem on a donkey

English: Jesus entering Jerusalem on a donkey (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Monday morning “bible” study initiated with the topic: “What are some of the signs that tell us we are in the last days?” I love introductions like this, because they can be filled with hope. However that was not the case this day. Immediately we were presented with the following scriptures: Matthew 24:14; Matthew 24:33, and Matthew 24:42-44.

Let’s start where they started.

Matthew 24:14 EMTV And this good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed in all the world for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Try to imagine where your thoughts go, when you have this verse thrown in your face by some legalistic “brother”, trying to prove that Jesus cannot come back because we know with certainty that there are 114 people groups that do not have bibles in their language. That is what I heard about a year ago. Fascinating how Iran made the bible illegal probably since 1979, and yet Jesus himself still shows up at people’s doors or in their dreams, and they know who he is. In the case of one man, Jesus showed up over the course of eight years. That man, finally getting his family out of Iran and into Rome, was handed a bible in the Persian language. The first thing he read when he opened it was Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door and I am knocking. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, then I will come into him and I will dine with him, and he with Me.” That man told me, that this is exactly what Jesus had done all those years and I would not receive him because I was a Muslim. He did come to know this Jesus and is an on-fire evangelist for God now. It was not the bible that spoke to him, it only served as a witness. It was Jesus himself doing the evangelism.

What does this say about our demand that every man gets a printed bible in their hand before the Lord can come back?

Are you not aware that an angel, or angels, will preach the gospel around the globe?

Revelation 14:6 KJV And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,

Revelation 1:7 KJV Behold, he comes with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

And although it does not speak about the angels spreading the gospel message, in Colossians Paul tells us this:

Colossians 1:23 KJV If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;

Paul unquestionably did not go to every creature, and there had not been enough time for the disciples to reach the ends of the earth by the time this letter was written. There is the possibility of an exponential explosion in the number of salvations since the day of Pentecost, but we don’t see that. What then does this say about personal responsibility, for every man has the knowledge of good and evil. What does that mean?; does that imply that God has imprinted his life and character in every man? Certainly, it does, but sometimes it seems we are only a shade above rocks on the evolutionary scale, because – having both been made by God – we humans have the ability, with our free choice, to worship, yet we reject him, while the rock, fully understanding that man corrupted the existence God put it in, can and does cry out to God for its redemption.

Look at what we see in Romans 1:18-20:.

Romans 1:18-20 KJV For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; (19) Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. (20) For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

We hold the truth unrighteousness.

That has nothing to do with a bible, it is what we are doing with an internal truth.

Did Cain, one of Adam’s sons, have a bible?

No, and yet he had a responsibility to hold the truth in righteousness.

Did he do that?

No, and out of selfishness and jealousy killed his brother Able. So, whether you have a printed copy of the scriptures in your hand or not, you will be without excuse.

The second verse that was tossed at us was this:

Matthew 24:33 ESV So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates.

This is great, but we never touched the signs or things (although we have been allegedly looking at this for several weeks) . Let’s do a quick break down.

  • Who is the “you” Jesus was talking to?

    The disciples. He is of course also speaking to us. Remember all scripture is given for our benefit. 2 Timothy 3:16

  • And they were what?

    Jews first, disciples second.

  • What was their motive for asking the questions that prompted the answers?

    The context begins in Matthew 22 where Jesus had entered triumphantly into Jerusalem, riding on the colt. Consider that the disciples had put on that colt, so the expectation was very intense for them. The people were shouting Hosanna, and the hope was that this would be the moment in time when He would show himself as the Messiah they had longed for. However he did not do that, He made a whip of cords, and threw the vendors out the court of the gentiles; and began raging at the Chief priests and elders about how they had defiled his house. This battle lasted for two days. We don’t see where the disciples had gone. Finally, the dust has settled, and they were all leaving toward the mount of Olives. It seems the disciples were a little undone by it all. Not sure what to say, one points out the structure of the temple and the massive stones by which it was built. Thus begins Jesus’ responses.

Matthew 24:2 ESV But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”

There are definite signs, and Jesus spells out almost all of them, but I will get to that later.

The third verse the leader threw out was Matthew 24: 42-44.

“Watch therefore, for you do not know in what hour your Lord is coming. (43) But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what hour the thief was coming, he would have kept watch, and he would not have allowed his house to be broken into. (44) For this reason, you also must be ready, for at an hour that you think not, the Son of Man comes.” (EMTV)

The group leader then focused on this for a moment and asked, why does God not want us to know the exact day, time, or hour?

This kind of thinking is comparable to living in the dark ages, and we are no longer there.

  • First, the question is filled with false beliefs and assumptions.

    Assumptions, because leaders will not take the time to find out if there is something that contradicts their opinion; false beliefs, because when confronted with the truth (and I have confronted them on previous occasions) they refuse to accept the truth and try to make a workaround so that they can keep their beliefs intact.

  • Secondly, if this is really the way God feels, then the answer is:

    Most likely because we have a natural tendency to be slackers. This is probably the reason that the church cannot handle talking about the freedoms we have in Christ. Think about it. If I told you how very simple it is to have this life in Christ, and that you have already been forgiven, you might choose to live a wild life with no restraints, and perhaps even not go church. What is the problem with all that? How is religion supposed to control you?

    The mornings “discussion” even ended with a loud rant about how there is not enough preaching on sin and personal responsibility these days.

In light of this, why do we foolishly take passages like Matthew 24:36 NASB “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.” A passage that was meant to explain to the disciples what the end-time salvation of the Jews would look like, and apply it to ourselves?

There is a direct answer to this fallacy:

1 Thessalonians 5:1-5 ESV (1) Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. (2) For you, yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. (3) While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. (4) But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. (5) For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness.

darkness is the Greek word skot’-os and means shadiness, obscurity, and darkness.

So, we are capable of knowing and therefore, not in the dark. As a matter of fact, we are not even in the shadows. Jesus himself gave us two huge clues, or signs if you will, about when we might expect him.

Matthew 24:32-34 ESV “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. (33) So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. (34) Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.

Israel is that fig tree and it was transplanted in 1948 (1917 if you want to use the Balfour declaration). A generation has no firm understanding of the time frame. The dictionary states A single succession in natural descent, as the children of the same parents; hence, an age. Thus we say, the third, the fourth, or the tenth generation. But it also applies to the people of the same period or living at the same time. So a child born in 1948, would today be 67 and would not have lived out all their attributed years. However, if born in 1917 they would be 98. My girlfriend’s mother is 97. Fortunately, or not, God does not seem to be too wrapped up in precise time frames (we have lived in Daniel’s seventieth week for two thousand years). I suppose since He created time that He can do what He wants with it, including making it fit His scheme of things.

If you really want to understand Matthew 24 and 25, then you need to think context.

  • Jesus was talking directly to Jews/his disciples, but he was also speaking toward a future audience, and we are that audience.

    In talking to Jewish ears he said things that their training in a synagogue would have immediately caused them to associate with scripture. Therefore it was not a mystery as we think. We just need to adjust our thinking.

    You also need to understand that prophecy to a Jew was a pattern, and therefore Jesus told them things from the prophets like Daniel, Ezekiel, Zechariah, and Jeremiah had already declared.

You, as a believer, should be aware, of what “all these things” are.

  • Matthew 24:5 False messiahs will come.

  • Matthew 24:6 Wars and rumors of wars

  • Matthew 24:7 Nations will rise against nations,

kingdom against kingdom,
earthquakes in various places,
and famines.

  • Matthew 24:9 ..they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death,

and you (the Jews and Israel) will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.

  • Matthew 24:10 And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another.

  • Matthew 24:11 And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.

    The term false prophet is a combination of Greek words, we end up with pseudoprophētēs it means, a spurious prophet, a pretended foreteller, or a religious impostor.

  • Matthew 24:12 … lawlessness will be increased,

    the love of many will grow cold.

This is a shortlist, but you should get the idea.

One aspect that keeps coming up, is the idea of apostasy.

It means an abandonment of what one has professed; a total desertion, or departure from one’s faith or religion. This can apply to government as well. Look around you, can you see this happening? I can.

If you have a desire to know this Jesus that I speak of, merely ask him into your life. He gave his life so that you could have a restored relationship with him again, and we have the promise that we will spend eternity with Him, in the presence of the Father forever. If you ask him, he will come into and wash you, heal you, and fill you with the power of his Holy Spirit. All you have to do is ask.

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A two year veteran of recovery, and battling depression

Posted on 11/16/2015 by remso

Angry Talk (Comic Style)

Angry Talk (Comic Style) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If you have followed me for any time then you know that two years ago I humbled myself and placed myself in Celebrate Recovery. I did this because I had allowed myself to become consistently enraged. Sadly, this was not something I could keep hidden, and I lost a job due to expressing my displeasure at a manager. Fortunately a friend pointed out that I needed help. Thus began a lifelong journey. I call it a lifelong journey because I really do not know anyone who has it altogether, nor do I know anyone in recovery who believes they are permanently healed. Sure, they may act like it for moments at a time, but they are merely good actors.

Part of this journey I am on included several trips to a John Eldredge inspired Band of Brothers boot camp. The idea and hope were that the camp would be life changing; while it dug up a multitude of wounds that needed attending too, the most significant thing that happened was that God directed me to a man who eventually brought me to recovery. Almost immediately I got signed up for a twelve step group. In the group, because I was challenged by a barrage of difficult and soul-searching questions, I decided that being painfully honest in my answers would be the best course of action, and bring about the best chance of healing. To be honest, the process of getting through what I thought was the only issue, took about a year. Slowly the rage began to subside, and then something overwhelming happened, I began to see all the codependent issues in me that fed the anger (I am aware that they have been there most of my life). It took my breath away.

I am now a two-year veteran of recovery, and battling depression associated with the codependency. I believe this depression, like the anger, is the result of unresolved issues, things I am powerless over. When I describe how I feel, I often feel more lost, as most have no idea what I am going through. Those that have not experienced depression will rarely be able to understand. A friend of mine recently told me that many of the things that cause us grief, are real. While that may be, I also have what I call voices in my head. These voices sound like my dad, my mom, ex wives, religious themes and in general they berate me, telling me that I am a loser, that I screwed up again, and that I have no value. The voices typically are contrary to what I see in God’s word, and they are designed to make me feel anything other than what God’s word tells me.

Just telling you about it seems to cause one of those voices to rise up, telling me that, you, the reader, will also turn against me. As I sat last evening, trying to flesh this theme out in my head, I vocalized it to my girlfriend. In doing so I said something that is probably a desperate truth – I am not alone, and God has allowed me to go through this discomfort and sometimes despair, because He believes I can handle it, and knows that I will write about it. So I quickly realized that negativity is one of those weapons we are to guard against with this shield of faith we believers wear.

Let’s talk about this armor for a moment. Instead of mentally taking it off every night as some imply they do, why not assume that it is an aspect of your life in Christ, and like a knight of something like the round table, presume that your calling and job is for life. Your armor is custom fitted and there is no need to take it off. Besides, should you need it, there is no time to redress yourself, so merely live in it. Now should you need to remind yourself that it is still on, there is no penalty, except for loud clang as the enemies arrows bang into your breastplate. Perhaps you can take that as a wake up call.

To put some reality to the voices I will give you an example. This one was inadvertently and recently added to the repertoire. I, at one of my meetings, (I am in leadership at two recovery groups) stood up along with a lady, to give out chips marking milestones in our recovery. The chip given most often is the welcome/new comer/fresh start chip. I have several of these. My addiction is no easier to overcome than the next guys, and at one point I was going on six months without getting enraged at someone. I was so proud of myself. As I sit in meetings and watch people who have been addicted to horrible things, go up and get a chip for years of sobriety, I think to myself, I want that too. Sadly, I discovered how easy it is to simply make a choice to relapse. In other words, I allowed myself the freedom to rage once again, and had to start over. I wish I could tell you what that did to my head. I was so disappointed in myself, because taking another chip indicating that you are starting over can be a humbling and difficult moment, even when people are telling you that you are exhibiting incredible bravery and demonstrating the willingness to be a victor when you do this. I believe that if your heart is right, and you want help, then yes, you just overcame once again. Back to my female partner in passing out chips. As I stopped myself from my typical impromptu speech about our choice to pick ourselves up again and move forward, I said, “and I am taking a chip to start afresh on my journey to recovery over anger.” She immediately, in front of everyone, said, “you have quite a collection of those.” Inwardly I was crushed, but outwardly I laughed it off because I am standing there now exposed in front of the group. We have talked about this, but the voice still remains, as well as my collection of chips. And though I should be picking up another blue chip, I cannot bring myself to add another to my collection just yet. In the midst of this mess – yes, I have my moments of despair – God began to speak to me. Fortunately, I am accustomed to hearing God’s voice and I recognize it; it even speaks louder than the negative voices most of the time.

Since this is actually my attempt at screwing my head back on straight I have to integrate this with scripture, and, in a sense, a bible study. So here goes.

About 38 years ago, I was angry, depressed, and drinking a lot. One day my dad asked me if I wanted to go to a men’s retreat with him. Since I knew they had a swimming pool and they feed you well, I opted to go. I think this was the first time I heard Jerry Savelle speaking. Over the years I have backed away from Jerry and others like him, but there at camp God used Jerry to get my attention. The next time he spoke I moved up to the front row. That day he compelled us to stand, act like men, and repeat what he said. It is what he had us say, and how my heart responded to it, that changed my life.

Here is a representation of what he had us verbalize:

  • I am what the Word of God says I am.

    What does that mean if you do not know what the word of God says about you. It also impacts you, because as you find out what God says about you, you begin to understand his character. Above all else, He loves you

     

  • I have been chosen by him

    You come to find out that God had his heart set upon you before the world began. You can find multiple references for this idea. 1Thessalonians 1:4,5

     

  • Made in His image

    Ephesians 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus

     

  • Because I am in him, I am holy and blameless before him.

    Colossians 1:22 ESV he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,

     

  • Adopted into the family.

    Ephesians 1:5 ESV he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,

     

  • He designed me to show his glory.

    Ephesians 1:12 ESV so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.

     

  • I have been redeemed by his blood.

    Revelation 5:9 EMTV …. because You (Jesus) were slain, and You redeemed us to God by Your blood, out of every tribe and language and people and nation;

     

  • I am not of this world.

    Ephesians 2: 1-6

     

  • All things are working together for my good

    Even if I cannot see it. Romans 8:28 EMTV And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

     

This went on for several minutes. By the time we got done I felt like I was a changed person on the inside. Although, in honesty, several years later, due to my codependency, and marital issues, I pulled away from God for about ten years, and no, they were not all good as some would say, but I can tell you that I was very much aware that God was right there waiting for me to turn around and run to him.

I hope you understand what I mean when I say, I have run into far too many pharisees in my life, therefore I always feel like I have to define everything (even to write this is partly a response to the voices in my head.) Do you see how the enemy works, because the voices sound very much like the negativity people have shoved in my face.

All of the words we said that morning were God’s words and you find an aspect of them in almost every letter Paul wrote. But Paul was not the first and only one to write like this; these words of encouragement are found in every book of the bible.

Psalms 139:1-4 MKJV To the Chief Musician, A Psalm of David. O Jehovah, You have searched me and have known me. (2) You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. (3) You search my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. (4) For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O Jehovah, You know it altogether.

Jeremiah 29:11 KJV For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

When you think about people you can look to as an example of life done right, who comes to mind? What is your basis for success? For me, they have to be people who are real, made mistakes, and yet God still loved them. Fortunately, the bible is filled with real people, who came out of very dysfunctional households, and yet God still loved them, moved through their lives, and called them a success. King David was one of those.

If you will take the time to study David’s life you will find it filled with human emotion and error. However, you find that David kept coming back to one thing, his relationship with Jehovah. He often poured out his heart with tears to the Lord, and sometimes those tears were in response to getting caught. Through it all God called him a man after His own heart, and those words are the ones that ring true to me. I am constantly asking and wondering, especially after seeing his failures, what was different about David. I believe he never stopped loving God, and therefore neither will I.

A heads up: The story of David really begins with an old but powerful prophet named Samuel. So I suggest you begin your reading in 1 Samuel 16.

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The Bible, Jesus Christ, and God. What Do Jehovah’s Witnesses Believe.

Posted on 11/14/2015 by remso

What Do Jehovah’s Witnesses Believe

The first section of the pamphlet that I want to approach is:

The Bible, Jesus Christ, and God

The Jehovah’s Witness make the statement:

“We endorse completely the apostle Peter’s testimony regarding Jesus Christ: ‘There is not another name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must get saved.’ Acts 4:12 “However, since Jesus said that he is “God’s Son” and that the “Father sent me forth,” Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that God is greater than Jesus.”

They use John 10:36, and John 6:57 to back this statement up. Here is John 10:36:

John 10:36 ESV do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’?

        • Your first question should be, who is Jesus talking to?

        • What is he talking about?

        • Thirdly, if I only worked from this verse, what does this tell me?

“him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world”

It merely points out that God purified His Son, setting him apart for some holy work. We know that the work he was set apart for was the redemption of man.

There is a context to the verse which they choose to ignore.

John 10:22-36 ESV At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, (23) and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon. (24) So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” (25) Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, (26) but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. (27) My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. (28) I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. (29) My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. (30) I and the Father are one.” (31) The Jews picked up stones again to stone him. (32) Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you going to stone me?” (33) The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God.” (34) Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said, you are gods’? (35) If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be broken— (36) do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’?

The Jews picked up stones to stone him.

The Jews then wanted to stone him.

While there are things in this passage, that some could say show that Jesus is lower than the Father, it is obvious that the Jews did not see it this way. You can see the impact of their understanding in verse 31 through 33, when they say, “you, being a man, make yourself God.” There was no denying this.

The other scripture the brochure uses to prove that Jesus was lower than God, is John 6:57, so let’s pursue that for a moment.

John 6:57 ESV As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me.

      • “As the living Father sent me”

Does this imply that Jesus is lower than the Father?

No, it only demonstrates the willingness of the Son to do the Father’s will.

John 6:57 ESV As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me.

How would someone subservient be able to say something like this?

John 6:57, this too has a context.

John 6:42-59 ESV They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” (43) Jesus answered them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. (44) No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. (45) It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me– (46) not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God; he has seen the Father. (47) Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. (48) I am the bread of life. (49) Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. (50) This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. (51) I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” (52) The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” (53) So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. (54) Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. (55) For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. (56) Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. (57) As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. (58) This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” (59) Jesus said these things in the synagogue, as he taught at Capernaum.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses only choose to use verse 57, and yet that verse states that the Father sent me. Jesus told them that he lives because of the Father, and whoever feeds on him, Jesus, will also live. How could that be if Jesus was anything less than the Father.

As I said, their brochure states: “Jesus himself acknowledged: “the Father is greater than I am.” At this point they reference John 14:28; John 8:28.

John 14:28 ESV You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.

If again, we are only allowed to consider one aspect of the context, it would be rather condemning, and in the favor of JW logic.

What then is the context? The context begins in the 13th chapter of John. He has told them he is going away and they are coming undone with the grief and thought of losing him.

The response is rather long, but begins with:

John 13:30-33 ESV So, after receiving the morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night. (31) When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. (32) If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once. (33) Little children, yet a little while I am with you. You will seek me, and just as I said to the Jews, so now I also say to you, ‘Where I am going you cannot come.’

Peter asked :

John 13:36 ESV .. “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you will follow afterward.”

Thomas, as one might expect, expressed his doubts:

John 14:5-7 ESV .. “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” (6) Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (7) If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.“

Philip added:

John 14:8-9 ESV .. “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” (9) Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

In Jesus responses to Thomas and Philip, he states very clearly:

  • “If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

  • “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.”

  • However, the phrase that seems to shoot right by everyone, comes in John 14:6 where Jesus, in response to Thomas (and not just Thomas, for he wanted all of those within earshot to hear this) says, “I AM …”

    Those two words spoke volumes. They are the same two words he said when the temple guards came to take him in the garden that night. When He spoke those words at them they all fell backwards due to the power in the words coming out of the mouth of God. I AM; the Greek words ego eimi barely mean anything to us Goyim/gentiles, but to the Jews hearing this they knew immediately what he was trying to convey. Ego means I. There is no manipulation or subservience implied, and Eimi conveyed I exist (used only when emphatic): – I am, and have been. This so called blasphemy was the motivation of the Jews, on several occasions, to attempt to stone Jesus.

If the Jehovah’s Witness had read the entirety of John 13 and 14, we would not be having this conversation.

The writer of Hebrews tells us:

Hebrews 1:1-10 ESV Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, (2) but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. (3) He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, (4) having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. (5) For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”? Or again, “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son”? (6) And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.” (7) Of the angels he says, “He makes his angels winds, and his ministers a flame of fire.” (8) But of the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom. (9) You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.” (10) And, “You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands;

As you can see in verse six, “And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.” It is clear that there had been a shift, and for a time, Jesus had set aside who he was, but for a specific purpose.

Did Jesus put himself in a subservient position? Certainly!

Philippians 2:5-10 ESV Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, (6) who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, (7) but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. (8) And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (9) Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, (10) so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

Jesus voluntarily set aside who he was and became obedient even to the death on the cross. All this was done to rescue mankind. Corrupted by the fall of Adam, all are and were born into sin, but Christ’s obedience to the cross covered that debt and therefore none will be judged and excluded from God’s presence because of sin. You will however be judged based upon what did with Jesus – Did you accept him or reject him. If you reject him then you might as well have put him on the cross yourself. To accept him as your life means to gain a permanent relationship with the Father once again. Hence we have the story of the prodigal son. A story that ends showing us the Father, standing, watching, and waiting for us to return to a relationship we once had. Upon the sons return there is a complete restoration, just as there will be for us. No manipulation, no threats, and no subservient roles, just full restoration of all things as the Father, who wishes nothing but peace, love and relationship for us.

Is this a New Testament, corrupted christian concept?

Not hardly, we find this in the Psalms of David, where he describes what is to come.

Psalms 40:6-8 KJV Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required. (7) Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, (8) I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.

In speaking of Jesus Christ, the son that was to come – he did come by the way – the Prophet Isaiah under inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God, said this:

Isaiah 9:6-7 KJV For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. (7) Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

Did you catch that. His name, Jesus, will be called, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Not only is it his name, but it is His kingdom.

In trying to prove their point, the brochure continued by using John 8:28.

John 8:28 KJV Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.

One does not have to think hard or look far to debunk this passage as demonstrating Jesus as subservient, for the answers lie in the passage itself.

  • “ When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am” Once again, we have the phrase ego eimi. A dominant and emphatic declaring that he was and is the all existent one.

  • Should you wish to use “ I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me” to make your point, then consider that made himself willing and subject to the path it took to get to the cross. In so doing he showed us what willingness looks like. He, by the way, is sitting once again on the throne.

The next paragraph, and I will end here because this could go on all day, states:

“Thus we do not believe that Jesus is equal with the Father, as the Trinity doctrine says. Rather, we believe that he was created by God and that he is subordinate to Him.”

They reference: Colossians 1:15; 1 Corinthians 11:3. So let’s have a look:

Colossians 1:15 KJV Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

How do you argue by working from the middle of the paragraph? I know who this person is that is being referenced, it is Jesus.

Matthew 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

Matthew 2:13-15 KJV And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. (14) When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: (15) And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.

A created being, like an angel, is not, and cannot be a son. Son’s are born of the Father. If Jesus was not the Son, then why did Satan, a created being, even bother to test the concept with Jesus. The logic of the Jehovah’s Witness argument is not even sound.

Matthew 4:1-4 MKJV Then Jesus was led by the Spirit up into the wilderness, to be tempted by the Devil. (2) And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He was afterwards hungry. (3) And when the tempter came to Him, he said, If You are the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. (4) But He answered and said, It is written, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.”

Clearly demons have more sense than the Jehovah’s Witnesses, for even they recognized that Jesus was the Son of God.

Matthew 8:28-29 MKJV And when He had come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, two demon-possessed ones met Him, coming out of the tombs, exceedingly fierce, so that no one might pass by that way. (29) And behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with You, Jesus, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?

I have intentionally avoided the statements Jesus made of himself, in which he called himself, the Son of man. Theologically I can think this through and see that an aspect of the statement entails his voluntarily giving himself to pay the debt for mankind; that could only happen through a sinless man. Since mankind sustained some aspect that corrupted us all, and it was passed through the seed, then we had to have God interacting with a virgin, thus bypassing the corruption passed through the seed. Because of this Jesus was fully man, without the inherited corruption, making him sinless, and at the same time, God’s Son. God’s Son walked this earth as a man; subject to every temptation, as we are.

However, this simple man, forgave sins, and even the Jews were smart enough to realize that only God could do that. What does that tell you?

Matthew 9:6 MKJV But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins, then He said to the paralytic, Arise, take up your bed and go to your house.

One of my commentaries states: “Jewish teachers knew that only God could ultimately forgive (on the Day of Atonement in response to sacrifice); but they also recognized that healing ultimately came from God as well. Josephus shows us that many false prophets in Jesus’ day claimed to work miracles but actually failed to work them; some of Jesus’ critics may have placed him in this category. His act in front of these witnesses, however, should have challenged them to reconsider their case.” So, once again, Jesus made it known that he was God.

Let me reiterate that the belief of the Jehovah’s Witness is that Jesus is subordinate to God, and not a part of the trinity doctrines. The last verse they use to make this straight in our heads as they pound on our doors is:

1 Corinthians 11:3 MKJV (3) But I would have you know that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.

Ah, how refreshing, the head of Christ is God.

I need to make a couple of points here. Even though I used it before, it speaks clearly toward this.

Hebrews 1:1-6 MKJV God, who at many times and in many ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, (2) has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds, (3) who being the shining splendor of His glory, and the express image of His essence, and upholding all things by the word of His power, through Himself cleansing of our sins, He sat down on the right of the Majesty on high, (4) being made so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. (5) For to which of the angels did He say at any time, “You are My Son, this day I have begotten You?” And again, “I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son?” (6) And again, when He brings in the First-born into the world, He says, “And let all the angels of God worship Him.”

  • Even if he is a subservient Son, God has “appointed (him) heir of all things,”
  • Through this subservient Son, “He made the worlds”. Should choose not to buy into this, then allow me to rock your boat with this – John 1:1-4 MKJV “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (2) He was in the beginning with God. (3) All things came into being through Him, and without Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being. (4) In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.”
  • Hebrews 1:3 ESV He (Jesus) is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
  • Hebrews 1:3 ESV He (Jesus) is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

No angel has ever made purification for sins, that was placed upon man because of his sins. Since Christ was sin free, he obviously did not do that for himself, but did it for us, and, we are told that he offered his own blood upon the altar for those sins.

    • Clearly something horrific happened. Scripture tells us that Jesus became sin. That is quite a step beyond merely acting as a high priest on our behalf. Hanging on that cross he said, my God why have you forsaken me. We are told that God cannot look upon sin, this is evidenced by priests actions under the law. Since Christ, the Son of God became sin, then something had to change, and you see this here in Hebrews when God says, You are My Son, this day I have begotten You?” And again, “I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son?” (6) And again, when He brings in the First-born into the world, He says, “And let all the angels of God worship Him.”

What we fail to grasp is that though fully man, and fully God, Jesus has continued in his willingness to be the visible representation of God in a mans body.

How do I know that? Because after the grave he came to his disciples, who in their discouragement had returned to fishing. He called to them, cooked for them, ate with them, and yet could walk through walls and appear suddenly without having walked to get there.

As for the false Trinity Doctrine. This is not Christianity’s idea, it is God’s, for his name from the beginning of time has been ‘ĕlôhı̂ym, and Elohim conveys the thought of plurality. Since we understand that the Holy Spirit is included, then the team has always been the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

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Those who had conquered the beast. Revelation 15:2

Posted on 11/05/2015 by remso

The Apostle John described what he saw – good news mixed with bad; bad only in the regard that those on the earth at this time will have to endure more tortuous wrath.

Question: What do you believe? If you are “non-religious” – meaning you refuse to take part in any religion, as you are a religion unto yourself, then you either have no idea what to believe; or, you merely refuse anything that conflicts with you personal moral standard. You noted that I said you are a religion unto yourself, that is because you have a moral standard upon which your personal religious system is based. To prove you have a moral standard consider a few examples and ask yourself how you would honestly react:

  • To someone raping your wife or little daughter?

  • If someone stole your drugs or personal belongings?

  • To someone trying to kill you?

Why would it matter to you? It matters because you have a moral standard and there are some things that are just not right, even to you.

The next, and obvious question is, upon whom or what do you base your moral standard, because all standards have some baseline of good. Think about a particular food you like to eat; have you had some that causes you to think back on it with fondness? Of course you have. It then becomes the standard upon which you decide if something called by the same name is good or not, because you have a baseline upon which you judge something.

Since you have a moral standard, then do you declare that standard to others? If you contrived your own standard for living, it may sound something like this, touch my stuff and I will kill you. Admittedly, there is no attractive draw to your religion, but it is a common mantra among those who also include the idea that what is yours is mine.

(I wanted to sound like Norm Geisler: normangeisler.net, or Ravi Zacharias: RZIM.org, giving you a clear, profound definition, but I did not have time, nor do I have the enthusiasm to do so. I kept thinking about man left to his own inclinations, because that seems to the theme without God. Most believe that they are making the decision to be or do good on their own, however scripture does not tells us that.)

Gen 6:5-7 LITV And Jehovah saw that the evil of man was great on the earth, and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the day long. (6) And Jehovah repented that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved to His heart. (7) And Jehovah said, I will wipe off man whom I have created from the face of the earth, from man to beast, to the creeping thing and to the birds of the heavens; for I repent that I made them.

Genesis chapter 6 describes man making his own decisions, and it was not good. Sure there were exceptions, like Methuselah, Enoch, and Noah’s family. But do you realize that the entire time Noah worked on that ark he was telling people about the character of God and what was coming. They all had the option of joining him. How many followed Noah and God? NONE.

The obvious point I am making here, is that God is the moral standard, and if you were honest, you would admit that you know that. I know you know that because an aspect of the original sin was to know good and evil. Since God is good, then you do know Him and are going to be held responsible for that knowledge. Doesn’t that just suck!

God did an amazing thing for the people who walk upon this earth; since they choose to ignore his moral standard, something he knew they would do, he sent his own son to die in our place, on a cross, at the hands of the Jewish high priest, just as prophecy said he would. God had to do that because Adam, the first man, chose to flex his own moral standard and apparently tweaked our DNA. From that moment forward we all had a preference toward doing our own thing, some just take it farther than the others and in time they are killed or caught.

So this amazing, unselfish act by God, bought us out from under the penalty of that brokenness we have within us. We no longer have to pay the penalty of death for our sins (as far as God is concerned), but we now have to make a decision, what will we do with the Son who died on our behalf. We have to either accept this Jesus, as the Son, the Sacrifice, and the Savior, OR, we reject him.

And this brings me back to my question, what do you believe?

If you believe that Jesus Christ is your salvation, that is a good thing, that makes you a follower, and as a follower, we have the promise that he will come again (soon) and extract those that are his out of here before God pours out his wrath upon those that have rejected Him. The bad news is that Jesus himself said that those who choose to follow him will have tribulations in this world. There is no escape from the evil that people will commit, and much of that will be in the name of their religion. And there is little relief, for most, from the pains of scratching out an existence. Yeah, I know, there are always exceptions, but the filthy rich will have their day of judgment as well – I see them described in my bible as well.

In my last post I focused on verse one of Revelation 15, (NIV) “I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues–last, because with them God’s wrath is completed.” I noted that this does not give the reader any precise time frame, but if we are to read chronologically, this is a continuation of the wrath, but when it is done there will be a glorious end.

This seven years of wrath if filled not only God’s judgment being poured out on earth, but the extreme violence that man can and will do upon their fellow-man.

Inserted into this pain and destruction are three verses that exude God’s magnificence.

Rev 15:2-4 ESV And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire–and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. (3) And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations! (4) Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

Reflection of fire in glass

Reflection of fire in glass

This sea of glass mingled with fire might be the same as Rev 4:6 AMP And in front of the throne there was also what looked like a transparent glassy sea, as if of crystal..” However, they are clearly different in description.

“and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands.”

Who do we see standing beside the sea of glass?

“Those who had conquered the beast the and its image and the number of its name”

We need to stop and ponder this a moment. What is one of the first things prominent within this sentence?

“Those who had conquered the beast”

Why should this demand any special consideration?

  1. As followers of Christ, just as the disciples were, what is our method of operation? To answer that you need to consider what James and John were willing to do.

Luke 9:52-56 ESV And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of the Samaritans, to make preparations for him. (53) But the people did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem. (54) And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” (55) KJV But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. (56) For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.

(Take note: Infiltration and the watering down of something to the point that you no longer hold that belief tightly, but merely accept what you hear as truth, is subtle. An example of this just presented itself to me as I was looking at translations, trying to find one that clearly conveyed the destructive nature of James and John’s question, while demonstrating the true nature and character of God – that Jesus was living out in front of them. If you paid attention, you noticed in the verse above that I switched translations when I got to verse fifty-five. Why do that? Because in the ESV, which I use with frequency, it merely says: “But he turned and rebuked them. (56) And they went on to another village.” Why, it might as well tell us that they stopped to pick daisies along the way. The ESV stripped the power right out of the moment, and it eliminated your ability to see the true nature of not only God, but our mission here on earth.)

A second verse to take note of comes from Matthew’s gospel.

Matthew 10:16 AMP Behold, I am sending you out like sheep in the midst of wolves; be wary and wise as serpents, and be innocent (harmless, guileless, and without falsity) as doves.

Jesus never told us to be mindless, spineless sheep. We do however have the admonition to be wary, and strangely, wise like a serpent. Since we really only have the one serpent for an example – Satan in the garden, his actions prove that he listened and thought through some of God’s reasons for the purpose of watering them down with some twisted logic.

(The Greek word for wise, as used by Matthew, also means thoughtful, or discreet.)

How do I apply that to my life as a believer?

Paul had something to say about that.

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 KJV (4) (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds😉 (5) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

So you are to analyze what is being said. Not only what the “world” dishes out, but anything the “Church” tosses out as truth, as well. Things sometimes sound logical. As I pointed out, this twisting of the truth worked for Satan.

(Since the church is really the people that comprise it, then the admonition is to pay attention to everything thrown at you. Your ability to judge quickly is in proportion to your understanding of God’s Word, and that only comes through your thoughtful reading of scripture.)

Look at the words again: “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God”

  • Casting down – is the Greek word kathaireo, and it gives us two levels of approach “to lower (or with violence) demolish”. Some things just need to be pushed down and out-of-the-way, but some ideas and teachings need to be destroyed and demolished. Keep in mind that we are using God’s word as the basis for assessment, not our opinion.

  • Imaginations means to reason. No one is asking you to stop thinking. Just stop thinking on things that destroy God’s character and diminish his love for you, because God will never stop loving you, and you certainly can’t destroy his character. You take in enough garbage and you might destroy how you think about God, and your own good will toward him.

  • Every high thing – are the things man has lifted up. At least once a week I hear about a “pastor” or a collection of them, exalting some new governmental atrocity, as though God had changed His heart and we are to now accept it as normal.

  • That exalts itself against the knowledge of God – This seems to imply that it is raising itself up. The Greek word also defines the word as exalt self. Any thinking person can take this two ways, and neither are good in the context of this verse.

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 goes on to tell us to be “innocent (harmless, guileless, and without falsity) as doves.” Doves seem to do little else besides eat and make cooing sounds. The question really is, how do I blend all these attributes in one package: Wary; wise, and harmless in appearance? My answer to that question is, just allow God to deal with that in us. That is why we have His Word and the Holy Spirit – remember: the Holy Spirit will lead you and guide you into all truth.

John 16:13 KJV Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

  1. Again, our passage in Revelation 15:2 says, “Those who had conquered the beast the and its image and the number of its name”.

    Of the thousands in the Middle East who have been tortured and lost their lives, how many were victorious or conquered the beast? It is hard to perceive of any, unless of course standing their ground, and not denying the name of the Lord is really what we are talking about here.

    The problem is, the human mind does not perceive conquering in that way; it sees the beast as done away with and gone. Where is the problem with that? The problem in seeing this as a destruction of the beast lies in the fact that the beast is only truly dispatched when Jesus returns to earth and physically casts the beast and the false prophet into the lake of fire.

    What then does it mean to conquer?

    Since conquer is the Greek word nikaō / nik-ah’-o, and means to subdue (literally or figuratively): – conquer, overcome, prevail, get the victory.

    It becomes a little easier to see that we do something to that effect when we apply some faith to our lives.

  2. One last thing on Revelation 15:2. It speaks of conquering not just the beast, but the image, and the number of its name.

    The beast does not even present itself until the church is removed from the earth. Okay, fine, I will show you.

2 Thessalonians 2:7-8 ESV (7) For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. (8) And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.

[The word restrain was also translated as let or letteth. Let is old English for hinder, prevent. In Greek it is katecho and means to hold down (fast). Much like a policeman might.]

How does one conquer what they cannot see?

Let me explain. In Revelation 13 we get a tremendous amount of information, however, it is rather cryptic, and like the decoder rings we used to get as children, you have to decipher the code by going back through scripture, comparing terminology.

By the time we get to Revelation 13:11 we have already seen a multi-headed beast arise from the sea. While this aspect of the sea throws some people, by doing our homework we find that it merely means a vast quantity of people spread over a wide area. Verse 11 presents us with another beast, but it rises out of the earth. Again it is coming out of a people group, but the earth tells us that it is from a locale. While these things play a role, the important for people living during this time period (the seven years of God’s wrath and judgment) is what it does.

Revelation 13:11-18 ESV (11) Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. (12) It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. (13) It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, (14) and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. (15) And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. (16) Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, (17) so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. (18) This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.

If I only consider the imagery of the first and second beasts I have no way of visualizing what I am looking for outside of some bizarre mythical characterization. I will give you some clues to understand this mess.

  • Beast number one – Revelation 13:1-2 GNB “… Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads; on each of its horns there was a crown, and on each of its heads there was a name that was insulting to God. (2) The beast looked like a leopard, with feet like a bear’s feet and a mouth like a lion’s mouth. The dragon gave the beast his own power, his throne, and his vast authority.” The prophet Daniel had problems with this as well and he asked for an explanation. What he got was that it was empires and the Babylonian empire was the first. So, in this form, it is ruling bodies or governments.

  • In Revelation 13:3, one of its heads sustains what the world perceives as a mortal wound. In other words the world thinks this ruling body is dead. Why would the “world” care, unless it affected their economy, or was a threat to their safety. Well there was an entity like this. It started around 640 A.D., and continued being a thorn in the world’s flesh until 1924. This was the Islamic caliphates; the last being the Ottoman empire.

  • Out of this particular empire – No, scripture does not specifically label the empire, but we have some great clues – comes a spokesman, (a mouth.) This is the Antichrist we see in scripture. (A common description of this spokesman says that he makes a seven-year peace treaty with Israel, and therefore we look for someone to do that. But that is not what scripture tells us. It says he makes a seven-year treaty with many. We just assumed that Israel would be included. The things that have alerted the Christian community is the fact that America leadership has turned its back on Israel, while making treaties with the sworn enemy of Israel – Iran. Someone is making treaties for something we never thought we would see is Russia and China inserting themselves in Syria.) Some have speculated that the American President Obama is the Antichrist. I do not think so, but the White House posted a picture on their twitter account showing Obama holding a crown, and there is a bow lying on the floor in front of his feet. This is symbology that we see in Revelation 6:2. Those that republished the photo say that it is photoshop’d but note that the White House may be trying to say something by publishing it.

  • The second beast – another man who quickly represents all that the beast is and wants – rises up from the earth. If we are talking about the Muslim world, then I suspect this person will come out of one of those nations. So in a sense the beast out of the earth represents someone more local for the Muslim community. Therefore I anticipate this man coming out of the Middle East.

  • This second beast – Islam calls him Jesus, just as we do – shows up around the 1260 day mark of the time of God’s wrath. Because of the signs he performs, he is believed by many, and he causes many to convert to Islam. He will also create an image of the beast. Remember how the beast is introduced to us as a seven headed monstrosity. Since these multiple empires have a common theme, that theme may be Allah. Allah was a creation of Muhammad, therefore no one knows what he looks like either. Nonetheless, this “beast” makes an image, animates it, and causes everyone to worship it. Those refusing to worship the beast, the image, and take its mark, are killed.

So I am overcoming a beast, which I am not even sure what it looks like, and, its image and number of its name.

Because of the chronology and the known entrance of the second beast, I can guarantee that these who are portrayed as standing around the sea of glass mixed with fire, were well aware of who each of these enemies are. Since I kinda covered the image aspect in the bullet-ed overview section, I want to talk about something I noticed, and it is this phrase – the number of its name.

Our first encounter with this cryptic description is found in Revelation 13. I want you to see the typical representation first and then the Amplified because in a strange way, the Amplified may shed a little light. However I cannot explain either of these adequately, and this playing with numbers is Gematria and confusing at best.

Revelation 13:18 ESV This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.

Revelation 13:18 AMP Here is [room for] discernment [a call for the wisdom of interpretation]. Let anyone who has intelligence (penetration and insight enough) calculate the number of the beast, for it is a human number [the number of a certain man]; his number is 666.

As I pondered this phrase: “those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name,” it occurs to me that this could convey the number, in total, of those who march under the orders or name of this entity/beast. Since this verse 15:2 makes no directive to interpret “the number of its name” I felt compelled to look up the Greek words.

number

G706 – arithmos/ar-ith-mos’

From G142; a number (as reckoned up): – number.

of his name

G3686 – onoma/on’-om-ah

From a presumed derivative of the base of G1097 (compare G3685); a ?name? (literally or figuratively), (authority, character): – called, (+ sur-) name (-d).

If the central core of the multi-headed beast we see in Revelation 13 is Islam, then the name may well be Allah and the rules of engagement come from the Qur’an. The number, and as we can see from the Greek, is a calculated quantity. The implication of that is an overwhelming quantity. Is this starting to make sense to anyone? An overwhelming quantity of people, submitted to Allah, running around the world, killing anyone who does not submit.

Wow, that sounds like Islam to me.

Ask yourself why any of this is important. If, you are a believer, and not just the person who says, “I go to church”, but you have an active exuberance for Christ. That means you personally know, the one who died on the cross and rose again, fulfilling God’s promises so that you might have an abundant life. It also means you have a lively hope in his return which is specifically to catch his church away. That catching away is intentional so that those who are part of that church, and still alive here on earth at that time would not have to go through the wrath that is coming.

If by some chance, the rapture has come and you are reading this, then know this – His love and arms are still extended to you. The Holy Spirit of God is in the earth drawing you to him. Accept his love for you, turn your life over to him, and you will be received into the kingdom. That’s the good news. The bad news is that some crazed group of people will probably kill you for taking a stance for Christ instead of the god they are pushing. Stand your ground and shortly you will find yourself standing before the one who has loved you since the beginning of time.

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“for with them the wrath of God is finished.” Revelation 15:1

Posted on 10/22/2015 by remso

Seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished.

This may not be as exciting as some of my other posts, but I wanted to continue to migrate through Revelation. I am disregarding the admonition I got from Bible Study Fellowship, that “no one really understands the Revelation.” While that may be true, I refuse to accept that. I believe that the Revelation was meant to be understood, even more so today, and, If I approach the book with the attitude that I can understand it, then I will be ahead of the game.

I got some good news, and some bad news. Which do you want to hear first? That always cracks me up when my grandson says it. It does not matter what you say, he is going to tell you what he wanted you to hear. 

  • seven angels with seven plagues

  • which are the last

  • for with them the wrath of God is finishedWoe to the inhabiters

Revelation 15:1 ESV Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished.

Is this the same as what we see in Revelation 8?

Revelation 8:7 ESV The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed hail and fire, mixed with blood, and these were thrown upon the earth. And a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.

There are seven angels once again, but no it is not. In Revelation 8:7 the destruction is announced with trumpets; for now we are looking at seven golden vials, and this is seen in Revelation 15:7.

Just to make the statement, “Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished”, could give one the impression that the fury of God was just getting started. It started alright – we saw that back in chapter six – but now it will end; when it will end is not that clear because God does not give us calendar dates to go by.

“Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished.”

Another sign – allos – a different sign, different from the others.

in heaven, – ouranos – the sky

great – megas – exceedingly big

and marvellous (amazing), – thaumastos – wondered at, causing amazement joined with terror. In 1 Peter 2:9, Peter used this word thaumastos when he said, “we were called out of darkness into his marvellous light”. We were called into a light that we will look on in wonder.

“another sign in heaven, …, seven angels with seven plagues,”

Seven angels, with seven plagues, filling the sky with such a display that you stand in awe trying to take it in. The oddity is, what they bring is not good, and yet is an indicator of the end of God’s wrath being poured out upon Israel, and the nations.

Consider that phrase for a moment – The end of wrath (how my hearts longs for an end to the violence and we, here in America, do not even know what violence looks like) – and yet, when Jesus returns to earth (physically) he comes with a sword and an army. At that time the blood of those who withstand him, will flow in the streets. Is that not an aspect of his wrath? Perhaps, however I cannot exclude this scenario from the wrath, yet at this point it is directed at those who are specifically fighting against Yahweh.

So many want proof that I am not just making up these concepts, and others have deeply ingrained misunderstandings, refusing to accept truth, even if they are shown from the Word, but here goes any way.

Rev 19:19-21 ESV And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. (20) And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. (21) And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

Pay attention to the words – “the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army.” So we are seeing Christ and the armies of heaven, coming against armies amassed against him. Verse 21 tells us that the armies are the slain.

We see in Zechariah 14:16 ESV – “Then everyone who survives of all the nations that have come against Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Booths.”

This particular battle, Armageddon, does not eliminate everyone, and we know this because we see survivors among the nations who are made to come every year and take part in the feast of Tabernacles. They are made to bow. Refusal costs you the rain, and a second refusal ends in a plague that consumes you almost instantly.

There are so many other scriptures that I can give you to show that there are many that are deemed without the Lord, that go into the millennium.

His name is Jesus. He will either return shortly, for those who await him, or you can be caught up in the wrath poured out upon the nations and Israel. I would get to know him now, while we still have his grace being poured out upon the earth. Ask him to make himself real to you. It’s like reserving your seat early.


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The question was asked, is the Holy Spirit still involved in the earth after the rapture.

Posted on 10/13/2015 by remso

“Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way.”

The question was asked, is the Holy Spirit still involved in the earth after the rapture.

2 Thessalonians 2:7-8 ESV (7) For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. (8) And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.

While many translate this passage with the word “he”, that word improperly conveys the sense that we need to understand.

Dake’s commentary tells us: “The only argument used to prove that Holy Spirit is the hinderer of this passage is the pronoun he. It is believed that the church could not be referred to as he because it is the bride of Christ; that the church is spoken of as a virgin, a woman, and that it is referred to by feminine pronouns.

On the Contrary, the Church is:

  1. Not referred to by feminine pronouns

  2. Never symbolized by a woman

  3. Never called the bride of Christ

    Revelation 21:9-10 ESV Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” (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,

  4. The church is called a man

    Ephesians 2:14-15 ESV For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility (15) by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace,

    Ephesians 4:13 ESV until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,

  5. The body of Christ

    1 Corinthians 12:12-13 KJV (12) For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. (13) For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

    1 Corinthians 12:27 KJV (27) Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.

    Ephesians 1:22-23 KJV And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, (23) Which is his body, the fullness of him that fills all in all.

    Colossians 1:18 KJV And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

    Colossians 1:24 KJV Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

Since we are “in Christ”, then it safe to assume that as he is, so are we in this world, and Christ is a man. Yes, I realize that this is a simple answer but to the educated with a Berean attitude, it works.

Dake’s conclusion, and mine:

The hinderer of lawlessness must therefore refer to the Church being taken out of the world.

2 Thessalonians 2:6-7 Murdock (6) And now, ye know what hinders his being manifested in his time. (7) For the mystery of the evil One already begins to be operative: and only, if that which now hinders shall be taken from the midst;

Now, there is no denying the Holy Spirit plays a role in empowering those who are willing to do battle against a formidable opponent, but it is possible, and you are not alone; there are others like you, with a comparable spirit and they are standing with you against the enemy being unleashed in full force.

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSewiB8O18Ty_cAcBTsPzwI9iHRvyeLGAqtA87SGktBC2j0Jbs9AA

The Holy Spirit like a dove

Just because the Church gets removed from the earth does not mean that the Holy Spirit gets removed as well. Allow me to make my point.

Peter stood on the day of Pentecost and quoted from Joel chapter 2. He did not quote the entire chapter, it was not pertinent, but there was certainly a context even to what he quoted, and yet by unction of the Holy Spirit he stated that this prophecy had been fulfilled in the hearing of the Jews and visitors in Jerusalem that day. What did he say?

Joel 2:28-29 ESV “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. (29) Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit.

Is this what we see today, God pouring out his spirit upon all flesh? It does not seem like here in America, but it is happening, as Muslims are coming to Jesus in record numbers.

What then is the context of Joel 2?

Joel 2:1-2 ESV Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near, (2) a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful people; their like has never been before, nor will be again after them through the years of all generations.

Joel 2:10 ESV The earth quakes before them; the heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.

Joel 2:30-31 ESV “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. (31) The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes.

What the Prophet Joel spoke of is the end of time; the time of judgment upon the earth. Considering the number of volcanoes spewing columns of smoke into the air, and smog so bad that many Chinese cannot even see the sun, where are we in this time-table?

Since the Holy Spirit saw fit to use the Hebrew for the Holy Spirit (ruach) wouldn’t it be appropriate to think that the Holy Spirit continues doing its work during the seven-years of wrath as well, and we can see this in Zechariah’s prophecy.

Zechariah made an interesting prophecy:

Zechariah 12:10 ESV “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.”

When the Jews put him on the cross, did they mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, or over a firstborn? No, they mocked and laughed him to scorn. So obviously Zechariah is talking about the end of time, when they shall physically see him once again.

What is it that causes them to mourn? It is a spirit of grace and mercy. Does that come from anything other than the Holy Spirit? No. Isaiah the prophet used the word ruach as well.

Isaiah 59:21 ESV “And as for me, this is my covenant with them,” says the LORD: “My Spirit that is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your offspring, or out of the mouth of your children’s offspring,” says the LORD, “from this time forth and forevermore.”

As convincingly as we discovered that it is the Church that hinders the Antichrist from erupting upon the world, we find that the Holy Spirit of God is still a vital aspect of the end times. There are examples to be found showing people being drawn to God, the Father.

John 6:44 ESV No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.

I can hear the whining now, “You said the Holy Spirit is an aspect of the end times, and yet you are talking about ‘the Father who sent me’ drawing them.” Let me ask you, how many names does the Father have? In Genesis 1:1 he is called Elohim.

‘ĕlôhı̂ym – el-o-heem’ – Plural of H433; gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God.

So God, the Father is a plural God, therefore He sent the Holy Spirit, and we know that because people are still drawn to the Father.

We try to attribute the drawing to an act of the Holy Spirit, but search for that combination of words and you will not find it. You will however find things like:

John 12:32 KJV And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.

Now we have two references of being drawn and they are both from John’s gospel. One speaks of Jesus doing the drawing, while the other speaks of God the Father doing the drawing.

Now which is it?

1 John 5:8 BBE There are three witnesses, the Spirit, the water, and the blood: and all three are in agreement.

Jesus said, “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.” So this goes for the Spirit as well. They are in complete unity and operation.

Avoid the time of wrath if you can, enlist now. Romans 10:9 ESV because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

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To every nation and tribe and language and people. Revelation 14:6-7

Posted on 10/10/2015 by remso


One of the aspects of Revelation chapter 14 is the feeling that we have been thrown back to minutes after the rapture once again.

Why would I say that?

Because if you walked through chapter 13 with me, then you saw the beasts come full force against Israel and the world. The timing of chapter 13 puts us well into the seven year-period, beyond the halfway point. The false prophet is causing all to take the mark, worship the beast, and worship the image that talks, refusal to do so means death.

Since we all seem to read Revelation with a chronological mindset, we get confused when we hit some of the terminology that Chapter 14 gives us. Let me show you what I mean.

This could be what they look like.

Walk with power on the earth.

Revelation 14:3-4 ESV “…, and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. (4) It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as first fruits for God and the Lamb, …”

Key phrases are:

  • “before the throne”

  • “who had been redeemed from the earth.”

  • “Redeemed from mankind”

  • “as first fruits for God”

These are all phrases that tell me that something else has happened before the 144,000 got placed here.

Revelation 7:2-3 tells us that:

“…another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea, (3) saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.”

I point this out because it demonstrates that the 144,000 are marked prior to God unleashing his wrath upon the earth. That wrath is an integral aspect of the seven years that everyone likes to improperly call the tribulation. Death at the hands of evil men is also an aspect of the seven-year period, and it is possible that these have met their fate at their hands.

So with verses 6 and 7 of Revelation 14, we are pulled backward to the beginning of that seven years.

“Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.” (Revelation 14:6-7 ESV)

I made the statement to an acquaintance from church that there is nothing holding God back from returning for his church. He angrily replied that not everyone had received the gospel (apparently in written form) and Jesus could not come yet. Isn’t that funny how we think we can tell God what he can do? I responded to his rant with my version of Revelation 14:6-7 by saying God had that problem covered as an angel will fly around the earth preaching about Jesus. Sadly, at that moment, I could not give him scripture, so I don’t think he was moved enough to believe it. (Paul had a similar problem in that he was preaching what we now call the New Testament, but he was preaching it to Jews who staunchly held to the Old Testament. One group, called the Bereans, went back to their synagogues and searched for these things Paul said and proved them for themselves.

In what?

The Old Testament and they found them to be true and therefore believed. You need to look things up in scripture when you are not sure if what someone says is true. Then you can believe or reject it as garbage.)

Sadly, for those living during this time of God’s wrath, the atrocities will be beyond words, and that is just the violence that people will commit against each other.

“Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come,”

Think about that, a time to fear God, but it is also a time to give him glory.

Who is he talking to?

These are those who did not make the cut, those that allegedly never heard the gospel message and those that flat-out rejected him. Let’s break this down a bit more.

We, religious, tend to say that those who are left have no chance. This group, according to Matthew 25, sits beside many of us in church. Some belong to religious groups such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses or the Mormon church. I can just about guarantee you that a few of them actually believe in Jesus Christ as the savior. Just for the sake of argument, let’s assume that they don’t. In a quick instant, these various groups will come to the realization that they were misled. I suspect the rapture of the church will be an eye-opening moment, as well as a deep sense of grief when so many realize that they missed the chance for the grace of God.

Having missed the rapture, what options are left to you?

Get something clear in your head. You have been forgiven through Christ’s death on the cross, but you chose not to sign onto the team. Ask Him into your life just as people have begged you to do for years now.

Jesus told us that in this world, you will have tribulations, and since you have now found yourself in the seven years of God’s wrath on earth, I suggest you strap yourself in for the ride of your life.

  • Islam is going to rise up as the dominant world religion, and they will not tolerate anyone outside of Islam breathing the same air as themselves. They will try to kill you, and if you make it to the halfway point of the seven-year period, it only gets worse.

  • I believe that most of the major nations are deeply involved in things like Agenda 2030. Therefore, they, too, will try to reduce the global population. That is one of the reasons that there are guillotines at the FEMA camps scattered across this nation of America. (I originally published this in 2015, and sadly, due to my naivete, I did not realize then that all the medical procedures that have been shoved down our throats, along with destructive events like fires, are all meant to force you to need and submit to big government influence and enforce the so-called need to have a global economy that allows them to track and control every move you make.)

  • Marshall law will be declared, and people will be shot. As I made mention, religion will be made illegal under penalty of death. (Again, I published this in 2015. Eight years later, Michigan’s legislators passed a bill that makes it a felony to misgender another human being. Followers of Christ, who lean heavily on the Bible, have many scriptures that speak against homosexuality as a disgusting sin. In time Christians will be tracked down and killed.)

  • Oh, and the hundred-pound hailstones and earthquakes among the mix that are meant to kill people.

Joel chapter two says that in the last days that God would pour out his spirit upon all flesh, and then you shall do mighty and amazing things.

Joel 2:28-29, 32 ESV “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. (29) Even on the male and female servants in those days, I will pour out my Spirit. (32) And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the LORD calls.

The general impression I get is that the world continues to find the hope that is in Jesus during a rather hopeless time.

Have you ever thought about why Christianity has developed such skillful apologists – those who go out and argue on behalf of God?

It is because the Bible, God’s Word, is provable and real. Jesus spent a great deal of time telling the disciples, and us, that all things are as he said, and then – just as he said – he allowed the Jewish leadership to kill him for the purpose of paying our debt and then rising again – just as he said – to give us the assurance that there is an eternity with the Father.

Look, I get it. The Christian church has not provided many great examples to follow, and because God will have taken those of us who know what a passionate life looks like out of here – you may not have a clue how to act. I am telling you that this time you will find yourself in is not the time to act like a pansy. You are going to be in warfare. If there is no one else to lead you, then there will be two witnesses from God who show up in the streets of Jerusalem, follow their lead, and do what they do.

You have a voice; use it. Put your faith in Jesus Christ, for there is power in the name of Jesus that will never change.

Part the waters when necessary;

Declare healing over the sick and wounded;

If necessary, call fire down from heaven, in the name of Jesus, upon those who wish to harm you.

If you find yourself here during this time – do it. All the rules will have changed except God’s, and He empowered those who put their trust in Him to do exceptional things. Determine now to walk fearlessly through this earth. Oh, they will eventually kill you, but in that instant, you will be with the Father.

They either bow to the God you serve, or they die trying to harm you. When they came to take Elisha captive, he cooked two regiments with fire from God. The third bowed before the God of Elisha’s and begged him to come with them. Elisha chose to come with that man. It is your choice.

Find a copy of the movie The Matrix; there is a scene in which Neo figures out what he is capable of. You, too, are capable of acting like the prophets of old. There is nothing to stop you. Use the power in the name of Jesus and change the course of rivers if you must.

Better yet, try living that way today.

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The 144,000 – Revelation 14:1-5

Posted on 10/07/2015 by remso

Stained glass showing Lamb of God with vexillu...

Stained glass showing Lamb of God with vexillum and chalice, from chapel that used to be part of a convent (now a Baptist church and school complex) in El Cajon, California (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Can I admit that this subject has brought me much irritation. At the last church I attended the pastor taught on Revelation but he made everything in the book symbolic of something, That might not have been a problem, however he never bothered to define where he got this information. Which leads me to say this, don’t make statements, trying to pass it off as truth, without providing evidence for what you are saying (This is called conjecture and makes you a false teacher.) Write with the determination of providing two or three witnesses.

Although my former pastor attributed all of Revelation to symbology, that certainly does not make it the case. However, symbology, history, analogy, and types can not be excluded. It is all in there, and must be considered. I will try to help you understand it.

The 144,000

Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as first fruits for God and the Lamb, and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless. (Revelation 14:1-5 ESV)

Sometimes I like to work from the assumption that I just stumbled upon a section of the bible. If you attend church then you are aware that you constantly sit by those that never open their bibles. How can you know that? Just listen to the statements they make and questions they ask; anyone who has read their bible, would never ask the questions many of them do.

Assuming you were that person and were directed to Revelation 14: 1-5, how would you come to understand what you were reading?

Some quick keys to understanding Revelation.

  1. Maintain the attitude that this is meant for you to understand. If you do not understand then humble yourself and get a book to help. Of the thousands out there, I strongly suggest The Islamic Antichrist, and the Mideast Beast, by Joel Richardson.

  2. Know this, the Apostle John was an evangelist to the Jewish community (yes I am taking liberties in making this statement, but the evidence is there.) That means that he wrote in a language that meant something to the Jewish readers of this letter. The symbols, such as a lamb that had been slain; the beast with seven heads that we see in Revelation 13, and even the 144,000 are intended to strike an immediate and scriptural chord within the heart of a Jew.

  3. While the book itself is the Revelation of Jesus Christ, it is also prophecy. Prophecy covers a tremendous amount of ground from the past to the future. But prophecy to a Jew is repeatable patterns, not flash and bright lights. Remember, no one in the old testament was convicted on the basis of one witness alone; God knows the heart and therefore demands witnesses. This works the same with prophecy. You will find these same phrases – if you look for them – scattered throughout the Old Testament in the writings of Daniel, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and so many others.

With that said, let’s dive in. We will attempt to take this verse by verse.

Revelation 14:1 KJV And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.

There was a time that I would not have had any idea how to interpret this without some help. Fortunately those days are gone, but maybe it does not need interpretation as much as it needs an understanding. As a young reader, with the understanding I had, I read it as a literal event.

You find the first reference to these Jewish men in Revelation 7 and there God holds back destruction while he marks them. Because I had nothing to show what that marking aspect looked like, I just took it and ran with it.

Now I find them, and God, standing on Mount Zion.

Do a word search for the phrase “Mount Zion” and you will find 21 verses, most of which are found in the Old Testament – the Torah and the Tanakh.

One of the first I found is:

And the surviving remnant of the house of Judah shall again take root downward and bear fruit upward. For out of Jerusalem shall go a remnant, and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the LORD will do this. (2 Kings 19:30-31 ESV)

This is one of those prophecy establishing word pictures that a Jew would have picked up on. In case you do not know, Jewish boys are made to go synagogue to learn and memorize the law and prophets. This is accomplished by age twelve as an aspect of their transition into manhood.

While Isaiah 10:12 says nothing about the 144,000 who are standing on Mount Zion the following verse indicates what happens after the Lamb conducts business. (Conducting business seems very polite considering that the Lord comes back to kill all those who would dare fight against him.)

Isaiah 10:12 ESV When the Lord has finished all his work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, he will punish the speech of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and the boastful look in his eyes.

Apparently his interactions with the 144,000 come before he finalizes the punishment of the arrogant king. If you have read the Revelation before, then you are aware that at the end of the seven-year period the Antichrist and the False prophet are thrown into the lake of fire – forever.

The IVP Bible Background Commentary tells us that:

“Mount Zion was the Temple Mount (sometimes loosely encompassing all Jerusalem), thus applied to the heavenly temple in the present (Rev_11:19) but pointing to the new Jerusalem of the future (Rev_21:2), a hope shared by nearly all ancient Jews, who longed for the restoration of their city and its sanctuary.”

And this is backed up by the Prophet Isaiah: 

And it is literal, for it is where the Lord of hosts will reign.

Isaiah 24:23 ESV Then the moon will be confounded and the sun ashamed, for the LORD of hosts reigns on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and his glory will be before his elders.

However, Mount Zion is also symbolic, as John also sees the 144,000 before the throne, which causes us to include the throne as an aspect of Mount Zion.

I find several things grabbing my attention as I read Revelation 14:1.

Revelation 14:1 KJV And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.

  • “I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Zion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand,”

    Knowing that Jerusalem will be destroyed, I see a remnant coming out of Jerusalem, and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors. Does this tell us that there will only be 144,000 survivors, and that there will only be Jewish men? Not at all. We are told by the prophet Zechariah that one-third of Israel survives.

    Zechariah 13:8-9 KJV And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. (9) And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.

     

  • “a Lamb stood on the mount Zion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand.”

    From this I can learn that John is seeing into heaven, because that is the only place in Revelation that the Lord appears as a lamb.

    Revelation 5:6 KJV 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.

     

Other prophets describe him as a lamb: Isaiah 53:7-8; John 1:29, John 1:36; Acts 8:32; 1Peter 1:19-20

  • “with him an hundred forty and four thousand,”

    One might make the assumption that they are with Him in heaven and are therefore resurrected. Scripture gives us no clear insight on this.

  • “having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.”

    I covered God marking people earlier in this post. Cain was marked to protect him. Interesting isn’t it.

What else can I know about these 144,000.

Our first occurrence finds them in Revelation chapter seven.

Then I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea, saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.” And I heard the number of the sealed, 144,000, sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel: (Revelation 7:2-4 ESV)

Should you decide to read this in your bible, you will find that the specifics about them go on to verse eight, and describes 12,000 taken from designated ancestral groupings (tribes) of Israel. How vital that is to our understanding I do not know. What is important to me is this: “they come from every tribe of the sons of Israel.” There are no lost tribes.

I have come to see that my former pastor was not alone in his thinking, as others apparently think these 144,000 are merely symbolic. I believe my former pastor is a fairly intelligent guy, but if you cannot backup your statements with some solid evidence then you need to shut up, and he did not. Having read several commentaries on the 144,000 I believe I can see where he got what he was preaching, however that does not make it right; and if you are a student of the bible, you can find it very annoying.

Here is what the IVP Bible Background Commentary, and a few others imply:

The Sealing of 144,000 Servants – One can take the 144,000 either consistently literally (literally twelve thousand male Jewish virgins from each tribe—Rev_14:4) or consistently symbolic (the spiritual people of God, not literally 144,000). (Those who take the number but not the ethnicity, gender and sexual history literally are inconsistent.) Against taking it literally is Revelation’s usage elsewhere of “servants” (Rev_1:1; Rev_6:11), suggesting that they constitute the whole of the saved community (Rev_7:3-4). But whether they represent the innumerable multitude of Rev_7:9 or the restored remnant of ethnic Israel remains debated.

A few questions about the logic of these 144,000 being entirely symbolic

If this group was entirely symbolic, why would you have to protect them from four angels that are here to harm the earth? The act of harming the earth is an aspect of God’s wrath upon the nations, and the Israel for rejecting him. God is protecting 144,000 “virgin Jews” (this may have some symbology also, such as those that have not rejected God.)

If, the 144,000 represents the “whole of the saved community”, and the general consensus is that the saved community will be caught up, then why would you need to protect them from bad things that happen after the rapture? You wouldn’t would you; there would be no need. So that really does not make sense does it.

However, if the number was representative of the martyred who are slain for their testimony, then we have a problem with that logic as well, because God does not protect them from harm, and protecting these marked ones is a common assumption (I am sure that we get this idea of protection from God marking Cain). In neither chapter seven or fourteen do we see them protected, but merely designated for God. Another assumption, and quite possibly a good one, is that they function on earth as witnesses, but most specifically to the Jewish community. That would make sense but there is still nothing to show that they are excluded from harm, nor is there anything that indicates how long they stay here on earth after they are marked. I am bringing this up because I have heard all kinds of speculation espoused adamantly as religious folk try to push their theories and understanding off for truth.

“Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.”

After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow on earth or sea or against any tree. Then I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea, saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.” (Revelation 7:1-3 ESV)

These angels are released with the express purpose of destroying the earth. And yet, just prior to this destruction, God intentionally seals 144,000 Jewish men.

It seems John’s attention is pulled back to heaven because of a voice, a voice like a mixture of sounds.

Revelation 14:2-3 ESV And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, (3) and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.

Almost as soon as they have been sealed, we find them redeemed from earth. The implications are that they are no longer on earth. This again demonstrates our assumptions. It seems fair and logical to build a chronological timeline and place them on it. The problem is God controls both the timeline and calendar on which it is based, and scripture does not always lay things out so clearly for us. Sure, there are many points in which specifics are detailed such as: Israel’s release from Babylonian captivity, or the Messiah’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem, but we have no clear point at which we can say the rapture comes here and therefore all these other things can find themselves a spot on our timeline.

Revelation 14:3-4 MSG and the harpists singing a new song before the Throne and the Four Animals and the Elders. Only the Hundred and Forty-four Thousand could learn to sing the song. They were bought from earth, (4) lived without compromise, virgin-fresh before God. Wherever the Lamb went, they followed. They were bought from humankind, first fruits of the harvest for God and the Lamb.

“lived without compromise”

How do I relate to that? We were all born into a corrupted nature, therefore it seems impossible to imagine someone living without compromise.

Zephaniah 3:13 KJV The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: for they shall feed and lie down, and none shall make them afraid.

We already know that some will try to assign these characteristics symbolically to the church. If you try to assign the characteristics of these chosen Jews to the church, it simply does not fit because they have too many human characteristics, therefore I will cling hard to a literal interpretation of the 144,000.

Consider an irony.

God has written His name on their foreheads, and no, we do not know what that looks like; who will be able to see it (we know these four angels can see it); or how it gets there. However, Satan/the beast goes around trying to copy God’s idea, by having people marked that have converted to a worship of the beast. (Again, I point out that I believe this is Islam doing this and the beast is Allah.)

One of the things I tell people, is that the Apostle John fully intended for his writing to strike the ears of Jewish converts. You can pick up on this idea because he uses terminology and symbolism found throughout the law and the prophets; books any Jew would have been forced to memorize by the time they were twelve.

One example of this marking of the head is found in the Prophet Ezekiel’s writings where judgment could not begin until the foreheads of the righteous (those who mourned over the sin of their land) were marked.

Ezekiel 9:4-5 ESV And the LORD said to him, “Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it.” (5) And to the others he said in my hearing, “Pass through the city after him, and strike. Your eye shall not spare, and you shall show no pity.

Another example of marking a person comes from Genesis.

Genesis 4:15 ESV Then the LORD said to him, “Not so! If anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.” And the LORD put a mark on Cain, lest any who found him should attack him.

We still do not know what that mark looked like, but the imagery is well entrenched in the Jewish mind. It is a shame that it is not in ours.

Another thing that we are in a loss to figure out, is when these are brought before the throne.

We like to assume that they are protected from what ever comes, but you do not see that in scripture. Many seem to believe that they will serve as witnesses to the world. If they do serve in that function I believe it would be to the Jews. However there is no clear time frame between their being marked and finding them before the throne.

and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. (Revelation 14:3 ESV)

Considering that this song is for them alone, I see no reason to lose sleep over what they are singing.

It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes.

Revelation 14:4 ESV It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as first fruits for God and the Lamb,

They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. This is the relationship that we were designed for – sheep in love with the shepherd.

There may be a clue about the timing of their departure from earth, because it says they are first fruits. If they, in a sense, are like the first offering of many. Not that we are directly going to be sacrificed, but then God can do what he wants with us, can’t he. Because this takes place within the framework of the seven-year period, then the implications of those being offered up as an offering to the Lord would apply to anyone coming to Jesus Christ during this time. They are called the martyred saints.

The 144,000 are blameless before the throne of God.

Revelation 14:5 AMP No lie was found to be upon their lips, for they are blameless (spotless, untainted, without blemish) before the throne of God.

Two things catch my attention when I consider this. Those that are in Christ were first forgiven – no longer guilty for the sin nature that was handed down to us (that happened on the cross.) Over and above our own personal compulsions, this sin comes through being born into the earth. So to will we who have turned out lives over to Jesus Christ stand blameless before the throne. Now, what did these Jewish men do to get such a status? I think the obvious answer lies in our relationship with the shepherd.

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Men speaking twisted things – a commentary on false teaching.

Posted on 10/04/2015 by remso

When Paul was saying his final goodbyes to the elders from Ephesus, he warned them to pay careful attention to themselves. Why? Well he answers that question:

I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. (Acts 20:29-30 ESV)

The aspect that should get our attention and cause us the most alarm, because it is so subtle, is this part that says, “from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things.” The translations run the gamut from perverse to just plain wrong.

The scariest part of this is the subtlety of the situation. Because this person comes from among us, we do not expect them to fill our eyes and ears with perversion. Is it a perversion like pornography is a perversion? No, it can be a subtle twisting of the gospel, or the occasional adding of words as though they were part of God’s original thought. Allow me to give you an example.

I attend Bible Study Fellowship.

I have always had the impression that anyone who attended BSF was into a university level bible study; I know I am, but what I have found is that there are both skillful members and those who do not open their bibles, but because we have guided questions we are all able to get to a comparable result when we answer.

However I have met with a problem that comes from the top. My expectations were dashed with our recent reading assignment which was generated by the high counsel in Texas.

We were directed by the “homework” to read Deuteronomy (13:1-5;18:18-22). These texts , they allege, “offer five key tests for a true prophet.” If this seems like a fair statement to you, then you need to know it seemed fair to me too, and I was interested in finding out what they had to say; that is until I read the statements that they derived from these verses.

  1. “He must be an Israelite” (18:18).

On the worksheet my immediate response was NO! Now, why would I have that understanding? Because I read my bible, but I was willing to go to the source given, as should you, as I need to be humble and I am human capable of error. So allow me to show you what that verse says:

I will start with the old school version.

“I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brothers, one like you, and will put My words in His mouth. And He shall speak to them all that I shall command Him.” (Deuteronomy 18:18 MKJV)

I am struck by some obvious questions as I read this.

  • Who is doing the talking?

  • Who are they talking to?

  • Who are the brethren?

  • Does anything about this place limitations upon prophecy?

  • And what is the context of the conversation?

None of those questions can legitimately be answered based upon this scripture alone. As you might surmise, the answers to the questions are there in scripture, and if I were writing out the statements I would have directed you more appropriately.

On my computer I have about forty translations of the bible. The majority say something comparable to the what I have shown you, and of those, none say anything to indicate that prophets have to be exclusively an Israelite.

If you have the ability to do a comparative look at scriptures, as I do, then you can find one that fits your theology, and the God’s Word bible is one of those. Check this out:

Deuteronomy 18:18 GW So I will send them a prophet, an Israelite like you. I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. (This translation is comparable to the Living Bible, which was written simplistically so the authors grade school children could understand. I would not base my life on it, but at times it works.)

Does that make it right? They have taken a word that has the potential to be translated as not only brethren, but countrymen, and distant relatives. If this verse is speaking of Jesus, and I truly believe it is, then is it true that God raised up another prophet that was an Israelite? Yes. Does that mean that the limitations of the phrase, “an Israelite like you” is proper? No, and when you look at this verse in the majority of the translations, you do not get a sense of limitation, but freedom and potential. Sadly, potential is not what BSF wants to convey. They – like radio teacher Hank Hannegraf – apparently want you to believe prophecy is only through scripture and that there is no one walking this earth today speaking as a prophet.

  1. He (the prophet) must pronounce his predictions in the name of the Lord. (18:19)

Allow me to start off with a little piece of wisdom. If you do the religious thing, and say, “thus saith the Lord” you have just placed a pre-qualifier upon what you say and there is no way to separate the man from the message. God gives stern warnings about people who attribute something to God when he did not give the message. It is highly possible that you are just speaking out of your own personal frustrations in a desire to make things go your way. Try using phrases such as: I believe I hear this in my spirit; I think I have a Word for you. Let them be the judge of whether it is from God. Besides that, I can assure you that God has already been speaking to them and he has only sent you to confirm his Word to them.

The passage they refer to is this:

Deuteronomy 18:19 ESV And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him.

If the word was legitimately from God he will make it come to pass, and hold the recipient responsible for not appropriately responding to it. It is not your job to make anything happen.

This verse has nothing to do with you, and is very much wrapped up in Jewish tradition. Lighten up just a shade. If you think you are a prophet know this, God is not and will not ask you to carry a sword, and like Samuel the prophet, go hack up a king. We are walking this earth – wise as serpents, and gentle as doves.

  1. He (the prophet) must be able to predict the near and distant future. (18:22)

This is another example of impossible demands, that make either think acting in the prophetic is hopeless, or certainly not for today. In a few minutes you will see that BSF twists the word of God to convey that the man must conform to the message. They take this from Revelation where it says:

Revelation 19:10 ESV “ ….. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

This verse merely conveys that God’s Words, coming out of your mouth, are in essence, the spirit of prophecy. You do not have to jump through hoops to speak prophetically to people. I can almost assure you that if you are listening to the Holy Spirit, that He will surprise even you, as the recipient will say, how did you know that?

God has always chosen the broken to lead his kingdom. His character has not changed, and I can say with confidence that there is no such qualifier that says you “must be able to predict the near and distant future.” The verse they try to pull this out of is:

Deuteronomy 18:22 ESV when a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the word does not come to pass or come true, that is a word that the LORD has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously. You need not be afraid of him.

So you finally get bold enough to speak out; perhaps declaring that someone you care about who could have no children will have a baby. Sadly, it does not happen. That just means that it was not from the Lord, but out of the concern of your heart. I get it, and so does God, but God does not have to work according to our plans and hopes. And nothing says that God would not hear you and because he is God respond anyway.

When the prophet Samuel walked this earth, my bible says, that none of his words fell to the ground. EVERYTHING he said came to pass, even the simple quiet curses we fling about, like damn this or that. He was so zealous for the Lord that he hacked up King Agag when Saul, Israel’s King would not. When he quietly went to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as king, the elders, out of fear asked, “do you come in peace?” They legitimately feared him. You do not need people fearing you, you need them seeking you out, but they should certainly respect the God you serve. That will only happen when you live a consistent life in front of them.

  1. His signs and wonders must be attributed to the power of the Lord (13:1-2)

Initially it sounds good, why it’s probably even sound wisdom to attribute what you are saying, to the Lord. Are you sincere? Do you attribute what you saying, before or after you say it?

Look at the verse and tell me if it says what BSF claims it does:

Deuteronomy 13:1-2 ESV “If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, (2) and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,’

Let’s tear the verse apart and see.

    • “If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, (2) and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass

Our admonition was not to fear the prophet if what he says does not come to pass, but in this case his word did come to pass. There is the strong possibility that this guy is among you and up to this point, trusted.

    • “and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,”

The context of the verses is not about a demand that your signs and wonders must be attributed to God, as it is about leading people away from God.

  1. His words must conform to the message or principles of previous revelation (13:2-5)

Let’s just assume for a minute that you walked into the room and this person is prophesying. Number one: you may have missed his introduction where he said, this is from the voice of God. However you do catch the part where they say, a meteor will blow up over Tanguska Russia tomorrow, and it does, but you have no knowledge of what the message was, or of any previous revelations. How could you possibly find out that this person conformed? You couldn’t, so they must be trying to tell us that the prophet must conform to some message from God’s word, or some underlying principles that must be mined from God’s word, that somehow align with what this person said.

Let me give you a hint. There is nothing new under the sun, nor is there nothing new under God’s Son. What does that mean? While there are exceptions to everything, such as a word of knowledge that is given to a person where God has given you some current or past information about that person. You won’t find that information in the Bible, but generalized statements about how God feels about us, his people, and future events are very detailed in scripture. Since the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy, then speaking God’s word over someones life is very scriptural, proper, and safe. In this case you would clearly be conforming to the message and earlier revelation.

Now, can we find this in the scripture reference given:

Deuteronomy 13:2-5 NIV and if the sign or wonder spoken of takes place, and the prophet says, “Let us follow other gods” (gods you have not known) “and let us worship them,” (3) you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The LORD your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul. (4) It is the LORD your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him. (5) That prophet or dreamer must be put to death for inciting rebellion against the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. That prophet or dreamer tried to turn you from the way the LORD your God commanded you to follow. You must purge the evil from among you.

First thing I want you to see, is that there is a context for everything, and in this case they have cut the context out, so let’s include it.

Deuteronomy 13:1 NIV If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a sign or wonder,

So a person speaks over the audience about a potential future event. Some find that weird, but it is perfectly legitimate. Television personalities have made prophesying a bit of a joke, but they can still be okay.

“If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a sign or wonder, and if the sign or wonder spoken of takes place”. This alone should command respect, or at the least, attention. Now if it did not come to pass, then we do not have to fear them. Does that mean if the thing comes to pass we are to fear them? No, the word also means to respect.

Unfortunately this takes a dark and sinister turn.

“and the prophet says, “Let us follow other gods” (gods you have not known) “and let us worship them,” So this so-called prophet has another motive. Do we have examples of things like this in scripture? Certainly.

Acts 13:6-11 shows us, not only someone on the inside, but when you ask, did he “conform to the message or principles of previous revelation.” The answer is clearly NO, and yet he was identified by Saul/Paul as a false prophet. Since we have this improper demand to judge a persons prophetic “gifts” based upon BSF criteria, then how could Paul come to a decision so quickly, as he did not have these written guidelines? An obvious answer to this lies in testimony of locals, the character of Bar-Jesus, and Bar-Jesus’ own words and actions (we like to think of this combination of things as fruit, and the man’s fruit was rotten.)

Acts 13:6-11 ESV When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. (7) He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. (8) But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. (9) But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him (10) and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? (11) And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.” Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand.

Bar-Jesus/Elymas did that one thing that is clearly laid out for us as something to warn and alert us; he tried to turn the proconsul away from the faith. Deuteronomy lays out a course of action for such men, but Paul prophesy’s a blindness over Elymas for a season. Did Paul’s response conform to the message or principles of previous revelation? Perhaps but you have to dig to find a directive like that.

One other thing that challenges this directive “conform to the message or principles of previous revelation” comes from what we know about Elisha, the prophet.

2 Kings 2:23-24 ESV He went up from there to Bethel, and while he was going up on the way, some small boys came out of the city and jeered at him, saying, “Go up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!” (24) And he turned around, and when he saw them, he cursed them in the name of the LORD. And two she-bears came out of the woods and tore forty-two of the boys.

Boys mocked him, and for that “he cursed them in the name of the LORD.” Not everything is so cut and dried.

Since point number (5) directs us to think a certain way – “his words must conform to the message or principles of previous revelation” – let’s ponder that a moment. Clearly that is not the case in Revelation 13:11-14. While the verses give us multiple images to tangle with, the bottom line is this, this is the false prophet that we are warned about in scripture.

Revelation 13:11-14 MKJV (11) And I saw another beast coming up out of the earth. And it had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke like a dragon. (12) And it exercises all the authority of the first beast before him, and causes the earth and those dwelling in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. (13) And it does great wonders, so that it makes fire come down from the heaven onto the earth in the sight of men. (14) And it deceives those dwelling on the earth, because of the miracles which were given to it to do before the beast, saying to those dwelling on the earth that they should make an image to the beast who had the wound by a sword and lived.

Because of the miracles which were given to it to do, it deceives those dwelling on earth. Watch how deep this goes.

Revelation 13:16-17 ESV Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name.

When you sort out all the implications of what Revelation 13 is showing us, ultimately God is in control and allowing this all to happen because He has a purpose. The character that empowers this person directly is the dragon – which you should know because you read – is Satan himself. Now, is Satan going to comply with BSF rules or God’s demands? No, he is going to do the opposite. (Note: there is power in the name of JESUS, and every knee must bow. Let that empower you.)

When we talk about the idea of “conforming to the message or principles of previous revelation”, this has Jewish tradition written all over it, because to the Jew, prophecy is pattern. What does that mean to us – the New Testament church? It means that the Apostle John knew full well that he was writing to Jewish converts, and that they were not going to give up the richness of their Jewish heritage. It means that what we see here in Revelation 13 had to have already presented itself on at least one other occasion, and it had, and we find him in Daniel 7:25.

Daniel 7:25 KJV And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

Alright, so you read this and now you are saying, Daniel 7:25 does not define what we see in Revelation 13. It does if you understand that Islam has its own set of prophecies, and fully expects a Jesus to come and save them as well. Their Jesus (I am pulling this from Wikipedia):

“ʿĪsā ibn Maryām; English: Jesus, son of Mary is considered to be a Messenger of God and (the Messiah) in Islam. To aid in his ministry to the Jewish people, Jesus was given the ability to perform miracles (such as healing various ailments like blindness, raising the dead to life, casting out demons, etc.) which no other prophet in Islam has ever been credited with, all according to God’s will. According to the Qu’ran, Jesus, although appearing to have been crucified, was not killed by crucifixion or by any other means. This view disagrees with the foundation of the Gospel. Instead, the Qu’ran says “God raised him unto Himself,” which happens to agree with the Gospel message of Isa ascending into heaven.

Jesus mission – According to Islamic texts, Jesus was divinely chosen to preach the message of monotheism and submission to the will of God to the Children of Israel (banī isrā’īl).”

So the Islamic Jesus will “preach” the message of submission to the people of Israel. Since we know that Islam demands only a submission to Allah, then this “Jesus” will demand submission also. How would that work out since they are not allowed to be “friends” with the infidel? It is said in Islam that this “Jesus” is a Jew from the Levitical tribe and is a priest. That means he is already here and probably in training to serve in the new temple. Since he is a priest, and a respected Jew, causing Israel to turn away from God and serve other gods should be relatively easy. Since he is a priest serving in the temple, it should be easy for him to desecrate the temple, set up the image of the beast, and because he is empowered by Satan, cause that image to speak, call fire down from heaven, command the rain to return, and do what ever is necessary to impress and delude Israel. Islam considers this man the enforcer of Sharia law (ISIS, it seems, is doing that right now.) Sharia is the law that demands the death of the infidel (anyone outside of Islam.) Perhaps you can understand why God gives this character the title of false prophet, as he is everything bad wrapped into one package, and he comes from inside.

I opened with these words from Paul:

I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. (Acts 20:29-30 ESV)

Although the false prophet seems to be blatantly obvious, he will spring upon them suddenly, after having been groomed slowly. But what about the not so obvious that is destroying and weakening the body of Christ from the inside.

It is not all so blatant, it comes from bastions of biblical learning like Bible Study Fellowship, where men go to learn a more excellent way. It comes from the local bible study teacher who twists God’s word so that it conveys the message he wants to push, such as what lousy sinners we all are. It comes in a way that teaches people to think improperly about God, never learn what His character is, and then spread that hatred to others. It teaches people to believe that God cannot be understood, and that ultimately His character, if filled with mercy, is beyond our comprehension.

Since God himself said:

Matthew 18:12-14 ESV What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? (13) And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. (14) So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.

How dare you preach anything else.

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