Plymothian

Yet again the heavens are revealed as destruction comes upon the earth.  Revelation 13 talks of the ascendancy of the Beasts (AntiChrist and False Prophet).  It would seem that destructive power on earth indicates that God is not as great or as good as he says he is.  However, “then I looked …” gives us a contrast to 666 that is Zion.  Although Zion is a symbol of earthly Israel and its capital, Jerusalem, there is a heavenly ideal of Zion which is far transcendent.  In that location is a song of deliverance.

In our lives we see earthly circumstances building and we become overwhelmed.  It is then that we must look heavenward until we see the reality of our faith.

Revelation 14:1-5

¹ Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. ² And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. ³ And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. ⁴ These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they remained virgins. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among mankind and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. ⁵ No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.

Questions

1. Where are those who follow the lamb marked?
2. How does this contrast with 666?
3. What shows that 144,000 did not follow other gods?
4. What lifestyle choices mark those today who follow the lamb?
5. How are we encouraged in the same ways as the first and second century recipients of this book?

http://seg.sharethis.com/getSegment.php?purl=http%3A%2F%2Ftheplymothian.wordpress.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost-new.php&jsref=&rnd=1325774579954

The images of Revelation 13 dovetail with Daniel 7.  In fact the beast combines all the elements of the numerous beasts in Daniel 7.  The beast comes out of the sea which was representative of the destructive, anti-creation, forces of chaos.  After some kind of miraculous event people will form a new faith.

The new faith will be based in a secular leader of human government who is implementing the plans of Satan.  It is unlikely that Satan will be overtly called Satan and that this will be a Satanic cult.  It is more likely that the anti-faith rhetoric that people swallow today so regularly will lead to them unwittingly following a scientism or atheism that really has darkness behind it.  A propagandist, like Goebbels in Nazi Germany, will preach a unifying faith.  There will be religious compromise.  If we extrapolate the way that the faith has been watered down in America to Post-Christian Moralistic Therapeutic Deism http://www.christianpost.com/news/moralistic-therapeutic-deism-the-new-american-religion-6266/ , it would be easy to see how those who do not empty their faith of distinctive truth and compromise with other religious truth will be labeled as anathema.  I was recently reading how Chris Martin of Coldplay has labeled himself an alltheist in response to questions as to whether he is an atheist.  He was raised with a distinctive faith but he has ‘matured’ into plurality.  Oprah has a similar story.

The beast from the land will reinforce the agenda of the beast from the sea with increasing fervour.  People will see religious conservatives in an increasingly distasteful light and it will seem like the false trinity of Satan, secular political leader, and misguiding spiritual leader will seemingly win out.  666 represents this unholy trinity in my opinion.  6 is the number of man, being short of 7 the number for God’s completion.  Three sixes is trinitarian, but diabolically so.

Revelation 13

¹ The dragon^[a] stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. ² The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. ³ One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast. ⁴People worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can wage war against it?”

⁵ The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for forty-two months. ⁶ It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. ⁷ It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. ⁸ All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.^[b]

⁹Whoever has ears, let them hear.

¹⁰ “If anyone is to go into captivity,    into captivity they will go. If anyone is to be killed^[c] with the sword,    with the sword they will be killed.”^[d]

   This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of God’s people.

The Beast out of the Earth

¹¹ Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon. ¹² It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. ¹³ And it performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of the people. ¹⁴ Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. ¹⁵ The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed. ¹⁶ It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, ¹⁷so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.

¹⁸ This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man.^[e] That number is 666.

Questions

1. How do the beasts speak?
2. How can words shape destiny?
3. How can someone who seems so nice truly be so evil?
4. Why do people accept as normal words and behaviour that God does not approve of?
5. Can you conceive of a credit system that uses a mark implanted on the had or the hand?

Going Deeper

How does this help?  How does it hinder?

Israel and God’s people in Christ have been in a spiritual battle for centuries.  That battle is depicted by imagery that represents one side as a woman and the other as a dragon.  The dragon, which is Satan has one more act to play in God’s great plan.  Apparently Satan is not mad enough or crazy enough in history to this point.  Satan is finally cast from heaven with his rebellious angels.

This begs the question, “What is the heaven here that Satan is finally cast from?”  He was allowed into the presence of God according to the beginning of Job.  Heaven is in some sense the presence of God.  God and Satan will have no further dealings.  Satan and his creator are finally cut off in some sense and Satan is only now able to roam the Earth.  Maybe this means that he is limited in his access to the spiritual domain as a whole.  It is difficult to tell anything with clarity when the form of literature is apocalyptic.

Revelation 12

 ¹ A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. ² She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. ³ Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. ⁴ Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. ⁵ She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.”^[a] And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. ⁶The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.

⁷ Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. ⁸ But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. ⁹The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.

¹⁰Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:

   “Now have come the salvation and the power    and the kingdom of our God,    and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,    who accuses them before our God day and night,    has been hurled down. ¹¹ They triumphed over him    by the blood of the Lamb    and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much    as to shrink from death. ¹²Therefore rejoice, you heavens    and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea,    because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury,    because he knows that his time is short.”

¹³ When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. ¹⁴ The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach. ¹⁵ Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. ¹⁶ But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. ¹⁷ Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.

Questions

1. What happens to the woman?
2. What happens to The Messiah (her offspring)?
3. Where does Satan end up?
4. How has Israel been a focus in recent years?
5. What is your personal opinion about Israel’s significance in God’s plan?

http://seg.sharethis.com/getSegment.php?purl=http%3A%2F%2Ftheplymothian.wordpress.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost-new.php&jsref=&rnd=1325623891087

In the middle of the destruction of REvelation there are two prophets – two witnesses.  They are modeled on Elijah and Moses.  We see this is the way that they can pray for rain or plagues of blood.  The account brings to mind Elijah before the prophets of Baal or Moses before the Pharaoh of Egypt.  However, in this case there seems to be an epic fail.  The prophets are killed and their dead bodies are left untouched in the street.

A strange kind of Christmas happens at this point.  People are so relieved not to have to hear all this religious mumbo-jumbo and ‘hate speech’ anymore that they give each other gifts.  The righteous words of God are hateful to people and so they will rejoice at their absence.

It is a short lived rejoicing because God supernaturally raises his prophets.  Even then, there is awe but there is no repentance.

Revelation 11:1-14

¹ I was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, with its worshipers. ² But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months. ³ And I will appoint my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.” ⁴ They are “the two olive trees” and the two lampstands, and “they stand before the Lord of the earth.”^{[a] 5} If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies. This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die. ⁶They have power to shut up the heavens so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying; and they have power to turn the waters into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want.

⁷ Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them. ⁸ Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city—which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt—where also their Lord was crucified. ⁹ For three and a half days some from every people, tribe, language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial. ¹⁰The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.

¹¹ But after the three and a half days the breath^[b] of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them. ¹²Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked on.

¹³At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

¹⁴ The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon.

Questions

1. Why would God give someone a measuring rod?
2. What do the witnesses speak about?
3. How can people see all of God’s destruction and give glory to him without repenting?
4. How do ‘acts of God’ affect people today?
5. What would a witness for God speak against on the political level?  In America how would a Christian be in conflict with the Republicans?  How would a Christian be in conflict with the Democrats?  How would a Christian be in conflict with the school system?  How would a Christian be in conflict with the judicial system?  How would a Christian be in conflict with the economic system?
6. What would be the reaction if the Christian who voices genuine ‘sin within the system’ of government died?

It seems to me that Revelation 10 is about a judgement rolled out against Creation.  The angel in this passage stands both on the land and in the sea.  The problem with any interpretation of the purpose of the angel is that after his thundering in judgement John is told that he can’t tell us what the thundering was about.  The mystery is further emphasized when the angel says that in the days of the seventh trumpet a mystery will be revealed.  God’s gospel in Jesus is counted a mystery in the New testament, but I think that this is talking about something more specific.  If I had to guess I would say that God announces a complete judgement on creation for the way it has not fulfilled its purpose.  This judgement then is both bitter and sweet.  Whilst it is destructive it is also redemptive.  The reconciliation of the gospel is furthered as those who are faithful to God in the tribulation are led in an exodus like those who followed the original pillars of fire out of Egypt.

Revelation 10

 ¹ Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven. He was robed in a cloud, with a rainbow above his head; his face was like the sun, and his legs were like fiery pillars. ² He was holding a little scroll, which lay open in his hand. He planted his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land, ³ and he gave a loud shout like the roar of a lion. When he shouted, the voices of the seven thunders spoke. ⁴And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven say, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said and do not write it down.”

 ⁵ Then the angel I had seen standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven. ⁶ And he swore by him who lives for ever and ever, who created the heavens and all that is in them, the earth and all that is in it, and the sea and all that is in it, and said, “There will be no more delay! ⁷But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.”

 ⁸Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me once more: “Go, take the scroll that lies open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.”

 ⁹ So I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll. He said to me, “Take it and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour, but ‘in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.’^[a]” ¹⁰ I took the little scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. It tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour. ¹¹ Then I was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages and kings.”

Questions

1. Describe the angel in this passage?
2. What is the angel’s purpose?
3. Why is this passage in the Bible?
4. What is your opinion of mystery?
5. How do you accept plans of God that you can never understand?

A series of trumpets sounding i the Old testament would herald the arrival of something very important.  The seven trumpets in Revelation herald the arrival of devastation and plagues.  These plagues are intermediate.  They span the gap between the seals which were broken and the bowls which will be poured out.  However, compared to anything the world has seen the devastation will still be apocalyptic in nature.

The imagery in these chapters is taken by some to be literally describing supernatural beings.  However, others see the descriptions as describing contraptions like tanks and helicopters.  The witer would have no way of describing tanks and helicopters except by using similes and metaphors.  However, room should be allowed for the uniquely supernatural.  Either figuratively or literally these entities reap destruction upon the earth.  The reality behind them comes from the hellish abyss.  Demonic angels are directing events, but as we saw in Daniel, angels are often orchestrating events behind the scenes and only the effects of their actions are seen by mortal human beings.

Revelation 8 & 9

¹When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.

 ²And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them.

 ³ Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all God’s people, on the golden altar in front of the throne. ⁴ The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of God’s people, went up before God from the angel’s hand. ⁵Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.

The Trumpets

 ⁶Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to sound them.

 ⁷The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down on the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.

 ⁸ The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood, ⁹a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.

 ¹⁰ The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water— ¹¹ the name of the star is Wormwood.^[a]A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter.

 ¹²The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night.

 ¹³ As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!”

 ¹ The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. ² When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the smoke from the Abyss. ³ And out of the smoke locusts came down on the earth and were given power like that of scorpions of the earth. ⁴ They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. ⁵ They were not allowed to kill them but only to torture them for five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion when it strikes. ⁶During those days people will seek death but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them.

 ⁷ The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. On their heads they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces resembled human faces. ⁸ Their hair was like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth. ⁹ They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle. ¹⁰ They had tails with stingers, like scorpions, and in their tails they had power to torment people for five months. ¹¹They had as king over them the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon and in Greek is Apollyon (that is, Destroyer).

 ¹²The first woe is past; two other woes are yet to come.

 ¹³ The sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice coming from the four horns of the golden altar that is before God. ¹⁴ It said to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.” ¹⁵ And the four angels who had been kept ready for this very hour and day and month and year were released to kill a third of mankind. ¹⁶The number of the mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand. I heard their number.

 ¹⁷ The horses and riders I saw in my vision looked like this: Their breastplates were fiery red, dark blue, and yellow as sulfur. The heads of the horses resembled the heads of lions, and out of their mouths came fire, smoke and sulfur. ¹⁸ A third of mankind was killed by the three plagues of fire, smoke and sulfur that came out of their mouths. ¹⁹The power of the horses was in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails were like snakes, having heads with which they inflict injury.

 ²⁰ The rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the work of their hands; they did not stop worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood—idols that cannot see or hear or walk. ²¹ Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts.

Questions

1. How are these plagues similar to those in Exodus?
2. Why did God send plagues on the Egyptians and why might he send a plague in the future for similar reasons?
3. How do people react to the plagues that are annonced by trumpets?
4. What do the trumpet plagues reveal to you about God?
5. Why must God be so destructive if he judges our present world?  What does this say to those who think a good God would right all wrong and bring group-hugs?

Three waves of destruction are unleashed from heaven.  The first are unleashed by the breaking of seals.  The secod is unleashed by the blowing of trumpets.  The third is unleashed by the pouring out of bowls.  The three waves increase in severity.  Because of the severity of this destruction many see these events as placed in the future.  The four horsemen of the apocalypse ride forth in the first wave.  The colours of the horses indicate the nature of the riders.  However, it must be remembered that the Lamb send each of these calamities on Earth.  We often associate Jesus with mercy and grace, but not here.  The grandeur of Jesus is reflected by the scale of destruction Jesus unleashes on those who deserve it.  The fact is that the Bible measures all mankind and finds every individual worthy of the cruellest death.  God has stayed his hand but he will not do so forever.  Those who wish for God to put an end to sin are rarely aware of the hellfire destruction that they are asking for.

We should remember that God creates Hell for Satan, daemons and the unrepentant.  It is his judgement on sin.  In Revelation hell is not something that the devil does or dictates.  Hell is something that God creates and designates.  Hell-on-earth is a rightous punishment from God.  This is how 144, 000 can be saved by God.  It is hell on earth that causes the citizens of heaven to fall down before Jesus.  Those on the Earth will not repent.  They see nothing to repent for.  They will cower in fear, but they will be mad as hell.

Revelation 6 & 7

¹ I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. Then I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, “Come!” ²I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.

³ When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” ⁴Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make people kill each other. To him was given a large sword.

⁵ When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. ⁶ Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, “Two pounds^[a] of wheat for a day’s wages,^[b] and six pounds^[c] of barley for a day’s wages,^[d]and do not damage the oil and the wine!”

⁷ When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” ⁸I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.

⁹ When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. ¹⁰ They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” ¹¹ Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters,^[e]were killed just as they had been.

¹² I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, ¹³ and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. ¹⁴The heavens receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.

¹⁵ Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free, hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. ¹⁶ They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us^[f] from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! ¹⁷ For the great day of their^[g] wrath has come, and who can withstand it?”

¹ After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree. ² Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea: ³ “Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.” ⁴Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.

⁵From the tribe of Judah 12,000 were sealed,

   from the tribe of Reuben 12,000,

   from the tribe of Gad 12,000,

⁶from the tribe of Asher 12,000,

   from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000,

   from the tribe of Manasseh 12,000,

⁷from the tribe of Simeon 12,000,

   from the tribe of Levi 12,000,

   from the tribe of Issachar 12,000,

⁸from the tribe of Zebulun 12,000,

   from the tribe of Joseph 12,000,

   from the tribe of Benjamin 12,000.

The Great Multitude in White Robes

⁹ After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. ¹⁰And they cried out in a loud voice:

   “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

¹¹ All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, ¹²saying:

   “Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”

¹³Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”

¹⁴I answered, “Sir, you know.”

   And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. ¹⁵Therefore,

   “they are before the throne of God    and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne    will shelter them with his presence. ¹⁶ ‘Never again will they hunger;    never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them,’^[a]    nor any scorching heat. ¹⁷ For the Lamb at the center of the throne    will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’^[b]    ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’^[c]”

Questions

1. What is destroyed by the seals?
2. Why does the Lamb unleash so much destruction?
3. Why is the slaughtering of millions not mass genicide in this case?
4. Does your view of sin take you to a place where this is truly justice?
5. Do you worship God for this destruction or question its necessity?

http://seg.sharethis.com/getSegment.php?purl=http%3A%2F%2Ftheplymothian.wordpress.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost-new.php&jsref=&rnd=1324561887903

The NIV Study Bible says:

These two chapters constitute an introduction to chapters 6-20.  In the throne room of heaven, the Lamb assumes the responsibility of initiating the great final conflict with the forces of evil, the end of which will see the Lamb triumphant and the devil consigned to the lake of fire.

The majesty of the messianic Lamb of God is emphasized in these chapters.  The splendour of heaven is described in terms of reflected and refracted light.  We do not see a plain white heaven set in the plain, white clouds.  We see a heaven that is radiant and majestic, shining from the throne of God.  There is singing, but it is not just the strumming of a harp or two by an insipid angel.  The singing of heaven is the rousing thunder of thousands gathered together who sing with passion.  The splendour, authority, and majesty of it all causes even the greatest created beings to cast their authority (crowns) at Jesus’ feet.  But Jesus shows his worth not in pomp, but in the mystery of his becoming the sacrificial lamb who was sacrificed at Calvary.

Revelation 4 & 5

¹ After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” ² At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. ³ And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and ruby. A rainbow that shone like an emerald encircled the throne. ⁴ Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads. ⁵ From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. In front of the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits^[a] of God. ⁶Also in front of the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal.

   In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back. ⁷ The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. ⁸Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying:

   “‘Holy, holy, holy

   is the Lord God Almighty,’^[b]

   who was, and is, and is to come.”

⁹ Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, ¹⁰the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:

¹¹ “You are worthy, our Lord and God,    to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things,    and by your will they were created    and have their being.”

¹ Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. ² And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” ³ But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. ⁴ I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. ⁵Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”

⁶ Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits^[a] of God sent out into all the earth. ⁷ He went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. ⁸ And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. ⁹And they sang a new song, saying:

   “You are worthy to take the scroll    and to open its seals, because you were slain,    and with your blood you purchased for God    persons from every tribe and language and people and nation. ¹⁰ You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God,    and they will reign^[b]on the earth.”

¹¹ Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. ¹²In a loud voice they were saying:

   “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,    to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength    and honor and glory and praise!”

¹³Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying:

   “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb    be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!”

¹⁴ The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

Questions

1. What does Jesus command John to do?
2. Some people see the Rapture in verse 4:1 – do you see what they see?
3. Describe your overall impression of heaven.
4. Is heaven somewhere you would want to be?
5. Is this Jesus someone you want to leave behind this world and join?

Going Deeper

Do the following pictures help you or hinder you?  Explain.

http://seg.sharethis.com/getSegment.php?purl=http%3A%2F%2Ftheplymothian.wordpress.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost-new.php&jsref=&rnd=1324481041778

The letters to the churches in Revelation are read a number of ways.  Remember that the language is figurative and so is open to more than an historical, literal meaning.  The churches are historically existant at the time of the writing.  So the first level of meaning must be that each church should take the warnings from Jesus to heart.  The second level of meaning is less clear.  The simplest understanding is that there is no second level of meaning.  Another interpretation says that the decline in the churches shows an historical time that unfolds through history in a linear fashion.  Another interpretation says that these types of churches have all existed throughout history and each church should examine itself to see where it fits.

I think that looking at our own churches and thinking where we are in comparison to the churches of Asia Minor is always helpful.  I think that different churches in different regions of the world would be similar to different churches in Asia Minor.

The letters to each church generally start with praise for something the churches have done to show themselves faithful.  The letter then moves on to a complaint about the church.  Finally the letter to each church gives a word of correction.

Revelation 2 & 3

¹ “To the angel^[a]of the church in Ephesus write:

   These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands. ² I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. ³You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.

   ⁴ Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. ⁵ Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. ⁶But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

   ⁷Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

To the Church in Smyrna

    ⁸“To the angel of the church in Smyrna write:

   These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. ⁹ I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. ¹⁰Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.

   ¹¹Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death.

To the Church in Pergamum

    ¹²“To the angel of the church in Pergamum write:

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

   ¹⁴ Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: There are some among you who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin so that they ate food sacrificed to idols and committed sexual immorality. ¹⁵ Likewise, you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. ¹⁶Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.

   ¹⁷Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it.

To the Church in Thyatira

    ¹⁸“To the angel of the church in Thyatira write:

   These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze. ¹⁹I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first.

   ²⁰ Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophet. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols. ²¹ I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling. ²² So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways. ²³I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.

   ²⁴ Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira, to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets, ‘I will not impose any other burden on you, ²⁵except to hold on to what you have until I come.’

   ²⁶ To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— ²⁷ that one ‘will rule them with an iron scepter and will dash them to pieces like pottery’^[b]—just as I have received authority from my Father. ²⁸ I will also give that one the morning star. ²⁹ Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

 ¹ “To the angel^[a]of the church in Sardis write:

   These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits^[b] of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. ² Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God. ³Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.

   ⁴ Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. ⁵ The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels. ⁶Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

To the Church in Philadelphia

    ⁷“To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:

   These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. ⁸ I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. ⁹ I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. ¹⁰Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.

   ¹¹ I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. ¹² The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name. ¹³Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

To the Church in Laodicea

    ¹⁴“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

   These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. ¹⁵ I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! ¹⁶ So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ¹⁷ You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. ¹⁸I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.

   ¹⁹ Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. ²⁰Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

   ²¹ To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. ²² Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Questions

1. Some people see the Rapture in Revelation 3: 10.  Do you see it there?
2. Often Revelation 3:20 is used for non-Christians.  Why is this inappropriate?
3. Do you think the churches represent an historical decline?
4. Which one of these churches would best describe your church?
5. How should you act toward the church today after reading these chapters?

http://seg.sharethis.com/getSegment.php?purl=http%3A%2F%2Ftheplymothian.wordpress.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost-new.php&jsref=&rnd=1324398093400