Revelation Chapter 1

Rev. 1:1. The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants--things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John,

This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, notice it does not say this is the revelation about Jesus Christ. The fact is, He is the one who is giving the revelation. But it is also true that it will be about Him because this revelation describes end time events in which He will be the main character, the main personality. So even though this is about Him, it comes from Him, He is the source of this revelation. However Jesus is not the originator of this revelation, He got it from the Father, "which God gave Him." It is important to grasp that, but don't let that surprise you, may I remind you that Jesus came in submission to his Father, He did not come to do His will, but to do the Father's will. It says, "to show His bond servants" which is without a doubt, genuine born again believers.

These things must shortly come to pass, What does that mean? Some will argue if this is futuristic, if these are events which are going to happen at the end of human history, then how can John write in this opening section that, "these things must shortly come to pass." This word shortly is a poor translation from the Greek word "TACHOS". This word in the Greek is not related to a length of time, ex. church will be over shortly, that is not the meaning of the word shortly in this verse. A more correct word is quickly, or speedily. So it would read, "these things must occur speedily." This word is used in Luke 18:8, Rev. 22:7&12 the word is translated speedily and quickly respectively. Therefore, what it means is that when these events begin to take place, they will happen quickly, which means they will happen in a brief period of time, Specifically over a seven year span.

This verse says He "signified" it, I want to say something about that word. Notice what this word is made up of, sign-i-fied, this book was sign-i-fied. What is the significance of the word signified? I believe it is very important, yet very few commentators touch on it. If you were to look at a verse like John 12:23, you will find in speaking of the Lord's crucifixion these words, "as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the son of man be lifted up," and then it says, "this He said signifying or sign-i-fying what death He would die. So the lifting up of the serpent was a sign of the crucifixion. So this body of truth is sign-i-fied.

Have you heard of the coded language piglatin. I remember my dad when he wanted to say something to my mom that he did not want us kids to understand, he would talk in piglatin, now mom understood what he said because she knew the code, but I did not have a clue what he was saying. They had a sign-i-fied language.

In the book of Revelation, the writer is being given a revelation that is sign-i-fied to him, why? Because John was on the island of Patmos, a penal colony, he was under arrest. If the document were found, if it were found in the possession of some of the people he was sending it to, it could have caused him great problems. So this revelation is sign-i-fied, and if someone got it, who was not meant to, to them it would have been coded, or in piglatin and they would not be able to understand what it said. But in the right hands it would be very understandable, because they knew all the illusions he was making. These were literal events but in a sense they were coded. You have the same thing in the book of Daniel, and Ezekiel because they were related to foreign powers, they were in captivity, they were writing outside of the land, and they were in innate danger from these foreign powers so you have the same kind of coded writing. So this first verse is saying that, this revelation is being given by God to Jesus, sent by Christ, sign-i-fied by angels, and recorded by John, so that you and I could have it in our day.

Rev. 1:2, "who bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw."

There is that phrase, "the testimony of Jesus Christ," note it, it's important because we will see that description again as it refers to believers. Here it is a description of John who is a believer. The only witnesses, to the testimony of Jesus are believers.

Rev. 1:3, "Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near".

Notice what it says, "blessed is the one who reads and those who hear," now that may sound strange to you, but it did not in the first century. First of all a lot of people did not read, understand that making copies for everybody was all but impossible. So the scriptures were read in home churches by men who were readers, while the others sat and heard. We must understand this in its right setting, blessed is he, singular, the one who is reading, and those, plural, who hear the words of this prophecy. There is a blessing upon the one who reads, upon those who hear, and keep the words of this prophecy. That word blessed means life and the goodness of God upon that life. I believe we use this word too lightly today in our Christian vocabulary, but it was a very important thing when the high priest lifted up his arms and gave the biblical benediction, "the Lord bless thee," that was filled full with great significance to those who heard.

"Because the time is near," if that was true then, how much more so now. The Greek word means, close at hand. You may ask, how could it have been close at hand in 90 AD? The warnings to the seven churches is what is being referred to here, so He is saying that the time is near, it's close at hand, referring to the message that Christ has for these seven churches which is the primary concern of the prophecy, and applicable to the church in the last days before the coming of Christ. This warning includes all the events before and after His return.

Rev. 1:4,5,6, "John, to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen."

A word about this number seven, it is used 54 times in the book of Revelation. You will hear about, seven seals, seven trumpets, seven bowls, seven stars, seven lamp stands, etc, this word is not used by accident. Seven is the number of completion in the bible, with that there is no debate. Seven is the number for perfection in the scriptures.

As said earlier Genesis is the opening, the beginning, Revelation is closing or bringing things to its completion, as human history as we know it comes to an end. "Grace be unto you and peace," that was the common greeting of the church, Paul uses that in almost every one of his Epistles. You will never see that phrase reversed, because one is the cause and the other is the effect. You will never read peace be unto you and grace. It is always grace, God's Riches At Christ's Expense, grace, mercy bestowed when judgment was deserved, unmerited favor, and it goes far beyond that. The fruit of grace is peace.

"From the seven Spirits who are before His throne." What is He talking about here? This is a very controversial statement and I would say that anybody who says they have an absolute answer, would be merely speculating. I will show you what I think may be the answer. Turn to Rev. 5:6, "And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth."

Here we have a reference to these seven Spirits before the throne of God and it says that they are "sent out into all the earth." Turn to Zechariah 4:10, "For who has despised the day of small things? For these seven rejoice to see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. They are the eyes of the LORD, which scan to and fro throughout the whole earth." Exactly what this means I am not sure. But seven is the number of completion so it may refer to the perfection of the Holy Spirit in performing His work. Also, 2 Chron. 16:9 tells us that, "the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show Himself strong to those who are loyal to Him." So again it may be a reference to the Holy Spirit.

Just notice what it says about Jesus Christ here, #1, He is the faithful witness. #2, He is the first of the dead to live again. #3, He is the ruler of the kings of the earth. Concerning Jesus, it is saying that He is a prophet, and the faithful witness. He is the first of the dead to live again, that is the priest who offers the sacrifice, he not only offered it, but was it. Then He is the king, the ruler over the kings of the earth. He is the prophet that communicates God's truth, He is the priest who offered and was Himself the sacrifice that was offered and rose from the dead, and He is the ruler that will reign as King of kings and Lord of lords. Jesus is the Messiah, the Prophet, Priest, and King.

In the latter part of verse 5 and on in verse 6 says three more things about the Messiah, #1, He loves us, #2, He has freed us from our sins, #3, He has made us kings and priests to His Father. The end of verse six I believe, is the end of the introduction.

Rev. 1:7, "Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen."

How many eyes will see Him? As it says here and as you will see as we study this book, the return of Christ is anything but a secret rapture! Matt. 24:30, says the same thing. "Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory."

His return will be very noisy; every eye shall see it, when the world sees it they go into a state of panic. This mourning by the world is brought on by fear, because of the judgment that is coming upon the people for rejecting God's grace and mercy and spurning God's love, now they must experience God's wrath. We will see this in more detail in Rev. chapter 6. Payday for the followers of Satan is now here and that is what this mourning is all about. For the church this will be a time of rejoicing, for the Great Tribulation is cut short, the suffering of the church is finished because the hope of the church is realized.

Rev. 1:8, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End," says the Lord, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."

This is the, I Am that I Am, the one who is without beginning or ending. I am not a created being; I am the divine being.

Rev. 1:9, "I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ."

John knew first hand what tribulation or suffering was, because he was banished from civilization. This was not because he was a criminal, but because he stood for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.

John was on the island called Patmos. I don't know how you visualize that, allow me to paint a picture in your mind. See John on the island of Patmos. This was a small island in the Aegean Sea located 60 miles southwest of Ephesus whose area was about 60 square miles. It was a penal island owned and operated by Rome. It was used for punishment and imprisonment and John was sent there for his faithfulness to the Lord Jesus Christ. He was probably sent there because of his impact on the church, tradition says that he was the pastor of the church at Ephesus, so he knew the other six churches that Revelation was written to rather well, therefore he knows of what he his writing. This is the beloved apostle that you read so much about; the same one who put his head on the Lord's chest as the Lamb and now he is writing about Him as the Lion. Even though he spent three and a half years with the Lord in intimate association as one of His disciples, yet as he sees Him in the book of Revelation in His glory, he is ready to fall on his face. This aged, godly, and faithful servant of the Lord Jesus Christ did not bemoan his situation, no, but in the most adverse circumstance was used of God to pen this revelation of Jesus Christ.

Rev. 1:10,11, "I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, saying, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last," and, "What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea."

I want to say something about the expression on the Lord's Day. Does it mean the first day of the week, which we call the Lord's Day? Well, it is possible I suppose for it to refer to Sunday, the first day of the week. However, you ought to know that this is the only place in the bible where we find this expression, "the Lord's day." Furthermore, so far as church history is concerned, outside of the bible, we don't have any record of anybody using that expression for another 75-100 years. In other words, it did not become a familiar expression, so far as we know, for another 100 years after the book of Revelation was written. Since this is the only place it is used, would the recipients of this letter have any understanding of what it meant? I would suggest that he is not referring to the Lord's Day as being Sunday. I would like to suggest to you that he is referring to "the Day of the Lord." Now the expression, "the Day of the Lord," is the most frequently used prophetic term in all of the bible. Yet it is hardly ever preached on, I cannot remember anywhere, in my bible college courses, or over any pulpit ever hearing anybody teach or preach on the whole concept of the day of the Lord. Yet, at least seven OT prophets, speak of this as a major theme, the entire book of Joel for instance, is given over to a discussion of the Day of the Lord. You will find it in Isaiah, Zephaniah, etc... In the New testament Dr. Luke uses that term in Acts, Paul uses that term in Thessalonians, Peter uses it in 2 Peter chapter 3. It is an important theme in scripture; it is a day of darkness, a day of gloom, a day of judgment. We are living in what could be termed "man's day," today, God has allowed man under human responsibility to go his own way, God does not directly intervene, and "man's day" will continue until the cup of man's iniquity is full. When the cup is full to a point where God says enough, no more, then God will directly intervene in the affairs of man. When that happens, that is what the prophets of God spoke of as the "Day of the Lord."

Just what is the Day of the Lord? What is it all about? I would like to look at the Day of the Lord in some detail here so you will have an understanding of it as we study the book of Revelation.

Under divine inspiration the prophet Isaiah wrote: "I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will halt the arrogance of the proud, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible" (Isaiah 13:11)

It is a solemn and sobering thing to contemplate the judgment of the world by a holy and righteous God. Yet not to do so is to consign oneself to total ignorance concerning the plan of God for mankind and not to know the last chapter of man's history as we know it today is to forfeit any meaningful understanding of the purpose for life itself.

If men and nations know where they are and where they are going, it gives to them important building blocks to gage their priorities, values and direction for life. Sadly, today most men neither know where they are, nor where they are going.

No less than eight OT writers (Isaiah, Ezekiel, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Zephaniah, Zechariah, and Malachi) and three NT writers (Luke, Paul, and Peter) write with clarity concerning this final judgment of the world by God. And they associate the judgment with what the Bible calls "THE DAY OF THE LORD"

The Day of the Lord is that period of time at the end of the age when God will judge the world for its wickedness. That judgment will be relatively brief and will be followed by the righteous reign over the earth by the Son of God Himself.

A listing from the prophet's description of the Day of the Lord is not pleasant to reflect upon. It reveals that the Day of the Lord will be:

• A time when God "arises to shake terribly the earth" (Isa. 2:19,21).

• A time of destruction from the Almighty (Isa. 13:6; Joel 1:15).

• A time of divine wrath and fierce anger (Isa. 13:13; Zeph. 1:15; 2:2).

• A time when He will punish the world for its evil and the wicked for their iniquity (Isa. 13:11).
• A time when God's indignation and fury will be directed against the nations (Isa. 34:1-2; Obad. 15; Zeph. 1:14-2:3; Zech. 14:3.
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• A time when God's vengeance will be revealed (Isa. 34:8).

• A time of darkness in the heavens (Isa. 13:9-10; Joel 2:31; 3:15).

• A time of fire from the Lord (Joel 2:3,5,30; Zeph. 1:18; 3:8).

• A time of clouds, thick darkness, gloominess, wrath, trouble, distress and terror (Ezek. 30:3; Zeph. 1:15).

• A time of "darkness and not light? Even very dark, and no brightness in it?" (Amos 5:20).

The Day of the Lord is a time of almost indescribable and incomprehensible judgment. The earth will be rocked to its very foundation. This judgment will not be the result of war or natural catastrophe. It will be the result of the direct agency of God through His angelic servants. The seven trumpets and the seven bowls of the Book of Revelation present the most graphic description of the Day of the Lord.

Isaiah recorded his prophecy concerning the Day of the Lord twenty-seven hundred years ago, and still God has not punished the world for its evil.

Some have suggested that the prophets were wrong in their assessments, that they erred in their predictions; and that their prognostications of coming judgment were the words of hyperbole with no corresponding reality, words of shadow without substance. These critics of the prophets say, "After all, so many centuries have come and gone, so many tides have risen and fallen, the sun has never refused to rise and set." They argue that there is pattern and predictability with regard to human history that logically suggests its uninterrupted continuation.

Men who raise such arguments against a time of divine reckoning are scoffers. They do not take seriously God's promise, that His Son will return, and the world will be punished for its wickedness during the Day of the Lord. These scoffers cite an uninterrupted flow of human history, "...all things continue as they were..." as evidence that the future, as the past will continue uninterrupted. Peter's response to such reasoning is that these scoffers willingly choose to reject the facts as they really are.

Peter reminds his readers that history is not an uninterrupted flow of events as these scoffers contend. The fact is, God did directly intervene in the affairs of human history, He judged the world for its evil in connection with the universal flood in the days of Noah, "For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water"(2 Peter 3:5-6). Having reminded his readers of that fact, Peter adds: "But the heavens and the earth which are now, by the same word [God's pledge] are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men" (2 Peter 3:7). In the days of Noah God said He would judge the world by flood--He did. God has said that at the end of this age He will judge the world by fire--He will. This is inviolable prophecy, it is a done deal. Judgment is coming whether men believe it or not--whether men like it or not--whether men are prepared for it or not.

If the world is wicked, if it is in need of divine judgment, why has God not out poured His wrath before now? Because He is long-suffering, not willing that any should perish and He cannot intervene until the earth lease that He leased out to Adam and Adam in turn leased out to Satan as run out. Now, no one should mistake God's long-suffering as indecision, weakness or toleration of evil. When the cup of man's iniquity is full which will be when the lease runs out, God will intervene directly, omnipotently, and righteously.

Hear the apostle once again on this theme: "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up" (2 Peter 3:10).

Peter stated that the Lord's coming to commence the Day of the Lord will be "as a thief in the night." If that statement is true, and is made without any qualifying statement that would shed further light as to His coming, then it would mean that Christ's coming is signless and it could happen at any moment. It would mean that no prophesied events need precede His coming. If Christ's coming "as a thief in the night,' without qualification, it would then seem logical to conclude that everyone will be caught of guard at His coming.

From a pre-tribulational point of view, both the saved and the unsaved will be taken by surprise and caught of guard at Christ's coming, for that is the significance of the expression, "thief in the night." But is that what the word of God teaches? Will the Church be caught off guard and unprepared at her Lord's coming?

Let's take a look at what the apostle Paul says about the Day of the Lord. A vital element of Paul's evangelistic ministry related to the Second Coming of Christ (1 Cor. 4:5; 15:23; 1 Th. 2:19; 2 Th. 2; Ti. 2:13; Heb. 9:28).

During Paul's second missionary journey, he visited the Macedonian City of Thessalonica. There, under God, he was able to establish a small and struggling body of believers. However, his time with them was limited. After what is generally thought to be about three weeks of ministry, he was literally driven from the city by some of the Jewish leaders who opposed his teaching (Acts 17:5-9). But while with the Thessalonians, he taught them that Jesus was coming again. And when He would come, they, as believers, would experience deliverance, and the unsaved world would be judged during the Day of the Lord.

However, something happened within the Church at Thessalonica that brought about great concern. Some of the believers died and the Lord had not yet returned. And in the thinking of the Church, these "loved ones" had now missed the hope of deliverance at Christ's coming. It was crucial that Paul correct their erroneous thinking on this vital issue.

He wrote: "But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep [who have died], lest you sorrow [over those who have died] as others who have no hope" (1 Thes. 4:13).

The important expression in this verse is, "But I do not want you to be ignorant brethren." It was an expression that Paul frequently used and always in the same way. To be "ignorant" did not mean to be stupid or the possessor of a low IQ in Pauline theology. Rather it always implied a wrong understanding of the subject under consideration. Whenever Paul said "I don't want you to be ignorant," his listeners were ignorant every time.

For instance. to the Romans, Paul wrote: "Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, [but was prevented thus far,] that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among other Gentiles" (Rom 1:13). Some had erroneously concluded that, although Paul had visited many cities during his missionary journeys, he deliberately avoided visiting Rome out of fear of preaching the gospel at the very center of the Roman Empire. The Roman believers were "ignorant" concerning this subject. They were thinking wrongly. For Paul, it was never a question of fear. It simply had not yet been God's timing to visit Rome. He was not "ashamed of the gospel," nor its compelling logic, nor its divine power to save, not even in the mists of Rome herself.

In the same epistle Paul wrote: "For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in" (Rom 11:25). The Roman believers were thinking wrongly concerning the extent of Israel's blindness (it was "in part"--the nation is blinded excluding a remnant with perfect vision), and they were thinking wrongly concerning the duration of Israel's blindness (it is temporary, it will last "until the fullness of the Gentiles be fulfilled"). They thought God had cast away the Jewish people. They were "ignorant"; their thinking had to be corrected.

In the context now under discussion, Paul was concerned because the Thessalonian believers were ignorant regarding the relationship of the dead in Christ to the Lord's glorious return; thus his statement, "But I would not have you be ignorant brethren." He moved decisively to correct their erroneous thinking in this matter. He wrote: For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus [those who have died as believers]. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, [what follows, Paul says, is not speculation but divine revelation] that we who are alive and remain [literally survive, and what is in view is the persecution of believers by Antichrist] until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep [who have died] . For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel [for the purpose of announcing the soon termination of Israel's blindness and the "end of the times of the Gentiles"] , and with the trumpet of God [to herald the beginning of the outpouring of God's wrath during the Day of the Lord] . And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord (1 Thes. 4:14-17).

Paul then returns full circle to the issue that prompted this teaching--their wrong thinking (ignorance) concerning those who had died in Christ--and says: Therefore [in light of the fact that those who died in Christ, will in fact, be resurrected and participate in the blessed hope with those still living at His coming], comfort one another with these words (1 Thes. 4:18).

After explaining that the dead in Christ would not be abandoned at Christ's coming, Paul moves on to a consideration of the time when the dead in Christ and the living will experience this blessed hope. Paul wrote: "But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you" (1 Thes. 5:1). The reason that it was not necessary for Paul to write to them concerning "the times and seasons" related to the Lord's return is then noted: " For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night" (1 Thes. 5:2). Whereas the Thessalonians were ignorant concerning the fate of the dead in Christ and their relationship to the Lord's coming (1 Thes. 4:13), they understood "perfectly" that the Day of the Lord would come as a thief in the night. Paul continued: For when they say, "Peace and safety!" then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape (1 Thes. 5:3).

The three pronouns of v.3, they, them, and they, refer to the unsaved. It is the unsaved who shall say "Peace and safety." It is upon the unsaved that sudden destruction comes. It is the unsaved that will not escape the Day of the Lord.

Paul then directs his comments to believers. But you, brethren [in contrast to the unsaved] , are not in darkness, so that this Day [the Day of the Lord] should overtake you as a thief [the thief comes expectantly] under the cover of darkness] . You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. (1 Thes. 5:4-5). In as much as believers are "sons of light," and "sons of the day," Paul admonishes: Therefore let us [believers] not sleep [here the idea is spiritually] , as others [children of the night] do, but let us [children of the day] watch and be sober. (1 Thes. 5:6). The apostle then moves on to set forth a crucial principle concerning the Day of the Lord. " For God did not appoint us to wrath [that is, believers will not experience the outpouring of the divine judgment during the Day of the Lord] , but to obtain salvation [deliverance by rapture] through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake [are alive at his coming] or sleep [die before his coming] , we should live together with Him" (1 Thes. 5:9-10).

Jesus will come as "a thief in the night" as far as the unsaved are concerned because they walk in darkness. They will be unprepared and caught off guard at His coming. In contrast, believers, because they walk in the light, will know the general time period of His coming as a result of the fulfillment of specific prophesied events. Believers can be ready and prepared. For the believers, the Lord's return will not be "as a thief in the night."

Paul's teaching is so clear on this matter, it is doubtful that anyone would have ever challenged it were it not that Pretribulation rapturism requires that Christ come as "a thief in the night" in what is sometimes called a "secret rapture" to sustain an any-moment Rapture (immanency). But Paul's condemnation of such teaching does not stand-alone.

What does Jesus say about the Day of the Lord. One of the most important questions ever asked was posed by the Lord's disciples outside the eastern wall of the city of Jerusalem. Like a powerful cyclone, recent dramatic events had been swirling about these dozen men, leaving them off balance, confused, and insecure. In the mists of all their confusion, Jesus stunned them with the announcement that He was leaving, they would not see Him for an extended period of time. Their response to His announcement was predictable. With a sense of urgency they asked, "And what shall be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?" (Matt. 24:3).

Their question, though some two thousand years old is important because it served as a catalyst for Christ's teaching on end-time events.

In the first section of His teaching concerning His coming, the Lord gives a series of urgent warnings:

• Prior to His coming and the end of the age, there will be false Christs, wars, famines, and pestilences (the first half of Daniel's seventieth week, Matt. 24:4-8)

• Prior to His coming and the end of the age, Christians worldwide will be persecuted, betrayed, and martyred, but those who "endure [literally, bear up courageously under suffering]" until the end of the age will be saved (Matt. 24:9-18).

• At the middle of the seventieth week, which will be prior to His coming and the end of the age, there will be an abomination of desolation; literally the Antichrist setting himself up in the temple as God and demanding worship (Matt.24:15-22).

• During the Great tribulation and prior to His coming and the end of the age, there will appear false Christs and false prophets empowered by Satan who will perform impressive false signs to authenticate their false message (Matt. 24:23-26)

• The true sign of His coming will occur immediately after God cuts short the Great Tribulation, and it will be both conspicuous and universal (Matt. 24:27-28).

These warnings, however, as significant as they are, all describe events which lead up to the sign of Christ's coming and the end of the age. None of them identify the specific sign of Christ's coming that the disciples had requested, that answer is not given until Matthew 24:29-31.

First, before the sign of His coming is revealed, there will be cosmic disturbance; that is, the sun, the moon, and the stars will be darkened. The natural light-bearers of the universe will be switched off, and the result will be total, awesome darkness (v.29). This is the sixth seal of Revelation and will occur immediately before the commencement of the Day of the Lord.

Second, the sign of the Lord's coming will not appear on earth, but on the "parchment" of heaven itself. The actual sign will be the manifestation of the presence (glory) of God in the heavens (v. 30a).

Third, as a result of seeing the sign of His coming (the manifestation of God's glory), all the tribes of the earth will "mourn" (v.30b).

Fourth, at the very outset of His coming the Lord will send His angels to gather his "elect" from one end of heaven to the other (v.31).

Having by this time answered the specific question raised by the disciples concerning the sign of His coming and the end of the age, the Lord then focused His attention on to two urgent issues which naturally arise out of His teaching.

He taught, "Now learn the parable of the fig tree" (Matt. 24:32).

In the interpretation of the parable of the fig tree, a considerable body of erroneous teaching as been presented over the years. Commenting on the parable of the fig tree, one of America's best-known Christian leaders wrote: "The fig tree is always Israel in Scripture...." The fact of the matter is, the expression "fig tree" is used thirty-eight times in the Bible--twenty-two times in the OT and sixteen times in the NT In every case a fig tree is a fig tree. The view that the fig tree is Israel in Matthew 24has become so widely held that it is necessary to discuss this position and its fallacy so the real significance of the parable can be understood. That erroneous position held by so many teachers is summarized below.

1. In the Lord's parable the fig tree represents Israel.

2. The fig tree began to bud when Israel became a nation in 1948.

3. The generation that would be alive when Israel (the fig tree) began to bud would be the generation that would be alive when Christ returns. that is based on the fact that Jesus taught: "This generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled" (Matt. 24:34).

4. It is generally understood that a biblical generation is forty years in duration.

5. Since Israel (the fig tree) began to bud in May of 1948, and since that generation will not pass away until "all these things be fulfilled" (consummating with Christ's return), and since a generation is forty years in length, Jesus is to literally return to the earth in 1988--forty years after the fig tree began to bud. (Now, because Christ did not return in 1988 some of these teachers are changing the time span for a Biblical generation).

Obviously the dates that men have set down through history have come and gone and Christ's coming has not occurred. History has conclusively demonstrated that those who espoused the above view were in error. Now, by suggesting that the length of a Biblical generation is approximately fifty-four years, some of these same teachers are predicting that the Second Coming will now take place in the year 2000. These teachers are now compounding their earlier error.

The view just discussed is problematic for the following reasons:

First, there is no legitimate basis for making the fig tree in the parable represent Israel. When the Lord called Nathaniel to be one of His disciples, He said: "When you were under the fig tree I saw you" (John 1:48). Nathaniel wasn't under Israel-- he was under a fig tree. In the Bible a fig tree is a fig tree. A fig tree cannot be made to represent something else without a scriptural warrant to do so. There is no such warrant in the Olivet Discourse to make the fig tree represent Israel.

Second, even if, for the sake of discussion, it could have been demonstrated that the fig tree represented Israel in Matt. 24, there is no basis for saying that she began to bud in the year 1948. That is a totally subjective point. Why not start the budding of the fig tree in 1897? That's when Theodor Herzl, the acknowledged "father" of the modern state of Israel wrote his famous brochure, "The Jewish State," and convened the First Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland, calling for a homeland for the Jewish people. Would not that be a logical starting point for the budding of the fig tree after almost 1800 years of worldwide dispersion. Or why not the year 1917? That's when Great Britain, having captured Palestine from Turkey during the First World War, instituted the Balfour Declaration calling for a national homeland for the Jewish people. Or why not 1922? That is when the League of Nations (forerunner of the United Nations) gave to Great Britain a mandate to establish a homeland for the Jewish people. Certainly it could be argued, that would be a good time to start Israel's modern budding. Or why not 1967? After all, it was not until that year that Israel captured the city of Jerusalem and made it her capital. The point is, even if it could be demonstrated that the fig tree represented Israel, a starting date of 1948 for when she began to bud is arbitrary and without biblical basis.

Third, there is no rationale for saying a full generation will elapse between when the fig tree begins to bud and the return of the Lord. Such reasoning ignores completely the fact that the text does not say that the generation living when these events occur will run full course; that is, that it will run until the end of that generation. It simply says that the generation living when the events leading to the sign of Christ's coming begin to happen will also be the generation living when He returns.

The significance of the Lord's teaching is this: The events described as preceding His coming take place in a relatively brief period of time-- within one generation. It does not mean that there will be exactly one generation in duration from the beginning of the events the Lord described until His return.

Forth, in the interpretation of parables, the earthly story part of a parable is never given a secondary meaning before the spiritual truth is presented. A lost coin is a lost coin, a lost sheep is a lost sheep, and a prodigal son is a prodigal son. The familiar story in a parable is not made to represent something else before the interpretation is given.

What then was the Lord actually teaching in the parable? The answer is straightforward, logical, important and needs no adornment. When certain things happen to a fig tree (and all the trees, Luke 21:29) --specifically, their branches become tender, and they put forth leaves--men knew that summer was getting close. That was an axiomatic, non-debatable fact known to all. Likewise or in similar fashion, when the generation of people see the things the Lord described coming to pass (the events of Matt. 24:15-26), they will know that His return is getting close--so close, in fact, that the generation then living will not pass away before His return (Matt. 24:34). Dr. Luke recorded it this way: "Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near" (Luke 21:28).

Having taught that discerning believers will know the general time period of His return, specifically because there are signs and the fulfillment of prophesied events, He then gives an important limitation. "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only" (Matt. 24:36).

The fig tree and the other trees were an indicator of approximation. When certain things happened to it, men knew that summer was getting close. They did not know the specific "day" or "hour" when summer would arrive. Similarly, when the things the Lord described begin to come to pass, the generation then living will then know that His return is getting close. Jesus will not come for His own "as a thief in the night." That is precisely the point of the parable of the fig tree.

Discerning believers will know the general time period of Christ's return once the seventieth week is entered and the Antichrist arises. The unsaved world however, will have absolutely no advance awareness of Christ's coming until judgment is upon them.

The awareness level of the unsaved with regard to Christ's return will be similar to the awareness level of the unsaved prior to the Noahic flood. The Lord warned: "But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be" (Matt 24:37). Then He explained what it was like on earth before the flood: "For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark," (Matt 24:38).

The Lord was not describing debauchery, as some have suggested. It is true that the world was wicked in the days prior to the flood, but that is not what is in view. They were eating, the text does not suggest gluttony. They were drinking. There is no inference of intoxication or alcoholism. They were marrying and given in marriage. These are the most basic of all things. The point is this: Noah was a preacher of righteousness. For some ninety years, as he and his family built the ark, he warned the people that divine judgment was coming--that Deity was about to invade humanity. The people laughed and mocked; they ate and drank; they married and gave in marriage; and they were totally oblivious to what was coming. In the words of the Lord, "they knew not until the flood came, and took them all away." They were caught totally off guard and unprepared. Had it been otherwise they would have been in the ark. Then the Lord makes this sobering observation: "So shall also the coming of the Son of Man be" (Matt. 24:39).

The teaching of Paul in 1 Thess. 5:1-9 and the teaching of the Lord in Matt. 24:37-39 is clearly parallel. If Paul's teaching is related to the Lord's coming, the rapture of the Church, and the judgment of the wicked, the Lord's teaching in the Olivet Discourse, off necessity, must be dealing with the same events. And these events are clearly inside of the seventieth week--not before it commences.

So the Lord will not come as a thief in the night for His own.

But He will come as a thief in the night as far as the unsaved concerned.

Additional evidence to substantiate this truth can be found in the writing of the prophet Daniel. In the context of the resurrection of the righteous, which occurs at Chris's coming and immediately before the Day of the Lord, Daniel is told: And he said, "Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand" (Dan 12:9-10).

The teaching that Christ can come at any moment, that His coming is signless, that His coming will be as "a thief in the night" even for the Church which is His body, is based on the traditions of men, however well-intended, not on the truth of God's word.

In the midst of the heartache, sadness, and wickedness of this age, look to the eastern sky, citizen of the Kingdom. Jesus is soon coming.

In Jewish theology, people perceived two ages, this present age in which we are living, including the Old and New Testaments and an age to come. Jewish theology would say that this present age is all bad, that was the theme of the prophets in the Old Testament. There is sin, wickedness, pollution, corruption, famine, war, earthquakes, rape, murder, homosexuality, hatred, robbery, this age is bad, and it is so because sin entered unto the stage of human history. They say that there is another age that is coming and that is going to be a wonderful, perfect age. They spoke of that future age when the wolf would lie down with the lamb, when the weapons of warfare would be made into farm tools, when the earth would give its full bounty, when every man will prosper, when righteousness will prevail in the earth, that is the good age. The Day of the Lord will put an end to the bad age and usher in the good age or the millennium, which we will address when we come to the end of this book. Do you realize that all the problems in life are directly attributable to sin. I don't mean individual sins, I mean sin, singular, as an operating principal which entered onto the stage of human history with the disobedience of Adam. Well you say, "I wasn't there so why blame me?" Because you were in Adam, you came through his loins, what he did, you did in him even though you weren't around; you weren't even a twinkle in your father's eye. Unregenerate men not only don't have the solutions to this world's problems, they don't even know what the problems are. Sin is the cause of all problems. Unto those who look for Him shall He appear the second time, without sin-- that is the curse will be lifted. So we have two ages, and in between these two ages is a brief period of time, called the Day of the Lord, when God is going to cleanse this world of sin and bring in a golden age. Now in this verse where John says, "I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, I would like to suggest to you, without being dogmatic, that what he is saying is, " I was put into this ecstatic position whereby I could receive this revelation and I could see these things that were going to happen during the tribulation and the Day of the Lord." The idea is, John, when he penned the book of Revelation, is moved in time to the end of time. John could actually see the events unfold that he was writing about. So the Lord's day means the first day of the week or it means the Day of the Lord. Please notice that the expression "House of the God" in Genesis 28:17, equals God's House. The Lord's people equals people of the Lord, so the Lord's Day could be translated as the Day of the Lord.

So John is told to write what he sees and send it to the seven churches. These churches were located on a major postal route, and are listed in the order that a messenger would reach the towns, making a circular sweep from Ephesus. Question: Why would he write it to the churches with warnings, if the churches were not going to be around during this time?

Rev. 1:12, "Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lamp stands,"

"I saw seven golden lamp stands, and in the midst of the lamp stands," Let's look at that for a moment, here were seven golden lampstands, what do you think lamp stands would signify? Light, testimony, OK, churches are to be the light of the world. We will see in a moment that the seven lamp stands are seven churches. How should the church be a light to the world? By what it says, but more importantly by the way it lives. You witness by your life style even more than by what you say. The church is to be as Jesus was in this world, doing what Jesus did, if it is not then it is not being a true witness of Christ. The church is almost non-existent in its testimony of Christ to the world in the way that it lives! We are to be a Royal Priesthood, a peculiar people, that does not mean weird, but it does mean we are to be different. What are we to evidence? The fruit of the Spirit, the gifts of the Spirit, the anointing of the Spirit, the power of the Spirit and the work of the Spirit. The church and the world are so intermingled it is hard to tell them apart, but the time is coming when the true church will testify to whom Jesus is by the way she lives.

Rev. 1:13,14,15,16, "and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength."

In the midst of the lamp stands was one like the Son of Man, this suggest to me that He is in our midst. This is good if we are submitted to Him, for in the midst of tribulation He is there to help us through. It is not so good if we are not living godly, for He is aware of that also.

The person being described here is Jesus in His judgmental attire, He is in the midst of His people and clearly, among other things, He is there as a judge.

Remember in Hebrews, it talks about the word of God being sharper than a two edged sword. Here we have a the word coming out of the mouth of Jesus, and this weapon is far superior to any that the devil has, in fact this weapon is fail proof.

Rev. 1:17, "And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, "Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last."

Here we have John the beloved, who spent a lot of time with Christ and knew Him intimately, yet when he sees Him as just described, he falls down at His feet as a dead man. Anytime men in the bible get a glimpse of God in His glory, they fall down on their faces. When Daniel, Ezekiel, and Paul received visions they fell on their face. Whenever men see the glory of God, the sum and substance of all that He is, His holiness, justice, truth, mercy, majesty, power and His might, they fall on their face.

Jesus laid His hand on him and told him to stop being afraid, His message to us is, fear not, his message to us is fear not the tribulation that is coming, for the faithful will be protected.

Rev. 1:18,19, "I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death. Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this."

Can you imagine John, the beloved, being told that. Hades, that is the place where the spirit of the unsaved go until they are resurrected and assigned to hell.

Let me read verse 19, from TAB. "Write therefore the things you see, what they are [and signify] and what is to take place hereafter."

You will normally hear verse 19, interpreted like this, write the things which you have seen, meaning chapter one, write the things which are, meaning chapter two and three, write the things which shall be hereafter, meaning chapter 4-22. May I humbly suggest to you, that is not the correct exposition of this important verse. What he is saying in the Greek is, write the things which you have seen, that is the things which are right then, first century, and the things which shall be hereafter, or what will happen after the things which are. Now John is called in this book, time after time a prophet and the concept of a prophet was one who spoke to his own day, the culture, the society, the age in which he lived and the problems that were there. He then went on to relate a parallel of similar events in the future only much worse and giving warnings of severe judgment if repentance did not take place.

An example of this is, Antiochus Epiphanes who was a Serian Grecian Ruler that polluted the temple in 168 BC, by erecting an image of himself in the temple on Mt. Morriah and asking the Jewish people to give him allegiance. Now that happened in 168 BC, but it is also an illustration of the abomination of desolation that is going to happen at the end of time when the Antichrist puts an image of himself in the temple, demanding that everybody worship him.

So John is speaking of events that happened in his own time regarding the seven churches, the difficulty they were experiencing because of environment, culture, government and the religion of their day. They were being severely persecuted, and each of the seven churches had unique, particular problems that they faced right then and John knew about it, after all he had been the pastor at Ephesus. Those seven churches that had unique problems at that time, in relationship to their culture, to Rome, to Emperor worship, all of those things were there then, but they prefigured the ultimate manifestation of the problems during the seventieth week of Daniel. Those seven churches were chosen because they were experiencing precisely the problems that the church will experience at the end of the age, but they will be much more severe.

That is why I said to you earlier that Revelation was both preterist, (they had these problems in the first century), so it was addressing the contemporary scene, but only in passing because the ultimate was the futurist problem with the Antichrist and the church at the end of the age.

If the church thinks that it is going to be exempted from that time, it will not understand the importance or have the sensitivity to the warnings that the Lord is giving to the church for today.

Rev. 1:20, "The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lamp stands: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lamp stands that you saw are the seven churches."

What is the meaning of the phrase, "He had in His right hand seven stars?" The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches and the seven lamp stands of verse 12, are the seven churches. The word angel is translated from the Greek word AGGELOS, the word could also mean messenger. Are the stars men messengers or are they angels of God. Among scholars there is no consensus as to who they are. The easy thing to say is that since these are seven messengers they must be the pastors of the seven churches. You could also state the fact that on two or three occasions in the New Testament the word AGGELOS, is clearly used to indicate human messengers.

However, this word is used repetitively in the book of Revelation and every time it is used, it means God's angels or spirit beings. So let me take this a step further, it is my opinion that we should not go to the word angel to determine who it is, but we should go back to the word star. It is interesting, because you will find over and over in scripture that the angels are referred to as stars. Lucifer was the, apart from Christ, ultimate star. In Rev 12, there is war in heaven and one third of the stars are cast out of heaven, later in the book a star (referring to an angel) is going to come down from heaven and open the pit. Therefore I would suggest to you, that the seven stars are not pastors, they are guardian angels of God assigned to these churches. Doesn't the bible suggest that every believer has a guardian angel, this angel will not guard you if you violate spiritual or natural laws, but if you live in obedience to God and a situation occurs that is out of your hand, I believe your guardian angel has a lot to do with your protection at that time. Heb. 1:14, tells us that angels are ministering spirits for the believer. Now you don't have to agree with me, but I am convinced that these are angles of God. "In his right hand," connotes being sustained and protected.

In Rev. chapter 2&3, we have the warning to the seven churches. The reason it is sent to the seven churches in the near term, is because they had problems. The reason God chose these seven churches near term for a far prophecy was because, some day these types of seven churches were going to undergo the worse persecution the church has ever known and He is trying to prepare them. He is saying, you had better be aware of what is going to happen because, if you go into that period of time and you are not aware, you will feel the brunt of Satan's wrath. It even says in Matt. that many will fall away and only the ones who endure to the end will be saved. The word saved is translated from the Greek word SOZO, it can mean saved but it also means delivered. So the ones who endure until the Day of the Lord will be delivered or raptured. This warning to the seven churches is serious admonition to the church. So it would say to the church, you straighten this up, then it would shift and say, if you don't straighten it up, when I come I am going to deal with it, if you fail to overcome your name will be removed from the book of life.