Participants: Ranko Stefanovic
Series Code: RCK
Program Code: RCK000010
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00:19 Welcome again to our program "Revelation of the Coming King".
00:25 I want to welcome to all of you, 00:27 especially you for the first time, 00:30 here watching this program. 00:32 And I hope that you will be encouraged 00:34 to look for the programs before 00:37 so that you see how we started from the very beginning verse 1 00:42 and going all through the Book of Revelation. 00:44 I'm glad that you join us. 00:46 That's the reason I'd like to introduce myself once again. 00:49 I am Ranko Stefanovic, Professor of New Testament 00:53 in the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary, 00:56 Andrews University. And I love the word of God. 01:00 This book changed me completely. 01:02 I found Jesus Christ as my personal Savior. 01:05 And, please, I'd like you to go back to that first program 01:08 that presented because I showed to you, 01:11 how really this book, 01:12 last book of the Bible changed my life completely. 01:17 I met my Savior and He is my precious friend 01:21 and I would not trade Him for anything in this world. 01:25 So we are in very, very interesting section 01:30 of the Book of Revelation. 01:32 For many people it's so difficult, 01:35 but I hope that so far you could see 01:39 when we take the Bible to interpret itself, 01:41 that the Book of Revelation, yeah, it is difficult book. 01:45 But it's not as difficult as usually people think. 01:50 And I'm so glad that we have this opportunity. 01:53 I'd like to express my deep gratitude to 3ABN 01:57 for making this series possible and also all these good people 02:02 who are involved in the production of this program. 02:05 And my special audience, you are great inspiration to me. 02:08 So I like to invite all of you, that we ask God for His guidance 02:13 in studying this difficult section 02:15 of the Book of Revelation. 02:16 Our Heavenly Father, thanks once again 02:20 that we can come before the throne of grace, 02:25 because You promised to us, 02:26 when we come before the throne of grace, 02:28 we will find the help in the time of our needs. 02:32 So, Father, we need You at this moment. 02:34 And please give us Your Holy Spirit 02:36 that the Book of Revelation, 02:39 this message can be very clear to us, 02:42 that can impact our lives 02:44 and that we can come much closer to You, 02:48 understanding the messages of this book. 02:52 Thank You for Your help. 02:53 And we pray all of this 02:55 in the precious name of our Savior, Jesus Christ. 02:59 Amen. Amen. 03:03 Before we go into our subject, I'd like to encourage you. 03:09 I'm repeating it regularly 03:12 is that we cannot cover everything go into depth. 03:16 There is much more to be said. 03:19 But I'd like to encourage you that, 03:22 once this program is over, 03:24 that you go and you study the subject for yourself. 03:27 But then you will say "Oh, boy, I tried so many times by myself. 03:30 I cannot do it." 03:32 Praise God, today we have so many tools. 03:35 There are so many tools, you can go and find them. 03:39 But my lectures here follow the content of this book 03:44 that is titled "Revelation of Jesus Christ." 03:48 It's a product of many years of my own research. 03:52 But this is not simply my research. 03:55 Actually, there are many other people who contributed 04:00 never understanding the Book of revelation 04:02 that refer to here in this book. 04:04 So if you really want to understand, 04:07 what is the best way to understand 04:10 the text of the Book of Revelation 04:12 and what my church today believes 04:14 about the Book of Revelation? 04:16 I'd like to encourage you 04:17 to keep this book in front of yourself. 04:20 And the subject that we are covering today now, 04:24 it's starting with page 217. 04:30 As I said last time, actually you have next 40, 50 pages. 04:35 So I'm not following the set order 04:38 that is found here in this commentary. 04:42 Okay, let us try just to summarize, 04:46 okay, about what we were talking about last time. 04:52 You remember? 04:53 That we mentioned at the starting point, 04:56 for the understanding of the opening 04:58 of the seven seals is Chapter 5. 05:02 Friends, if you take Revelation 5 05:07 and try to apply historically 05:10 and say that the content of Revelation 5 describes the event 05:14 that took place in the 19th century, 05:19 that this is the investigative judgment. 05:23 It was at that occasion, Jesus took the scroll. 05:26 It is only after taking the scroll, 05:29 that Jesus can break the seals. 05:31 Then what time element you are supposed 05:34 to put the breaking of the seals? 05:36 After that. 05:38 But we saw that the Book of Revelation 05:41 shows clearly that Chapter 5 portrays 05:44 the enthronement of Christ's events 05:45 that took place after the ascension 05:47 of Jesus there to the heavenly places 05:50 that took place on the day of Pentecost. 05:53 So the day of Pentecost, the event that marked 05:56 the beginning of the preaching of the gospel 05:59 is the starting point 06:01 for the understanding of the seven seals. 06:04 So we concluded then. 06:07 But when Jesus opened the first seal, 06:11 we have the gospel started being preached. 06:16 But the preaching of the gospel 06:17 is always accompanied by persecution. 06:20 There are people who accept it. They are blessed. 06:23 But there are people who reject the gospel, 06:26 not only do they reject, 06:28 they oppose to the gospel and persecution follows. 06:31 This is what the second seal is all about. 06:34 You remember that fiery red horse? 06:37 And then we have the black horse. 06:41 And the rider actually announces a terrible famine. 06:45 When people rejected the gospel, 06:49 regularly there is the famine for the word of God. 06:53 And then the fourth horse describes really 06:57 the ultimate consequences of rejection of the gospel 07:01 and that's complete spiritual death. 07:03 When you reject the word of God, then what is left to you? 07:06 You're left with your calculations, 07:09 your means and your works 07:11 that are actually worthless before God 07:14 and spiritual death follows completely, okay? 07:18 This is what we have. 07:19 We saw that in addition to this general application 07:23 that actually the first four seals, those four horsemen, 07:27 they also have the historical application. 07:30 Please I don't have time now to repeat it. 07:32 But they parallel the first four churches, applied historically 07:38 to those four different periods of the Christian era. 07:43 But now there is a question, 07:44 what is the meaning of these seals all about? 07:47 And we saw that the fourth horseman actually incorporates, 07:52 summarizes the activities of the three previous, 07:58 okay, horses and horsemen. 08:01 And what are the key expressions 08:04 actually that we have here? 08:05 Let's go back one more time. 08:07 It says, the conclusion of verse 8 08:11 that the authority was given to the death in Hades, 08:14 who is death in Hades? 08:15 It's the name for the rider on the horse. 08:18 Okay, to kill with the sword, 08:24 second seal with famine, the third seal with pestilence, 08:30 the fourth seal and by the wild beast of the earth. 08:35 Now we wanted to find the meaning of all of this. 08:39 And there is something very interesting. 08:42 We saw already that these four seals, 08:46 they portray the experience of the church, 08:49 God's people, as they are commissioned 08:52 to proclaim the gospel. 08:54 But in order to portray the situation of His people 08:59 through the Christian history, 09:02 God uses the symbolic language. 09:05 And that symbolic language is rooted 09:09 in the history of God's Old Testament people, Israel. 09:14 Are you still with me? 09:15 You remember, we mentioned already about symbolic language? 09:17 That God always uses the language of the past 09:22 to describe what will take place in the future. 09:27 Why so? Because to tell us that the same God 09:33 who was in the past with His people to help them, 09:37 He will also be with His people in the future, 09:42 when His people faces similar crisis, 09:44 the crisis similar to that one of His people in the past. 09:53 What message for all of us? 09:55 That's why crucial to the understanding 09:58 of the Book of Revelation is always to go 10:01 and find the meaning of that symbolic language 10:03 and we saw something, 10:05 we will not now read this text again. 10:08 I just want to remind you is 10:10 that you read the key text for the understanding 10:14 of the first four seals in Leviticus Chapter 26. 10:18 Therefore, the first time, 10:19 please, I'd like you so how to do something 10:22 to find the previous presentation. 10:24 And please read for yourself, Leviticus Chapter 26. 10:27 And you will notice 10:29 what is that that Moses said to the people of Israel. 10:30 If you are faithful to God, boy, 10:33 great blessings will come up on you, 10:35 but if you are unfaithful to the covenant 10:40 and you leave God, there are consequences, 10:43 not that God will do it, 10:45 but the consequences will come and those consequences 10:48 are portrayed in terms of sword, 10:55 famine, pestilence and the wild beast. 10:58 And you will notice, these are exactly the expressions 11:03 that we find here in the four seals. 11:07 So, friends, what are we actually talking about? 11:16 I'd like you to turn also 11:19 to the Book of Ezekiel 14:21. 11:25 The Book of Ezekiel 14:21 11:31 and we read there something very interesting, 11:37 that Ezekiel talked to the people of Israel 11:39 who are unfaithful to God. Are you still with me? 11:42 They are unfaithful to God. They parted from God. 11:44 They are unfaithful to the covenant. 11:46 They serve those pagan idols. 11:48 And now Ezekiel is reminding them 11:52 of those curses of the covenant 11:55 that Moses mentioned in Leviticus 26. 11:57 And he said to them, "For thus says the Lord God, 12:01 'How much more when I send my four severe judgments 12:07 against Jerusalem, sword, famine, wild beast, 12:13 and plague,'" or pestilence "' 12:15 to cut off man and beast from it.'" 12:18 How does Ezekiel call these four entities? 12:23 My four severe judgments. 12:27 Please can you turn to Jeremiah Chapter 51? 12:30 I want you, friends, that you see 12:31 how the Old Testament is replete with this, 12:34 that this is actually the crucial idea 12:36 that the people of Israel were so much familiar with. 12:39 Jeremiah 15:3, he has a different reference for that, 12:43 a different title for that. 12:45 He says, Jeremiah 15:3 12:48 "I will appoint over them four kinds of doom." 12:52 How does he call these things? 12:54 Four kinds of doom. "Declares the Lord. 12:57 'The sword to slay, the dogs'" or the beast '"to drag off, 13:01 and the birds of the sky 13:03 and the beasts of the earth to devour and to destroy.'" 13:07 How does Jeremiah call them? Four kind of dooms. 13:15 So what are we talking about? 13:17 I'd like to invite the viewers and my audience here 13:21 because I'm not able now to go into details. 13:24 I'd like you to turn to page 219. 13:26 The second line here on the top. 13:28 And just you see, how many times? 13:32 219 in my commentary there, 13:35 Revelation of Jesus Christ, second line. 13:38 And you can see there and go to the second paragraph. 13:41 You can see that how many times the prophets mentioned 13:46 and reminded the people of Israel of these four entities, 13:50 four severe judgments or four doom. 13:53 Why were the prophets 13:54 so much reminding the people of Israel of this, why? 13:59 Because it was at the time 14:00 when people are in total apostasy from God 14:04 and they wanted to remind them. 14:05 And please now you have now to be with me. 14:12 What happens when the people of Israel are unfaithful to God? 14:16 When you read the Old Testament 14:18 starting from the Book of Judges, 14:20 God simply because they departed from God, 14:23 God lifts up His protection from them. 14:26 Now what happens? The enemy nations come. 14:28 How do they come? 14:30 With money to help them. 14:32 No, they come with a sword to kill them. 14:35 Now when you have the war situation, 14:37 people are killed with a sword. 14:38 What is the next thing? 14:41 My country was torn by war several times 14:43 You know, what is the next thing? 14:45 The next thing is famine. 14:47 The first thing is shortage of food. 14:51 What is the next thing? 14:55 Different kind of disease, pestilence, 14:59 people are buried, people are dying there. 15:02 And what is the next one? 15:05 It's death. It's completely death. 15:08 And then the land is depopulated. 15:11 We're talking about Palestine, etcetera. 15:13 What comes next? 15:15 All those wild beasts are coming 15:18 from all around to feed themselves 15:21 and they're harming the people. 15:22 Actually, the text says in Leviticus 26, 15:25 "They will harm and eat your children." 15:30 Simple. 15:31 So now when people were in apostasy, 15:36 God would send His prophet to them. 15:38 Go to page 219, 220 all those pages, 15:42 because I really need 1 hour 15:43 just to go through those references. 15:45 You will see how many are in the Old Testament. 15:47 And please, please now you have to be with me. 15:50 The prophets would come 15:51 and preach to the people and say, you have left God. 15:57 You have broken the covenant with Him. 15:59 You're serving the idols. 16:01 Be careful because the sword is coming, 16:06 famine, pestilence and the wild beast. 16:10 And people knew exactly what the prophet was talking about. 16:15 I remember when for the first time, I did this research 16:21 and I was at one occasion preaching 16:24 and one gentleman raised hand and he said, 16:27 "Yeah, Jesus cleaned the Old Testament." 16:28 He said, "I did not realize 16:30 how much of that is in the Old Testament." 16:32 But we are dealing not with the Old Testament. 16:34 We are dealing with the first century. 16:36 "How can you be sure 16:38 that people understood it exactly in that way?" 16:40 And I was little bit confused, I decided to do my research 16:45 and then I found something very interesting 16:47 is that famous scholar David Downie 16:51 actually quotes Dio Cassius who was actually a Roman historian, 16:56 he knew nothing about the Old Testament. 16:58 Are you still with me? 16:59 Nothing about the Old Testament. 17:02 You have that quotation in page 221, second paragraph there. 17:06 Actually he described the destruction of Palestine 17:09 by Romans destruction of Jerusalem, 17:12 are you still-- in the year 132 A.D. 17:16 Please keep in mind, he is just a Roman historian. 17:20 He does not know the Old Testament. 17:22 Let's listen, let's read 17:23 how actually he describes the destruction of Palestine. 17:26 Are you with me? 17:28 Second line, he says, "580,000 men were slain 17:33 in the various raids and battles," sword huh? 17:37 Sword, "And the number of those that perished by famine, 17:42 disease, and fire was past finding out. 17:46 Thus nearly the whole Judaea was made desolate. 17:50 A result of which the people had hath forewarning before war. 17:54 And many wolves and hyenas 17:57 rushed howling into their cities." 18:02 What do we have here? 18:04 Not only that among the Jewish people, 18:06 but even in the first century among the Romans, 18:09 these were actually the consequences of a punishment. 18:13 So we can say that sword, famine, 18:18 pestilence and the wild beast are actually, as Ezekiel stated, 18:24 are God's judgments on the unfaithful Israel. 18:28 Now we have to go one step further 18:32 and please you have now to be with me. 18:37 What are those judgments? 18:40 By the way, we call them, the covenant curses 18:42 or the curses of the covenant. 18:44 It goes like this way. 18:46 God is not the one who's doing this. 18:49 As we mentioned that, 18:50 but God's people are faithful to God, 18:53 there is God's protection upon them. 18:55 When people are unfaithful to God, 18:58 God says, to the Babylonians, 19:02 go little bit and discipline my people. 19:06 And Babylonians they come sword, famine, 19:12 cause pestilence and the wild beast. 19:16 This is something that regularly takes, 19:18 but then what happens next? 19:20 Please this very important now 19:21 for the understanding of the seals. 19:23 We are not dealing now only with four horsemen. 19:25 We are dealing seven seals. 19:27 When God's people are harmed that way 19:32 and they are in that desperate situation, 19:34 what is that the people do? 19:36 You read the Old Testament. 19:37 It's regularly starting with the Book of Judges 19:40 going all through the Old Testament, 19:42 all up to the Babylonian exile, 19:44 when people are calm, that people turn back to God. 19:48 Sometimes God will send the prophet, 19:49 God will raise the judges 19:51 and people turn toward God, but keep in mind something, 19:56 God allows to those Babylonians-- 19:58 By the way, when you read the Bible, 20:00 you will see, for instance, 20:03 if you go to Isaiah 10:5, 6, 20:08 God calls Assyria, the rod of my anger. 20:12 Do you know rod? 20:14 You take rod to beat somebody. 20:16 So God used Assyria, what? 20:18 To spank His children 20:20 or God called the king of Babylon, my servant. 20:27 What are we talking about? 20:28 So God used those surrounding nations, 20:30 telling them, go little bit discipline my people. 20:34 God did not want to destroy His people. 20:36 What is the purpose of this covenant curses? 20:39 That people realize their situation 20:41 and they come back to God. 20:43 But once those eliminations they come, 20:46 they don't want to just, to discipline God's people, 20:49 they want to destroy them completely. 20:55 Please try to think about the Old Testament. 20:57 How many times it happened? 20:59 Actually the last time it happened 21:00 during the Queen of Esther. 21:03 Now God's people are praying to God. 21:06 And now God's wrath 21:08 turns against the enemies of His people. 21:13 Please I'd like now at this moment to ask 21:19 if you can turn to the Book of Zechariah. 21:24 This is just one of many texts 21:27 that actually sheds light to this concept. 21:34 By the way, if you go, I will not read this text, 21:37 Zechariah Chapter 1 to 8. 21:40 Actually, you will find that these texts 21:43 describes four horses that Zechariah sees, 21:47 which is really the background 21:49 for the understanding of the seven seals, 21:51 four backgrounds, okay? 21:53 But if you go now to verse 14, 21:56 this text will not appear on the screen, okay. 22:00 Actually, let's read from verse 12. 22:02 We are talking about the people of Israel 22:04 after the Babylonian exile. 22:06 Now he says, "So the angel of the Lord said, 22:09 'O Lord of hosts, 22:10 how long will You have no compassion 22:13 for Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, 22:15 which You have been indignant these 70 years?'" 22:19 Now verse 14. 22:20 "So the angel who was speaking with me said to me, 22:23 'proclaim,'" and says, "Thus says the Lord of hosts, 22:27 I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and Zion. 22:30 But I am very angry with the nations who are at ease, 22:34 for while I was only a little angry with them, 22:38 they further the disaster." 22:39 Did you see this concept here? 22:41 But this concept is found 22:43 numerous times in the Old Testament. 22:46 When God's people turned back to God, 22:49 now God goes in judgment against their enemies. 22:53 By the way, I would like to suggest to you. 22:56 This is exactly what we have in seven seals. 23:03 One more time, what do we have in the first four seals? 23:06 The covenant curses, okay. 23:11 Now what do we have in the fifth seal? 23:15 We're coming just in few minutes there. 23:17 You have God's people who are killed 23:19 because of the word of God and their testimony. 23:22 And they're crying to God. 23:24 How long-- it's the same expression 23:26 that we saw here in Zechariah. 23:28 "How long the Lord God Almighty 23:30 will You not judge our persecutors? 23:33 Those who killed us. 23:34 Those who are responsible for our death." 23:36 And God says to them, "Just wait for a while. 23:40 I will come in judgment against your enemies." 23:43 And now when you go to the sixth seal, 23:47 what do you have there? 23:49 That the enemies of God's people 23:52 are coming all around to hide themselves 23:57 before the wrath of God because now God is coming 24:00 against them in the answer to His people. 24:03 Did you see that? 24:04 You could see how actually the covenant 24:07 concept of the Old Testament 24:09 stands into the background of the seven seals. 24:12 So in summary, what is that that we learn here? 24:18 Number one, that the seals, 24:24 they deal primarily with God's people of the church. 24:29 Do you remember when we mentioned at the beginning, 24:32 that seals they portrayed the history of the church. 24:34 Now we see that. We have some indication. 24:37 That's why it's important to go to the Old Testament 24:39 and see to that altar. 24:41 Covenant curses are not against the enemies of God's people. 24:45 Are specifically directed to God's people, 24:47 are you still with me? 24:49 But in the final stage of those covenant curses, 24:53 when God's people come to God, 24:54 asking God how long, they return back to God. 24:57 Now what happens? 25:00 Now God's wrath turns against the enemies of His people. 25:04 This is exactly what we have here in the fifth seal. 25:07 Are you still with me? 25:10 Now in the light of that, 25:12 now we are turning there to the fifth seal. 25:17 And we would like to see actually 25:20 what we have there. 25:22 So please can you turn back to your Bibles? 25:26 And we would like to go to the fifth seal 25:29 and see what the message actually we can find there. 25:35 So Revelation 6:9-11, the fifth seal 25:43 "When the lamb broke the fifth seal, 25:46 I saw underneath the altar the souls of those 25:49 who had been slain because of the word of God, 25:52 and because of the testimony which they had maintained, 25:55 and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, 25:59 'How long, O Lord, holy and true, 26:01 will you refrain from judging and avenging 26:05 our blood on those who dwell on the earth?' 26:08 And there was given to each of them a white robe, 26:12 and they were told that they should rest 26:14 for a little while longer, until." 26:19 I have to pause here for a moment. 26:21 I'll be reading my translation 26:22 that I have here, which is not correct. 26:25 I'll explain, it says 26:26 "That the number of their fellow servants and their brethren 26:30 who are also to be killed even as they had been, 26:34 would be completed." 26:37 Actually, the fifth seal really reflects 26:43 one very important text 26:46 from the Book of Daniel 12:6 and 7. 26:54 Actually, it's really from verse 5, I will start. 26:57 Said "Then I, Daniel, looked and behold, 27:00 two others were standing, one on this bank of the river 27:03 and the other on that bank of the river. 27:06 And one said to the man dressed in linen, 27:09 who was above the waters of the river, 27:11 'How long will it be until the end of these wonders?' 27:15 I heard the man dressed in linen, 27:17 who was above the waters of the river, 27:20 as he raised his right hand and his left toward heaven, 27:24 and swore by him who lives forever 27:29 that it would be for a time, times, a half a time, 27:35 as soon they finish shattering the power of the Holy people, 27:39 all these events will be completed." 27:44 Actually, if you see the keywords 27:48 that are found here in this text in Daniel, 27:51 you can see actually many parallels 27:54 between this text and the fifth seal. 27:59 But there is something very interesting is 28:02 that here in this vision, Daniel, here's the question, 28:06 how long will the persecution of God's people last? 28:11 And what was the answer 28:12 that Daniel receives there in the vision? 28:16 That it will be for one certain period of time 28:22 and that period is referred to as a time, 28:28 okay, times, which is in Hebrew two times in half of time. 28:33 I don't want now to spend too much time on that 28:37 because very soon we will come and we will see 28:41 that this is just one of several designations. 28:44 In both Book of Daniel and Revelation, 28:48 you have time, two times, and half a time. 28:52 Then you have 1,260 days and you have 42 months. 28:58 They all refer to one and the same period. 29:01 If you put it to days, you will see 1,260 days. 29:05 Actually, refers to that period of the Dark Middle Ages, 29:09 persecution of God's people that started with the year 538 29:13 and concluded with events of French Revolution. 29:17 The day that is taken is year 1798. 29:23 So we have here a strong background 29:25 actually that the fifth seal, 29:28 if you want to apply it historically, 29:31 refers to the period of the Dark Middle Ages 29:34 or the persecution of God's people. 29:37 But at the same time, the fifth seal 29:40 actually refers generally 29:41 to what God's people are always doing 29:43 like the Old Testament times. 29:45 Let's try somehow to apply it with reference to the church. 29:50 You see when the church is unfaithful 29:51 to the preaching of the gospel, when the church departs to God 29:56 trying to follow the human tradition, 29:59 okay, human practice 30:01 and human way of salvation then what happens? 30:04 God's people are left to themselves. 30:08 The church is located in the hostile world 30:11 and the hostile world just is waiting 30:14 to turn against God's people. 30:16 And actually the fifth seal provides the general realities. 30:20 But on much deeper level, 30:22 actually the fifth seal really fits completely and nicely 30:27 into that prophetic period 30:29 that we know as the Dark Middle Ages 30:32 or 1,260 prophetic days. 30:35 Are you still with me? So now what do we have here? 30:38 What is that that John sees? Let's go there. 30:42 John says that underneath the altar, 30:45 what does he see? 30:46 He sees the souls of those who were killed 30:51 because of the word of God 30:54 and the testimony that they have maintained. 30:57 I'd like to remind you 31:00 that the word soul in the Bible 31:02 never refers to certain entity that is in human body 31:06 and after that when person dies 31:07 that soul goes somewhere there to heaven. 31:12 Actually, numerous texts of the Bible, 31:14 biblical references, they show clearly 31:19 that actually the Hebrew word "nephesh" 31:24 always refers to the complete person to the human being. 31:28 So we have here somehow symbolic references 31:32 to God's people who were harmed, 31:36 oppressed, persecuted and killed because of the word of God. 31:40 By the way, if you wanted references 31:42 the meaning of the word soul, 31:43 you can go to the Book of Genesis 2:7 31:47 "When God created Adam, Adam became the living soul." 31:51 You can go to the Book of Acts 2:41 31:55 or Chapter 27, verse 37. 31:58 You can see how the Bible always by using the term soul 32:03 refers to the complete person and the person is alive. 32:07 But you will notice here, 32:09 that these martyred saints are seen underneath the altar. 32:15 The question is, which altar is it. 32:17 There is only one altar that is in you here. 32:21 It is the altar of the burnt sacrifices 32:26 because the imagery of that is from the Old Testament, okay. 32:31 When the sacrifice was put there on the altar, 32:35 what happened to the blood? 32:37 The blood was poured out underneath the altar. 32:44 So we have here a symbolic references 32:47 that God's people who are persecuted and killed. 32:52 They are like sacrifices on behalf of the gospel. 32:54 Are you still with me? 32:56 So like in the case of Abel, who was killed, 32:59 his blood was crying to God for vindication. 33:04 So we have the blood of those martyred saints 33:07 is crying to God for the vindication 33:10 and asking the question. 33:11 "How long, O holy and true God, 33:15 will you not judge and avenge our blood 33:18 upon those who dwell on the earth?" 33:20 Let me just remind you something. 33:22 I'm going very quickly to mention 33:24 and I hope you will be able to write it down. 33:27 If you go to Chapter 8 verse 13, 33:29 Chapter 11 verse 10, Chapter 13 verse 8, 33:34 Chapter 17 verse 2, 33:35 oh, please when you go to my commentary through that section, 33:38 I have many more verses, you will see that the expression, 33:42 "Those who dwell on the earth" 33:44 it's always the reference 33:46 to the wicked in the Book of Revelation. 33:49 One more time, "Those who dwell on the earth" 33:53 is a constant reference to those who are against God 33:59 and they are the enemies of God's people. 34:01 So when God's people are asking God for the vindication 34:05 with regard to those who dwell on the earth, 34:07 what are they are praying to God for? 34:12 For their vindication and judgment over their enemies. 34:16 You see, they place their trust in God. 34:19 They believed God. They serve God. 34:21 But their enemies are now harming them. 34:24 By the way, I just want to-- 34:27 we see how great encouraging message we have here, 34:31 if you go to the Bible. 34:33 Oh, I can give you many texts. 34:35 You'll find it there in Psalm, in the Book of Habakkuk. 34:39 We saw in the text of Daniel. 34:41 "How long, O God," 34:44 it's a perennial cry of God's people throughout history. 34:49 God's people always experienced injustice in this world. 34:54 So that the plea of these Martyrs, 34:57 in the scene of the fifth seal 34:59 presents the plea and the prayer of God's people 35:02 since Able until the time very end, 35:05 "How long, God, will you wait not to protect us? 35:11 How long the time will pass?" 35:13 You saw in the Book of Daniel, certain period had to pass, 35:16 the time of the Dark Middle Ages. 35:18 But God said, "The time is coming 35:21 and I will judge your enemies." 35:25 You notice here in the text, 35:27 that God said to these martyrs, 35:29 "You have to wait a little bit longer." 35:35 Friends, it's very hard to wait. 35:40 We would like to know, when? 35:43 And that when is looks for the immediate answer. 35:47 But God says you have to wait. 35:49 You will notice here, that these martyrs, 35:52 it says, they were given the white robes. 35:56 What is the message here that God gives to them? 35:59 He's telling them you are saved. 36:01 Amen. You belong to me. 36:05 You are under my protection. 36:08 But you have to rest. 36:09 Verse 11, you have to rest a little while longer. Why? 36:14 Because He said--I'm now reading as it is in my Bible, 36:19 until the number of your fellow servants and your brothers, 36:25 they have to go through the same experience 36:27 as you are going through, 36:30 that their number can be completed 36:32 according to my version. 36:33 This is I tell you, why you need 36:36 a study of the Book of Revelation 36:38 more than just one Bible translation. 36:41 It's the best, if you can go to Greek. 36:43 And today, we have many different tools. 36:45 Why this so much important? 36:47 Let me tell you, here you have 36:49 one terrible thing that influences beliefs 36:52 and teachings many Christians and what is that? 36:55 That actually God is waiting 36:57 for a certain number of people to be saved. 37:02 But what is the problem? 37:04 That the word the number does not occur in the original text. 37:11 If you have any modern version of the Bible 37:14 like my New American, they put the word 'number' in italics, 37:17 trying to tell you that this is not in original. 37:20 We as the translators, we inserted this word here. 37:25 Friends, God does not have in mind certain number of people. 37:31 Come on, we will come to the next chapter. 37:34 and God waits 37:37 until that number is filled then He will come. 37:40 Why, what other doctrine? 37:43 Actually, the text is telling us, 37:44 God says to those martyred saints, 37:47 I'm giving you the white robes. 37:49 I just want to tell you, your salvation is secured. 37:55 Your destiny is in my hands. 37:59 But you have to wait for a while 38:02 because there are more people to be saved. 38:05 And they will go through your experience 38:07 and I'm waiting for them to be completed. 38:12 Not the number to be completed. 38:14 Evidently, here is the reference to the character, 38:17 to the salvation that has to be completed with them. 38:22 So you see the fifth seal within the covenant curses, 38:24 it's a great promise. 38:26 Whenever God's people depart from God, 38:28 when they are unfaithful to God, 38:29 there are consequences for that. 38:31 This is what the first four seals are teaching us. 38:34 But whenever God's people come back to God... 38:41 I taught my children, 38:43 even if you go so far away from God that way, 38:48 the parting from God it's always down, down, down 38:53 like in the Book of Jonah, you remember? 38:55 Jonah started fleeing from God. 38:58 Then he went down to Tarshish. 39:01 Then he went down to the ship. 39:04 Then went down to the bottom of the ship. 39:07 But then he even went deeper where he didn't want to go. 39:10 And when he's praying to God, 39:11 he says, I went so deep, I'm in Sheol. 39:14 But even when he prayed to God there, God heard him. 39:17 This is what the fifth seal is telling us. 39:20 There is always hope for God's people 39:23 and we are reminded in that very nice book 39:26 that the church of God even though it is feeble and weak 39:31 and full imperfection, it's still God's. 39:39 That subject of God's greatest love and care. 39:43 This is what the fifth seal is telling us. 39:45 Yes, the fifth seal has a historical application 39:48 during the medieval period, 39:49 but also gives the message to the God's people of all times. 39:53 It's always associated with the preaching of the gospel, okay. 40:00 Now we are coming to the sixth seal, 40:01 the fifth seal really historically 40:03 applies to the middle ages. 40:05 Now we are left to which-- we are led to which period, 40:09 the period after the Middle Ages, 40:11 after the prophetic period of 1,260 days. 40:14 Are you with me? 40:16 And now we are coming to the text, 40:17 it's the sixth seal, we are reading verse 12. 40:21 "I looked when He broke the sixth seal 40:24 there was a great earthquake, 40:26 and the sun became black as a sackcloth made of hair, 40:30 and the whole moon became like blood, 40:33 and the stars of the sky fell on the earth, 40:36 as a fig tree casts its unripe figs 40:39 when shaken by a great wind. 40:42 The sky was split apart like a scroll." 40:45 You see, John does not mean, 40:48 but he uses the word biblio in the book. 40:50 He means the scroll. 40:52 This is why we have it here. 40:54 "It is rolled up, and every mountain 40:57 and island were moved out of their places." 41:02 Please let me stop here for a while. 41:05 We have now the sixth seal. 41:08 What do we have here in the sixth seal? 41:11 Keep in mind, that the sixth seal follows the fifth seal. 41:13 What did we have in the fifth seal? 41:15 God's people are praying to God for the protection 41:17 and for the vindication from their enemies. 41:21 Now what do we have in the sixth seal? 41:23 Now finally, God is coming in judgment. 41:28 So what do we have here? 41:29 We read verse 15 "These are those who dwell on the earth." 41:34 It says "Then the kings of the earth and the great men 41:38 and the commanders and the rich 41:40 and the strong and every slave 41:43 and free man hid themselves in the caves 41:47 and among the rocks of the mountains, 41:49 and they said to the mountains and to the rocks, 41:51 "Fall on us and hide us from the presence of Him 41:56 who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the lamb, 41:59 for the great day of their wrath has come, 42:03 and who is able to stand?" 42:07 What do we have now in the sixth seal? 42:10 Now what God promised to the martyrs in the fifth seal? 42:16 Now God is fulfilling. 42:18 Finally, God says, now I'm coming to judge your enemies, 42:23 those who harm you, those who persecute you 42:26 and those who are responsible for your suffering. 42:31 Please, I would like here that we go 42:34 and just that we see, okay, several points here. 42:39 It's very important to notice. 42:43 If we take the sixth seal historically 42:47 and here there is no any doubt 42:50 that the sixth seal brings us 42:53 to the time of the second coming of Christ, 42:56 time prior to the second coming of Christ 42:59 and the very event of Jesus coming down to the earth. 43:03 But you will notice that this period 43:05 comes after the fifth seal, 43:07 after the period of the Dark Middle Ages. 43:09 Did you notice it? 43:10 Can you connect the two things? 43:12 Now John said, when the sixth seal was opened by the Lamb, 43:18 there are some supernatural signs that take place. 43:22 What are they? 43:23 Terrible earthquake, darkening of the sun, 43:28 and the darkening of the moon, 43:31 and finally the falling of the stars. 43:35 The Christians have been always struggling with this problem 43:42 and I just want to tell you the problem is not so simple. 43:45 But praise God, today we have the answer for that. 43:48 I, myself, I have struggled. 43:49 For just few years ago, a good colleague of mine 43:52 and we decided to study the subject. 43:54 And actually credit goes to him. 43:56 He discovered something in the text that solved the problem. 44:00 What is the problem? 44:01 You remember we established a principle, 44:04 at very beginning of the Book of Revelation, 44:07 telling us that what John saw in the vision? 44:12 It was shown to him by means of symbols. 44:14 You remember that? 44:15 So if you want to follow this principle, 44:21 is the earthquake, the sun, the moon and the stars, 44:27 are they literal or symbolic? 44:31 I hope I just want to tell you, 44:35 Book of Revelation is not always easy. 44:38 That's why we have to listen to each other, 44:40 not try simply to defend our ideas. 44:42 If we follow the principle that is found 44:45 in Revelation 1:1, then it's symbolic. 44:48 Please I'm not saying it is. 44:52 It's really a literal 44:55 because Seventh-day Adventist Christians 44:59 they believed that the signs that are portrayed here, 45:05 this earthquake actually was fulfilled in the year 1755 45:11 with that well-known worldwide Lisbon earthquake. 45:16 And then that the dark day of May 19, 1780 45:21 that was experienced in Eastern New York 45:23 and Southern England actually that sign was fulfilled then. 45:27 And that the spectacular meteor shower of the Atlantic Ocean, 45:30 November 13, 1833 gave the fulfillment of this, okay. 45:38 So darkening of the sun and the moon, 45:41 the earthquake it was fulfilled, okay. 45:44 But then, in later history, 45:47 some people started to question it. 45:50 Let me tell you, that this understanding 45:52 is not the understanding of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 45:54 It was understanding of full Protestants in North America. 45:57 Actually that led 45:58 to the so-called second great awakening. 46:02 When the Protestants in America finally started thinking 46:05 about the second coming of Christ, as we mentioned before, 46:08 it led to the establishing of biblical societies, 46:11 many reforms and missionary movements 46:14 to proclaim the word of God throughout the world. 46:17 But people say, Christians of that time were mistaken 46:21 because the sun, the moon and the stars, 46:23 earthquakes are actually here symbolic. 46:28 And we had to study and we didn't have the answer 46:32 because if you follow your own principle 46:34 that you find in Revelation 1, 46:36 then you have to say, it's symbolic. 46:38 Unfortunately, when you study the word of God, 46:41 you always get the answer, so now you have to be with me. 46:44 Let's go back to the text. 46:47 Are you ready for this? 46:49 And you can see sometimes how it's so simple, 46:51 but somebody has to find the simplicity. 46:55 It says "I looked when He broke the sixth seal, 46:59 there was a great earthquake." 47:01 Okay, let's leave the earthquake. 47:03 It says "And the sun 47:06 became black as sackcloth." 47:19 Are you with me? 47:20 Viewers, you look there in the text. 47:22 Please, let's go next one and it says 47:27 "And the moon became like blood, 47:31 and the starsof the sky fell to the earth, 47:34 as a fig tree casts its unripe figs when shaken by the wind." 47:41 Here we have the key 47:43 for the understanding of this phenomenon telling us 47:46 that they are not symbolic, they are literal. 47:48 Where is the key? 47:49 What is the word here, that is key here? 47:50 It's the word 'like.' 47:52 You see, you'll never take-- 47:54 You see, what comes after the word like. 47:57 It comes symbol. 48:01 When you say, "My son sings like a bird." 48:06 The bird is a symbol. 48:08 It comes always after the word like or as. 48:11 Are you still with me? 48:13 So when John says that the sun became like sackcloth. 48:17 Sackcloth is the symbol, 48:19 but you don't use one symbol to compare it with another symbol. 48:22 You take a literal thing. 48:25 And then you use the word like or as, 48:28 to compare it with the symbol. 48:30 He said that the moon became like or as 48:34 and then you use the symbol 48:37 and the stars actually fell like or as, 48:41 and then you use the symbols. 48:43 Do you see that? 48:45 You see, we have to study the word of God. 48:48 Just to take a superficial reading and try to challenge 48:51 and say, boy, my Christian denomination was wrong. 48:56 Based on the superficial reading does not lead us to the truth, 49:01 does not lead us to the truth. 49:03 Only careful study of the Bible can help us to understand. 49:07 So what is another evidence that this is not actually symbolic? 49:13 It's because when you go up 49:14 to the gospel of Matthew... 49:20 Chapter 24:29-30, 49:26 Jesus talking about the signs of His coming. 49:30 You remember that? 49:32 In verse 29, Jesus said 49:33 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days," 49:37 tribulation of what days? 49:39 Jesus refers in His sermon on the mount 49:45 to the period of the great tribulation of the Middle Ages, 49:48 the same what we have in the fifth seal. 49:51 Jesus says "The sun will be darkened, 49:54 the moon will not give its light, 49:57 and the stars will fall from the sky, 50:00 and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 50:03 And then the sign of the Son of Man 50:06 will appear in the sky, and all the tribes 50:09 of the earth will mourn, and they will see 50:12 the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky 50:16 with the power and great glory." 50:18 Please, do you see what I see? 50:21 When you put Matthew 24:29-31, 50:24 when you put the sixth seal put together, 50:27 you can see that actually the sixth seal 50:30 is a replica of what Jesus stated in His sermon 50:34 and Matthew recorded in chapter 24. 50:36 And Jesus never intended 50:40 to mention the sun, the moon, and the stars as a symbol. 50:43 For Him, it's real. 50:46 But even without Matthew 24, 50:48 when you simply go to the text 50:50 of the Book of Revelation, the usage of the word like, 50:55 or the word as, shows clearly that is not symbolic. 51:01 This is something literal. 51:03 So what we have here is, that God's people 51:06 after the period of the Dark Middle Ages 51:10 finally will realize that some special phenomena, 51:13 supernatural something to happen in this world 51:17 that actually show to the inhabitants of this world 51:20 that the history of this earth 51:23 has entered into the last phase of that history. 51:27 Keep in mind, one more time. 51:29 We saw it. We don't know when. 51:32 We don't know how long. 51:34 Of course, for us when we are waiting is too long, 51:36 but keep in mind, 51:38 that for God 1,000 years is like one day. 51:44 I remember my kids, when I told them 51:47 that they have to wait 10 minutes 51:48 for something nice that they get from me, 51:50 for them it was the whole eternity. 51:52 What was for me? Just one second. 51:55 So we are not informed when, 51:57 but here with these events, we have, okay, 52:01 the last stage of the human history. 52:04 And then finally we have the second coming of Christ. 52:07 The second coming of Christ finally comes to judgment 52:10 on the enemies of God's people that we have there. 52:14 And John see the people of all social levels, 52:18 those who are responsible for harming God's people. 52:22 They are going and shouting to the mountains 52:24 and to the rocks, "Hide us because 52:26 we cannot stand the glory and the wrath of one 52:30 who is coming on the clouds." 52:32 And now there is a question, 52:34 who is able to stand? 52:36 By the way, let me just refer 52:38 to several passages here that one more time. 52:40 I'm doing this that you see, 52:42 how much the Book of Revelation 52:44 relies on the Old Testament. 52:45 If you go to the Book of Isaiah 2:19 we read, 52:50 "Men will go into caves in the rocks, 52:53 and into the holes in the ground 52:55 before the terror of the Lord 52:57 and the splendor of His majesty, 52:59 when He arises to make the earth tremble." 53:02 Do you see that? 53:03 In the Book of Hosea, 53:05 the Book of Hosea 10:8 we read there, 53:09 "Then they will say to the mountains, 53:11 'Cover us' and to the hills, 'Fall on us.'" 53:16 And then, we have the sayings of Jesus 53:19 in Luke Chapter 23 verse 30 53:23 talking about His coming Jesus said 53:24 "Then they will begin to say to the mountains, 53:27 'Fall on us,' and to the hills, 'Cover us.'" 53:31 Do you see that how much of the Book of Revelation 53:34 incorporates both statements 53:37 from the Old Testament and the New Testament? 53:39 No wonder, no wonder that we are reminded 53:44 with that statement that actually 53:46 in the Book of Revelation 53:48 all the books of the Bible they meet. 53:54 But there is something very interesting is. 53:58 What is the question... 54:02 that these enemies of God's people, 54:05 of all social levels they are asking? 54:09 Great He is His wrath. 54:13 In our next presentation, we will see 54:15 what that wrath is all about. 54:18 But then, they asked the question, 54:20 who is able to stand? 54:23 Because somehow there is a confusion, 54:26 Jesus is coming and you know what happens 54:29 there is an earthquake. 54:32 There is no distinction between good and bad. 54:35 Remember, tsunami everybody suffered. 54:38 So now Jesus is coming, 54:42 His judgments are coming to the earth. 54:43 His wrath is poured out. 54:46 It appears that all the inhabitants 54:48 of the world are subject to the judgment. 54:50 That's why the wicked are asking, 54:52 who is able to stand? 54:55 And you will notice something. 54:58 You expect now the seventh seal to be opened, 55:02 but it's not so. 55:05 Before we have the seventh seal, 55:08 we have a so-called interlude. 55:10 We have chapter 7 that really interrupts 55:14 the flow of the opening seven seals. 55:17 It's kind of interlude. We can say a parenthesis. 55:20 Today, we will say a footnote 55:22 or exegesis whatever expression you use. 55:25 What is the purpose of Revelation 7 we will see 55:28 in our next presentation, is to provide the answer 55:32 to this question who is able to stand on that day 55:37 and what is the answer? 55:39 Those who will be able to stand 55:43 are the sealed people of God, 55:45 those who belong to God. 55:46 Oh, boy, there is so much to be said about that. 55:49 I want to keep you for my next presentation. 55:51 But keep in mind it is after Revelation Chapter 7. 55:55 In Chapter 8:1 we have the opening 55:59 of the seventh seal and it says-- 56:03 chapter 8:1 56:05 "When he opened the seventh seal, 56:08 there was a silence in heaven for about a half hour." 56:13 The Christians are struggling with this question. 56:15 What is that silence all about? 56:17 Unfortunately, John in the Book of Revelation 56:19 never explains about that silence. 56:22 So we have to go to the time of the Book of Revelation 56:25 and to understand what it meant. 56:27 If you go to the Old Testament, 56:29 for instance, Zephaniah 1:7, Zechariah 2:13, 56:35 "Silence is regularly associated 56:38 with the coming of God in judgment." 56:39 When God is coming to judge the enemies of His people, 56:43 there is always silence in heaven. 56:45 Among the Jewish people, in the time when 56:47 the Book of Revelation was written, 56:50 it was believed, "The silence occurs in heaven, 56:53 so that the prayers of the saints can be heard, 56:56 in answer to judgment over the wicked." 56:58 So John is using this concept to tell God's people 57:03 that after the second coming of Christ. 57:06 There will be that great silence, 57:08 when the whole heaven will look in awe 57:13 about that final judgment that God will come, 57:17 that God will bring in answer to His people 57:20 to vindicate them and to save them 57:22 because the seventh seal finally brings 57:25 God's people into the kingdom of Heaven. |
Revised 2014-12-17