OLD COUNTRY PREACHER

Bible study with a West Texas Twang

REVELATION 4 – 7

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Revelation 4:1 through 7:17

It is time for the third part of the outline given in Revelation 1:19: …The Things Which Will Take Place AFTER These Things.

Here is a very basic time line for future events.  (I said “very basic” because there are a lot of specific events left out.)

  1. The next big event will be the RAPTURE of the church (all believers).  I say “next” because no prophecies have to be fulfilled before the RAPTURE.  It could occur anytime – today; tomorrow; or, 100 years from now.  I really believe it will be sooner, rather than later

1 Thessalonians 4:16,17 – For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a shout of command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.  Then we who are alive, who are left, will be suddenly caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.  And so we will always be with the Lord.

This will be the most exciting event to occur since Jesus ascended back up into heaven with a promise to come back.  (see Acts 1:9-11)  At this time we will rise to meet Jesus in the air, so, technically, this is not the “Second Coming” because Jesus will not set foot on the earth.  That will happen later.

  1. After the RAPTURE will come the 7 Year Tribulation Period.  This will be an unparalleled time of God’s judgment and wrath on the earth.  A lot of the details will be filled in as we go through Revelation.
  1. At the end of 7 years, Jesus will come back to earth with the armies of Heaven.  This will be the actual 2nd Coming of Christ.  The beast (antichrist) and the false prophet will be defeated and cast into the lake of fire.
  1. Then Satan will be bound for a thousand years and cast into the bottomless pit.  Jesus will physically rule and reign on the earth for 1,000 years – the Millennial Reign. 
  1. At the end of the Thousand Years, Satan will be loosed for a short time, then he will be thrown into the lake of fire; the unbelieving dead will be judged at the Great White Throne.  After this there will be a new heaven and a new earth.  The New Jerusalem will come down out of heaven and ETERNITY will be ushered in.

Now, if you would, please read Revelation chapters 4 – 7 and we will start filling in some of the details.  (I’ve posted a copy for your convenience.)  Before you start reading, pray and ask God to help you understand what you are reading.  After you have read it through once, I suggest that you take a look at the notes I have posted and then read it through again.

Revelation 4:1 – “After these things I looked, and there was a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet said: “Come up here so that I can show you what must happen after these things.””

After what things?  After the things in chapters 2 and 3 – the things going on in the churches during the time John was on Patmos.  John caught a glorious vision of the throne room of heaven.  I believe that what he saw was indescribable in human terms (compare with 2 Corinthians 12:4).  So, John used the most beautiful, the most exciting, the most colorful objects, sights and sounds he could think of on earth to describe what he saw in heaven.  —  It was LIKE jasper and carnelian in appearance…a rainbow LOOKING LIKE it was made of emerald…From the throne came out FLASHES of lightning…and CRASHES of thunder…FLAMING…BURNING…and in front of the throne was SOMETHING LIKE a sea of glass, LIKE crystal. (see verses 3-6).  The same God who made heaven made the earth.  Think of the most beautiful sights and scenes you have ever seen on the earth; think of the most exciting experiences you have ever enjoyed on the earth to get just a small inkling of what heaven is like.  The sights, sounds, scents, and tastes of heaven are just too much for our mortal bodies to handle.  But just wait.  When our bodies are transformed and we receive our glorified bodies (Philippians 3:21) all the glories of heaven will be ours to enjoy!

Encircling God’s throne were 24 other thrones on which were seated 24 elders.  It is said that they represent the redeemed of all time.  Perhaps so.  Some suggest they are the 12 sons of Jacob plus the 12 apostles.  Maybe.  Others say they are angels.  All I know for sure is that they are heavenly beings.  Whether they are redeemed humans or angelic beings I do not know.  I could tell you my thoughts but they are not what is important.  What is important is what does the Bible say.

In addition to the 24 elders were the four living creatures.  What John saw was somewhat similar to what Ezekiel described about 700 years earlier (Ezekiel 1:4-14).  And above all, there was continuous worship.  Verse 11 is very significant:  “You are WORTHY, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, since you created all things, and because of your will they existed and were created!”  That verse defines the essence of worship: to recognize, to respond to, and to declare the worthiness of God.  He is the source of all things – He is the Creator!  Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. – James 1:17.

Next, John sees the seven sealed scroll in the hand of the One on the throne.  John’s first century readers would have recognized this as a Roman will or a title dead.  But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or look into it. (Revelation 5:3)  So John went to pieces because no one was worthy to open the scroll.  Then one of the elders said to me, “Stop weeping!  Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered; thus He can open the scroll and its seven seals.” – Revelation 5:5.  John goes on to describe his vision of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the “Lamb slain” who took the scroll, unleashing more worship, singing a new song:  “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals because you were killed, and at the cost of your own blood you have purchased for God persons from every tribe, language, people, and nation.  You have appointed them as a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.” – Revelation 5:9-10.  WOW!  And more worship.

Next, the opening of the seals begins.  With the opening of the first four seals come the infamous “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.”  I am going to outline the opening of the first 6 seals found in chapters six and seven:

  1. Rider on a white horse – a conqueror and a ruler – likely the antichrist
  2. Rider on a red horse – taking peace from the earth – people start killing each other
  3. Rider on a black horse – unleashing economic chaos and unimaginable inflation
  4. Rider on a pale green horse with authority to kill a fourth of the earth’s population by the sword, famine, disease, and wild animals
  5. When the Lamb opened the fifth seal, John saw the souls of those who had been violently killed because of their faith in Jesus Christ.  They were told to rest until the full number of believers would be killed on the earth during this tribulation period.  These were obviously people who came to faith AFTER the rapture.
  6. With the opening of the sixth seal comes a huge earthquake; the darkening of the sun; such cataclysmic changes on the earth and in the sky that many people – even the rich and the powerful hid themselves in caves begging the rocks to fall on them to “…hide us from the face of the One who is seated on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb, because the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to withstand it?” – Revelation 6:16b-17.
  1. 4 angels with permission to damage the earth and the sea were held back UNTIL:
  2. 144,000 were sealed.  There were 12,000 from 12 tribes of Israel.  A seal of God was placed on their foreheads to protect them.

Revelation 7:9 – After these things I looked, and here was an enormous crowd that no one could count, made up of persons from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb dressed in long white robes, and with palm branches in their hands.

That is what I call diversity and inclusion.  God’s grace reaches out to all nations, tribes, people, and languages.  And they are all included in this heavenly worship!  One of the elders asked John who all these people were.

John replied, “My lord, you know the answer.” (Revelation 7:14)

This is what the elder answered:  “These are the ones who have come out of the great tribulation.  They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb!  For this reason they are before the throne of God, and they serve Him day and night in His temple, and the One seated on the throne will shelter them.  They will never go hungry or be thirsty again, and the sun will not beat down on them, nor any burning heat, because the Lamb in the middle of the throne (Note:  the Lamb here is Jesus Christ) will shepherd them and lead them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” – Revelation 7:14b-17. 

BRINGING IT HOME:  Talk about a loving and gracious God!  These people were saved during tribulation.  Even during this time of judgment and tribulation on the earth, God is still reaching out to folks, loving them, saving them, bringing them to heaven and wiping away every tear from their eyes.  That is possible because of the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross – suffering and dying to pay for our sin.  If God is showing this kind of love and grace EVEN DURING THE TRIBULATION to people who did not know or follow Jesus before the rapture, will He show us any less love and grace now?  Spend some time reflecting on this verse in Romans:  Indeed, He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all – how will He not also, along with Him, freely give us all things? – Romans 8:32.  God gave up His own Son for us.  That is the most He could give!  There is not anything that is good that He would withhold from us.  In fact, He said just that:  For the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord gives grace and glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. – Psalm 84:11 NASB.

The church (believers) has been raptured and is now in heaven at this point.  Terrible judgment is being poured out on the earth.  As we look at the opening of the first six seals, the disastrous conditions on earth are impossible for us to imagine – and it is going to get worse.  Yet through it all, as bad as it is, as we read through Revelation we see that God is still in control.  The world is NOT spinning out of control.  God has Satan and his cohorts on a short lease.  They can only do as much as God will allow.  Everything has been orchestrated and goes exactly as planned.  GOD IS IN COMPLETE CONTROL.  If that is true during the tribulation, then it is certainly true today.  As Jan Markell of Olive Tree Ministries frequently says, “Things are not falling apart, they are falling into place.”  When we do not understand what is going on in our world, we need to take God at His word that He has all things under control; that He is working out His plan.  We need to also remember that He loves us and He is working His best for us.

DIGGING A LITTLE DEEPER:  As I read in Revelation, I read about all kinds of death and destruction on earth during the tribulation period.  At the same time I read about many people worshipping and rejoicing in Heaven.  They are having all their tears wiped away.  All their needs are being met.  Their pain and heartache is all gone.  They are enjoying God and enjoying each other.  That makes me think of the Westminster Shorter Catechism.  What??? 

In 1643, the British Parliament called together an assembly of theologians and laymen from England and Scotland for the purpose of clarifying some issues in church government and to bring about greater conformity in the Church of England and the Church of Scotland.  They met at Westminster Abbey in London and became known as the Westminster Assembly.  This was a group of preachers and politicians so, as you can imagine it took several years for them to come to agreement, but ultimately they produced several important documents, some of which are still in use today.  Among those documents were the Directory of Public Worship, the Westminster Confession, and the Westminster Larger and Shorter Catechisms.  As you probably suspected, I am more familiar with the Westminster Shorter Catechism (I like the term, “shorter.”)  Its purpose was to teach people the essentials of the faith through a series of questions and answers.  The one I remember is:  What is the chief end of man?  Answer:  Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.  That is what we see the folks in Revelation that are in Heaven doing.  They are glorifying God and enjoying Him.  They will be doing it forever.  So will we!  That is our chief purpose now.

Until next time,

Mike

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