168 | TE012 | Transcending Eschatology | Part 12 | The Coming Global Crisis & A Final Warning
Date: September 18, 2023
Welcome back to our series on Eschatology - the study of End Time events.
Let's dive in...
Episode 1: The Doomsday Clock - We discussed our social and cultural beliefs about the End of Time. Typically based on science and entertainment.
Episode 2: The Flip Side - We dove into End Time beliefs that are based on spiritual or religious belief systems. And we looked at some of the major world religions.
Episode 3: Carrying the Torch - We discussed the history and origins of Christian Eschatology - and how it can be traced all the way from Adam and Eve to us today.
Episode 4: Choosing Sides - We discussed the high level categories most Christians fall into when it comes to eschatology.
Episode 5: Making It Plain - We jumped in to Bible passages that talk about the End of Time. Plain language that makes it easy to understand.
Episode 6: The Left Bookend - We moved into the adult pool and walked through seven stories in the Book of Daniel. We then walked through the first piece of Apocalyptic Prophecy.
Episode 7: Expanding on the Statue - We looked at Daniel's 2nd and 3rd dreams and how they simply build on the first one. We also introduced prophetic math, and we discussed the 1,260 Day Prophecy and the 2,300 Day Prophecy.
Episode 8: Daniel's 70 Weeks - We looked at Daniel's dream in Chapters 9 and 10. We refer to this as the 70 Weeks Prophecy and it is a very important one. Not just because of the information presented - but because of the various interpretations we see coming out of it.
Episode 9: Daniel's Final Vision - We looked and the way all of Daniel's visions are connected and how they grow in complexity. We also discussed all relevant time periods discussed in the Book of Daniel.
Episode 10: The Right Bookend & The 7 Churches - We talked about the Right Bookend - the Book of Revelation, the prologue and the first set of 7s - the Letters to the 7 Churches.
Episode 11: More Sets of 7 - We discussed the next two sets of 7. The 7 Seals and the 7 Trumpets.
Today, we discuss The Coming Global Crisis & A Final Warning
Today's Topic: Transcending Eschatology | Part 12 | The Coming Global Crisis & A Final Warning
The Story of God's People
The Rise of the Opposition
The Final Warning
// CHAPTER 1: THE STORY OF GOD'S PEOPLE
Well friends - we've turned a corner in the Book of Revelation.
So many of the prophecies, letters, seals, trumpets - have all been looking backward. Heavy on the history. At least from the Historicist point of view.
But we've reached a point in Revelation where we're ready to focus in on the coming calamity.
One more look back at the church and where she came from and we're off to see the wizard so to speak.
Chapter 12 is an entire chapter dedicated to the church - where it came from, what it's been through and what is in store for it in the future.
So let's dive in and get things moving.
John continues his vision or dream and he describes it like this, "Then I witnessed in heaven an event of great significance."
Strange - right? He's had all sorts of visions about churches, letters, 4 colored horses, trumpets that sound pretty scary.
But he said nothing about the importance of those things. Not until now.
This is an event of "great significance..."
So what is it?
Well - he goes on to describe:
A Woman
Clothed with the sun
Standing on the moon
With a crown of 12 stars on her head
She was pregnant - and cried out in the pains of childbirth
Then John says, "I witnessed another significant event."
What?! Two in one chapter? What's going on here?
The second event of great significance is this:
A Red Dragon
With 7 heads and 10 horns
With 7 crowns on its heads
His tail swept away 1/3 of the stars in the sky
And he threw them to earth
And the dragon stood in front of the woman as she was about to give birth
waiting to devour her child as soon as it was born
Wow...
Two significant events - and an interaction that starts to build the tension.
Next, it says the woman gave birth. It was a son - born to rule all nations with a rod of iron.
He was stalked by the Dragon - but was snatched away from him - and was caught up to God and the Throne in Heaven.
After that - the Woman fled into the wilderness where God had prepared a place for her for 1,260 Days.
Then - the chapter does a funny thing. It provides a flashback to the very beginning of our planet.
John sees where this Dragon came from. And he explains it like this:
There was war in Heaven
Michael and His angels fought against the Dragon and his angels
And the Dragon lost the battle
He and his angels were forced to leave Heaven
This Dragon can be identified - it is the serpent of old, the Devil - or Satan as we refer to him today
The one who tries to deceive the entire world
He was thrown down with his angels
Next John hears a loud voice shouting something across the heavens:
It has come at last - salvation and power thanks to Jesus
The accuser has been thrown down
And we are able to defeat him thanks to the blood of Jesus
Those who chose Jesus over the good life - and were not afraid to die for the truth
So rejoice!
But also know that the Devil has come to you with great anger - for he knows he doesn't have much time left
So what did the Dragon, or Satan do with his anger?
He turned it on the church - the people of God
It says he pursued the woman who gave birth to the child
But she was protected - given wings to escape into the wilderness
Where she was cared for and protected for a time, times and half a time
Sound familiar? 3 1/2 years - or the 1,260 Days mentioned already in this chapter
Crazy how that keeps coming up right?
The Dragon was so angry he tried to drown the woman with a flood of water that came out of his mouth
But the earth helped her by soaking up all the water
That made the Dragon even more angry - and he swore to take it out on her and her generations for all time
Those who keep the commandments and believe in Jesus
Then the Dragon took his place on the shore beside the sea
And that's it friends - a brief history and description of the battle between the church and the Devil throughout time.
Futurists would have you believe that all of this is End of Time stuff. But I think it's pretty clear. This chapter is a brief recap of the battle that has been brewing between Satan and the God. Between Satan and the object of God's affection - the church. It starts with historical information - but then describes how this will go on until the End of Time.
Quick summary:
Satan was Patient 0 when it comes to the Sin Virus
It started in him and he nurtured it - getting 1/3 of the angels to agree with him
There was war in Heaven
Satan and 1/3 of the angels were removed from Heaven and banished to earth
On earth - God had a group of people who believed in Him and followed Him
This group is referred to as the "Woman"
She was beautiful, pure and eventually delivered Jesus, the Messiah
Satan tried to kill Jesus when He was born - but failed
Jesus eventually did die - but only after living a perfect life, and spending 3 1/2 years in ministry - teaching people the truth about God's love
And when He died - technically it was on His terms - in order to perfectly match up with the prophecies from ancient scripture
When Jesus was caught back up to Heaven - Satan turned his anger on the church
He did everything he could to lure them away, or kill them - whatever worked best
He used the Roman Empire, and eventually the Catholic Church
For 1,260 Years God's people lived in hiding, and in fear of the church
But God protected them - many of whom escaped to the wilderness - the mountains - and were protected there by the harsh conditions
And it doesn't end there
Satan is still angry - and he has doubled down - swearing to take out anyone who still keeps the commandments and believes in Jesus
Okay - before we move into the next chapter - I wanted to briefly touch on symbolism. Because I think it's pretty cool.
One of the things you see in apocalyptic prophecy is symbolism - a lot of it. For example - in Daniel we saw symbols used for civilizations.
Babylon was a head of gold on a statue - then a Lion in the next dream.
Then at some point we started to see horns on things
10 horns - and we learned that the 10 horns represented 10 kingdoms - or powers
So we understand that when we see a horn in prophecy it is probably talking about a king, kingdom or power
And that's the sort of thing we see in this chapter of Revelation
Symbols that we can actually decode by reading the rest of the Bible
Here is just one example: Water or waters
We see this a lot in prophecy
Where it talks about the Dragon standing beside the sea
Or the beast coming up out of the seas
So how do we know what the sea, water, or waters represent?
We find a verse in the Bible that tells us - like Revelation 17:15
"Then the angel said to me, “The waters where the prostitute is ruling represent masses of people of every nation and language."
So when we see the word water in prophecy - we now understand that it represents great numbers of people
That said - here are a few of the symbols we read about in this chapter and what they refer to:
Woman: The church - or the people of God
Sun: God's glory - God's favor
Moon: That which reflects the sun - possibly the traditions of the church or the Bible
Crown of 12 Stars: Stars typically represent angels. But this could also refer to the 12 disciples that walked with Jesus and kept the church moving after His death
Red Dragon: Lucifer, The Devil, Satan
The Dragon's 7 Heads with 7 Crowns: Illustrates that Satan will have the help of another power - the Papacy - and the crowns represent political power - not just religious or spiritual power
10 Horns: 10 minor powers that will rule at the end of time
1/3 Part of the Stars: Angels - the ones that Lucifer convinced to fight with him
The Child the Woman Bears: Refers to Jesus or the Messiah
The Wilderness: Refers to uninhabited places - away from people
So there you go - pretty cool to see how each of these symbols has meaning - and that most of them are described in other places in the Bible. Allowing us to be very confident in how we interpret prophecy.
// CHAPTER 2: THE RISE OF THE OPPOSITION
Chapter 13 is to me the epitome of apocalyptic prophecy. The creme de la creme. The pivotal moment in the story. The plot thickens. The gotcha. The twist. The big reveal.
All those things and more.
When we finally make the move from more historical information to what's coming in the future - this is ground zero.
Chapter 13 sets the stage. Reveals the players. And from here there is no looking back.
Time is now moving quickly - pushing us closer and closer to the end of all things.
As the church of Laodicea - we are the final church - and we have no clue how long time will last before the end comes.
Here's a little math problem to help us see the times we're living in.
Remember we said that the 7 churches represented time periods as well?
Portions of time from the death of Jesus to the End of Time?
Well - what if we add those up and get an average? What would that look like?
Let's try it...
If we add up the suggested time periods of the first 6 churches we get: 1,813 Years
Divide by 6 and we get: 302 Years
So on average - each of the church ages is around 300 Years in length. Some shorter and some longer obviously - that's the definition of an average...
So where are we at? As the church of Laodicea?
Well, if Philadelphia truly ended in 1844
Laodicea: has been trucking along for 179 Years (1844-2023)
Now - that means nothing really
Because the Bible is clear - nobody knows the day or the hour when Jesus will return
But given that the shortest time period was 69 Years
And the Longest was 1027 Years
We're already past the shortest
And about 120 Years away from the average
Again - this means nothing. But still interesting to look at - to realize where we're at on Earth's timeline...
Okay - back on track. Revelation Chapter 13...
No introductions, or a prologue. John just dives back in...and describes the next thing he sees:
Sea Beast
I saw a Beast rising up - out of the sea
It had 7 heads
10 horns with 10 crowns
And on each horn there were names written - names that blasphemed God
This beast looked like a leopard
But had the feet of a bear
The mouth of a lion
And the Dragon gave it power, a throne and great authority
And then - one of the heads looked wounded beyond repair - but its fatal wound was healed
And the whole world was amazed and gave allegiance to the beast
They worshiped the Dragon for giving the beast so much power
And they also worshiped the beast
And they said, "Who is as great as the beast - and who is able to fight against him?"
Then the beast was allowed to speak great blasphemies against God
And he was allowed to do whatever he wanted for 42 months
And during this time he did the following:
Blasphemed God
Slandered God's name and His dwelling
Slandered those in Heaven
Waged war against God's people
Was allowed to have authority over every tribe, language, nation and people
The people who belong to this world worshiped the beast - those whose names were not found in the book of Life
Then John throws out a few lines that are a bit disconcerting...
He appeals to everyone listening:
Understand - that people will go to prison and people will be killed
But God's holy people must endure this persecution patiently and remain faithful
The Beast from the Earth
Next, John sees a beast coming up out of the earth
It has 2 horns like those of a lamb
But it spoke like a dragon
He exercised all of the authority of the first beast
And he required all the earth and its people to worship the beast who had the fatal wound
He did amazing miracles
Even making fire flash down from the sky in the presence of people
With all of these miracles he was allowed to perform on behalf of the first beast
He deceived all people who belong to this world
He order the people to make a great statue of the first beast who was fatally wounded but came back to life
He was then permitted to give life to this statue so it could speak
Then the statue commanded that anyone refusing to worship it must die
In order to make this happen - the statue required everyone to receive a mark on their right hands and their foreheads
And anyone who didn't take this mark would not be allowed to buy or sell
This mark is the name or the number representing his name
Let those who understand calculate the number of the man - this number is 666
Now - those of you who have followed along should have a pretty good idea where this is headed.
The Beast from the Sea sounds very familiar right?
It should because it is the Little Horn from the Book of Daniel. The Papacy - or the Catholic Church.
How do we know this? Well, here are a few ways the Catholic Church fulfills these prophetic descriptions:
It would rise among the 10 divisions of the Roman Empire
It would begin to rule after 476AD. True - In 538AD Justinian decreed that the church had power over the entire world - and could also exercise political authority in 538AD
The church would "uproot" three of the 10 horns. History reveals that in order to gain complete control the church had to wipe out three powerful adversaries: The Ostrogoths, the Vandals and the Heruli. Interestingly enough this was completed in 538AD
This power would be led by one man - the Pope definitely fits this
This horn would be different than all of the other 10 horns. True - this was the only horn not exclusively political. It was religious as well
This horn would speak blasphemies against God. True - the church claims that the Pope is actually God on earth - and has complete authority. Also - the church created the concept of Priests - and that they alone can forgive sin
This horn, or power would persecute God's people. True - we refer to it as the Dark Ages. The church was a persecuting power - torturing and killing people who did not believe as them
This power would attempt to change times and laws. True - the Catholic Church claims the power to alter God's word:
In the Catholic Bible - they removed the second commandment
They divided the 10th commandment into two
And they claim the authority to change the day of worship from the Sabbath (Saturday) to Sunday - because that's the day Jesus was raised from the dead
There is no Biblical reference for this change - but the Catholic Church doesn't need one - because the Pope is able to make those kinds of decisions as he is God on earth
There would be a deadly wound. True - the Catholic church was basically stripped of its power in 1798AD - at the end of the 1,260 Year time period
Next is the ominous number of the man. 666. This has always been a stretch to me - but I find it interesting nonetheless:
The name some of the more recent popes have used is "Vicarius Filii Dei." Which translates, "Representative of the Son of God." This name often shows up in print and also shows up on the Pope's regalia. If you take this latin name and apply the numerical values of roman numerals - the total is 666. Again - interesting - but not super interesting - as many peoples names calculate to 666 when you use this method
So I'm much more likely to accept 666 as symbolic. We talked about this before. If 7 is perfection - 6 is almost there - but not quite. And 666 is an obvious attempt to be God - or to be perfect - without actually attaining it
The time periods: The 3 1/2 prophetic years. The 42 months. The time, times and half a time - the 1,260 years. The persecution levied by Catholic Church during the Dark Ages lasted for a very specific amount of time. And this time period is shouted out in scripture. From 538AD when they received their power until 1798AD when it was removed. This is perhaps one of the strongest indications that the Little Horn from Daniel, and the Sea Beast of Revelation 13 are referring to the same thing: The Catholic Church
Okay - so obviously Futurists do not view the Sea Beast as the Catholic Church - because they believe all of these prophecies refer to the end of time. However - this is a pretty standard interpretation from the Historicist point of view.
Now, the Beast from the Earth is another story...
Spoiler alert - the Beast from the Earth is the United States of America...
And here are the reasons:
This beast rose out of the land. If the sea represents a lot of people - the land must represent areas where there are little to no people. Obviously the United States started that way - on land where there were few inhabitants
This beast rose as the Sea Beast was losing power. If the fatal wound occurred in 1798 - this fits - as the US gained its independence in 1776
This beast starts as a lamb with two horns. The US began as a nation where people could be free from tyranny. The phrase "with liberty and justice for all" is interesting given the lamb is said to have two horns - maybe the horns are referring to this? Now that would be a bit of a stretch for me - because everywhere else in prophecy a horn represents a power or kingdom. So not sure why it would be different in this context. But maybe it's the dual party thing. Republicans and Democrats. Two powers fighting for dominance... Who knows...
But this lamb-like behavior eventually changes:
John sees this power transition from the lamb into a megaphone for the Dragon
It eventually partnered with the Sea Beast and gained authority from it
And with this authority it did some pretty bad things:
It required people to worship the Sea Beast
It did miracles like making fire flash down from the sky
It deceived people
It order the people to make a great statue or image of the Sea Beast
And receive a mark signifying their allegiance to the statue or image
Without the mark they would NOT be able to buy or sell
And if they didn't worship the Sea Beast or it's image, or take the mark - they would be killed
Now, I'm not sure if all Historicists believe the Sea Beast is the Catholic Church and the Land Beast is the United States of America.
Wikipedia suggests the Papacy being the Sea Beast has been a staple of the Historicist interpretation since the beginning.
But when it talks about the US being the Land Beast - it specifically pins this on the Seventh Day Adventists. Suggesting that other Historicists may have a different interpretation.
However - these other explanations are few and far between. I linked to a Historicist article in the show notes from contraryworld.com (assuming this isn't an SDA article). And when it discussed Revelation 13 it talks about the Sea Beast then skips right over the Land Beast - as if it wasn't part of the chapter.
And this is my hypothesis - that aside the SDA view of the Beast from the Land - there really aren't many other good explanations...
// CHAPTER 3: THE FINAL WARNING
Okay - so that was Revelation 13. I told you it was good. Climax, big reveal, set up for the end times - all good stuff. A little dark of course - as we're getting into the whole one world government thing - and a world we really shouldn't be looking forward to.
I'm also guessing many of you didn't see the whole USA thing coming. Right?
It's so easy to read apocalyptic prophecy in terms of the old stuff - like the civilizations of Babylon and Greece. Or to push everything down to the End of Time where it can remain abstract and distant from us.
But why do we do that? My guess is it all comes down to fear. We don't want to think that we're living smack dab in the middle of it all.
In fact we aren't even in the middle - we're much closer to the tail end of it all.
And knowing that - don't you think the Bible might have something to say about us? Our time, and our civilization? Our governments, and ruling powers?
Look at it this way. The US is the most powerful country in the world right now. Debatable - as we're doing everything in our power to derail that progress. But it's probably still true...
And if that's the case - why wouldn't the US be part of prophecy? Why would we get a free pass and be removed from the unraveling story the Bible presents?
When you look back at all of the civilizations, kingdoms and powers the Bible talks about - what do they have in common?
They all played a direct role by impacting God, God's people and the truth they carried.
In other words - Babylon is part of prophecy because they took Israel captive and tried to rule over them.
Rome is part of prophecy because they held sway in a similar way:
They controlled Israel as well
They attempted to kill Jesus at His birth
They worked with the Jewish leaders to eventually convict and kill Jesus
They persecuted the Christians that lived after Jesus death
Obvious connections to the overarching Bible story right?
So this is why we don't see other civilizations in prophecy. Incas, Aztecs, East Asian Civilizations, etc. None of these show up in prophecy - but then again - why would they?
They may have been powerful - they may have been in power for hundreds of thousands of years. But they had no impact on the story of the Bible. At least that we know of...
So some would say the same about the US - right?
What do we have to do with the Bible story?
Yes - we're often viewed as a Christian nation. But that's debatable at best - and we're heading farther and farther away from that right?
So why would we be part of the apocalyptic prophecy in the Bible?
Well - maybe because we will be one of the major players at the End of Time.
Maybe we will take it upon ourselves to tell the world what to do.
I mean - it's not like we shy away from that now...
We're pretty full of ourselves
We on some level try to govern the world already
We have military bases all over the world
We've created alliances that require democracy to flourish and punish countries that do not conform
We stick our noses in other countries business all the time
We invade, we conquer, we aid revolutions - all in order to push our agenda and ensure we remain on top
So it isn't a stretch to think that in the end it will be the US on top - telling the rest of the world what to do - especially if it goes down the way the Bible describes.
Look at it this way:
We've often viewed our country and our constitution as bullet proof - guaranteeing our way of life forever
The freedoms we enjoy - the opportunities we have - stuff like that
And if someone told you back in 1995 that we would eventually lose those freedoms - you would have laughed and said, "Not a chance bruh. This is the best country on earth."
But on September 11, 2001 we saw just how easy it was for things to change
All it took was one terrorist attack and we gave up all sorts of rights - almost over night
According to the ACLU, the Patriot Act, passed 45 days after 9/11 allowed the government to "spy on ordinary Americans by expanding the authority to monitor phone and email communications, collect bank and credit reporting records, and track the activity of innocent Americans on the Internet. While most Americans think it was created to catch terrorists, the Patriot Act actually turns regular citizens into suspects."
Now - some of this we didn't fully understand
But at the time we were ok with it because we were scared - and wanted to protect our country
Looking back - we can see how the good that came with it also included loss of freedom
Next came the COVID-19 Pandemic:
Think about all of the freedoms that were called into question during it
Lockdowns
Forced closures
Being forced to social distance, wear masks, take tests and even take vaccines in order to access certain things - certain freedoms or opportunities - like travel
Now I'm not saying there was anything wrong with the vaccine - but when it starts to be forced upon people - it kinda goes against that whole freedom thing we have in our Constitution
And finally - I wasn't sure whether to connect this to the pandemic or not:
But as we have become more and more politically polarized in our country - the ideologies have also become more and more extreme
Which led to the removal of some of our basic freedoms recently
The overturn of Roe v Wade. Did you ever thing that would happen?
And that was just the start
The Supreme Court has said it wants to reexamine all sorts of things
Things like contraception, gay marriage and even interracial marriage
So yes - things can change - almost over night. And before you know it - our freedoms are gone - and our country looks a little more like a dictatorship than a democracy.
Which is why I believe the US is part of prophecy. Because we're moving in that direction - toward a world where freedoms are removed and a select group of people set new religious rules that everyone else is required to follow. Sound familiar? We called it the "Dark Ages" - when the Catholic Church held this sort of power. And in the future, with the technology we have at our disposal, the world will experience the "Darkest Ages." Right before Jesus returns.
Okay - there's a lot more I could say about that - but let's wrap things up with the Final Warning.
In Revelation 14 John continues to describe the things he sees in his dreams.
He sees the Lamb - or Jesus - standing on Mt. Zion with the 144,000
These had the name of God and Jesus written on their foreheads
And there was music and signing
The 4 Living Beings were there and the 24 Elders
And the song was special because only the 144,000 could learn it
They lived pure lives and were without blame so they were able to learn it
Again the 144,000 is believed to be a symbolic number - representing all of those at the End of Time who chose to follow Jesus over the world.
From there John describes the Final Warning. Messages from 3 Angels to the world - preparing the world for the soon coming time of trouble.
The First Angel's Message:
“Fear God,” he shouted. “Give glory to him. For the time has come when he will sit as judge. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and all the springs of water.”
Two important pieces here:
It talks about the judgment - the Investigative Judgment that started in 1844 - simply explaining that that time is upon us
And next, it brings up the importance of worship - that worship could be the most important thing at the end of time
Where did this language come from? This idea that God made the heavens, the earth, the sea and all that is in them?
You can find the same language in Exodus 20:11 - in the 4th commandment that has to do with worshiping God
Also - remember the stories from Daniel?
Every single story had to do with worship - right?
Interesting...
The Second Angel's Message:
“Babylon is fallen—that great city is fallen—because she made all the nations of the world drink the wine of her passionate immorality.”
Now you'll have to take my word for it on this one - but "Babylon" in prophecy refers to the perversion of truth. False religion. Taking something God meant for good and using it for evil. And removing God - to replace Him with something else - even ourselves
It started with the Tower of Babel after the flood - a tower built so humans would no longer need God - and they would be protected from Him in case there was another flood
Eventually this led to the Babylonian civilization where false, pagan religions flourished
And so it continues today
Babylon has become symbolic of religious confusion - and the mixing of truth and lies
So the Second Angel is warning the world - that Babylon will fall - it will be wiped out because of the immorality and lies she promotes
Now why is this an important message?
Because there are millions of people following her - thinking they're on the right side
This warning suggests the world as these people know it will cease to exist
Their beloved Babylon will fall - so best to see the truth now!
The Third Angel's Message:
“Anyone who worships the beast and his statue or who accepts his mark on the forehead or on the hand must drink the wine of God’s anger. It has been poured full strength into God’s cup of wrath. And they will be tormented with fire and burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and the Lamb. The smoke of their torment will rise forever and ever, and they will have no relief day or night, for they have worshiped the beast and his statue and have accepted the mark of his name.”
A final warning to be sure
Harsh language and pretty brutal
But in essence - those who choose the world over Jesus will receive the same thing Babylon receives
It will fall - and cease to exist
Because God's kingdom is coming and nothing will stand in its way
God's kingdom will be built for those who chose Him
So they can return to the perfection God intended for them back in the beginning - before the Sin Virus
So the basic summary is this:
Angel 1: The Investigative Judgment has started in Heaven - so worship God
Angel 2: Stay out of the world system that has taken over the world and everyone seems to be following
Angel 3: There are two choices at the End of Time. Based on your choice you will receive the mark the world offers, or receive the Seal of God by following Him
Now - this is a Historicist interpretation to be sure. And probably with a very Seventh Day Adventist slant. Just Google "Three Angel's Messages" and the majority of the results will be from SDA churches, universities and theologians.
Which is a little strange to me.
It seems like everyone would have something to say about Revelation 14. It's pretty succinct. And seems to be pretty important.
I mean we've read all the way through Daniel. and heard a bunch of stuff about history and the End of Time in Revelation. Then come three angels with a final warning.
Doesn't that shout important to you?
It does to me.
And yet - like I said - why is everyone so silent about this?
As it turns out Futurists most likely lump it into everything going on at the End of Time - during the tribulation. I read things about Babylon being physically rebuilt at the end - stuff like that.
But it seems pretty clear to me that Babylon is used to symbolize the institution that runs counter to God.
A one world government. A one world religion. Or whatever that might look like at the end.
A power that tries to lead the entire world away from the True God. A power that sets up a requirement - so they know you are loyal to them.
It's called The Mark or The Mark of the Beast. And people argue all the time about what it might be.
Some believe it's a physical thing - like a computer chip in your hand or forehead that forces you to do certain things.
And when people like Elon Musk start companies like Neuralink: https://neuralink.com/
It's not hard to see how it could go in that direction.
But friends - even though that conspiracy theory is exciting and fits well with every apocalyptic thriller Hollywood has ever produced. I just don't think it's that technical.
I think the ultimate reality is that the Mark of the Beast and the Seal of God - whichever one we choose to take will be much simpler than that.
Revelation describes the Mark as something we take in the hand and the forehead.
The hand represents our actions.
The forehead represents our thoughts, our beliefs and what we've chosen to do in our mind.
Interestingly - Israelites back in the day used to tie these little leather pouches around their hands and their foreheads.
Inside the pouch was a small version of the law - the 10 Commandments.
It was a physical reminder to them to know the law, believe it was important and actually do what they knew was right.
And I don't think it's going to be all that different at the end.
We're going to have two options - and we will need to choose with our thoughts and actions.
Okay - let's wrap things up.
The chapter wraps up with a description about the end days - when Jesus returns:
It says He comes back to earth on a white cloud
With a gold crown
And a sharp sickle used to harvest the earth
There were two other angels with Him
One with a sickle as well
And the other who was able to use fire to destroy things
And with that the harvest of the grapes took place
The grapes were cut from the vines and dropped into the wine press
As with any harvest - there is usable byproducts and unusable byproducts
When it comes to wheat - there is the grain and there is the chaff
The grain is kept to make bread and the chaff is either scattered with the wind or burned
Similarly - the wine press removes the grape juice which is kept and used
But the remaining elements are not needed - and are discarded in a variety of ways
Now - I'm not an expert on harvesting crops. Nor do I claim to be.
And I'm sure theologians would be able to explain this final passage in a lot more detail.
But it sounds pretty simple to me.
It only reinforces what we just discussed about the Mark of the Beast and the Seal of God.
It's an illustration of the fact that at the End of Time there will only be two options - leading to two camps of people.
One represented by the wine that is kept and one represented by the leftover elements that are discarded.
It's that simple - and yet that devastating. A solemn reminder that we will need to make up our minds about Jesus - and the sooner the better.
Let's Land the Plane:
Apologies that this one got a little dark there toward the end.
But remember - Revelation isn't for the faint of heart.
It doesn't pull punches. It's the ultimate storyline for our existence.
It's the battle that has gone on since the beginning - and it's the climax of it all at the end. The conclusion, the resolution, and the ultimate victory for the oppressed throughout time.
It's a somber thing to behold. Like being on a jury where the defendant could possibly receive the death penalty.
Think about the ramifications. Think about the finality of your decision and what that means for the defendant - even if it was just and fair according to the law.
Friends - as always I'm glad you chose to come along for the ride.
We're close to the end of this series. Just a few more and we should be able to wrap things up.
Next week we dive into:
The 7 Last Plagues
The Battle of Armageddon
The Woman & The Beast
Until then - have a great week- and as always, keep Transcending Human!
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