Revelation 6
Notes
Transcript
Now the last time we were together in the Book of Revelation we read Chapter 5 about the triumph of the Lamb.
We saw that Jesus was exclusively worthy to take the Scroll that had seven seals. And for those of you that were here with us we found out that that scroll was no ordinary scroll. It was the Title deed to planet Earth. Because of Creation, because of Calvary, and because of Conquest Jesus was the only one found worthy to take of this scroll and to begin to open the seals
1 Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like thunder, “Come!” 2 And I looked, and behold, a white horse! And its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out conquering, and to conquer. 3 When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” 4 And out came another horse, bright red. Its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth, so that people should slay one another, and he was given a great sword. 5 When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, a black horse! And its rider had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not harm the oil and wine!” 7 When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” 8 And I looked, and behold, a pale horse! And its rider’s name was Death, and Hades followed him. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth.
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Introduction:
Introduction:
Now this is not a pretty picture, But God is the God of truth!
God tells is this is the future and he unveils it that we might prepare ourselves.
This is the last great act, the last great Epic that God is telling when the Lamb, the one who has been found worthy takes the forfeited title deed of the universe out of the hand of the devil
John Eldredge in His Book Epic writes this:
Every story has a villain because yours does. Though most of you do not live like it. Most people do not live as though the Story has a Villain, and that makes life very confusing. How have we missed this? All the stories we’ve been telling about the presence of an evil power in the world, all the dark characters that have sent chills down our spines and given us restless nights—they are spoken to us as warnings. There is evil cast around us. War. Famine. Betrayal. Murder. Surely we know there is an evil force in this world. Where did it come from? What is its motive? How are we to find refuge from its claws? Things have happened prior to this life we are living, things you must understand.
As Gandalf whispered to Frodo, the two of them huddling by the fire, “That is a chapter of ancient history that which it might be good to recall; for there was sorrow then too, and gathering dark, but great valor, and great deeds that were not wholly vain. One day, perhaps, I will tell you all the tale, or you shall hear it told in full by one who knows it best.”
Stories like Lord of the Rings, Gladiator, Star Wars grap and hold onto our heart and mind because deep down we can related some parts of them to our story.
All through human history there have been smaller stories of evil amassing and outnumbering those who live in the light.
We understand what it feels like when the darkness rushes in like a flood and there is precious little we can do. But take heart we have a champion, a king, and because He has overcome we can overcome as well. But unlike these other stories, the one that He is telling here in the Book of Revelation is a living epic.
This passage of scripture is alien to our way of thinking. Many read a passage like this from scripture and think that is just for those religious nut s and crackpots that stand on the street corners wearing billboards yelling at people to turn or burn. But I want you to know the things that are spoken of hear match the awesomeness of God. Instead of thinking of this as weird think of it as epic.
Really that is the only kind of story that God knows how to tell and it is the story of creation through human kingdoms.
There is a darkness that is on the rise right now. and it will hit a fever pitch when the Lord begions to open the seals on the worlds title deed. He is speaking of the cataclysmic epic that when the King comes to claim what is his, evil will not willingly surrender. The sinister minister of death and destruction will fight tooth and nail to the end because he knows that his future is poised for the Lake of Fire.
The rest of the story going forward we will see the Kingdoms of man and the Kingdom of Darkness being shook by powers that they could not possibly understand
These are the preemptive strikes before He comes and takes his possession when he returns on a White horse along with the armies of heaven. You know in war, when one army is trying to take a fortefied nation they will send in preemptive strikes to soften the target.
THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE
SCENE #1
The Rise of the Anti Christ
A NEW RULER WILL COME UPON THE SCENE THAT GALLOPS ACROSS THE WORLDS SCENE.
NOW WHY DO SAY, “this is the Anti Christ?”
1. Well first of all notice the description of this Rider
2 And I looked, and behold, a white horse! And its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out conquering, and to conquer.
Upon just a quick and mindless reading of this passage of scripture you might tempted to think of that this is the Ruling, Reigning and Conquering Christ that we will see coming in chapter 19
11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself.
The only similiarities that can be gained here is the fact that they are on White Horses, and although the text doesnt explicitly say this but Im Sure the Lord Jesus White here is much bigger and faster. In the words of Trump- HE HUGE!
But that is the only similarity that we find. This my dear friends is not the Christ, but this in fact is the Anti Christ. Now the Word Anti in the Greek language is a little different than it is in the English. Usually when we think of the word Anti we think of something that is opposite. Right i am anti-abortion, we talk about someone being anti- social. Right so if I am antiabortion- I am against abortion, If you are anti social you are probably a little wierd. But the difference in the English and Greek word for Anti is the greek has an added nuanced meaning to the Word Anti- It does mean Opposite of.. which the Antichrist will certainly be opposite of Jese, but it also means instead of Jesus. He will not only come opposite of Jesus He will come instead of Jesus. And this valient warrior riding this White Stallion will not only sweep across the World scened conquering and winning, but he will also sweep across the hearts of billions of people. He will be so victorious, so charasmatic, so charming and skilled and brilliant that people will open their hearts to him and worship Him.
Jesus propecied about the antiChrist to the Jewish leaders of His day
43 I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him.
Daniel prophecied that even the Jews God’s chosen people will recieve him for a time. He will help them rebuild their Temple and then He will enter into the Holy of Holies and declare himself God. Daniel prophesied it and Jesus confirmed it. it is described in scripture as the abomination that causes desolation/ And Jesus said flee to the mountains when you see it
2 Here si the second reason I say this this rider on the Wite Horse is the Anti- Christ and not the Christ
Because of the Context that it is Written in. If you remember a couple of Weeks ago we read the previous chapter of the Triumph of the Lamb. We seen the the scene previous to this where Jesus is the only one found worthy to take the scroll and too open its seals. Now as He opens each of the seals then a judgement follows. So it wouldn’t make much sense for Him to be the one breaking this first seal on the scroll and then be the one galloping on the horse conquering to conquer. From a hermeneutics (method of interpreting scriture) stand point it just doesn’t fit.
Bu not only this but if you notice the command from one of the four living creatures. We missed these beings that the book of Revelation describes as the 4 living Creatures.
1 Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like thunder, “Come!”
This happens in each instance of the four horsemen- a Command is givien out. The Word here in the greek is “erkou (eer-coy)” or “erqoumai”(my)
Now first off it can’t be the Lord jesus because no angel or anybody else gives him a command to do anything. Only the Father. But you have a command from the living creature He says go forth, or come forth, and that is when the rider on this horse is released. You say so what?
Well the reason I bring this up because here you see the sovereignty of Almighty God. Nothing of any importance happens without his consent. And that is true of the AntiChrist. The Anti christ may belong to the devil, but God still owns the devil.
Let em give you this little portion of scripture
2 Thess 2:3-8 For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.
3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.
Here Paul is speaking to a church that is shaking because they thought they missed the Lord coming back to get them. But Paul comforts them by telling them that that the day of reckoning, known as the Day of the Lord will not take place until a rebellion takes place, and the one who leads the rebellion, the AntiChrist. I used to believe that the rebellion used to refer to believers or to those inside the church. It will certainly apply to those that are christians only by their mouth. Yeah Im Christian but there is no fruit in their life.
But the word here for rebellion is the word Apostacia and it means: defiance of established system or authority, rebellion, abandonment, breach of faith. It wont only be people inside the church, it will the the world collectively turning against the Christian faith. I don’t need to remind you that in the last 100 years we have had
Today people use God’s name like they use the toilet.
Seen picture of a man urinating on a cross
Christianity has become a punch line for many outlets
Setting up the world for the
6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time.
HE COMES OUT CONQUERING AND TO CONQUER
A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed. ἀποστασία
defiance of established system or authority, rebellion, abandonment, breach of faith
Right now the world has been primed for the super human god-like being. From harry Potter to Xmen, the world is fascinated with the next step of evolution for mankind. In fact for the trained mind in most films the creators are giving you their theology. What the believe about God. There is nearly always a savior figure. But in the last couple of years it has been mixing more witchcraft and overt demonism. The last days will be full of demonic activity. and that is why being a casual Christian in these days will leave to feeling defeated and worthless
There is a show on FX called Legion. I have not watched but a couple of episodes, it got to weird for me.
The main character in the show, David has been diagnosed with Schizophrenia from a small child. It opens where he is hearing voices and having halllcinations. He is locked up in a insane assylum because of the havoc that these voices have unleashed on His life. But the show takes an interesting turn. Tihs mental illness, these voices and really these demons cause him to be a super human. So the world has primed us with Superhumans, good ones like Captain America
In the show Legion mental illness and depression is connected with demon possession and super human power
He will conquer the world with incredible speed, resolve and skill. He will be an incredible military strategist, and he will be empowered by the devil himself. The last days we will see a resurgence of demonic activity that will
And as night follows day so will the other earth altering judgments will be when this this hellish fiend is released on the Earth
Scene #2- The Rider
3 When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” 4 And out came another horse, bright red. Its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth, so that people should slay one another, and he was given a great sword.
I want you to know that America is not safe. She will not always just have her constitution and her freedoms if they are not safeguarded unless a religious and moral people keep guard over it.
Benjamin Franklin was once asked a question once the Constitution was ratified in 1787, well did you give us a monarchy or a Republic, He replied a Republic as long as you can keep it.
Most kids today never are stop what form of goverment we have. Most think that we have a democracy
John Adams, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, championed the new Constitution in his state precisely because it would not create a democracy. "Democracy never lasts long," he noted. "It soon wastes, exhausts and murders itself." He insisted, "There was never a democracy that 'did not commit suicide.'"
Now when you look at the unrest that we see brewing we are getting a little glimpse of why the Founding Fathers did not create a democracy. Democracies are ruled by the mob. Republic is a government for the people by the people. Mob rule is influenced by the loudest voices who sway people with their emotions. The mob is not interested in facts, they are ruled by their feeling. Feelings by the way are very unreliable, but never the less most people are dominated by their feelings, fueled by what others tell them they should feel.
This second horse will cause unrest, there will be chaos in the streets. The AntiChrist will be the ultimate rebel, he will be the ultimate maNIPULAOR. he WILL CAUSE CHAOS IN CITIES ALL ACROSS THE WORLD LIKE WE HAVE FELT IN RECENT DAYS. aND IT WILL BE OPPURTUNE TIME FOR HIM TO DESTROY OTHER NATIONS.
iN rEVELATION 13 hE IS DESCRIBED AS A BEAST, that rises out of the sea. Well in the Book of revelation the sea is really a sea of humanity, restless, warring, divided humanity. Like the waters of a troubled sea, a troubled sea of humanity. A mob that is yelling for change, probably will run on the slogan “Change we can believe in”. It is always out of the unrest of humanity that these dictators arise.
Stalin and Lennon
Russia’s Bolshevik regime dedicated itself to hatred – Karl Marx’s hatred for the “bourgeoisie”bo͝orZHwäˈzē (THE MIDDLE CLASS) whom he blamed for society’s ills. Lenin and his successor Stalin pushed that philosophy farther, exterminating the so-called “rich” who came to include peasants with one cow.
What happened the poor were tired of getting pushed around by the rich and that is why the USSR had the hammer and sickle on their flag. They worked up the lower classes to feel like they were getting a raw deal and these dictators took advantage of it.
They also fought for universal healthcare and a form of socislism too make sure the poor man got his… sound familiar? Hello
By the way between these two dictators there are upwards to 60 million people that died under their rule
Hitler also rose out of Crisis. After the Germans were reeling from their losses in WW1. Hitler joined what would become known as the National Socialist German Workers’ Party which was later shorted to the Nazi party
Forbes writes
- Almost 90 percent of German government spending went for a big bureaucracy, social programs, money-losing nationalized businesses and other subsidies -- a portfolio of obligations uncomfortably familiar to us. The German government subsidized municipalities, much as U.S. states are begging the federal government for bailouts now. Germany had a troubled government-run pension system like our Social Security. The German government provided health insurance for millions of people. There were German government programs for 1.5 million disabled veterans. The government lavished subsidies on the arts. (Democrats tagged on another 100 million dollars to upgrade arts buildings)
What happened is the government began to spend money like it was going out of style and they printed so much that hyper inflation kicked in.... Unrest led to a tyrant. which leads us to our final scene
Scene 3 The Black Horse
5 When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, a black horse! And its rider had a pair of scales in his hand.
What we see here is hyper inflation. Think if you are a wise person we tend to think
He will then move his headquarters to New Babylon, and instead of promoting false religion, he will focus on developing a global commercial center. (More on all this shortly.) 14 — Early in the Tribulation, the Jewish Temple Will Be Rebuilt. We know that the temple must be rebuilt at least by the midpoint of the seven-year tribulation period because Jesus, in His Olivet Discourse, warned that the antichrist will desecrate the temple at that time, setting up an image of himself within the structure (Matthew 24:15-16; see also Daniel 9:27; 12:11). Even today we hear reports that various Jewish individuals and groups have been working behind the scenes to prepare various materials for the future temple, including priestly robes, temple tapestries, and worship utensils. The rebuilding of the temple seems to be on the horizon. 15 — The Signs of the Times Will Affirm that the End Times Have Arrived. A “sign of the times” is an event of prophetic significance that points to the end times. We are specifically instructed by Jesus that certain signs will take place as the tribulation period unfolds (Matthew 24). These signs include a great increase in earthquakes, famine, pestilence, signs in the heavens, people who love themselves (humanism), money (materialism), and pleasure (hedonism). There will also be an escalation in false Christs, false prophets and teachers, false apostles, and greatly increased apostasy. These and other such signs will testify that the end times have indeed arrived (see Matthew 24). The increase in false Christs, false prophets, false apostles, and apostasy will smooth the path for the rapid rise of the false religion associated with New Babylon early in the tribulation period.
aved, but they will die a martrys death
10 If anyone is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes; if anyone is to be slain with the sword, with the sword must he be slain. Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.