Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen. Revelation 1:7

PROFESSOR A. T. ROBERTSON

Citing Theodotion1 in his distinguished work, Word Pictures of the New Testament, Archibald Thomas Robertson (1868-1935) states that the verb in the phrase, “Behold, He is coming with clouds…” is:

“Futuristic present middle indicative of ἔρχομαι…“

Rather than dissecting and analyzing the original Greek text, let us consider the phrase from Scripture, since it presents a truth that is used of Christ in the past, present, and future.

PAST EXPRESSION

The term reflects the prophetic past. Daniel’s prophecy comes especially to mind:

^v13“I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a Son of Man, and He came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. ^v14And to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him; His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.” Daniel 7:13-14

Daniel stated that Israel’s Messiah came to the Ancient of Days, YHVH God, with the clouds of heaven. This prophecy, of course, was fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ. During His earthly ministry, when the Lord Jesus referred to Himself, He most often referred to Himself as the Son of Man, the Aramaic term used above in Daniel 7:13. The term was בר־אנש (bar an-ASH), not the Hebrew בן־אדם (ben a-DAM). It was the mention of this verse, in connection with who He was, that caused the high priest to condemn the Messiah to death:

^v63But Jesus remained silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God.” ^v64Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.” ^v65Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has uttered blasphemy. What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard His blasphemy. ^v66What is your judgment?” They answered, “He deserves death.” Matthew 26:63-66

PROPHETIC FUTURE

Jesus, coming with the clouds, also has future implications, and that by the Lord’s own words to His disciples:

^v29“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ^v30Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. ^v31And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” Matthew 24:29-31

The angels standing by at the Lord’s ascension into heaven also testified of this truth:

^v9And when He had said these things, as they were looking on, He was lifted up, and a cloud took Him out of their sight. ^v10And while they were gazing into heaven as He went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, ^v11and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw Him go into heaven.” Acts 1:9-11

Moreover, while it doesn’t speak of clouds per se, the Book of Revelation also testifies of this future event regarding the Lord’s return from heaven:

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. Revelation 19:11

While there are many who will readily acknowledge the futuristic aspect of this book, its current, present relevance is oft forgotten, or worse ignored altogether. Were the symbolisms relevant for John’s day? Are they relevant for our day? It just doesn’t make sense that John would receive all this truth from the Lord Jesus only for the first three chapters to be useful for him and the seven churches in Asia minor.

I believe that if the imagery is not relevant for our Christianity today, its future implications will soil and spoil our Christian walk.2

PRESENT REALITY

The phrase itself from Revelation 1:7, translated in English, expresses a present reality. The question would naturally arise, “How then does the Lord Jesus come in the clouds as a current truth?”

When the Lord Jesus comes with the clouds at His return, one of the things that will occur will be our ultimate glorification (1 Cor 15:51-54; Phil 3:20-21; 1 Jn 3:2). Yet this expression also pertains to every salvation since the Day of Pentecost as well as the progressive, sanctifying growth of every soul saved until the Lord Jesus returns.

Salvation

Unless the Lord Jesus Christ comes with the clouds, not a soul would be saved. First, the clouds with which our Lord Jesus comes speak of His gospel grace. We know that…

…faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the Word of Christ. Romans 10:17

This faith is not a simple belief we can muster from the dead dust of our natural senses. This faith must be imparted by God from heaven above. The Epistle to the Hebrews is informative in this regard. We’re told…

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1

This “assurance” is translated “substance” in the King James Version. It comes from the Greek root word ὑπόστασις (hoo-POS-tas-is). This same Greek root is used at the very beginning of the Hebrew epistle, as it speaks of the Lord Jesus Himself:

He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature, Hebrews 1:3

The KJV reads,

Who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person,

Our English words “nature” and “person” from the ESV and KJV respectively are from the same Greek root, ὑπόστασις. In other words, saving faith contains the nature and person of God. Therefore, this faith contains the very power of God to enable a sinner to both repent from sin and dead, fleshly, self-justifying works as well as to believe and trust in Christ’s person and work for salvation.

The Holy Spirit must awaken such a soul to the need for Jesus from the preached word of Scripture, because apart from His illumination, the gospel and the Scriptures containing Christ’s gospel will not make sense to our natural, earthly understanding:

The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. 1 Corinthians 2:14

One objection several sinners have to the gospel is that they don’t believe the Bible, or they cannot trust the Bible to be true. Because of the above verse, and others in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, I can only tell them that they can’t believe it nor trust it unless they are saved. The Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, testifies of the Lord Jesus Messiah (John 5:39). They can read the words and comprehend its meaning in the most simple and fundamental way, but until they have trusted in Christ alone for salvation, the Scriptures will never arrest their hearts, never renew their minds, and never illuminate their understanding.

Not only does Jesus coming with clouds testify of salvation by God’s grace alone, it also testifies to the person and work of Christ Jesus by His atoning sacrifice. For this, we must bring our attention back to the verses of Scripture cited above, from Matthew 26:63-66. Since the Lord Jesus was condemned to death by the high priest and the Sanhedrin because He referred to Himself as being the subject of the passage from Daniel 7:13-14, His coming with clouds pertains to His substitutionary suffering and death upon that Roman cross.

Jesus suffered the infinite and eternal wrath of God for sins He did not commit while hanging upon the cross, paying a debt He did not owe for a debt we owe and cannot possibly pay. By His death on Calvary’s tree, Jesus paid the penalty for sins committed against a holy God as well as for willing worship omitted from a supreme God worthy and deserving of absolute adoration from all His creation.

Indeed, for every salvation since Christ’s crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension into heaven, and for every salvation until Jesus comes again, He is coming with the clouds.

Sanctification

The Lord Jesus Christ is also coming with the clouds for all those He has already saved, as it pertains to our sanctification.

If you will, there are only two kinds of human beings mentioned in the Bible: saints and ain’ts. Either you’re a saint, saved by God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ, or you’re not (ain’t). This comes by God’s immediate declaration when once we are saved because it comes in, by, and through the merit of Christ’s sinless perfection alone. This is what the theologians and Bible scholars call imputation. Christ’s righteous life is placed upon our account. He lived the life you and I cannot possibly live. Therefore, we are declared holy, just, good, and glorified when we are saved through faith in Jesus Christ. It is written:

And those whom He predestined He also called, and those whom He called He also justified, and those whom He justified He also glorified. Romans 8:30

God is eternal and not confined to, constrained with, or confounded by time. Eternal life means that the Father sees us as a completed work in the Son. Nevertheless, until the Lord Jesus Christ returns, time confines us, constrains us, and confounds us. You and I must grow in grace and be strengthened in faith. Everything we experience in this space-time reality is meant to mold and shape us to become more and more like Jesus, as it is written:

^v28And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose. ^v29For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in order that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. Romans 8:28-29

While we are already sanctified (holy) by God’s eternal declaration in Christ, Jesus also commands us through the apostle to be holy:

^v14As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, ^v15but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, ^v16since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:14-16

This is an impossible command. Holiness is the work of Christ and the Holy Spirit, a heavenly grace. Does this mean we do nothing? God forbid. Since we are now new creations in Christ (2 Cor 5:17), we respond to the God of love (1 Jn 4:8), who has loved us with an everlasting love (Jer 31:3; John 3:16), with His command to love Him with all our heart, soul, and very-ness (Deut 6:4-5). Though we do so imperfectly, we want to please Christ by living as righteous a life as possible, as much as a sinner saved by grace is able, by God’s grace. Jesus said,

“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” John 14:15

Just because we’ve been saved by God’s grace, it doesn’t mean that grace has replaced God’s law. Jesus fulfilled the law, and therefore, the law has become more excellent. It is holy, just, and good (Rom 7:12). The Lord has elevated the law far beyond our reach in fulfilling it. We are not what the theologians call “antinomian.” Antinomianism, a replacement of the law, is heretical and dangerous.3

God’s grace, love, and mercy help us to keep from becoming legalists or lawless rebels.

PARSING THE BOOK

Our introduction to the Book of Revelation has nearly ended. It is at this point where we would benefit from a basic outline of the book. Since the gospel of Jesus Christ includes His return, there are certainly elements yet future contained in the signs, symbols, and expressions throughout the book. Nevertheless, as understood with the expression “He is coming with the clouds,” a failure to understand this writing as it pertained to the Christian hearer of John’s day, as well as with every believer since, reaching even to you and me, a future perspective alone would soil and spoil our Christian walk (I’ve written it earlier, but it is worth repeating).

So how do we approach our study and understanding of this wonderful, gospel book? While this is not the only way Revelation may be parsed and analyzed, this is how I’ve chosen to explain it for this commentary, by seven distinct perspectives from our redemption in Christ.

Chapter One

In this first chapter, we understand who Christ Jesus is.

Chapters Two and Three

In the second and third chapters, we hear Christ Jesus speak to His church.

Chapters Four through Six

In the fourth through sixth chapters, we see Christ Jesus ruling upon His throne over all His gospel domain.

Chapters Seven through Nine

In the seventh through ninth chapters, we recognize the spiritual warfare Christ’s church engages in against the dark forces of this age.

Chapters Ten through Fourteen

In the tenth through fourteenth chapters, we rejoice over the saints’ victory in Christ Jesus by the power of His gospel.

Chapters Fifteen through Eighteen

In the fifteenth through eighteenth chapters, we must also realize that while we are saved by God’s grace, Christ’s judgments abide upon the children of disobedience in a Christ-rejecting, God-hating world.

Chapters Nineteen through Twenty-Two

In the nineteenth through twenty-second chapters, we ready ourselves to receive Christ’s majestic return, the marriage supper of the Lamb, and the new heaven and earth.

PARTING REMARKS

I pray that this overview of the Book of Revelation is helpful to you. Next time, we will examine the remainder of this seventh verse of chapter one. We can see that there’s no way around the wording as pointing to an event yet to come. Nevertheless, we will see how it is not only distinctive in showing us who Christ Jesus is, its truth is especially relevant to the church today, as well as to you and me as individual saints in Christ.

Until then…

May the Lord Jesus continue to bless and keep you.

Read or Review Other Chapters

The Testimony of Jesus

Share

In Chapters 11, we examined briefly the most recent and most popular of eschatological views, dispensational pre-millennialism. While the dispy-premil system holds a high view of Scriptural authority by its attempts at “literal” interpretations, an extreme view of distinct and separate functions, fulfillments, and futures for Israel and the New Testament church seems to diminish the gospel and Christ’s redemptive work. Keep in mind that this view has its strengths among its many weaknesses and difficulties.

In Chapter 12, we briefly examined the strengths and weaknesses of post-millennialism. This view posits a strong emphasis on Christ’s gospel, expressing its power to not only change lives, but also its power to change societies and nations. Its proponents, however, still have difficulties in sufficiently answering several questions consistent with the truth of Christ’s suffering church, characterized by the promises of the Lord Jesus whereas believers will be hated by the world (John 15:18), suffer tribulation in the world (John 16:33), and receive persecution from the world (2 Tim 3:12).

We also briefly examined the strengths and weaknesses of amillennialism in Chapter 13. This view presents an extremely exalted view of Christ’s atoning work, as well as an elegant and elevated view of Christ’s glorious church. The view is not without its difficulties, however; unable to sufficiently reconcile passages of Scripture which seem to hint at a reign of Christ upon earth whereas the “wolf shall dwell with the lamb” (Isa 11:6), “the lion shall eat straw like the ox” (Isa 11:7), and “the young man shall die a hundred years old” (Isa 65:20), among other like-difficulties.

Finally, in Chapter 14, we briefly examined the strengths and weaknesses of the oldest of the four end times scenarios, the historical pre-millennial view. While the historical pre-mil view takes a high view of Scripture and promotes patience, growing endurance, and strength of faith, its proponents have not sufficiently addressed its difficulties, namely explaining who will populate the kingdom in its golden age after Christ’s return and how Gog and Magog will rise at the end of Christ’s earthly reign (Rev 20:7-9).

Today we take a brief look at the full preterist view of Revelation.

PRETERISM

Wikipedia states:

Preterism is a Christian eschatological view or belief that interprets some (partial preterism) or all (full preterism) prophecies of the Bible as events which have already been fulfilled in history. [online source]

This statement can only be partially true; that is, as it pertains to partial preterism. The amillennial eschatology (study of the end times or last things) interprets some of the prophecies as having been already fulfilled in history. Therefore, the partial preterist interpretation of biblical prophecies in general, and from the book of Revelation in particular, would be a legitimate “Christian eschatological view.”

Full preterism, a belief that all the prophecies of the Bible have already been fulfilled, as a “Christian eschatological view,” would be ironically contradictory because it is neither Christian nor eschatological. It is not Christian because it contradicts many of the statements of Christ and His apostles which look for a hope that is yet future. It is not eschatological because the word “preterism,” comes from the Latin, praeter, which is a prefix denoting something is “past” or “beyond.” Therefore, full preterism cannot have anything to do with eschatology, the study of “last things,” when it is a faith squarely rooted upon the fulfillment of “past things.”

PRETERIST ROOTS

The full preterist view had its origins in the Counter-Reformation efforts of the Roman Catholic Church. Since many Protestant Reformers viewed the pope in Rome as antichrist (if not the antichrist altogether), a Jesuit theologian from Spain, Luis del Alcázar (1554-1613), proposed that, except for the last three chapters, everything in Revelation had already taken place before John had written the book during his banishment on the Isle of Patmos. Luis del Alcázar’s book, Vestigatio Arcani Sensus in Apocalypsi, was published posthumously in 1614.[1]

PROTESTANT ADHERENTS

The first notable acceptance of full preterism among Protestants was a Dutch lawyer, theologian, and humanist named Huig de Groot (1583-1645); also known by his Latin name, Hugo Grotius. He entered Leiden University at age 11. Heavily influenced by Arminian theology in its early stages of development, Grotius enthusiastically sought to bridge Protestantism and Roman Catholicism through a preterist interpretation of Scripture. His 1640 treatise, “Commentary on Certain Texts Which Deal with Antichrist,” was his first attempt at reconciling Protestants with Roman Catholics, arguing that the fulfillment of Antichrist occurred in the first century of church history. His “Commentaries on the New Testament,” published between 1641 and 1650, further developed his full preterist interpretations upon both Christ’s teaching on the Mount of Olives (Matt 24:3-25:46) and the entire book of Revelation.

Other historical adherents to full preterism: Thomas Hayne (1582-1645); Joseph Hall (1574-1656); Henry Hammond (1605-60); and the heretical Frenchman who promoted an Arianist view of Christ, Firmin Abauzit (1679-1767).

PROBLEMS FROM SCRIPTURE

Full preterism is not considered orthodox by any means. In this post-modern era, however, full preterism is becoming more popular among liberal, post-modern theologies, viz., the Emergent Church.

While several passages of Scripture can be used to refute the heretical view of full preterism, one portion of Scripture stands out above all others:

^v1Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to Him, we ask you, brothers, ^v2not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. ^v3Let 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, ^v4who 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. ^v5Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, emphasis added

From this passage, “the man of lawlessness” or “son of destruction” are just two other names for the antichrist or false messiah. If the desire of most full preterists is to establish some sort of unity or common ground between Protestants and Roman Catholics by interpreting away the Roman Catholic pope as the Antichrist to come, then he must be “revealed” (2 Thess 2:3) by his blasphemous deeds (2 Thess 2:4). Moreover, from the third verse, that Day of the Lord Jesus Christ’s return will not come until Antichrist is revealed.

PARTING REMARKS

A common misunderstanding of the word antichrist, the Greek ἀντίχριστος (an-TEE-xris-tos), is that it means “against Christ.” While the Antichrist to come, as well as the many antichrists which have existed, and do and will exist until Jesus returns (1 Jn 2:18-22), does oppose Christ (2 Thess 2:4), the meaning of the original Greek word means a thing or person who is “in the place of” or “in the room of” or “instead of” Christ. The antichrist or false messiah will be one who is a deceptive imitation and false counterpart of Christ.

Moreover, the full preterist view was an unnecessary defense of the pope as the future Antichrist to come. Jesus said,

“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.” John 5:43

One of the Latin titles for the pope in Rome is Vicarius Christi, meaning “in place of Christ.” While Roman Catholic popes are like the many antichrists in the world that John speaks of (1 Jn 2:18), the pope could not possibly be the future Antichrist to come. Interestingly, this past year I have been asked more than a few times of my opinion concerning certain persons of current political note, who might be the viable candidates for the Antichrist to come― Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Elon Musk, Hillary Clinton. Here’s my opinion on the matter (which has been my opinion for about the past 30 years or so, though rarely expressed it out loud) …the future Antichrist and false messiah to come must be a Jew; or at least he must deceptively suggest to the leaders of the nation of Israel that he is of Jewish descent. When the entire world stands against Israel, while the leadership of the Jewish state will give an approving nod to anyone who will broker peace, they will only proclaim one “peacemaker” as messiah― and he must be a Jew in their minds for that to happen. Yet that Jew will come in the power and might of his own name, not the heavenly Father’s.

PARSING THE BOOK

In the next chapter, we will parse the entire book of Revelation so we can have a roadmap of sorts to understand its majestic and mysterious imagery.

Until then…

May the Lord Jesus continue to bless and keep you.

Read or Review Other Chapters

The Testimony of Jesus

[1] The Latin title, Vestigatio Arcani Sensus in Apocalypsi, means “A Trace of the Mysterious Meaning in the Apocalypse.”

Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen. Revelation 1:7

We’ve already taken a brief look at three possible end times perspectives: the most popular view, dispensational pre-millennialism; the most optimistic view, post-millennialism; and the simplest view, amillennialism. Today we briefly examine the oldest view of the four basic eschatological systems believed on in church history, the historic pre-millennial view. Let’s take a look.

DOCTRINE OF HISTORIC PRE-MILLENNIALISM

In ancient days, the system was known by its Greek name, chiliasm, and its adherents were known as chiliasts, from the Greek word for “thousand,” χιλια. It is the oldest of the four views, as Papias (60-130), a disciple of John, the writer of the book of Revelation, was this view’s earliest proponent. Speaking of John, he wrote:

“Amongst these he says that there will be a millennium after the resurrection from the dead, when the personal reign of Christ will be established on this earth.” —Papias, Fragments, ch. VI; translated by Alexander Roberts, D.D. & James Donaldson, LL.D.; T&T Clark, Edinburgh; 1867

Justin Martyr (100-165), also, supported the historic pre-mil view:

“But I and others, who are right-minded Christians on all points, are assured that there will be a resurrection of the dead, and a thousand years in Jerusalem, which will then be built, adorned, and enlarged, as the prophets Ezekiel and Isaiah and others declare..... And further, there was a certain man with us, whose name was John, one of the apostles of Christ, who prophesied, by a revelation that was made to him, that those who believed in our Christ would dwell a thousand years in Jerusalem; and that thereafter the general, and, in short, the eternal resurrection and judgment of all men would likewise take place.” —Justin Martyr, The Dialogue with Trypho, chs. LXXX, LXXXI; translated by Alexander Roberts, D.D. & James Donaldson, LL.D.; T&T Clark, Edinburgh; 1867

Other adherents to this system are John Bunyan (1628-1681); John Gill (1697-1771); George Müller (1805-98); Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892); Donald Arthur Carson (b.1946); John Piper (b.1946); and Albert Mohler (b.1959).

The historic pre-mil doctrine is similar to the dispensational pre-mil view with some marked exceptions, the most prominent being the event known as the “tribulation,” or to some, “the great tribulation.” While the dispensational pre-mil advocate sees the “great tribulation” as synonymous with wrath of God, and thus exempt from the tribulation period, the historical pre-mil adherent does not necessarily equate tribulation with God’s wrath; the two not being interchangeable, but co-existing, citing the Lord Jesus’ words from this verse in particular:

“I have said these things to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

This is why another name for historical pre-millennialism is “post-tribulationalism.” The Christian who favors the historic pre-mil view believes that while we will suffer tribulation and persecution in the world (John 16:33; 2 Tim 3:12), we are certainly exempt from God’s wrath (1 Thess 5:9). While the dispy pre-mil believer sees the rapture of the church and the visible and bodily return of the Lord Jesus Christ as two distinct events separated by a period of time which includes seven years of tribulation on earth, the historic pre-mil believer views the events of the rapture and the Lord’s second coming as occurring in a singular event (1 Thess 4:13-18)… which leads us to the major difficulty from this view….

DIFFICULTIES WITH THE VIEW

I have not read every writing for all proponents of this view; however, of all those I’ve read, there are few that acknowledge the difficulty, and even fewer that attempt to deal with it. What is the difficulty? First, who is to populate the earth in Christ’s millennial kingdom? The saints alive at Christ’s coming cannot populate the earth because they have been raptured. The saints asleep at Christ’s return cannot populate the earth because they have been resurrected. In other words, both groups have glorified bodies. And according to most proponents of this view, the wicked have all been slain at Christ’s return by the “sword that came from the mouth” of Jesus (Rev 19:21), in other words, by the Word of His power. This begs the question for the second difficulty, how then will Gog and Magog rise (Rev 20:7-9) at the end of the thousand year period?

John Gill, a predecessor to Charles Spurgeon at the New Park Street Chapel, is one of the few who recognized the problem with an attempt to address it. Dr. Gill suggested that the “rest of the dead” (Rev 20:5) will be…

“…raised from the dead, even all the wicked that have been from the beginning of the world; which accounts for their number being as the sand of the sea: and these rising where they died, and were buried, will be in and come from the four quarters of the worlds; and as they died enemies of Christ, and His saints, they will rise such; hell and grave will make no change in them…” —John Gill, Gill’s Complete Body of Practical and Doctrinal Divinity, pg. 666; Sovereign Grace Publishers

More than likely, most historic pre-mil theologians will not agree with John Gill’s explanation of Revelation 20:5, 8. Nevertheless, Dr. Gill at least recognized the issue and made an attempt to reconcile its difficulties, whereas others have not.

DESIRABLE CHARACTERISTIC

The first desirable characteristic from the historic pre-mil view is found in the strength of faith, the growing endurance, and development of patience that comes from a heart and attitude forged by expecting to encounter trials and tribulations in this fallen world. By and large, the historic pre-mil believer does not attempt to escape daunting situations and circumstances, but instead, leans upon Christ’s sovereignty to learn and grow from the experience, realizing that we are, in God’s providence, being conformed to the image of His Son because of what we endure, not by escaping it.

The second desirable characteristic is found in the pre-mil attitude toward Scripture. While proponents attempt to view Scripture as realistically and as chronologically as possible, most recognize the importance of allegorical significance in Scripture, viz., a Christ-centered and Christ-exalted view from holy writ, as well as embracing a practical application from the Bible’s pages. In other words, for the most part, the interpretation and understanding of Scripture is not an “either/or” endeavor, but “and/and/and.”

DETRIMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS

The most glaring detriment concerning the historic pre-mil view is this: if somehow, unsaved persons enter this future period of time alongside resurrected and raptured saints in Christ’s millennial kingdom, it means that glorified men, women, and children will co-exist with mortal sinners, descendants of Adam, whose curse and corruptions cause them to live with sin, suffering, and death in a moral and messianic kingdom. This is quite a difficult concept to reconcile in the hearts of Christ’s redeemed.

CONCLUDING REMARKS

We’ve covered the four orthodox views concerning the millennium. I’m not advocating for any specific view, really; though I may have leanings toward both the a-mil and historic pre-mil perspectives. Yet, as before, my last thoughts here are the same as the previous three— if the eyes of our faith are upon the Lord Jesus Christ, we will see Him when He comes, and the details of His coming will fall into place.

PRETERISM

Now, there are only the four legitimate, possibilities as we’ve covered in this chapter and in the previous three. We should, however, consider the full preterist view, as an eschatological scheme that is neither orthodox, nor acceptable. Just so you know.

Until then…

May the Lord Jesus continue to bless and keep you.

Read or Review Other Chapters

The Testimony of Jesus

Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen. Revelation 1:7

As the seventh verse of the first chapter speaks of the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, we’ve embarked on a parenthetical journey in the examination of end times scenarios held by Bible-believing Christians. We’ve already examined two of the four different scenarios or systems of interpretation, dispensational pre-millennialism and post-millennialism. The two remaining are amillennialism and historical pre-millennialism, the former being the topic of today’s chapter. Let’s take a look.

DOCTRINES OF AMILLENNIALISM

Amillennialism is an unfortunate title for this system of eschatology since it means “no millennium.” The a-mil believer does believe in a millennium; however, for them, the millennium is a spiritual kingdom on earth, having been established at Christ’s first coming and will extend until the visible, bodily, and imminent second coming of Christ. Since it is a spiritual reign of Christ Jesus in the lives of His people (the church), the millennium is not a literal thousand-year period, for those reasons mentioned in the first section of Chapter 12.

For many a-mil believers, Revelation 20 is a panorama of the entire present age, as it applies an interpretive structure suggesting that the book was written, not in strict chronological order, but as a series of seven perspectives about the same period of time, this present age. Each section of John’s narrative provides clearer details of approximately the same time period, the present age since Christ’s incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension, until the return of Christ; and in the latter chapters, into the new heaven and earth in the age to come.

This is not uncommon in biblical texts. Genesis does this in the account of the creation and the fall. Genesis 1:1-2 describes the creation in the first verse; and the fall in the second verse, while God’s grace continues to broods over the deep. Genesis 1:3-2:3 presents the divine details of the six days of creation and the seventh day of rest. Genesis 2:4-25 presents specific details of the sixth day of creation. And Genesis 3:1-24 presents specific details concerning the fall.

When did the amillennial view of eschatology originate? Historically, the idea of the kingdom of Christ that the Puritans call “already, not yet” was introduced through the writings of Augustine of Hippo (354-430). His book, On the City of God against the Pagans, commonly called “The City of God,” was written by Augustine in the early fifth century.

Besides Augustine, other adherents of this system include Martin Luther (1483-1546); John Calvin (1509-64); Anthony Andrew Hoekema (1913-1988); Robert Charles Sproul (1939-2017); Kim Riddlebarger (b.1954); and Jeffrey D. Johnson (b.1976). Amillennial eschatology is found in various denominations, including Lutheran, Dutch Reformed, Swiss Reformed, Presbyterians, and many Reformed Baptists, to name a few.

DIFFICULTIES OF AMILLENNIALISM

While amillennialsim is the simplest of the four end times systems, the a-mil view of eschatology is not without its issues and difficulties.

I. The first difficulty is found in the insufficient explanation concerning details of the messianic kingdom spoken by the LORD God in two Old Testament prophecies. The first of these is here:

6 “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. 7 The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den. 9 They shall not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. 10 In that day the Root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples— of Him shall the nations inquire, and His resting place shall be glorious.” Isaiah 11:6-10

While post-mil teachers might have some slight difficulty with this passage, the a-mil teacher will most certainly have difficulty explaining it, even allegorically. In the sixth verse, are these animals symbolic, the wolf, the lamb, the leopard, the young goat, the calf, and the lion? If they are, what do they represent in their dwelling and resting together? It’s obvious that this is not literal in this “present age.” The seventh verse presents a similar, and possibly, a greater difficulty. What does it mean for the cow and bear to graze together and their young lying down together? What does it mean for the lion to eat straw like the ox? Will this be a time when we return to pre-flood conditions in the days of Noah, when all animals ate straw, fruits, and vegetation?

If these animals represent nations, since the tenth verse speaks of the glory of Christ’s reign over them, why are we not seeing this cohabitation now? If the child of verses six and eight are allegorical of the Christian child of God, and if it has represented cohabitation among nations under the Roman Catholic Church in times past, why is it not happening today? What about the cobra and the adder in the eight verse? What do they represent, and how do they relate to the nursing child and the weaned child?

The ninth verse seems to suggest that this will be a time when wars shall cease because the knowledge of the Lord Christ will be as deep, full, and widespread as water covering the sea. The illustration from the prophet presents a thorough knowledge of Christ Jesus and His gospel, for what part of the sea is not covered by water? That’s right. All of it is covered with water.

All four of the eschatological systems, including historical pre-millennialism which we have yet to cover, are in agreement that these conditions will come to pass through the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ, as prophesied in the tenth verse. The only questions left for the a-mil proponent is when and where will this take place?

Again, Yehovah God speaks through the same prophet, saying,

17 “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. 18 But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness. 19 I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people; no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress. 20 No more shall there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his days, for the young man shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed. 21 They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. 22 They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for like the days of a tree shall the days of My people be, and My chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands. 23 They shall not labor in vain or bear children for calamity, for they shall be the offspring of the blessed of the LORD, and their descendants with them. 24 Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear. 25 The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain,” says the LORD. Isaiah 65:17-25

In this latter passage, these verses are the result of the great changes that would take place because of Yehovah God’s stern judgments against evil side by side with His tender mercies, as declared in the first part of the chapter (Isa 65:1-16).

Now, while verses seventeen through nineteen speak of the re-creation in the age to come, verses twenty through twenty-five speak similarly to the conditions found in Isaiah 11:6-10.

Verse twenty expresses a period of time whereas the longevity of life will be as it was in the era before the flood, as expressed in Genesis 5. While the latter part of the verse may be suggested by a-mil proponents to be an allegorical expression of eternal life in Christ, to allegorize the first part of the verse would be an incredible stretch and exercise in Scriptural gymnastics.

While the twenty-first and twenty-second verses may be considered allegorical representations of the Christian’s joyful labor in the Lord, the attached twenty-third verse would seem to negate such an allegory as taking place during this present age. The Preacher of Ecclesiastes contradicts labor without vanity in this present life, while the testimony of wayward children from the godly upbringing of faithful parents is a tale often twice-told, even thrice-told.

The twenty-fourth verse expresses immediate answers to prayer, which from God’s spiritual and heavenly point of view, can be interpreted allegorically; yet, if this is so, it must be interpreted separately from its three preceding verses, which can cause further confusion.

The twenty-fifth verse echoes what the LORD God had spoken in Isaiah 11:6-10, and is therefore rife with the same difficulties previously discussed.

Another explanation by some a-mil proponents is, like the post-mil adherent, that these conditions take place during a period of time prior to Christ’s return, existing in the period of which Revelation 20 speaks. Isn’t this rather the millennium of the post-millennialist? This sets up a further difficulty in explaining how this can be reconciled with the imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ, for both the a-mil and post-mil teacher. If these conditions are real and physical, then Christ’s return cannot be sudden, unexpected, and able to happen at any time, since these circumstances must exist before His second coming, by this suggested interpretation.

II. The second difficulty arising in the amillennial system is the binding of Satan:

2 And He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while. Revelation 20:2-3

The a-mil teacher advocates that the binding of Satan to keep him from deceiving the nations occurred at Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven; in other words, Satan’s ability to deceive the nations has been stymied in order that the gospel may be promulgated throughout the world. According to many a-mil teachers, Satan’s release will occur after this allegorical millennium on earth.

The issue arises then, who has been deceiving the nations for the past 2,000 years? Concerning Satan himself, we have already cited one of the portions concerning his hold upon the earth in the previous chapter:

3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 2 Corinthians 4:3-4

Not only does Paul mention this, but Peter does as well:

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8

Some a-mil advocates claim no conflict with these verses and the binding of Satan concerning the nations. They state that the verses in 2 Corinthians 4 and 1 Peter 5 are Satan’s dominion over man by the effects of the fall. He has certainly been effectively defeated, but the war is not officially over until the return of Christ. This presents two further difficulties to be addressed. First, the binding of Satan seems to be of such weak spiritual material that it hasn’t produced the prophesied effect upon the nations that Isaiah chapters 11 and 65 express; and second, it almost implies Christ’s binding of the devil is basically a permission from Satan in order for God’s people to preach the gospel to the Gentile nations. Most assuredly, this is a revolting, ridiculous, and reprehensible idea.

Moreover, Satan’s deception through the beast and the false prophet is doubly deceptive, upon the whole earth (Rev 13:3) and upon all who dwell on earth (Rev 13:8, 13-14),

3 One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. 4 And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?” 5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming His name and His dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 7 Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, 8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain.... 12 It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. 13 It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, 14 and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. Revelation 13:3-8, 12-14

III. A third difficulty the a-mil teacher must reconcile is the interpretation of the beast and false prophet of Revelation 13. There are two schools of thought on this. Some have advocated a partial preterist view, and the other is an allegorical view.

“Preterist” comes from the Latin, praeter, which is a prefix denoting something is “past” or “beyond.” The two schools of preterism are partial and full. The full preterist, saying all things have been previously fulfilled in history, is an area we will cover all by itself in a short chapter. The full preterist view is clearly heretical, according to Scripture. The amillennialist who takes a partial preterist view of certain events and conditions recorded in Revelation may interpret the beast and false prophet as being fulfilled in persons who existed in the days of the temple’s destruction in 70 AD, and Jerusalem’s destruction in 135 AD, or some other allegorical interpretation. The issue with this explanation is that, if the beast and false prophet have been cast into the lake of fire upon their deaths (Rev 19:20; 20:10), regardless of who they were historically, why have the prophecies of Isaiah 11 and Isaiah 65 not been fulfilled under the binding of Satan (Rev 20:2-3)?

Because of this difficulty, other a-mil proponents have allegorized the beast and false prophet as symbolically representing a false worldly system (the beast) and the corruptions of unbelieving mankind (false prophet), similar to the allegorizing by many post-mil teachers. While I would vehemently agree that Revelation 13 represents these spiritual ideals, as mentioned in the last chapter with the post-mil difficulties, a problem still exists with the beast and false prophet being thrown into the lake of fire by the Lord Jesus, a literal place of torment of persons suffering eternal judgment,

And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. Revelation 19:20

And again,

and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. Revelation 20:10

The beast and the false prophet are to be “thrown alive into the lake of fire.” The questions then arise: “How can an evil system and the wickedness of mankind’s unbelief be tormented day and night forever?” and also, “If the devil is a true personality sent to eternal condemnation, would it not also be true of the beast and false prophet in order for them to be tormented eternally?”

DESIRABLE CHARACTERISTICS

Despite these difficulties, there are certainly desirable characteristics associated with the amillennial system of eschatology, character traits every Christian would be wise to embrace in both attitude and understanding.

The first desirable characteristic is the preeminence of Christ Jesus and His gospel. The a-mil system, like that of the post-mil, views the ultimate fulfillment of the Aaronic priesthood and the levitical ordinances of animal sacrifices as being fulfilled in Christ’s once-and-forever sacrifice. The a-mil scenario dispenses with the dispensational pre-mil need to re-establish temple sacrifices in the millennial kingdom. As detestable as a re-establishment of the animal-sacrificial system is, the idea that it has been fulfilled forever in Christ brings that much more exaltation to the eternal, atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. In their interpretation of Scripture overall, the amillenialist attempts to apply Christ’s precious blood, so to speak, to his embrace and understanding of God’s truth.

The second desirable characteristic is found in the a-mil view of the “already, not yet” reality of Christian life. This idea of the reality of Christ’s reign being spiritually true in the life of the believer, which has its ultimate fulfillment in the Lord’s return, helps us live as true, heavenly ambassadors upon earth (2 Cor 5:20), propagating and representing the substitutionary atonement and redemption truth (2 Cor 5:21) until the Lord Jesus comes again to take His ambassadors home. The attitude and understanding of the “already, not yet” transforms our Christian behavior, so that even without a spoken word, there is a testimony before the unbelieving world, that whether they realize it or not, they are witnessing in our lives the closest thing to heaven on earth they will ever see until the Lord Jesus brings about the new heavens and earth.

DETRIMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS

The difficulties yet to be addressed sufficiently in the a-mil system will be a stumbling block for the corruptions remaining in our mortal flesh, and the flesh will take advantage of those weaknesses.

The one glaring detrimental characteristic that arises from this system, because of the difficulties found in Isaiah chapters 11 and 65, is there may be a tendency to overlook or completely avoid any commentary, teaching, or preaching on these passages. This sets up a dangerous precedent, almost implying that certain passages of Scripture may be ignored or dismissed. Unbelieving Jews do this in many synagogues, skipping conveniently over the twelve verses of Isaiah 53, which speaks of Christ Jesus, God’s suffering Servant. Let us avoid this detrimental characteristic by reading the portion, presenting the possibilities and their difficulties, and then commending its fulfillment to our gracious, loving, holy, and just God. It’s not a shameful thing to echo the words of Ezekiel in confessing our own ignorance, “O Lord GOD, You know” (Ezek 37:3).

HISTORICAL PRE-MILLENNIALISM

Next time, we’ll take a look at the historical pre-millennial system of eschatology, along with its difficulties, and both its desirable and detrimental characteristics.

Until then…

May the Lord Jesus continue to bless and keep you.

Read or Review Other Chapters

The Testimony of Jesus

Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen. Revelation 1:7

As the seventh verse of the first chapter speaks of the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, we’ve embarked on a parenthetical journey in the examination of end times scenarios held by Bible-believing Christians. As mentioned in the previous chapter, there are four different scenarios or systems of interpretation— dispensational pre-millennialism, post-millennialism, amillennialism, and historical pre-millennialism. “Millennium” is the operative word in each of these four systems, which is a Latin compound word. Mille means thousand and annum means years. It is taken from the Greek words χιλια ετη (XI-lee-a E-tā), meaning “thousand years,” taken from Revelation’s twentieth chapter,

2 And He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while. 4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with Him for a thousand years. Revelation 20:2-6 (emphasis added)

This is an interesting term in Greek. The text does not say “one thousand years” or “two thousand years,” which should be the case in regular Greek syntax. In the second and sixth verses it says, “a thousand years” —in Greek, auton xilia eta. In the third and fifth verses it says, “the thousand years” —in Greek, ta xilia eta. In the fourth verse it says, “with Christ for a thousand years” —in Greek, meta tou Xristou xilia eta. We’ll look more closely at this when we get to the twentieth chapter.

In Chapter 11, we briefly examined the most recent and most popular of the eschatological views, dispensational pre-millennialism. While the dispy-premil system holds a high view of Scriptural authority by its attempts at “literal” interpretations, an extreme view of distinct and separate functions, fulfillments, and futures between those of Israel and those of the New Testament church seems to diminish the gospel and Christ’s redemptive work. Keep in mind that this view has its strengths among its many weaknesses and difficulties.

The next three end times views, however, post-millennial, amillennial, and historical pre-millennial take a stronger, more emphatic view of the supremacy of Christ, as well as a high, prominent, and powerful view of Christ’s redemptive work.

Today we take a look the post-millennial view, an eschatological system which was developed about two-hundred years before the dispensational pre-millennial view. Let’s take a look.

DOCTRINES OF POST-MILLENNIALISM

First of all, what is post-millennialism? The post-mil sees a glorious victory of Christ’s kingdom in this present age on earth, which will be achieved in the great success of the church’s evangelization and worldwide missionary endeavors. This will produce a global Christianization of all the nations on earth, resulting in unprecedented spiritual and material prosperity in all realms of life— culturally, politically, and economically. This is all accomplished while Christ Jesus is not physically present upon the planet, but instead, works via the Holy Spirit through His beloved church. Thus, when the Lord Jesus Christ does return physically and visibly, He will return to a converted world.

Because the Greek term for thousand years in Revelation 20:4-6 is ambiguous in the Greek, the typical post-mil teacher or theologian defines the “thousand years” as a figurative long period of time. This is a reasonable deduction in biblical scholarship, in my humble opinion.

When did this view originate? Historically, the idea of a “golden age” of the gospel may have been hinted at as far back as the fourth century, found in the writings of Eusebius of Caesarea and Athanasius of Alexandria. Another glimpse of post-millennialism has been suggested from the writings of a 12th century charismatic monk, Joachim of Fiore, who expected the millennial kingdom to begin around 1260 A.D., in what he expressed was an “age of the Holy Spirit.” The larger development of any post-millennial theology came from the Congregationalist Church and their 1658 statement of faith, the Savoy Declaration; the Scottish theologian, John Owen (1616-83), being one of its principle architects. It states,

“…we expect that in the latter days, antichrist being destroyed, the Jews called, and the adversaries of the kingdom of his dear Son broken, the churches of Christ being enlarged, and edified through a free and plentiful communication of light and grace, shall enjoy in this world a more quiet, peaceable and glorious condition than they have enjoyed.”

Terms such as “victory,” “dominion,” and “conqueror” are common expressions heard among post-mils. Books from post-mil authors will quite often have titles such as these: An Eschatology of Victory by J. Marcellus Kik (1903-65); God’s Plan for Victory by Rousus John Rushdoony (1916-2001); Victory in Jesus: The Bright Hope of Postmillennialism by Gregory Lyle “Greg” Bahnsen (1948-95); Always Victorious! The Earliest Church Not Pre- But Post-Millennial by Francis Nigel Lee (1934-2011); and Post-Millennialism: An Eschatology of Hope by Keith A. Mathison (b.1967).

Besides John Owen and the authors mentioned above, other adherents of this system include Jonathan Edwards (1703-58); Charles Hodge (1797-1878); Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield (1851-1921); Lorraine Boettner (1901-90); and Kenneth L. Gentry, Jr. (b.1950).

DIFFICULTIES OF POST-MILLENNIALISM

As appealing as the thought is for the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ to be so powerful that the preaching of its truth changes the world for the better, the post-millennial view of eschatology is not without its issues and difficulties.

The first difficulty we encounter is the “when” of this golden age of Christianity. When does it begin, or has it already begun? Some post-mil advocates affirm that the glorious age of Christ’s kingdom has already begun, which started at the time of the Lord’s ascension into heaven. Others assert that the time is yet future when Satan is bound and peace will spread throughout the planet. With the news from the Internet and television sources available via satellite communications today, it is clearly obvious that the expectations of a Christianized world expressed by a post-millennial eschatology have not yet come to pass. In parts of the world where biblical, Christ-exalting Christianity was a major influence as recently as a few hundred years ago, has declined to point where, there is not only little to no peace among the nations, local churches in many parts of the world (at least the English-speaking world today) are liberal, denying the authority of Scripture, rejecting absolute authority, and looking more like the godless world than the closest thing to heaven-on-earth the church was meant to look like. This, then, is the question we have for the post-mil theologian: “After 2,000 years of gospel promulgation, how do you account for this?”

The second difficulty is this: does the New Testament anticipate a future Christianized world? The Lord Jesus Himself spoke of a world in decline prior to His return, because it requires Christ’s direct intervention to make it right. The Lord Jesus said,

37 For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Matthew 24:37-39

The New Testament informs us of two ages: the temporal existence of human history, called the “present age” (Matt 12:32; Eph 1:21; 1 Tim 6:17; Titus 2:12; Heb 9:12), and the eternal state, called the “age to come” (Matt 12:32; Mark 10:30; Luke 18:30; Eph 1:21; Heb 6:5). In his Christ-hopeful salutation to the Christians in Galatia, Paul does not paint a rosy picture of the present age:

3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave Himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. Galatians 1:3-5 (emphasis added)

Moreover, if Satan is supposed to be bound during this golden age of Christ’s kingdom (Rev 20:2), this appears to be in conflict with what Paul says about Satan during this present age:

...the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 2 Corinthians 4:4

Satan is the god of this world, or translated another way, he is “the god of this age,” and he has blinded the eyes of unbelievers, this present age is also referred to with the term, “last days” (2 Tim 3:1), and the conduct of people during this time doesn’t get better, but worse.

1 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. 6 For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, 7 always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.... 13 while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 2 Timothy 3:1-7, 13

Because of this, Paul encouraged the young pastor, Timothy, to faithfully preach the Word (2 Tim 4:1-2), and the apostle gives the reason in the next two verses:

3 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.

The Scripture portions cited present a clear conflict for post-millennial expectations.

The third difficulty post-mil teachers face is the identity of Christ’s church as a “suffering” church. The Lord Jesus suffered and endured the shame of the cross, and likewise, Christ’s people are victorious in Christ by enduring the hatred and persecutions hurled upon them by the godless, unbelieving world (John 15:18; 2 Tim 3:12). Moreover, the Lord Jesus told us in His famous Sermon on the Mount what the believer can expect for following Him and identifying with Him:

10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on My account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Matthew 5:1-12

This suffering of Christ’s church is most especially marked by the suffering of the individuals who make up His church, as reflected by the Lord’s statement above. It is a truth to be embraced, as Paul wrote to the Macedonian believers while he was imprisoned in Rome:

10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and may share His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Philippians 3:10-11

The trials, tribulations, and sufferings “work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose” (Rom 8:28). It seems the context of our being “more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Rom 8:37) is because, by grace through faith in Christ, we endure the world that is against us (Rom 8:31), that accuses us and attempts to condemn us (Rom 8:32-33), and that wants us in distress to ultimately separate us from Christ (Rom 8:35).

The fourth difficulty the post-mil adherent must reconcile is the symbolic interpretation of the beast and false prophet of Revelation 13. In order for a golden age of a Christianized world to exist in this present age, the beast and false prophet must be allegorical ideals, which most proponents of post-millennial eschatology agree. The problem with that interpretation is that the beast and false prophet are thrown into the lake of fire by the Lord Jesus (Rev 19:20), a literal place of torment wherein the devil himself will also be cast for having deceived the world:

and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. Revelation 20:10

These questions then arise: “How can an evil system be tormented day and night forever?” and also, “If the devil is a true personality sent to eternal condemnation, would it not also be true of the beast and false prophet in order for them to be tormented eternally?”

The fifth difficulty confronting the post-mil system is how to pray without being conflicted in prayer. What do I mean by this? On the one hand, the post-mil Christian should be praying for the advancement of Christ’s kingdom in this golden age, yet on the other hand, if Christ’s coming is not imminent until the golden age of Christianity becomes a reality, how can one pray the last recorded prayer in the Bible?

He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! Revelation 22:20

While surely we are to do all that we can to advance Christ’s kingdom on earth, are we not commanded to seek the blessed hope of Christ’s return in this present age?

13 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for His own possession who are zealous for good works. Titus 2:13-14

While the thirteenth verse tells us we are to be waiting for our blessed hope, the KJV and NKJV translates the original Greek word as “looking for.” It is the Greek word προσδεχομενοι (pros-dex-OM-en-oi). It is an old, but active verb. It was used of Simeon, who went to the temple, “waiting for the consolation of Israel” (Luke 2:25), actively looking for the Messiah because “it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ” (Luke 2:26). Surely, from the context of our passage in Titus 2, the waiting of our blessed hope of Christ’s return is not passive, but full of activity— renouncing ungodliness and worldly passions, living self-controlled, upright, and godly lives, with an expectant and certain hope, knowing Christ will come, but we just don’t know when.

Moreover, when the Lord Jesus told the parable of the ten virgins concerning the expectation of His return, the Lord Himself concluded the parable with this command:

Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour. Matthew 25:13

DESIRABLE CHARACTERISTICS

The difficulties notwithstanding, desirable characteristics accompany the post-mil view of eschatology. These characteristics should be embraced by every Christian regardless of the system toward which we have the most affinity.

The first desirable characteristic is a faithful trust in the power of Christ’s gospel. While our utmost trust is in the Lord Jesus Christ alone, faithfulness to the truths of the gospel and its doctrines should not detract from our trust in the person of Christ. Christ is the good news and He has ordained the foolishness of preaching to save those who believe (1 Cor 1:21). To have a love for Christ is to have a love for His gospel truth. The post-mil view emphasizes the power of the gospel to save and sanctify lives, a passion to which all of us should yearn deeply.

A second desirable characteristic is an energetic passion that not only loves the gospel but lives out Christ’s gospel in every area of life. God’s holy truth, according to the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, is the only rule given to direct us how we may glorify God and enjoy Him. This means that its principles, propositions, and commandments should permeate, not only our church lives and family lives, but in our everyday interaction with an unsaved, unbelieving world. The post-mil adherent recognizes this and attempts to apply this principle to each moment of his or her life, as well as every area of his or her life, for the advancement of Christ’s kingdom.

Although we know the planet will ultimately burn when Christ returns (2 Pet 3:12), the Christian should not have a careless attitude toward the environment. We should always endeavor to leave the world a better, cleaner place than when we arrived. Although we are citizens of heaven (Phil 3:20) and mere ambassadors for Christ on earth (2 Cor 5:20), it does not mean we should be ignorant or inactive concerning the betterment of the government under which we live. Paul used his citizenship and rights therein when it served the gospel for the glory of God (Acts 25:11).

DETRIMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS

Because of the corruptions still existing in human flesh, even in the best of us, like Abraham, Moses, David, or Elijah, there is a tendency to falter in faith. For this reason, we all need to beware lest we fall.

The first detrimental characteristic is the tendency to trust in the power of our own delivery of the gospel, rather than in it merely being the means for the Holy Spirit to present the hearer with a personal encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus can use donkeys and stones to proclaim the gospel (Num 22:28; Luke 19:40); therefore, we should never be so arrogant as to think there is something in us that makes our preaching, sharing, or witness powerful in and of itself. Our intellect and ingenuity means nothing if the Spirit of Christ is not in it.

In Charles Spurgeon’s day, there was a philosophical movement in England called “muscular Christianity,” unto which the “Heir of the Puritans” staunchly preached against. Muscular Christianity was defined by Thomas Hughes (1822-96) with these six criteria: [1] a man’s body is given to him by God; [2] to be trained; [3] and brought into subjection; [4] in order to be used for the protection of the weak; [5] for the advancement of all righteous causes; [6] and for the subduing of the earth which God has given to the children of men. In its emphasis of “manliness” in Christian attitude and behavior, its proponents often disregarded, dismissed, or even denounced the puritan virtues of love, mercy, meekness, humility, and the like. This similar tendency may be found in post-mil advocates if left unchecked.

A second detrimental characteristic is a tendency toward placing the issues of temporal life equal to or greater than the eternal life of heaven after Christ’s return; or worse, greater than Christ Jesus Himself and His gospel. This is idolatry, plain and simple. Whatever the issue, whether social interaction, cultural advance, or political governance aligned under increased scriptural authority, if these things cause Christ to be diminished in our hearts or less exalted in our souls, it should be shunned with all speed.

AMILLENNIALISM

Next time, we’ll take a look at the amillennial system of eschatology, along with its difficulties, and both its desirable and detrimental characteristics.

Until then…

May the Lord Jesus continue to bless and keep you.

Read or Review Other Chapters

The Testimony of Jesus

Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen. Revelation 1:7

In Chapter 10, we examined the fourfold benediction from Christ Jesus, who brings His reader greetings along with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Today’s verse is an addendum to the fourfold benediction from Christ and the salutation from the Tri-une God (Rev 1:4-6).

Before we consider the details in this addendum of our King, because this verse specifically mentions the Lord Jesus’ second coming, we should consider that, historically, there are four possible eschatological scenarios. While each view has its strengths according to the Scripture proofs provided by their respective proponents, each one of the four views has its particular Scriptural problems. In other words, not a single view among the four can be exclusively elevated to say this one is the correct one.

I believe it was specifically designed by our loving, merciful, and sovereign God to be this way, so that we may trust Him for the outcome, and moreover, that we can have the eyes of our faith fixed upon Jesus, and not upon the signs of His coming.

The four different end times scenarios are the dispensational pre-millennial view, the post-millennial view, the amillennial view, and the historical pre-millennial view (aka post-tribulational). We will look at them one by one, focusing on the dispensational pre-millennial view today.

DISPENSATIONAL PRE-MILLENNIALISM

Dispensational pre-millennialism is the most recent eschatological view of the four scenarios, This scheme was first introduced by John Nelson Darby (1800-1882), the founder of the Plymouth Brethren. Other adherents of this system include Cyrus Ingerson Scofield (1843-1921), Lewis Sperry Chafer (1871-1952), John Dwight Pentecost (1915-2014), Harold Lee “Hal” Lindsey (b.1929), John Fullerton MacArthur, Jr. (b.1939), and Ray Comfort (b.1949), among many others.

The Left Behind series of fiction, published in the mid-1990s to the mid-2000s, written by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins, popularized this view greatly; as did the 1972 film, A Thief in the Night, and Hal Lindsey’s book, The Late Great Planet Earth, published two years before that, in 1970. Because of its pervasive embrace, there are many in the church today who know of no other system. It may possibly be the most popular view in the U.S., at least among many Baptist and charismatic denominations, and among many non-denominational congregations and assemblies. Not only is the dispensational pre-millennial scenario the newest and most recognized view in the U.S., it is also the most complex among the four systems.

Dispensational pre-millennialists generally believe that Israel and the church are distinct entities, each having different functions, fulfillments, and futures in God’s overall plan. This eschatology also widely holds to an appearance of Christ before a seven-year, worldwide tribulation, whereas Christ’s church is caught up, or raptured, prior to this tribulation in order to facilitate a continued fulfillment of OT promises to Israel, by salvation through the Messiah. This worldwide tribulation will be followed by the physical return of Christ with His saints, which will, in turn, mark the beginning of a literal thousand-year reign of Christ upon the earth. Following this Messianic reign, there will be a final battle between the satanic forces on earth and Christ, the latter easily dispatching the rebellion. The rest of the scenario of the final judgment of redeemed and reprobate humans, as well as the new heaven and new earth to follow, is similar to the other three systems, with a few variations; and of those variations, they are typically minor and based upon personal interpretive opinions.

We should also bear in mind that there are also variations to this particular view. One such is the mid-tribulation rapture view. Another is called a progressive dispensational view. Many features are so similar to the dispensational pre-millennial scenario that we will only consider the traditional system here.

One of the hallmark features within this system is the insistence among its advocates in using a literal approach to interpreting Scripture. Ironically, the dispensationalist’s “literal” approach to Scripture becomes the first and greatest difficulty within this system (there are too many difficulties to cover in the space and time allotted in this chapter, so we will only briefly cover a few). A huge majority of dispensational teachers, moreover, accuse the other systems of “spiritualizing” or “allegorizing” Scripture, while they alone (according to them) follow a literal method of interpretation. Sadly, they forget there are prophecies specifically interpreted spiritually, when others might have viewed a prophecy of Scripture with a literal view or physical manner. One such example was interpreted spiritually by the Lord Jesus Himself, with regard to the coming of Elijah before the Messiah’s appearance:

10 And the disciples asked Him, “Then why do the scribes say that first Elijah must come?” 11 He answered, “Elijah does come, and he will restore all things. 12 But I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they pleased. So also the Son of Man will certainly suffer at their hands.” 13 Then the disciples understood that He was speaking to them of John the Baptist. Matthew 17:10-13 (see also Matt 11:7-15)

Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, while not denying the historical events that had actually taken place in the Old Testament, the apostle Paul speaks of the events surrounding Abraham’s two sons through Hagar and Sarah as representing the law and grace, even using the words, “interpreted allegorically” (Gal 4:24),

21 Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not listen to the law? 22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman and one by a free woman. 23 But the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, while the son of the free woman was born through promise. 24 Now this may be interpreted allegorically: these women are two covenants. Galatians 4:21-24

Now, there is nothing wrong with spiritualizing Scripture because, truly, the Bible is a spiritual revelation through and through. Nevertheless, by their insistence upon a literal interpretation, they violate their own hermeneutic (interpretation; explanation). Immediately, in Revelation, the seven churches mentioned in the second and third chapters are also allegorized by dispensationalists as symbolic of pictures of the church throughout 2,000 years of New Testament history leading up to the time of the rapture of the church.

Again, literal interpretation is immediately violated in the first two verses of Revelation’s fourth chapter:

1 After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” 2 At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. Revelation 4:1-2

A literal reading behind this portion is clear. A real, historical person named John heard the voice of the risen and reigning Lord Jesus Christ, and upon the command of Christ, was transported, “in the Spirit,” from his temporal reality on the isle of Patmos to the greater, heavenly reality of the throne of God.

While not denying that this was about John, the dispensationalist insists that this allegorically represents the rapture of the church before the great tribulation upon the earth. Cyrus Scofield states,

“This call seems clearly to indicate the fulfillment of 1 Th. 4:14-17. The word ‘church’ does not again occur in the Revelation till all is fulfilled.” C. I. Scofield, Scofield Reference Bible, Oxford University Press; 1909

If challenged that this is not a literal interpretation, the reply by dispensationalists is often that the literal does not exclude figurative or symbolic language. Nevertheless, this is exactly what proponents of the three other views believe. The truth is that all four systems of end times interpretation combine both literal and figurative methods of interpretation; however, they do not always agree as to how, when, and where something is literal or allegorical.

A second feature of, and difficulty with, this system is its unyielding insistence upon separate purposes, peoples, and destinies with regard to Israel and Christ’s New Testament church. Dispensationalists claim that the Old Testament prophets did not “see” the church age, thus they argue that all the Hebrew prophecies are centered upon the ethnic descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; in other words, Israel. Yet, we find the New Testament church fathers constantly quoting the Old Testament Scriptures in reference to the New Testament church. Peter quotes Joel 2:28-32 as being fulfilled in the birth of Christ’s church on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:16-21). James, the Lord’s younger half-brother and one of the leading elders in the church of Jerusalem, quotes Amos 9:11-12 as an authoritative interpretation of Gentile believers being admitted to the church. Paul was imprisoned several times, twice in Rome, and eventually beheaded for what he understood as “the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth” (1 Tim 3:15), wherein is found “the word of the truth, the gospel” (Col 1:5b), being “the hope [in Christ Jesus] laid up for [believers] in heaven” (Col 1:5a). In explaining his predicament before the Jewish leaders in Rome, Paul told them,

“For this reason, therefore, I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am wearing this chain.” Acts 28:20

Moreover, if Israel’s destiny is not salvation in Christ Jesus through His church and His gospel therein, why would Paul be so adamant for the salvation of Jews within the construct of Christ’s church? He states emphatically,

3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh. 4 They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. 5 To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.

Above, Paul states that the adoption, glory, covenants, the law, the worship, and the promises of the Old Testament are forfeited by them apart from faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Moreover, by his statement, we may logically conclude that Paul interprets those promises, viz., adoption, glory, covenants, law, and worship, belong to the redeemed of Christ’s church. Jesus is truly the Messiah, “who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.”

The third great difficulty found in the dispensational pre-millennial view arises in its explanation of worship in the millennium, that is, in the 1,000-year reign of Christ upon earth. Most dispy-premil adherents will readily acknowledge that the Old Testament sacrifices were types and foreshadows of the coming Christ, yet many insist our Lord Jesus Christ, as reigning King, will restore those Old Testament laws, especially in the re-establishment of the Levitical priesthood and animal sacrifices. This clearly opposes Scripture, and worse, diminishes the ultimate fulfillment of the sacrificial system in Christ’s atonement upon the cross, as well as trivializing the superiority of Christ’s priesthood over the Aaronic and Levitical types and shadows. It is written,

11 And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, He sat down at the right hand of God, 13 waiting from that time until His enemies should be made a footstool for His feet. 14 For by a single offering He has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. Hebrews 10:11-14

I’m almost hesitant to bring up the fourth major difficulty found in the dispensational pre-millennial system because it is the most complicated, and the more its proponents attempt to answer these issues, the more questions (and confusion) their answers raise. This fourth issue arises in explaining the resurrection of the dead as it fits within the scheme of this system. While the post-millennial and amillennial proponents teach a general resurrection prior to a general judgment at Christ’s second coming, the dispy-premil, by and large, presents a resurrection that unfolds in a series of events spanning a period of 1,007 years. Dr. Pentecost explains:

“The order of events in the resurrection program would be: (1) the resurrection of Christ as the beginning of the resurrection program (1 Cor 15:23); (2) the resurrection of the church age saints at the rapture (1 Thess 4:16); (3) the resurrection of the tribulation period saints (Rev 20:3-5), together with (4) the resurrection of Old Testament saints (Dan 12:2; Isa 26:19) at the second advent of Christ to the earth; and finally (5) the final resurrection of the unsaved dead (Rev 20:5, 11-14) at the end of the millennial age. The first four stages would all be included in the first resurrection or resurrection to life, inasmuch as all receive eternal life and the last would be the second resurrection, or the resurrection unto damnation inasmuch as all receive eternal judgment at that time.” J. Dwight Pentecost, Things to Come, Durham Publishing Co., 1958; Zondervan reprint, Grand Rapids, MI; 1964, pg. 339

The reason for this first stage of the resurrection seems to be because of a denial by dispy-premills that Jesus Christ is not yet seated upon His throne, as Scofield points out from his comment made on Revelation 3:21, “The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with Me on My throne, as I also conquered and sat down with My Father on His throne.”

“This passage, in harmony with Lk. 1:32-33; Mt. 19:28; Acts 2:30, 34-35; 15:14-16 is conclusive that Christ is not now seated upon His own throne. The Davidic Covenant, and the promises of God through the prophets and the Angel Gabriel concerning the Messianic kingdom await fulfillment.” C. I. Scofield, Scofield Reference Bible, Oxford University Press; 1909

This difficulty begs the question, “Why did the New Testament writers use such haphazard language by implying that the Lord Jesus Christ is presently seated upon His throne?”

• See Acts 2:30-36; John 17:5; 1 Corinthians 15:25; Ephesians 1:20-23; Philippians 2:9-11; Hebrews 1:3; 10:12-13; et al.

With this staged program, there are other difficulties, such as the evangelizing which needs to take place during their view of the seven-year tribulation by 144,000 Jewish evangelists, recorded in the seventh chapter of Revelation. First, there is an issue with the number, 144,000, as well as with the number of each tribe, 12,000. If a literal interpretation is required, the numbers themselves must be allegorical, because in the original Greek language the numbering is plural, so as to be interpreted, 144,000s, and 12,000s from each tribe. We will cover this in a bit more detail when we arrive at the seventh chapter. Nevertheless, this, and other issues, should be addressed, which have heretofore, been either ignored or insufficiently answered.

The fifth major difficulty arising from the dispy-premil view comes from the pre-tribulation rapture taking place as a separate event from the Lord’s second coming. Yet, the language of the New Testament presents the catching away of the living saints (rapture; Greek harpazo) as occurring simultaneous with Christ’s second coming:

For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 1 Thessalonians 4:15

DESIRABLE CHARACTERISTIC

Despite its many difficulties and unanswered issues, there is a desirable character trait inherent in this particular view, being an enthusiastic anticipation for the Lord Jesus’ imminent return. All four of the major end times views hold to a rapture of living saints in accordance with 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18; however, because this view presents a separation between the rapture and actual second coming of the Lord Jesus, the expectation of the Lord’s imminent, unknown return is emphasized. We, as believers in Christ, should anticipate and be excited for the Lord’s return. Because it can come at any time, there are opportunities for the redeemed in Christ to exhibit holiness in life, exercise godliness in an ungodly world, and evangelize fervently for the glory of God. Regardless of which view we may have the greatest conviction, an enthusiastic anticipation for Christ’s imminent return should be in every believer. After all, our salvation means that we will be with Jesus. If we don’t want Jesus, we don’t want heaven or eternal life because Jesus is who makes heaven heavenly and eternal life alive.

DETRIMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS

There are detrimental characteristics prevalent to this last days view, all of which we should shun.

First, because of the corruptions still remaining in mortal flesh, we will have a tendency to rest on our spiritual laurels. Some may wrongly judge that if Jewish people will be evangelized during the tribulation, then there is no need to witness to them or share the gospel with them. No one should be excluded from the gospel and it is shameful that this attitude should rear its despicable head.

Second, because of its popularity and prominence in many churches today, there is a tendency toward spiritual snobbery, esteeming this view as the “only correct” system while pooh-poohing the others without any study, examination, or consideration. Our opinions concerning something that has not yet happened should NEVER be a point to cause division in Christ’s church. Nevertheless, it happens quite frequently; and I dare say, I’ve seen it most prevalent in dispensational pre-millennial churches. It is the Lord Jesus Christ who unifies us, and any mystery concerning the doctrine of His return was not given by the Holy Spirit for His people to be divisive because of it.

Third, as it relates to the second detestable characteristic above, the disregard for the other eschatological views will almost automatically cause us to de-emphasize the strong, admirable, and desirable characteristics inherent in the other views.

CONCLUDING REMARKS

My last thoughts here may very well be my concluding remarks with regard to each of the four end times views— if the eyes of our faith are upon the Lord Jesus Christ, we will see Him when He comes, and the details of His coming will fall into place.

POST-MILLENNIALISM

Next time, we’ll take a look at the post-millennial system of eschatology, along with its difficulties.

Until then…

May the Lord Jesus continue to bless and keep you.

Read or Review Other Chapters

The Testimony of Jesus

John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the Seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood and made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Revelation 1:4-6

In Chapter 8, we examined the greeting of these verses from God the Father, and God the Holy Spirit. In Chapter 9, we examined the gracious and peace-abiding greeting from the Lord Jesus Christ. This greeting from our Savior and God’s faithful witness was so wonderful that the beloved apostle sealed these tidings offered to you and me with a fourfold benediction to Christ— To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood and made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Each one of these truths concerning the Lord Jesus Christ are well worth the time to cover one by one. Let’s take a look.

TO CHRIST, WHO LOVES US

On the night the Lord Jesus was betrayed, He told His disciples,

“As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Abide in My love.” John 15:9

The love of Christ for you and me is an awesome wonder. Mr. Spurgeon preached the blessings of this love in a sermon delivered in 1887:

“In the love of Christ we find our best joy. The pastures of the Great Shepherd are wide, but the sweetest grasses grow close to his pierced feet. The love of Jesus is the center of salvation; it is as the sun in the midst of the heavens of grace.” Charles H. Spurgeon, Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Vol. 33, Sermon #1,982; Pilgrim Publications, pg. 505

While there are many, many things we can examine and exposit concerning Christ’s love, let it suffice us to consider these three things: Love’s Eternity, Love’s Immutability, and Love’s Habitability.

Love’s Eternity. Christ’s love for us, since it is as the Father’s love for Him, is eternal.  When Jesus prayed His high-priestly prayer, He spoke of the Father’s eternal love for Him:

“Father… You loved Me before the foundation of the world.” John 17:24

Love’s Immutability. God is immutable:

“For I the LORD do not change…” Malachi 3:6

As is the heavenly Father’s nature, so is the heavenly Father’s love. His love for the Son is absolute, unchanging, and has no variation. The slightest change in the Father’s love would imply an imperfection in the Perfect One. Jesus is the Father’s Beloved Son, in whom He was well pleased; and the Lord Jesus, Himself, is unchanging:

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8

Therefore, Christ’s love for us, having no variance or fluctuation, is based upon His perfect nature and character and not upon our inconsistent lives full of faults, foibles and failures. That is good news indeed! Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Love’s Habitability. In the verse revealing the love of Christ to us (John 15:9), the Lord Jesus adds, “Abide in My love.” The KJV renders this portion of the verse, “Continue ye in My love.” What did the Lord mean when He tells us to abide or to continue in His love? While the words abide and continue are translated from the Greek root, μενω (ME-nō), which means “to stay (in a given place, state, relation or expectancy),” according to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, the Lord Jesus Himself explains what it means to abide in His love:

“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.” John 15:10

Living, dwelling, staying, remaining, enduring, continuing, and abiding in Christ’s love means obedience to His commandments. The beloved disciple tells us further,

“For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.” 1 John 5:3

And why would they be burdensome? Jesus, in eternal and invariable love, has saved us by His amazing grace, redeemed us for Himself, and delivered us from the wrath you and I so rightly deserve— Jesus paid a debt He did not owe, receiving in His person the debt you and I owe and cannot possibly pay. Again! Hallelujah! What a Savior!

TO CHRIST, WHO FREED US

This faithful witness, this prominent and pre-eminent firstborn of the dead, this ruler of kings on earth, has freed us from our sins by His blood. The writer to the Hebrew Christians reminds us,

…and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. Hebrews 9:22

The Lord Jesus Christ, in eternal, immutable, and abiding love, laid down His life to be the eternal Sacrifice to free us from our sins. You and I were in bondage to our sins before God’s grace kissed our souls, gripped our hearts, and embraced our lives. We were weak and ungodly sinners who were enemies of God when Christ Jesus saved us (Rom 5:6, 8, 10). The best we could muster before salvation was held by the chains and shackles of sinful flesh. Self was the most prominent force in our lives before salvation in Christ. We were enslaved to our own lusts. Even if we kept the commands of God from the Law He gave through Moses, we did so, not for God’s glory; because every thought pondered, every word spoken, and every deed performed  never came forth by faith in Jesus Christ. It is written,

For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin. Romans 14:23

Having been set free from the bondage that kept us from living by faith in Christ, we may abide and continue in obedience to Christ. We are grateful for our liberty and surrender to Christ as willing, obedient bond slaves. While the corruptions still remaining in mortal flesh means we will never ponder every thought, produce every word, or perform every deed in perfection, because we do so by the power of God’s grace in Christ, and by the strength of gracious faith from Christ, our meager obedience is a blessing to the heavenly Father, pleasing Him in the same way His only Son pleased Him. So, by faith in Christ for the precious blood He shed for our forgiveness, the heavenly Father also says to you and me who are Christ’s:

“This is My beloved [child], with whom I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:17

TO CHRIST, WHO MADE US A KINGDOM AND PRIESTS

Jesus has made you and me who believe on Him a kingdom, priests to His God and Father. Jesus, by His atoning grace, has exalted and elevated believers to a position of most splendid honor, giving us access to the very presence of God. Of this portion of the verse, Dr. John MacArthur says this:

“More accurately, ‘a kingdom and priests.’ All who believe live in the sphere of God’s rule, a kingdom entered by faith in Jesus Christ. And as priests, believers have the right to enter God’s presence.” John F. MacArthur, MacArthur Bible Commentary, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, TN; ©2005

While certainly there is a kingdom yet to come, we are Christ’s kingdom now. Jesus is seated on the throne of heaven and He is sovereign God over the affairs of His kingdom now. Jesus is the Head of His church. Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords.

Moreover, in His kingdom, the Lord Jesus, by His gracious salvation given us, has made every believer a priest. The doctrine of the priesthood of believers comes from this verse, among others. Peter said,

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. 1 Peter 2:9, emphasis added

In other words, as we are saved by God’s grace, Peter calls you and me kingly priests. As believers who have been made priests, you and I, as Dr. MacArthur states, “have the right to enter God’s presence.” Further, as Peter mentions, as priests we represent the truth of Christ to others, and therefore, we “proclaim the excellencies of Him who called [us] out of darkness into His marvelous light.” Hallelujah! What a Savior!

TO CHRIST BE ETERNAL GLORY

Indeed, with the final benediction, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. This last benediction is the blessed seal upon the previous three; and so much so, John must conclude this fourfold benediction with, Amen.

Christ’s eternal glory and dominion has been manifested by the most magnificent act the universe has ever or will ever see— the incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ’s cross is the most glorious display of God’s love, exhibiting the eternal love of Christ. Christ’s cross also presents the most glorious display of God’s liberty, freeing enslaved souls by grace through faith in Christ crucified. Christ’s cross also provides the most glorious exhibit of God’s grace, lifting up in honor those who believe on Christ, making wretched, sinful souls a kingdom and priests through Christ. Once again! Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Next time, we will take a look the seventh verse, where John attaches an addendum to this fourfold benediction— the promise of our soon coming Lord and King.

Until then…

May the Lord Jesus continue to bless and keep you.

John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the Seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood and made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Revelation 1:4-6

FAST REVIEW

As we had seen in the last lesson, John addresses this letter to the seven churches; seven being the number of completion in the Bible, and therefore, this letter is to anyone and everyone saved by God’s grace who makes up the eternal church of Jesus Christ. No one is left out. All are blessed in the reading, hearing, and keeping of this gospel word. All are responsible for its content. All are greeted with the comforting words of grace and peace.

Moreover, these gracious and peaceful tidings come from the Tri-une God— Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

First, it comes from the everlasting Father, “from Him who is and who was and who is to come,” therefore, this greeting is timeless. It was not confined to the seven local churches existing in the day of John. This salutation is extended to all God’s saints right up to this very moment, and beyond that, until the Lord Jesus returns.

Second, this salutation also comes from the Holy Spirit, “from the Seven Spirits who are before His throne.” While on the surface, the Holy Spirit being placed before the Lord Jesus in the greeting seems out of order; nevertheless, since the Lord Jesus has ascended into heaven and sent the Holy Spirit, John’s mention of the Holy Spirit before the Lord Jesus Christ is consistent with the power of the Spirit in order to testify of Christ, to glorify Christ, to teach us of Christ, and to remind us of those things the Lord Jesus Christ has said (as seen in Chapter Eight last time).

Finally, this blessed greeting comes from the Lord Jesus Christ, “the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood and made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever.”

FAITHFUL WITNESS

The Lord Jesus Christ is the faithful witness. All the prophets who came before the Lord Jesus, as well as every single prophet and apostle since He has come, were sinners saved by God’s grace. They were faulty, fallible, filled-with-sin descendants of Adam. They “are estranged from the womb; they go astray from birth, speaking lies” (Psa 58:3). By God’s grace alone were the pure words of Scripture able to come forth from their mouths, and recorded eternally through their pens. The Lord Jesus, however, was born of a virgin since the Holy Spirit had come upon Mary of Nazareth, and the power of God had overshadowed her (Luke 1:35). Therefore, the Lord Jesus spoke true words with not one hint of falsehood, as it is written,

A faithful witness does not lie, but a false witness breathes out lies. Proverbs 14:5

Therefore, we can rest assured that Christ’s greeting of grace and peace is true, unspoiled, and unstained. It is as the Puritan commentator, Matthew Henry, notes:

“Grace, that is, the good-will of God towards us and his good work in us; and peace, that is, the sweet evidence and assurance of this grace. There can be no true peace where there is not true grace; and, where grace goes before, peace will follow.” Matthew Henry, A Commentary on the Whole Bible, Fleming H. Revell Co., Old Tappan, NJ; Vol. 6, pg. 1120 [emphasis in original]

FIRSTBORN OF THE DEAD

The cults will take this title of Christ, the firstborn of the dead, and object to His deity. “You see,” they exclaim, “He was begotten! He was born! Jesus didn’t always exist,” they say, “and therefore, cannot possibly be eternal God!”

But, in this, they err. To be firstborn here, is not a distinction of instance, but of importance. This was not in regard to a period of time, but of prominence and preeminence. We find this example in the Hebrew Scriptures:

“With weeping they shall come, and with pleas for mercy I will lead them back, I will make them walk by brooks of water, in a straight path in which they shall not stumble, for I am a Father to Israel, and Ephraim is My firstborn.” Jeremiah 31:9

Surely, the LORD God did not mean that Ephraim was born before any of the other children of Israel. In fact, Ephraim was Joseph’s second born son in order of birth; and Manasseh and Ephraim being adopted by Israel, all Jacob’s other sons, from Reuben to Benjamin, were all older than Ephraim. Ephraim had prominence in his adoption by Jacob, and more than that according to Jeremiah’s verse, in his adoption by YHVH God.

What this means to us is that the grace and peace promised to you and me from Christ Jesus is as sure as His promise of a resurrection to come. For all those who were dead in sins and trespasses, and raised from the dead in Christ, will enjoy Christ’s good will toward us and good works in us, until that day when we corruptible mortals put on incorruption and immortality at Christ’s return (1 Cor 15:52-54).

FOREMOST RULER

The Lord Jesus is the ἄρχων (AR-xon or AR-chon) over all kings who have been allowed by God to reign upon the earth. Later in this wonderful revelation of who Christ Jesus is and what He has done, we are told that He is King of kings (Rev 17:14; 19:16). The Greek word, ἄρχων, has been translated “prince” (KJV) and “ruler” (ESV), and means both; or more precisely, “chief ruler” or “chief magistrate.” It comes from the Greek root, ἄρχω (AR-xo or AR-cho), meaning:

“…first (in political rank or power): —reign (rule) over.” James Strong, LL.D, S.T.D., The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, Nelson Reference & Electronic; 1995; “Greek Dictionary of the New Testament” pg. 14, Greek word, 757.

What does this mean for you and me? It means that Christ’s blessed grace and peace to us is a sure promise no matter what is going on in this world. It matters not who rules upon the thrones of countries or who administers as chief executives in political republics and democracies. The Lord Jesus is King over all. The decisions and indecisions of earthly kings, potentates, prime ministers, or presidents cannot keep us from receiving Christ’s grace and peace.

FOURFOLD BENEDICTION

So wonderful is this gracious and peace-abiding greeting offered to you and me by our Lord Jesus Christ that John seals the greeting from Christ with a fourfold benediction to Christ— To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood and made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Each one of these truths concerning the Lord Jesus Christ are well worth the time to go over one by one, and we will take a look at this next time in the following chapter.

Until then…

May the Lord Jesus continue to bless and keep you.

John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the Seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood and made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Revelation 1:4-6

SEVEN CHURCHES

If you recall, in Chapter Five, we looked at a historical quote from John Foxe, who wrote:

“The ‘beloved disciple’ was brother to James the Great. The churches of Smyrna, Pergamos, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea, and Thyatira, were founded by him. From Ephesus he was ordered to be sent to Rome, where it is affirmed he was cast into a cauldron of boiling oil. He escaped by miracle, without injury. Domitian afterwards banished him to the Isle of Patmos, where he wrote the Book of Revelation. Nerva, successor of Domitian, recalled him. He was the only apostle who escaped a violent death.” Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, Hendrickson Publishers, Peabody, MA; 2004

According to Mr. Foxe, while ministering in Ephesus at the time of his arrest, John had planted the six other churches mentioned in Revelation 1:11. Since the second and third chapters of Revelation deal with these seven churches individually, we’ll examine them more particularly at that time. Nevertheless, we should recognize that the area of these churches are what is known as modern Turkey today.

John’s greeting to them, “the seven churches in Asia,” however, should be curious to you and me as Bible students. Why these seven churches? Why not Jerusalem, or Antioch, or perhaps even Rome? As seven, biblically speaking, represents the number of completion, these seven churches, Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea, paint a complete portrait of the church at large, the church immortal and invisible, and the church eternal. Yes, they were actual historical churches, existing during John’s banishment to Patmos; yet, their individual characteristics, as we will see in chapters two and three, present a true picture for us in the church’s faithfulness and faults, its blessings and rebukes, and its works and Christ’s warnings to them.

Although the seven churches have its problems and shortcomings, we are encouraged because the greeting is not merely from John. He is Christ’s servant and messenger. The greeting comes from the tri-une God, with a powerful benediction which exalts Christ Jesus in the hearts and the minds of the readers and hearers.

SOOTHING WORDS

While not all the churches in Asia Minor had received a letter from an apostle specifically addressed to them, as the epistles were copied, they were distributed to neighboring churches. “Grace to you and peace” was a typical greeting from those writing letters to the churches, as it was for Paul when he wrote to Ephesus…

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 1:2

Likewise, James, Peter, and John addressed the churches in this manner.

Grace and peace are soothing words for the Christian believer. These are words of both comfort and encouragement. Their combination is powerful, not merely for the local church as a congregation, but for the individual members therein. Because of the grace we have received by God through faith in Christ, we have peace with God. It matters not what we are going through. When we stand with faith upon this grace in Christ we have received freely, His peace that surpasses human understanding is upon us because it is settled within us; and therefore, works through us regardless of our situations and circumstances.

Well said those preachers who have proclaimed, “You cannot know the peace of God unless you’re a recipient of the grace of God.”

SOVERIEGN, TRI-UNE GOD

As mentioned earlier, the blessed greeting of grace and peace comes from our Tri-une God: the Father, the Holy Spirit, and from the blessed Son and faithful witness, Jesus Christ.

God, the Father

From Him who is and who was and who is to come.  This is the first person of the Trinity, Yehovah God, the eternal and great I AM, who revealed Himself and His name to Moses from the burning bush in the Midian back-desert:

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” Exodus 3:14

The thrice holy God is, was, and evermore shall be. He had no beginning and has no ending, being Self-existing, having life in Himself, as Jesus revealed:

For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son also to have life in Himself. John 5:26

God, the Holy Spirit

And from the Seven Spirits who are before His throne. There are some commentaries which suggest that these are angels, and possibly angels who are messengers to the seven churches. Their rationale behind this is from the Scriptures which express angels to be “ministering spirits” (Heb 1:4), who are made by God to be as “winds, and His ministers a flame of fire” (Heb 1:7; cf.  Psa 104:4). Yet, this notion is quite unlikely since the worship of men or angels is forbidden (Ex 20:3-6; Acts 10:25-26; Rev 19:10; 22:8-9).

There are other commentators who suggest that this is merely a reference to the attributes of Messiah, as it is written,

And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. Isaiah 11:2

I can understand why they might suggest this, since grace and peace came by a greeting from the Father and the Son (Eph 1:2, et al). Nevertheless, the reference in Isaiah above is, to me, a proof text that it is the Holy Spirit, for it was the Holy Spirit abiding in Jesus Messiah as a Man to fulfill His anointing for ministry.

Moreover, the Holy Spirit, described by John here as “the Seven Spirits” is perhaps a reference to the seven-fold work of the Spirit which the Lord Jesus revealed to His disciples on the night He was betrayed.

The Holy Spirit Empowers

Jesus said,

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in Me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.” John 14:2

John the Baptist was the greatest of Old Testament prophets, according to the Lord Christ’s own testimony. Interestingly, John the Baptist performed no miracle; neither was there any wondrous sign given by his hand. He preached the Christ to come and repentance in preparation for His coming. Yet, in endorsing His cousin as the greatest prophet born among women, Jesus added that the “least in the kingdom of God is greater than he” (Luke 7:28). I believe that is because the very least soul saved by the preaching of Christ crucified after the Day of Pentecost and the impartation of Holy Spirit, is full of the greatest power on earth: God Himself.

The greater works that would be done by you and me, as well as all the prophets and apostles of the New Testament church before us, is testifying of the cross by the blessed power of the Holy Spirit. It is that witness of Christ, which goes before the world “when the Holy Spirit has come upon you” (Acts 1:8).

The Holy Spirit Abides

Jesus said,

“And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. You know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.” John 14:16-17

The Holy Spirit dwells with Christ’s redeemed saints; and as the gospel has spread, that witness has gone to the four quadrants of the earth. The wind of the Spirit blows where He desires (John 3:8) to accomplish the work because His omnipresence ministers upon the planet in perfect unity with the ascended Son and the eternal Father.

Yet, the Lord’s particular promise was not merely for the Holy Spirit to dwell with Christ’s redeemed saints, but that this Helper would be in us: abiding, dwelling, making His home in the temple of the believer’s body (1 Cor 3:16).

The Holy Spirit Teaches and Reminds

Jesus said,

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” John 14:26

The Holy Spirit will teach us all things. That doesn’t mean He will teach us everything. It means that the things that can be learned that are spiritually discerned will be taught to us by the Holy Spirit. Preachers, pastors, and teachers do not teach us anything. They are merely the means by which the Holy Spirit may teach us. The Bible does not teach us anything. Yes, it is clear, understandable, and the average person of average intelligence can comprehend its basic meaning, but its message cannot be apprehended in the heart (1 Cor 2:14) except the Holy Spirit abide within (therefore, that person must be a believer), and that the Holy Spirit must teach that person the heavenly truths.

The Holy Spirit will also “bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” First of all, this indicates that there must be some initial “hearing” of God’s Word in order to be reminded of it. Further, this aspect of the Holy Spirit reinforces His teaching work: if it has not been taught us by the Spirit of Christ, it won’t be brought into remembrance.

The Holy Spirit Testifies of Christ

Jesus said,

“But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, He will bear witness about Me.” John 15:26

We learn of Christ because the Holy Spirit teaches us the spiritual truths of God’s Word. There is power in the Word, but that great power is harnessed in this truth, that all of Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation, testifies of Jesus Christ. Jesus said, “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about Me” (John 5:39). Of the Lord Christ, the psalmist also declares, “Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come; in the scroll of the book it is written of Me: I delight to do Your will, O My God; Your law is within My heart” (Psa 40:7-8; cf. Heb 10:7).

The Holy Spirit Convict

Jesus said,

“And when He comes, He will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see Me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.” John 16:8-11

The Holy Spirit convicts the unbelieving world of sin. The power in preaching the cross of Christ with regard to sin is that fallen humanity deserves the wrath Christ received in His person when He hung upon that tree: “Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience…. for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Eph 5:6; Rom 3:23). Christ Jesus paid a debt He did not owe; and we owe a debt we could not possibly pay.

The Holy Spirit also convicts the world of righteousness. The power of preaching Christ crucified with regard to righteousness is that Jesus Christ is the perfect Substitute, by which no other man could take His place. His righteousness was impeccable and beyond all reproach from beginning to end. No man, except Christ Jesus, could ever say this of his own righteousness. All other men are as unrighteous as the most wicked and guilty sinner,

as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God.” Romans 3:10-11

The Father in heaven spoke more than once of His holy pleasure with the Lord Jesus, saying, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him” (Matt 17:5). No man, other than Christ Jesus, could ever receive the heavenly accolade apart from the grace of God found in Christ alone.

Christ’s righteousness, as a Man upon earth, was worthy to stand in the full glory of God’s holy presence. Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would reprove the world of righteousness because, says He, “I go to the Father, and you will see Me no longer.” It is interesting that the Holy Spirit records this in a way that implies that even the righteousness that Jesus upheld, at the very moment He spoke those words prior to going to the cross, was holy enough to stand before the presence of God Almighty.

Finally, the Holy Spirit convicts the world of judgment. The power of preaching Christ crucified, as it relates to judgment, is found in the fulfillment of God’s first pronunciation of the gospel in the Garden of Eden, immediately after the fall of Adam:

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel. Genesis 3:15

Satan’s authority was crushed (bruise your head) when the virgin-born Christ was crucified (bruise His heel). At the cross, Satan, the prince of this world, was judged.

The Holy Spirit Guides

Jesus said,

“When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth, for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak, and He will declare to you the things that are to come.” John 16:13

To teach of Christ so that we may know Him is one thing; however, without the Holy Spirit’s guidance the sinner would be unable to act upon that heavenly illumination to receive God’s free gift. Without the Spirit’s guidance, the believing saint would also be unable to act apart from the flesh, which lusts against the Spirit (Gal 5:17).

The Holy Spirit’s guidance comes with all the authority of the Tri-une God, “for He will not speak on His own authority.” It is inconceivable for the Holy Spirit to act independently on earth, dwelling within the lives of redeemed saints. He speaks and guides with the power of the Trinity. His guidance is in concert and eternal harmony with the Father and the Son so that the unity He brings to redeemed individuals in Christ’s church is consistent with the Word of God (whatever He hears), is authorized and endorsed in heaven upon earth (He will speak), and is eternal truth for God’s glory and the advancement of Christ’s kingdom until Jesus returns (He will declare to you the things that are to come).

The Holy Spirit Glorifies Christ

Jesus said,

“He will glorify Me, for He will take what is Mine and declare it to you.” John 16:14

The Lord Jesus also explained what He meant by this in the following verse,

“All that the Father has is Mine; therefore I said that He will take what is Mine and declare it to you.” John 16:15

As all things belong to Christ, and are the very same things that belong to the heavenly Father, then to glorify Christ is the very same thing as glorifying the heavenly Father. Likewise, to glorify the Father is the very same thing as glorifying the Son. This same unity that we briefly examined in the Holy Spirit’s guiding work exists also in His glorifying work. Therefore, the Spirit will take the things that glorify Christ and show them unto Christ’s redeemed lambs.

The Holy Spirit Mentioned Before Christ

We often think of the Lord Jesus Christ as the second person of the Trinity; and justly so, for He truly is. The question therefore may arise: “Why is the Holy Spirit mentioned before the Lord Jesus?” I believe the answer is found in what the Lord Jesus said just prior to explaining the fourth work of the seven-fold work of the Holy Spirit:

“Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send Him to you.” John 16:7

Since the Lord Jesus has ascended into heaven and sent the Holy Spirit, John’s mention of the Holy Spirit before the Lord Jesus Christ is consistent with the power of the Spirit in order to testify of Christ, to glorify Christ, to teach us of Christ, and to remind us of those things the Lord Jesus Christ has said. Paul has told us,

 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit. 1  Corinthians 12:3

Moreover, Paul told the Christians at Rome,

Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Him.” Romans 8:9

John is just being consistent with that truth; that it is the Holy Spirit who will reveal to you and me the blessed truths of Christ Jesus, of whom we will look at from this gracious and peaceful greeting next time in Revelation 1:5-6. 

Until then…

May the Lord Jesus continue to bless and keep you.

Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near. Revelation 1:3, ESV

Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand. Revelation 1:3, KJV

When last we left off, we considered that John bore witness to all that he personally saw (Rev 1:2). John esteemed the vision he received from Christ through the Spirit was on a heavenly par with both the Scriptures and Christ’s gospel. Moreover, his mention of bearing witness to “all that he saw” was applicable to his life, not only for the heavenly model it gave him to ensure all things he experienced lined up with both God’s Word and the gospel testimony of Jesus Christ (Chapter 6, “The Three-Fold Witness”), but it caused him to personally grow even closer in his relationship with God through Christ. In other words, John knew an intimacy with the Lord Jesus Messiah far greater than he had ever known before. This is another one of the reasons I believe John wrote the gospel attached to his name after he was released from his banishment at Patmos. He wrote at the end of his gospel account,

This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true. John 21:24

What John had written in the gospel of Christ’s earthly ministry, crucifixion, and resurrection was a firsthand account of what he personally witnessed. Borne along by the Holy Spirit, John provided special insights to us from this account that the other gospel accounts do not have. John’s witness and testimony is especially blessed as he wrote these things, careful to address himself and express the events so that Christ Jesus was exalted above all he wrote from his recollection. Keep in mind that John was one of the “Sons of Thunder,” prone to seeking exaltation and special privilege from the Lord, asking to be seated at Christ’s right or left hand along with his brother, James. Now aged and full of days, especially as one who had seen the risen and glorified Savior, having fallen down as a dead man at Christ’s feet, he testified of Christ most humbly, so that Christ alone was exalted for God’s great glory.

When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as though dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living One. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.” Revelation 1:17-18

Who could be the same after witnessing something like that? I believe this may also be the reason John’s gospel account was written in third person, referring to himself often as “the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved” (John 20:2, et al). The majesty of the Lord Jesus was so powerful in His life through this revelatory vision that self was humbled and crushed to the dust in the splendor of Christ’s glory.

How does this apply to us?  Remember, the thought behind this verse amplifies what we had already examined in the second verse from the last lesson. Here’s that verse again:

who bore witness to the Word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. Revelation 1:2

The revelation John conveys ministered to his life, transforming it even nearer to Christ in all that he saw because it was consistent with God’s Word and the gospel testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ. All three were consistent with one another, with no deviation from each other whatsoever. Therefore, John lets you and I know as readers of this prophetic book, that we may have the same glorious, life-transforming intimacy with Christ by approaching the book of Revelation in the same way. Moreover, we will be blessed by reading, hearing, and keeping what John had written.

BLESSED

This word in Greek, μακαριος (mak-AR-ee-os), can also be translated “happy.” The things of God, however, are heavenly, spiritual, and eternal. We tend to understand happiness in a earthly, temporal, and often sensory or sensational way. Worldly and fleshly happiness is temporary. Therefore, this is a heavenly happiness we experience upon earth, and thus, we are truly blessed.

John offers no new revelation here. This eternal blessing from reading, hearing, and keeping the words of this prophecy must be consistent with the man God declares is blessed at the beginning of His wonderful Psalter:

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. Psalm 1:1-3

We take note that this transformed life of the blessed man (walks not in the counsel of the wicked, etc.) comes by reading Yehovah’s law, hearing His law in the depths of His heart, and heeding His law firmly established like a planted tree.

Blessings supernal are seven-fold in the words of this prophecy, pronounced not only here, but also six other times: Revelation 14:13; 16:15; 19:19; 20:6; 22:7; 22:14. As we come to each, they help to build our knowledge and understanding of the life you and I have been called to in Christ Jesus— each consistent with God’s Word provided in the other books of Scripture, as well as completely consistent with the everlasting gospel disclosed in those Scriptures over the centuries, contained in the Testaments, both Old and New.

READING & HEARING

I provided both the ESV and KJV of this verse. The KJV is a bit more literally accurate to the original Greek. The Pastor Jon Translation would probably be something like this:

“Blessed is the reader AND the hearer of this prophetic word AND the firm keeper of this writing; because the appointed time is near.” (PJT)

The ESV says “reads aloud,” as opposed to just plain ‘reads’ because (I presume) it’s attached to hearing the prophetic word. The ESV also takes the liberty of adding “blessed” to those who hear the words of the prophecy, which isn’t in the original Greek, per se. The Greek word is only used once, but in the sentence structure, it is applied to all three, reading, hearing, and keeping. But the ESV still seems an acceptable translation by doing so for the sake of, for example, one who cannot read, or one who is deaf. One who cannot read may still be blessed by hearing and keeping this prophetic word; and likewise, one who cannot hear may be blessed by reading and keeping this prophetic word concerning Christ Jesus and His gospel. Oh, but what glorious delight if we can do all three.

KEEPING

This is the Greek word τηρουντες (tā-ROUN-tes), from the Greek root τηρεω (tā-RE-ō), meaning “firmly hold,” “to keep watch over,” or “to guard.” In other words, we don’t want to merely read or hear these words; we must hide them in our hearts so we don’t forget them, or worse, forsake them. This is important for the rest of the words of the prophecy to come. With each truth of Christ unveiled for our understanding, we want to build upon what we’ve learned from reading and/or hearing. Therefore, when we come across direct or indirect commands within this book, we may be, as James says of those saved by grace, “be doers of the Word, and not hearers only” (Jas 1:22). We must take this truth that Christ Jesus has given us through John and hide it in our hearts, as the psalmist declares:

I have stored up Your word in my heart, that I might not sin against You. Psalm 119:11

APPOINTED TIME

John tells us these blessed activities, reading, hearing, and keeping, are important because “the time is at hand” (KJV); also translated, “the time is near.”

“Time” is translated from the Greek word καιρος (ka-ee-ROS), which may be translated as “season” in English, or “occasion.” About 250 years before Christ, Jewish scholars translated the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek. They used this Greek word to translate this Old Testament verse:

And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, Genesis 1:14, emphasis added

The word “seasons” in Genesis 1:14 uses this Greek word. It was translated from the Hebrew word מועדים (mō-e-DEEYM), which means “seasons” or “appointed times.”

And this appointed time is near.

But what did John specifically mean by the appointed time? Is it Christ’s soon coming? Yes; and we covered the “when” of this event in chapter two, “When’s it Going to Happen?” Yet, it’s also that appointed time, set forth by our sovereign God, for you and me personally to be blessed by the reading, hearing, and keeping of the words of this prophecy. Each time the Holy Spirit illuminates the gospel truths of Christ and Him crucified to our lives, we grow in grace and are built up in our most holy faith. This is one of the things Paul meant when he said,

Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. Romans 13:11, emphasis added

Our salvation, though sealed eternally in Christ by the Holy Spirit given us, each day in Christ, we gain a greater understanding of this grace in salvation by which we stand. When we were first saved, we had the basic and essential truths of what it meant to be saved, what it meant for Christ to save us, and what it meant to believe and repent. Now, we have grown, not forsaking or forgetting what it was when Christ loved us and saved us, when Jesus was our first love, our great love, our King; but knowing Him through His Word, and communing with Him in prayer, He has built upon what we have first experience in regeneration. Moreover, Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, has empowered us to build upon that first moment of salvation, to work out our own salvation in obedience to Him with fear and trembling (Phil 2:12). Now, the appointed time has come for the heavenly truths, the eternal truths, the truths once hidden from our understanding, to be unveiled, to be revealed, so that Christ is exalted even more in our lives here on earth until He comes again.

Until next chapter…

May the Lord Jesus bless and keep you until He comes again.

If you missed other articles in this series, click here to read more.

THE TRIUNE GOD

Okay, I’ll be the first to admit that calling this verse a testimony of the Tri-une God may be a little weak. Nevertheless, this singular verse as a proof text for the Trinity is better than the “King James Only” crowd using the 1 John 5:7 (utilizing the English-translated portion found in the KJV and the NKJV) as a proof text to justify their belief in the Trinity.

Let’s compare the differences between the King James Version of 1 John 5:7-8 and the English Standard Version:

For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. v8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one. 1 John 5:7-8, KJV

For there are three that testify: v8 the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. 1 John 5:7-8, ESV

You can see the problem between the two. This whole section in the KJV, “in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth,” is missing from the ESV, NASB, ISV, CEV, GNB, NET, etc.  Why is that? Out of the nearly 26,000 copies of ancient New Testament manuscripts, with over 9,000 of them in the Greek language, there are only eight (8) manuscripts where this added portion appears; moreover, half of those are merely scribal notes; that is, notes in the margin. What’s more, the oldest inclusion does not go back further than 900 AD. In an online article for Bible.org, Daniel Wallace, Ph.D., professor of New Testament Theology at Dallas Theological Seminary, wrote this:

“This longer reading is found only in eight late manuscripts, four of which have the words in a marginal note.  Most of these manuscripts… originate from the 16th century; the earliest manuscript, codex 221 (10th century), includes the reading in a marginal note which was added sometime after the original composition. Thus, there is no sure evidence of this reading in any Greek manuscript until the 1500s; each such reading was apparently composed after Erasmus’ Greek NT was published in 1516. Indeed, the reading appears in no Greek witness of any kind (either manuscript, patristic, or Greek translation of some other version) until AD 1215 (in a Greek translation of the Acts of the Lateran Council, a work originally written in Latin). This is all the more significant, since many a Greek Father would have loved such a reading, for it so succinctly affirms the doctrine of the Trinity. The reading seems to have arisen in a fourth century Latin homily in which the text was allegorized to refer to members of the Trinity.  From there, it made its way into copies of the Latin Vulgate, the text used by the Roman Catholic Church.” J. B. Daniels, “The Textual Problem in 1 John 5:7-8” (online source)

Having written all this, I’m not suggesting you ditch your KJV Bibles. Though I currently use the ESV for preaching and teaching, I have used the KJV for years, and still have a much loved copy at my study desk. In fact, there are some passages translated into the 17th Century King’s English from the Hebrew Scriptures which cannot be improved upon by our modern American or British English. I am saying, however, be careful if you want to use portions which are not God-breathed, authoritative Scripture.

While we all realize that the word “trinity” is not found anywhere in the English Bible, nor is an equivalent word in Greek, Hebrew, or Chaldean, found in any of the original manuscripts, it is still a word which defines what the historical church believed concerning God— that we serve a God who exists in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, all three being one God, the same in essence and equal in power and glory. Some theologians over the past few hundred years believed that “tri-unity” better describes our one God in three persons. I tend to agree.

Additionally, I wouldn’t recommend using this verse in Revelation to attempt to prove the tri-unity of God, as a general rule. While I will express how I’ve come to this conclusion, and while I believe you’ll be blessed by the passages which support it, explaining the trinity of God to others from this verse is not for everyone. One needs to have an extremely thorough grasp of the full counsel of God. In fact, before we continue, let me offer just a few portions of Scripture that are much better for use in expressing or explaining the doctrine of the trinity (a sampling which is not exhaustive)….

First, the creation of the heavens and earth are attributed to all three persons of the Godhead— the Father (Heb 1:2); the Son (Col 1:6); and the Holy Spirit (Job 26:13):

but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed the heir of all things, through whom also He created the world. Hebrews 1:2

For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities— all things were created through Him and for Him. Colossians 1:16

By His wind the heavens were made fair; Job 26:13 (“wind” is רוח [ROO-ach], which is also translated “spirit” or “breath”)

Second, the baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ testifies to the trinity, as all three were there:

And when Jesus was baptized, immediately He went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on Him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:16-17

Third, the resurrection of the Lord Jesus from the dead testifies of the power of all three persons of Deity performing the work of Christ’s rising from the dead:

 that He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, Ephesians 1:20 (speaking of the Father, verse 17 providing the subject context)

Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” John 2:19 (see also John 10:17-18)

If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. Romans 8:11 (see also John 14:16-17; Romans 1:4)

Finally, though there are other portions which illuminate the tri-une truth, we’ll end it with this one— the commission of Christ testifying to the tri-une nature of God. Take note that it is a singular “name” for all three, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, by which souls saved by grace are to be baptized:

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Matthew 28:19

So why do I suggest that this verse in Revelation testifies of the tri-une nature of God? John’s first statement concerning his witness is said with regard to the Word of God.  The apostle draws our attention to the Scriptures, breathed out by God the Father. The writer of Hebrews does this from the forefront of his epistle:

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, Hebrews 1:1

We recognize that the God who spoke through the patriarchs and prophets, who preserved His ways and wisdom through the written word, is none other than Father God, for the introduction of the letter continues,

but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed the heir of all things, through whom also He created the world. Hebrews 1:2

Obviously, the second part of this phrase, “the testimony of Jesus Christ,” testifies of God’s one and only Son.

This third witness of John, all that he saw, testifies of the third person of the trinity, the Holy Spirit. On the night He was betrayed, the Lord Jesus taught the disciples seven important truths concerning the Holy Spirit: [1] the Holy Spirit would empower redeemed saints (John 14:12); [2] the Holy Spirit would abide in the believer forever (John 14:16-17); [3] the Holy Spirit would teach and remind the saint what Christ has said (John 14:26); [4] the Holy Spirit would testify of Christ (John 15:26); [5] the Holy Spirit would convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8-11); [6] the Holy Spirit would guide the believer in all truth (John 16:13); and [7] the Holy Spirit would glorify Christ, taking what is Christ’s, and showing it to Christ’s people (John 16:14). It is from these last two works of the Spirit, and especially the seventh, by which John testifies to the third person of the trinity:

When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth, for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak, and He will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take what is Mine and declare it to you. John 16:13-14

In the last portion of these verses, “and declare it to you” (John 16:14), the word “declare” comes from a Greek word that also means “announce,” “report,” “speak,” or “show.” In fact, the KJV translates this last portion, “He shall take of Mine, and shall shew it unto you.” —a great translation, and a good reason not to dump your old KJV Bibles.

THE THOROUGH WITNESS

Also by this statement, the apostle provides us a thorough witness through the Word of God, the testimony of the Lord Jesus, and the by all that he had seen.

The Word of God. It’s the Greek term, λoγον του Θεου (LO-gon tou THE-ou); and while “Word” is translated from the Greek root λογος (LOG-os), which John’s gospel identifies as the Lord Jesus Himself (John 1:1, 14), the apostle is not reluctant to using this word in its other forms. John also uses the word to signify a proverb or idiom, sometimes translated as ”saying” (John 6:60); he also uses it to indicate the spoken word, as he does in the words of the Lord Jesus (John 12:48); but the beloved disciple also uses it to specifically address the Scriptures, as the apostle again quotes our Lord Jesus,

“If He called them gods to whom the word of God came— and Scripture cannot be broken” John 10:35

John bore witness of the Scriptures. He was telling you and me, his reading audience, that everything that was written beforehand in the Scriptures, is consistent with the revelation of Jesus Christ, this same revelation which the Father had given to the Son to show Christ’s servants, and sending it by His messenger to John in order to write it down and make it known to the church at large.

The Testimony of Jesus Christ. In his six-volume commentary on the entire Bible, Dr. John Gill calls this “the Gospel” outright; and indeed it is. John bore witness to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, from Scripture according to his first witness, and from the fulfillment of those Scriptures by the incarnation, sinless life, righteous ministry, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension, and promised return of Jesus Messiah— his second witness. Jesus said,

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about Me,” John 5:39

John tells us that, just as the Scriptures are about the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ from beginning to end, so also is this revelation. The apostle, here, bore witness to the truth that he did not depart from Christ’s gospel whatsoever.

All that he saw. As an eyewitness to the gospel of Christ Jesus, of the miracles the Lord Jesus performed, of the blessed and eternal truth Jesus taught, of Christ’s transfiguration on the mount, of the Lord’s crucifixion upon that tree, of His resurrection from the tomb, of His appearance on the shores of Galilee, the vision of this revelation from Christ Jesus was on a heavenly par with both the Scriptures and Christ’s gospel.

THE TRUSTWORTHY APPLICATION

John’s witness of the prophetic truth of Scripture (Word of God), its gospel fulfillment in Israel’s Messiah (testimony of Jesus Christ), and in the illumination of the gospel for him personally (all that he saw), were all consistent and in harmony one with another.

This is a blessed truth you and I can apply each and every day to our spiritual lives.

First, in understanding this last book of the Bible, the Revelation of Jesus Christ, we must see its harmony with the prophetic foreshadow from Scripture, and its Scriptural fulfillment in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. If the first two witnesses do not exist, and the gospel truths of Scripture are not harmoniously consistent with what we read in this revelation, we will not personally “see” all that we read; that is, if we read it at all. This is why it has been disheartening to me to hear of Christians who won’t read the book of Revelation because they “don’t understand it,” or “I already know how it’s going to end,” or some other such reason. Neglect of any portion of Scriptures is not only the acme of foolishness, it is also disobedience before God. It implies that the Christian can be complete in Christ by only the things we want from God and not by all the things He gives.

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17

Second, this heavenly pattern is beneficial for the Christian life in general. We should see all life as revealed in the prophetic truth of Scripture, and its significance through the exaltation of the gospel testimony of Jesus Christ. By these two witnesses in our lives, you and I will personally grow by the gospel’s continued illumination in our lives. We’ll look more closely at this last aspect, the blessedness of the gospel’s continued illumination in our lives when we examine the next verse.

Until then…

May the Lord Jesus bless and keep you until He comes again.

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John, Revelation 1:1

SERVANT JOHN

Today, we take a look at the author who penned the book— John. True, this isn’t the typical method in which to unfold a book commentary from the Bible, but I suppose I’m not the typical Bible expositor. Often, this information is given up front, at the very beginning; however, because of the majesty and priority of the information revealed in the first sentence of the verse, it seemed to me, more appropriate to examine John after the truth of Christ was sufficiently examined.

John’s name is mentioned, not only in this verse, but also in three other verses (Rev 1:4; 1:9; 22:8). Some of the ancient patriarchs of the early church testify to the John of Revelation being the same apostle to write the gospel account in his name, as well as the three general epistles, also identified with his name; among those patriarchs were Justin Martyr (c.100-165 AD), Irenaeus (c.130-202 AD), Clement of Alexandria (c.150-215 AD), and Tertullian (c.155-220 AD).

SETTING

The setting and date of its writing go hand in hand. There are some who have set an early date to its writing, the late 60s AD, sometime shortly after Nero’s death, because of the short reigns and violent deaths of those Caesars following Nero, citing Revelation 17:10 as a supporting text,

they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. Revelation 17:10

With no other support for this early date, and attempting to compute the deaths of certain Caesars from this single verse, causes us to strain at a gnat to swallow a camel, hermeneutically speaking. Which Caesar should one start with? Tiberius, the Caesar alive during Christ’s crucifixion and the birth of the church? Caligula? Claudius? Nero?

No. More than likely a later date of the mid 90s is more appropriate. Irenaeus, who was a disciple of Polycarp (c.69-155 AD), declared that that Revelation had been written during the end of the reign of Domitian, who ruled as Caesar from 81-96 AD (Polycarp, the Christian bishop of Smyrna, was the disciple of John, the beloved apostle). Likewise, Clement of Alexandria, Origen (c.185-253 AD), the early church historian, Eusebius (c.260-339 AD), and Jerome (c.342-420 AD) attest to the later date during Domitian’s reign. John Foxe (c.1516-April 18, 1557), wrote:

“The ‘beloved disciple’ was brother to James the Great. The churches of Smyrna, Pergamos, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea, and Thyatira, were founded by him. From Ephesus he was ordered to be sent to Rome, where it is affirmed he was cast into a cauldron of boiling oil. He escaped by miracle, without injury. Domitian afterwards banished him to the Isle of Patmos, where he wrote the Book of Revelation. Nerva, successor of Domitian, recalled him. He was the only apostle who escaped a violent death. Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, Hendrickson Publishers, Peabody, MA; 2004

SENT BY HIS ANGEL

As the first part of the verse presents the Lord Jesus Christ in a subordinate position to God by His humanity (which God gave to Him), this is not to say Jesus was no less divine. For I had mentioned in chapter three, quoting and briefly expositing Philippians 2:6, “God, being immutable, cannot stop being God, else He was never God at all to begin with.” Here, in such a brief statement, “He made it known by sending His angel,” presents a most powerful declaration of Christ’s glorious deity. In writing to the Hebrew believers in Jerusalem, the writer of that epistle says of the Lord Jesus:

After making purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name He has inherited is more excellent than theirs. For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are My Son, today I have begotten You”? Or again, “I will be to Him a father, and He shall be to Me a son”? And again, when He brings the Firstborn into the world, He says, “Let all God’s angels worship Him.” Hebrews 1:3-6

Jesus, having all authority upon heaven and earth (Matt 28:18), He has charge over all the angels, heavenly beings created in a higher spiritual order than mankind (Psa 8:4-5). The Lord Jesus sends the blessing of His revelation to John by way of His heavenly messengers; for again, the writer of Hebrews presents the superiority and authority of Christ over the angels:

Of the angels He says, “He makes His angels winds, and His ministers a flame of fire.” Hebrews 1:7

SIGNIFICANT

The King James Version of the Bible renders the last part of this verse:

and He sent and signified it by His angel unto His servant John:

“Signified” is translated from the Greek word εσημανεν (he-SĀ-ma-nen), which means ‘to indicate’ or ‘signify.’ Besides here, John uses the root word, σημαινω, three times in his gospel account (John 12:33; 18:32; 21:19). Luke uses the Greek root twice (Acts 11:28; 25:27). In Revelation 1:1, the English Standard Version translates the Greek word, “made it known.”

Because the KJV uses the word ‘signified’ in English, some have taken the meaning of the word in the verse to that the entire book was written in “signs” or symbols. True, the word ‘signified’ can mean:

“The concept or idea evoked by a sign.” American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

Moreover, the English word ‘signify’ can also mean:

“To make known something, either by signs or words.” Noah Webster, Webster’s Dictionary of American English; 1828

In order to make sense of the original Greek word, we can gather from the three other times John has used the word in his gospel account, that the thing made known or being made known, “signified” or “signifying,” the statement was made in reference to a symbolic statement.

The first instance is from John commenting upon a particular statement made by the Lord Jesus concerning His death upon a cross:

And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto Me. This He said, signifying what death he should die. John 12:32-33, KJV, emphasis added

Again,  John uses the word in reference to Christ’s statement in John 12:32, as it pertained to the conversation between the Jews who desired Christ’s death and Pontius Pilate, in whose hand held the power of capital punishment through the cross:

Then said Pilate unto them, Take ye Him, and judge Him according to your law. The Jews therefore said unto him, It is not lawful for us to put any man to death: That the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled, which He spake, signifying what death He should die. John 18:31-32, KJV, emphasis added

Finally, John uses the Greek word in reference to Christ’s prophecy concerning Simon Peter’s martyrdom upon a cross:

Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. This spake He, signifying by what death he should glorify God. John 21:18-19, KJV, emphasis added

Why is this significant? What is made known to John by Christ’s angel, and what is most significant about the revelation God gave to Christ Jesus to show His servants, and to John in particular, is that everything in this book is centered in the truth of Christ crucified. Yes, even Paul wrote so emphatically to the Corinthians many years earlier,

For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. 1 Corinthians 2:2

Hallelujah! What a Savior!

May the Lord Jesus bless and keep you until He comes again.

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His servants the things that must soon take place.… Revelation 1:1

SERVANTS

As mentioned last time, the Lord Jesus Messiah was God’s wise Servant (Isa 52:13), His suffering Servant (Isa 53:3-5), who came to earth, not to do His own will, but the heavenly Father’s will (John 6:38). Moreover, the Lord Jesus, as perfect, sinless Man, received the full revelation of Himself as Messiah from the heavenly Father, as we read in the first part of the verse, and examined in the last lesson. Our generous Lord and Savior did not receive this revelation just to keep it to Himself; He received it to show this revelation to His servants.

You and I, who have been saved by God’s grace, are Christ’s bondslaves, the plural Greek δουλοις (DOO-lois). We are willing slaves unto Him who redeemed us. Jesus set us free from the bondage of sin and of Satan, and having been liberated and regenerated by divine love, we now willingly becomes slaves to both our Redeemer and to righteousness (Rom 6:16-18). The Old Testament presents a beautiful picture of salvation’s bondslave:

“If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he shall serve you six years, and in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you. And when you let him go free from you, you shall not let him go empty-handed. You shall furnish him liberally out of your flock, out of your threshing floor, and out of your winepress. As the LORD your God has blessed you, you shall give to him. You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today. But if he says to you, ‘I will not go out from you,’ because he loves you and your household, since he is well-off with you, then you shall take an awl, and put it through his ear into the door, and he shall be your slave forever. And to your female slave you shall do the same.” Deuteronomy 15:12-17, emphasis added

Now, as Christ Jesus has lavishly provided for our salvation, He continues to liberally furnish to us all the blessings of His empowerment for us by revealing to us who He is and what He has done. Just as the Father gave the revelation to Him as Heir of all things, the Father gives it to us through the Lord Jesus Christ— for revelation of the Lord Jesus, in who He is and what He has done by the cross, must be opened up to us by the heavenly Father, as it is written:

Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 16:16-17

SHOW

While this Greek word, δειξαι (DĪX-ai), translated ‘show,’ conveys a similar context to the previous English word ‘gave’ in our verse (according to M. R. Vincent, D.D., Word Studies in the New Testament, 1886), studying this Greek word out in all its varied uses in the New Testament, presents more than a gift or inheritance. It seems to contain a teaching that accompanies this gift for the benefit of one’s understanding; and an illumination which also accompanies the gift to enlighten previously undisclosed mysteries; and an enlarged explanation to more fully develop the knowledge extended and received; and finally, this gospel revelation is a special gift given as a possession, a keepsake that endears the recipient to the Giver more intimately. All these definition make sense, being consistent with the last part of the sentence, “the things that must soon take place.” We will get to “soon take place” in a moment, but first…

Let’s take a look at the revelation of Jesus Christ as a gift to you and me. While “The Revelation of Jesus Christ” would seem to be the most logical title for this last book of the Bible, many Bibles use the heading: The Revelation of St. John the Divine. This latter, and most common title for the book of Revelation should not be offensive to us. Because this blessed revelation had been given to Jesus by the Father, and as it is given to you and me as believers, it is our particular and precious possession. As Christ Jesus is revealed to you and me as individuals more and more by the Holy Spirit, the truth of who Christ is and what He has done becomes to us a more valuable treasure. Moreover, as details of Christ’s gracious incarnation, sinless life, atoning death, powerful resurrection, amazing ascension, and soon return help you and me to grow in grace and become stronger in faith, who you and I are as individuals in Christ is also revealed more and more. Truly, as I read this book of the Bible year by year, I should be able to call it, “The Revelation of Jon Cardwell.” Moreover, you may do so as well.

A gift that teaches. The more we learn of the Lord Jesus Christ’s person and work, the greater is our understanding, not only of eternal life and the blessings that await us in His forever presence, but also for you and me to live a life full of days as we await His return. The Lord Jesus said,

“Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:29-30

A gift that illuminates. There are many things in the Bible that are still unknown and mysterious to us. It speaks of eternal truths, infinite truths, and divine truths, that temporal man, finite man, and mortal man cannot attain unto. There are some things we can never understand fully. Often, when a heavenly truth is revealed to us by the Holy Spirit, it generates more questions than it answers. This is by design, however— it keeps us trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ by faith for that which we do not know. God has been telling us this through His Word for a long time:

“The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” Deuteronomy 29:29

A gift with an enlarged explanation. Paul warns us that knowledge for knowledge’s sake puffs us up (1 Cor 8:1); in other words, it makes us arrogant. Knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, however, when it is supplements our faith along with virtue, we may exercise other virtues in our lives which will keep us from being useless and unfruitful in Christ’s kingdom:

For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:5-8

A gift that brings us closer to Christ. The more we get to know someone personally, the more we will either love them or despise them. Knowledge of them lets us know what he or she is truly like. With Christ, however, who is love because He is very God (1 Jn 4:8), we will draw nearer to Him, loving Him because of His love for us (1 Jn 4:19). It is written,

Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. James 4:8

SOON

The Greek term εν ταχει (en TAX-ei), translated “soon” (ESV), is also translated “shortly” (KJV). It simply means something that will take place speedily (Luke 18:8), quickly (Acts 12:7), or soon (Rev 1:1; 22:6). This revelation must take place soon for two reasons. First, because our lifetime is so short, the gospel revelation given to you and me as a gift only has a brief time to work those things in our lives that Christ “shows” us by the Holy Spirit. Do you remember our brevity in the eternal scheme of things? Here’s your reminder:

What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. James 4:14

Second, since Adam’s original sin sent corruption into the world as well as the human race, the evil of those final days will wax worse and worse. The Lord Jesus said,

“And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.” Matthew 24:22

May the Lord Jesus bless and keep you until He comes again.

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him… Revelation 1:1

Although the Lord Jesus Christ, the second Person of the Trinity, is very God, the same in essence as the heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit, and equal in power and glory, we’re told that in God’s authoritative Word that this revelation of our Lord was given to Him by God (which God gave Him). This speaks of Christ’s humanity; and though crucified, resurrected, ascended to His heavenly throne, and reigning in the eternal glory Jesus knew with the Father before the world was (John 17:5), we’re presented from the beginning of this very special written work, the book of Revelation— the humility of Christ; and thus, for you and me, the we can know the approachability of Christ.

Jesus humbled Himself to become a flesh and bone human being; born as a babe, yet eternal God. One of the great portions of Scripture to express both Christ’s deity and humanity is found in the second chapter of Philippians:

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:5-8

Let’s break this portion down:

Have this mind among yourselves (v5a). You and I, as born-again believers saved by God’s grace, should take this truth oh so seriously; that it should be a great meditation in our thoughts; that we should commit it to the depths of our memories until it becomes the very fabric of our hearts and souls.

Which is yours in Christ Jesus (v5b). This truth is one huge part of our inheritance in Christ, and one you and I need not wait for the Lord’s promised return to receive it. It is available as a precious gospel blessing now, and it will grow in magnitude and magnificence as we grow in grace because its truth transforms our lives to become more and more like Christ Jesus (Rom 8:28-29).

Who, though He was in the form of God (v6a). The word ‘form’ here comes from the Greek root, μορφη (mor-PHĀ), which means ‘shape.’ Figuratively, it means ‘nature,’ as expressed in Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance. Dr. MacArthur says, “Paul affirms that Jesus eternally has been God. The usual Greek word for being is not used here. Instead, Paul chose another term that emphasizes the essence of a person’s nature— his continuous state or condition” (John MacArthur, MacArthur Study Bible, 2005, Thomas Nelson, Nashville, TN). Christ’s form, though very God (v6a) is also expressed in His humanity, since Jesus took “the form of a servant” (v7b). The Lord Jesus is essentially, eternally, and unchangeably God, as the apostle amplifies in the next part of the verse….

Did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped (v6b). As the second Person of the Tri-une God, the Lord Jesus, though becoming a Man, did not have to reach or grasp at deity. His holy and righteous efforts and behavior as a human being did not earn Him a deified place or a position alongside deity. Said another way, Jesus didn’t have to attain to deity. The King James Version of the Bible renders this portion of the verse in this way: “thought it not robbery to be equal with God.” I like this English translation as well. In other words, Christ becoming a human being didn’t rob God of His deity; and in the English Standard Version, Christ’s deeds, including His sacrificial death on the cross, not only didn’t elevate the Lord Jesus to some status in the Godhead, moreover, Christ’s becoming a Man did not add to God’s nature or character as if there was something lacking therein. None of these could be true if it is to remain consistent with what God has revealed in His Word about Himself. Again, as eternal God, Jesus was “the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature” (Heb 1:3). You see, God, being immutable, cannot stop being God, else He was never God at all to begin with.

The Trinity, and Christ’s two natures specifically, is mysterious, an infinite truth beyond our finite comprehension. Nevertheless, although we cannot fully understand how Jesus can be both fully God and fully Man, its veracity from the Word of God is a proposition we can trust because it rests upon the unchanging truth of an unchanging God. Because it is true, it strengthens our faith in Christ and secures our faith to Christ.

But emptied Himself (v7a). Since the previous verse informs us that God cannot stop being God, else He would be something less than almighty, unchanging God, Christ’s emptying Himself of deity, as a few might suggest, cannot be what the Holy Spirit means here. Of what, then, did the Lord Jesus empty Himself? The answer: His glory as God. While the Lord Jesus Christ, as a Man, was the most glorious human being the universe has ever witnessed, Christ in all His human glory, still cannot compare with the eternal glory He possessed with the Father before His incarnation. Remember, Jesus prayed on the night He was arrested, “And now, Father, glorify Me in Your own presence with the glory that I had with You before the world existed” (John 17:5).

There may be some who suggest that Jesus emptied Himself of His divine powers. I don’t believe this is what is implied. In one of Satan’s temptations, the devil challenged the Lord Jesus saying, “If You are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread” (Matt 4:3). If Jesus was a Man void of divine powers, this would not have been a temptation at all if there was no way He could accomplish such. Since it was possible for Him to do so as God, Jesus didn’t do it to satisfy the starvation He was now experiencing from His forty-day fast because His will was to do the Father’s will— always! which we will see in a moment. Granted, some of Christ’s miracles were accomplished by His humanity empowered by the Holy Spirit indwelling Him. Not all the miraculous powers recorded in the gospels may be clearly defined as being either performed by His divine nature or accomplished in His humanity under the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Nevertheless, some miracles are quite obvious because of His inherently divine attributes and power; and examples of such are Jesus forgiving sins (Mark 2:5), Jesus having life in Himself (John 5:26), Jesus declaring the sin-debt was paid in full by His death upon the cross (John 19:30a), and Jesus bowing His head and giving up the spirit (John 19:30b), since no man can will himself dead or raise Himself from the dead except the Son of God who became Man (John 10:18).

The King James Version renders our phrase to the Philippians, “But made Himself of no reputation,” which would be entirely consistent with Christ’s humbling Himself to be born as babe. It is also in keeping with the rest of the seventh verse…

By taking the form of a servant (v7b). Yes, Jesus was God’s Messiah, His wise, anointed One: “Behold, My servant shall act wisely; He shall be high and lifted up, and shall be exalted” (Isa 52:13). And though Jesus is very God according to the eternal Self-existence of God’s divine attribute (Ex 3:14; Psa 90:2; John 5:26), Jesus was born as a descendant of David the king, according to His fleshly humanity (Rom 1:3). Jesus, as the Servant of the LORD, was literally a ‘bondslave’ (Greek, δουλος) to God. Jesus Himself declared, “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will but the will of Him who sent Me” (John 6:38). Because it was the Father’s will in His forever plans and purposes for the redemption of mankind, Jesus willingly and submissively accepted to Himself this role as God’s servant (‘taking’ is the Greek, λαμβανω).

Being born in the likeness of men (v7c). The Lord Jesus was more than deity in a fleshly body. In His humanity, Jesus took on Himself every attribute of mankind, including every human need and weakness common to human progeny, yet without sin (Heb 4:15). Therefore, His ‘likeness’ was like any other man.

And being found in human form (v8a). First, the word ‘form’ here is not the same as the word used in the sixth and seventh verses. This is the Greek σχημα (SXĀ-ma), which means ‘figure’ or ‘external condition.’ Moreover, Jesus was ‘found’ in this external human condition.  This comes from the Greek ευρισκω (hyoo-RIS-kō), which figuratively means ‘perceive.’ Now, this doesn’t mean that Jesus only had the perception of eternal humanity. He was only ‘perceived’ to be human apart from gracious, heavenly, and supernatural revelation since Jesus was also eternal God. No one could tell Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God, unless it was revealed to them by the heavenly Father (Matt 16:16-17).

He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death (v8b). When the Lord Jesus emptied Himself, when He took on the form of a servant, and when He was born in the likeness of men, in His humanity He laid aside any advantages He would have had as God in order to grow in wisdom and stature, just as any other flesh and bone human individual (Luke 2:52). Jesus, therefore, must learn obedience as any other person would, as it is written, “Although He was a Son, He learned obedience through what He suffered” (Heb 5:8). Obedience is a learned trait, and this, Jesus learned in His humanity.

Since a holy God is continually righteous in Himself, without any shred of evil in His character, eternal God does not need to learn obedience because He is continually right and righteous. He is also omniscient, knowing all things. Therefore, it is also impossible for eternal God to learn anything. To hint or imply there is something God does not know is to suggest imperfection and incompleteness in the perfect and Self-sufficient One.

Moreover, Christ’s sinless humility and obedience was perfect as a Man right up until He breathed His last (to the point of death). Those who suggest that Christ became a sinner upon the cross misunderstand 2 Corinthians 5:21 which says that “He hath made Him to be sin for us” (KJV), having failed to examine the verse of Scripture in the light of Philippians 2:5-8 and in the illumination of the attributes of God.

Even death on a cross (v8c). While surely Christ’s death was upon that Roman cross, this redundancy does not come to us from the Department of Redundancy Dept. The apostle emphatically expresses the blessing of the central truth of all the universe for all eternity— “Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Cor 2:2). Christ’s humanity was ordained to bring Him to the cross. Christ’s cross was ordained to bring God His greatest glory.

Do you want to know the will of God? The cross of Christ is the will of God. Here’s what Isaiah says of Yehovah’s suffering servant:

Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush Him; Isaiah 53:10

There are two words that are quite significant in this portion of the tenth verse of Isaiah 53, will and crush.

Will. As a young Christian, I heard others speak of “God’s perfect will” and “God’s permissive will.” It perplexed me then; it appalls me now. A “permissive” will suggests that a sovereign God is doing something He’d rather not. This is not Yehovah God of the Bible, who declares “the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all My purpose’” (Isa 46:10). The word, ‘purpose,’ is translated “pleasure” in the KJV, and is the same Hebrew word for “will” in our verse today, חפץ (cha-PHĀTZ). Moreover, the KJV translates our verse today, “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him.” The will and pleasure of the LORD are one and the same. God is pleased to do His will, and wills to do His pleasure. Our LORD is not divided, unstable, or wishy-washy in any and all His activity. The “permissive will” attributed to YHVH God is merely sinful man attempting to justify His rebellion to God’s laws and holy standard. He will be held accountable for such a response unless his pardon comes by the crushing of God’s suffering servant, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Crush. Upon the cross, the Lord Jesus was crushed (ESV), or bruised (KJV), being the Hebrew word, דכא (da-KHA). When the Lord Jesus suffered God’s unrestrained wrath for sins He did not commit, Jesus paid the penalty for us; a debt we could not possibly pay, because He was “crushed for our iniquities” (v5). Among many other things, Jesus was crushed in soul and spirit because the intimacy He knew with the heavenly Father, a relationship far closer than any man has ever known with God, was cast away to utterly abandon the Messiah with a forsakenness no man will ever know— including those sinful rebels sent to eternal torment for unpardoned sins committed against a holy and sovereign God.

We can never fully comprehend the intricacies of God’s holy and eternal will; however, we may be satisfied with its peace when we recognize we need look no further than Christ’s cross to know His will and good pleasure.

Because the eternal God became a Man, God gave Jesus the revelation of His gospel nature, His gospel work, His gospel witness, and His gospel Self as a gift to His redeemed… because God the Father GAVE, just as Jesus told Nicodemus in that first episode of Nic’ at Night…

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

Hallelujah! What a Savior!

May the Lord Jesus bless and keep you until He comes again.

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His servants the things that must soon take place. Revelation 1:1

Because we are fallen descendants of our father, Adam, patience is a virtue just beyond the grasp of our corrupt flesh. Apart from the grace of God in Christ Jesus, we want patience, and we want it NOW. From the first verse, we’re told this book was given us so we may see what Christ Jesus has shown concerning “the things that must soon take place.” Although we are told it is soon, we still ask, “When?” If you’ve ever had that thought or entertained the notion, don’t beat yourself up over it. The disciples, too, had a curiosity in the events surrounding the consummation of all things. They asked the risen Lord Jesus,

“Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” Acts 1:6

You do recall the Lord’s answer, right?

 “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by His own authority.” Acts 1:7

Yes, the “when” of Christ’s return has puzzled many a believer, but it has also perplexed the cavilers, naysayers, and scoffers, as Peter tells us:

They will say, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” 2 Peter 3:4

When last we left off, we briefly read Peter’s first epistle, whereas he mentioned the eternal gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, slain before the foundation of the world, that…

He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you” 1 Peter 1:20

Peter used the term “last times,” the Greek εσχατου των χρoνων (ES-xat-ou tōn XRON-ōn). By his estimation, he was in the last or end of days. And why not? He preached this at the Temple on the Day of Pentecost, quoting Joel 2:28-29,

“‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even on My male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out My Spirit, and they shall prophesy.’” Acts 2:17-18

On that Pentecostal day, all the Lord’s disciples were gathered at the Temple because, as devout Jews, that’s where they would all be (Acts 2:1); observing the weekly Sabbaths, the Sabbath holy days, and Sabbath feasts. The house where they gathered was the House of the LORD when the sound like a mighty rushing wind came (Acts 2:2). Then something like tongues of fire rested upon them, as only they could see this apparition, since it “appeared to them” (Acts 2:3). The Lord’s disciples “were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:4). Since they were at the Temple, “devout men from every nation under heaven” were there as well, temporarily living in Jerusalem for the Feast (Acts 2:5). These devout Jews were bewildered when they heard this supernatural phenomenon, “because each one was hearing them speak in his own language” (Acts 2:6). They recognized the disciples’ dress, accents, and mannerisms as being rustic rubes from Galilee (Acts 2:7), wondering, “And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians— we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God” (Acts 2:8-11). They “all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, ‘What does this mean?’ But others mocking said, ‘They are filled with new wine’” (Acts 2:12-13). Peter interpreted this manifestation of tongues by saying to them, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel” (Acts 2:14-16).

Peter’s interpretation of tongues included in the explanation the proof text from Joel chapter 2, as cited earlier. By his use of the term εν ταις εσχαταις ημεραις, “in the last days,” I suggest to you that this was the beginning of the last days. We’ve been in the last days for some 2,000 years.

John, the beloved apostle, agrees:

Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour. 1 John 2:18

The writer to the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem says likewise:

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed the Heir of all things, through whom also He created the world. Hebrews 1:1-2

Granted, the Scriptures do speak of some later events as yet future, whereas Paul warns the young pastor, Timothy, “Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons” (1 Tim 4:1); however, it should be understood that these “later times,” or “latter times” (KJV), is a different Greek term than “last days,” “last hour,” or “end times.” Paul did not deny that he lived in the last days during the writing of his letter, he was simply saying that there would be occasions beyond the current moment when there would be a departure from the faith. A quick glance at the New Testament overall, especially in epistles such as Jude, 2 Peter, Galatians, and Hebrews, can tell you that this had already begun in Paul’s time.

Doctrinally, Christ’s coming is imminent. It can happen suddenly, without any other warning. In other words, since the Day of Pentecost, technically and theologically speaking, the Lord’s coming could have occurred at any time. “Wait a minute, pastor!” one may exclaim, “didn’t Jesus say that the gospel must be preached to every nation first?”

“Yes He did,” is my agreeable answer. Jesus did say that, and as His disciples, we are to “make disciples of all nations” (Matt 28:19). Moreover, the Lord Jesus expressly said,

“And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:14

Now, you remember Acts chapter two, right? The fifth verse says,

Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. Acts 2:5

That’s the God-breathed Word of Scripture that tells us Christ’s prophecy has been fulfilled. Was every single nation there? Of course not. The U.S.A. had not even been imagined. Nevertheless, as far as the Holy Spirit is concerned, God’s Word discloses that the national requirement by gospel preaching was accomplished at Pentecost 2,000 years ago.

The question of when Christ will come must remain a question unanswered because you and I would be given to laxity in our faith otherwise. Our love for Christ would wax cold. Our zeal for Christ would border on indifference. Our faith in Christ would grow weak.

Moreover, the urgency for preaching the gospel resides under two powerful truths: (1) the imminent return of Christ; and (2) the uncertainty of one’s death.

Allow me to leave you with a small gift with regard to when the Lord Jesus Christ will return. This isn’t original with me. A dear brother and friend of mine, William W. Sasser, Jr., pastor of Grace Church at Franklin, had a short explanation of the coming of Christ. The following isn’t exactly how Bill presented it when first I heard it years ago. I’ve adjusted it somewhat, but based upon what I learned from my dear brother, I pray this is a blessing to you.

First, the Lord Jesus will come when it pleases Him to do so. Since Jesus Christ is very God, the second Person of the Trinity, then what the psalmist declares of God is true of the Lord Jesus Messiah as well: “Our God is in the heavens; He does all that He pleases” (Psa 115:3).

Second, the Lord Jesus will come when He has accomplished all He has purposed to do in His most excellent counsel. Speaking through the prophet, Isaiah, the Lord Jesus says of Himself, “Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all My purpose’” (Isa 46:9-10). Moreover, it says that He will reign upon His throne “until He has put all His enemies under His feet” (1 Cor 15:25). Through the Holy Spirit, the Lord Jesus is ruling and reigning over His church-militant to put down principalities, powers, spiritual wickedness in high places, and the rulers of darkness in this age. It is an unseen realm in which you and I do battle through prayer, and only the Lord Jesus knows when it is over.

Third, the Lord Jesus is coming soon. It is written, “What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes” (Jas 4:14). In the eternal scheme of things, the few years we have on this planet are but a drop in an infinite bucket. Time is so fleeting when compared to God’s eternal perspective, Moses declared, “For a thousand years in Your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night” (Psa 90:4). Before you know it, it’s over.

Finally, the Lord Jesus will come for some today. It is written, “And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” (Heb 9:27). Death swings quickly and unexpectedly with an unseen reaper’s scythe, so looking for the Lord’s coming in the sky matters not to those who suddenly die.

May the Lord Jesus bless and keep you until He comes again.

The revelation of Jesus Christ… Revelation 1:1

I’ve encountered a great many Christians in several countries and many states in the U.S. since the Lord saved me by His amazing grace back in June 1985. Some of those countries include the Philippines, Indonesia, Japan, China (Hong Kong), and the Republic of Palau. In the United States, I’ve broken bread with Christians as far west as Scammon Bay, Alaska, as far east as Mechanicsville, Virginia, as far south as Pensacola, Florida, and as far north as Fairbanks. No matter where I’ve lived or traveled, generally, the first thought which comes to mind when the book of Revelation is mentioned is the prophetic end of time, the return of the Lord Jesus, the final judgment, the resurrection of the dead, and the re-creation of the new heaven and earth.

While Revelation contains those elements, there’s more to the book’s contents than that. Granted, it is the best part of the gospel therein, and we all look forward to that blessed event in our King’s return; however, there is one subject far more grand, far more glorious, which defines the Revelation— the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ, Himself.

Yes, it’s all about Him. It says so in the first five words in English, translated from the first three words of the original Greek manuscripts, αποκαλυψις ιησου χριστου (apocalupsis iesou xristou). So what does “apocalypse” mean? Moreover, what does it mean with regard to Jesus Christ?

Apocalypse, or revelation, means a disclosure; a discovery of something unknown, or a further uncovering of something known to some extent, yet further clarified. Now, my definition of the word may sound a little confusing because the signs, visions, symbolisms, and spiritual allegories have astonished and bewildered many for nearly two thousand years, but please bear with me. This disclosure, in the last book of the Bible, is somewhat of a synopsis of the gospel unveiled progressively through the previous sixty-six books. Revelation is the summary at the end of the book, so to speak.

The entire Bible is a progressive revelation of God’s redemptive plan through His one and only Son. From the creation account, through the creation of man and his subsequent fall, and the pronouncement of God’s gracious redemption of man by the virgin birth of a male Child (Gen 3:15), the divine plan of God throughout the historical record, poetry, and wise writings of the prophets, revealed a little more, bit by bit, of the truth concerning the Messiah to come.

When the Messiah finally came, fulfilling more than three-hundred prophecies concerning His miraculous birth, righteous life, earthly ministry, atoning death on the cross, resurrection from the dead, and ascension into heaven, the apostles and prophets  with whom He committed His gospel message further clarified the message of the Scriptures, revealing who Jesus of Nazareth was, what He came to do in redeeming the souls of sinners, His interceding ministry while He rules upon a heavenly throne, and culminating in His promised return, the resurrection of the dead, the final judgment, and the eternal regeneration in the new heaven and earth.

ESCHATOLOGY

“Eschatology” is a theological word most closely associated with the book of Revelation. It merely means the ‘study of last things,’ derived from the Greek word εσχατος (ES-xat-os), which means “last” or “end.” While many may connect this word with end-times events, and with the book of Revelation in particular, this word is important for the interpretation of the book of Revelation because of its end, or ultimate purpose for everything God has accomplished and recorded in the pages of Scripture. It’s not merely the what and when of God’s divine plan, it more importantly sets our attention on the why of God’s plan and design for creating the heavens and the earth in the first place. The first question of Charles Spurgeon’s A Puritan Catechism deals with the why of mankind’s creation: “What is the chief end of man?” It is asking the ultimate goal or principle purpose for man’s existence. In other words, why was man created? The answer to that question states: “Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.” If this was man’s prime reason for being, how could he glorify God as a mortal sinner who deserves eternal damnation for the sins he has committed against an infinitely holy and good God? The answer is simple.

Just as God spoke the universe into existence, He spoke to fallen men through the prophets (Heb 1:1), many of them writing down what they heard as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Pet 1:21). In the fullness of the time, however, God sent His Son (Gal 4:4), and spoke to men through Jesus (Heb 1:2). When Jesus came, He gave us the key to the dilemma of how a condemned sinner could glorify God and enjoy Him forever. The Lord Jesus said,

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about Me…” John 5:39

By stating that He was the Answer to the question of salvation, by this same statement Jesus identified another great, grand, and glorious truth— the entirety of the Old Testament Scriptures was about Him. The book of Revelation states the same, giving us the title for this commentary:

For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. Revelation 19:10

Moreover, the apostle, Peter, also tells us that the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ to redeem sinners was God’s plan before He even said, “Light be!” (Gen 1:3),

knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 1 Peter 1:18-20

Interestingly, in this pre-creation glimpse of God’s eternal plan, Peter also makes use of the term “last times,” the Greek εσχατου των χρoνων (ES-xat-ou tōn XRON-ōn). Here, Peter speaks to us of the when of end-times, which we’ll take a look at in the next chapter.