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Psalms
111:1-10 Praise the
LORD! I will praise the LORD with my
whole heart, In the assembly of the upright and in the congregation. The works of the LORD are great, Studied by all who have
pleasure in them. His work is
honorable and glorious, And His righteousness endures forever. He has made His
wonderful works to be remembered; The LORD is gracious and full of compassion. He has given food to those
who fear Him; He will ever be mindful of His covenant. He has declared to His
people the power of His works, In giving them the heritage of the nations. The
works of His hands are verity
and justice; All His precepts are
sure. They stand fast forever and ever, And
are done in truth and uprightness. He has sent redemption to His people;
He has commanded His covenant forever: Holy and awesome is His name. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those
who do His commandments. His
praise endures forever.
Father God we praise you and give you the glory for all
things. Help us to absorb your words like a sponge absorbs water. Let your
words shape us into a new creation. Help us be still so you can fight for us
when we are in need. Keep us all safe, healthy, and in good cheer. In Jesus
name we pray, Amen!
Revelation 14:5-13 NKJV
This
lesson is all about three angels that John sees and their message is all about Salvation
and God’s judgment. It could very well be the last call for salvation to those
on earth during the last half of the Tribulation. The question being, will
those alive at that time believe and place their faith in Jesus and what He did
at the Cross for us?
6 Then I
saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel
to preach to those who dwell on the earth to every nation, tribe, tongue, and
people—
Then
I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven; What Heaven will this angel be flying
in, the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd Heaven? The Bible
refers to 3 heavens: the first heaven is our atmosphere where birds, and
aviation vehicles fly; the second heaven is outer space where the planets,
stars, sun, moon, satellites, space ships, etc. are; the third Heaven is where
God resides in the North above the other two heavens. It is the third Heaven
that should be in the forefront of all minds and everyone’s life goal to get
there and not be caught up in the things of the world or of self pleasure. The
very first verse of the Bible tells us there is more than one heaven. Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
First heaven: Genesis 1:3 Then God said, "Let there be light";
and there was light. Genesis 1:6-8 Then God
said, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it
divide the waters from the waters."
7 Thus God made the firmament, and
divided the waters which were
under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. 8 And God
called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second
day.
Second heaven: Genesis 1:14-17
Then God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to
divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for
days and years; 15
and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the
earth"; and it was so. 16 Then God made two great lights: the greater light
to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He made the stars also. 17 God set
them in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth, For more information on these three
heavens see lesson; “Vol. 2 Part 1 “What Is Heaven Like According To The
Bible”?” If you don’t have it you can find it on my blog dated 8-4-2010 at; http://jesus-christ-spiritual-food.blogspot.com/
Having
the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth to every
nation, tribe, tongue, and people;
Moving on to this phrase of this verse then these questions come to mind; Is
this angel seen by all on earth at the same time? Does this angel have wings
like we think of angels? Is this angel hovering in the first heaven delivering
the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Is this angel of human form and looks like you and
me? These are all very good questions and the answers to these questions will
one day be answered.
Here are two scenarios
that I will throw out:
First being and angel,
with or without wings, will appear in the sky and will be seen around the world
by all, and this angel will preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the same Gospel
the Apostles and all Born Again Saints of God preach. This Gospel will be heard
in each person’s language. I believe this is very possible because when Jesus
our Saviour was born didn’t many people of various nations become aware of
this? On the day of Pentecost didn’t many people of many tribes hear the Gospel
in their own language? Won’t we see Jesus and His Saints coming on white horses
in the sky? All things are possible with God!
The second thought is one
of man, this angel will look like a common man, standing at a microphone
delivering the Gospel and being televised around the world from Jerusalem. So
the problem with this is, will all on earth stop what they are doing and turn
on the television?
This angel will deliver a
final worldwide appeal to all people, to try and get people to recognize the
one true Saviour of the world for all mankind, Jesus Christ. No one will have
the excuse of never hearing God's truth.
7 saying
with a loud voice, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His
judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and
springs of water."
Saying
with a loud voice, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His
judgment has come; This
angel is not only preaching the Gospel, but is announcing the hour of judgment.
“Saying with a loud voice”, denote urgency, I have something important to say,
listen and pay attention. This angel is saying beware the next seven judgments
are about to begin, meaning the seven vial/bowl judgments.
Worship
Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water; This angel is also telling us there
is only one God, the God that made all things and this is the God to fear
because all other gods are false gods and lead to hell.
8 And
another angel followed, saying, "Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great
city, because she has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her
fornication."
What this angel is saying
is, just as Babylon was the site of Earth’s first organized rebellion against
God Genesis 11:1–9,
it will be the site of the last great organized rebellion. As it began, it will
end. The Israelites fell into idolatry which led them away from God and it will
be through the Antichrist that forces Israel to worship the beast that will
bring them back to God because they will refuse to worship the beast. They will
wake up to the fact that they are going along with the Antichrist in sin
against God and repent of their wrongdoing when the Antichrist demands all to
worship him.
What actually is Babylon?
Easton’s Bible Dictionary tells us this: In
Revelation 14:8;
Revelation 16:19;
Revelation 17:5;
Revelation 18:2,
“Babylon” is supposed to mean Rome, not considered as pagan, but as the
continuation of the ancient power in the papal form. Rome, pagan, and papal, is
regarded as one power. “The literal Babylon was the beginner and supporter of
oppression and idolatry... This city and its whole empire were taken by the
Persians under Cyrus; the Persians were subdued by the Macedonians, and the
Macedonians by the Romans; so that Rome succeeded to the power of old Babylon.
And it was her method to adopt the worship of the false deities she had
conquered; so that by her own act she became the heiress and successor of all
the Babylonian idolatry, and of all that was introduced into it by the
immediate successors of Babylon, and consequently of all the idolatry of the
earth.” Rome, or “mystical Babylon,” is “that great city which reigneth over
the kings of the earth” (Revelation
17:18).
So Babylon refers to being
in bondage to the practice of worshipping anything other than God and Jesus
Christ. Any person or religion that promotes a gospel of; if it feels good then
do it; or prosperity meaning that God wants all of his children to have lots of
money; or worshiping Buda; or worshiping idols whether it be of man or beast,
past or present, are promoting Babylon’s doctrine which is of Satan. If it is
not the message of the Cross meaning what Jesus did at Calvary for us, then it
is a false gospel.
9 Then a
third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, "If anyone worships
the beast and his image, and receives his
mark on his forehead or on his hand,
10 he himself shall also drink of the wine of the
wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His
indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of
the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.
These two verses can’t be
separated because they speak of actions and results on an individual’s part.
This third angel will be warning of God’s wrath if a person doesn’t turn from
their wicked ways and repent. We have three angels delivering the same message
of salvation in three different ways. Many times, if not all, when the number
three comes up, deliverance is involved, if a person chooses to be delivered in
this case. This third angel is the last call to repentance, otherwise if the
people of the era of this verse refuse to heed the call of God and follow the
Antichrist they will be doomed to Hell forever.
In
the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb; This last phrase of these two verses raises
a question in my mind. Will those that spend eternity in Hell be able to see
God’s Holy angels and Jesus Christ in Heaven above as a constant reminder that
they rejected Jesus? Would this be part of the torment? I suppose that is
possible, but it is referring to the Great White Throne Judgment Revelation
20:11-15.
11 And the smoke of their torment ascends forever
and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his
image, and whoever receives the mark of his name."
Here again we are reminded
there is a Hell and it is for eternity. There is no rest there, it is a place
of constant pain and torture. A pain so great it will cause one to grind his
teeth and wail out in agony. The torture could be from Satan’s beasts that are
present, because a human form is a creation of God’s which would be a constant
reminder to them of who put them there. They hate God and as a result, take
their anger out on the souls that will be there. This is a strong message from
this angel not to accept the way of the Antichrist and receive the mark of his
name.
If the messages delivered
by these three angels don’t put fear in the hearts of people and cause them to
repent of their lifestyle and ask Jesus into their hearts, then nothing will.
This is a message for all living right now to examine their lifestyle and if it
isn’t modeled after Jesus Christ then repent and be saved.
12 Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments
of God and the faith of Jesus.
This verse is telling
those that are Born Again Saints to have patience till the very end and remain
faithful. Patience comes with salvation and this is an encouraging word from
God to keep our eyes focused on the finished works of Jesus Christ and what He
did for us on the Cross. It is only through this faith that one can keep the
commandments of God by allowing the Holy Spirit the freedom to work within us.
As human beings we are not capable of keeping the commandments of God because
of being born with the sin nature. Any Born Again Christian knows this because
of the change in their life when they rejected religion and lifestyle, and
accepted Jesus as their Saviour. In that instant the Holy Spirit takes up
residence in the person’s heart and places conviction upon the individual when
they think about doing something that violates God’s Commandments.
This news about God's
ultimate triumph should encourage God's people to remain faithful through every
trial and persecution. They can do this, God promises, by placing their faith
in Jesus and obeying the commands found in his Word by the power of the Holy
Spirit. The secret to enduring, therefore, is trust and obedience through faith
in Jesus Christ. Trust God to give you patience to endure even the small trials
you face daily; obey him even when obedience is unattractive or dangerous.
13 Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me,
"Write: 'Blessed are the
dead who die in the Lord from now on.'
"Yes," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their
labors, and their works follow them."
John states here that he
heard a voice from Heaven speaking to him. This person that is speaking to him
is the Holy Spirit. How do I know that? It’s because the rest of the verse
states that, “Yes, says the Spirit.” The Holy Spirit is telling John that those
who die during the Great Tribulation, which will be many because they will die
for their Saviour Jesus instead of serving the Antichrist, will have rest in
the loving arms of Jesus. Their labors and works refer to their witnessing and
spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As a result of their faith in what Jesus
did for them at the Cross they will receive rest, eternal rest.
If you
continually seek the answers of scripture, you have already heard God's truth
and know that God's final judgment will not be put off forever. Have you
joyfully received the everlasting Good News? Have you confessed your sins and
trusted in Christ to save you? If so, you have nothing to fear from God's
judgment. The Judge of all the earth is your Saviour!
Colossians 1:16 For by Him all things were created
that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether
thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
All things were created through Him
and for Him.
Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of
the glory of God,
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say to you,
unless one is born again, he
cannot see the kingdom of God."
Bill Wiesbrock https://www.facebook.com/bill.wiesbrock?ref=tn_tnmn
Sinners
Prayer; Pray this, and if you believe it with your heart, Jesus will save you!
“Lord Jesus I know I am a sinner. I confess my sins to you; I am sorry for my
sins; I repent (Meaning, desiring to turn from a sinful lifestyle.) of all my
sins, and I am asking for your forgiveness of all of my sins. I believe that only you can forgive sin. I commit my life to you and ask you to come
into my heart, direct, and take charge of my life. I believe that you died to set me free from
my sinful lifestyle and you rose from the dead to give me eternal life, and
right now you are seated at the Right Hand of God Almighty. I believe you are
the Son of God; the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life, and my
Savior.” I believe this and have faith
you will make a new person out of me, by sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in my
heart and lead me in a new life. In Jesus name I pray Amen.” (John 3:16,17;
Romans 3:23; 6:23; 5:8; 10:9-13; Ephesians 2:8-10; 1
John 5:11-14; 1:6-10) (Sin: Rom.
1:22-32; Gal. 5:19-21; Eph. 5:3-7)
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