Participants: Stephen Bohr
Series Code: ASTPP
Program Code: ASTPP000021
|
00:15 Well, welcome back.
00:17 We need to finish our study of biblical symbolism; 00:21 how to interpret Bible symbols in a proper way. 00:25 So we want to go on now to speak about time periods. 00:29 And we're not going to deal much with this, 00:31 because we had a whole principle that dealt with 00:34 the year/day principle. 00:35 Remember that? 00:37 Time periods are also symbolic. 00:39 That's all I'm going to say about that. 00:41 Because we dedicated two classes to discuss 00:45 this particular subject. 00:47 Now the next point is that things and objects 00:50 are also symbolic. 00:52 Things and objects are also symbolic. 00:56 Waters. What do waters represent? 01:00 Multitudes, nations, tongues, and peoples. 01:03 What kinds of peoples? 01:05 People at enmity with the people of God. 01:09 What do eyes represent? 01:12 Eyes represent wisdom. Absolutely. 01:15 And you have some references there in Revelation 2 verse 18 01:20 and Ephesians 1 verse 18. 01:23 You have examples of what eyes represent. 01:26 And what animal do we use to represent wisdom? 01:30 An owl? 01:31 Why do we use an owl to represent wisdom? 01:34 What is the predominant characteristic of an owl? 01:37 It's eyes. 01:38 See, so we have a remnant of that today. 01:40 An owl has large eyes. 01:42 And eyes represent wisdom. 01:45 What does fire represent? 01:48 Fire is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. 01:50 There are many passages that deal with that. 01:53 What does the sun represent? 01:56 The sun is a symbol of Jesus Christ. 01:59 "The Sun of Righteousness shall rise with healing in His wings." 02:04 What does the forehead represent? 02:06 The forehead represents your mind. 02:08 Because your mind is behind your forehead, your brain. 02:12 So you can read these text that are here. 02:14 What do trees represent? 02:17 Trees represent people. 02:20 And maybe it might be a good idea for us to read 02:23 a couple of these verses just for this point. 02:26 Go with me to Psalm 1 and verses 1 to 3. 02:31 Psalm 1 and verses 1 to 3. 02:33 This is a passage that is very, very well known. 02:38 Some people might have it memorized. 02:42 It says, "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel 02:44 of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, 02:49 nor sits in the seat of the scornful; 02:52 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, 02:55 and in His law he meditates day and night." 02:58 And now comes the comparison, now comes the symbol. 03:01 "He shall be like..." What? 03:03 "...like a tree..." 03:04 The word, "like," is the key here. 03:06 You're dealing with symbolism. 03:08 "He shall be like a tree..." 03:09 In what sense will he be like a tree? 03:11 Is he going to have branches and leaves? 03:14 Well not literally, no. 03:16 There's one particular aspect. 03:18 It says, "He shall be like a tree planted by 03:21 the rivers of water..." 03:23 What would the rivers of water represent? 03:26 In this sense, rivers would represent 03:28 the Holy Spirit, right? 03:30 Fresh water. 03:31 See, when it says that the harlot sits on many waters, 03:34 it's the waters of the raging sea. 03:37 But fresh waters represent the Holy Spirit. 03:40 Isn't that correct? 03:42 So it says, "He shall be like a tree planted by 03:45 the rivers of water, that brings forth its..." What? 03:49 "...its fruit in its season, whose leaf also 03:54 shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper." 03:58 So in what sense is a tree compared to a righteous person? 04:03 In two points. 04:04 Number one, where does he get the strength 04:08 to produce the fruit? 04:10 From the water. 04:12 And when he receives the water, he bears what? 04:15 He bears fruit. 04:16 Those are the two points of comparison. 04:19 Now let's notice one other example here of a tree. 04:23 Jeremiah 17. 04:26 Jeremiah chapter 17 and verse 8 is another example. 04:34 It says here, and let's read verse 7 for the context, 04:38 "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, 04:41 and whose hope is the Lord. 04:44 For he shall be like..." What? 04:47 "...he shall be like a tree," once again, "planted 04:51 by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, 04:56 and will not fear when heat comes; 04:59 but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the 05:03 year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit." 05:07 The same basic idea, right? 05:10 So in Revelation when it says that a third of the trees 05:14 were destroyed, in the trumpet series, 05:16 you have to look for some place on planet earth where 05:19 at some point a third of the trees were destroyed. 05:23 Right? 05:24 No. 05:27 You have to look at a place where a third of 05:29 God's people were mowed down. 05:31 And what if it says, "Spare the trees?" 05:35 Well, it means spare the people. 05:36 Because trees are symbolic of people. 05:40 And by the way, it can represent also a bad person. 05:44 So it doesn't always represent God's people. 05:47 It represents God's people sometimes, and other times 05:50 it represents wicked people. 05:53 Okay, now what does oil represent? 05:56 Oil represents the Holy Spirit. 06:00 What does clothing represent? 06:03 Clothing represents righteousness. 06:06 What does a sword represent? 06:08 We covered this. 06:10 It symbolizes God's Word, and it also symbolizes 06:15 the authority of the civil power. 06:18 What do horns represent? 06:21 Kingdoms or divisions of kingdoms. 06:23 Stars represent what? 06:26 Stars represent Christ. 06:29 Or they can represent God's people, 06:31 or they can represent Lucifer, depending on where they appear. 06:36 And then on the next page you have mountains. 06:38 What do mountains represent? 06:40 Mountains represent kingdoms. 06:43 So in Revelation 17, this beast that has seven heads 06:47 and the seven heads are seven mountains, 06:49 what is represented by this? 06:51 You don't even have to guess. 06:53 Because in Revelation 17 it says the seven heads 06:56 are seven mountains, and they are seven kingdoms. 06:59 So there you have the heads, mountains, and kingdoms. 07:03 So you have the interpretation of what it means. 07:05 Daniel 2, the stone becomes a mountain. 07:08 What does that mean? 07:10 Well, it's God's kingdom that fills the whole earth, 07:14 and lasts forever. 07:16 And so, whenever you find mountains in symbolic prophecy, 07:20 it represents kingdoms. 07:23 And this is the reason why the heads of the beast of 07:26 Revelation 17 does not represent seven popes. 07:31 These days people are saying, "Oh, you know, the seven heads 07:35 are seven popes, and then there's an eighth. 07:37 And the eight is Francis I." 07:41 Well the fact is that mountains don't represent 07:44 individual persons. 07:47 Mountains represent kingdoms. 07:50 And furthermore, Revelation chapter 17 07:55 clearly says that number eight is of the seven. 08:00 One of the seven. 08:02 And Francis I is not one of the seven. 08:04 But anyway, some people take the seven heads to be seven popes, 08:08 and then an eighth pope is the present pope. 08:10 So basically they're saying the last pope is this one. 08:14 And then comes the end of the world. 08:16 That's pretty close to setting a date. 08:21 Okay, let's go now to the next point. 08:23 Colors are symbolic. 08:26 What does white represent? 08:29 Purity, light, righteousness. 08:32 The robes that Adam and Eve wore in the Garden of Eden 08:35 were white robes of light. 08:39 Blue, what does blue represent? 08:42 Blue represents truth as found in God's holy law. 08:47 Let's go to Numbers 15 so that you can see an example of this. 08:51 Numbers 15 verses 38 through 40. 08:56 Numbers 15:38-40 09:01 There you have a clear, clear example. 09:06 Numbers 15 verse 38, this is what it says, 09:13 "Speak to the children of Israel: 09:16 Tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments 09:20 throughout their generations, and put a blue thread 09:25 in the tassels of the corners. 09:27 And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it 09:32 and remember all the commandments of the Lord 09:34 and do them, and that you may not follow the harlotry 09:38 to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined..." 09:42 So why did God tell them to put blue tassels 09:45 at the bottom of their garments? 09:47 To remember God's commandments. 09:49 So blue represents God's truth. 09:52 And we have the saying, "True blue." 09:56 Have you ever heard of the expression, true blue? 09:59 Because blue represents the truth. 10:02 And you know, just as a side light, have you ever noticed 10:04 that the Roman Catholic priests and their vestments 10:07 never use blue. 10:13 They use scarlet, they use purple, 10:17 combined with white. 10:20 But you'll never find them clothed in blue. 10:24 Very, very interesting nuance. 10:28 And then you have red. What does red represent? 10:32 Sacrifice. 10:33 It can represent the blood of Jesus, 10:37 or it can represent the shed blood of the wicked. 10:40 And you have Bible verses there. 10:42 What does purple represent? 10:45 It represents royalty. 10:46 Remember that they put a robe of purple on Jesus, 10:49 and then they mocked Him as a king. 10:52 So in Revelation chapter 17 where it speaks about 10:56 the harlot being clothed in purple and scarlet, 11:00 it means that she considers herself a queen. 11:03 She considers herself royalty. 11:05 And she rules over the waters, and she rules over the 11:08 kings of the earth. 11:10 What does gold represent? 11:13 Gold represents character. 11:16 You know, faith that works by love 11:21 and purifies the soul, as Ellen White says. 11:24 And you find this, for example, in the church of Laodicea. 11:27 God says that He wants us to buy gold tried in the fire. 11:32 Which is character, especially love; the love of God 11:36 in our lives. 11:37 And then in Scripture, black or darkness represents 11:40 sin, error, and the power of Satan, the powers of darkness. 11:46 Okay, now let's go also to the next section. 11:49 Places and directions of the compass are symbolic. 11:54 Even directions of the compass are symbolic. 11:58 What does Sodom represent? 12:02 We've already dealt with this. 12:03 Sodom represents a nation that has become 12:06 very immoral, licentious. 12:12 Did that happen during the French Revolution? 12:14 Yes. 12:15 And then you have Egypt. 12:17 These are locations. 12:18 Was Egypt an atheistic nation? 12:23 Did it challenge the existence of the true God? 12:25 It most certainly did. 12:26 "Who is the Lord? I don't know the Lord. 12:28 And I'm not going to let His people go." 12:30 Babylon. Is Babylon symbolic? 12:33 Yes, we've already noticed that. 12:36 How about Israel and Jerusalem when they're found in prophecy? 12:39 Would those be symbolic? 12:42 Of course they would be. 12:44 How about the king of the north and the king of the south? 12:48 Would those directions of the compass be symbolic? 12:51 Of course. 12:52 Are we to look for enemies that are going to attack Israel 12:55 from the south and the north? 12:58 You know, south of Israel was Egypt. 13:01 So the speculation is that the Arabs, you know, 13:05 represented by Egypt and the Arabic nations, 13:07 are going to come and they're going to attack 13:09 Israel from the south. 13:11 And then from the north you're going to have the Russians, 13:14 and you're going to have others who come from the north 13:17 to attack literal Israel. 13:19 Well the fact is that in symbolic prophecy, 13:23 the points of the compass become universalized. 13:29 The north, in other words, is the place where 13:32 Babylon comes from to attack Israel. 13:34 And what is Babylon? 13:36 Babylon is spiritual and global. 13:40 How about the south? 13:41 The south represents secularism or communism. 13:47 It's the opposite of the king of the north. 13:48 The king of the north is false religion. 13:50 And the king of the south is non-religion, 13:55 or adversarial to religion. 13:59 And so is that going to be a global phenomenon? 14:03 Did the French Revolution cause that to be a global phenomenon? 14:06 Absolutely. 14:07 So south and north are not literal points of the compass 14:11 in end time prophecy. 14:13 They become symbolic of global worldwide systems. 14:17 Is Israel centered in the Middle East? 14:21 No. Listen folks, if Israel is not centered in the Middle East, 14:24 neither is the king of the south nor the king of the north. 14:28 Because the king of the south was Egypt and the king of the 14:30 north was Babylon. 14:33 So if you say that Babylon is symbolic 14:36 and the king of the south, Egypt, is symbolic, 14:38 you would have to say that Jerusalem is symbolic too. 14:43 And also global and worldwide. 14:45 Are you understanding that principle? 14:47 It's a vital principle in the interpretation 14:50 of Bible prophecy. 14:52 Finally, the final point under symbolism is that actions 14:58 are also symbolic. 15:03 For example, the eating of the little book. 15:08 We're going to study about Revelation 10 tomorrow. 15:11 The eating of the little book. 15:13 Is that a symbolic action? 15:15 Of course it is. 15:17 In fact, John is a representative of God's people. 15:22 He's a representative person. 15:24 We're going to notice that in our study tomorrow. 15:26 He represents God's people symbolically. 15:29 So when John is told to devour this book, 15:34 which is Daniel 8 through 12... 15:36 We're also going to study that this afternoon. 15:38 The book that is found in Revelation chapter 10 15:41 is Daniel 8 through 12. 15:43 The book of Daniel is composed of two books in one. 15:47 Daniel 1 through 7 is one book, 15:49 and Daniel 8 through 12 is another book. 15:52 But they're both found in one book. 15:54 Just like the Bible you have 66 books, 15:56 but you really have only one book. 15:57 In Daniel you have two books within one book. 16:01 And the two parts, Daniel 1 through 7 16:04 and Daniel 8 through 12, can be clearly distinguished 16:08 even by language. 16:11 Because Daniel 1 is the introduction to the book. 16:15 But beginning with Daniel 2 through Daniel 7 16:17 it's written in Aramaic, whereas Daniel 8 through 12 16:22 is written in Hebrew. 16:23 Just the language itself tells us that there's a distinction 16:27 between the first half of Daniel and the last half 16:30 of Daniel as well. 16:32 So the little book that is being eaten in Revelation chapter 10 16:36 is Daniel 8 through 12. 16:38 And we're going to find that the central theme 16:40 of Daniel 8 through 12 is the 2300 day prophecy. 16:45 You'll see that when we study it this afternoon. 16:46 It's amazing. 16:48 And so this action, this symbolic action, is that 16:52 John is representing God's church at this 16:55 particular stage of history. 16:57 And John is commanded to eat this little book, 17:00 which is centered in the 2300 day prophecy. 17:04 And so John eats the book. 17:07 And when he eats the book, or he assimilates the message... 17:13 You know, how do we devour a book? 17:17 It's not talking about eating paper. 17:20 You know, we devour our book because we read it. 17:22 Have you ever devoured a book? 17:23 Sometimes I'll find a book that's so interesting 17:25 I can't put it down. 17:26 I've got to eat the whole thing in one sitting. 17:29 Yeah. 17:30 And so he devours this book. 17:32 Wow, it's exciting. 17:34 And it's sweet in the mouth. 17:36 In other words, the message from the book is a sweet message. 17:41 But then in the aftermath, it gets to the belly 17:43 and becomes bitter. 17:44 The message caused joy at first, and then bitterness. 17:51 So would you have to look in history, at some point 17:54 in history, where there was a people who assimilated 17:58 the message of the 2300 days and it was a sweet experience, 18:02 and then in the aftermath it turned bitter? 18:08 Wow. 18:09 The Millerite movement fits the description 18:12 perfectly in every detail. 18:16 Because the action of eating the book is a symbolic action. 18:20 So even actions in Bible prophecy are symbolic. 18:25 And then the final point, a woman who acts 18:28 in an adulterous manner represents a church 18:32 that has come into illicit relationships 18:35 with the civil powers of the world. 18:37 So actions are also of symbolic value. 18:42 So I hope that these principles have helped us a little bit 18:46 as we struggle with Bible prophecy in helping us 18:50 interpret the meaning of Bible symbols. 18:53 Now what we want to do is go to the material. 18:55 We're going to go to our next principle. 18:58 And our next principle has to do with the importance 19:02 of understanding the Hebrew Sanctuary 19:06 in order to understand Bible prophecy. 19:08 And I'll read it from your syllabus. 19:10 It's page 32 in your syllabus. 19:14 It reads this way: 19:16 Consider the importance of the Sanctuary 19:19 in the understanding of Bible prophecy. 19:23 It is absolutely indispensable... 19:26 And I underlined the word, "indispensable." 19:30 ...to understand the Hebrew Sanctuary in order to 19:33 comprehend the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation. 19:37 You cannot understand Daniel and Revelation 19:39 unless you understand the Sanctuary. 19:40 It's an impossibility. 19:44 We're going to take a look at in this material, 19:47 particularly this chart that you have in the handout 19:50 that you received, it says, 19:52 "Salvation History and the Sanctuary in Revelation." 19:56 That's the one that you need to make reference to. 19:58 And we're going to read the description at the bottom 20:02 so that you understand the chart. 20:04 And then what we're going to do after you understand 20:07 the chart, then we're going to go back to the beginning 20:10 of this handout and we are going to go through 20:14 the material step by step, which is a description 20:17 of what we find in the chart. 20:20 Now let's take a look at this chart 20:27 and let me explain a little bit about it. 20:30 You look at the extreme left hand side, 20:34 at the bottom, and you find that it says, "Court." 20:37 You see that there? "Court." 20:41 And what was in the court? 20:43 The altar of sacrifice and the laver. 20:47 Those represent the death and resurrection of Christ. 20:51 Now where did that take place? 20:54 On earth, right? 20:56 So the line that you see at the bottom, 20:58 the broken line at the bottom, represents the earth. 21:03 And so you see there Jesus is on earth. 21:06 In Revelation 1 verse 5, it speaks about His death 21:10 and His resurrection. 21:13 And so Revelation actually begins with the work that 21:16 Jesus performed in the court. 21:20 But then you'll notice the ascending line 21:22 on the left hand side. 21:23 Do you see it with the arrow going up? 21:26 Jesus ascended to heaven. 21:29 And where did He enter? 21:31 See, the line above with the little boxes are heaven. 21:36 So Jesus ascends to heaven. 21:39 And where is He in Revelation 1 through 3? 21:44 He is in the Holy Place. 21:45 Where in the Holy Place specifically? 21:47 What piece of furniture? 21:50 He is at the candlesticks in Revelation 1 to 3. 21:53 That's the central theme of Revelation 1 through 3. 21:57 Then in Revelation 4 and 5, we're going to notice 22:00 the reasons for this, Jesus is at the table of showbread. 22:04 Now where was the showbread in the Sanctuary? 22:08 In the Holy Place. 22:10 And then when you go to the beginning of the trumpet series, 22:13 in Revelation 8:2-5, Jesus is at the altar of incense. 22:20 So in the series on the churches, the seals, 22:23 and the trumpets, where is Jesus? 22:27 Jesus is in the Holy Place. 22:28 Now don't misunderstand, towards the end of each series 22:31 Jesus goes into the Most Holy. 22:34 But as He begins His ministration with the churches 22:38 and the seals and the trumpets, Jesus is ministering 22:41 in the Holy Place. 22:42 In fact, the interesting thing is that every time you get 22:45 to number six in the series of the churches, 22:49 the seals, and the trumpets, you have the Most Holy Place 22:52 that comes into view when you get to number six. 22:56 You say, "How is that?" 22:59 In the churches you come to number six, 23:01 it's the sixth church, Philadelphia. 23:04 An open door is placed before them. 23:08 The open door leads into the Most Holy Place. 23:11 When you come to the seals, and you come to the sixth seal, 23:16 there you have a description of the sealing 23:20 of the 144,000. 23:23 The sealing takes place in the Most Holy Place. 23:26 And when you get to the trumpets 23:28 you have the little book episode, 23:31 which is the 2300 day prophecy. 23:34 Which takes you into the Most Holy Place. 23:37 So in other words, number six in the series 23:40 always is a transition from the Holy into the Most Holy. 23:45 But at the beginning of each series, Jesus is 23:49 at the candlesticks, He's at the table of showbread, 23:52 and then He is at the altar of incense. 23:54 And then we continue down the line. 23:55 You see, all of this is being done by Jesus in heaven, right? 23:59 Are you able to follow along? 24:01 Everything is being done by Jesus in heaven. 24:03 You know, in Revelation 11 verse 19, what is opened? 24:10 We studied this in prayer meeting last night. 24:12 The temple of God is opened in heaven. 24:14 What is that temple? 24:16 It's the Most Holy Place is opened, 24:18 and the ark of His covenant is seen. 24:22 Question, could you ever make any sense out of this 24:25 without the Sanctuary? 24:28 How could you understand the candlesticks 24:29 without the Sanctuary? 24:31 How can you understand the table of showbread 24:34 without the Sanctuary? 24:35 How can you understand the altar of incense 24:38 without the Sanctuary? 24:39 How can you understand the opening of the door 24:41 to the Most Holy Place and seeing the ark of the covenant 24:44 if you don't know the Sanctuary? 24:47 The whole book of Revelation is patterned after the 24:50 Hebrew Sanctuary in its proper order. 24:54 And so in 11:19 you have the ark of the covenant seen, 24:59 the Most Holy Place is opened, and the judgment begins. 25:03 Now when you get to Revelation 15 25:06 verse 1 and verses 5 through 8, the service in the 25:11 Most Holy Place comes to an end. 25:15 And we studied that last evening. 25:17 Remember what happens in Revelation chapter 15? 25:22 Particularly verses 5 through 8. 25:26 It says that the temple is filled with what? 25:29 With smoke. 25:31 And no longer can anyone enter the temple. 25:35 Or the naos, or the Most Holy Place. 25:40 There the temple is opened for the plague angels to come out, 25:45 not for people to go in. 25:46 In 11:19, the Most Holy Place is open so that people can 25:49 go in and follow Jesus and His work in the Most Holy Place. 25:52 In Revelation 15, you can't follow Him in anymore. 25:55 No one can enter. 25:56 The temple is opened so the plague angels can come out. 26:01 So in chapter 15, the Most Holy Place ministry comes to an end. 26:08 Are you following the Sanctuary here? 26:10 Is the Day of Atonement going to end someday? 26:13 You better believe it. 26:15 And then, notice, in chapter 16 through chapter 18 26:22 you have the plagues, a description of the plagues. 26:26 By the way, do you know where the plagues come from? 26:29 They come from the Most Holy Place. 26:31 Do you know specifically where they come from? 26:34 They come from the ark of the covenant. 26:37 You say, "How do you know that they come..." 26:38 What was in the ark of the covenant? 26:42 The Law. 26:46 What has the world been doing? 26:49 They've been trampling on God's Law. 26:51 So the ark sends plagues. 26:53 You say, "Where do you get that from?" 26:54 You remember the story of the Philistines? 26:57 The uncircumcised Philistines. 27:00 What does uncircumcised mean? 27:03 It means that they were not part of God's chosen people. 27:08 They were rebellious, they were among the wicked. 27:11 And so they take the ark of the covenant with unholy hands. 27:15 And what does the ark do? 27:17 The ark starts pouring plagues out on them. 27:21 Because they are tramplers of God's holy Law. 27:25 So the plagues come from the Most Holy Place 27:27 after probation closes. 27:29 Are you following me? 27:31 And so the plagues are poured out. 27:33 And then when you get to Revelation 19:1-10, 27:37 God's people stand victorious in heaven. 27:41 And they're singing the song of victory. 27:44 Isn't that interesting? 27:46 Now, there are many nuances in between these large segments. 27:50 I'm only showing you the large sections that 27:53 deal with the Sanctuary. 27:55 In our study tomorrow, we're going to take a look at 27:58 the structure of Revelation 12 to 22. 28:02 It's an amazing structure. 28:04 Intricate, beautiful, complex when you look at all of the 28:10 details that are in between all of these large segments. 28:14 What I want you to see now is the 28:15 progression of the Sanctuary. 28:18 And so God's people stand victorious in heaven. 28:20 And then what do you have next? 28:24 In Revelation 20 what do you have? 28:29 You have the scapegoat ceremony. 28:32 Was that at the conclusion of the Day of Atonement? 28:36 Absolutely. 28:37 The Sanctuary was closed. 28:39 And then the sins that had been cleansed from the Sanctuary 28:42 were placed on the scapegoat in the Sanctuary service. 28:45 How can you understand Revelation 20 unless 28:48 you understand Leviticus 16. 28:51 You see, Revelation 20 is the scapegoat ceremony 28:55 where the devil is bound to the earth for a thousand years. 29:01 And then, of course, it all ends in Revelation 21 and 22 29:06 where God establishes or creates a new heavens and a new earth. 29:12 And then the interesting thing is, do you notice 29:14 that the arrow moves down? 29:17 Revelation 21 and 22 should actually be down 29:19 on the lower line. 29:22 Jesus descends. 29:24 And the tabernacle. 29:26 It says in Revelation 22 that the tabernacle of God 29:29 is with men, and He will dwell with them. 29:35 So you've gone full circle. 29:37 You've gone from the point of Jesus leaving the earth 29:43 after His work in the court. 29:45 He's been at the candlesticks, He's been at the 29:47 table of showbread, He's been at the altar of incense. 29:50 The temple in heaven was opened for the judgment. 29:53 And then intercession in heaven ended. 29:56 And then you have the time of trouble when the 29:57 plagues are being poured out. 29:58 Then God's people stand victorious in heaven. 30:00 And then the sins are placed upon the scapegoat. 30:04 And the scapegoat is here for a thousand years. 30:06 And then Jesus descends. 30:09 And you have a new heavens and a new earth. 30:13 All in the Sanctuary. 30:16 The book of Revelation is a book that portrays the exact order 30:22 of the Hebrew Sanctuary and all the steps that Jesus takes. 30:27 Now, you notice that there's a broken line at the bottom. 30:32 Do all of these things have a spiritual reality on earth 30:37 while Jesus is in heaven? 30:38 Do they have a spiritual reality? 30:41 Do the candlesticks have any spiritual reality? 30:44 Do you believe that there really are candlesticks in heaven? 30:47 Yes I do. 30:49 Because there you have the symbol and what the 30:51 symbol represents. 30:54 See, in heaven you have the reality and the shadow. 30:59 And so in heaven you have the candlestick 31:00 and you also have the Holy Spirit who is 31:03 represented by the candlestick, 31:05 or by the oil in the candlestick. 31:08 In heaven, you have really a table of showbread. 31:12 But the reality to which the showbread points is there too. 31:17 And you have an altar of incense. 31:18 And the reality to which the altar of incense 31:21 points is there too. 31:24 You have a real ark of the covenant in heaven. 31:28 Probably much larger than the one on earth 31:30 because the one on earth was made to scale. 31:33 But nevertheless, you have an ark of the covenant there. 31:36 In other words, in heaven you have the reality and the symbol. 31:39 On earth you only have what is symbolized spiritually. 31:45 So let me ask you this, does the candlestick 31:49 have any spiritual relevance to the church on earth? 31:54 We're going to study that in a few moments, yes. 31:56 What does the candlestick represent symbolically? 32:00 It represents the Holy Spirit imparted to the church 32:03 so that the church will shed light. 32:09 What does the bread represent? 32:12 The Word of God. 32:13 See, spiritual on earth. 32:17 What does the incense represent? 32:20 Actually, the incense represents the merits of Christ 32:25 mingled with the prayers of the saints. 32:29 Revelation 8 makes that clear. 32:31 The incense is the merits of Christ's blood 32:34 that is mingled with our prayers. 32:36 See, our prayers have no virtue. 32:39 If we came to God in prayer without the fragrance 32:44 of the incense, God would have to destroy us. 32:48 But when our prayers are mingled with the 32:50 righteousness of Christ, 32:53 ah, our prayers are acceptable in the sight of God. 32:55 Because of Jesus, not because of us. 33:00 And so, does the altar of incense have spiritual 33:03 relevance for us? 33:04 Of course it does. 33:05 How about the ark of the covenant? 33:08 Are we to proclaim God's law on earth? 33:10 Are we to proclaim the Sabbath on earth? 33:13 Are we to proclaim health reform on earth? 33:16 Are we to proclaim the hour of God's judgment on earth? 33:19 See, what is literal up there has spiritual significance here. 33:24 Now when Jesus fills the temple with His glory, 33:28 with smoke, so to speak, will that have any 33:31 implications on earth? 33:34 Of course. 33:35 You see, when nobody can enter the temple in heaven, 33:38 that means that nobody on earth can enter 33:40 the temple spiritually. 33:43 Are you understanding the principle? 33:45 Sometimes we focus so much on what Jesus does up there 33:48 that we forget about what He's doing here. 33:51 You see, there's another temple here. 33:53 It's a spiritual temple. 33:55 That's at the bottom of the line. 33:57 You know, Jesus said, "I am going," 34:00 but He says, "I will come to you." 34:04 So how can Jesus say, you know, "I am with you always, 34:08 even unto the end of the world," and yet He can say to Peter, 34:10 "Peter, I'm going. 34:11 And where I'm going now, you can't go with me." 34:16 Is Jesus talking out of both sides of His mouth? 34:19 No. 34:20 What He's saying is that physically He is going to 34:23 be in heaven, but spiritually through the work of the 34:26 Holy Spirit, He's going to be with us on earth. 34:31 So where does the antichrist sit? 34:32 You know, the antichrist, he can't take any position 34:35 in the heavenly temple. 34:37 So what does he do? 34:39 He says, "Well, I can't take over the place in the 34:41 heavenly temple, so the best I can do is 34:43 take over the place on earth." 34:45 And so he sits in the church. 34:48 And he does his thing. 34:50 That's 2 Thessalonians chapter 2. 34:52 He sits in the temple of God showing that he is God. 34:56 And do you know whose position he's usurping? 34:59 He's usurping the position of the Holy Spirit. 35:01 Because the pope was not left as Christ's representative; 35:04 the Holy Spirit was. 35:10 Are you with me? 35:13 Now you understand the chart. 35:15 So let's go to the description at the bottom of the chart 35:18 and review to make sure, absolutely sure, 35:23 that you understand the meaning of this chart. 35:27 Because next we're going to go to the document itself 35:31 and we're going to go step by step. 35:35 Things to keep in mind as you study this chart. 35:39 Number one, the book of Revelation is not written in 35:42 strict chronological order. 35:45 It functions on the principle of climax and anti-climax. 35:49 It often presents flashbacks and foretastes. 35:57 Let me illustrate that. 35:59 And when we deal with literary structure matters, 36:02 it will become clearer. 36:05 Revelation 14:1-5 36:08 It says there that the 144,000 stand victorious on Mount Zion 36:12 with the Lamb. 36:16 We have a problem. 36:19 Because in Revelation 14:6, the very next verse 36:24 through verse 12, you have the three angels' messages. 36:27 So how could they be standing on Mount Zion with Jesus 36:30 victorious if the three angels' messages 36:32 haven't been proclaimed yet? 36:35 Are you following me? 36:37 It's because, you know... 36:39 In fact, Revelation 14:1-5 really belongs with chapter 13. 36:45 Because chapter 13... 36:46 See, we need to understand this. 36:48 I wish I had more time. 36:50 You know, we could take just the total hours of this class 36:55 just to study this one principle. 36:57 I'm serious. 36:59 I'm not exaggerating. 37:01 Because Revelation is so intricate, 37:03 and Daniel is so intricate, that it takes time 37:09 to decode it. 37:11 But once you do, oh wow, a whole panorama 37:15 opens up to your view. 37:20 Revelation 14:1-5 belongs with chapter 13. 37:23 You say, "Why?" 37:24 Because chapter 13 ends by speaking about the beast 37:30 and his image imposing his mark. 37:35 And whoever does not receive the mark will be killed. 37:39 And so when Revelation 13 ends, you ask the question; 37:42 okay, so there was this crisis. 37:46 The beast imposed his mark. 37:51 And the beast said that he would kill everyone who 37:53 did not receive the mark or did not worship the image. 37:56 The question is, was there anybody who stood victorious? 38:03 Chapter 14 says yes. 38:05 The 144,000. 38:08 The climax is that there was a group that will stand 38:11 on Mount Zion victorious over the beast, his image, 38:15 his mark, and the number of his name. 38:19 Is that making sense? 38:22 Let's go to Revelation 15, I'll show you. 38:25 Revelation chapter 15. 38:29 And you're going to see that the 144,000 38:32 really are those that were victorious over the beast, 38:34 his image, his mark, and the number of his name. 38:38 So chapter 14:1-5 really belongs to chapter 13. 38:42 It's the climax to chapter 13. 38:46 And it says there in Revelation 15 and verse 2, 38:49 "And I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire, 38:52 and those who have the victory over the beast, 38:56 over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name, 38:58 standing on the sea of glass, having harps of God. 39:01 They sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, 39:03 and the song of the Lamb, saying..." 39:04 Are these the same characteristics as the group 39:07 in Revelation 14:1-5? 39:11 So did God have a victorious group? 39:13 Yes He did. 39:16 There are several chapter divisions in Revelation 39:19 that are wrongly divided. 39:22 Of course, the translators, the ones who created 39:26 the chapter divisions, you know, they did the best they could. 39:30 They didn't have the light that we have as Adventists. 39:34 You know, another example is the one I gave 39:35 in prayer meeting last night. 39:37 Revelation 11 verse 1 belongs with chapter 10. 39:44 You say, "Now how does Revelation 11 verse 1 39:47 belong with chapter 10?" 39:48 Let me explain it. 39:50 Now why are we getting off into structure here? 39:52 Well, it has to do with what we're talking about anyway, 39:55 with the Sanctuary. 39:57 So let's use that excuse. 40:02 I get caught off on these tangents. 40:04 My mind is like a big pool of thoughts. 40:08 You know, and I have the tendency to get distracted. 40:10 But anyway, where were we? 40:13 Okay, chapter 11 verse 1 belongs to chapter 10. 40:17 Chapter 10 ends by speaking about the little book 40:23 that John ate. 40:24 Sweet in his mouth, bitter in his stomach. 40:29 And then the chapter ends by saying, 40:30 "You must prophecy again." 40:34 And then the very next verse says, 40:36 "Arise, measure the temple." 40:40 Let me ask you, what started immediately after the 40:43 great disappointment in 1844? 40:45 What started after the disappointment? 40:50 The measuring of the temple. 40:52 The investigative judgment. 40:54 And so Revelation 11 verse 1 is telling you that after 40:58 the disappointment they would understand that now the 41:01 temple was going to be measured. 41:05 So 11:1 belongs with chapter 10. 41:08 It's the climax of chapter 10. 41:10 The same thing with Revelation 21 and verse 1. 41:15 That's part of chapter 20. 41:18 Because chapter 20, the last two verses, 14 and 15, 41:22 speaks about the devil and his angels and the wicked 41:24 cast into the lake of fire, which is the second death. 41:27 And then it says, "I saw a new heavens and a new earth." 41:29 Revelation 21 verse 1. 41:33 And then verse 2 says the heavenly city descends. 41:36 Now, it's out of order. 41:40 Because the holy city descends before God makes 41:43 a new heavens and a new earth. 41:45 Before He destroys the wicked. 41:48 So what happens is, Revelation chapter 21 41:52 and verse 2 begins a new cycle. 41:56 In fact, we're going to study the millennium. 41:57 And you're going to see in practical terms 41:59 the nuts and bolts of how to do this literary study. 42:04 Revelation 20 verse 1 through Revelation 21 and verse 8 42:07 has four cycles, four repetitive cycles, 42:13 where the same material is repeated four times, 42:16 but with a different emphasis. 42:20 The first emphasis is upon Satan and the earth. 42:25 The second emphasis is upon the saints. 42:28 The third emphasis is upon the wicked. 42:30 And the fourth emphasis is on what life is going to be 42:34 in the holy city. 42:36 And when you study each cycle, and then you put them 42:40 all together, you have a complete picture. 42:44 If you try to read Revelation 20 verse 1 42:46 through 21:8 in chronological order, 42:49 you will be so goofed up you don't know 42:51 what planet you're on. 42:55 Because it goes back and forth, it goes in cycles. 42:59 And unless, you know... 43:01 Interpreting symbols is important, 43:03 the Sanctuary is important, but I've come to the 43:05 conclusion that the most important thing in studying 43:08 Bible prophecy is understanding how things are put together. 43:14 And what amazes me is when I read the writings 43:16 of Ellen White, she has it all together. 43:22 And I study the structure, and I say, 43:24 "This fits here, this fits here." 43:25 Then I read, Great Controversy, she says, 43:27 "Well, this is where this fits and this is where this fits." 43:31 And the little old lady didn't have a PhD. 43:35 She had two and a half years of primary education. 43:37 Hello. 43:39 You don't have to be King Solomon 43:42 to understand Bible prophecy. 43:43 All you need is to pray to the Lord for enlightenment. 43:48 And make up your mind that you're going to sit down 43:50 and you're going to study it. 43:51 Because you have to pray and you have to sweat. 43:57 You know, some people will say, "Only pray, and then God will 44:00 give you and enlightening thought." 44:04 Well, God will give you enlightening thoughts, 44:06 but God does not condone laziness. 44:10 Jesus said, "Search the Scriptures." 44:14 And, "search the Scriptures," is different than reading them. 44:18 There's too many people who read the Scriptures 44:21 and not enough people who search the Scriptures. 44:26 So the Sanctuary is vitally important, is it not. 44:32 Now that was point number one. 44:37 Is that clear, that first point there? 44:39 Okay. 44:41 Number two, each major section of Revelation 44:44 has a Sanctuary introduction which not only clarifies 44:49 when the vision historically begins, but also the direction 44:54 toward which the vision is flowing. 45:00 In other words, the introductory vision gives you the beginning 45:02 point and the ending point of the series. 45:07 I'll give you an example. 45:09 Revelation 3 verse 21. 45:11 We're on point two. 45:12 We're doing well. 45:15 Revelation chapter 3 verse 21. 45:20 This is the concluding verse to the churches 45:27 and is the introductory verse to the seals. 45:32 In other words, it concludes the previous section 45:35 and it introduces the next section. 45:38 So Revelation 3 verse 21, Jesus says, 45:42 "To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me 45:47 on My throne, as I also overcame and sat with 45:52 My Father on His throne." 45:56 What points of time do we have in this verse? 46:00 We've got two points of time. 46:03 The first point of time is when Jesus overcame 46:06 and sat with His Father on His throne. 46:09 The second point of time is when we will sit with Jesus 46:13 on His throne. 46:16 What do you have in between? 46:18 The seals. 46:22 Are you with me? 46:23 So in other words, this one verse is the introduction 46:27 to the next section, and it also gives you 46:29 the ending point of the next section. 46:33 I'll give you another example. 46:36 Revelation 8. 46:40 Revelation 8, the introductory Sanctuary vision. 46:47 And verse 2. 46:53 "And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, 46:56 and to them were given seven trumpets. 46:58 Then another angel, having a golden censer, 47:01 came and stood at the altar. 47:04 He was given much incense, that he should offer it 47:07 with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar 47:10 which was before the throne." 47:11 Let me ask you, is intercession open at this point? 47:15 Is the censer interceding? 47:18 It is interceding. 47:20 Absolutely. 47:23 Verse 4, "And the smoke of the incense, 47:26 with the prayers of the saints..." 47:28 See, the incense and the prayers are two separate things. 47:32 Related, but separate. 47:34 "...with the prayers of the saints ascended before God 47:37 from the angel's hand." 47:41 But now something is going to happen. 47:45 What's going to happen? 47:48 Verse 5, "Then the angel took the censer, 47:53 filled it with fire from the altar, 47:56 and threw it to the earth." 48:01 What does that mean, he took the censer 48:02 and threw it to the earth? 48:06 There's no longer an intercession. 48:09 The censer is not being presented before the Lord. 48:13 And notice what the result is. 48:14 "And there were noises, thunderings, lightnings, 48:17 and an earthquake." 48:20 At the end of the trumpet series, you're going to 48:22 find those same phenomena when the trumpets come to an end. 48:29 So this introductory scene is giving you two points of time. 48:33 The trumpets begin with the intercession of Jesus. 48:37 And they end when intercession ceases. 48:44 Did you catch the point? 48:46 Now, let's go to this material. 48:47 Let's go to point number three now. 48:51 There is a Sanctuary progression in the book of Revelation; 48:55 from the court to the Holy Place, 48:59 and from the Holy to the Most Holy Place. 49:02 When the ministry of the Most Holy Place 49:04 concludes at the end of the thousand years, 49:08 then Jesus will physically return to the court 49:11 from whence He ascended to heaven. 49:14 Caught that point? 49:17 Number four, each heavenly event in Revelation 49:21 has a corresponding earthly repercussion and reflection. 49:26 Jesus does nothing in heaven in a vacuum. 49:30 In other words, the work of Jesus in heaven 49:35 is reflected by His people on earth. 49:41 While Jesus is doing His work in heaven, 49:43 His people are preparing on earth. 49:46 Number five, the church on earth is a spiritual reflection 49:50 of the literal heavenly temple. 49:53 Number six, I have included the scapegoat 49:57 and the cutting off of the wicked. 50:00 Do you remember what would happen with people 50:01 who did not sympathize with the high priest 50:05 on the Day of Atonement? 50:08 Leviticus 23 says they will be cut off from among the people. 50:14 So you have two things 50:15 that happened on the Day of Atonement. 50:17 Number one, the sins that had been confessed and forgiven 50:20 previously by the blood of the Lord's goat 50:24 were placed on the head of the scapegoat. 50:27 And then he was sent out to the wilderness, to an uninhabited 50:31 land, and the wicked were cut off. 50:35 Do we find that in Revelation? 50:38 Absolutely. 50:39 At the second coming of Jesus, what happens to the wicked? 50:43 They're cut off. 50:44 What happens to the devil? 50:48 He's bound to the earth, like the scapegoat. 50:53 And so, I have included the scapegoat and the cutting off 50:56 of the wicked after the thousand years as part of 50:58 the Most Holy Place ministry because these events are 51:01 included in the Day of Atonement chapters 51:04 of Leviticus 16 and 23. 51:08 Finally, number seven, at the present 51:13 there exists a gulf between heaven and earth. 51:17 Right? 51:20 There's a gulf between heaven and earth. 51:23 Christ is physically present in a literal heavenly temple. 51:28 He is also spiritually present with His spiritual 51:31 temple on earth. 51:35 Let me ask you something. 51:37 You know I travel a lot. 51:41 And I spend a lot of time away from my wife. 51:47 And after I've been gone for a few days... 51:50 By the way, she's with me in spirit. 51:54 But after several days, I long to be with her. 52:01 Physically. 52:04 Is it different to be with someone in spirit 52:07 than to be with them physically? 52:10 So is Jesus with us in spirit? 52:12 Do you think He's happy about that? 52:15 No. 52:17 He doesn't want to be only with us spiritually, 52:20 He wants to be with us physically. 52:23 That's the whole purpose of the Sanctuary service. 52:25 Jesus said, "I'm going to prepare a place." 52:28 All of this is the preparation of the place. 52:33 His work in the Sanctuary. 52:35 And while He prepares the place for us, 52:37 we prepare for the place... 52:41 ...on earth. 52:43 We do a parallel work to the work that Jesus does 52:47 in heaven on earth. 52:49 We shine like the candelabra. 52:53 We assimilate the bread. 52:56 We present our prayers to Him. 52:58 We enter with Him into the Most Holy Place. 53:01 See, we sympathize with His work. 53:04 But the goal of this whole thing is that, "Where I am, 53:10 you may be also." 53:13 And so He is also spiritually present with His 53:16 spiritual temple on earth. 53:18 That is the church. 53:19 The goal of salvation is to join the physical 53:22 and spiritual realities at the end 53:27 so that Jesus and His people can not only experience 53:31 spiritual fellowship, but physical fellowship as well. 53:37 The Sanctuary service illustrates the steps 53:41 which Jesus must take so that he and His people 53:45 can live together in fellowship in a perfect universe 53:48 that has been freed from the curse of sin. 53:53 Wow. 53:55 So is the Sanctuary a vital thing in the book of Revelation? 53:59 It's one of the principles of prophetic interpretation. 54:02 That's why I included it as a separate principle. 54:05 Because it is vital in understanding 54:08 where the book of Revelation is trending to. 54:12 It's not merely academic, folks. 54:16 It's a matter of salvation. 54:18 To understand, to follow Jesus by faith. 54:23 And I repeat once again, Israel could not see into the tent. 54:29 So what God did was He gave them a description 54:32 of what went on in the tent. 54:35 So that when the priest went in every day to offer incense 54:39 morning and evening, 54:41 they would gather outside. 54:42 It says in Luke when Zacharias was offering the incense, 54:45 the people were outside praying. 54:47 And they were outside and they were praying, 54:49 they're saying, "Ah, Zacharias right now is presenting 54:52 the incense in the Sanctuary." 54:56 See, they were doing the reality, 54:58 and in the Sanctuary was the symbol. 55:02 And then when the high priest went in to light the lamps 55:05 morning and evening, that was the high priest that did that, 55:09 the people would say, "Oh, he went in 55:12 to fill the lamps with oil." 55:15 Because the lamp had to give light. 55:16 It was the only source of light in the Sanctuary, 55:20 was the candlestick. 55:22 And so they were to understand and say, 55:24 and they're following the high priest, they're saying, 55:27 "He's lighting the Sanctuary with the oil. 55:29 And so give me oil in my lamp. 55:32 Keep me burning." 55:34 As the song says, "Give me Your Spirit so that I can shine." 55:39 See, there's a spiritual implication 55:43 in our personal life. 55:46 And the showbread; every Sabbath the showbread was changed 55:51 and put fresh. 55:52 Just like we get a fresh sermon every Sabbath. 55:57 And so when the priest when in to put the bread, 55:59 the people were saying, "This is the holy Sabbath." 56:04 It's the day to get fresh bread. 56:07 Spiritually speaking. 56:10 And so the Sanctuary had profound significance, 56:13 not only because of what Jesus does in heaven, 56:16 but it has a profound spiritual significance 56:19 for us on earth. 56:22 And sometimes we miss that because we talk about 56:25 temple geography. 56:28 And we're able to explain, "Oh yeah, yeah, you know, 56:30 yeah the table of showbread, and measured so much, 56:32 and it had twelve loaves of bread on it. 56:33 And you know, and the incense was a special 56:35 kind of incense, you know. 56:37 And Aaron, he would light the lamps morning and evening, 56:40 and he would make sure that they had oil. 56:41 And you had the ark of the covenant with the law inside." 56:44 Folks, the reason for the law inside the ark of the covenant 56:47 is because God wants it to be in the ark of the heart. 56:52 It does us no good to have it in the ark up there. 56:54 Jesus says, "I want the ark to be down there." 56:58 Spiritually. 57:01 And so in that way, the Sanctuary becomes relevant. 57:05 Not only geographically, but it becomes relevant to our own 57:12 spiritual walk with Jesus. 57:17 And so what we'll do in our first class when we reconvene 57:23 is we're going to go to this document and we're going to 57:25 go step by step through what we just covered in the chart, 57:29 with Bible verses and quotations from the spirit of prophecy, 57:33 so that we're sure that it is absolutely crystal clear 57:38 and that it will cause an impact in our lives. 57:39 And we can share it with other people so that 57:42 they can have this wonderful experience with Jesus. |
Revised 2015-07-13