Participants: Ivor Myers (Host), James Rafferty (Host), Jason Bradley, Yvonne Lewis
Series Code: SISS
Program Code: SISS000033A
|
00:30 Finally, we are going to begin the trumpets...
00:33 actually... trumpet number one... 00:34 and Revelation chapter 8 has been 00:37 powerful in its introduction to trumpet number one 00:40 and its told us this... that God gives trumpet warnings, 00:45 warnings of alarm but before those warnings sound, 00:49 He gives us a picture of His love, 00:51 of His intercession, 00:53 He gives us a picture of His desire 00:54 to pour out His Spirit upon all flesh, 00:56 a desire to call us back to Him and to forgive us of our sins 01:00 and to fulfill in us His goal which is complete redemption 01:04 and it's only as we reject that picture 01:06 that he allows judgments which really are 01:08 the consequences of our own choices 01:11 so, the Jews... in rejecting the gospel, 01:14 aligned themselves with the Romans, 01:17 they even said at one point, 01:19 "We have no king but Caesar and His blood... " 01:22 talking of Christ, "His blood be on us and our children... " 01:25 and those are the kinds of symbols 01:27 we're going to see coming out here 01:28 as we look at the first trumpet. 01:29 We're going to see the symbolism that identifies judgments... 01:33 trumpet judgments... coming upon this first nation 01:37 that rejected Christ and refused to receive 01:41 the gospel... the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ, 01:44 now, in saying that I want to emphasize 01:46 that Jesus told His disciples 01:49 after the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, 01:51 "I want you first to go to Jerusalem... 01:52 I want... then to Samaria... 01:55 and then to the uttermost parts of the world 01:57 but I want you first to go to Jerusalem, 01:59 so there was a 40-year period there 02:01 from the time Christ died until the destruction of Jerusalem 02:04 was almost a complete generation of 40 years 02:06 before that final destruction came, 02:09 Jesus said, "I'm leaving your house desolate" 02:11 but He gives that mercy, He gives that long-suffering 02:14 to His nation... to His people, 02:16 and we're going to see all of this 02:17 when we start breaking over... 02:19 open these symbols in the first trumpet. 02:21 Jason, we're going to open with a word of prayer 02:23 and then, Yvonne, we're going to get into Revelation chapter 8 02:26 and we look here at verses 6 and 7, all right. 02:30 Jason: "Dear Heavenly Father, 02:32 we need you to be with us as we study the Word, Lord, 02:35 and we thank you for filling this place with your presence, 02:37 help us to retain the information that we're studying 02:40 and comprehend it, in Jesus' name we pray, amen. " 02:42 All: "Amen... " 02:44 Yvonne: 8 and 9, right? 02:46 James: Revelation chapter 8 verses 6 and 7. 02:48 Yvonne: Verses 6 and 7, see, I'm glad I asked you, okay, 02:51 "And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets 02:54 prepared themselves to sound. 02:56 The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire 03:00 mingled with blood, 03:01 and they were cast upon the earth: 03:04 And the third part of trees was burnt up, 03:06 and all green grass was burnt up. " 03:09 James: All right, so verse 6 is telling us 03:11 these angels are getting ready to sound 03:13 which is important because we're realizing now 03:16 that they haven't sounded yet, the judgments haven't come yet 03:18 and we've seen... 03:20 we've filled out this picture of Pentecost, 03:22 we've filled out the picture of the early church... 03:24 Peter... filled with the Spirit quoting Joel 03:27 which is filled with all of the symbols 03:30 that we're going to see here in the trumpet judgments, 03:33 quoting Joel and saying, "Repent, repent, repent... 03:34 this is the day that God has talked about... 03:36 and He's warning you to repent 03:38 because blood and fire mingled with smoke... 03:40 it's going to come... " the judgments are going to come 03:42 and so now, after Pentecost 03:45 which is fulfilled in this... these previous verses... 03:47 now we see those judgments coming 03:49 as the first angel sounds, 03:51 one of the questions that we have to ask ourselves 03:55 when we study these trumpets is, 03:57 "Are they literal or are they symbolic?" 04:00 And it's very important for us to understand the principles 04:04 that would help us to identify a literal or a symbolic... 04:08 in the Book of Revelation... 04:09 so here's the principle that we're going to look at right now 04:11 if the texts make good sense as it reads 04:16 and it does no violation to the laws of nature, 04:21 it should be understood literally, 04:22 okay, if the text makes good sense as it reads... 04:25 it makes sense, "Whoa, yeah, that's easy to understand... " 04:28 and there's no violation of the laws of nature, 04:30 it should be understood literally, 04:32 if not... it should be understood symbolically, 04:35 so I'm going to read this text, you guys tell me, 04:38 does it make good sense as it reads and does it... 04:40 does it or does it not violate the laws of nature, 04:43 "And the first angel sounded," the first trumpet sounded... 04:47 "and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, 04:51 and they were cast upon the earth: 04:53 and the third part of trees was burnt up, 04:55 and all green grass was burnt up. " 04:56 Does that make good sense? 04:58 Yvonne: No, that sounds as though it would be symbolic. 05:01 James: It does... doesn't it? 05:02 Yvonne: Because hail and fire mingled with blood... 05:04 James: Hail and fire mingled with blood... 05:06 and then... a third part of the trees and all green grass... 05:09 like, every blade of green grass so there's symbolism... 05:13 it's almost obvious... the symbolism here... 05:15 and that is a really important principle we want to follow 05:18 through with it in all of our texts, 05:19 if it doesn't make good sense, 05:20 if it violates the laws of nature, 05:22 you know, hail and fire... those are two opposites, 05:24 mingled with blood, whoa... what was that? 05:27 Then we should understand the text symbolically. 05:29 Ivor: And we can also remember from our last study, 05:33 that we saw that... 05:35 the opening vision... gives us a picture of Peter 05:38 as he is preaching on the day of Pentecost 05:41 and we saw he utilized those very terms, 05:43 many of the terms that are found... 05:45 the ideas that are found in the seven trumpets... 05:47 he utilizes them and remember 05:49 on the day of Pentecost, as Peter is saying, 05:51 "Yup, these things are about to be fulfilled... 05:54 the smoke and all these things... " 05:56 and they're looking around going... 05:59 "How are you saying that this is fulfilled?" 06:01 But Peter was warning them of things to come 06:03 he's quoting from the Book of Joel 06:05 which we see itself... is used in symbolic language 06:09 to describe armies... or destruction upon nations, 06:14 specifically upon the nation of Israel. 06:16 James: I think it's really important for us now 06:18 just to take a gander, a look... at Matthew 24, 06:21 you could also see it in Mark 13 and Luke 21 06:25 but Matthew 24 is where Christ takes time 06:28 to describe what's going to happen to Jerusalem 06:31 and the end of the world, so Matthew chapter 24 06:35 is a warning that Christ gives, we could say, 06:37 that Matthew 24 is the trumpet being sounded... 06:41 literally being sounded by Christ 06:43 and He is very clear, there's no symbolism here, 06:46 He's very clear in His language, 06:47 He's talking... we don't need to read the verses, 06:49 I'm just going to do a quick overview, 06:51 He's talking about... first of all... 06:52 the destruction of Jerusalem, 06:53 He comes out of the temple, 06:55 He has just told His disciples 06:57 that this temple is going to be left desolate in chapter 23... 07:01 in chapter 24 He comes out of the temple 07:03 and says, "See all these stones... 07:04 that you think are so beautiful, 07:06 not one is going to be left upon another... 07:07 that won't be cast down... " 07:09 then He says, "There's going to be deception, 07:11 false prophets and there's going to be wars and rumors of wars 07:14 famine, pestilence, earthquakes in different places 07:16 and Jerusalem is going to fall, 07:18 basically, Jerusalem is going to fall... 07:20 now we know Jerusalem fell in AD 70... 07:22 if we're in the Apostolic Age 07:24 and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit 07:26 in Revelation chapter 8, 07:27 if we have a trumpet giving a warning of judgment, 07:30 if we have Jesus telling His disciples, 07:32 "Go to Jerusalem first and make sure they hear the warning 07:35 and then I'll deal with them 07:36 depending on how they relate to that... " 07:38 if the history of the early church tells us 07:40 the Jews rejected that warning 07:41 and the history of nations tells us that Jerusalem fell 07:44 and Jesus' words were fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem, 07:47 we can expect that the first trumpet... 07:50 that announces a judgment on a nation 07:53 would be a trumpet that would come upon Jerusalem 07:55 because it lines up with the Bible, 07:57 it lines up with the words of Christ, 07:59 it lines up with history, so all of that comes into place. 08:03 Ivor: And I'll say, let's look at what we've been doing 08:07 in all our other programs, right, 08:08 what's the first church? 08:10 The first church is Ephesus, that is the early church, 08:14 okay, so, the first church is Ephesus 08:16 and the first seal is the church going forward in power, 08:21 advancing the gospel, then, when we get to the trumpet 08:24 all we need to ask is, "Okay, trumpets, trumpets... 08:27 well, trumpets are blown 08:29 against the enemies of God's people, 08:32 so, hmmm... who are the enemies of God's people 08:35 in the early church, who was it? 08:38 Was it the Medo-Persian Empire? 08:40 Was it the Papacy? No, no, no, no, no, no... 08:44 the first enemy of the church was Israel itself 08:49 so, this trumpet must have to do with first... the warning 08:54 and then the ultimate judgment upon this nation 08:58 that was warring against the people of God... " 09:01 so, remember what we saw what trumpets meant 09:04 in previous studies, number one... 09:05 the trumpet... is a sound to advance... 09:08 number two... the trumpet reflects a call or a warning 09:14 to those who are against God's purposes 09:18 but it's a warning of mercy, "Blow the trumpet... " 09:20 Peter was blowing the trumpet on the day of Pentecost 09:23 to the Jews... "Blow your trumpet... 09:26 blow ye the trumpet where? In my Holy Mountain" 09:29 and so, here you have this blowing of the trumpet... 09:32 they are... it's a warning to Israel... 09:34 and what happens in 70 AD... 09:36 because Israel did not, as a nation, embrace Christ, 09:41 they stoned Stephen, in fact, James, 09:44 think about this... the first trumpet 09:48 actually takes us... shows us 09:50 a fulfillment of the 70-Week Prophecy, 09:54 the 70-Week Prophecy... 09:56 pointed forward to the coming of Christ, 09:59 and was basically saying to the Jews, 10:02 "Listen, if you don't repent, if you don't accept the Messiah, 10:05 you will be cut off. " 10:07 Now, what's 70 weeks? It's seventy times seven, 10:10 what did Jesus say about forgiveness? 10:12 James: Matthew 18... 10:13 Ivor: If your enemy... sins against you... 10:16 forgive him... seven times? No... seventy times seven... 10:19 and so, at the close of this seventy-times-seven period 10:23 which brought us down to the time of Christ, 10:24 the Jews said, "no... " 10:26 and as a result... you have this trumpet being... 10:29 well, the trumpet is blown warning them, 10:31 they reject the warning... you have the fall of Israel, 70 AD. 10:35 James: All right... let's look at a few Bible verses, 10:37 we want to fill our minds with the Word of God, 10:39 so, Jason, take us... 10:41 the first Bible verse I want us to look at 10:43 is in relation to hail... so Job chapter 38... 10:46 Job 38:22 and 23... 10:48 Yvonne, don't go there because I've got a Bible verse for you. 10:49 Yvonne: Okay... 10:51 James: I'd like you to share with us 10:52 Isaiah 28 verse 2... so, Isaiah 28 verse 2... 10:57 and then Job 38:22 and 23... 11:00 and whoever gets there first can start 11:02 because they are both going to be helping us with the hail... 11:05 how the hail symbolizes judgment. 11:07 Jason: Okay, you said verse chapter 28 verse... 11:11 James: Chapter 38... and this time... it's Job. 11:15 That's an inside joke... 11:19 Yvonne: You want me to just read Isaiah 28:2? 11:22 "Behold, the Lord hath a mighty and strong one, 11:26 which as a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, 11:29 as a flood of mighty waters overflowing, 11:31 shall cast down to the earth with the hand. " 11:34 James: Okay... so this is simply saying 11:36 that hail is used symbolically to talk about God's judgment 11:41 and His destroying storm 11:42 and His casting down to the earth with His hand. 11:44 Okay, another verse is Job 38:22 and 23. 11:48 Jason: Okay, "Hast thou entered 11:50 into the treasures of the snow? 11:52 or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail, 11:54 Which I have reserved against the time of trouble, 11:58 against the day of battle and war?" 12:00 James: Okay, here this verse is telling us, 12:02 hail is synonymous with the time of trouble, 12:04 a time of Babylon war and that's exactly what happened 12:07 in the destruction of Jerusalem, 12:08 the destruction of Jerusalem took place 12:11 when the Romans came and laid a siege against it 12:13 and basically came against it 12:15 and warred against it and brought it down 12:17 and it was a direct judgment, a direct fulfillment of God's... 12:20 of the prophecy of the Bible. 12:22 Ivor: And, we should say, "much blood was spilled... " 12:24 James: Yes... Ivor: Much blood was spilled, 12:25 hail and fire mingled with blood it's a picture of destruction. 12:29 Yvonne: Okay. 12:31 James: It's a picture of destruction... 12:32 "His blood be on us and our children... " 12:33 there are a number of verses here... in relation to blood 12:36 but I think that's obvious, 12:37 the point that we need to make here, Ivor, 12:39 I think it's really important for us to understand this... is 12:42 sometimes you've got the same word 12:45 but a different symbolic meaning, 12:47 so, fire, in the previous verses represented the Holy Spirit 12:52 and we looked at Bible verses for that, 12:53 one of the Bible verses, we didn't touch on 12:55 but I want us to look is... 12:56 just to give for a reference is Isaiah chapter 6:1 through 9, 13:01 or Isaiah is cleansed with fire off the altar 13:04 and then he gives a message 13:06 and so that's a good reference for fire, 13:08 but now, we have the same word, "fire" 13:10 but it means something different, 13:12 now, we have Bible verses for that 13:13 and we're going to read those, 13:15 but when fire means something different, 13:17 what would make us interpret it differently? 13:19 Well, the context makes us interpret it differently, 13:22 for example... before the trumpets start blowing, 13:25 we're not talking about judgment the trumpets haven't blown yet, 13:27 so now, we're talking about something else... 13:30 that fire has to mean something else. 13:32 Ivor: This fire is destroying things. 13:33 James: Yes... 13:34 Ivor: The trees are burnt up. James: Yes. 13:36 Ivor: The grass is burnt up. 13:37 James: So this can't be that same fire... 13:39 that same interpretation. Yvonne: Hmmm... hmmm... 13:40 James: So in the Bible, in Revelation, for example, 13:42 chapter 5, we're told that the incense 13:44 represents the prayers of the saints 13:45 but in Revelation chapter 8, 13:47 that incense is mingled with the prayers of the saints. 13:49 So it has to represent something else, 13:50 well, then we looked in Ephesians 5:2... 13:52 it represents the righteousness 13:54 or the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, 13:56 the "sweet-smelling savor" so, it's very important... 13:59 not to just have a Bible verse or two to interpret this symbol, 14:02 but to make sure your interpretation fits 14:04 with the context of the prophecy, 14:06 what are we talking about right now, 14:09 right now... we're talking about judgment, 14:10 okay, let's look at the verses, 14:12 the one that is really powerful, Jason, 14:14 if you can read... it's Matthew chapter 7 14:16 and verse 19 and then... 14:18 Yvonne if you can read 1st Corinthians 3 and verse 13, 14:23 and this has to do with fire equaling judgment 14:26 fire equaling a time when God's people or when a nation 14:30 or when, you know, different individuals were judged. 14:34 Jason: Matthew 7:19? 14:35 James: Matthew 7: 19. Jason: Okay, 14:37 "Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, 14:40 and cast into the fire. " 14:42 James: Now, what's really interesting about this verse 14:44 is a sign talking about "fire" being "judgment," 14:47 it's also talking about trees, which were in the context 14:49 of our verse here... we haven't gotten the trees yet 14:51 but that's in verse for both of them. 14:53 Yvonne: Hmmm... hmmm... that's good. 14:55 1st Corinthians 3:13, 14:57 "Every man's work shall be made manifest: 15:00 for the day shall declare it, 15:02 because it shall be revealed by fire; 15:04 and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. " 15:08 James: Okay, so again, we have fire, here, trying... 15:11 fire bringing the day of trial 15:13 and revealing what manner of work you are, 15:16 where you are standing with God 15:17 or where you are not standing with God, 15:19 so, we've got judgment, we've got fire, 15:20 implicating... I mean... judgment... 15:22 and trial implicated in the word "fire," 15:24 a day of judgment, a day of trying, 15:26 now, I think it's really interesting 15:29 that we've also got that word, "blood... " 15:31 and we didn't touch on this but I want us to touch on this, 15:33 we've got blood... 15:34 in a previous meeting we looked at blood 15:37 in relation to the blood of Christ, 15:39 and all through the Bible we have that, 15:41 but again, remember, we're under judgments, 15:43 we're under the trumpets now, 15:44 so we got to have a different understanding 15:47 of how that blood is used and we've got a number of verses 15:51 that we've looked at and referred to in relation to that 15:54 but I want us to look now 15:55 at trees because this is really interesting 15:58 and the one that... 16:00 the verse that I want us to look at is... 16:01 is Luke 23:31... for one of them 16:05 and then the other one is... 16:07 so Luke 23:31... Yvonne, if you can get that 16:10 and Jason, if you can get Luke 3 verse 9... 16:13 Luke 3 verse 9 and then Ivor, can you take us to 16:20 Daniel 4 verse 20? 16:22 Jason: All right... Yvonne: You said 23:31? 16:27 James: I said, yeah, Luke 23:31... 16:28 Yvonne: Okay... "For if they do these things 16:33 in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry?" 16:37 James: Okay, now, Jesus is talking here 16:38 and He's saying... He's liking Himself to the green tree, 16:41 "they're... they're are crucifying me, 16:43 they're persecuting me in the green tree... I'm the green tree 16:45 what's going to be done in the dry tree?" 16:46 And He's referring now to the time when the Jewish nation 16:49 is all dried up... there's no Holy Spirit, 16:51 there's nothing there, they're ready for judgment, 16:53 so He's referring to Himself as a green tree 16:55 and the Jewish nation as a dry tree 16:56 in another verse... as the fig tree... 16:58 that was cursed and it dried up, that was the Jewish nation, 17:01 okay, Jason, what have you got? 17:04 Jason: Luke chapter 3 verse 9, 17:05 "And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: 17:08 every tree therefore which bringeth not forth good fruit 17:11 is hewn down, and cast into the fire. " 17:14 James: Again, trees symbolizing people... 17:16 symbolizing judgment that comes upon people 17:19 who reject the message, 17:20 John the Baptist there speaking and is thrown into the fire, 17:23 the point we're making here is that all of these symbols... 17:26 all of these... the trees, the fire, the blood, the hail... 17:29 all of these are unpacking the Bible 17:31 and they all represent judgments... 17:33 they... it all make sense... New Testament, Old Testament, 17:35 it all comes forth, 17:37 now, the only other one that I want us to look at... 17:38 oh, Ivor, you've got one for us. 17:40 Ivor: Yeah, Daniel 4:20... "The tree that thou sawest, 17:41 which grew, and was strong, 17:43 whose height reached unto the heaven, 17:44 and the sight thereof to all the earth... " 17:46 James: Okay, that's talking about Nebuchadnezzar, 17:49 so he's a leader... so... in the Bible consistently 17:52 trees represent leaders, specifically, 17:55 so you've got the trees, 17:56 but then, what does the green grass represent? 17:59 The trees represent the leaders 18:00 like Nebuchadnezzar et cetera, what does the green grass...? 18:02 Ivor: Before you go to the grass, 18:04 I want to mention, one verse in particular 18:06 with the trees and it's found in Ezekiel 20 verse 47 18:10 and... actually verse 46 and 47. 18:12 James: You're going to read it? 18:14 Ivor: I'll read it. James: Okay... 18:16 Ivor: So it says, "Son of man, set thy face 18:17 toward the south... " that is Jerusalem... 18:20 "and drop thy word toward the south, 18:22 and prophesy against the forest of the south field; 18:25 And say to the forest of the south, 18:27 Hear the word of the Lord; Thus saith the Lord GOD; 18:32 Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, 18:35 and it shall devour every green tree in thee, 18:38 and every dry tree: 18:40 the flaming flame shall not be quenched, 18:42 and all the faces from the south to the north 18:44 shall be burned therein. " 18:46 So, here you have God using this illustration 18:49 of fire burning this forest, 18:50 and He's referring to His own people, 18:53 so when we see this plague... 18:56 not this plague but his trumpet being blown 18:59 and these trees are being burned up, 19:01 there's ample evidence to show us... 19:03 as we look at everything in its context, 19:05 and do all our double checking, 19:07 this can be nothing else but the destruction of Jerusalem. 19:12 James: In fact, look at this, one more... 19:15 a couple more verses on green grass 19:17 and then we'll kind of summarize and look at a few verses 19:19 that bring it all together, 19:21 because I think that's really going to be powerful 19:23 but... first... excuse me... Isaiah 40 verse 7... 19:26 Ivor: I'll read that, I got it right here. 19:27 James: You got it right there? Ivor: Yeah. 19:29 James: Okay. Ivor: "The voice said, Cry. 19:31 And he said, What shall I cry? 19:32 All flesh is grass, and all the goodness thereof 19:35 is as the flower of the field: 19:36 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth away: 19:39 because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: 19:42 surely the people is as grass. " 19:44 Yvonne: Hmmm... 19:45 James: Psalm 92:7 says, 19:46 "When the wicked spring as the grass, 19:48 and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; 19:52 it shall be destroyed for ever... " 19:55 James: So, green grass... people... 19:58 trees... leaders... fire... burned up... 20:03 hail... day of battle... blood... being shed... 20:08 we have all of these symbols identified in the Bible... 20:11 Ivor: Warning... James: Trumpets blowing... 20:13 the only other symbol that we want to look at 20:15 is the "third part... " 20:16 it says, "the third part of the trees and all green grass... " 20:19 and in Revelation chapter 12 and verse 3, 20:22 it talks about Satan, let's just look at that verse, 20:26 Revelation 12 and verse 3, Jason, read that for us, 20:30 if you can get that... 20:31 Jason: Chapter 12 verse 3... 20:33 James: Actually, I'm sorry, it's 12 verse 4... 20:35 Jason: Okay, "And his tail drew 20:37 the third part of the stars of heaven, 20:38 and did cast them to the earth... " 20:40 James: Stop right there... okay, 20:41 this is talking about Satan... the war in heaven... 20:45 and how his tail... which Isaiah 9:15 says, 20:48 "the prophet that teaches lies, he is the tail... " 20:50 so it's lies, deception... 20:52 "drew the third part of the stars... " 20:54 now they call it the "third part" for two reasons, 20:56 one reason is because it was a third... 20:58 a third of the angels were deceived, 21:00 but the third part now becomes a symbol 21:02 of those who were deceived, 21:03 so what the third part of the trees... is symbol... 21:07 representation of the leaders in Israel that were deceived, 21:09 they wouldn't accept the message, 21:11 it also reminds us that it's limited... 21:13 the third part is not the two thirds, 21:15 it's not the three thirds, 21:16 this is still judgment mingled with mercy, 21:18 this is limited judgment, it's not the seven last plagues, 21:22 it's not the end of probation, it's not... 21:25 we can apply this verse down to the plagues 21:27 in Revelation chapter 15 and 16, 21:29 it's right here that we have a limited judgment... 21:31 that's taking place on a specific nation 21:33 and it is... and there's still mercy tendered with that, 21:36 so we have leadership... we have people... 21:38 we have judgment, we have fire... 21:41 we have all of the destruction that was predicted 21:44 by Christ in Matthew 24... 21:46 all of it is being fulfilled here 21:48 in Revelation chapter 8 21:49 when that first trumpet is being blown. 21:51 James: You still want to go over there... 21:52 Ivor: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah... 21:54 so, remember some of the things we talked about with trumpets, 21:56 remember one of the things we talked about 21:58 was the story of Gideon, 21:59 remember the story of Gideon, how when the trumpet blew, 22:02 right, the enemies of God's people, 22:06 they turned their swords on one another, 22:08 okay, so, let's think about this 22:10 who is God's enemy at this time? 22:12 Who are the enemies of God's people... 22:14 the Christian church this time? 22:15 It's Israel... okay... 22:17 but who did Israel team up with to crucify Christ? 22:21 Yvonne: Rome... 22:22 Ivor: Rome... so here you have these two powers, 22:25 working together to oppose God's people, 22:30 well, guess what happens under the first trumpet? 22:32 They turn their swords on one another, 22:35 Rome destroys Israel... 22:38 they're in this battle between each other, 22:40 remember they said, "We have no king but Caesar... " 22:42 right, so you are our new king, come on... we're buddy buddy, 22:46 we're... when the trumpet blows, 22:48 woosh... their swords turn upon each other, 22:52 just like in Gideon's time, now, 22:54 and James and I talked about this yesterday so... 22:57 James: I can take over... I can take over here, you know. 23:02 Ivor: All right... so just watch 23:05 let's go back to Revelation 8, very quickly, 23:07 Revelation 8... and just notice this, Revelation 8... 23:11 we're not going to get into the second trumpet yet, of course. 23:13 James: Jesus says, "I'll come as a thief... " 23:15 Ivor: Funny... so in Revelation 8... 23:20 Revelation 8... and notice the second trumpet... 23:23 what is the second trumpet? 23:25 James: It's a mountain burning with fire. 23:28 Ivor: It's a mountain... right, burning with fire, 23:31 now, let's go back to the Book of Matthew... 23:33 Yvonne: Wait, I'm sorry... where is that? 23:35 Ivor: It's Revelation 8 verse... 23:36 James: Verse 8... "And the second angel sounded, 23:39 and there was this great mountain burning with fire 23:41 and was cast into the sea... " 23:43 Ivor: The mountain is where, cast where? 23:45 Yvonne: In the sea... Ivor: Into the sea... 23:48 all right, let's go over to Matthew chapter 21, 23:50 Matthew 21 and let's look at verse 19. 23:54 James: This is powerful stuff 23:55 but I think we've reversed our roles here, 23:58 I think we've reversed our roles here. 24:00 Thou shalt not steal.. 24:03 thou shalt not steal... high interest... 24:06 it's going to cost you the blueprint. 24:08 Ivor: Yeah, all right, look at verse 19... 24:13 Matthew 21... verse 19 and the Bible says here, 24:16 this is Jesus speaking, it says, 24:19 and... right... "When he saw a fig tree... " 24:23 let's go to verse 18... "Now in the morning he returned 24:26 into the city and he was hungry. 24:27 And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, 24:30 and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, 24:33 and he said unto it, 24:34 Let no fruit grow on thee henceforth for ever. 24:38 And presently... " the what? 24:39 James and Yvonne: "the fig tree withered away... " 24:42 Ivor: Now this fig tree was a symbol of Jerusalem, 24:45 no fruit on it... it's going to wither away... 24:47 it is going to fall, okay, so, in the first trumpet, 24:52 we have... the destruction of trees... 24:54 now look at what He goes on to say, 24:57 verse 20... "And when the disciples saw it, 24:59 they marveled, saying, 25:01 How soon is the fig tree withered away! 25:03 And Jesus answered and said unto them, 25:05 Verily I say unto you, 25:07 If you got faith and doubt nothing, 25:08 you shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree" 25:12 James: But... but... but... 25:16 Ivor: "but also if ye say unto this mountain, 25:20 Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; 25:23 it shall be done. " 25:25 Yvonne: Oh... 25:27 Ivor: So He... Jesus here... 25:29 James: Is talking about trees and mountains... 25:30 Ivor: He's talking about trees and mountains... 25:31 James: Symbolically... Ivor: He's says, 25:33 "Look, not only is this going to happen to the tree, 25:35 but the mountain also will be cast into the sea. " 25:38 James: Yes. Ivor: "Hey, hey, disciples, 25:40 this tree right now is your enemy 25:43 but look, this enemy is going to fall and guess what? 25:46 Not only will this tree fall 25:47 but when you say to the mountain, 25:49 the mountain is going to fall too... " 25:51 Yvonne: Oh... 25:52 Ivor: So, what can we already assume that... 25:54 whatever this mountain is... 25:55 it must be the second enemy of the people of God 25:59 at some further time when you go down. Yvonne: Wow! 26:01 James: It's going to receive a judgment. 26:03 Ivor: That's going to receive a judgment. 26:04 James: Because the trumpets represent a judgment. 26:05 Ivor: Yes... James: See what Revelation 26:07 is doing is... it's simply breaking open symbolically 26:10 the very words of Christ, the very words of the Bible 26:13 and if we're careful... 26:15 if we read carefully what Christ is saying, 26:17 if we read carefully what the Bible is teaching, 26:19 and when we talk... you know this strange language 26:21 about the fire and about the mountain 26:23 and about the trees and about the grass 26:25 and John the Baptist said, 26:27 "It's going to be hewn down and cast into the fire... " 26:28 and these differ... 26:30 but if we understand what he's talking about, 26:31 he's not talking about literal trees and... 26:33 we're talking in symbolic form, 26:35 these nations and these kingdoms and these powers 26:37 and the day would come and God is so longsuffering, 26:40 because He wants them to see and hear and receive the gospel 26:43 but the day of judgment comes so the disciples, you know, 26:47 "the fig tree right here, you're in awe about that... 26:49 but hey look... not only is that going to happen 26:51 but the mountain is also going to be taken care of, 26:53 you need to focus on the fig, 26:55 I'll take care of those things, you focus on the fig... 26:57 you focus on giving the message. " 26:59 Ivor: Advance... James: Advance. 27:00 Ivor: Move forward... advance... 27:02 James: So that's it... Yvonne: The white horse... 27:03 Ivor: Yes. James: We've almost done... 27:05 now we're starting to move into the second trumpet... 27:08 Ivor: Don't mind the red horse, don't mind it... ah boy! 27:11 James: And people are going to ask us questions, 27:14 and when they ask those questions... 27:16 Jason: That's exactly why they need to e-mail us at 27:19 sss@3abn. org 27:23 James: sss@3abn. org 27:24 and we're looking forward to those questions, 27:26 now we need to close with a word of prayer, 27:27 because we've only got about 30 seconds left, 27:29 Yvonne, would you close us out? 27:30 Yvonne: "Father, we just thank you, 27:32 we just want to say, 'thank you so much 27:34 for what you've written in your Word... ' 27:36 and continue oh God to give us insight, 27:38 guide us and direct us we pray in Jesus' name, amen. " 27:41 All: "Amen... " 27:42 James: Amen... so... next program, 27:46 we're going to be looking at second trumpet... 27:48 and all the implications of the second trumpet 27:49 and I think it's going to be pretty easy 27:51 because we're following the outline, 27:53 we're seeing the connections and the lights are going on. 27:57 Yvonne: Praise the Lord, amen... |
Revised 2016-10-12