Revelation 18 & 19

The Fourth Angel’s Message
and the Second coming

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John 16:14   He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.

 

John 16:15   All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.”

 

So, when Jesus has something to say to His people on Earth, the Holy Spirit hears what Jesus has to say and He conveys this information through the gift of prophecy to someone on Earth.

 

This phenomenon was very present in the first century A.D.

 

Notice what Paul says about this process:

 

Colossians 1:25   I have become its [the gospel’s] servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness –

 

Colossians 1:26   the mystery that God has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints.

I should point out that this phenomenon is rare because the Word of God contains everythingthat God’s people need in matters of faith and doctrine.

 

However, God’s people need a little extra help and encouragement from Jesus from time to time, so the gift of prophecy is exercised from time to time so that people can hear more clearly what the Bible has to say.

 

Now listen carefully to this:

 

The testimony of Jesus always draws people toward the Bible, the Word of God.

 

The testimony of Jesus is not the Bible; it comes as an inspiration to further investigate the Bible.

 

Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to help people understand the Bible because the Word of God is man’s authority in matters of faith and doctrine.

 

John was on the isle of Patmos because he obeyed the Word of God and as the Spirit would give him utterance, he would speak words from Jesus.

 

When the testimony of Jesus is functioning, God’s people have to be on their toes, well-studied and thorough students of the Bible BECAUSE the devil easily counterfeits this spiritual process.

 

 John knew this. He wrote,

 

1 John 4:1   Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

 

The only way to test someone who claims to supernaturally speak ‘the testimony of Jesus” is by comparing their report with Scripture.

 

During the past 2,000 years, the testimony of Jesus is an addition or a higher authority than Scriptures.

 

Jesus would not say anything that is contrary to the Bible. Never.

 

And don’t make the mistake of thinking that everything a prophet may say is “the testimony of Jesus.”

 

If you listen to a prophet, and take to heart only those things that align with

Scriptures, you will be safe.

 

During the Great Tribulation, the 144,000 will speak the testimony of Jesus and guess what? Their four messages will clearly align with Scriptures!

Let’s go back to verse 9….

 

Revelation 19:9   Then the angel said unto me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invitedto the wedding supper of the Lamb!’” And he added, ‘These are the true words of God.”

 

Revelation 19:10   At this I feel to his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not do it! I am fellow servant with you and with your brothers who hold to [uphold and honor] the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

 

Unfortunately, for many people, the word prophecy means, “future telling.”

 

In the Bible, prophecy has a much broader meaning.

 

Prophecy is a field of study that is concerned with the past, present and future from God’s perspective.

 

A proper understanding of prophecy will produce an awesome understanding of God’s love and God’s ways.

 

When these two elements are brought together, God’s plan to eliminate sin from His universe becomes overwhelming and amazing.

 

God is so cool. There is nothing like Him!!!

 

Many people want to hunker down and focus on the requirements of salvation as though nothing else really matters….

 

Yes, salvation is a very important topic, however, the true student of prophecy is not focused on one matter to the point of excluding others, rather, he is focused on God and the big picture that God is unfolding. He wants to see and understand how God eliminates sin from His universe so that sin will not occur again! This is the core issue.

 

This is why the testimony of Jesus comes through the gift of prophecy. Prophecy is the means through which Jesus Christ is best revealed and those who have ears to hear are blessed when they hear “the testimony of Jesus.”

 

After the angel tells John to write, “Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb,” John’s attention is redirected back to Heaven to witness the Second Coming.

 

[See Note at end] The 9^th prophecy ends with the total destruction of the prostitute that culminates during the seventh bowl. (Revelation 19:10) After the kings, merchants and sailors have lamented the fall and destruction of Babylon The Great, and the 144,000 have rejoiced at God’s vengeance upon her, John’s gaze is directed back to Heaven at the time of the sixth bowl. Because chronological order is broken, the 10^th prophecy begins with verse 11.

 

Revelation 19:11   I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war.

 

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