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 Sermon > Official Service |
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Title |
Revelation Lectures(39) |
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Speaker |
Rev. Jaerock Lee |
Bible |
Revelation6:1-2 |
Date |
2007-09-21 |
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Revelation 6:1-2
[1] Then I saw when the Lamb broke one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder, "Come."
[2] I looked, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
From Chapter 6 comes the prophecy about the 7 Year Great Tribulation.
After those who are saved by believing in the Lord are caught up into the air with the Lord, the 7 Year Great Tribulation will take place in this earth.
The 7 Year Great Tribulation will be the unprecedented tribulation that is characterized by warfare and natural disasters.
In the chapter 6 of Revelation is a prelude to the 3rd World War that will drive the whole world into war.
It is 'the end of the age (or world)' mentioned in the bible.
In Matthew 24:3, the disciples of the Lord says to Jesus, "Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?"
Then, Jesus says in the verse 6, "You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end."
Here, 'wars' don't just refer to 'conflicts' limited to a country or a region. It rather refers to warfare that affects the whole world.
Therefore, 'wars' here indicates the 1st and the 2nd World Wars.
But, Jesus says, "Those things must take place, but that is not yet the end."
He is giving us a hint that an incident such as those wars will take place again at the end of the age.
And it will become such a terrible incident that everybody will say, "It is truly the end of the world.'
And the 'incident' that will take place at the end of the world is the 3rd World War.
As the Lord breaks the seven seals, the whole world will stand in a tense situation that cannot but lead to a world war.
Tonight's scripture, verses 1 & 2 say, "Then I saw when the Lamb broke one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder, "Come." I looked, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer."
As written, the signs of disasters finally make an appearance only when the Lamb, the Lord breaks the seals. It means all the incidents such as the 3rd World War during the 7 Year Great Tribulation will take place under the supervision of the Lord.
In addition, he says, "When the Lord broke one of the seven seals, I heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder."
The fact that the 4 living creatures that carry out direct orders of God are involved like this means that all the things are accomplished in the will and the providence of God under His permission.
But it doesn't mean that God Himself brings the disasters of the 7 Year Great Tribulation to this earth.
It means that even though the terrible wars and natural disasters are unavoidable according to the law of justice, all of those are accomplished in the providence of God who foreknows everything and preplans everything according to His foreknowledge.
The fact that the 4 Living Creatures are speaking like a voice of thunder means that they have very great power and authority.
One of such 4 living creatures says to Apostle John, "Come," and it means that it will show Apostle John how events will take place.
When Apostle John looked, there was 'a white horse.'
The color of white means 'the light,' 'purity,' and 'sanctification.' And in a spiritual sense, it belongs to God.
'A horse' means 'authority and dignity,' as well as 'a war.'
In the past, horses played an important role in a war.
And he saw some one who sat on the white horse. He is the one who can make use of the given authority and dignity; he is an envoy who carries out things in the name of the Lord.
Apostle John says that this man had a bow.
'A bow' means 'strife and fighting.'
A bow is used to shoot an arrow at a target or a goal. In the process of accomplishing a goal, bitter rivalry and disputes will arise.
Therefore, the fact that an envoy of the Lord had a bow means that peace will be broken due to the discord.
Now, the fact that a crown was given to him means that he is guaranteed by God.
It means he becomes a leader, and he is given wealth, honor and authority.
And at the same time, a crown means 'pride' and 'arrogance.'
Then, who is it that the explanationcorresponds to so far?
It is the people of Israel.
The white horse spiritually means the tribe of Israel, and the one who sat on the white horse is leading force that holds sway over the destinies of the people of Israel.
I told you that the color of white means that it belongs to God, and a horse means 'authority and dignity' as well as 'a war.'
The people of Israel are the God-chosen people, and many wars have broken out due to this nation of people through out history.
'Having a bow' means 'breaking peace to achieve a goal.' As I will tell you later, Israel has always caused conflicts with its neighbors in order to achieve its goals.
Despite all these, the people of Israel are enjoying wealth, honor, and authority in many parts of the world under the protection of God.
And because of this, they are proud of themselves and arrogant.
It is the arrogance that they have is in being the God-chosen people, and that they always win victory in God's protection.
This is illustrated as 'a crown is given to him.'
I'll give you more detailed explanation about the people of Israel so that you understand what I've told you so far.
Dear brothers and sisters.
John 19:23-24 says, "Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His outer garments and made four parts, a part to every soldier and also the tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece. So they said to one another, "Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, to decide whose it shall be". This was to fulfill the Scripture saying, "They divided My outer garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.""
I already explained the spiritual meaning of these verses in 'The Message of the Cross' lecture.
Briefly speaking, the garment of the Lord means the people of Israel.
Making His garments into four parts means in a physical sense that the people will break up and be scattered.
But the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece so that the soldiers didn't tear it. It means that the inner heart of the people of Israel will not break up.
As written, in the year of our Lord 70, Jerusalem was completely destroyed by a Roman General, Titus, and the country, Israel itself disappeared.
Survivors were scattered around the world, and Jewish people are still scattered and living in many parts of the world.
However, despite the fact that their country was destroyed and they are still scattered, the inner heart for God cannot be taken away or destroyed by anybody.
There were a couple of attempts to destroy Jewish people at the root, but they overcame them. They rather set up their own independent country in May 14, 1948.
There are no other people in the history of the world than the people of Israel who re-established their independent nation and government 2,000 years after the country was completely destroyed and disappeared.
It is the Jewish, the people of Israel, that made it possible.
It was made possible only because for the many long years their inner heart for God has never been altered. They achieve this huge goal with an earnest desire that they would take back the land of promise that God gave to them.
Because of this, the pride of the people of Israel has become increasingly greater.
The idea that they are God's chosen people and that they are superior to any other people is still in their heart.
But this idea turned into arrogance and selfishness, and it made peaceful coexistence with other neighboring countries impossible.
There is still tension between Israel and other Middle East countries. And since their independence, Israel lives in a perpetual situation of war.
They continually have small conflicts, battles and major wars.
However, just as the verse 2 says, "he went out conquering and to conquer," Israel has won those battles and wars.
Dear brothers and sisters.
As I told you, 2,000 years after the people of Israel lost their country and territory, they came back to their old land and set up their independent country.
How was it possible that those who had lived in that land for the last 2,000 years welcomed them back?
From a common sense standpoint, it's hard to believe that they had to turn over their lands to the people of Israel as a territory of Israel.
Of course, those many Arab countries that located near the old territory of Israel wouldn't welcome Israel.
When Israel declared its independence on May 14, 1948, the very next day, May 15, the allied Arab countries attacked Israel.
It is so called, "Arab-Israeli War," and it was the 1st Arab-Israeli War.
At that time, the Israeli army was small in scale, and not well-armed. But their united strength brought them a great victory.
And the 2nd Arab-Israeli War, called "Suez Crisis" broke out in October, 1956, and again, Israel achieved victory.
The 3rd Arab-Israeli War which broke out in June 5, 1967 is well-known as the Six-Day War.
Allied Arab nations attacked Israel, but the Israeli Army defeated them in 6 days.
Moreover, after this Six-Day War, Israel gained control of the Gaza Strip, the Sinai Peninsula, the West Bank, and the Golan Heights.
Israel also gained the control of eastern Jerusalem, and enjoyed great prosperity afterwards.
There is a famous anecdote. In a council of war, a general who was leading the Israeli Army prayed with his baton lifted, "God, please make this war finished in 6 days so that we can keep the Sabbath."
Later, the 4th Arab-Israeli War, called "Yom Kippur War or Ramadan War" broke out, and Israel also won this war.
Other than these, there were many large and small conflicts and battles between Arab nations and Israel, and Israel won victory every time.
Dear brothers and sisters.
In the 20th chapter of 2 Chronicles, the allied forces of Moabites and Ammonites and some of Meunites came to make war against Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah.
Then, the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel, and the word of God was spoken to the Israelites.
2 Chronicles 20:15 says, "And he said, "Listen, all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: thus says the LORD to you, 'Do not fear or be dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours but God's."
As written, the battle is God's.
Not only battle, but the life and death, and fortune and misfortune of life, and the history of the world are under the supervision of God.
Therefore, even though the people of Israelites seemed physically weak and poor, when they pleased God and lived by the word of God, God was always with them and they always won victories.
But, no matter how much they possessed in a fleshly sense, when they left God and didn't live by the word of God, they were attacked by their neighboring countries and they had to suffer from the defeat in those battles.
But the independence of the people of Israel was already prophesied in the Old Testaments by God, and it was fulfilled in His providence.
For illustration, Ezekiel 38:8-9 says, "After many days you will be summoned; in the latter years you will come into the land that is restored from the sword, whose inhabitants have been gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel which had been a continual waste; but its people were brought out from the nations, and they are living securely, all of them. You will go up, you will come like a storm; you will be like a cloud covering the land, you and all your troops, and many peoples with you."
How precisely is this word being fulfilled?
In the wars that Arab nations brought about to destroy Israel, God naturally took the side for Israel and cause the people of Israel to gain victories in those wars.
God guarantees what He said, and eventually He is accomplishing His work in His providence through the people of Israel.
By the way, tonight's scripture says, "he went out conquering and to conquer." It means that they haven't finished conquering.
In other words, the war is still in progress, and they cannot say that they have won the complete victory.
That's because there is another great war left; that is the 3rd World War.
Actually, the people of Israel were also greatly involved in the out break of the 1st and the 2nd World Wars. And they will be closely connected with 3rd World War in the future
The land where Israel and its neighboring countries is now located was the starting point where God began the process of human cultivation.
And the end of His human cultivation will also take place in this area.
Israel is in the center of it, and the 3rd World War will break out due to the war between Arab nations and Israel, and it will lead to the destruction of mankind.
Like this, Israel will play the important role in the history of mankind, and all the situations are formed so that things cannot but take place as they are supposed to be.
By the way, in this kind of situation with Israel in its center, we can find how faithfully God fulfills what He says through the country of Egypt.
After Israel won all the 4 Arab-Israeli Wars, Israel and Egypt signed the Peace Treaty in 1978 by the arbitration of the US.
Many in the Arab community were outraged at Egypt's peace with Israel, but Israel withdrew its troops and settlers from the Sinai Peninsula.
But all these incidents were not by chance. These all took place in the will of God according to word of God written in the bible.
As written in Genesis 47:7-12, thanks to Joseph who became the ruler of Egypt, Jacob and his entire household could escape from severe famine, and moved to Egypt.
And there is a scene of Jacob standing before Pharaoh and blessing him.
Pharaoh showed his kindness to Jacob and his family, and gave land for them to settle down.
Genesis 47:11-12 says, "So Joseph settled his father and his brothers and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had ordered. Joseph provided his father and his brothers and all his father's household with food, according to their little ones."
Likewise, Jacob and his family, the beginning of the people of Israel, are greatly indebted to Egypt.
That's why Deuteronomy 23:7 says, "you shall not detest an Egyptian, because you were an alien in his land."
Furthermore, since Jacob, the origin of Israel blessed Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, Israel and Egypt could sign the Peace Treaty that appeared impossible in a fleshly sense.
Because of this Peace Treaty, not only these days but also during the great war in the future, unlike other Arab nations, Egypt will be able to escape from terrible disasters.
However, in the end, Israel and its neighboring countries will be brought into a war during the 3rd World War, and face terrible disasters.
In the beginning, it will start as a war between Arab nations and Israel. But the complex chemistry between countries who try to take the control over oil, and the matter of relations between the US and Israel will bring all the forces of the world into struggle against each other.
As it will be explained later, a huge war will break out with the huge number of armies, which will count "two hundred million" as written in Revelation 9:16.
This is the peak situation during the 3rd World War.
Tonight's scripture verses 1 & 2 contain incredible meaning.
In the next lecture, I will explain about the meaning of 'a red horse' and 'a black horse,' and the situation where the whole world cannot but get involved in full scale warfare.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
The great wars between Arab nations and Israel, and the World War are the incidents that will take place on the earth where the saved children of God no longer remain.
However, just as told, all the things that will take place at the end of the world will not occur in an instant.
These are the incidents resulting from the things that have taken place for the past several thousand years according to the justice.
Everything has been precisely accomplished within the will and providence of God, and the result of them will also turn out according to the word of God without the slightest error.
The same applies to the will and providence of God toward this church.
God chose this church long ago to accomplish His great will at the end time of the world. He has intervened in every detail so far.
To allow us to accomplish such invaluable missions as the construction of the Grand Sanctuary and World Evangelization at the conclusion of human cultivation, God has refined us again and again, and allowed us to meet the qualifications according to (the laws of spiritual) justice.
Therefore, knowing the trend of world history through this lecture on Revelation is, of course, important. But at the same time, I hope that you will believe in your heart that God's will and providence have been accomplished precisely, and receive strength from it.
And please also believe in your spiritual faith that Father God's will and providence toward this church, me, and you will also be accomplished.
Just as God said "I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who will do all My will," may all the will of God be accomplished through you who are after Father God's heart, in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, I pray!
Amen |
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