Revelation

1
Revelation

• He will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the
  presence of the Lamb (1410)

2

• Dr. Cole, Im relatively new to your Bible
  study. You talk a lot about Satan. Im just
  wondering why you emphasize this point so much.

3
Cosmic Conflict relevant, explanatory power for
understanding our world
God
Non-Humans
Humans
4
Cosmic Conflict Identifying the problem

• Creation
• The earth was formless and void, and darkness
  was over the surface of the deep. (Genesis 12)
• Formless and void in the Bible symbolizes The
  forces that oppose Yahweh and his acts of
  creationthe forces of disorder, injustice,
  affliction, and chaos, which are, in the
  Israelite worldview, one. Jon Levenson, Creation
  and the Persistence of Evil

5
Cosmic Conflict Identifying the problem

• Snake in the tree
• War in Heaven (127)
• What was said at the tree?
• Eve believed the words of Satan, and the belief
  of that falsehood in regard to God's character,
  changed the condition and character of both
  herself and husband... RH 1886

6
Cosmic Conflict Old Testament

• The LORD's spirit left Saul, and an evil spirit
  sent by the LORD tormented him. (1 Samuel 1614
  1810-12 199)
• The LORD was angry at Israel again, and he made
  David think it would be a good idea to count the
  people in Israel and Judah. (2 Samuel 241)
• Satan wanted to bring trouble on the people of
  Israel, so he made David decide to take a
  census. (1 Chronicles 211)

7
Cosmic Conflict The life and death of Jesus

• The hour of Jesus
• Now my heart is troubled---and what shall I say?
  Shall I say, 'Father, do not let this hour come
  upon me'? But that is why I came---so that I
  might go through this hour of sufferingNow is
  the time for this world to be judged now the
  ruler of this world will be overthrown
  (exposed). (John 1227, 31)

8
Cosmic Conflict Revelation and eschatology

• God is not the only acting subject
• Revelation is not only the story of the Lamb, it
  is the story of the Dragon

9
Cosmic Conflict The future showdown

• Satan
• Coercion
• Force, fear and intimidation
• Shrouded in mystery, lies and deception
• God
• The truth is spoken in love, people are free to
  decide
• Gods power is selfless love and service
• Gods government is transparent

10
Cosmic Conflict Theodicy

• Christ
• The 3 and ½ years of Jesus ministry as Gods
  response to all suffering
• The Healer
• The One who goes to the lowest point, suffering
  the most
• The Cross
• Satan
• the Destroyer
• The one who strives for the highest point
  survival of the fittest
• During the life and death of Jesus, Satan is
  exposed

11
Cosmic Conflict Gods apparent inaction
12

• Daniel, dont be afraid. God has heard your
  prayers ever since the first day you decided to
  humble yourself in order to rain understanding. I
  have come in answer to your prayer. (Daniel
  101,11-13)

13

• The angel prince of the kingdom of Persia
  opposed me for twenty-one days. Then Michael, one
  of the chief angels, came to help me Now I have
  to go back and fight the guardian angel of
  Persia. After that the guardian angel of Greece
  will appear. There is no one to help me except
  Michael, Israels guardian angel. He is
  responsible for helping and defending me (Daniel
  1013,20 111).
• We wanted to return to you, I myself tried to go
  back more than once, but Satan would not let us.
  (1 Thessalonians 219)

14
Cosmic Conflict spectator to participant

• Daniels prayer
• And God, our source of peace, will soon crush
  Satan under your feet. (Romans 1620)

15
The Good News and Judgment

• Then I saw another angel flying high in the air,
  with an eternal (everlasting) message of Good
  News to announce to the peoples of the earth, to
  every race, tribe, language, and nation. He said
  in a loud voice, Honor God and praise his
  greatness! For the time has come for him to judge
  all people. Worship him who made heaven, earth,
  sea, and the springs of water! (Revelation
  146-7)

16
Judgment

• This is how the judgment works the light has
  come into the world, but people love the darkness
  rather than the light... (John 319)
• The Father judges no one. He has given his Son
  the full right to judgeAnd he has given the Son
  the right to judge, because he is the Son of
  Man. (John 522,27).

17

• How does Jesus judge those who reject his
  message?
• If people hear my message and do not obey it, I
  will not judge them. I came, not to judge the
  world, but to save it. Those who reject me and do
  not accept my message have one who will judge
  them. The words I have spoken will be their judge
  on the last day! (John 1247-48)

18

• What words, what message, what truth will be the
  judge?
• If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.
  (John 148)
• according to the Good News I preach, this is
  how it will be on that Day when God through Jesus
  Christ will judge the secret thoughts of all.
  (Romans 216)

19

• God uses us to make the knowledge about Christ
  spread everywhere like a sweet fragrance. For we
  are like a sweet-smelling incense offered by
  Christ to God, which spreads among those who are
  being saved and those who are being lost. For
  those who are being lost, it is a deadly stench
  that kills but for those who are being saved, it
  is a fragrance that brings life. (2 Corinthians
  214-16 GN)

20

• And when Pharaoh saw that the rain, the hail,
  and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet more
  and he hardened his heart, he and his servants.
  So the heart of Pharaoh was hard neither would
  he let the children of Israel go, as the LORD had
  spoken by Moses. Now the LORD said to Moses, Go
  in to Pharaoh for I have hardened his heart and
  the hearts of his servants (Exodus 934-101
  NKJV)

21
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22

• Separation
• Seal of God
• Mark of the Beast

23
2nd Angels Message

• A second angel followed the first one, saying,
  She has fallen! Great Babylon has fallen! She
  made all peoples drink her wine---the strong wine
  of her immoral lust! (Revelation 148)

24
3rd Angels Message

• A third angel followed them and said in a loud
  voice If anyone worships the beast and his
  image and receives his mark on the forehead or on
  the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of
  God's fury, which has been poured full strength
  into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented
  with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy
  angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their
  torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest
  day or night for those who worship the beast and
  his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of
  his name. (Revelation 149-11 NIV)

25

• The rivers of Edom will turn into tar, and the
  soil will turn into sulfur. The whole country
  will burn like tar. It will burn day and night,
  and smoke will rise from it forever. The land
  will lie waste age after age, and no one will
  ever travel through it again. Owls and ravens
  will take over the land. The LORD will make it a
  barren waste again, as it was before the
  creation. (Isaiah 349-11)

26
3rd Angels Message

• A third angel followed them and said in a loud
  voice If anyone worships the beast and his
  image and receives his mark on the forehead or on
  the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of
  God's fury, which has been poured full strength
  into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented
  with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy
  angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their
  torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest
  day or night for those who worship the beast and
  his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of
  his name. (Revelation 149-11 NIV)

27

• Because the LORD your God is like a flaming
  fire. (Daniel 424)
• God is a consuming fire. (Hebrews 1229)

28
(No Transcript)
29

• The sinners in Zion are terrified trembling
  grips the godless Who of us can dwell with the
  consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with
  everlasting burning? He who walks righteously
  and speaks what is right (Isaiah 3314-15 NIV)

30

• Put me like a seal over your heart, like a seal
  on your arm
• For love is as strong as death
• Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame
  of the Lord.
• Many waters cannot quench love,
• Nor will rivers overflow it (Song of Solomon
  86-7 NASB)

31
Fire from the opposing side

• This second beast performed great miracles it
  made fire come down out of heaven to earth in the
  sight of everyone. (Revelation 1313)
• 6th Trumpet Demonic mounted troops and that
  from their mouths came out fire, smoke and
  sulfura third of the human race was killed by
  those three plagues the fire, the smoke and
  sulfur coming out of the horses mouths.
  (Revelation 819)

32
Fire from the opposing side

• Then one of the seven angels who had the seven
  bowls came to me and said, Come, and I will show
  you how the famous prostitute is to be punished,
  that great city that is built near many rivers.
  (Revelation 171)
• The ten horns that you saw, they and the beast
  will hate the whore they will make her desolate
  and naked they will devour her flesh and burn
  her up with fire (Revelation 1716).

33
Who makes war in Revelation?

• The dragon and his angels warred (127) Then
  the dragonwent off to make war (1217) And
  it was allowed to make war on the saints (137)
  the beastwill make war on them (117) these
  are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go
  abroad to the kings of the whole world, to
  assemble them for war (1614) Then I saw the
  beast and the kings of the earth with their
  armies gathered to make war against the rider
  (1919)

34
Blood as high as the bridles

• The wine press where blood flowedas high as
  the bridles of the horses, for a distance of
  about two hundred miles. (1420)
• Context In those daysa stream shall flow with
  their blood. For a man shall not be able to
  withhold his hands from his sons nor from (his)
  sons sons in order to kill them. Nor is it
  possible for the sinner to withhold his hands
  from his honored brother. From dawn until the sun
  sets, they shall slay each other. The horse shall
  walk through the blood of sinners up to his
  chest and the chariot shall sink down up to its
  top (1 Enoch 1003).

35

• You defiled your sanctuaries with your many sins
  and your dishonest trade. So I brought fire from
  within you, and it consumed you. I let it burn
  you to ashes on the ground in the sight of all
  who were watching. (Ezekiel 2818, NLT)

36

• The great day of the LORD is near---very near
  and coming fast! That day will be bitter, for
  even the bravest soldiers will cry out in
  despair! It will be a day of fury, a day of
  trouble and distress, a day of ruin and
  destruction, a day of darkness and gloom, a black
  and cloudy day, a day filled with the sound of
  war trumpets and the battle cry of soldiers
  attacking fortified cities and high towers.
  (Zephaniah 114-17)
• See Ezekiel 3818-23 and Zechariah 1412-13

37
The Ending Bookend to Genesis

• Genesis God is an untrustworthy and arbitrary
  liar (31-5)
• Revelation God is called Faithful and True
  (1911), Jesus is referred to as the faithful
  witness. (15) The Serpent is unmasked as the
  Devil, who deceived them (2010)
• Genesis Gods mere presence caused his children
  to tremble in the bushes (38) No one can see
  my face and live. (Exodus 3320)
• Revelation Gods people are now protected by
  his presence (715) They will see his face,
  and his name will be written on their foreheads.
  (224)

38
The Ending Bookend to Genesis

• Genesis Because of what you have done, the
  ground will be under a curse. (317)
• Revelation Nothing that is under Gods curse
  will be found in the city. (223)
• Genesis Adam and Eve lost access to the tree of
  life. (324)
• Revelation I will give the right to eat the
  fruit of the tree of life that grows in the
  Garden of Godthe leaves of its tree will heal
  the nations. (27, 222)

39
The Ending Bookend to Genesis

• Genesis Separated from God, Adam and Eve were
  warned of a hard life of struggles, hardship and
  ultimately death, You were made from the dust,
  and to dust you will return. (Genesis 319)
• Revelation Now Gods home is with people! He
  will live with them, and they shall be his
  people. God himself will be with them, and he
  will be their God. He will wipe away all tears
  from their eyes. There will be no more death, no
  more grief or crying or pain. The old things have
  disappeared. (Revelation 213,4)