The Spirit and the bride say,"Come."
And let the one who hears say, "Come."
And let the one who is thirsty come;
let the one who wishes
take the water of life without cost.
Revelation 22:17
Some of you who have sat through hours and hours AND HOURS of my teachings on Revelation are aware that the best we can do is give you the "red bus tour" through this complex book. You know the "red bus" tours, don't you?" If you ever want to see all of London in a day, hop on the red bus. If you want to see New York in a day, hop on the red bus. I think every major city has one. The most you will get is an overview, but you can say you've seen it all.
It is my belief that Revelation is often misunderstood because people read through it, assuming that it is written in chronological order. Remember when you read through Genesis. Genesis 1 told us about the days of creation. Chapter 2 elaborated on chapter 1, but it was still the same event. At this stage in my studies, I am persuaded that the book of Revelation does the same thing. If you compare the seven trumpets with the seven bowls of wrath, I think you will understand more clearly why I lean this way. I believe the sound of the trumpets precede the pouring out of the bowls. Chapter 12 follows the blowing of the last trumpet. This is a strategically placed chapter. It is an overview of all that has happened from the time of the Old Covenant, and all that has and will take place in the New Covenant. The woman with the crown of twelve stars that gives birth to the Man Child, is Israel. The church is the rest of her offspring. There is such rich imagery in this chapter and we could camp here for a long time. But we really need to keep moving. When we hit chapter 13, we find ourselves back in the darkness that we felt in the time of the trumpets. Only this time, we are given far more details of that epoch in time.
What is the beast that has ten horns? Who is the false prophet? Who is the second smaller beast that has two horns? People have been trying to guess these answers through the ages. I'm sure if I had lived in the time of Hitler, I would have been thoroughly convinced that he was the anti-Christ. For sure, he had the spirit of anti-Christ, but he was not THE anti-Christ. Although I can't give you the answers to these questions, I can briefly give you some of my thoughts. Here it goes. I hope you can follow my thinking!
We see at the end of Revelation that the bride, the New Jerusalem comes down from God. The city covers 1,500 miles. If you take a map of the area surrounding Israel, use the scale of the map to cut out a 1,500 equivalent, you will find that the nations incorporated in the 1,500 mile perimeter are quite surprising. Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Southern Russia (aka called Magog in the Bible), and Libya. Ten key nations are represented. Hmmm! Are you seeing a common denominator. Are these the ten horns of the beast in Revelation? I personally think so. Is it any wonder that that there has been tension and uprising in this region for as long as it has existed? But what about the seven heads?
In 1945, after World War II, the British began their preparations to leave Israel, the land they had occupied since their victory over the Turks in 1917. Their victory over the Turks was largely due to the help of a Jewish chemist, Cheim Weizman, and Lord Balfour made the declaration that Israel should be returned to the Jews. In an effort to unify the Arab nations with the view of "driving the Jews into the sea," once they took occupation of the land, the Arab League of Nations was birthed. It was ratified with the signatures of SEVEN nations: Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Yemen, Jordan, Egypt, and Syria. This organization was also built to establish peace among the Arab nations. Obviously, that didn't happen!!! There are two things all these nations have in common, Islam and their hatred of Israel. Through these seven heads, a league was formed that now envelops the ten horns found within the territory of the future bride of Christ, the New Jerusalem. Is all this coincidence? Not hardly!!!
What an exciting time we live in. Watching the evening news is like watching Bible prophecy unfold. When you begin to fear, settle yourself and hear the call of the Spirit and the Bride. Better yet, be one of the ones who hears and let your voice join theirs and cry out to others, "Come! Come and drink of the waters of life! It's free!"
It is my belief that Revelation is often misunderstood because people read through it, assuming that it is written in chronological order. Remember when you read through Genesis. Genesis 1 told us about the days of creation. Chapter 2 elaborated on chapter 1, but it was still the same event. At this stage in my studies, I am persuaded that the book of Revelation does the same thing. If you compare the seven trumpets with the seven bowls of wrath, I think you will understand more clearly why I lean this way. I believe the sound of the trumpets precede the pouring out of the bowls. Chapter 12 follows the blowing of the last trumpet. This is a strategically placed chapter. It is an overview of all that has happened from the time of the Old Covenant, and all that has and will take place in the New Covenant. The woman with the crown of twelve stars that gives birth to the Man Child, is Israel. The church is the rest of her offspring. There is such rich imagery in this chapter and we could camp here for a long time. But we really need to keep moving. When we hit chapter 13, we find ourselves back in the darkness that we felt in the time of the trumpets. Only this time, we are given far more details of that epoch in time.
What is the beast that has ten horns? Who is the false prophet? Who is the second smaller beast that has two horns? People have been trying to guess these answers through the ages. I'm sure if I had lived in the time of Hitler, I would have been thoroughly convinced that he was the anti-Christ. For sure, he had the spirit of anti-Christ, but he was not THE anti-Christ. Although I can't give you the answers to these questions, I can briefly give you some of my thoughts. Here it goes. I hope you can follow my thinking!
We see at the end of Revelation that the bride, the New Jerusalem comes down from God. The city covers 1,500 miles. If you take a map of the area surrounding Israel, use the scale of the map to cut out a 1,500 equivalent, you will find that the nations incorporated in the 1,500 mile perimeter are quite surprising. Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Southern Russia (aka called Magog in the Bible), and Libya. Ten key nations are represented. Hmmm! Are you seeing a common denominator. Are these the ten horns of the beast in Revelation? I personally think so. Is it any wonder that that there has been tension and uprising in this region for as long as it has existed? But what about the seven heads?
In 1945, after World War II, the British began their preparations to leave Israel, the land they had occupied since their victory over the Turks in 1917. Their victory over the Turks was largely due to the help of a Jewish chemist, Cheim Weizman, and Lord Balfour made the declaration that Israel should be returned to the Jews. In an effort to unify the Arab nations with the view of "driving the Jews into the sea," once they took occupation of the land, the Arab League of Nations was birthed. It was ratified with the signatures of SEVEN nations: Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Yemen, Jordan, Egypt, and Syria. This organization was also built to establish peace among the Arab nations. Obviously, that didn't happen!!! There are two things all these nations have in common, Islam and their hatred of Israel. Through these seven heads, a league was formed that now envelops the ten horns found within the territory of the future bride of Christ, the New Jerusalem. Is all this coincidence? Not hardly!!!
What an exciting time we live in. Watching the evening news is like watching Bible prophecy unfold. When you begin to fear, settle yourself and hear the call of the Spirit and the Bride. Better yet, be one of the ones who hears and let your voice join theirs and cry out to others, "Come! Come and drink of the waters of life! It's free!"
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