Feast of Pentecost - 2017

Events of the Tribulation and the First Resurrection

Fred E. Coulter—June 4, 2017

- Video | - PDF | Audio | [Up]

Greetings, brethren! Welcome to the Feast of Pentecost! As we say every year, time marches on! And it does! Yesterday we ended up with what was going on with the temple in Jerusalem on Pentecost and then the seven churches, but let's come back to Lev. 23 and see some of the things that will be going on.

As I noted yesterday, all the instructions for Pentecost are the longest instructions of any of the Holy Days of God listed in Lev. 23. This is a new offering at the completion of the grain harvest. Of course, we find in Matt. 13, Mark 4 and Luke 8 the parable of the sowing of the seed and the grain that grows. God is interested in the full mature grain.

We can say that in the Churches of God today that there are an awful lot of us gathering more and more of the full head of grain. Some of it is bare grain with little hair, and other of it is gray hair, so that's kind of like the wheat without the whiskers on it, and the wheat with the whiskers on it; either way the harvest goes on.

Every year brethren complete their course by dying in the faith. That's what God wants, because that's the cutting of the grain. Then the grain represents our spirit, which goes back to God, and that's put in storage for the first resurrection. The Spirit of God and man combined together in that new spiritual character, which is solidified at death, goes back to God and does not function without a brain and body. It's just kind of like these recording chips that we record our videos and our audios on.

What's recorded is on there, but you don't know what is on there if you just look at the chip, until you put it into a player, and then you need electricity for the player to work, so that's kind like the analogy of the storing of the spirit of man and the Spirit of God perfected, and that's put into a new mind and a new body at the resurrection. That's the new grain offering, and here is how it is offered:

Leviticus 23:17: "You shall bring out of your homes two wave loaves of two tenth parts. They shall be of fine flour. They shall be baked with leaven, they are the firstfruits to the LORD." We'll talk about firstfruits and firstborn a little bit later.

All of the special offerings that are to be offered—vs 18-20—are to be waved with the offering bread of the firstfruits.

Why does it say leaven? We know that leaven during the Days of Unleavened Bread is pictured as sin. But all the rest of the year it's not pictured as sin. There is a proper and good use of leaven. And leaven is also part of the peace offering offered to God. We offer leavened and unleavened bread, both.

Matthew 13:33: "Another parable He spoke to them: 'The Kingdom of Heaven is compared to leaven…" We know that the Kingdom of Heaven is a kingdom of righteousness, not a kingdom of sin, so this has to be the good use of leaven.

Why would God have the offering on Pentecost with leaven? Well, when you put leaven in it, as it says here:

"…which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour until all was leavened" (v 33). When you bake it, it's permanent. But what the leaven does, it changes the bread and makes it rise, though you can't see the work of the leaven.

So, in this case, the leaven is likened to the Holy Spirit, which then makes the bread good, with good leaven. It's just like us: we're to grow in grace and knowledge, we're to prepare for the first resurrection, and then we die. Now everything is set, dying in this case is comparable to that which has been baked. Then the resurrection is like the finished product after it comes out of the oven, so the oven can be compared—in analogy—to the grave, though it's a cold place. So, the analogy breaks down at that point.

I'm sure someone is going to write me and say, 'How do you know the grave is hot?' Not unless you're buried next to a volcano, that might be a different story.

God also tells us that we are to bring an offering in addition to that on Pentecost, and we are not to come before the Lord empty. Think about how much God is going to give us on Pentecost at the resurrection: All the riches of the Kingdom of Heaven!

So, we are to count our blessings, as we are told, and accordingly give. We're also told by Jesus telling the disciples about the example of the rich man throwing all of their large offerings into the treasury and a little widow woman puts in two little mites, which was all of the substance of her living for that day, and Jesus said that she 'gave more than all of them combined.' So, it depends on

• what you have
• what your attitude is
• how much you love God
• how many blessings God has blessed you with

Don't just look to the physical blessings, because that can become deceptive. Look at the spiritual blessings:

• What do you know?
• What do you understand?

Look at the lessons that God has been able to teach you through the trials that you go through. Because everything works together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose!

(pause for offering)

We know that the Holy Days picture the framework of God's plan… See books at truthofGod.org:

• God's Plan for Mankind Revealed by His Sabbath and Holy Days
• From a Speck of Dust to a Son of God

The fulfillment of those Scriptures that are contained shows what is going to happen at the resurrection. There's a reason why we're made in the image and likeness of God. There's a reason why we follow the Word of God the way that we do. It is the Truth! Jesus personified is the Word, because the message of eternal life came through Him, to the apostles by the power of God's Spirit and Jesus told His apostles, 'The words I speak to you, they are Spirit and they are Life; and the flesh profits nothing!'

Let's see something very interesting concerning the beginning of the ministry of Jesus Christ. For all of those of you who are able to go to the website and download the Calculated Hebrew Calendar or in the back of the Bible we have all of the Holy Days listed through the ministry of Jesus Christ.

We know that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and the Holy Spirit came down upon Him, bodily in the form of a dove (Matt. 3). Then a voice out of heaven said, 'This is My Son, the Beloved in whom I delight, or am well pleased.'

Sidebar on a burnt offering: A burnt offering is that we come to God, a parallel is that the burnt offering was taken to the priest. The burnt offering represented Christ and the priest also represented Christ. Then the person who brought it laid his hand on it when it's throat was slit so that the priest could catch the blood in a bowl and sprinkle it on the altar. But it was wholly burned! The priest didn't eat any and the offerer didn't eat any. It was not for a an atonement for sin, it was for atonement for 'at-one-ment' with God or acceptance.

Jesus fulfilled all of those things in His life. So, when He became before God to be baptized, He was accepted, anointed, received the Holy Spirit of God for His Messiahship ministry.

The first thing He had to overcome was Satan the devil. Is that something we have to overcome? Yes, indeed! According to the chronology, in the year 26A.D. in the fall, when Jesus began His ministry, that was a Jubilee Year and the Day of Atonement was on a Wednesday. That's parallel with His death on Wednesday.

One thing that many people don't know is that though Jesus' ministry was three and a half years, it was actually 44 months, because in the three and half years that Jesus was on the earth, there were two leap years with a second Adar.

• He began His ministry on day 4
• it was 44 months and He ended His ministry with His crucifixion on day 4
• He was raised from the death at the end of the Sabbath, being 3 days and 3 nights in the grave
• He ascended to the Father on the 4th day and came back that same day to be with His disciples
• He was with the disciples for 40 days and 40 nights before He ascended for the last time

Now then, Jesus did not announce Who He was until the Day of Pentecost:

Luke 4:16: "And He came to Nazareth…"—after His baptism and so forth. You need A Harmony of the Gospels to get the timeframe from His baptism and the beginning of His ministry on the fourth day of the week, Wednesday, and His coming to the temple during the time of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, because Jesus was busy during that time.

Now, when "…He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and according to His custom, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath Day and stood up to read" (v 16). This Sabbath Day was a special Sabbath Day, which is on or in the day of the weeks, which is Pentecost.

Pentecost is a mini-jubilee. He could not announce His Messiahship out in the wilderness with Satan the devil. Who would have heard Him? How would they have known? And His ministry was to be spiritual. So, Pentecost is a mini spiritual jubilee, because He was raised on the first day of the count—He ascended to heaven—and on the last day of the count all the saints will be resurrected. With seven weeks of continuous harvest, as we saw with the seven churches yesterday on Day 49.

Verse 17: "And there was given Him the book of the prophet Isaiah; and when He had unrolled the scroll, He found the place where it was written… [no oral tradition; so He reads the quote] …'The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me; for this reason, He has anointed Me to preach the Gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal those who are brokenhearted, to proclaim pardon to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to send forth in deliverance those who have been crushed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord'" (vs 17-19). The Jubilee Year or the beginning of the ministry of Christ!

It was a spiritual ministry. Notice that if you go back and read Isa. 61, right after this quote it says that He came to execute vengeance. That's His second coming!

So, on this day of Pentecost in 27A.D. a Jubilee Year, running from fall to fall, Atonement to Atonement, 26-27A.D. This is Pentecost right in the middle of it, and He proclaimed that He was the spiritual Messiah! The people there said, 'Who is He? We know Mary, Joseph, His brothers and sisters, where does He get off saying this?' Of course, they were filled with indignation and wanted to kill Him, but He got away from them.

Let's see some things that are very important in this. Let's look at some Scriptures that talks about Christ and the resurrection and our resurrection, and when it will be.

It's very important for us to go through some of these Scriptures. Here's another thing that is true: every time we go over the Scriptures, we reinforce what we know, and we learn something new! And we put together other Scriptures during the year from Pentecost last year to Pentecost this year, and it gives us a better understanding of the Scriptures altogether.

Paul understood that he was 'least of all the apostles,' and just before he was ready to die he said that he was 'less than the least of the brethren.' Paul coming from unconversion, vanity and self-exaltation and authority to kill and persecute the brethren whom God has called, the true Christians, all the way down to 'I'm less than the least of the saints.' Truly an example of humility for us. '

1-Corinthians 15:10: "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me has not been in vain; rather, I have labored more abundantly than all of them…" He wrote about 60% of the New Testament. He supervised Luke because Luke was Paul's physician and secretary.

"…however, it was not I, but the grace of God with me. Now then, whetherI or they, so we preach, and so you have believed. But if…" (vs 10-12). Because right back then at that point, the Greeks were bringing in the theory of the immortality of the soul. So, they were saying that the only resurrection they needed was Christ.

How has that stuck with Christianity in the world? Exactly the same! Christ was raised from the dead, but all of our souls go to heaven. So, you see how sin—when people believe it—sticks around for centuries!

"…Christ is being preached, that He rose from the dead, how is it that some among you…" (v 12). Paul was really upset with them because they didn't have the knowledge of God. I wonder if that applies to some Christians today? I think so!

"…How is it that some of among you are saying that there is no resurrection of the dead? For if there is no resurrection from the dead, neither has Christ been raised" (vs 12-13). But we read in Rev. 1, yesterday, that He was the one Who was dead, but is alive evermore!

Verse 14: "And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, and your faith is also in vain." Every Sunday-keeper listen up! If you think that there's no resurrection and only Christ is the One Who has been resurrected, and we'll add in the Catholics who think that Mary was bodily assumed into heaven, which is a great fantastic lie; never was, you'd better read this verse 14. You Christianity is in vain!

• you worship on Sunday, the wrong day
• you keep the holidays of the this world, which originate with Satan the devil, wrong days

That's why you don't know anything!

• you may know how to pronounce the name of Christ, true
• you may do nice things for other people, true
• you may be good upstanding people in this society, true

But where are you concerning salvation? That's the question! So, your faith is in vain!

Verse 15: "And we are also found to be false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that He raised Christ, Whom He did not raise, if indeed the dead are not raised." They never found the body! Don't you think if they would have found the body…

Sidebar: We have the stupidity of people today examining the 'shroud' thinking they can get some DNA from here and they'll know about Christ.

Jesus was never buried with a shroud, because they way they buried they had burial cloth, wide linen and they put the spices on it and wound it, beginning with the feet, then around the legs and torso, then up and around the chest, arms and hands, and then put a special cloth over the face, which was called a napkin.

Does that sound like a shroud? Besides, people worship it, and the Catholic Church promotes it in its worship and its veneration, because they hold people in the bondage of idolatry.

Verse 16: "For if the dead are not raised, neither has Christ been raised. But if Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain; you are still in your sins, and those who have fallen asleep in Christ have then perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most miserable. But now Christ has been raised from the dead…" (vs 16-20). All the apostles saw Him. After Jesus called Paul, he saw Him and heard His voice.

"…He has become the Firstfruit of those who have fallen asleep" (v 20). Death for a Christian is like sleeping, because they're going to be raised. Their next thought after death will be the glory of the resurrection and looking at an angel face-to-face who is taking them up the Sea of Glass.

I'm getting ahead of myself, but that's what's going to happen here.

Verse 35: "Nevertheless, someone will say, 'How are the dead raised?….'" That's up to God. It's not going to be the body that you have, because all of that has disintegrated.

"'…And with what body do they come?'" (v 35). How can that be? 'It's better being immortal souls going to heaven, you don't have worry about that.' Have you ever read what the Catholics teach about the resurrection and the immortality of the soul? It's almost comical, because it's so contradictory, it's almost like it written by someone who is perhaps legally insane.

So, Paul says, v 36: "Fool! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. And what you sow is not the body that shall be; rather, it is bare grain—it may be of wheat, or one of the other grains; and God gives it a body according to His will, and to each of the seeds its own body" (vs 36-38).

Now, that's very plain. You put a seed in the ground, the seed disappears, creates a plant and it grows, and nobody knows how it grows, but it grows. Same thing with electricity, we use it all the time, we depend on it with everything. We use it here to record this, we get it out to you, we duplicate it, it's all done by electricity. Even though we use it and know some properties of it, we don't know what it is. So, how advanced is man?

Consider this: the day is coming when all electricity will be off, then what will you do? If you're not right with God, you're going to be in really big trouble. So, Paul continues on explaining about the resurrection of the dead.

Verse 39: "Likewise, not all flesh is the same flesh. Rather, there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another of fish, and another of birds. And there are heavenly bodies, and earthly bodies; but the glory of the heavenly is different, and the glory of the earthly is different. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory" (vs 39-41).

Just wait, they're developing a fantastic huge new telescope that they're sending up into the heavens, and then we are going to see the heavens with a more complete picture of the glory of the heavens. What are atheists going to do then?

Verse 42: "So also… [in a parallel explanation and analogy] …is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption…" Yes, we all get old and withered, we're weak and die and we're put in the grave and all the flesh rots away.

"…it is raised in incorruption" (v 42). How is that going to happen? By the power of God through His Spirit!

Verse 43: "It is sown in dishonor…" Even Jesus told Peter, when you're old 'you're going to be led around where you don't want to go.'

"…it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body" (vs 43-44).

Think about this: We have a natural body, which is flesh. What does this tell us if we have the Spirit of God? With the Spirit of God our bodies are a living walking breathing witness every second of every day that the Word of God is true and that you will be raised from the dead, because you have a fleshly body.

Verse 45: "Accordingly, it is written, 'The first man, Adam, became a living soul; the last Adam became an ever-living Spirit.' However, the spiritual was not first…" (vs 45-46). Sorry, Mormons! We weren't spirit beings up in the stars and sent to possess a physical body. You have it all wrong!

"…but the natural—then the spiritual. The first man is of the earth—made of dust. The second Man is the Lord from heaven. As is the one made of dust, so also are all those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly One, so also are all those who are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the one made of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly One" (vs 46-49).

There is that guarantee, and we're going to see that Pentecost, picturing the harvest of the firstfruits is the day of the resurrection of those who are true Christians.

We'll explain a little more of that as we go along. "…as we have borne the image of the one made of dust… [we all came from Adam] …we shall also bear the image of the heavenly One."

Verse 50: "Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, nor does corruption inherit incorruption." We can understand this a little better than they did back then, but not much.

Verse 51: "Behold, I show you a mystery…" What did Jesus say about the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven? It has been given to you to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of God or of Heaven! But to those out in the world it is not given!

Think about the preciousness of your calling and the receipt of the Holy Spirit that you have, and how you need to really concentrate on loving God the Father and Jesus Christ with all your heart, mind, soul and being. As we've covered, with the grace of God we have direct contact with he Ruler of the universe:

• Who has called us
• Who has opened our minds
• Who has given us His Holy Spirit

So that we can become His children at the resurrection. Think on how great that is! The only problem is that too many people and men don't understand it and they get all caught up in authority and things like that.

"…we shall not all fall asleep…" (v 51). They were expecting Christ to return during their lifetime, but somewhere at the end there are going to be those who are alive when Christ returns.

"…but we shall all be changed, in an instant… [it's going to happen] …in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet…" (vs 51-52). I want you to focus on the last trumpet.

Sidebar: There are still those people who believe that the resurrection is on the Feast of Trumpets. How are we going to know when the last trump is going to sound on the Feast of Trumpets, because it starts in the morning on the Feast of Trumpets, and the memorial of the blowing of trumpets all day long, and you come clear down to sunset and the day ends. That would make the resurrection on the day after the Feast of Trumpets. Have you ever thought of that?

We're going to see why it has to be on Pentecost, and we're going to see why we need all of that time between Pentecost and Trumpets to find out:

• what we're going to do
• where we're going go
• how we're going to do it
• to receive our new name
• to receive all the blessings that God gives us
• to see God the Father
• to see Jesus Christ
• for the Church and Christ to be married

Then all the preparation to come and rule the world!

We've got to know that! Look how long it took them to get ready to start the change of Presidency from Obama to Trump. It took two whole months, and that's just one single government, and they're still not done doing it. This is the whole world!

"…for the trumpet shall sound…" (v 52). What did we read in Exo. 20 on the Day of Pentecost when the Ten Commandments were given? The Trumpet was blown! But not all day long!

"…and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed" (v 52). And do we need that! The older we get the more we know that. When you're young and healthy and all this sort of thing and you can do the things that you do, you don't think about getting old. None of us, when we're young, think about getting old.

Sidebar: I was carrying something going down the stairs and I said to Delores, 'Remember when we took the stairs by leaps and bounds, two or three at a time?' Now we've got to be very careful one at a time. Never thought of that when we were bounding up and down with the steps, but now that we can't do it, we understand.

Verse 53: "For this corruptible…" That's what's happening, we're wearing out. You may be young, but you're going to wear out.

I talked to a woman that I knew when she was 12-years-old, and now after all of those years—close to 40 plus years—she and her husband have three sons and they're all grown up and have left home. Their mother, whom I knew, is 88-years-old. When you enter into that time of being old, things change! Yes, they do.

Just as we took our first breath and cried… Why do babies cry when they're first born? They need to expand out their lungs so they can breathe! You breathe regularly all your life, sometimes irregularly, and you need some adjustments, whatever needs to be. Then you do like Jacob—he was 147—he was nearly blind, he blessed Ephraim and Manasseh and blessed all the 12 sons and gave them the blessing of the end time. Then he sat on the edge of his bed, rolled up on the bed and died, took his last breath.

But that end has a new beginning.

Verse 53: "For this corruptible must put on incorruptibility…" No more weakness, no more aging, no more any of those things, but living forever.

"…and this mortal must put on immortality. Now, when this corruptible shall have put on incorruptibility, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then… [not until then, the resurrection] …shall come to pass the saying that is written: 'Death is swallowed up in victory'" (vs 53-54)—over-comer!

That's the background for the resurrection. Now let's come to the book of Revelation and we'll pick up where we left off yesterday on Day 49.

Remember, you have Christ, Who says that He's the Beginning and the Ending, the First and the Last, Alpha and Omega, that He was dead and is living. He let it be know in Rev. 2-3 to the seven churches that He is the Head of the Church, and that He judges all of us for eternal life according to our works, our spiritual works of loving God and keeping His commandments; loving the brethren, loving our neighbors and even loving our enemies, though part of loving our enemies is asking God to let the fall into the ditch that they have made for themselves, or keep them far from us, or convert them, like God with Saul who became the Apostle Paul.

Rev. 4—Remember this is in vision. So, when it says that no man has seen God, that is the Father, that's still true, even though in vision you see somewhat what He looks like, but you don't meet Him face-to-face like we do in Rev. 22.

So, this has a Pentecost theme: seven churches, seven weeks, then the 50th day, Pentecost.

Revelation 4:1: "After these things I looked, and behold, a door opened in heaven; and the first voice that I heard was as if a trumpet were speaking with me…" What was blown on Pentecost? A trumpet! Here's a type, but this is a vision.

"…saying, 'Come up here, and I will show you the things that must take place after these things'" (v 1). We're going to reach a point with the churches, and then all of a sudden it is going to change, and then we get into the seven seals and the seven trumpet plagues and seven last plagues.

Verse 2: "And immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was set in heaven, and One was sitting on the throne." He couldn't tell exactly who it was.

Verse 3: "And He Who was sitting was in appearance like a jasper stone and a sardius stone; and a rainbow was around the throne, like an emerald in its appearance. And around the throne were twenty-four thrones; and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders… [specially created beings] …sitting, clothed in white garments; and they had on their heads golden crowns. And proceeding from the thronewere lightnings and thunders and voices; and seven lamps of fire, which are the seven spirits of God, were burning before the throne" (vs 3-5).

The seven spirits of God are, Revelation 5:6: the seven spirits of God that are sent into all the earth." These are the eyes of God showing to God, bringing back to Him, everything that is going on in the earth.

• that's why He knows when a sparrow falls
• that's why He knows when someone dies
• that's why He knows the events that are going on
• that's how He sees men
• that's how He knows their heart
• that's how He understands what they are doing

Those who are seeking God, then one of the seven spirits let's God know who is seeking Him, and then God Himself gets involved to draw them. That's what it says:

John 6:44: "No one can come to Me unless the Father, Who sent Me, draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, "And they shall all be taught by God." (vs 44-45).

So, everything that you learn of the Bible comes from God, a revelation from God.

• it's not because we're smart
• it's not because we know more than anybody else
• it's not because we've been in the Church longer than anybody else

It's because God gives the understanding and revelation through His Spirit (1-Cor. 2). Seven Spirits of God burning before the throne.

Revelation 4:5: "…the seven spirits of God, were burning before the throne. And before the throne was a sea of glass, like crystal…." (vs 5-6).

What did we learn in Exo. 24 yesterday? Moses and the 70 elders—and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and Joshua—all looked up and saw a sea of glass looking through it, and they saw the Lord God. That was the One Who became Jesus Christ. But now is the first time in the Bible that anyone has been allowed a vision of the throne of God, of the Father, and that one was only to John the apostle who was of the Aaronic priesthood line.
So, that fulfills what was required back there in Lev. 16, that only the priest could go once a year into the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement.

"…And around the throne and over the throne were four living creatures, full of eyes before and behind; and the first living creature was like a lion, and the second living creature was like a bull, and the third living creature had the face of a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. And each of the four living creatures had six wings respectively; and around and within they were full of eyes; and day and night they cease not saying, 'Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was, and Who is, and Who is to come'" (vs 6-8).

Now, if you don't have the dramatized audio the book of Revelation, write for it and we'll send it to you. You'll find that it will be very inspiring!

Verse 9: "And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanksgiving to Him Who sits on the throne, Who lives into the ages of eternity." This shows that they were saying in a continuous pattern, not saying it all the time. If they were saying it all the time, then the 24 elders would always be down there on their face worshipping God.

So, a certain time, of whatever you would call a time period of whatever it is in heaven—there's no day or night there, so I don't know how that is figured:

Verse 10: "The twenty-four elders fall down before Him Who sits on the throne; and they worship Him Who lives into the ages of eternity, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 'Worthy are You, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power because You did create all things, and for Your will they were created and exist'" (vs 10-11).

You came into being because of the will of God, and you answered the call of God and received His Holy Spirit because He wants you! That's why it's so important that we really maintain a relationship with God. Listen! We've been given the greatest and the most precious promises of all. Think of it! As Peter wrote that we have been promised that we're going to escape the fleshly existence and nature and receive the Divine nature, the sons and daughters of God!

• I want you to grasp that!
• I want you to let that burn in the forefront of your mind and in your thoughts!

Don't get all involved with things in the world and 'woe is me' or whatever the situation may be. Think of this! This is why John was given this vision. It wasn't just for him, because Jesus said to 'write it!' It's for all the brethren, all the Church, to know the great destiny that God has for us, and we see that it comes through Jesus Christ.

(go to the next track)

Rev. 5 has to do with the slain Christ, pictured as a lamb slain with seven horns, which pictures the seven churches coming out of His head symbolic that He is the Head of the Church.

That's why the seven letters to each of the seven churches personally from Jesus Christ. So, that's why those two chapters are very good for us to use to measure what Christ things of what we do, and how we should do it. Very profound!

Then it was determined that He was the only One worthy to open the seven seals of the book that was in the hand of God the Father.

Revelation 5:11: "And I saw and I heard the voices of many angels around the throne…"

Sidebar: For all the trinitarians, this is a vision of the throne of God. You believe that the Holy Spirit is a person. How many persons did John see? He saw 26: 24 elders, the Father and the Lamb Christ! Where was the Holy Spirit, the person? Not there, because the Holy Spirit is the power of God, not a person! If it were a person, Paul would have honored it in every one of the openings of His epistles. If it were a person we would see it here, because it's supposed to be at the throne of God.

• What do we find? 24 elders, the Father and the Son, and now thousands of angels!
• Where is the Holy Spirit, the person?
• Do you know why it's a mystery? Because it's a lie!

All lies, when you compare it with the Truth, it's a mystery as to how they could come to such an understanding!

"…and the voices of the living creatures and the elders, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, 'Worthy is the Lamb Who was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory and blessing'" (vs 11-12).

You listen to the dramatized audio of the book of Revelation; it's very inspiring.

Verse 13: "And every creature that is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and those that are on the sea, and all the things in them, I heard saying, 'To Him Who sits on the throne… [God he Father] …and to the Lamb… [no Holy Spirit, the person] …be blessing, and honor, and glory, and sovereignty into the ages of eternity.'" And you can pick that up in Rev. 21-22.

Verse 14: "And the four living creatures said, 'Amen.' And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped Him Who lives into the ages of eternity."
This shows us very clearly that the prophecies and their fulfillment are not do to our understanding, but are due to the timing of God the Father and Jesus Christ—period!

If we have the right understanding from the Word of God, we have the timing in the way that it should be, and we will see that there are certain things of timing. But remember, what did Jesus say? No man knows the day or the hour, only the Father! And at the time that Jesus was on the earth, He didn't know. We'll refer to that as we go along.

Revelation 6:1: "And I looked when the Lamb opened one of the seals; and I heard one of the four living creatures say, like the sound of thunder, 'Come and see.' And I looked, and behold, there was a white horse…" (vs 1-2)—the false christ, the false religion, and it's being formed. As I brought out at the conference, many of the Muslims, especially the older ones, are turning to Christianity, i.e. Catholicism and Protestantism, because they're tired of the blood and guts and gore.

Remember, it says in 1-Thess. 5 that when they say, 'Peace and security, or peace and prosperity, then sudden destruction comes upon them as a thief in the night.'

So, we have the development ( Rev. 13) of the beast and the false prophet. That has to develop before we come to the second seal. So, here's the false religion. Seventh Day Adventists believe this is Christ. No, it's not! Christ is on a white horse, the real thing (Rev. 19) and so are we.

"…and the one who was sitting on it had a bow, and a crown was given to him; and he went out conquering, and to conquer" (v 2). To win in the universal religion that is coming.

Go on churchathome.org and I have a whole series on The Coming One-World Religion, and it is going to happen. You look at it and say, 'How is that going to take place?' You read in Rev. 17 that the reason it's going to happen is because God is going to put into their hearts to fulfill those prophecies, because of their rebellion against God!

Verse 3: "And when He opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, 'Come and see.' And another horse went out that was red; and power was given to the one sitting on it to take peace from the earth…" (vs 3-4). A time of peace will be coming.

• Right now we don't have it!
• Right now we don't have the beast formed, yet.
• Right now we don't have the combined religions all together, yet.

They do have their universal Bible, thought, supposedly 'holy writings' from all different books. The second seal is the break out of the Tribulation, and it's 3-1/2 years long. Now, there are two parts to the Tribulation:

• the first part is the Tribulation against Israel
• the second part—which we will see is 18 month or a year and half—is for the rest of the world with mighty, mighty, mighty destruction beyond our comprehension

Let's look at the first part of the Tribulation against the children of Israel. Think about what is happening to Ephraim in the UK. We have a man who attends with us who is from Britain, and his mother lives there. An article I read said that 500 Church of England buildings closed down because of the lack of attendance, while at the same time, 467 mosques were built. They have 83 Sharia Law zones scattered throughout the UK.

So my question to him was: Will the Brits be so complacent that they will submit voluntarily to Sharia Law rather than fight and suffer the internal tribulation of the abuse of the Muslims against them? Could happen! Don't know!

Hosea 5:13: "When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah saw his wound, then Ephraim went to the Assyrian and sent to King Contentious. Yet, he could not heal you nor cure you of your wound."

Brexit: the UK is no longer in the European Union. What's going to happen in the European Union? There has to arise 'a savior who is going to set things aright,' because the Catholic Church is not going to go away and it needs to be rescued from the Muslims!

How is that going to work out? We don't know! But we know that it will happen because of the prophecy of Rev. 13. And furthermore, it says that the world cannot make war against the beast. Are they going to discover something at the Hadrian Collider? Don't know! There are a lot of prophecies that have to be fulfilled before the Tribulation begins!

Verse 14: "For I will be to Ephraim as a lion, and as a strong lion to the house of Judah. I, even I, will tear and go away. I will take away, and none shall rescue him. I will go; I will return to My place until they confess their guilt and seek My face; in their affliction they will seek Me earnestly" (vs 14-15). Yes, they will!

Now we will see how long the first part of the Tribulation is against Israel.

Hosea 6:1: "Come and let us return to the LORD, for He has torn, and He will heal us; He has smitten, and He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us…" (vs 1-2). How long is a day in prophecy? One year! So, after two years!

"…in the third day He will raise us up… [we will see how that translates into understanding Rev. 7] …and we shall live in His sight" (v 2). Very important to know!

That's why it talks about when these things take place that war breaks out on the fourth part of the earth.

Revelation 6:4: "And another horse went out that was red; and power was given to the one sitting on it to take peace from the earth, and to cause them to kill one another; and a great sword was given to him. And when He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, 'Come and see.' And I looked, and behold, there was a black horse; and the one sitting on it had a balance in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures say, 'A measure of wheat for a silver coin, and three measures of barley for a silver coin: and see that you do not damage the oil and the wine'" (vs 4-6—because it's so precious.

Verse 7: "And when He opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, 'Come and see.' And I looked, and behold, there was a pale horse; and the name of the one sitting on it was Death, and the grave followed him; and authority was given to them over one-fourth of the earth…" (vs 7-8). Not the whole earth, yet, because the Tribulation comes in two phases. The second phase begins in Rev. 8, and we will see how that is started.

"…to kill with the sword and with famine and with death, and by the beasts of the earth" (v 8). Stop and think for just a minute! We are the most susceptible to any disaster of any age in the world, because everything is dependent upon electricity, everybody is crowded into cities and small towns. But when the electricity goes off, when war takes place, we are going to be susceptible to the greatest number of deaths beginning probably in the third day of the disaster. Why? Because:

• people will not be able to get their medications
• people will not be able to drive
• there will be no water because the pumps won't work
• there will be no food because the stores are out of food
• there will be gangs of people running around looting, stealing, killing

That's what it's going to be like!

• How long are you going to last with no supplies?
• How long are you going to last without any electricity?
• How long are you going to be able to drive your car without any gasoline?

Now, the fifth seal is opened and this comes to the end of the first part. That ends the two years of Tribulation against Israel. But it opens another whole sequence of things. And we'll see that in Matt. 24 in a little bit.

Verse 9: "And when He opened the fifth seal, I saw… [in vision, so the souls are not there, but it's a vision of those]: …under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the Word of God, and for the testimony that they held; and they cried out with a loud voice, saying… [this is symbolic, so John understands the time-setting here] …'How long, O Lord, Holy and true, do You not judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?'" (vs 9-10).

So, right when this takes place against Israel, there's going to be the martyrdom against the Church. There are going to be those (Rev. 12) who will be taken to a place of protection and safety just as the Tribulation is breaking out. And those who are left behind have to be a witness to the world, giving their lives like they have all during the time in history down to our day.

Verse 11: "And white robes were given to each of them; and they were told that they should rest a short time, yet, until it be fulfilled that both their fellow servants and their brethren also would be killed, just as they had been." That's right up to the end of the second year.

Verse 12 announces what is coming on the rest of the world in great power, and we're going to see how that will be.

Verse 14: "Then the heaven departed like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the powerful men, and every bondman, and every free man hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains; and they said to the mountains and to the rocks, 'Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him Who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, because the great day… [extended day—1/1-2 years] …of His wrath has come, and who has the power to stand?'" (vs 14-17).

Verse 12: "And when He opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as the hair of sackcloth, and the moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell to the earth… [v 14]: Then the heaven departed like a scroll…" (vs 12-14).

The heavens are going to open and people are going to see things they have never seen before! Jesus spoke of it in Matt. 24. Let's mention something else that has to happen before the Tribulation begins. There must be a temple rebuilt in Jerusalem in order for there to be a 'Holy Place' for the abomination of desolation for the one who is the beast who goes into the Holy place and says that he is God (2-Thess. 2). We've covered that many times, that he is to be worshipped above all objects of worship. So, the Jews have to build their temple.

That's why in Hosea 5 it talks about Ephraim and Judah, because those things will happen simultaneously. That sets off the Great Tribulation, because the beast power goes into the temple and says, 'I am God.' Then he declares war from there upon the rest of Israel, a fourth part of the earth.

Matthew 24:22: "And if those days were not limited, there would no flesh be saved; but for the elect's sake those days shall be limited"—to two years to Israel and three and a half years to the world.

What kind of weapons will be developed to where there will be no flesh saved? Leading up to the time we had before Pentecost we have threat of nuclear war.

• Did the world survive after Hiroshima and Nagasaki? Yes!
• Did the world survive all the nuclear tests of Russia and the United States? Yes!'
• Did the world survive the blowing up of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant? Yes!
• Did the world survive the meltdown of the nuclear power plants in Japan? Yes!
• Will there be nuclear war? Undoubtedly!
• How will it come? We don't know!
• Will the world survive? Yes! Because Christ is returning to save all flesh!

What kind of weapon are the going to develop that will give the beast power the strength to where it says, 'Who can make war against the beast?'

Verse 23: "Then if anyone says to you, 'Behold, here is the Christ,' or, 'He is there,' do not believe it. For there shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and they shall present great signs and wonders, in order to deceive, if possible, even the elect" (vs 23-24).

If you're a slumbering, sleeping Laodicean cuddling all of your riches and goods and thinking how blessed you are, and this comes upon you and you see that this universal religion that is developing under the power and auspices of Satan the devil with miracles, wonders, signs and great things like this and you think, 'Look at the Church of God, they don't have any of that. I wonder what is wrong? Maybe they're right.' Jesus gave the warning! They're going to try to deceive even the elect!

Verse 25: "Behold, I have foretold it to you. Therefore, if they say to you, 'Come and see! He is in the wilderness'; do not go forth. 'Come and see! He is in the secret chambers'; do not believe it" (vs 25-26).

Here is how Christ is coming, v 27; then this describes everything that takes place, vs 28-31. Many times in the Bible you have an introductory verse that tells you what's going to happen, then the details follow. Here is how Christ is going to return, phase one:

Verse 27: "For as the light of day… [the sun] …which comes forth from the east… [Where does the sun rise? In the east!] …and shines as far as the west… [Where does it set? In the west!] …so also shall the coming of the Son of man be. For wherever the carcass may be, there will the eagles be gathered together" (vs 27-28). That could be talking about the angels and the resurrection there. This is always a mysterious verse to try and understand. But v 29 isn't:

Verse 29: "But immediately after the tribulation of those days… [against Israel] …the sun shall be darkened… [Rev. 6] …and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven; and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming upon the clouds of heaven with power and great glory" (vs 29-30).

What's going to happen?

• the heavens are going to depart as a scroll
• everything is going to be shaken
• the sign of the Son of man as a sun appears in the heavens
• and it shines from east to west!

This sun is going to stay right there until it comes down to the time of the resurrection. So, for a year and a half the world is going to see that sun out there, the second sun, and they're not going to be able to do anything about it. Let's understand something very important concerning that. They will get use to it, but let's see what they do right after it appears; we'll see that in a bit.

Then Jesus talks about the resurrection and the angels take them to the Sea of Glass.

• When will the sign of the Son of man appear in heaven?
• Could it be to introduce Pentecost!
• Could be! Very likely!

What follows that, after everything is shaken and the second sun appears, which is the Son of man coming, then all of a sudden time seems to stop, the winds don't blow, and here we have the 144,000 and the great innumerable multitude are sealed (Rev. 7). That is at the end of the two years of Tribulation against Israel. Notice that Jesus starts out by saving 12,000 from each one of the 12 tribes, and the first one saved is Judah, just like God said. Then the great innumerable multitude. That's because the Gospel is going to be preached in the world by a far greater way than we have ever understood. So, stick around, a lot of things are going to happen.

They do not immediately go to heaven, because no one goes to where the Sea of Glass is, which is in the first heaven; that's why I said heaven. It shows where they're going to be, but they're not going to be there until the seventh trump is blown.

Now think about this for a minute: We have all of these who are saved. Who are the ones who are alive when the resurrection takes place? Those in a place of safety and those who have been sealed here—the 144,000 and the great innumerable multitude! Then notice what happens after that:

Revelation 8:2—the trumpet plagues: "Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them." Then they get ready to sound after there's some preparatory of that:

Verse 3: "And another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar; and much incense was given to him, so that he might offer it with the prayers of all the saints…"

This shows that they are still alive in the flesh, because if they were dead they couldn't pray. If they were already in heaven, then they got there before the first resurrection. So, neither one of those are correct.

The angles blow their trumpets, the first four blow, and great things happen on the earth. Then the three woes take place.

Rev. 9—then God opens the prison for the demons to come out like locust upon the earth, and this is probably done by the power of the beast and the false prophet. Then they are going to strike to the North and to the East, and they're going to have this super secret weapon that will sting men like a scorpion, and for five months they won't be able to do anything.

Then the kings with their armies of the East with 200-million that will be strung out from the Far East clear over to the Holy Land and then the angels that are bound in the River Euphrates are loosed so the armies can come and gather to fight at Armageddon.

We have the seven thunders, and no one knows what they are because God told John not to write about them.

Rev. 11—the two witnesses and their ministry is 1,260 days, plus three and a half. That's how you know when they start. You count from Pentecost resurrection backward 1,263-1/2 days. That's when they start.

• sermon series: Daniel/Revelation
• book: God's Plan for Mankind Revealed by His Sabbath and Holy Days

Those will help you understand the prophecies.

When the two witnesses' ministry is over, the beast power kills them. Previous to that time, anyone who tried to kill them—because they could call plagues down anytime around the world at will—but fire would shoot out of the mouth of the two witnesses and destroy those who were coming to kill them. Finally, Satan himself is able to do it with the beast that is sent out of the abyss.

They lay dead in the streets of Jerusalem for 3-1/2 days, and the world is ecstatic because that happens. The world celebrates because they are dead. The world finally thinks that, 'yes, we're going to pull though this whole thing ourselves' and then all of a sudden there's a great earthquake. Then a voice from heaven says to the two witnesses who come back to life and stand on their feet, 'Come up here!' So, they ascend into heaven, and that ends the second woe, and immediately the third woe is blown with the seventh trumpet and the seventh trumpet is the last trumpet of the seven. That's when the first resurrection takes place.

Think about this: the two witnesses, the last to be martyred are the first to be raised. Is the Word of God true down to the very last detail that the last shall be first, and the first shall be last? Yes, indeed!

Rev. 14:14-16—here we have another vision of the resurrection and tells us what's going to happen:

vs 17-20 tells us what's going to happen with the seven last plagues, and that leading of the return of Christ and the saints to the Earth.

Revelation 14:14: "And I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and one like the Son of man sitting on the cloud, having a golden crown on His head; and in His hand was a sharp sickle." How do you cut grain? With a sharp sickle! Today they do in combines, but it's still a sickle.

Verse 15: "And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to Him Who was sitting on the cloud, 'Thrust in your sickle and reap, because the time has come for You to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.'" Think of that! All those who are still living, the 144,000 and the great innumerable multitude, all of those who have been martyred and are in the grave, all of those who died a natural death and are in the grave.

Verse 16: "And He Who was sitting on the cloud thrust forth His sickle upon the earth, and the earth was reaped." And the angels carry us up to meet Christ in the air in the clouds on the Sea of Glass.

So, when this event takes place what's probably going to happen is that just before this, the sun that is out there—the second sun—starts moving to the Earth, closer and closer, and everybody gets excited and then all of a sudden it's going to streak right over the area over Jerusalem and Palestine, which is the 'Holy Land' but really the most unholy in the whole world, because of what men and Satan have done to it.

That's where the Sea of Glass will be! Then when the earth is reaped in the first resurrection, we're going to be carried up to the Sea of Glass.

The other one is gathering in the grapes of wrath, and v 19: "And the angel thrust his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth…" Remember the vine of the earth is that wicked vine, starting with those who have false religion:

"…and cast its fruit into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood spewed out from the winepress as high as the horses' bridles, to the distance of a thousand six hundred furlongs" (vs 19-20). Amazing, isn't it? Yes, indeed!

Those verses go with Rev. 16. This is telling us what's going to happen, and then it gives us how it's going to happen, ending with the Battle of Armageddon. But that takes place between Pentecost and is finished by Trumpets.

Review:

• go back to the next to the last Pentecost—144,000 and great innumerable multitude are sealed
• the last Pentecost—the return of Christ, the resurrection takes place for everyone

Then after that, the seven last plagues. This year, I'm going to end with the Sea of Glass, and then for Trumpets I'm going to pick up in Rev. 16, rather than try and rush through it. This is something!

Revelation 15:1: "Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and awesome: seven angels having the seven last plagues, for in them the wrath of God is filled up. And I saw a sea of glass mingled with fire…" (vs 1-2). Go back and see what that is in Exo. 24.

"…and those who had gotten the victory over the beast… [the resurrected saints] …and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, standing on the Sea of Glass…" (v 2). What did God stand on when He brought the Ten Commandments and let those men see Him? A sea of glass!

Here this is for the whole Family of God! How are we going to meet Christ in the air and not immediately come back? That would be mass confusion; we wouldn't know what to do. It would be like you're raise and an angel throws a horse at you and, 'Get on it.' Where am I going to go? 'Don't know, you just follow.' What am I to do? 'Don't know, just follow.'

No! there's going to be time from that last Pentecost to the last Trumpets, about four and a half months and everything we need to learn, we're going to learn on the Sea of Glass:

• we're going to get our reward
• we're going to get our new name
• the marriage supper of the Lamb is going to take place
• we're going to meet God the Father
• Christ will present us to Him
• we're going to see Him
• we're going to see the angels
• we'll have time to meet all the saints

• Won't that be something?
• Who is that you want to meet?

We'll all be there from Abel to the two witnesses! From the first to the last. We're going to be singing. For all of those of you today is all you know how to do is make a joyful noise, then you will sing.

Verse 3: "And they were singing the song of Moses… [commemorating all of those who came into the first resurrection, the patriarchs and the kings] …the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, 'Great and awesome are Your works, Lord God Almighty; righteous and true are Your ways, King of the saints. Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You only are Holy; and all the nations shall come and worship before You, for Your judgments have been revealed'" (vs 3-4).

A projection of the coming Millennium! Remember that the Bible does this. It tells you what's going to happen in an overall description, then the details you find someplace else.

Let's leave it right there. Here we are, we're getting all ready for the marriage supper of the Lamb.

• What's it going to be like?
• What are we going to eat?
• How are the angels going to serve us?
• What is that going to be?

What a joyous time that is going to be, because, brethren, we are the firstborn, the firstfruits in the first resurrection as the servants of God preparing to come back to the Earth to rule with Jesus Christ for a thousand years!

So, come back for Trumpets! See you then!

Scriptural References:

• Leviticus 23:17
• Matthew 13:33

• Luke 4:16-19
• 1 Corinthians 15:10-20, 35-54
• Revelation 4:1-5
• Revelation 5:6
• John 6:44-45
• Revelation 4:5-11
• Revelation 5:11-14
• Revelation 6:1-4
• Hosea 5:13-15
• Hosea 6:1-2
• Revelation 6:4-11, 14-17, 12-14
• Mathew 24:22-30
• Revelation 8:2-3
• Revelation 14:14-16, 19-20
• Revelation 15:1-4

Scriptures referenced, not quoted:

• Mathew 13
• Mark 4
• Luke 8
• Leviticus 23:18-20

• Matthew 3
• Isaiah 61
• Revelation 1
• Exodus 20
• Revelation 22
• 1 Corinthians 2
• Leviticus 16
• 1 Thessalonians 5
• Revelation 13, 19; 17; 7; 12
• 2 Thessalonians 2
• Revelation 16; 9; 11
• Exodus 24

Also referenced:

Books:

• God's Plan for Mankind Revealed by His Sabbath and Holy Days by Fred R. Coulter
• From a Speck of Dust to a Son of God by Fred R. Coulter
• A Harmony of the Gospels by Fred R. Coulter

Church At Home: The Coming One-World Religion {churchathome.org}

Sermon Series: Daniel/Revelation

FRC: bo
Transcribed: 5/8/17

Copyright 2017—All rights reserved. Except for brief excerpts for review purposes, no part of this publication may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means without the written permission of the copyright owner. This includes electronic and mechanical photocopying or recording, as well as the use of information storage and retrieval systems.