Rev 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;
Rev 6:13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.
Rev 6:14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
Again, there is no horse-no rider- no beast to portray this message to John - rather as soon as Jesus opens the sixth seal John experiences a number of different things all very physical in nature . He beheld instantly- there was no 'coming and seeing', no 'and I looked and saw', these strange sights were seen one after the other in quick succession.
A great earthquake
Sun black as a mourning symbol
Moon as blood
Numerous stars fell quickly to the earth
Heaven departs as a scroll
Every mountain and island moved
Tell me why this sudden departure from seemingly completely symbolic gestures to the physical signs in nature? Why the leap from following the time line of the Seven Churches to seemingly jumping in this time period straight to the end of all things? From the point in time after the sixth angel things would seem to happen very swiftly without slowing down right to the end of time, right?
Seriously, think about it. In about the mid-1800's the knowledge of people all over the world seemed to suddenly spring to life. By the early 1900's people had invented things that would keep the ball in motion right up until where we are today, after thousands of years of seeming stagnation with only little bouts of inspiration. For example, the horse for transportation and such existed for thousands of years- thousands, then suddenly we have cars. The increase in knowledge didn't slow down either after a short burst. We didn't suddenly have one startling change such as having the printing press or other noteworthy yet seemingly singular invents taking place. We had this sudden outpouring of knowledge and it hasn't ceased to this very day and it shows no sign of stopping- people are not getting dumber, or slowing down, the fount of knowledge hasn't been exhausted if anything it's increased exponentially and continues to do so. You take a person from the 1700, 1800's and drop them into the 1900's, or into the new millennium and there would be such shock it would be unbelievable.
The rapidity of events shown to John here in a very physical way are like markers in time. This will happen (when?), this will happen (when?), this will happen (when?), and so on right up to a point we haven't seen it happen and yet having markers along the way tell you something don't they? Think about it.
You're on a trail with markers along the path - will you expect the markers to remain true to form until you reach your destination? You would.
Here are markers in time that are so blatant that to ignore them is to risk ignoring the fact that Christ is returning and the world is as we know it is ending. Following markers is important even if there are varying lengths of time between them. If I'm journeying on a supposedly marked path, I keep on it and hope for the markers even if it seems like a long, long time since I've seen the last marker. That hope for the last marker has to remain and it's through faith that hope stays firm. The hope for the last marker is the hope for the end of the journey. Christ admonishes the Laodicean church to buy of Him gold tried in fire- faith. Through the early time period of these markers it's easy to follow, to believe, and the sixth church of Philadelphia has this remarkable renewal of faith, a clarity of these markers.
A GREAT EARTHQUAKE -
The 1755 Lisbon earthquake, also known as the Great Lisbon Earthquake, took place on 1 November 1755, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1755_Lisbon_earthquake)
SUN BLACK as the mourning symbol -
The Great Dark Day - New England's Dark Day refers to an event which occurred on 19 May 1780, when an unusual darkening of the day sky was observed over the New England states and parts of Canada. The primary cause of the event is believed to have been a combination of smoke from forest fires, a thick fog, and cloud cover. The darkness was so complete that candles were required from noon on. It did not disperse until the middle of the next night (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_England's_Dark_Day)
MOON AS BLOOD -
Moon Turned Into Blood - "The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come." Joel 2:31 May 19, 1780, stands in history as "The Dark Day." Since the time of Moses, no period of darkness of equal density, extent, and duration has ever been recorded. "The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come." Joel 2:31.
The moon became as red as blood on the night of the "dark day," May 19, 1780. Milo Bostick in Stone's History of Massachusetts says, "The moon which was at its full, had the appearance of blood."
(http://www.bibleuniverse.com/articles/second-coming-prophecies-fulfilled/moon-turned-into-blood.aspx
"New England's Dark Day" in The Weather Doctor Almanac 2004. Retrieved from http://www.islandnet.com/~see/weather/almanac/arc2004/alm04may.htm.
"An Account of a very uncommon Darkness, in the State of New England, May 19, 1780" in The Analytical Review, Or History of Literature, Domestic and Foreign, on an Enlarged Plan, p. 519.
^ Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society, p. 193 )
Numerous STARS FELL Quickly to the Earth -
Silliman believed the meteor had a cosmic origin, but meteors did not attract much attention from astronomers until the spectacular meteor storm of November 1833.[23] People all across the Eastern US saw thousands of meteors, radiating from a single point in the sky. Astute observers noticed that the radiant, as the point is now called, moved with the stars, staying in the constellation Leo
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteoroid )
The meteor storm of 1833 was of truly superlative strength. One estimate is over one hundred thousand meteors an hour,[2] but another, done as the storm abated, estimated in excess of two hundred thousand meteors an hour[3] over the entire region of North America east of the Rocky Mountains. It was marked by the Native Americans, slaves and owners, and many others. That same 1833 shower, near Independence, Missouri, was taken as a sign to push the growing Mormon community out of the area.[3]
(http://www.answers.com/topic/leonids)
*******
Heaven Departs as a Scroll
Every Mountain and Island Moved
*******
Now we come to a time when the heaven departs as a scroll- how does a scroll depart when it's rolled together? If you have a scroll laid out on a table you put weights down on the corners to hold it open, don't you? It's hard to study otherwise, unless you are just going to stretch out your arms and put your hands on it to keep the two halves from closing. What happens when you lift the weights, or your hands? It snaps back into place doesn't it? And very quickly at that.
So the heavens departing in a snap - has this happened? We've breached the atmosphere sending shuttles into space and still the sky doesn't snap away does it? Surely we'd know. We've set off atomic bombs which have sent mushroom clouds billowing upwards spreading the poison it contains for miles, but have the heavens departed? No.
This is a marker in time that hasn't occurred- in fact the last marker would be in 1833 almost 176 years ago. Time indeed for the waters to become lukewarm.
This day is coming there is no doubt about it, and only those who are not lukewarm but found counseled by Christ will escape the dreadful coming of the end of times for those not found safe in the righteousness of Christ.
Rev 6:15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
Rev 6:16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
Rev 6:17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
John saw this amazing trail of events and then it ended and he was seeing after those things - this:
Rev 7:1 And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.
The angels of God are holding in check the strife that would come upon the earth should they not hold it back. Why are they holding it back? Because of this...
Rev 7:2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,
Rev 7:3 Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.
Rev 7:4 And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.
Rev 7:5 Of the tribe of Juda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand.
Rev 7:6 Of the tribe of Aser were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nepthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand.
Rev 7:7 Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand.
Rev 7:8 Of the tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand.
Those that are God's in this time before the angels fully release the winds of strife will be sealed. Sealed how? If I give my seal of approval it means nothing unless say you are my child- my son or daughter. They do something and I approve, giving them my seal of approval and it means a lot to them, it shows my approval of them which they hold in high esteem. If God seals us we are sealed as being His. We are given a mark that reveals that we are His and He approves of us. God approves of our total reliance upon the Son of God for all things, for allowing Christ's righteousness to reign in us, for accepting fully the sacrifice of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.
After the sealing John was allowed to see this:
Rev 7:9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;
Rev 7:10 And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.
Rev 7:11 And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God,
Rev 7:12 Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.
Amazing! Such a glorious sight! John witnessed the saints throughout time gathered before the throne of God, the angels, the elders, the beasts all of them fell before the throne and worshipped God! Truly this was an amazing sight to behold. God reigns forever in all blessing, all glory, all wisdom, all thanksgiving, all honor, all power, all might to God! Forever and ever!
Was John through with this vision yet? No. One of those 24 elders before the throne spoke to John as he witnessed the wonder of things to come.
Rev 7:13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
The elder wanted to know what John thought he was seeing. He asked- What are those in white robes and where did they come from? John answers--
Rev 7:14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest.
He doesn't presume to know does he? He doesn't launch into some speech about who he thinks they are or where they come from but he tells the elder that the elder himself knows. He doesn't even ask that it be revealed to him, but lets the elder decide if that is something he wishes to reveal and he does...
Rev 7:14 ...And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Rev 7:15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.
Rev 7:16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.
Rev 7:17 For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.
How amazing! How beautiful! John is told the truth of the whole matter.
Those who come through the great tribulation- for what other tribulation is there than to fight in the war of good and evil and prevail through Jesus Christ our Savior?
This is a battle we ALL fight in, we are all called to war in it by our very birth.
Those who take their own filthy garments of unrighteousness and wash them in the blood of the Lamb are truly making them white in His righteousness, pure in the only righteousness that exists anywhere- the righteousness found alone in Christ.
Those who do this, who claim Christ's righteousness will stand before the throne of God- they will serve him always in his temple and that is wherever He dwells. No more hunger of any type! No more thirst of any kind! No more sun and heat to burn us and we will be fed by Jesus! We will be taken to the living fountain of water! And GOD shall wipe the tears from our eyes! Tears that we know so well, so deeply, agonizingly felt for all that goes on around about us.
May God bless and keep us! May God accept us through the righteousness of His Son Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, now and forever may we be found in Him forgiven by Him as we ask for forgiveness and repent of our sins.
By His grace!
Amen
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Prophecy - 77 - Slain for the word of God
Rev 6:9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
Rev 6:10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
Rev 6:11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
The first thing of note is the fact when Jesus opens the fifth seal John isn't called by one of the four beasts and told to come see, also there was no horse and rider depicting a journey through time here.
John watches the fifth seal being opened by Jesus and then instantly sees the altar. Where does an altar usually dwell? In a temple, right. There John sees the altar and the vision of those who died for their faith in Jesus and the word of God. Where else would such a vision exist? Just as Abel's blood cried out from the ground, just as rock cried out of the wall, the beam out of the timber - (Habakkuk 2: 11.) Just as an ass was made to talk- these things happen depicting situations that are uncommon, not usual. Seeing the slain souls just like seeing the horses of the previous vision this is exactly what they are- visions of the unusual. Do you see red horses typically? No. Do you typically see riders holding balances? These are symbolic visions holding important messages and as John saw the souls under the altar do you really believe he could have seen ALL those slain for God, for Christ there? They would be innumerable and wouldn't fit under an altar. Symbolically it's realistic to understand that this vision in this time period is encompassing all those slain for God, for their beliefs in God. Those who when faced with the prospect of death if they do not deny Christ, those who would rather die than give up the truth in God, these are those people under the altar.
~
Are people today being slain for the word of God?
Go to this website-
http://www.persecution.com/
And here-
Christian Deaths Climb in Eritrean Prisons
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 (6:27 am)
By Joseph DeCaro, Worthy News Correspondent
ASMARA, ERITREA (Worthy News)– Three Christians imprisoned for the testimony of Christ have died during the past months in Eritrea, including a 42-year-old man in solitary confinement Friday, according to a Christian support organization.
Pasted from
The answer is- yes! People are being killed today for the Word of God! We might not experience it here in the United States so much, but it is happening and we can't turn a blind eye to it all, we just can't.
Up until the Lord's return there will be those dying for the Word of God.
~
The question of how long is a question people put to themselves even now. How long before Christ returns- because only after all that MUST come to pass has come to pass- can true vengeance belonging to the Lord be enacted.
This time period if as with the others coincides with the seven churches, would last approximately 200 years, between 1500 and 1700. During this time we know the reformation began and people began to sail to a new land where they could practice their religion out from under the thumb of the papacy where they would not be under religious persecution such as was going on in such a widespread manner elsewhere.
This little season of rest perhaps indicates the escape of many who otherwise would have perished under the on going papal persecutions as people began to move away from their staunch Catholic beliefs.
Being given white robes means what? They were being covered by Christ's righteousness, they were being given the assurance of their sacrifice; and where it says they should rest until their fellow servants and brethren should be killed as they were should be fulfilled- surely this means there would be more who would sacrifice themselves for Christ, for their faith. In truth this meant not all would be able to escape, not all the souls that would be sacrifice were there and only when all of them were there could Christ avenge them together.
True vengeance for those martyred in Christ is only complete when death is swallowed up in the victory and the last of death is destroyed once and for all.
May God bless us all as we continue to study His word to find truth and understanding through the Holy Spirit's guidance. By the grace of Jesus Christ may we all be found in Him, and if called to die for Him, for the truth and faith in Him, may we do so in His strength. His will be done now and forever.
Amen
Rev 6:10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
Rev 6:11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
The first thing of note is the fact when Jesus opens the fifth seal John isn't called by one of the four beasts and told to come see, also there was no horse and rider depicting a journey through time here.
John watches the fifth seal being opened by Jesus and then instantly sees the altar. Where does an altar usually dwell? In a temple, right. There John sees the altar and the vision of those who died for their faith in Jesus and the word of God. Where else would such a vision exist? Just as Abel's blood cried out from the ground, just as rock cried out of the wall, the beam out of the timber - (Habakkuk 2: 11.) Just as an ass was made to talk- these things happen depicting situations that are uncommon, not usual. Seeing the slain souls just like seeing the horses of the previous vision this is exactly what they are- visions of the unusual. Do you see red horses typically? No. Do you typically see riders holding balances? These are symbolic visions holding important messages and as John saw the souls under the altar do you really believe he could have seen ALL those slain for God, for Christ there? They would be innumerable and wouldn't fit under an altar. Symbolically it's realistic to understand that this vision in this time period is encompassing all those slain for God, for their beliefs in God. Those who when faced with the prospect of death if they do not deny Christ, those who would rather die than give up the truth in God, these are those people under the altar.
~
Are people today being slain for the word of God?
Go to this website-
http://www.persecution.com/
And here-
Christian Deaths Climb in Eritrean Prisons
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 (6:27 am)
By Joseph DeCaro, Worthy News Correspondent
ASMARA, ERITREA (Worthy News)– Three Christians imprisoned for the testimony of Christ have died during the past months in Eritrea, including a 42-year-old man in solitary confinement Friday, according to a Christian support organization.
Pasted from
The answer is- yes! People are being killed today for the Word of God! We might not experience it here in the United States so much, but it is happening and we can't turn a blind eye to it all, we just can't.
Up until the Lord's return there will be those dying for the Word of God.
~
The question of how long is a question people put to themselves even now. How long before Christ returns- because only after all that MUST come to pass has come to pass- can true vengeance belonging to the Lord be enacted.
This time period if as with the others coincides with the seven churches, would last approximately 200 years, between 1500 and 1700. During this time we know the reformation began and people began to sail to a new land where they could practice their religion out from under the thumb of the papacy where they would not be under religious persecution such as was going on in such a widespread manner elsewhere.
This little season of rest perhaps indicates the escape of many who otherwise would have perished under the on going papal persecutions as people began to move away from their staunch Catholic beliefs.
Being given white robes means what? They were being covered by Christ's righteousness, they were being given the assurance of their sacrifice; and where it says they should rest until their fellow servants and brethren should be killed as they were should be fulfilled- surely this means there would be more who would sacrifice themselves for Christ, for their faith. In truth this meant not all would be able to escape, not all the souls that would be sacrifice were there and only when all of them were there could Christ avenge them together.
True vengeance for those martyred in Christ is only complete when death is swallowed up in the victory and the last of death is destroyed once and for all.
May God bless us all as we continue to study His word to find truth and understanding through the Holy Spirit's guidance. By the grace of Jesus Christ may we all be found in Him, and if called to die for Him, for the truth and faith in Him, may we do so in His strength. His will be done now and forever.
Amen
Monday, September 12, 2011
Prophecy - 76
Rev 6:7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
Rev 6:8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.
Jesus opened the fourth seal of the very special book and the fourth beast - the beast like a flying eagle with six wings and covered in eyes back and front- told John to come and see.
John looked and saw another horse and this one was the color of pale, not white, but pale. There is no purity here but rather something off color.
Recently a doctor saw a friend of mine and immediately noticed how 'pale' he was. To the doctor's trained eye he knew something was wrong instantly where I only partially suspected something was off color. Why was my friend so pale? Because he was extremely sick. When we see someone who is off color- or pale we suspect that there is something wrong. Sometimes it's as simple as having a fright, but more oft than not it's because there is sickness involved.
This horse John can see is pale and the rider was named Death. Death!
Aren't the majority of sickly people laying upon their deathbeds on the pale side? Seriously. The very ill have that look about them don't they? If you've no first hand experience such as working in a nursing home, or a hospital, or even nursed someone at home who was dying you might not know for yourself personally but surely most people have seen movies with such scenes in them where an actor is made up to be dying and one of the first things happening when applying that camera makeup is working on making that person's complexion pale- sickly. The same with the tortured and wounded, rarely will they simply just look fine other than their wounds. Those who are horribly abused and near death, those who are awfully sick, they LOOK sick and when we say they look sick we instantly mean off color- pale. Is it any wonder Death is the rider of this time period shown? That Hell(in the margin of the Bible is the word 'the grave'), that the Grave followed Death?
During this period of time the false church is fully entrenched in peoples lives and reigning with an unbelievable power over people. The papacy with its religious/political dual purpose in existing corrupted the purity of any that would be truly God's people. Mingling the pure message of Christ's love and redemption with so much that is worldly clearly shouts falsehood. The papacy during this period had great authority in many, many ways and during that time just as it says- ' And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth,' surely this papal power held such authority, and they were able to kill with the sword, with torture such as hunger and yes, the beasts of the earth. For when the civilized powers are gone what remains but beasts to rule? And in another note- during this time the Black Death came into play killing millions and millions of people and what brought the black death but black rats -carrying the diseased fleas.
Yes, during the middle ages the papacy reached the height of its power and wield its awful authority by order of inquisitions and it also suffered it s eventual downfall as the end of this time period drew nigh in the 1500's and the birth of Protestantism began.
To read a bit more on the subject go here- http://www.heijira.com/em_lecture_4.html
No, Protestantism didn't immediately squash the papacy but it had it's beginning there in the 1500's after a terrible reign of rulership for over a thousand years. That the papacy wasn't fully squash until 1798 its downfall can be noted as beginning in the 1500's.
This fourth horse truly did bring with it the rider called Death and the Grave most certainly followed.
May the Lord bless and keep us as we continue our study, realizing how truly separate God's way is from man's. Jesus did not wield power and authority by any force whatsoever, in fact He acted the part of the Lamb being led to the slaughter only unlike our animal lambs, Jesus was fully aware of the death that awaited Him and He didn't offer any protest at all. He didn't cause an uprising of followers to wage war on the corruption around them, He encouraged love of enemies, doing good to those who misuse you- hate you- despise you- and all His followers were to follow that example of His and where can you find that in any way with the things the papacy has done under the guise of being Christ's church? May we today recognize the truth of Jesus' love and call to us to follow Him and know that all else even with it's disguise of purity and goodness is filled with evil and there will be those who cry out to Jesus about knowing him but in truth He will call back to them that He knows them not. May we not be among those, but be safely in the kingdom as true followers of Jesus' love, covered in His righteousness by His mercy, His grace towards us sinners who beg forgiveness and repent of all that would keep us from His love, from His knowing us.
Amen!
Rev 6:8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.
Jesus opened the fourth seal of the very special book and the fourth beast - the beast like a flying eagle with six wings and covered in eyes back and front- told John to come and see.
John looked and saw another horse and this one was the color of pale, not white, but pale. There is no purity here but rather something off color.
Recently a doctor saw a friend of mine and immediately noticed how 'pale' he was. To the doctor's trained eye he knew something was wrong instantly where I only partially suspected something was off color. Why was my friend so pale? Because he was extremely sick. When we see someone who is off color- or pale we suspect that there is something wrong. Sometimes it's as simple as having a fright, but more oft than not it's because there is sickness involved.
This horse John can see is pale and the rider was named Death. Death!
Aren't the majority of sickly people laying upon their deathbeds on the pale side? Seriously. The very ill have that look about them don't they? If you've no first hand experience such as working in a nursing home, or a hospital, or even nursed someone at home who was dying you might not know for yourself personally but surely most people have seen movies with such scenes in them where an actor is made up to be dying and one of the first things happening when applying that camera makeup is working on making that person's complexion pale- sickly. The same with the tortured and wounded, rarely will they simply just look fine other than their wounds. Those who are horribly abused and near death, those who are awfully sick, they LOOK sick and when we say they look sick we instantly mean off color- pale. Is it any wonder Death is the rider of this time period shown? That Hell(in the margin of the Bible is the word 'the grave'), that the Grave followed Death?
During this period of time the false church is fully entrenched in peoples lives and reigning with an unbelievable power over people. The papacy with its religious/political dual purpose in existing corrupted the purity of any that would be truly God's people. Mingling the pure message of Christ's love and redemption with so much that is worldly clearly shouts falsehood. The papacy during this period had great authority in many, many ways and during that time just as it says- ' And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth,' surely this papal power held such authority, and they were able to kill with the sword, with torture such as hunger and yes, the beasts of the earth. For when the civilized powers are gone what remains but beasts to rule? And in another note- during this time the Black Death came into play killing millions and millions of people and what brought the black death but black rats -carrying the diseased fleas.
Yes, during the middle ages the papacy reached the height of its power and wield its awful authority by order of inquisitions and it also suffered it s eventual downfall as the end of this time period drew nigh in the 1500's and the birth of Protestantism began.
To read a bit more on the subject go here- http://www.heijira.com/em_lecture_4.html
No, Protestantism didn't immediately squash the papacy but it had it's beginning there in the 1500's after a terrible reign of rulership for over a thousand years. That the papacy wasn't fully squash until 1798 its downfall can be noted as beginning in the 1500's.
This fourth horse truly did bring with it the rider called Death and the Grave most certainly followed.
May the Lord bless and keep us as we continue our study, realizing how truly separate God's way is from man's. Jesus did not wield power and authority by any force whatsoever, in fact He acted the part of the Lamb being led to the slaughter only unlike our animal lambs, Jesus was fully aware of the death that awaited Him and He didn't offer any protest at all. He didn't cause an uprising of followers to wage war on the corruption around them, He encouraged love of enemies, doing good to those who misuse you- hate you- despise you- and all His followers were to follow that example of His and where can you find that in any way with the things the papacy has done under the guise of being Christ's church? May we today recognize the truth of Jesus' love and call to us to follow Him and know that all else even with it's disguise of purity and goodness is filled with evil and there will be those who cry out to Jesus about knowing him but in truth He will call back to them that He knows them not. May we not be among those, but be safely in the kingdom as true followers of Jesus' love, covered in His righteousness by His mercy, His grace towards us sinners who beg forgiveness and repent of all that would keep us from His love, from His knowing us.
Amen!
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Prophecy - 75
Rev 6:5 And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand.
Jesus opened the third seal of this very important book and the third beast (the one with a face of a man, with six wings and full of eyes like all four beasts had in common) spoke and told John to come and see, to come look. And John was shown a black horse. What is the opposite of white? Black. If white is purity and light, black is impurity and darkness isn't it? White raiment is known as being the righteousness of Christ, if there were black raiment it would be the unrighteousness portray- filthy garments. The white horse traveling through a period of time when the early church prospered without gross persecution. The red horse traveling through a period of time where there was much blood shed for God's people, in fact the bloodiest period of time in 303AD to 313AD before Christianity was finally accepted by the mainstream. Now this black horse and a rider with a pair of balances enters the picture.
Balances- even today we use them to denote what? Justice.
Symbolism-
The scales (specifically, a two pan, beam balance) are one of the traditional symbols of justice, as wielded by statues of Lady Justice. This corresponds to the use in metaphor of matters being "held in the balance". It has its origins in ancient Egypt.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weighing_scale
*******
When you have two forces in play a balance can be tipped in favor of one or the other- or remain in it's non-tipped state symbolizing equality.
You have two forces good and evil, Christ's way or Satan's way.
The church of good and the church of evil perhaps are represented in the balances.
With the balance held as such in this time could it denote the birth of the corrupt church that would counter the pure church? It was historically a time when paganisn began to mingle with Christianity making it impure while retaining the title pure. Corruption, deception, darkness winds its way into the church and a corrupt church suits the purposes of Satan rather well. When you add the commerce of goods and payments to the picture we're adding what to the mix? A government, yes? An economy and every economy is ruled by a government. With the balances in the picture we have can imagine that symbol of civil power, of governmental power because once more meting out justice is government function. The involvement of government with religion - the beginning of the very corrupted pure Christianity began. Christ would have His disciples render unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's, He did NOT promote a Christian government or a time when the church would work as any type of civil power, but rather claimed this was not His world, not our world. Yet during this period of time- church and state entwined ever further as our study in Daniel revealed. The political sway of the apostate pagan infused Papacy grew stronger and stronger. Jesus NEVER intended that His followers would hold powerful sway over worldly matters- never. Jesus came to preach the gospel of the kingdom and instructed His followers to spread that word- NOT to join with the world in any way.
Rev 6:6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.
This time it's not saying where the voice is exactly coming from rather from the midst of the four beasts. It's not pinpointing the One Worthy who is opening the seals either. This voice is in the midst of the beasts and thus far 3 of the beasts have spoken as the seals were broken. This additional voice makes it stand out- makes us take notice.
A measure of wheat for a penny. Food /money.
Three measures of barley for a penny. Food /money.
Buying and selling. The great concern here isn't the purity of Christ but rather money, goods.
Yet there's an admonition- see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.
Could it be that the wheat and the barley were being hurt? How could such commodities be hurt? For that matter how could you hurt oil and wine? Corruption can hurt it all.
Here there is pointed mention of the wheat and the barley being sold and the admonition not to hurt the oil and wine. Nothing about selling the oil and wine but the fact the oil and wine could be hurt. If I tell you not to hurt something then the possibility exists that it can be hurt or else there need be no mention of it, right?
Throughout the Bible oil has had it's special place as well as wine in the service of God. Even Jesus in the parable of the Samaritan helping the wounded man had the man tending him with oil and wine- healing him, soothing him. If the oil and wine are hurt there can be no healing perhaps?
Also consider the parable of the virgins and the oil in their lamps- those who brought extra were commended and welcomed to the feast while those who did not bring extra were shut out. Already in the vision of the seven churches the last church was admonished to buy eye salve to see, oil, so that their eyes would be open to the truth's of Jesus that there would be Spiritual guidance. Wine, as we know, Jesus used to symbolize the blood He spilled for mankind. If there is a hurting of the oil an the wine there is a lack of spirit and blood both necessary to be in Christ fully.
Those true to Christ while the corruption began in earnest during the time of the third seal needed to guard the truth of the oil and wine, the spirit and blood and hold fast to that truth as it was being corrupted and brought into ruin so easily, so deceptively.
May God keep our eyes and hearts open to Him. May we remember these words and understand that during great famines of a spiritual nature we can hold fast to Christ and His sacrifice for us through the Holy Spirit's comforting, guiding, admonishing.
As the end approaches the Spirit of God is withdrawn from the earth and we who long to be His and stand fast in Him need to protect the spiritually precious gifts that cannot be bought but need to be given to us by Christ, who counsels us to buy of Him- Him who has paid the highest price so that we may have the gift of eternal life in Him, now and forever He reigns! All glory to God in the Highest! All praise, all honor, all majesty heavenward.
By His grace and mercy. Amen.
Jesus opened the third seal of this very important book and the third beast (the one with a face of a man, with six wings and full of eyes like all four beasts had in common) spoke and told John to come and see, to come look. And John was shown a black horse. What is the opposite of white? Black. If white is purity and light, black is impurity and darkness isn't it? White raiment is known as being the righteousness of Christ, if there were black raiment it would be the unrighteousness portray- filthy garments. The white horse traveling through a period of time when the early church prospered without gross persecution. The red horse traveling through a period of time where there was much blood shed for God's people, in fact the bloodiest period of time in 303AD to 313AD before Christianity was finally accepted by the mainstream. Now this black horse and a rider with a pair of balances enters the picture.
Balances- even today we use them to denote what? Justice.
Symbolism-
The scales (specifically, a two pan, beam balance) are one of the traditional symbols of justice, as wielded by statues of Lady Justice. This corresponds to the use in metaphor of matters being "held in the balance". It has its origins in ancient Egypt.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weighing_scale
*******
When you have two forces in play a balance can be tipped in favor of one or the other- or remain in it's non-tipped state symbolizing equality.
You have two forces good and evil, Christ's way or Satan's way.
The church of good and the church of evil perhaps are represented in the balances.
With the balance held as such in this time could it denote the birth of the corrupt church that would counter the pure church? It was historically a time when paganisn began to mingle with Christianity making it impure while retaining the title pure. Corruption, deception, darkness winds its way into the church and a corrupt church suits the purposes of Satan rather well. When you add the commerce of goods and payments to the picture we're adding what to the mix? A government, yes? An economy and every economy is ruled by a government. With the balances in the picture we have can imagine that symbol of civil power, of governmental power because once more meting out justice is government function. The involvement of government with religion - the beginning of the very corrupted pure Christianity began. Christ would have His disciples render unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's, He did NOT promote a Christian government or a time when the church would work as any type of civil power, but rather claimed this was not His world, not our world. Yet during this period of time- church and state entwined ever further as our study in Daniel revealed. The political sway of the apostate pagan infused Papacy grew stronger and stronger. Jesus NEVER intended that His followers would hold powerful sway over worldly matters- never. Jesus came to preach the gospel of the kingdom and instructed His followers to spread that word- NOT to join with the world in any way.
Rev 6:6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.
This time it's not saying where the voice is exactly coming from rather from the midst of the four beasts. It's not pinpointing the One Worthy who is opening the seals either. This voice is in the midst of the beasts and thus far 3 of the beasts have spoken as the seals were broken. This additional voice makes it stand out- makes us take notice.
A measure of wheat for a penny. Food /money.
Three measures of barley for a penny. Food /money.
Buying and selling. The great concern here isn't the purity of Christ but rather money, goods.
Yet there's an admonition- see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.
Could it be that the wheat and the barley were being hurt? How could such commodities be hurt? For that matter how could you hurt oil and wine? Corruption can hurt it all.
Here there is pointed mention of the wheat and the barley being sold and the admonition not to hurt the oil and wine. Nothing about selling the oil and wine but the fact the oil and wine could be hurt. If I tell you not to hurt something then the possibility exists that it can be hurt or else there need be no mention of it, right?
Throughout the Bible oil has had it's special place as well as wine in the service of God. Even Jesus in the parable of the Samaritan helping the wounded man had the man tending him with oil and wine- healing him, soothing him. If the oil and wine are hurt there can be no healing perhaps?
Also consider the parable of the virgins and the oil in their lamps- those who brought extra were commended and welcomed to the feast while those who did not bring extra were shut out. Already in the vision of the seven churches the last church was admonished to buy eye salve to see, oil, so that their eyes would be open to the truth's of Jesus that there would be Spiritual guidance. Wine, as we know, Jesus used to symbolize the blood He spilled for mankind. If there is a hurting of the oil an the wine there is a lack of spirit and blood both necessary to be in Christ fully.
Those true to Christ while the corruption began in earnest during the time of the third seal needed to guard the truth of the oil and wine, the spirit and blood and hold fast to that truth as it was being corrupted and brought into ruin so easily, so deceptively.
May God keep our eyes and hearts open to Him. May we remember these words and understand that during great famines of a spiritual nature we can hold fast to Christ and His sacrifice for us through the Holy Spirit's comforting, guiding, admonishing.
As the end approaches the Spirit of God is withdrawn from the earth and we who long to be His and stand fast in Him need to protect the spiritually precious gifts that cannot be bought but need to be given to us by Christ, who counsels us to buy of Him- Him who has paid the highest price so that we may have the gift of eternal life in Him, now and forever He reigns! All glory to God in the Highest! All praise, all honor, all majesty heavenward.
By His grace and mercy. Amen.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
2 Corinthians 11 - The simplicity that is in Christ
2Co 11:14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
2Co 11:15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
This was spoken by Paul to God's people in Corinth, and all God's people in Achaia.
2Co 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, unto the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints which are in all Achaia
Think about this for a moment- Jesus hadn't been gone for long. It has been determined that Paul wrote this book of the Bible somewhere between 53 and 57 AD. As we've discussed before- Satan got right to work on God's people wasting no time at all stepping in and trying to pervert the truth. Setting up His counterfeit, Satan from the beginning has done all He can to thwart God's truth and deceive people into believing in his truth, not God's.
2Co 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
2Co 11:4 For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.
Corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ… HOW incredibly beautiful is that? The simplicity that is in Christ. It is no secret that people have made following Christ anything but simple. The complex set ups that make up our churches could never be termed simple. It wasn't Jesus' plan that we make huge organizations and call them churches- call them God's people. Over and over people point out that the larger the following grew the more organization was necessary, but in the simplicity of Christ- is that true? When did following God mean taking oaths to follow beliefs of an organization? Isn't it true that MANY people followed Jesus and it wasn't Jesus' desire to keep out the weeds? He let all follow Him. He did not set up His apostles to keep watch and make sure no Pharisees came near to Him. Jesus didn't raise up an army of guards to keep out all those who did not truly believe. Jesus fed 5000 people and a day later those 5000 followers who had been eager to crown Him their king- left Him because He began to preach things they didn't want to comprehend. At that point Jesus asked His apostles if they too were going to leave, but they didn't. The point here being- Jesus ministered to 5000 people! And Jesus knew that as soon as He began to speak hard truths these same people would turn away.
I'm not against organizations- Jesus had His Apostles, His Apostles appointed Elders and such but with ONE goal in mind- to live for Christ and help those around them who chose to live for believing in the truth of Christ, to minister to the poor, to do that which Jesus would have them do and that was to always be a SERVANT first, never a master. Taking in ANY riches for selfish reasons was NEVER God's plan, NEVER. Yet how quickly selfish gain infiltrated God's true church- God's people.
Let's read those two verses again-
'But I fear lest by ANY means-
AS the serpent beguiled Eve through his SUBTILTY
So YOUR minds should be corrupted from the SIMPLICITY that is in CHRIST.
For if he that cometh preacheth ANOTHER Jesus whom we have NOT preached
Or if ye receive ANOTHER spirit which ye have not received,
Or ANOTHER gospel which ye have not accepted ye might well bear with him.'
By any means.
Through His subtilty.
Corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
Preaching another Jesus, another spirit, another gospel.
And then this…
2Co 11:14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
2Co 11:15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
Satan himself is TRANSFORMED into an angel of light.
Satan's MINISTERS are also TRANSFORMED as ministers of righteousness.
Why do so many people follow others blindly!!! Why?! Why do people follow others without putting them to the 'law and to the testimony?'
Isa 8:20 To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.
Why?! When Satan infiltrated God's people- the church of God right from the start! Shouldn't being wary rather than foolishly following be the order of the day? Shouldn't this be a duty of all who would follow Christ? Making sure that the simplicity of Christ, making sure that the gospel our Savior charged His disciples to preach is what we are truly following. So many have traded in truth for religious trappings. They have a picture in their minds of how a 'church' should be and they join that 'church' rather than truly joining Christ and preaching His true gospel. Shouldn't people be extremely wary when they read these words of Christ Himself?
Mat 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
Mat 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
Entering in the wide gates is NOT the guaranteed path to salvation so many believe it to be. Entering in those church doors thrown wide open and inviting is NOT necessarily entering into the truth at all. Yet so incredibly many believe that as long as there is a following of those who claim to know Christ, as long as outwardly there are all the signs and wonders we've come to associate with being true followers of Christ- then they have to be in the right place.
Then you get those who might suspect things are all on the up and up but they quickly shush that voice because hey- what they are doing is better than doing nothing. What they are doing is better than standing outside the organizations without any formal church setting, without any appointed minister, without any who can guide them. They would rather have a guide that could be deluded than step away from that sense of organized religion. Satan has duped people so incredibly well they refuse to see, they don't want to see and the Bible tells us- God tells us - that those who wish to be blind will be allowed to be blind.
Right from the start of churches corruption entered in, false churches were created and they weren't the blatant false churches of idolatry, these were churches so subtly, so close to the truth that it would be extremely hard to distinguish between the true and false.
It's NO great thing for Satan's ministers to be transformed into ministers of seeming righteousness. THESE are God's WORDS! This is God's TRUTH!
Satan's ministers.
2Co 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
The simplicity that is in Christ.
Belonging to an organization that claims to be God's true followers is truly dangerous. When we join ourselves to an organization we are attaching ourselves to that organization's beliefs, we are grouping ourselves with them. If we are part of a corporate body- if that corporate body is corrupt then we have joined ourselves with corruption. I fully believe that God has sincere followers in all churches- but I fully believe that God will call those followers OUT of those corrupt churches before our Savior returns.
Rev 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
When we join ourselves to lovely, seemingly sincere churches we are accountable for knowing what we are joining right down to all their beliefs and the heads of their corporations- we have that responsibility it doesn't disappear just because we can't be bothered to care whether or not there is any untruth in the main beliefs. Asking ourselves if a church is following the SIMPLICITY that is in CHRIST is something we are accountable for, and whether or not we LIKE what we find we are accountable for searching for TRUTH, not searching for wonderful, convincing lies that appear to be truth just because we don't want to be shaken loose from the deception we are so incredibly comfortable following.
2Co 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
Please God, please, this is our prayer, keep us from the evil one's subtle deception, don't let us be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ!
Keep us from evil.
Deliver us from evil.
May Your will be done now and always!
In the love of Jesus Christ our Savior!
Amen.
2Co 11:15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
This was spoken by Paul to God's people in Corinth, and all God's people in Achaia.
2Co 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, unto the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints which are in all Achaia
Think about this for a moment- Jesus hadn't been gone for long. It has been determined that Paul wrote this book of the Bible somewhere between 53 and 57 AD. As we've discussed before- Satan got right to work on God's people wasting no time at all stepping in and trying to pervert the truth. Setting up His counterfeit, Satan from the beginning has done all He can to thwart God's truth and deceive people into believing in his truth, not God's.
2Co 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
2Co 11:4 For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.
Corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ… HOW incredibly beautiful is that? The simplicity that is in Christ. It is no secret that people have made following Christ anything but simple. The complex set ups that make up our churches could never be termed simple. It wasn't Jesus' plan that we make huge organizations and call them churches- call them God's people. Over and over people point out that the larger the following grew the more organization was necessary, but in the simplicity of Christ- is that true? When did following God mean taking oaths to follow beliefs of an organization? Isn't it true that MANY people followed Jesus and it wasn't Jesus' desire to keep out the weeds? He let all follow Him. He did not set up His apostles to keep watch and make sure no Pharisees came near to Him. Jesus didn't raise up an army of guards to keep out all those who did not truly believe. Jesus fed 5000 people and a day later those 5000 followers who had been eager to crown Him their king- left Him because He began to preach things they didn't want to comprehend. At that point Jesus asked His apostles if they too were going to leave, but they didn't. The point here being- Jesus ministered to 5000 people! And Jesus knew that as soon as He began to speak hard truths these same people would turn away.
I'm not against organizations- Jesus had His Apostles, His Apostles appointed Elders and such but with ONE goal in mind- to live for Christ and help those around them who chose to live for believing in the truth of Christ, to minister to the poor, to do that which Jesus would have them do and that was to always be a SERVANT first, never a master. Taking in ANY riches for selfish reasons was NEVER God's plan, NEVER. Yet how quickly selfish gain infiltrated God's true church- God's people.
Let's read those two verses again-
'But I fear lest by ANY means-
AS the serpent beguiled Eve through his SUBTILTY
So YOUR minds should be corrupted from the SIMPLICITY that is in CHRIST.
For if he that cometh preacheth ANOTHER Jesus whom we have NOT preached
Or if ye receive ANOTHER spirit which ye have not received,
Or ANOTHER gospel which ye have not accepted ye might well bear with him.'
By any means.
Through His subtilty.
Corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
Preaching another Jesus, another spirit, another gospel.
And then this…
2Co 11:14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
2Co 11:15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
Satan himself is TRANSFORMED into an angel of light.
Satan's MINISTERS are also TRANSFORMED as ministers of righteousness.
Why do so many people follow others blindly!!! Why?! Why do people follow others without putting them to the 'law and to the testimony?'
Isa 8:20 To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.
Why?! When Satan infiltrated God's people- the church of God right from the start! Shouldn't being wary rather than foolishly following be the order of the day? Shouldn't this be a duty of all who would follow Christ? Making sure that the simplicity of Christ, making sure that the gospel our Savior charged His disciples to preach is what we are truly following. So many have traded in truth for religious trappings. They have a picture in their minds of how a 'church' should be and they join that 'church' rather than truly joining Christ and preaching His true gospel. Shouldn't people be extremely wary when they read these words of Christ Himself?
Mat 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
Mat 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
Entering in the wide gates is NOT the guaranteed path to salvation so many believe it to be. Entering in those church doors thrown wide open and inviting is NOT necessarily entering into the truth at all. Yet so incredibly many believe that as long as there is a following of those who claim to know Christ, as long as outwardly there are all the signs and wonders we've come to associate with being true followers of Christ- then they have to be in the right place.
Then you get those who might suspect things are all on the up and up but they quickly shush that voice because hey- what they are doing is better than doing nothing. What they are doing is better than standing outside the organizations without any formal church setting, without any appointed minister, without any who can guide them. They would rather have a guide that could be deluded than step away from that sense of organized religion. Satan has duped people so incredibly well they refuse to see, they don't want to see and the Bible tells us- God tells us - that those who wish to be blind will be allowed to be blind.
Right from the start of churches corruption entered in, false churches were created and they weren't the blatant false churches of idolatry, these were churches so subtly, so close to the truth that it would be extremely hard to distinguish between the true and false.
It's NO great thing for Satan's ministers to be transformed into ministers of seeming righteousness. THESE are God's WORDS! This is God's TRUTH!
Satan's ministers.
2Co 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
The simplicity that is in Christ.
Belonging to an organization that claims to be God's true followers is truly dangerous. When we join ourselves to an organization we are attaching ourselves to that organization's beliefs, we are grouping ourselves with them. If we are part of a corporate body- if that corporate body is corrupt then we have joined ourselves with corruption. I fully believe that God has sincere followers in all churches- but I fully believe that God will call those followers OUT of those corrupt churches before our Savior returns.
Rev 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
When we join ourselves to lovely, seemingly sincere churches we are accountable for knowing what we are joining right down to all their beliefs and the heads of their corporations- we have that responsibility it doesn't disappear just because we can't be bothered to care whether or not there is any untruth in the main beliefs. Asking ourselves if a church is following the SIMPLICITY that is in CHRIST is something we are accountable for, and whether or not we LIKE what we find we are accountable for searching for TRUTH, not searching for wonderful, convincing lies that appear to be truth just because we don't want to be shaken loose from the deception we are so incredibly comfortable following.
2Co 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
Please God, please, this is our prayer, keep us from the evil one's subtle deception, don't let us be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ!
Keep us from evil.
Deliver us from evil.
May Your will be done now and always!
In the love of Jesus Christ our Savior!
Amen.
Psalms 119:18 Wondrous Law
Psa 119:18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law. (KJV)
Psa 119:18 Uncover mine eyes, and I behold wonders out of Thy law. (YLT - Young's 1898 Literal Translation)
Psa 119:18 Open my mind and let me discover the wonders of your Law. (CEV - Contemporary English Version)
Psa 119:18 Open my eyes, so that I may behold wonderful things out of Your Law. (MKJV- Modern King James Version)
*******
Thy Law, Your Law, God's Law.
Ask most people to name one law and they won't hesitate to tell you one, why? Because most people know what laws are and know at least one if not several. I'm not talking about God's law, but laws we have in our society today. Ask them to name a universal law - a law they believe to be one all people everywhere should keep and do you think they'd have an answer? I do. And I believe that most people would quickly respond that murder is universally wrong and unacceptable for all people everywhere.
Let's look at the United Nations for a moment-
"For the United Nations, the rule of law refers to a principle of governance in which all persons, institutions and entities, public and private, including the State itself, are accountable to laws that are publicly promulgated, equally enforced and independently adjudicated, and which are consistent with international human rights norms and standards. It requires, as well, measures to ensure adherence to the principles of supremacy of law, equality before the law, accountability to the law, fairness in the application of the law, separation of powers, participation in decision-making, legal certainty, avoidance of arbitrariness and procedural and legal transparency."
(S/2004/616)
Report of the Secretary-General on the
Rule of Law and Transitional Justice in
Conflict and Post-Conflict Societies
Pasted from
This organization mentions 'the rule of law'. Man has introduced laws in each of their societies and the United States was formed on the principle of separating Church (God) and State (Man). One of man's laws was the freedom for man to worship as they please. However God's laws would NOT be a part of societies law because that freedom to worship as you please opened the door wide to the freedom of worshipping any god, in any manner. This isn't to say that our puritanical society didn't frown on those who they claimed were of the devil, however today people are allowed to worship the devil all they want without any interference from society. With God stripped from our laws our society quickly became one that apostatized from God. So many love to gloat that America was founded upon believing in God, in Christianity. They point to the U.S. Capital buildings and how their design is largely filled with references towards God. They do this as if that meant they were God fearing men that founded our nation. In truth no truly God fearing person would set up a society that took God out of the law. Seriously, it doesn't work that way.
Look at Muslims for an example their law is filled with their religious beliefs and they're very proud of that fact. They've built a society on their beliefs. Is it any wonder many find their faith enticing? Seriously, it offers something that all the democracies in the world can't offer even though it's a false religion if you truly believe in God and God's word as given to us in the Bible, His most Holy Word.
I hear this a lot - that we have to thank God we live in a place that allows religious freedom and yet something doesn't set right. I need to thank God that I live in a society that has taken Him out of their laws. I probably sound ungrateful and I don't mean to be, I am grateful I am free to worship as I choose but at the same time there is a great sadness inside that I live in a society that shuns God in its government.
I long for the day I live with God under His laws, a world ruled by Him and His love and out of that love ruled by His laws. Truly God's laws are wondrous more so than any law, any man may ever create.
Psa 119:18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.
There are WONDROUS things in the law of God! WONDROUS! Wonderful things, there are wonders in the law of God! May our eye be opened to these wondrous things. Only when we can see the wonder of God's law will we truly have the spiritual sight our Lord wants us to have. God did NOT create the laws to oppress anything good in us, not one single thing. For those who find oppression under the law of God as if it was created to prohibit us from living our lives to the fullest, they do not know God at all!
Wondrous things are found in God's law.
Let's read the law--
Exo 20:2 I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
Exo 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Exo 20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
Exo 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
Exo 20:6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
Exo 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
Exo 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Exo 20:9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
Exo 20:10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
Exo 20:11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
Exo 20:12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
Exo 20:13 Thou shalt not kill.
Exo 20:14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Exo 20:15 Thou shalt not steal.
Exo 20:16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
Exo 20:17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.
*******
Mat 19:17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
Luk 23:56 And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment.
Rom 7:7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.
Jas 2:10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
Jas 2:11 For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law.
Jas 2:12 So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
1Jn 3:4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
*******
Wonders in God's law, wonderful things in God's law.
Psa 119:18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.
I had not known sin but by the law.
There is such beauty in that statement. ONLY One who loves us would give us laws. It's true. Can you even imagine being condemned and not even knowing why? Sentenced to death but never ever told how you could have prevented that death sentence. Wouldn't you want to know why? Let's imagine a police officer yanks you off the street and throws you into jail and the next thing you know without any trial, without even being told what your offense is you are condemned to die. You can't tell me you wouldn't be demanding to know what was going on right from the start, from that first moment the police officer yanked you off the street. You'd ask and if you didn't receive an answer you'd ask again, over and over and at some point it's certain you'd start yelling, demanding to know why, demanding to know what you did wrong. Can you even imagine being told you have to be put to death and NEVER being told why? Seriously, try to imagine it, put yourself in that position. You are being strapped to the gurney, IV's are being put into your arms, poison is all set to flow into your body to end your life and you lay there unable to do anything about it and clueless as to the why of it all. There is NO love at all and truly a dictatorial rule is in place under that sort of set up, yes?
God loves us. God wants us to know HOW we sin. God wants us to realize that we are in fact sinners, and yes, as sinners we deserve death. We are DEPENDENT upon God for life! We are DEPENDENT upon God for RIGHTEOUSNESS! We are DEPENDENT upon God for salvation! We are shown the law, shown God's love, God's perfection and we are told to keep the law- THEN and this is a most important 'then'- THEN we are shown a way to stay God's chosen people in the event we sin, in the event we break that law. The way is through our Savior Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God. The only way we can keep the law is through our Savior, through His amazing LOVE. The Creator of the law of love.
While the law is truly wondrous revealing God's love for mankind, mankind has tried to turn it into something to be abhorred, something to shun.
I truly do not want to be a part of this world under Satan's rule. I want to be a part of God's world under my Savior Jesus Christ. My Savior was not of this world ruled by Satan, and neither am I. And while I must live in this world by the grace of God I can be kept from the evil of this world.
Psa 119:18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.
Please Lord open my eyes wide so that I may see the wonders in Your law! Help me to desire to keep Your law through You, by You, the whole law now and forever.
By Your wondrous LOVE!
Through Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior forever and ever!
Amen.
Psa 119:18 Uncover mine eyes, and I behold wonders out of Thy law. (YLT - Young's 1898 Literal Translation)
Psa 119:18 Open my mind and let me discover the wonders of your Law. (CEV - Contemporary English Version)
Psa 119:18 Open my eyes, so that I may behold wonderful things out of Your Law. (MKJV- Modern King James Version)
*******
Thy Law, Your Law, God's Law.
Ask most people to name one law and they won't hesitate to tell you one, why? Because most people know what laws are and know at least one if not several. I'm not talking about God's law, but laws we have in our society today. Ask them to name a universal law - a law they believe to be one all people everywhere should keep and do you think they'd have an answer? I do. And I believe that most people would quickly respond that murder is universally wrong and unacceptable for all people everywhere.
Let's look at the United Nations for a moment-
"For the United Nations, the rule of law refers to a principle of governance in which all persons, institutions and entities, public and private, including the State itself, are accountable to laws that are publicly promulgated, equally enforced and independently adjudicated, and which are consistent with international human rights norms and standards. It requires, as well, measures to ensure adherence to the principles of supremacy of law, equality before the law, accountability to the law, fairness in the application of the law, separation of powers, participation in decision-making, legal certainty, avoidance of arbitrariness and procedural and legal transparency."
(S/2004/616)
Report of the Secretary-General on the
Rule of Law and Transitional Justice in
Conflict and Post-Conflict Societies
Pasted from
This organization mentions 'the rule of law'. Man has introduced laws in each of their societies and the United States was formed on the principle of separating Church (God) and State (Man). One of man's laws was the freedom for man to worship as they please. However God's laws would NOT be a part of societies law because that freedom to worship as you please opened the door wide to the freedom of worshipping any god, in any manner. This isn't to say that our puritanical society didn't frown on those who they claimed were of the devil, however today people are allowed to worship the devil all they want without any interference from society. With God stripped from our laws our society quickly became one that apostatized from God. So many love to gloat that America was founded upon believing in God, in Christianity. They point to the U.S. Capital buildings and how their design is largely filled with references towards God. They do this as if that meant they were God fearing men that founded our nation. In truth no truly God fearing person would set up a society that took God out of the law. Seriously, it doesn't work that way.
Look at Muslims for an example their law is filled with their religious beliefs and they're very proud of that fact. They've built a society on their beliefs. Is it any wonder many find their faith enticing? Seriously, it offers something that all the democracies in the world can't offer even though it's a false religion if you truly believe in God and God's word as given to us in the Bible, His most Holy Word.
I hear this a lot - that we have to thank God we live in a place that allows religious freedom and yet something doesn't set right. I need to thank God that I live in a society that has taken Him out of their laws. I probably sound ungrateful and I don't mean to be, I am grateful I am free to worship as I choose but at the same time there is a great sadness inside that I live in a society that shuns God in its government.
I long for the day I live with God under His laws, a world ruled by Him and His love and out of that love ruled by His laws. Truly God's laws are wondrous more so than any law, any man may ever create.
Psa 119:18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.
There are WONDROUS things in the law of God! WONDROUS! Wonderful things, there are wonders in the law of God! May our eye be opened to these wondrous things. Only when we can see the wonder of God's law will we truly have the spiritual sight our Lord wants us to have. God did NOT create the laws to oppress anything good in us, not one single thing. For those who find oppression under the law of God as if it was created to prohibit us from living our lives to the fullest, they do not know God at all!
Wondrous things are found in God's law.
Let's read the law--
Exo 20:2 I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
Exo 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Exo 20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
Exo 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
Exo 20:6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
Exo 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
Exo 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Exo 20:9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
Exo 20:10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
Exo 20:11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
Exo 20:12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
Exo 20:13 Thou shalt not kill.
Exo 20:14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Exo 20:15 Thou shalt not steal.
Exo 20:16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
Exo 20:17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.
*******
Mat 19:17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
Luk 23:56 And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment.
Rom 7:7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.
Jas 2:10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
Jas 2:11 For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law.
Jas 2:12 So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
1Jn 3:4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
*******
Wonders in God's law, wonderful things in God's law.
Psa 119:18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.
I had not known sin but by the law.
There is such beauty in that statement. ONLY One who loves us would give us laws. It's true. Can you even imagine being condemned and not even knowing why? Sentenced to death but never ever told how you could have prevented that death sentence. Wouldn't you want to know why? Let's imagine a police officer yanks you off the street and throws you into jail and the next thing you know without any trial, without even being told what your offense is you are condemned to die. You can't tell me you wouldn't be demanding to know what was going on right from the start, from that first moment the police officer yanked you off the street. You'd ask and if you didn't receive an answer you'd ask again, over and over and at some point it's certain you'd start yelling, demanding to know why, demanding to know what you did wrong. Can you even imagine being told you have to be put to death and NEVER being told why? Seriously, try to imagine it, put yourself in that position. You are being strapped to the gurney, IV's are being put into your arms, poison is all set to flow into your body to end your life and you lay there unable to do anything about it and clueless as to the why of it all. There is NO love at all and truly a dictatorial rule is in place under that sort of set up, yes?
God loves us. God wants us to know HOW we sin. God wants us to realize that we are in fact sinners, and yes, as sinners we deserve death. We are DEPENDENT upon God for life! We are DEPENDENT upon God for RIGHTEOUSNESS! We are DEPENDENT upon God for salvation! We are shown the law, shown God's love, God's perfection and we are told to keep the law- THEN and this is a most important 'then'- THEN we are shown a way to stay God's chosen people in the event we sin, in the event we break that law. The way is through our Savior Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God. The only way we can keep the law is through our Savior, through His amazing LOVE. The Creator of the law of love.
While the law is truly wondrous revealing God's love for mankind, mankind has tried to turn it into something to be abhorred, something to shun.
I truly do not want to be a part of this world under Satan's rule. I want to be a part of God's world under my Savior Jesus Christ. My Savior was not of this world ruled by Satan, and neither am I. And while I must live in this world by the grace of God I can be kept from the evil of this world.
Psa 119:18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.
Please Lord open my eyes wide so that I may see the wonders in Your law! Help me to desire to keep Your law through You, by You, the whole law now and forever.
By Your wondrous LOVE!
Through Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior forever and ever!
Amen.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Prophecy - 74
Rev 6:1 And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.
Rev 6:2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
Jesus opened one of the seals on that very important book in His hands. When He did so there was a great noise- isn't thunder a great noise? Thunder sounded. How ominous does that sound? You break a seal and thunder sounds. Again we can't help but imagine a movie scene here- the thunder booming as the seal is broken signifying something of importance taking place. And something important did take place-
One of the four beasts surrounding the throne spoke to John telling him to come and see... come look... And John was allowed to see the vision of a white horse with a person sitting upon the horse holding a bow and then someone was giving the person on the white horse a crown and after that the rider on the white horse when forth conquering right away, his mission to conquer.
White is a symbol of purity. Christ's righteousness is as a white raiment. To ride upon a white horse is symbolic of going forth in purity, the righteousness of the new faith in Christ. This coincides with the first Church- Ephesus and the time line that was established there. There was a sense of purity as our Savior brought the gospel message to the world. That new message so different than any other message was given to us in the pure righteousness of our Savior. The conquering our Savior did was over sin, over eternal death resulting from sin. On the cross Jesus Christ secured forever His right to save humanity, the victory over Satan was won. God's people having lived in expectation of a Messiah now would live with the Messiah realized. Our Lord conquered and His Apostles were given the command to continue to preach the gospel of salvation in Christ to all.
Rev 6:3 And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.
Rev 6:4 And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.
Jesus opens the second seal and right away John hears the second beast - remember the second beast around about the throne is like a calf filled with eyes- this beast tells John to come and see. Again John is allowed another vision. He looks and he sees another horse- this time a red horse going forth. A red horse, no longer a white horse. If white symbolizes purity and righteousness, red symbolizes what? Blood, destruction, impurity. The one who sat upon the red horse was given power, power to take peace from the earth. This lull was to be destroyed, when you take peace from something you bring what? Discord. The peace was to be taken and power so people would kill one another, a great sword of death was being wielded by the one upon the red horse. Think about what history reveals for the time after the early church...
Note this-
'The spirit of this period perhaps reached its climax as we come to the days of Constantine, the first so-called Christian emperor, whose conversion to Christianity in A.D. 323 brought about a compromise between the church and the Roman Empire. The Edict of Milan in A.D. 313, is said to have granted toleration to Christians and allowed conversions to Christianity. Kenneth S. Latourette declares that the acts immediately preceding and culminating in the Edict of Milan in 313 "still remain the most significant of the many milestones in the road by which the church and the state moved toward co-operation.' [4]
[4] Kenneth Scott Latourette, A History of the Expansion of Christianity, Vol. I, The First Five Centuries, p. 159.
And Note this-
'The Diocletianic Persecution (or Great Persecution) was the last and most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman empire.[1] In 303, Emperor Diocletian and his colleagues Maximian, Galerius, and Constantius issued a series of edicts rescinding Christians' legal rights and demanding they comply with traditional religious practices. Later edicts targeted the clergy and demanded universal sacrifice, ordering all inhabitants to sacrifice to the gods. The persecution varied in intensity across the empire—weakest in Gaul and Britain, where only the first edict was applied, and strongest in the Eastern provinces. Persecutionary laws were nullified by different emperors at different times, but Constantine and Licinius's Edict of Milan (313) has traditionally marked the end of the persecution.'
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diocletianic_Persecution
The persecutions of the early Christians grew so intense that it is noted in history as - the 'last and most severe persecution' this took place under the red horse period and it's fitting isn't it?
'and [power] was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth,
and that they should kill one another:
and there was given unto him a great sword.'
A great sword indeed and it was geared towards the destruction of Christians, the destruction of the early church, truly a horse of red with a rider set to destroy.
The purity of Christianity was quickly corrupted and then corrupted fully. History reveals to us that all but one Apostle was murdered. These were God's chosen! These men walked with Jesus and learned from the Master Himself. Given a charge they knew that after the Savior was crucified that they could hope for no less of an end. All who truly follow our Savior understand that persecution is to be expected- physical and spiritual persecution. The greatest accepted persecution of Christians took place during a ten year period before 313 AD- this is all factual. Read this…
'Nevertheless, all above should not reflect Pope`s visit to Serbia in 2013, for the celebration of 1700 years of the Edict of Milan.'
Pasted from
Celebrations for the EDICT of MILAN- 1700 years ago this took place. This historic event is something we have to recognize when we look at prophecy. We are historic witnesses to the fact that for two hundred some years after Jesus' death there was intense Christian persecution, the followers of Christ were not accepted. Great persecution took place and then…it was declared unacceptable to persecute Christians.
Today Christians are still persecuted, but NOT in a widely accepted manner at all.
May God bless us and keep us and may the Holy Spirit guide us into a fuller understanding of His word. By the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, now and forever, all honor, praise and glory to him!
Amen.
Rev 6:2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
Jesus opened one of the seals on that very important book in His hands. When He did so there was a great noise- isn't thunder a great noise? Thunder sounded. How ominous does that sound? You break a seal and thunder sounds. Again we can't help but imagine a movie scene here- the thunder booming as the seal is broken signifying something of importance taking place. And something important did take place-
One of the four beasts surrounding the throne spoke to John telling him to come and see... come look... And John was allowed to see the vision of a white horse with a person sitting upon the horse holding a bow and then someone was giving the person on the white horse a crown and after that the rider on the white horse when forth conquering right away, his mission to conquer.
White is a symbol of purity. Christ's righteousness is as a white raiment. To ride upon a white horse is symbolic of going forth in purity, the righteousness of the new faith in Christ. This coincides with the first Church- Ephesus and the time line that was established there. There was a sense of purity as our Savior brought the gospel message to the world. That new message so different than any other message was given to us in the pure righteousness of our Savior. The conquering our Savior did was over sin, over eternal death resulting from sin. On the cross Jesus Christ secured forever His right to save humanity, the victory over Satan was won. God's people having lived in expectation of a Messiah now would live with the Messiah realized. Our Lord conquered and His Apostles were given the command to continue to preach the gospel of salvation in Christ to all.
Rev 6:3 And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.
Rev 6:4 And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.
Jesus opens the second seal and right away John hears the second beast - remember the second beast around about the throne is like a calf filled with eyes- this beast tells John to come and see. Again John is allowed another vision. He looks and he sees another horse- this time a red horse going forth. A red horse, no longer a white horse. If white symbolizes purity and righteousness, red symbolizes what? Blood, destruction, impurity. The one who sat upon the red horse was given power, power to take peace from the earth. This lull was to be destroyed, when you take peace from something you bring what? Discord. The peace was to be taken and power so people would kill one another, a great sword of death was being wielded by the one upon the red horse. Think about what history reveals for the time after the early church...
Note this-
'The spirit of this period perhaps reached its climax as we come to the days of Constantine, the first so-called Christian emperor, whose conversion to Christianity in A.D. 323 brought about a compromise between the church and the Roman Empire. The Edict of Milan in A.D. 313, is said to have granted toleration to Christians and allowed conversions to Christianity. Kenneth S. Latourette declares that the acts immediately preceding and culminating in the Edict of Milan in 313 "still remain the most significant of the many milestones in the road by which the church and the state moved toward co-operation.' [4]
[4] Kenneth Scott Latourette, A History of the Expansion of Christianity, Vol. I, The First Five Centuries, p. 159.
And Note this-
'The Diocletianic Persecution (or Great Persecution) was the last and most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman empire.[1] In 303, Emperor Diocletian and his colleagues Maximian, Galerius, and Constantius issued a series of edicts rescinding Christians' legal rights and demanding they comply with traditional religious practices. Later edicts targeted the clergy and demanded universal sacrifice, ordering all inhabitants to sacrifice to the gods. The persecution varied in intensity across the empire—weakest in Gaul and Britain, where only the first edict was applied, and strongest in the Eastern provinces. Persecutionary laws were nullified by different emperors at different times, but Constantine and Licinius's Edict of Milan (313) has traditionally marked the end of the persecution.'
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diocletianic_Persecution
The persecutions of the early Christians grew so intense that it is noted in history as - the 'last and most severe persecution' this took place under the red horse period and it's fitting isn't it?
'and [power] was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth,
and that they should kill one another:
and there was given unto him a great sword.'
A great sword indeed and it was geared towards the destruction of Christians, the destruction of the early church, truly a horse of red with a rider set to destroy.
The purity of Christianity was quickly corrupted and then corrupted fully. History reveals to us that all but one Apostle was murdered. These were God's chosen! These men walked with Jesus and learned from the Master Himself. Given a charge they knew that after the Savior was crucified that they could hope for no less of an end. All who truly follow our Savior understand that persecution is to be expected- physical and spiritual persecution. The greatest accepted persecution of Christians took place during a ten year period before 313 AD- this is all factual. Read this…
'Nevertheless, all above should not reflect Pope`s visit to Serbia in 2013, for the celebration of 1700 years of the Edict of Milan.'
Pasted from
Celebrations for the EDICT of MILAN- 1700 years ago this took place. This historic event is something we have to recognize when we look at prophecy. We are historic witnesses to the fact that for two hundred some years after Jesus' death there was intense Christian persecution, the followers of Christ were not accepted. Great persecution took place and then…it was declared unacceptable to persecute Christians.
Today Christians are still persecuted, but NOT in a widely accepted manner at all.
May God bless us and keep us and may the Holy Spirit guide us into a fuller understanding of His word. By the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, now and forever, all honor, praise and glory to him!
Amen.
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