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    God's Consummation Of All In The Book Of Revelation
    God's Consummation Of All In The Book Of Revelation
    God's Consummation Of All In The Book Of Revelation
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    God's Consummation Of All In The Book Of Revelation

    By Roger Henri Trepanier

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    About the book
    “God’s Consummation Of All In The Book Of Revelation” is the ninth book in “The Word of God Library” series and the author’s forty-eighth published work in four different series. While this book is expository in nature (that is, explained in some detail), it is still devotional, heartwarming, and practical, so as to help believers live out their faith in these last days of the present age.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRoger Henri Trepanier
    Release dateOct 31, 2019
    ISBN9780463747476
    God's Consummation Of All In The Book Of Revelation
    Author

    Roger Henri Trepanier

    Roger Henri Trepanier is an evangelist, author, and counselor, who has been serving God on his field of service since 1999. One hundred and eight books have been published so far in five different series, all available in print format and as an eBook for any type of eBook reader. He is a widower with three adopted children, all now married.The author's two websites have been closed. To access the author's books, please type, "Roger Henri Trepanier, books" in any search engine. All the author's books are available in print and ebook formats for all devices.

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      Book preview

      God's Consummation Of All In The Book Of Revelation - Roger Henri Trepanier

      Introduction

      God’s Consummation Of All In The Book Of Revelation

      Chapter One

      Verses 1 to 20

      Chapter Two

      Verses 1 to 29

      Chapter Three

      Verses 1 to 22

      Chapter Four

      Verses 1 to 11

      Chapter Five

      Verses 1 to 14

      Chapter Six

      Verses 1 to 17

      Chapter Seven

      Verses 1 to 17

      Chapter Eight

      Verses 1 to 13

      Chapter Nine

      Verses 1 to 21

      Chapter Ten

      Verses 1 to 11

      Chapter Eleven

      Verses 1 to 19

      Chapter Twelve

      Verses 1 to 17

      Chapter Thirteen

      Verses 1 to 18

      Chapter Fourteen

      Verses 1 to 20

      Chapter Fifteen

      Verses 1 to 8

      Chapter Sixteen

      Verses 1 to 21

      Chapter Seventeen

      Verses 1 to 18

      Chapter Eighteen

      Verses 1 to 24

      Chapter Nineteen

      Verses 1 to 21

      Chapter Twenty

      Verses 1 to 15

      Chapter Twenty-One

      Verses 1 to 27

      Chapter Twenty-Two

      Verses 1 to 21

      Addendum A

      The four ages of time

      Addendum B

      The two comings from Heaven to earth of God’s Son, The Lord Jesus Christ

      Addendum C

      God’s new creation in time

      Addendum D

      For those who may not as yet know God

      The Next Book

      End Page

      INTRODUCTION

      This is the ninth book in the series titled, The Word of God Library. God is leading His servant to have a few commentaries published, which are the result of over 39 years of study, combined with practical experience. And while these commentaries are expository in nature (that is, explained in some detail), they are still intended to be devotional, heartwarming, and as practical as possible, to help believers live out their faith in these last days of the present age.

      At the back of the book, there is an Addenda, with four sections. Addendum A deals with the four ages of time; Addendum B with the two separate comings from Heaven to earth in time of God’s Son, The Lord Jesus Christ; Addendum C deals with the new creation of God in time; while Addendum D is for how one may have a personal relationship with God, if there are any readers, who do not already have this vital relationship. It is highly recommended that one start with the Addenda before one begins to read the book.

      What should also be mentioned before closing this Introduction is that after completing 21 years of formal education and then spending almost 28 years working in Project Engineering and Management in the Corporate offices of a large utility, God called His servant as a non-denominational evangelist in early 1999, and then sent him out a few thousand miles, away from family and friends, to the place of service God assigned, which is where His servant has been, and is still, serving Him as evangelist, counselor, and author. God’s servant is a widower with three adopted children, all now married with a family of their own.

      Please note the two websites listed below, which have been established for the purpose of interacting with readers and for gospel ministry:

      http://www.pilgrimpathwaypublications.com

      http://servantofmosthigh.com

      And now my prayer is that God will richly bless you as you read this book, and greatly minister to your every need in your life, as only God can! To Him be all praise, honor, and glory, with thanksgiving, both now and forevermore! Amen.

      CHAPTER ONE

      Revelation 1:1-20

      As we begin this very important and informative journey through the book of Revelation, there are four points of information we need to note in order to better understand this word from God. The first is that the book of Revelation is to be seen as where God brings to a consummation all that He has said that He would do during the four ages of time. Since God always works all through His Son, then this consummation of all things is to be seen as being outworked by God through His Son, The Lord Jesus Christ. What this means then is that when the four ages of time are completed and eternity begins, God will have accomplished all that He had set out to do in bringing about the original creation, which was during the first age of time, and which was when time began to be marked.

      And the second thing that we need to be aware of here is that the text of the word that God gave as part of the book of Revelation will be included as part of the text of this book, so that the reader will not have to turn to the Bible to read that text. It will appear in bold and will be the only bold text, apart from the chapter titles. Then thirdly, each chapter has been broken into smaller sections, which will begin with italicized text, which is a brief explanation supplied as a help of what is covered in that particular section. And fourthly, whenever an italicized word appears in the Biblical text, it indicates a word supplied by the translators from the original Greek into English as a help to the reader. Similarly, at times comments are supplied in brackets in the text of God’s word as an additional help to the reader.

      Revelation 1:1-3, God's introductory comments on the revelation of His Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, which God gave the apostle John to pass on to believers coming after him

      We note that as God begins the book of Revelation He gives us introductory comments as to what the book is about, as to who this information was given to, and who its intended recipients were, as is made clear from what God tells us at Revelation 1:1,2, "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants, the things which must soon take place; and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John, [2] who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw."

      And so the first thing we are to note is that the book's central focus is the revelation of Jesus Christ, with the word revelation being Apokalupsis in the original, which means an 'uncovering, unveiling;' while Jesus Christ of course is a reference to The eternal Son of God now in Heaven in human flesh, which has been the case since His ascension back to Heaven again, after His death for mankind’s sins, His burial to put those sins away forever, and His resurrection from the dead the third day, with His ascension coming forty days after this, as is clear from what God tells us at Acts 1:1-3,9-11.

      So what we have here then is God pulling back the curtain on spiritual truth previously hidden from our view to now enable us to see what we would not otherwise be able to see, with all things here having its central focus on His Son, The Lord Jesus Christ. And it would be beneficial for us to note what God says at Ephesians 1:9,10 in part, in regards to what He is working towards here, [9] He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him (that is, in His Son) [10] with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. And that is precisely what God does here in the book of Revelation!

      Then secondly, we are to note that the revelation of Jesus Christ is that which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants... In other words, it is what God The Father gave to His precious Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, to begin with, for the purpose that He would in turn show to His bond-servants... A bond-servant is to be seen as someone in another's service, with the binding bond in that service being love. God gives us a picture of the type of bond-servant He has in view here at Exodus 21:1-6, where we read, [1] Now these are the ordinances which you are to set before them: [2] If you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve for six years; but on the seventh he shall go out as a free man without payment. [3] If he comes alone, he shall go out alone; if he is the husband of a wife, then his wife shall go out with him. [4] If his master gives him a wife, and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall belong to her master, and he shall go out alone. [5] But if the slave plainly says, 'I love my master, my wife and my children; I will not go out as a free man,' [6] then his master shall bring him to God, then he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall pierce his ear with an awl; and he shall serve him permanently.

      This is what God has done for all those who during the four ages of time have come to personally know God in salvation, when He bought us back from the slave market, where we were in bondage to the devil and destined to remain so if God had not intervened, first in making the provision for our salvation through His Son, and then personally applying that to our lives at some point before physical death, as we see clearly from Colossians 1:12-14, [14] giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. [13] For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, [14] in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

      And so we see that God rescued us from our bondage to the devil in order that we might serve Him out of love for Him from the moment of our salvation onwards, noting first what God tells us at 1 Corinthians 6:19,20 in this regard, [19] Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? [20] For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and then also noting what He further tells us at 2 Corinthians 5:14,15, where God makes this even clearer, in terms of our having been saved in order that we might willingly serve God out of love for Him thereafter, [14] For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; [15] and He died for all, so that they who live (that is, those who are saved) might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.

      Then thirdly, we are to see that the uncovering or unveiling of The Lord Jesus Christ has in view the things which must soon take place... These are things on God's calendar, which will soon take place, as God now makes it known to His precious Son that He might in turn make it known to His bond-servants, as those who are His by election, that is, chosen of Him for salvation in eternity past and then actually brought to that salvation at some point in time, before one’s physical death.

      And then fourthly, we are to see that God's Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, in turn makes that unveiling known to His bond-servants by sending for and communicating it to His angel, who was then sent to His bond-servant John. The word communicated is Semaino in the original Greek (which will be understood from this point on, when we state ‘in the original’) meaning 'to make known.' When we read His angel, here, it is clear that this is an unfallen angel specifically designated by God to serve His Son in time and to do His bidding, although we are to see that all unfallen angels are in a sense in that same position of serving God in some capacity or other.

      Let us further note that the term His angel is first seen in God’s word at Genesis 24:7, with its last occurrence being at Revelation 22:6, where we see the same angel as here, at Revelation 1:1, still being in view. So there is a very real possibility that this angel, because designated as His angel, and not simply 'an angel,' might be the angel Gabriel, whom we see being sent by The Son of God to speak to the prophet Daniel at Daniel 8:16, and then also to a man named Zechariah at Luke 1:19, and then to a virgin named Mary at Luke 1:26. In the author’s book on Daniel, this Gabriel was there said to be an archangel, same as Michael was seen to be one, noting Jude 1:9.

      We are also to be clear that the John in view here is the apostle John, who previous to this had been chosen by God to write down the gospel account of the book of John, the three letters of what we know as First, Second, and Third John, and now the book of Revelation that we are presently looking at. And as we see here, he is also a bond-servant of The Lord Jesus Christ. Only those who are bond-servants of The Lord Jesus Christ can expect to be illuminated as to the revelation of God’s Son in this book!

      But let us also keep in mind that this is, The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to SHOW to His bond-servants, the things which must soon take place... The word show is Deiknumi, which means to make known by exhibition, by exposing to one's sight, which no doubt would be by means of a vision here. The same word is seen again later at Revelation 4:1, where the apostle John says, After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, Come up here, and I will SHOW (same word) you what must take place after these things."

      This is clear from what we are further told at Revelation 1:2, who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, EVEN TO ALL THAT HE SAW. However, as we see here, the apostle John did not only see things in the vision given to him, but also heard the words which God's Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, was communicating through the angel sent to him, which we are to carefully note was the word (Logos) of God, as it originated with God The Father, Who always speaks through His Son by The Holy Spirit. This was made clear to us while The Lord Jesus Christ was still on earth at His first coming from Heaven to earth, noting what God’s Son said to His disciples at John 14:24, He who does not love Me does not keep My words (Logos); and THE WORD (Logos) WHICH YOU HEAR IS NOT MINE, BUT THE FATHER'S who sent Me.

      Then the word testimony here at Revelation 1:2 is Marturia in the original and refers to what one testifies to, which in this case refers to what God's Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, testified to regarding future things, which God calls the things which must soon take place at Revelation 1:1. This is what the apostle John is then seen to have testified to, being a chosen and prepared vessel in God's Hands to do so here.

      Then God completes His introductory comments regarding the book of Revelation by saying to us at Revelation 1:3, "Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near. God calls blessed, which is Makarios in the original, meaning 'happy' are those who not only reads or hear the words of the prophecy, but who heeds the things which are written in it... The word heeds is Tereo" in the original, which means 'to keep, to observe.'

      The 'hearing' which God has in view here is not as going in one ear and out the other, as God warns us against at James 1:22-25, as we there read, [22] But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. [23] For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; [24] for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. [25] But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed (Makarios)) in what he does. And so, God is looking for the type of hearing from us that is life transforming, such as we read about from what God's Son tells us at John 6:63, It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.

      And what God means by the prophecy at Revelation 1:3, which is Propheteia in the original, are the things which must soon take place, which we have seen mentioned at Revelation 1:1, and which are the inspired words of God declaring the purposes of God as relating to the future. Therefore, one cannot just read, one must also hear God speak. And one will not hear God speak unless one is first a child of God in salvation. We are to see then that the condition and motive of our heart is known by God as we come to read, and God will only illuminate those who come with the intention of obeying what He says to us in His word, which is true of only those who are children of God! This is very important to realize and grasp here.

      Then God concludes His introductory comments by saying that the time is near, which is why one who is a child of God must not only read and hear the word of God, but especially heed it, in terms of taking it to heart so as to have one's life transformed by it, so that one may always be a vessel in God's Hands during one's stay on earth. And of course when God says the time is near, this depends on when one is born relative to the time of fulfillment of what God is about to disclose to us. For a person born in the first century AD, that was quite far off by human standards of measurement, but to one born in the 21st century, as we are presently now in, then the time is indeed near! We of course need to remember that to God one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years is like one day (Psalm 90:4; 2 Peter 3:8).

      Revelation 1:4-20, the vision of God's Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, given by God The Father to the apostle John to give to the seven local churches of Asia (minor)

      What we are to observe very carefully here is that since the apostle John was given this revelation of Jesus Christ about 90 AD, which was during the present third age of time, sometimes also referred to as ‘the church age,’ which began about 33 AD with the coming of The Holy Spirit to permanently indwell believers, as we see at Acts 2:1-4, then we should not be surprised to then be told by God about local churches on earth at Revelation 1:4-6, regarding the vision that John was given of God’s Son, "[4] John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, [5] and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood – [6] and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father – to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. In other words, we are to see here that the bond-servants which God had in view at Revelation 1:1 are really the believers of the present third age, which further means that they are the ones who are to heed the things which are written in it...."

      And so when the apostle John is led of God to say by inspiration here, to the seven churches of Asia, we are to see that God chose seven local churches, which were then in existence on earth at the time of the apostle John, to represent believers of the entire present third age of time! God does not only tell us in what part of the world they were in, which is Asia – which is to be understood as meaning 'Asia minor' here, which is present day Turkey – but God even names the seven local churches by name, as we will see later at Revelation 1:11.

      Then we are to observe that God The Father starts His message to the seven churches that are in Asia – which is really through His Son by His angel through the apostle John – by saying, Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, with our needing to realize again that the source of the message here is God The Father, Who is in view at verse 1:4 as from Him who is and who was and who is to come, which is made crystal clear when verse 1:5 then starts off with the words, AND from Jesus Christ...

      This same statement is seen again at Revelation 4:8, where we also have God The Father in view, as we there read, And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME." As we have noted above, these words are so because God The Father always indwells His Son and speaks and works from there.

      We must ever keep in mind that although there are three separate Persons making up God, nevertheless there is only ONE God, with God The Father being generally referred to by the title God, as is made clear from 1 Corinthians 8:6, yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him. The Father always dwells in, works through, and speaks from His Son by The Holy Spirit!

      God's desire for believers of these seven local churches, and by extension to all believers, when God says, Grace to you and peace, is that all be living by faith, which will then mean that these are living by God's grace, noting Romans 4:16 in part, ...it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace...; and that each may also be living by God's peace, which one has along with joy as one walks with God by His righteousness alone, noting Romans 14:17, for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

      Then God also adds at Revelation 1:4, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne... We note that the NASB95 translators (which is the Bible version we are using in this book) have rendered the word Spirits as being capitalized, to indicate that The precious Holy Spirit is here in view. However, It should be noted that quite a few translations do not capitalize the s for the word spirit, among which are the NIV, the RSV, International English, New Jerusalem, Williams, the NET Bible, and the International Standard Version. And the reason they do not is because they view the word spirit as being a reference to unfallen angels in the tem the seven spirits, as God’s servant also does here. And so we note that these seven spirits are said to be before His throne, speaking here of the throne of God The Father, which would therefore make this in Heaven, as His uncreated and eternal abode.

      We should note here that this term 'the seven Spirits' occurs again at Revelation 3:1; 4:5; and 5:6; and it would prove useful at this point to review each one, to confirm the truth that unfallen angels are in view here, and NOT The Holy Spirit. And so we read at Revelation 3:1, To the angel of the church in Sardis write: He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. Here we note the mention of the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars together. Since the word and is in the Greek here, it would appear that the seven Spirits of God are separate from the seven stars. Then we further note from Revelation 1:16 that in His right hand He held seven stars..., in reference to The Son of God holding these seven stars, where it is then revealed to us at Revelation 1:20 what these seven stars referred to, As for the mystery of the seven stars which you (John) saw in My right hand... the seven stars are the seven (unfallen) angels of the seven churches... And before commenting further on this, let us look at the other occurrences of the seven Spirits of God.

      And so the next occurrence of the term the seven Spirits is at Revelation 4:5, where God tells us, Out from the throne come flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder. And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God... Now we have the seven Spirits of God being said to be seven lamps of fire burning before the throne... And now let us note the last occurrence of the term the seven Spirits of God, which is at Revelation 5:6, And I saw between the throne (with the four living creatures) and the elders a Lamb standing, as if slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God, sent out into all the earth. What is important to realize here is that it is the seven eyes, which are said to be the seven Spirits of God here, and not the seven horns!

      And in having now looked at each occurrence of the term the seven spirits of God, we are to note what we further read at Revelation 8:2 in part, And I saw the seven (unfallen) angels who stand before God..., which is very important to note. And so, in now having looked at these verses, it is concluded at this time – as was also the case when God’s servant studied the word spirit in God’s word – that the term the seven spirits of God in all these occurrences refer to seven unfallen angels, which stand before God’s throne in Heaven!

      Then in regards to Revelation 3:1, where we saw that God mentions the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, and where we saw from Revelation 1:20 that the seven stars refer to the seven unfallen angels of the seven local churches that God is writing to, as representative of all local churches of the present third age, and in having concluded that the seven Spirits of God are also seven unfallen angels, but not the same seven unfallen angels as the seven stars! For what we need to see here is that later on in the book of Revelation, God does also use seven unfallen angels for carrying out His purposes, as we see for instance at Revelation 8:2,6; 15:1,6,7.8; 16:1; 17:1; and 21:9.

      As we continue, we further note from Revelation 1:5,6 that God The Father goes on to add regarding His Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, [5] …the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood - [6] and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father – to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. Here God The Father discloses five important truths regarding His Son, all relating to His first coming from Heaven to earth, after He had taken on a human body in the innocence of Adam and as born of a virgin. The first disclosure by God The Father here is that His precious Son is the faithful witness, with the word faithful being Pistos, which means He can be trusted; while the word witness is Martus, and denotes one who affirms what He has seen, heard, and knows. Therefore, God's Son is to be seen first of all as being put forth by His Father as a faithful interpreter to mankind of God's counsels! In other words, we can take God’s Son at His word, same as we do God The Father!

      Then secondly, God The Father says that His Son is the firstborn of the dead, with the word firstborn being Prototokos, meaning that God's Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, was the first to be raised from the dead as part of a new creation of God. For instance, Lazarus is seen as being raised from the dead by God's Son at John 11; however, he was to die again a few years later, since his being raised from the dead was not as part of the first resurrection relating to the believers of time, of which God's Son is the firstborn of that first resurrection, as is clear from what God tells us at 1 Corinthians 15:20, But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep, and also at Colossians 1:18, He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning (of a new creation of God), the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.

      And so, we are to see that God's Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, is the first to be raised from the dead as part of a new creation that God is bringing into being, so that when the first resurrection is completed in time, all the believers of time will likewise have been raised from the dead so as to forever be part of that new creation, of which God's Son is the firstborn of. And so, firstborn of the dead at Revelation 1:5 relates to God’s Son being the first to be raised from the dead, as part of a new creation that God is bringing into being during the four ages of time! Readers may want to turn to Addendum C at this point and read, God’s new creation in time, before resuming here.

      And then thirdly, we are to see that God The Father here calls His Son, now in Heaven after His death for the sins of mankind, His burial, and His ascension, as The Lord Jesus Christ, the ruler of the kings of the earth, where the word ruler is Archon, in terms of not only being above the kings of the earth, but also in these being answerable to Him. This is due to the fact of His resurrection from the dead, as the firstborn of a new creation, as is made clear from what God tells us at Ephesians 1:20-22 in part, [20] which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, [21] far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. [22] And He put all things in subjection under His feet... That is why when God's Son returns again at His second coming from Heaven to earth, He is not just the ruler of the kings of the earth, but He is King of kings, as we see later at Revelation 19:16, And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."

      Then the fourth important truth which God The Father brings to our attention here is the fact that His Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, loves us and released us from our sins by His blood, speaking here of His death at the cross on behalf of a sinful human race, which was a substitutionary death, as we see clearly from 1 Peter 3:18, For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust (the sinless for the sinful), so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit...

      It was love for the human race which caused God The Father to give up His precious Son to die in our place, for the penalty due our sins was death (noting Romans 6:23), with that love of The Father being clear from John 3:16 in part, For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son... And likewise, it was love for the human race that led God's Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, to willingly die in our place at the cross, as we see at 1 John 3:16 in part, We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us... What this means relative to what we read here at Revelation 1:5 is that due to the shedding of His blood in death as the sinner’s Substitute, there is now forgiveness of sins available to those who are now children of God in salvation!

      And then the fifth truth that God The Father brings to our attention now at Revelation 1:6, relating to His Son, is that He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father. What is important to grasp as we go on to look more deeply into this truth is that God did not only provide for the forgiveness of our sins through the shed blood of His dear Son unto death at the cross, but rather, that He had a purpose for our lives, which transcends time and goes on for all eternity to come! One of those purposes was that we might gain God’s own eternal life and then not only reign with Him, but that those who are saved might serve Him, both during time and for all eternity, for our blessing and for God’s glory!

      And although God begins to share this fifth truth by saying, He has made us, which here speaks of the believers of the present third age, nevertheless, we are to realize that what God intends for believers in one age of time, He intends for believers in all four ages of time, since God had no favorites! So when God continues and adds, to be (which are italicized here due to being added words by the translators) a kingdom, priests to His God and Father, we are to realize that this is something that God brings to pass for believers of the four ages during time and then carries on for all eternity to come!

      Then as to the word kingdom, which here speaks of God’s rule, we are to see that it does not relate specifically to territory, as would be the case for a kingdom of men here on earth. For what we are to grasp here is that when the original creation occurred, with the angelic and human beings having then been created, God now had subjects which He had created to serve Him willingly out of love for Him, so He established a Kingdom, with Himself as King over that Kingdom. And since God is a spirit Being (noting John 4:24), Who dwells in a spiritual realm, then this means that the Kingdom that God established at the time of the original creation was a spiritual one!

      And so, during the first age of time, we do not see God mention His Kingdom at all, only that which relates to mankind on earth. It is only during the second age of time, when God is dealing with nations of earth through the believers of the nation of Israel, as representative of the other nations, that God starts using the word Kingdom in relation to Himself, and we only find out as we come to Matthew 3:2 that it is actually called The Kingdom of Heaven. And so, the Kingdom of Heaven is to be seen as God’s rule through His Son on earth as King, which is then exercised through the believers, who are then part of that Kingdom.

      Then in contrast to this, we have what God refers to as the Kingdom of God, which has reference to this present third age of time, as when God rules from Heaven through His Son as King, with that rule presently being exercised through the believers of earth. Then in the fourth age of time, when God’s Son returns from Heaven to earth in the second stage of His second coming, He will be King over the present earth in the Kingdom of Heaven, which was not established at His first coming, due to the nation of Israel being in unbelief, and so having rejected Him as their King at that time!

      Then as the fourth age of time ends, we have The Son of God handing over that Kingdom of Heaven to His Father, as we see at 1 Corinthians 15:24, then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power, with that Kingdom being then called the Kingdom of The Father, as we see at Matthew 13:41,43, [41] The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness… [43] Then the righteous (that is, all believers of the four ages of time) will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear. It is important to keep in mind that this is the same Kingdom that God established at the original creation at the beginning of time, for God ever has only one Kingdom over which He rules, during the four ages of time and for all eternity to come!

      And coming back to Revelation 1:6, we then see that all believers of time are saved in order to be priests to His (The Son’s) God and Father. The word priests here needs to be seen in the context of what God was looking for from the human race in prior ages, which we need to look at now in just a bird’s eye view. When God first created the angelic beings and mankind, all were sinless, with man having been created in the image of God in order that man, whom God designed to be his highest part of His creation, might be able to commune with Him. But back in the first age of time, we see the first man, Adam, with his wife Eve, as representative of the whole human race, sinned against God, having been led astray by an angelic being, which had already gone into sin, who was to become Satan, the devil, who had also led other angelic beings into sin by rebelling against God.

      And so, God’s original intention of having believing human beings on earth to serve Him out of love for Him came to mean that during the first age of time the majority of human beings born on earth were unbelievers, which meant that when God scattered them over the earth, as we see at Genesis 11, then that further meant that the nations springing up all over the earth were nations of unbelievers. So this is when God started the second age of time by selecting one man, a believer named Abraham, as we see at Genesis 12, and from him and his descendants, God then brought the nation of Israel into being, and said to them what we read at Exodus 19:5,6, [5] Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; [6] and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.

      So we see that God’s original intention of establishing His Kingdom on earth, with His Son as King, needed subjects who would willingly serve Him out of love for Him, which God now sought to accomplish through the nation of Israel as a nation of believers, so that through that one nation God could give His word to pass on to nations of unbelievers and that through that one nation God could eventually fulfill His promise of Genesis 3:15 to one day bring His Son to earth, as born of a woman, which would now be part of the nation of Israel. And so, the word priests at Revelation 1:6 simply refers to human beings, who personally know God in salvation and who willingly serve God out of love for Him!

      And what would be helpful in noting here is what we later see at Revelation 5:7-10, where the following scene in Heaven is revealed to us, [7] And He (The Son) came and took the book out of the right hand of Him (The Father) who sat on the throne. [8] When He had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. [9] And they sang a new song, saying, Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. [10] You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth, and then also needing to note what we are further told on at Revelation 20:6, Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years."

      What is important to note here is that at Revelation 5 just quoted, we have the believers of the present third age in view as being a kingdom and priests to our God, as those who have undergone the first resurrection from the dead, as is also true in regards to the believers of the second age of time who are then mentioned at Revelation 20:6, which is why these are from that time onwards a kingdom, priests to His God and Father, as we see at Revelation 1:6. In other words, until the time a believer undergoes one's part in the first resurrection from the dead (or for those still alive when that time comes, simply a translation), one is said to be part of the kingdom of God here on earth, as for instance for the believers of the present third age in what we read at Colossians 1:12-14, as earlier noted, [12] giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. [13] For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, [14] in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins, which happened at the moment of our salvation.

      But once one's part in the first resurrection from the dead comes, then one becomes that Kingdom, as we see for instance at 1 Peter 2:5, you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ, simply because when raised from the dead, one is now raised with a spiritual body, so that all the believers together now constitutes the spiritual house which God The Father indwells and reigns through in His Son by The Holy Spirit., being now a holy priesthood forever offering up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God (The Father) through Jesus Christ.

      So what needs to be remembered here is that we are part of God's Kingdom on earth from the time of our salvation onwards and while yet in our physical bodies, but from the time of our part in the first resurrection onwards, we ARE the Kingdom in which God dwells and from which we offer up spiritual sacrifices to Him forever and ever in that spiritual body which is ours forever and ever, as now also continuing as priests serving God forever!

      And so that is why Revelation 1:6 ends as it does here – due to this fivefold truth relating to The Son of God, The Lord Jesus Christ, as to what He accomplished from the time of taking on the human body prepared for Him by The Father – with the words, to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. It is only when believers have undergone the first resurrection from the dead that they can fully appreciate all that God has done for us through His Son by The Holy Spirit, so as to then give Him the praise and thanksgiving that He is so worthy of. For as we read at 1 Corinthians 13:9,10,12 in part, [9] For (at present) we know in part... [10] but when the perfect comes (in reference to when we, as believers, are in our new glorified body), the partial will be done away... [12] For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.

      And while still speaking of The Son of God, God The Father goes on to add what we read at Revelation 1:7, "Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen. What we read here is a truth which God already made known much earlier in His precious word, for instance at Matthew 24:30, adding verse 29 for context, [29] But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. [30] And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory."

      When God's Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, ascended back to Heaven again at the time of the ascension, it was with the clouds of heaven, and it was predicted at that time that He would come again in exactly the same way, noting what we read at Acts 1:9-11, [9] And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. [10] And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. [11] They also said, Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.

      So when we read about God's Son coming on the clouds of Heaven at Revelation 1:7, Matthew 24:30, and Acts 1:9, we are to see that it is a reference to the same event in time, which is the second coming from Heaven to earth of God's Son, which is at the end of the last week of seven years left of the second age of time. This is the event of Revelation 19:11-21, where we see the return of God’s Son to this earth results in a battle against the forces of the devil and the antichrist on earth!

      Then when we are told at Revelation 1:7, every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, we are to be aware that after the resurrection from the dead of God's Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, only the believers saw Him alive on earth until the time of His ascension. Now we see that when He comes again, it will not only be the believers who will see him – as those who come to know God in a personal relationship during the time of the last week of seven years and are still alive – but also all the unbelievers, so that every eye will see him.

      The mention of those who pierced Him, relates to the Romans at the time of His death at the cross, who were doing so as representative of all unbelievers of time, which means that if any other unbelievers had been in the place of the unbelievers who crucified Him and pierced Him, they too would have done exactly the same thing. In other words, all unbelievers of time are equally guilty before God in the death of His Son, which further means that it was for every unbeliever, and not just for the elect of God unto salvation, that God's precious Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, died at the cross for!

      For instance, the one soldier who literally pierced God's Son on the cross years ago (noting John 19:32-34), will not be alive at the time of the second coming of God's precious Son; however, since he was an unbeliever, then his act was as representative of what any other unbeliever of time would have done had they been in his place, so that God can ascribe the piercing of His Son to all unbelievers of time! The word pierced here at Revelation 1:7 is Ekkenteo in the original and refers to what the one Roman soldier did, who pierced the side of God's Son on the cross with a spear after God’s Son, The Lord Jesus Christ had died, and does not refer to the crucifixion itself.

      Then as to the fact that all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him, we are to first of all note that the word tribes is Phule in the original, and is here a reference to all the peoples of the earth, as represented by the nation of Israel, which was representative of all the nations of the earth at the time of the crucifixion of God’s Son in the second age of time; while the word mourn is Kopto, meaning to beat one's breast due to grief, as we see for instance at Luke 23:27, And following Him was a large crowd of the people, and of women who were mourning (literally 'beating the breast') and lamenting Him."

      And so we see that although only the believers of earth mourned Him at the time of His death at the cross, yet now at His return, all, both the believers – as those who will have become so in the last week of seven years left of the second age of time – and some of the unbelievers – as those who are the elect of God unto salvation and are about to become believers (noting Romans 11:26,27) – will mourn when they see Him, as a spontaneous reaction, which is from God, noting for instance what God tells us at Zechariah 12:10 of what the people of the nation of Israel will do when His Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, returns from Heaven to earth again, I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn.

      And so let us keep in mind here regarding what we have said so far relating to Revelation 1:7, these are events which occur when God's Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, returns again from Heaven to earth to deal with God's enemies in battle, as we see at Revelation 19:11-21. Another important truth to remember here is that what is in view at Revelation 1:7 are events at the end of the last week of seven years left of the second age of time, which is in view in the prophecy given by God at Daniel 9:24-27, when God will again be dealing with the nations of the earth through the believers of the nation of Israel.

      During this present third age, God is dealing with the nations of the earth through the believers making up God's church on earth; whereas in the last week of seven years remaining of the second age of time, God goes back to dealing with all the nations of the earth through the believers of the nation of Israel in order to now complete the second age of time! And then we are to see that when God adds, to close at Revelation 1:7, So it is to be. Amen, He is indicating that this is sure to occur. It is not a maybe-thing, but is something on which we can all stake our lives! God does not lie. Only the devil and those who belong to him ever lie (noting John 8:44).

      Then God The Father concludes the initial brief message we see contained at verses 1:4-8 that He gave the apostle John to give to the seven local churches of Asia by now saying at Revelation 1:8, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. The word Alpha refers to the first letter of the Greek alphabet, while the word Omega refers to the last letter of the Greek alphabet. So what God The Father is saying here is that all things in creation have their beginning and their ending with Him, noting for instance what He tells us later at Revelation 22:13, regarding this saying, I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."

      And when God The Father adds at Revelation 1:8, who is and who was and who is to come, He is repeating what He already said and we noted at Revelation 1:4, plus now adding The Almighty. In other words, He is emphatically saying here, 'I am The Almighty, and no one else!’ The word Almighty here is Pantokrator in the original, meaning 'He Who holds sway over all things; The ruler of all.' We are to note that this title of Almighty is repeated again later at Revelation 4:8, where we read, And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come, and also at Revelation 11:17, where we read, saying, We give You thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who are and who were, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign. All these references are speaking of God The Father.

      Then as we come to Revelation 1:9-20, John is now led to write down the message proper that he was sent to give to the seven local churches of Asia as a group, noting that he is first led to give some background information at verses 1:9-11, "[9] I, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. [10] I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet, [11] saying, "Write in a book what you see, and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea."

      The first important information John is being led of God to share with us here, as the believers of the present third age of time, is that he was on the island called Patmos, while he was in the Spirit on the Lord's day. The island of Patmos (which God allowed His servant to visit in September of 2000) is part of the islands in the Aegean Sea belonging to Greece in our day, although it did belong to Turkey at various times in history, due to its close proximity to its shoreline. According to extra-Biblical sources, John had been exiled to the island of Patmos by the Roman emperor Dominitian.

      The mention of The Lord's day here would be to our Sunday today, which is the first day of the week in Scripture. It is the day on which God's Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, rose again from the dead, and is also the day believers of the present third age of time, known as 'the church age,' gather for worship on earth (for more on the importance of Sunday, please see my book, The Church Is Very Much Alive, Well, And Growing!).

      Then when John mentions being in the Spirit, he simply means that he was not only Spirit-filled as a believer, which means he was blameless before God, that is, with no known unconfessed sins in his life; but also that he had been specifically visited by God for the express purpose of being a vessel in His Hand for transmitting to the human race this book of Revelation. In other words, God chose this particular day of the week to give this book of Revelation to mankind. This is why that as soon as John mentions that he was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, that he then relates that I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet, saying, Write in a book WHAT YOU SEE, and send it to the seven churches...," with this voice being from The Son of God here, Whom John is then allowed of God to see in

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