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May 29, 2024 - Jim Bakker Show
58:03
Jim Bakker Sermon 2: Expanding the Foundation
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Revelation's Secrets 00:06:33
Open your Bibles to chapter number one of the book of Revelation.
This is the revelation of Jesus Christ by Jesus Christ.
This is the Son of God, and we're going to see that He is the firstborn of the death.
I mean, He is the one who was resurrected, who's made it possible for each one of us to one day be resurrected from the dead or to go to be with Him in the sky.
The Apostle John was chosen to write this book down as Jesus gave it to him.
And this man, 90 years of age, has been chosen of God to bring this last day message to the church.
And this was addressed to seven churches, the seven number of perfection and completion.
So we're going to read a little bit more from the book.
We're going to share just some thoughts, just sign off to lay a little foundation from our last study.
But remember, the book of Revelation, the word revelation is apocalypse in the Greek, but it means the uncovering, the uncovering.
It means to take the cover off, to reveal secrets.
We learned last week about secrets, didn't we?
That this is a book of secrets, disclosure and unveiling that God wants to give to his people.
And we must read this book.
As I said before, many, many churches do not want the book of Revelation taught.
It says it scares the people.
Well, I think some of the people need to be scared.
I think some of us need to have a little more fear of God in our hearts.
Amen.
So I want to read something from Jack Hayford as we start today about the style in which John delivered this message.
This is from Jack Hayford's Bible Handbook.
It says the method of communication.
John received these prophetic thoughts, a series of vivid visions containing symbolic images and numbers that echo those found in the prophetic books of the Old Testament.
Remember what we told you last week?
The New Testament church knew Old Testament words.
So if we're going to unveil this book, you're going to find secrets in the Old Testament.
John received these visions and these symbolic images in numbers that echo those found in the prophetic books of the Old Testament.
John records these visions in chronological order in which he received them.
Many of them pictures of the same events from different perspectives.
He does not, however, provide a chronological order in which certain historical events are to occur.
For example, Jesus is born in chapter 12, is exalted in chapter 5, and is walking in the midst of his church in chapter 1.
The beast who attacks the two witnesses in chapter 11 is not brought into existence until chapter 13.
You wonder why you don't understand the book of Revelation?
You've got to study it.
You've got to know the word.
And then it will be revealed unto you.
It was written in code, I'm convinced, to get by the guards there in the Isle of Patmos prison.
John records a series of succession visions, not a series of consecutive events.
The revelation is a cosmic pageant, an elaborate, colorful series of tabloids accompanying and interpreted by celestial speakers and singers.
The spoken word is elevated prose, more poetic than our translations indicate.
The music is similar to a cantata.
Repeatedly, themes are introduced, later reintroduced, combined with other themes, and developed.
Does that make sense to you?
It's like I told you before, I believe that John literally repeats himself over and over and over again.
And it's poetic.
It's rhythm.
It is like a cantata.
And it's because John, being 90 years of age, has finally found out that some people don't get it.
And so he is going to repeat it over and over and over until you get it.
How many know repetition is important?
I'll tell you, we tell our children we have a baker house set of rules at our house.
You know that?
We have five wonderful children.
And when we got our kids, we decided that since they didn't have a lot of rules before, they needed to know the rules.
If you expect people to obey the rules, they got to know the rules.
That's why we got to know the word of God.
And I'll tell you what, we still are repeating some of those rules.
Clean your room.
What part of clean your room?
It's three words.
Clean your room.
What part of that don't you understand?
Clean your room.
What do you mean, clean my room?
Clean your room.
You know, it seems very obvious, but here in the book of Revelation, it's very obvious once you see the light, once you really see the revelation.
That's why it's called Revelation.
So, you know, only Jack Hayford would refer to this great book being a cantata.
You know, he's written great cantatas, great music.
Great music.
Well, anyhow, the entire message is signified 1-1.
This is a key to the understanding of the vision, all of which contain figurative language pointing to the spiritual realities behind historical experience.
Signs and symbols are essential because spiritual truth and unseen reality must always be communicated to human beings through their senses.
Remember last week we talked about Paul, I mean John, saw, John saw, John saw.
I mean, you look at all these different books and you'll see most of the chapters here in the book of Revelation start with, here's, I just flipped over to verse 4, and it says, after this, I looked, and behold, a door was opened.
Symbols Pointing to Prosperity 00:15:07
I mean, this whole book is so visual, and it's a vision, and it's very pictorial.
So we need to understand that.
So symbols point to what is ultimately undescribable.
For example, the account of the demonic locust from the abyss in chapter 9, verses 1 through 12, creates a vivid, horrifying impression, even though the minute details are not interpreted, intended to be interpreted.
It's the essence of this vision.
The Bible describes nuclear holocaust, describes asteroids hitting the earth.
And if you don't understand what is happening, it's hard to envision it.
So we're going to go along, and as we go along, I believe God is going to open all of our eyes of our understanding.
So let's continue on.
Let's start reading together with chapter 1, verse 1.
We're just going to read to where we were last time.
The revelation, the uncovering, the unveiling, the disclosure of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him to show unto his servants, his bondslaves, things which must shortly, and boy, there's where you've got to remember.
If you didn't get last week's lesson, that word shortly in the Greek simply means a fixed place in time, a space or period within which anything takes place.
And what the Bible is saying and what in the Greek is saying that when it comes to pass, it's going to happen in a short period of time.
It doesn't mean it was going to happen immediately after John wrote it down.
So many people are confused by that.
And you must start with this book understanding that this means that this will happen in a short period of time.
So I believe we've already moved into the beginning of sorrows.
And we'll talk about that when we're going to review Matthew 24 as we study.
We're going to weave Matthew 24 throughout the book of Revelation.
So we'll have Jesus teaching in Matthew.
And you're going to see this weaving together.
And Jesus talks about the beginning of sorrows.
I believe we have stepped onto a roller coaster and I believe with all of my heart that we have begun the book of Revelation time.
I believe we're in it.
And that's why you need to know it.
That's why the enemy of our souls have diverted so many church people off into other things.
That's why the big theme of churches today is prosperity.
The big theme of the church, well, you see it on Christian television.
It's how to get rich.
My God, I have a friend of mine.
He has a whole ministry built on how to become a millionaire.
Not a spiritual millionaire, a physically prosperous, wealthy millionaire.
And boy, that appeals to our flesh.
But it's taking our eyes off from the word of the living God.
We go and we shout and we holler, we get excited in church, we go to conferences and conventions, and people are teaching us how to get more wealth and more wealth.
And we're in love with the things of the world.
And that's the opposite.
Jesus says you can't love the world or the things of the world.
That if you do, the love of God's not even inside of you.
So we're living in the day when the harlot is coming on the scene.
The harlot of Revelation, which we'll talk about soon.
So the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him to show unto his servants things, which, when they come to pass, will take place over a short period of time.
And he sent and signified like a signet ring.
He sealed it by his messenger, by his angel, unto his servant John.
An angel in the Greek is messenger.
John the Baptist, we learned last week, was called an angel.
But the word is messenger.
In the Greek, it's angel.
In the King James, it's messenger.
So this is another point that we must remember.
And we go on this into our review a little bit here.
And so let's move on.
Revelation 1, verse 2, who bear record, he witnessed and testified of the word, the spoken word of God.
This is spoken word.
It's logos here.
So he bear record of the spoken word of God and of the testimony, the evidence given of Jesus Christ and of all things.
And this is much things in the Greek.
It's great things that he saw these awesome things.
This word, all things, is so bland to describe what the Greek is all about here.
John saw awesome events that are about to take place that he saw and knew.
Actually, he in his spirit, in the Greek, it's he knew as he saw this revelation take place.
Verse 3, blessed, supremely blessed, fortunate, and well off is what this word means.
You are blessed, fortunate, well off, he that readeth.
You know, we're talking about prosperity, people telling you how to make money, how to get more money.
Why wouldn't you use Revelation then?
The book of Revelation says, blessed are you if you read this book.
Why would preachers say don't read it?
When I was in Bible college, our professor said, don't ever teach the book of Revelation until you're an old man.
Well, here I is.
I waited.
I waited, I guess.
Blessed, supremely blessed, fortunate is he that readeth, and they that hear, you're hearing this word.
Fortunate are you that hear, then understand the words, the logos.
The logos.
That is the word of God, the spoken word of God, of this prophecy, of this prediction, and keeps.
That means watch.
You're watching for the coming of the Lord.
You're watching for these things.
That's what that word keeps means.
To hold them fast, to hold fast, to keep it near your heart, to stay in the word, to be obedient to the word.
We don't have obedience today.
Everybody wants all the blessings, but they don't want to obey.
And that's why we're living in dangerous times.
We talk all about the blessings, but we don't talk about what God wants.
How many preachers are you hearing today preaching come and die?
You're hearing them preach come and die?
Maybe your church is a perfect church, but I don't hear preachers say come and die.
Jesus said that you have to pick up your cross and die daily.
Paul says, I die daily.
Man alive.
You turn in preachers a day, they sound like vegematic salesmen.
You know, buy this gizmo, and if you order by midnight tonight, we're going to throw in the new kitchen sink and a mixed master and, you know, get all this stuff.
You know, we sound like we're some sort of hucksters and say, come to Jesus and get all this stuff.
Come to Jesus and you'll get a house and a car and eternal life and all this wonderful stuff.
And yet when you look in the word of God and you study the word of God, Jesus is saying, come and die.
He's saying, die to your old flesh.
Die to the old man if you want to live.
Die to the things of the world.
Humble yourself.
What are we hearing preach today?
You're arrogant.
You're wonderful.
You're a great child of the Lord.
You're the king's kid, so strut around.
No.
God says pride brings you down.
It's time to humble ourselves.
It's time to pray.
I don't even wear suits anymore because I don't want to be known as that preacher over there, that high and mighty man.
I want to stay down.
I feel like laying on the floor.
I don't want to get up.
I don't want to be up high.
I want to be down low.
I want to humble myself.
I am nothing.
The more I read this book, the more I realized we had an awesome God.
And the more I realized I was worthless without God.
I'm dirt without God.
I'm the dust of the earth.
And if I'll humble myself, he'll lift me up.
And I'm telling you, if he don't lift me up, I'm not coming up.
I don't want to go up.
That's why right now I'm at this point in this ministry.
If God doesn't supply the needs, if God doesn't take care of it, I'll do what I can.
I'm going to work because faith without works is dead.
But if God doesn't lift it up, I don't want to be up.
I'm not going to put myself up.
Don't put yourself up.
You're coming down.
You're coming down if you get lifted up.
So here we see everything is opposite of the rationalization.
And so much of the teaching of the last three or four decades has been based on prosperity theory from the gurus in the business world.
I could name the men's names.
You know them.
The great prosperity teachers.
I'm not talking about Christians.
I'm talking about the guys who think and grow rich.
I'm talking about the guys who've taught us how to be successful.
And what we've done over the last, oh, probably 10, 20, 30 years, we have taken those principles and we've sprinkled a few scriptures in between.
And we have gotten the idea that somehow God wants us to have wealth above all.
Because we say, above all, God wants us to prosper.
And you know what?
That's not even the Bible.
What do you think of that?
Jamie, what do you mean it's not in the Bible?
It's 3 John.
I know it's there.
My whole life's built on it.
Well, you're in trouble then, honey.
Because above all, God does not want you to prosper.
Boy, it's quiet in here.
Do you believe above all?
Oh, I'm sorry.
Keep your hands on the camera.
Do you realize above all, God does not want you to prosper?
How could John say, above all, God wants you to prosper, if Jesus said, above all, you're to love God?
If above all, you're to love your neighbor as yourself.
The two most important things Jesus said in the whole world is to love God and to love your neighbor as yourself.
Now, I'm not going to deal anymore with it tonight, but I want to tell you, above all, when John said, above all, I want you to prosper and be in health.
You know the scripture in 3 John.
Something's wrong.
So I studied the word.
And the word prosper there is just simply, it's made up of two words, good or well, and road or journey.
John was simply saying, beloved, I want you to have a good journey through life, even as your soul has a good journey to heaven.
And we've made a whole doctrine out of a greeting.
This was like, have a nice day.
And we have a church of the Have a Nice Day.
That's what it is.
That's what, above all, God wants you to prosper was just a greeting.
He was just saying, I want you to have a good trip.
Paul said the same thing over in Romans.
He said, pray that I'll have a good journey and come to you.
The same word that's here.
The same word for prosper over there in 3 John.
Can you imagine Paul saying, pray that I'll have a money-making trip and come to you?
Well, then you've got to interpret it the same way.
If you're going to interpret money over in 3 John, you've got to interpret over in Romans as money.
Are you with me?
I don't mean to get off there, but I'm telling you, we have preached another gospel, and it's coming down around us.
When the world collapses, much religion will collapse at the same time.
The only foundation that's going to survive is Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.
He is the only foundation.
The Bible says there's no other foundation that any man can lay than that has already been laid, and it is Jesus.
It's not things, it's not materialism, it's not the world.
I just wish I could get you to believe this.
I've been with Thomas Nelson today, and I'm trying to get a special Greek Hebrew Bible, and I'm working on it.
And I'll tell you, when I can find it and put it together, we're going to have, because I want you to start studying from the original Greek and Hebrew texts of the Bible.
Because you need to know, because one word can change things, just like that word prosper has hurt more people because they think above all God wants you.
You say, well, there it is in the King James.
It's written, above all, God wants you to prosper.
That's not true.
You mean above your soul salvation, God wants you to have money?
Huh?
That doesn't make sense.
You see, when you start to think a little bit, but when we preachers up here screaming and hollering, hallelujah, above all, God wants you to be rich.
God wants you to prosper.
La You say, There it is, it's written, oh boy.
But you've nullified all the other scriptures that Jesus taught.
He says, You don't love the world.
You can't serve God in money, all these things.
And here we're embracing the very thing that Jesus died on the cross to save us from.
Seven Churches of Asia 00:15:33
We embrace all these things today.
And in the last days, when this harlot of Revelation is destroyed, she's all about material things.
Isn't that amazing?
Well, let's go on.
Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy and keep, hold fast to those things which are written therein.
For the time is at hand, and you look that up in the Greek, and it says, when due season comes, verse 4: John to the seven churches.
Why is it seven churches?
And these churches were in what is Turkey today in Asia, but it's Asia Minor and it's Turkey, where Turkey is today.
Why would he send this?
I mean, there were so many other churches.
Why does God keep picking seven here?
You're going to hear seven spirits.
You're going to hear seven churches.
You know why?
Because Revelation, you can write this down.
Revelation sums up what God wants to say about the last days.
This is what is summing up.
This is the summing up.
John to the seven churches, summing up what God has to say, which are in Asia, Asia Minor.
These churches were all located in Turkey today, where Turkey is today.
Isn't that amazing?
And the 31 things God spoke to me, I could never figure out why he said, watch Turkey.
Watch Turkey.
There's some reason.
And there's some things happening, been happening in Turkey, but it was just interesting that as I was studying this, I realized that these churches are in what today is Turkey.
Grace, are you hearing me?
Grace be unto you.
John knows we're going to need some grace here.
What does grace in the Greek also mean?
It means favor.
Say favor.
Favor.
Here we go.
Fog.
Favor of God.
Favor.
He's saying, grace and favor be unto you.
I'm telling you, when the world's falling apart, I want the favor of the Lord.
When people are jumping out of windows and God spoke to me in prison, they're going to jump out of windows.
He said, church people will blow their brains out when the money's gone because they've been taught to love money and that God's blessing came with a lot of money.
You see, when I went in prison, there was no money left.
No houses, no cars, no nothing.
And I had a hard time scrambling for a while to find out, where are you, God?
Did you leave me?
He didn't leave me.
He doesn't go with money.
He doesn't come with money.
So that's why I want the favor of the Lord.
I want fog.
I want the favor of God.
Say fog.
Get it in your head.
It's a funny little thing to say fog.
But just, I want you to keep that in your brain.
Fog.
Favor of God.
Just think about it.
You know, that fog when it comes in.
I always think of our wedding because it was the most gorgeous fog I've ever seen.
We were up on the mountains and we prayed for it to be cool.
It was so hot the day before, it cooled down.
This mist kind of fell in.
It covered Hollywood down below us.
It covered all those TV studios down below us.
And it just moved on in.
Even the inquirer couldn't get in with her helicopter because the fog came in.
The favor of God.
And every time something good is happening, I want you to say, there's the favor of God.
I want you to start living in the favor of God.
Jesus came to declare the year of the favor of the Lord.
So I got this little sign sitting right here on the piano, proclaiming the year of the Lord's favor.
You're to pray for favor.
You're to believe for favor.
You're to have the favor of the Lord.
And I believe if we start speaking out favor, we're going to have more favor.
You say, Jim, you talk about not to be in love with money.
You're talking about not to have your hearts on the things of the world.
And then you talk about favor.
It's two different things.
I'm not against having a house.
I'm not against you having a nice car.
I'm not against you having money.
I'm not against you having anything.
That's not my business.
But I don't want, according to the scriptures, I'm pleading with you, don't put your hearts in the things.
Because when the things go, then your heart will be broken.
Have your hearts solidly on Jesus Christ.
And we can live in the favor of the Lord.
We can pray for the favor of the Lord.
When the world's falling apart, I want the favor of the Lord.
So let's go on here.
We said, John to the seven churches, which are in Asia Minor, grace be unto you and peace.
Grace, favor be unto you, and peace and rest.
Amen.
You know, this book begins with grace and peace.
And we'll get to it many, many weeks from now.
We'll get to the end of the book, but the book ends with a warning.
The book opens up with grace.
And then if you go back to the very last chapter of the book of Revelation, you will see that the book ends with a warning to us.
And it says, Blessed are they that do his commandments.
And it goes on to say, verse 18, for I testify unto every man that heareth the words of this prophecy's book.
Listen, if any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book.
You hearing me?
Well, this is fearful to open this book.
I guess maybe that's why some preachers don't want to open it.
It's scary.
And if any man shall take away from the words of this book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life and out of the holy city from the things which are written in this book.
Boy, there is no question there, is there?
That almost hits your eternal security right between the eyes, isn't it?
Then he closes, surely I come quickly.
That's that word again.
So grace be unto you right now and peace from him which is.
This is from God.
This is from Jesus Christ.
This is from the Godhead.
This is from him which is.
In the Greek, it's being awesome.
Always being, God Almighty.
Our word is isn't strong enough.
Grace and peace from him who is the supreme being, who is, and which was.
It's so hard for us humans to understand an eternal God, isn't it?
And which is to come.
Wow.
He's always.
He is.
He was the eternal being.
He was.
He is to come.
And from the seven spirits which are before his throne.
Seven spirits.
I thought there was one God, the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit.
This is the Spirit of God.
The seven spirits.
The number of perfection.
The number of completion.
This seven spirits, boy, we're going to open this up in the days to come.
You're going to find some stuff in.
We're going to go to the Psalms soon and learn what these seven spirits' voices are.
But it's the Spirit of God.
God is an awesome God.
And so the seven spirits which are before his throne.
So hear the John to the seven churches.
And those in Asia and all, but it says, Grace be unto you and peace from him.
This is from Almighty God, the Spirit of God.
I believe this prophetic word is more for you and I, more for the whole church world than just these seven churches.
But this word was written as epistles to be given to seven different churches, which we're going to study those churches in a few days.
So the seven spirits, the infinite, perfect, complete spirit of God.
That's what this seven means.
The infinite, the infinite, the perfect and complete.
Oh, what an awesome, awesome word this is from God today.
Seven, the number of completion.
Remember that.
The number of perfection is seven.
God created the earth and all things in seven days.
Completion.
Look at Revelation 3:1.
It's just, turn over a page or so.
It says there, and unto the angel or the messenger of the church in Sardis, write, these things, saith he, that have the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.
I know thy works, and thou hast a name that thou livest and art dead.
I just want you to notice there.
Here again, these things, saith he that has the seven spirits of God, the perfection.
I wonder if we should, let's go to Isaiah 11.
Go back to Isaiah 11 just for a moment here.
And let's just kind of take a peek back a little bit.
You know the awesomeness of the Word of God?
Is that this Bible was written over a period of thousands of years?
And it is such harmony.
It is such harmony.
Isaiah 11:2.
And it says, And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him.
Now, listen, here is attributes of the Spirit of the Lord.
Are you there yet?
Isaiah 11:2.
And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord, and shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord, and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears.
Here is attributes of the Spirit of the Lord.
What does the Spirit of the Lord do when it rests upon you?
It brings wisdom.
It brings you the Spirit of wisdom.
So the Spirit of God is a multifaceted spirit.
The Spirit of God brings understanding to you.
The Spirit of God brings counsel.
The Spirit of God brings might.
The Spirit of God brings knowledge.
The Spirit of God will bring the fear of the Lord.
I'm telling you, I know a lot of people that are hanging around me that they don't have the Spirit of the Lord.
They don't have wisdom.
They don't have understanding.
They don't have counsel.
They don't have might.
They don't have knowledge.
And they don't fear the Lord.
And then they say, well, I'm anointed of God.
No, you're not.
You don't have any fruit of the Spirit.
If you have the Spirit of God, you're going to have fruit of the Spirit.
You're going to have love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness.
You're going to have something there.
You're going to have some fruit.
I'm so fearful of people who can tell jokes and mock speaking in tongues or mock things of the holiness of God and think it's funny because they don't fear God.
We only have one God.
We have one Savior.
There's only one way to eternal life.
And don't fool with it.
That's why I don't understand why people can be so mean.
You know, you heard about mean Christians?
Well, that's a contradiction of terms.
You can't have mean Christians.
You can have mean religious people, but not mean Christians.
And we have got a lot of people who are not truly born again.
They have religion.
And that's why we have such pain in the body of Christ today.
Let's go over to Zachariah.
Zachariah chapter 4, verse 2.
And he said unto me, What seest thou?
And I said, I have looked and behold a candlestick all of gold with a bowl.
And that means oil, a bowl of oil upon the top of it.
What is the oil?
It's a type of the Holy Spirit.
And it's seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps.
Here's seven again.
The seven spirits of God, which are upon the top thereof, and two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.
And so I answered and spake to the angel that talked to me, saying, What are these, my Lord?
Then the angel that talketh with me answered and said unto me, Knowest not, knowest thou not what these be?
And I said, No, my Lord.
And he answered and spoke unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerebbabo, saying, Not by might, not by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord.
This is a type of the Holy Spirit.
There we have the seven candlesticks, the number seven coming up again in the Old Testament to typlify the Holy Spirit.
Revelation 5:6, it says, And behold, and lo, in the midst of the throne, and the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders stood a lamb.
It had been slain, having seven horns, seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
God's Spirit is going out over this land, going about, looking and seeing.
Oh, we're going to, I'm going to bring you into some things in Ezekiel and some of the things about the Spirit of God.
Lightning and Thunder Voices 00:02:21
You know, you probably think I'm crazy, but you know, what in the world is the wheel in the middle of the wheel?
What is this Ezekiel?
What are these eyes?
What is his spirit coming back and forth from the throne of God?
I think maybe some of these spaceships people have seen, maybe they had a glimpse of some of the spirits coming down from heaven.
The wheel in the middle of the wheel.
You ought to read the description.
I'm not saying that's what it is.
I'm just saying, think on these things.
God allows us to look into the spirit world occasionally.
Some have seen angels.
But I'm telling you, this Bible is real.
This book is the book.
Revelation 4:5, I didn't read that to you.
And out of the throne proceeded lightning and thunder and voices.
And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God.
We're going to soon learn the signs of God, the signs of God.
What belongs to God?
Lightning, thunder are voices of God.
And the seven lamps of fire burning before the throne are the seven spirits of God.
Do you know the rainbow doesn't belong to New Age?
My father, I remember when I had a rainbow on something, my dad said, oh, that's new age.
Don't have that around, Jim.
I said, that's not new age.
I don't care who has it.
There's counterfeit rembrands, you know.
But I'm telling you, if I have the real one, you're not going to get me to throw out a rembrand just because somebody's got a counterfeit one.
The rainbow, God said, this is my bow, my rainbow.
I have placed in the sky.
And as you start studying the word of God, you're going to find out, we're going to find out where God is in the book of Revelation.
We're going to find out where Jesus Christ is in the book of Revelation.
If we'll start learning what is God and what is not God, we're going to find one of them right now.
First Begotten Witness 00:03:07
I only got a few minutes left.
Can't believe the time's gone already.
Revelation 1:5.
Let's get back to our text.
And from Jesus Christ, the Messiah, Christ is Messiah, who is the faithful, the trustworthy, the trustful, the true, the sure, faithful witness.
Jesus Christ is trustworthy.
He's faithful.
He's true.
He's the only one you can rely on.
And from Jesus Christ, he's the witness.
The martyr.
the record.
This is Jesus.
And the first begotten, the firstborn of the dead.
Jesus is the only one who ever raised himself from the dead.
He is the firstborn, the first begotten of the dead.
And the prince, which in the Greek also means first.
He's more than a prince.
He is the first.
He is the number one of the kings.
And it also means power.
So here he is.
He is the first.
That word prince means first in the Greek.
He is the first of the kings.
He is the powerful king.
He is the only king.
He is the king of kings.
He is the Lord of lords.
He is no other.
There is no other beside him.
So he is the first begotten of the dead of the resurrection and the prince of the kings of the earth unto him that loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood.
And boy, I love this in the Greek.
And it's loosened us from our sins.
I mean, scrubbed us down.
I'm not talking about just a nice washing.
This is loosed.
This is like scraping the barnacles off the hull of a ship.
God has loosed you.
That sin had an attachment to you.
And his blood cleansed you up and scrubbed you down.
That's what this means.
He washed us from the sins, from our sins, in his own blood, the blood of the Lamb.
Lamb is mentioned 28 times in the book of Revelation.
This is such an important thing to know.
It's the blood of the Lamb.
This is what this book is all about.
They overcame sin.
They overcame the devil by the blood of the Lamb.
Don't Miss Heaven 00:02:55
This book is the book of redemption.
Oh, I got to hurry.
And he made us kings.
Boy, look that up in the Greek.
He made us royalty.
He made us to be born to reign.
Isn't it all this?
We're going to rule and reign like a kingdom.
You see, you humble yourself.
God's going to put you on your own throne, his own throne.
He's going to let you sit with him.
He's going to let you walk with him.
You get to walk to the kingdom.
We're going to rule and reign.
We've got a million years of millennium right here on earth of peace.
Don't miss it because of a mess of pottage.
Don't miss heaven.
Don't miss what God has for you over all the things of the world.
Why God's going to just literally going to explode the wrath of God on this harlot of Revelation is because people have chosen a stereo, a television set, a house, a car, a woman, a man over the eternal God.
What an insult to God.
It hasn't entered the minds of men the things that God has prepared for those that love him.
That's where I'm living.
That's what I live.
I don't love the things anymore.
I don't want the things anymore.
People say, oh, aren't you sad?
You can't.
Why?
The pursuit of things is killing the world.
The pursuit of things is killing the church.
Everything that you're working so hard to work five, ten jobs, some people.
I mean, in this town, people go from job to job just to earn the money to stay alive, just to get things, more things, more things.
And you know what a man will say?
I'm doing it for my kids.
I'm doing it for my wife.
And you know what those kids want?
They want you to get down on the floor and play horsey with them.
You know what?
That wife wants you to take her out for a walk.
You know, you could have an old shack up here in the hills, one of these old hillbilly shacks, and sit in your rocking chair and talk to each other, and you could have everything that the whole world's fighting to have right there.
Peace and contentment.
That's real wealth.
That's real wealth.
But the world and the church is falling in love with this present world and the things of this world.
He hath made us kings and priests unto God for.
He Cometh with the Clouds 00:13:33
That word end is supposed to be for.
Look at that.
In the Greek, it's supposed to be for.
He has made us kings and priests unto God and his father.
No, it's supposed to read like this.
He has made us kings and priests unto God for his father.
For his father.
Is that not good?
One little word makes all the difference when you study the original text.
To him be glory and dominion forever and ever.
Amen.
And amen.
And amen.
I love the word amen.
It means surely, so be it.
It also means yes.
It means yes.
That's why I love the one.
You know, a black church, sometimes they'll say, yes.
That's amen.
They have more discernment in some churches, I guess.
It's amazing what God gave to our old preachers.
It's amazing some of the old hillbilly, the country preachers in decades gone by, amazing, the anointing of Revelation that God gave some of them.
Because revelation comes from God.
Okay.
7.
Verse 7, Revelation 1.
Lo, behold, means lo, behold, he cometh with clouds.
Amid.
The word with is amid, amidst.
Do you understand amid, A-M-I-D?
This is important now.
Behold, he cometh amid clouds.
Amid, with, clouds.
And that word clouds has a S on it.
In the Greek, it means cloudy nuts.
We've got all these paintings of Jesus riding on one cloud, like he's on some chariot or something.
No, this is going to be important for you because I'm going to teach you something that's going to blow your mind.
The Bible says in seven places, the sun and the moon will be dark before Jesus comes back.
And he's coming in a cloud.
No, he's coming in the clouds.
Oh, I better not go there.
It's getting too scary for you.
I'm telling you, I know why every eye will see him.
He is brighter than the sun.
I'll give you so many scriptures, it'll choke you.
I'm just going to give you, this proves he is brighter than the sun.
How is every eye going to see him?
Because when he pierces the cloud of darkness that's surrounding the earth, every eye will see him because he's brighter than the sunshine.
He is so bright when he comes back, his light shines around the whole world.
Boy, we got some interesting stuff coming up.
Don't you dare miss these next teachings.
Behold, he cometh amidst the clouds, and every means all, all eyes, all eyes, all vision shall see him.
And this see him is with wide open eyes as if something remarkable is happening.
This is what the Greek means.
So see him is kind of King James.
It's kind of plain.
But look it up in the Greek.
It means, and every vision, every eye with wide open eyes.
Yes, as if something remarkable, not voluntarily observation, they're going to see him.
It's not just, oh, look, it's going to be every eye, no volunteering.
Every eye will see him.
Shocked with eyes wide open.
Isn't it good to study the word to see the revelation?
Some of you, I believe, are going to see that moment.
I believe some of you sitting right here are going to see the coming of the Lord.
The prophets prayed over me when I was 19 years old and said, I would help usher in the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
I receive it.
I receive it.
Behold, he cometh with clouds, and every eye shall see him.
They shall also which pierced him, crucified him.
John saw Jesus crucified.
And he's saying, those which pierced him, those which crucified him, all kindreds, all races, that means simply, all the races of the earth shall wail.
They shall have grief.
This word wail literally means to beat your chest.
They shall beat their chest.
Chop, chop, it means.
It means chop.
Chop your chest.
Beat your chest.
And grief.
Every kindred, all races of the earth shall have grief.
They shall wail.
They shall beat their breast because over him, even so.
Yes, it says, even so.
Yes, a man.
Whoa.
Behold, he comes with the clouds.
He cometh with the clouds is a key.
I want you to write down, I like you to start making a list of the signs of God.
A list.
If you're taking notes, just make a little list somewhere in your notes.
The signs of God.
I've already hinted at rainbow, but we're going to hit that later.
But so you can write rainbow down if you want, but it'll hit it again, believe me.
But clouds, clouds, clouds, write down clouds.
Very, very important.
Exodus 13:21.
And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud.
Clouds, actually, in the Hebrew.
Exodus 19:9.
And the Lord said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud.
We're back in the Old Testament, folks.
God was there in a cloud.
Cloud is a key to revelation.
So key that it's going to blow your mind soon.
It's going to blow your mind.
Exodus 40, 38.
For the cloud of the Lord was upon the tabernacle by day.
The cloud of the Lord.
Leviticus 16, 2.
And the Lord said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron, thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark, that he die not.
For I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.
God is saying in the Old Testament, I appear in a cloud.
Deuteronomy 31:15, and the Lord appears in the tabernacle in a pillar of a cloud, and the pillar of the cloud stood over the door of the tabernacle.
1 Kings 8:11.
So that the priest could not stand to minister because the cloud for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of God.
Rick Joyner in the group had a conference a few years back.
They prayed and prayed day after day.
And on one day they prayed, I think it was seven hours they were in prayer.
Nobody left.
Never even went into the bathroom.
People were in the presence of the power of the glory of God.
And literally, a pillar of cloud appeared there in that tabernacle.
God still is appearing in the cloud.
Matthew 17, verse 4 and 5.
Here we see Peter, as he said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here.
If thou wilt, let us make three tabernacles, one for thee and one for Moses and one for Elias.
While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them.
And behold, a voice out of the cloud which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well.
Please hear you him.
Wherein Matthew, where is God speaking?
From a cloud.
Well, you better know.
You better know.
You're going to miss something if you don't get this.
Luke 21:27.
And then they shall see the Son of Man.
How is Jesus coming back?
It says, in a cloud with power and great glory.
Acts 1:9.
And when he spake these things, whether behold, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight.
He went away in a cloud.
How shall he come back?
Just read on.
And while they look steadfast toward heaven, as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, which also said, You men of Galilee, why stand you gazing up into heaven?
This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go into heaven.
How did he go?
In a cloud.
How is he coming back?
In the clouds.
Revelation 14:14, and I looked and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of Man, having on his head a golden crown and in his hand a sharp sickle or a gathering hook for harvesting, the harvesting sickle is what that is upon the cloud sat like unto the son of man.
John is saying, similar to the appearance of the son of God, Jesus Christ.
You better hold on to your hats.
Matthew 24, 29, immediately after the tribulation, say after.
What does after mean?
Well, you know what after means?
If this is before, then this is after, right?
Behind.
After.
I just want you to get the picture, though.
When God deals with something so much, you better know it's important.
God doesn't put anything in the Bible by accident.
Are you there?
Matthew 24, 29.
Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened and the moon shall not give her light.
You never read that, do you?
It's throughout the whole Bible.
It's in the book of Acts.
It's in the book of Joel.
It's in the Old Testament.
It's in the New Testament.
You want to go out of church and find out how to get your new Rolls Royce, don't you?
You don't want to go read about the sun and the moon darkening.
Immediately after the tribulation of the day shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, asteroids, and the power of the heavens shall be shaken, and then shall appear, and then shall appear.
Oh my God, and then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven, and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
What part of after, don't you understand?
You just like to listen to preachers who twist everything around and make it so it sounds better for you, don't you?
You know, maybe some of you need to go to prison.
You got reading time in prison.
I'm almost done.
Hold on, hold on.
And then shall appear, and then, and then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven, and they shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, for they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet.
When does Jesus come?
At the final what?
Hey, maybe you're getting some clues of where we'll find Jesus coming back in the book of Revelation.
And it's not where you've been taught over the years or I've been taught.
Why don't you just read the Bible for yourself and find out?
And he shall send his angel with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds or from the four quarters of the earth.
From one end of heaven, or it means in the Greek, from the sky to the other.
The whole expansion of the sky, this means.
What does it mean?
Jesus said he's going to meet us in the air.
He's going to meet us in the sky.
And the angels are going to come and escort us as we rise to meet him in the air.
But it's not going to happen till after.
Oh, God, I'm giving you a hint what might be coming.
I just cut the crowd in half for next week, didn't I?
Let's pray.
Father, help us to understand this revelation of the word of God.
Lord, help us not to twist the word, but to see it as plain and as clear and ABC as you give it to us.
Father, bless every person in this room.
Don't let one miss heaven, I pray.
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