1 00:00:01,640 --> 00:00:09,560 As the curtain of human history nears its final drop, God and 2 00:00:09,560 --> 00:00:16,400 His profound kindness will raise up two powerful preachers to be 3 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:23,120 some of the clearest and loudest witnesses to the world before 4 00:00:23,120 --> 00:00:28,040 Christ returns in judgment. That is not to say that there 5 00:00:28,040 --> 00:00:30,920 will be no other Christian evangelists or missionaries in 6 00:00:30,920 --> 00:00:34,360 the Tribulation period. But the Holy Spirit highlights 7 00:00:34,360 --> 00:00:39,160 these two distinct individuals because of their extraordinary 8 00:00:39,160 --> 00:00:41,680 influence and impact in that time. 9 00:00:43,360 --> 00:00:46,360 And for the Holy Spirit to single them out in this way is a 10 00:00:46,400 --> 00:00:50,440 thrilling invitation for us to examine them more carefully. 11 00:00:50,720 --> 00:00:55,320 And in doing so, I trust and I pray that we will learn some 12 00:00:55,320 --> 00:01:00,000 valuable things for our own witness as followers of Christ 13 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:04,599 today. Moreover, we will definitely 14 00:01:05,280 --> 00:01:10,440 understand the One who will one day summon these two preaching 15 00:01:10,440 --> 00:01:16,480 powerhouses as an extension of His grace and wisdom. 16 00:01:18,720 --> 00:01:20,840 And there are at least five things that I want us to 17 00:01:20,840 --> 00:01:26,040 consider and take note of regarding these two prophets in 18 00:01:26,040 --> 00:01:29,600 Revelation Chapter 11. The first thing that we will 19 00:01:29,600 --> 00:01:34,920 look at is their identity. Who are these messengers 20 00:01:34,920 --> 00:01:39,560 exactly? We will from there look at their 21 00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:44,120 ability, because not only are they preachers, they are 22 00:01:44,120 --> 00:01:49,920 prophets with incredible power and it's difficult to ignore 23 00:01:49,920 --> 00:01:53,320 what they are able to do and what that means for them, for 24 00:01:53,320 --> 00:01:57,400 their generation and even for us, their identity, their 25 00:01:57,400 --> 00:02:00,560 ability. Thirdly, we will be confronted 26 00:02:00,560 --> 00:02:05,360 with their mortality. As phenomenal as these preachers 27 00:02:05,360 --> 00:02:10,960 are, they are human, and we are told about their death and the 28 00:02:10,960 --> 00:02:16,480 manner of it, and it is very revealing from their mortality. 29 00:02:16,480 --> 00:02:21,240 We will fourthly look at their indignity, the opposite of 30 00:02:21,480 --> 00:02:23,880 dignity. Now why is that an appropriate 31 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:27,520 word? Well, we are told in detail of 32 00:02:27,520 --> 00:02:32,280 the great humiliation they will experience, the mistreatment, 33 00:02:32,840 --> 00:02:40,160 the dishonor by their global audience, and finally, we will 34 00:02:40,240 --> 00:02:44,640 meditate on their testimony, the overall impact of their 35 00:02:44,640 --> 00:02:48,000 ministry, and what that means for us as well. 36 00:02:48,600 --> 00:02:53,880 Let's begin by reading Revelation 11/3 and four as we 37 00:02:53,880 --> 00:02:59,600 meditate on their identity. And I will grant authority to my 38 00:02:59,600 --> 00:03:06,040 2 witnesses and they will prophecy for 1260 days clothed 39 00:03:06,040 --> 00:03:09,640 in sackcloth. These are the 2 olive trees and 40 00:03:09,640 --> 00:03:13,520 the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 41 00:03:14,680 --> 00:03:27,640 Pray with me, Father, the study of Your Word has been done, but 42 00:03:27,640 --> 00:03:33,760 Lord, the delivery requires just as much of Your help, and we 43 00:03:33,760 --> 00:03:38,640 pray that Your blessing would rest upon these truths being 44 00:03:38,640 --> 00:03:43,880 expounded and delivered to the hearts of Your people. 45 00:03:44,720 --> 00:03:51,520 And Lord, we come with hunger and expectation, believing that 46 00:03:51,560 --> 00:03:53,160 Your Word will be sweet to our mouths. 47 00:03:53,160 --> 00:03:56,960 And even if it is bitter in our stomachs, we accept it because 48 00:03:56,960 --> 00:04:02,200 we trust that even this portion of Scripture will nourish us and 49 00:04:02,200 --> 00:04:06,280 it will strengthen our fellowship with Christ and it 50 00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:11,480 will help us advance in holiness and it will, by your grace, make 51 00:04:11,480 --> 00:04:15,880 us better witnesses. For your name's sake. 52 00:04:16,480 --> 00:04:18,480 In Jesus name we pray these things. 53 00:04:19,000 --> 00:04:23,000 Amen. The identity of these witnesses, 54 00:04:23,920 --> 00:04:26,320 it's strange, we're never given their names. 55 00:04:27,280 --> 00:04:32,720 And that has led many to believe that these two witnesses are 56 00:04:32,720 --> 00:04:36,160 actually symbolic representations and not 57 00:04:36,200 --> 00:04:42,240 individuals at all. And some would say that these 58 00:04:42,240 --> 00:04:46,360 two witnesses are actually just a picture of the church's 59 00:04:46,360 --> 00:04:51,080 witness in the last days. Others prefer to say, no, no, 60 00:04:51,080 --> 00:04:56,240 what you have here is actually a picture of the powerful work of 61 00:04:56,240 --> 00:05:00,600 the Old and the New Testament. Others would disagree and say, 62 00:05:00,600 --> 00:05:05,000 no, it's, it's actually more acceptable to conclude that this 63 00:05:05,000 --> 00:05:10,000 is what the law and the prophets will do to a generation of 64 00:05:10,000 --> 00:05:15,320 unbelievers who refuse to believe all of that. 65 00:05:15,760 --> 00:05:18,320 Any kind of symbolism you would attribute to these two witnesses 66 00:05:18,320 --> 00:05:23,960 is very, very, very difficult to sustain because we haven't read 67 00:05:23,960 --> 00:05:26,120 it yet. But we're going to see that 68 00:05:26,120 --> 00:05:29,800 there are behaviours and we read it. 69 00:05:29,800 --> 00:05:32,480 There is actually clothing that they wear, sackcloth, and 70 00:05:32,880 --> 00:05:35,680 there's going to be a real death that these two witnesses will 71 00:05:35,680 --> 00:05:39,280 undergo. And just their overall destiny 72 00:05:40,280 --> 00:05:45,400 dispels any notion that these are some kind of just imagery or 73 00:05:45,400 --> 00:05:50,280 some kind of picture or symbol of something other than two real 74 00:05:50,280 --> 00:05:54,080 human beings. What you and I have here are two 75 00:05:54,120 --> 00:05:58,680 actual people that God will use in His end time program. 76 00:05:59,680 --> 00:06:02,280 Now, among those who hold that view, there is friendly 77 00:06:02,280 --> 00:06:04,720 discussion. OK, they are real human beings, 78 00:06:04,800 --> 00:06:08,440 but who are they exactly? This is the stuff that some 79 00:06:08,440 --> 00:06:11,320 people here like to talk about during lunch, after the service. 80 00:06:11,800 --> 00:06:17,400 Who are they exactly? 1 popular view is that because 81 00:06:17,400 --> 00:06:19,680 of the characteristics attributed to them, as we're 82 00:06:19,680 --> 00:06:24,240 going to see, they have to be somebody like Moses or Elijah. 83 00:06:24,240 --> 00:06:25,920 In fact, let's read verse 5 and 6. 84 00:06:25,920 --> 00:06:28,160 Let's get ahead of ourselves. Just for a moment. 85 00:06:28,680 --> 00:06:33,200 Let's look at this and if anyone would harm them, fire pours from 86 00:06:33,200 --> 00:06:35,960 their mouth and consumes their foes. 87 00:06:36,400 --> 00:06:38,800 If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be 88 00:06:38,800 --> 00:06:41,000 killed. They have the power to shut the 89 00:06:41,000 --> 00:06:44,480 sky that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, 90 00:06:44,840 --> 00:06:48,360 and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood 91 00:06:48,360 --> 00:06:52,360 and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as 92 00:06:52,360 --> 00:06:57,360 they desire. This is strikingly resembling of 93 00:06:57,360 --> 00:07:00,880 what the ministry of Moses and Elijah and that's why many are 94 00:07:00,880 --> 00:07:04,360 comfortable to interpret these witnesses as a reappearance of 95 00:07:04,360 --> 00:07:06,920 these mighty men of God. And they would add to that to 96 00:07:06,920 --> 00:07:09,960 say, well, doesn't Malachi say that before the day of the Lord 97 00:07:09,960 --> 00:07:12,680 Elijah will appear? Good point. 98 00:07:13,400 --> 00:07:16,400 Others would also include there's a a group of Jews that 99 00:07:16,440 --> 00:07:19,800 also claim that Moses will make a reappearance and I won't get 100 00:07:19,800 --> 00:07:21,280 into the reasons why they hold to that view. 101 00:07:21,280 --> 00:07:26,400 So this duo being those two mighty prophets is something 102 00:07:26,400 --> 00:07:28,480 that people think is is very fitting. 103 00:07:29,360 --> 00:07:31,720 Now there are others who would say not Moses and Elijah, but 104 00:07:31,960 --> 00:07:35,680 but it's more likely that it's going to be Enoch and Elijah. 105 00:07:36,200 --> 00:07:38,320 Now why is that? Because they are the only two in 106 00:07:38,320 --> 00:07:41,360 all of the Bible that have departed from this world without 107 00:07:41,360 --> 00:07:45,400 experiencing death. And Hebrews 927 is often quoted 108 00:07:45,400 --> 00:07:48,200 to support this view, where it says that it is appointed for a 109 00:07:48,200 --> 00:07:51,600 man to die once, and then comes what judgement? 110 00:07:51,920 --> 00:07:55,080 And so it makes sense then that you have these two prophets 111 00:07:55,280 --> 00:07:58,520 making a reappearance, ministering, undergoing death 112 00:07:58,520 --> 00:08:01,800 like the rest of us, and experiencing their own 113 00:08:01,800 --> 00:08:05,480 resurrection. Well, there are strengths and 114 00:08:05,480 --> 00:08:09,040 weaknesses to those views, but unless it is clearly stated, we 115 00:08:09,040 --> 00:08:12,480 can't say with absolute certainty that these witnesses 116 00:08:12,480 --> 00:08:15,080 are the reappearance of well known men, of God, of the past. 117 00:08:16,000 --> 00:08:21,400 What is clear though, as much as that might be possible, the 118 00:08:21,400 --> 00:08:24,800 reasonable interpretation is that these are unknown servants 119 00:08:24,800 --> 00:08:31,480 of Christ that God will one day recruit and empower to be mighty 120 00:08:31,480 --> 00:08:35,840 voices to speak to a generation that desperately needs this 121 00:08:35,840 --> 00:08:38,960 demonstration of supernatural power. 122 00:08:41,280 --> 00:08:43,440 With that being said, there is one clear reference to the Old 123 00:08:43,440 --> 00:08:46,280 Testament and we read it. I'm not sure if you saw it, but 124 00:08:46,400 --> 00:08:50,400 look again at verse 4. These are the 2 olive trees and 125 00:08:50,400 --> 00:08:53,040 the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 126 00:08:54,360 --> 00:08:56,880 So you can debate if this is Moses, Elijah, Enoch. 127 00:08:57,080 --> 00:09:01,920 What you can't debate is that this verse is clearly drawn from 128 00:09:01,960 --> 00:09:03,480 a vision in the book of Zechariah. 129 00:09:05,240 --> 00:09:07,320 This is going to help us understand a little bit more 130 00:09:07,320 --> 00:09:12,440 about their identity. Zechariah was a prophet during 131 00:09:12,440 --> 00:09:15,720 the days of the Exiles who returned from Babylon, came back 132 00:09:15,720 --> 00:09:18,400 to the city of Jerusalem, and attempted to rebuild the temple. 133 00:09:19,080 --> 00:09:21,520 And he was used by God for many reasons. 134 00:09:21,520 --> 00:09:26,200 But one of his purposes was to infuse grace and encouragement 135 00:09:26,200 --> 00:09:29,960 to this remnant as they face many difficulties and challenges 136 00:09:30,200 --> 00:09:34,000 in their desire their endeavor to resurrect this House of 137 00:09:34,000 --> 00:09:37,040 worship. And in the midst of these 138 00:09:37,040 --> 00:09:42,240 obstacles, God gives Zechariah a vision to share with the leaders 139 00:09:42,560 --> 00:09:47,880 and the people so that they would know a new grace to see 140 00:09:47,880 --> 00:09:51,040 this actually fulfilled. This is worth turning to in 141 00:09:51,040 --> 00:09:54,520 Zechariah. So find the book of Zechariah 142 00:09:54,680 --> 00:09:57,920 and meet me in chapter 4 and look at verse one with me. 143 00:09:59,600 --> 00:10:04,440 Zechariah 4 verse one reads And the Angel who talked with me 144 00:10:04,440 --> 00:10:08,440 came again and woke me like a man who is awakened out of his 145 00:10:08,440 --> 00:10:11,640 sleep. And he said to me, what do you 146 00:10:11,640 --> 00:10:14,360 see? I said, I see. 147 00:10:14,360 --> 00:10:19,520 And behold, A lampstand all of gold, with a bowl on the top of 148 00:10:19,520 --> 00:10:24,360 it and seven lamps on it, with seven lips on each of the lamps 149 00:10:24,360 --> 00:10:28,560 that are on the top of it. And there are two olive trees by 150 00:10:28,560 --> 00:10:32,080 it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left. 151 00:10:32,080 --> 00:10:35,800 So I can't draw this for you, but I'll attempt to use my hands 152 00:10:35,800 --> 00:10:37,680 to make it a little bit more clear. 153 00:10:37,840 --> 00:10:41,400 Here's what the prophet sees. He sees this golden lampstand 154 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:46,640 and a bowl on top of it and these two olive trees on both 155 00:10:46,640 --> 00:10:48,880 sides. And what's happening here is 156 00:10:48,880 --> 00:10:52,920 that these olive trees are feeding oil into the bowl, and 157 00:10:52,920 --> 00:10:56,440 then this bowl is then trickling oil into the lamps of this 158 00:10:56,440 --> 00:10:58,560 lampstand. That's the picture. 159 00:10:59,400 --> 00:11:02,440 But what's the meaning? Zechariah wants to know. 160 00:11:02,640 --> 00:11:05,200 So look at verse 4. And I said to the Angel who 161 00:11:05,200 --> 00:11:08,120 talked with me, what are these, my Lord? 162 00:11:08,800 --> 00:11:11,960 And the Angel who talked with me answered and said to me, do you 163 00:11:11,960 --> 00:11:14,240 not know what these are? I said No, my Lord. 164 00:11:14,680 --> 00:11:17,960 Then he said to me, This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel, 165 00:11:18,280 --> 00:11:22,400 not by might nor by power, but by my spirit, says the Lord of 166 00:11:22,400 --> 00:11:25,280 hosts, Who are you, O great mountain, before it's ruble? 167 00:11:25,280 --> 00:11:28,520 You shall become a plane, and he shall bring forward the top 168 00:11:28,520 --> 00:11:32,240 stone amid shouts of grace, Grace to it. 169 00:11:33,600 --> 00:11:38,080 So the Angel gives Zechariah the general interpretation of this 170 00:11:38,080 --> 00:11:42,360 vision, and here's what it is. The completion of the temple 171 00:11:42,400 --> 00:11:48,360 will be realized, and it's not going to be through human 172 00:11:48,360 --> 00:11:53,200 diligence or man's strength. It's going to be attributed to 173 00:11:53,200 --> 00:11:55,600 the energizing work of the Holy Spirit. 174 00:11:56,360 --> 00:11:59,680 It's going to be God himself energizing his people and 175 00:11:59,680 --> 00:12:02,680 providentially making a way for this to be done. 176 00:12:03,600 --> 00:12:07,200 But more than that, whatever Zerubbabel began with the 177 00:12:07,200 --> 00:12:10,000 Temple, because he was one of the leaders who led this 178 00:12:10,000 --> 00:12:15,640 project, he will see through to completion, which will result in 179 00:12:15,640 --> 00:12:20,640 what? The life and the light of the 180 00:12:20,640 --> 00:12:26,120 nation of Israel being reignited and abundantly sustained. 181 00:12:26,800 --> 00:12:29,840 That's what you have here. And Zechariah understood the 182 00:12:29,840 --> 00:12:34,000 broader message, but he is curious, and so he begins to 183 00:12:34,000 --> 00:12:36,520 probe and ask about certain details. 184 00:12:36,720 --> 00:12:39,760 And what really he wanted to know was what about these olive 185 00:12:39,760 --> 00:12:42,520 trees? And so Scroll down here to verse 186 00:12:42,520 --> 00:12:48,040 11 of Zechariah 4. Then I said to him, what are 187 00:12:48,040 --> 00:12:50,760 these two olive trees on the right and the left of the 188 00:12:50,760 --> 00:12:53,720 lampstand? And a second time I answered and 189 00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:57,240 said to him, what are these two branches of the olive trees 190 00:12:57,400 --> 00:13:01,240 which are beside the 2 golden pipes from which the golden oil 191 00:13:01,240 --> 00:13:03,360 is poured out? Can you pause for a moment? 192 00:13:04,520 --> 00:13:06,480 Do you notice how many questions Zechariah is asking? 193 00:13:08,160 --> 00:13:09,760 That's for your instruction and mine. 194 00:13:10,760 --> 00:13:15,120 Here's a man who is beholding visions from God and he doesn't 195 00:13:15,120 --> 00:13:17,160 understand. So what does he do? 196 00:13:17,800 --> 00:13:22,160 He asks and when he doesn't get an answer, he asks again. 197 00:13:22,560 --> 00:13:24,720 He keeps asking, can I ask you something? 198 00:13:24,720 --> 00:13:26,280 When you don't understand something in the Word of God, 199 00:13:26,280 --> 00:13:27,480 how desperate are you to know it? 200 00:13:29,960 --> 00:13:32,000 How much investigation do you do? 201 00:13:33,520 --> 00:13:35,560 Or are you just content with seeing it, closing your Bible, 202 00:13:35,560 --> 00:13:37,640 saying why? At least I did my part. 203 00:13:37,840 --> 00:13:42,360 I read. Revelation does not come to 204 00:13:42,360 --> 00:13:46,760 readers, it comes to thinkers. And for those who meditate and 205 00:13:46,760 --> 00:13:49,400 take what they see and bring it before the Lord in prayer, 206 00:13:49,400 --> 00:13:51,000 that's where they get illumination. 207 00:13:51,960 --> 00:13:55,120 Here's this man, He's not giving up easily. 208 00:13:55,280 --> 00:13:57,280 Even in the verses we just read, He asked the question. 209 00:13:57,280 --> 00:13:58,360 He didn't get an answer immediately. 210 00:13:58,360 --> 00:14:02,760 So what does he do? He asks again, ask, seek, and 211 00:14:02,760 --> 00:14:06,360 God will give you answers. He doesn't in many ways, but you 212 00:14:06,360 --> 00:14:08,520 and I have to do our part and seek Him. 213 00:14:09,280 --> 00:14:13,360 Verse 13 He said to me, do you not know what these are? 214 00:14:13,600 --> 00:14:18,440 I said no, my Lord. Verse 14 Then he said, these are 215 00:14:18,440 --> 00:14:23,080 the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth. 216 00:14:23,080 --> 00:14:25,040 Does that sound familiar? You should. 217 00:14:25,240 --> 00:14:27,640 We read in Revelation 11 something very similar 218 00:14:29,320 --> 00:14:32,560 contextually. The two anointed ones in this 219 00:14:32,560 --> 00:14:37,840 vision are representation of two people, Zerubbabel, the man that 220 00:14:37,840 --> 00:14:43,200 we read of earlier and Joshua, Zerubbabel and Joshua the high 221 00:14:43,200 --> 00:14:46,120 priest of this time. Now why them? 222 00:14:46,760 --> 00:14:50,200 For two simple reasons. Number one, these were the two 223 00:14:50,200 --> 00:14:54,360 that God raised up to lead the Exiles to go back home and start 224 00:14:54,360 --> 00:14:57,360 the rebuilding of the temple. They oversaw this endeavor. 225 00:14:58,320 --> 00:15:03,360 And secondly, Zerubbabel and Joshua both came from lineages 226 00:15:03,600 --> 00:15:07,400 that experienced and required anointing oil. 227 00:15:08,400 --> 00:15:10,440 Zerubbabel was a political leader. 228 00:15:10,440 --> 00:15:13,440 He was the governor of this time, but he came from the royal 229 00:15:13,440 --> 00:15:15,440 line of David. Were kings anointed in the Old 230 00:15:15,440 --> 00:15:16,960 Testament? They were anointed. 231 00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:20,840 Joshua, who worked alongside Zerubbel, came from the priestly 232 00:15:20,840 --> 00:15:22,000 line. Were priests anointed? 233 00:15:22,600 --> 00:15:24,120 They were. Then. 234 00:15:24,120 --> 00:15:26,960 It would make sense then for these two to be the anointed 235 00:15:26,960 --> 00:15:29,560 ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth. 236 00:15:29,800 --> 00:15:32,920 Now here's how this interpretation adds to the whole 237 00:15:32,920 --> 00:15:37,120 vision. As much as the life and the 238 00:15:37,120 --> 00:15:41,560 light of the nation of Israel will be reignited by the Holy 239 00:15:41,560 --> 00:15:46,160 Spirit's work, it will be channelled through the agency of 240 00:15:46,160 --> 00:15:50,360 these leaders. These leaders will be God's 241 00:15:50,400 --> 00:15:56,320 instruments of bringing in God's favor, God's blessing on the 242 00:15:56,320 --> 00:16:00,280 nation, surviving and thriving again. 243 00:16:02,920 --> 00:16:05,920 And this is precisely why the Holy Spirit connects these two 244 00:16:05,920 --> 00:16:09,840 witnesses in Revelation 11 with this description and Zechariah. 245 00:16:10,000 --> 00:16:13,960 Not only because these two witnesses will be supernaturally 246 00:16:13,960 --> 00:16:19,200 empowered by God, but because they will play significant role 247 00:16:20,520 --> 00:16:25,720 in the restoration of the people of Israel during a time of 248 00:16:25,720 --> 00:16:27,960 renewed persecution in a world under the control of the 249 00:16:27,960 --> 00:16:31,200 Antichrist. In the same way that Zerubbabel 250 00:16:31,200 --> 00:16:35,160 and Joshua were used by God to help the Exiles who are harassed 251 00:16:35,160 --> 00:16:39,560 by the enemies of their time. Go back to Revelation 11. 252 00:16:39,560 --> 00:16:41,400 Let me remind you of something in verse 2. 253 00:16:41,560 --> 00:16:45,480 In verse 2 of Revelation 11, we learned that the holy city is 254 00:16:45,480 --> 00:16:48,000 going to be trampled for 42 months, right? 255 00:16:48,840 --> 00:16:52,440 That speaks of persecution against the holy city, that is 256 00:16:52,440 --> 00:16:55,600 Jerusalem and its people. But in verse 3, we read that 257 00:16:55,600 --> 00:16:58,560 these two witnesses will be preaching for the same length of 258 00:16:58,560 --> 00:17:01,080 time. So the duration is given in 259 00:17:01,080 --> 00:17:07,160 days, and we're going to see how the impact of these two 260 00:17:07,160 --> 00:17:10,119 witnesses will have on the people of Israel by the end of 261 00:17:10,119 --> 00:17:13,839 the message. But before we move on, allow me 262 00:17:13,839 --> 00:17:17,880 to say one more thing. I find it amazing that the 263 00:17:17,880 --> 00:17:21,800 length of the preaching of these two witnesses was only 1260 264 00:17:21,800 --> 00:17:26,599 days. To put into perspective, we just 265 00:17:26,640 --> 00:17:29,720 at the time of this message, pass our four fourth year 266 00:17:29,720 --> 00:17:33,560 anniversary as a church. That's not very long in terms of 267 00:17:33,560 --> 00:17:37,600 a preaching resume. And these men will be preaching 268 00:17:37,600 --> 00:17:42,280 for 3 1/2 years. And it's a helpful reminder 269 00:17:43,240 --> 00:17:47,880 about how God sovereignly works in our ministries. 270 00:17:48,120 --> 00:17:53,080 Each of us in His mind, the length and the duration of our 271 00:17:53,080 --> 00:17:57,880 service to Him varies. It varies, and quantity does not 272 00:17:57,880 --> 00:18:01,240 always mean quality. These men will do profound 273 00:18:01,240 --> 00:18:02,640 things in a short amount of time. 274 00:18:03,200 --> 00:18:05,360 And listen, you and I should strive. 275 00:18:05,520 --> 00:18:09,200 Strive for longevity and loyalty wherever God has placed us to 276 00:18:09,200 --> 00:18:12,720 serve. But we also must be dependent 277 00:18:12,720 --> 00:18:17,440 upon the truth that He is the one who determines what we do 278 00:18:17,440 --> 00:18:22,640 and how long we do it for. This is His prerogative, and 279 00:18:22,640 --> 00:18:25,840 what makes the quality of your service to God and mine 280 00:18:26,080 --> 00:18:29,560 meaningful and lasting is the same thing with Zerubbabel, 281 00:18:29,560 --> 00:18:32,920 Joshua, and these two witnesses. Dependence on the Holy Spirit 282 00:18:34,360 --> 00:18:38,840 being connected to Him, continually asking for His hand 283 00:18:38,840 --> 00:18:41,760 to remain on your life and to bless your efforts and to 284 00:18:41,760 --> 00:18:44,520 multiply your fruit. Can I ask you, O precious Saints 285 00:18:44,520 --> 00:18:48,240 who serve God, how much? How much do you seek God to 286 00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:51,720 bless what you do for God? How much are you aware? 287 00:18:51,720 --> 00:18:54,120 How much are you? Are you, are you understanding 288 00:18:54,120 --> 00:18:58,200 of your neediness of Him? So what we see here is that the 289 00:18:58,200 --> 00:19:01,520 picture from old to new is that men and women who have done 290 00:19:01,520 --> 00:19:05,120 great things for God are those who are aware that they need 291 00:19:05,120 --> 00:19:10,040 Him, They need to abide in Him, That unless He goes before them 292 00:19:10,040 --> 00:19:12,720 and is by their side and behind them and over them, they will 293 00:19:12,720 --> 00:19:17,040 not know true success. And this is what we find here, 294 00:19:17,760 --> 00:19:20,720 that the Holy Spirit will work through these men not just to do 295 00:19:20,720 --> 00:19:25,120 miracles, but to play a part in the people of Israel coming 296 00:19:25,120 --> 00:19:30,880 closer to their salvation. That being said, they do 297 00:19:30,880 --> 00:19:34,760 accomplish remarkable things, which brings us to our second 298 00:19:34,760 --> 00:19:36,880 heading. Not just their identity, but 299 00:19:36,880 --> 00:19:40,720 their ability. So like the fire that fell from 300 00:19:40,720 --> 00:19:44,720 heaven and consumed Elijah's enemies by command, by the way, 301 00:19:45,880 --> 00:19:48,200 we see these men doing something similar. 302 00:19:49,240 --> 00:19:54,640 And like Elijah, who according to James prayed and for 3 1/2 303 00:19:54,640 --> 00:19:59,280 years there was no rain, these men apparently can shut the sky 304 00:20:00,560 --> 00:20:03,480 by their word. And I find it interesting. 305 00:20:04,240 --> 00:20:07,680 It's for the same duration that Elijah did, 3 1/2 years. 306 00:20:07,680 --> 00:20:12,960 And what about the water turning to blood and plagues striking 307 00:20:12,960 --> 00:20:16,600 the earth? That is a clear parallel to 308 00:20:16,600 --> 00:20:20,080 Moses. So what do we do with these 309 00:20:20,080 --> 00:20:21,600 parallels? What do we do with these 310 00:20:21,600 --> 00:20:24,720 connections? Here's the key take away. 311 00:20:25,800 --> 00:20:31,680 Just as the miracles of Elijah and Moses vindicated their 312 00:20:31,680 --> 00:20:36,680 message in times of great apostasy and oppression by 313 00:20:36,680 --> 00:20:40,520 empires, these witnesses will have comparable power. 314 00:20:41,920 --> 00:20:44,960 In other words, you're going to see here that these signs and 315 00:20:44,960 --> 00:20:49,560 wonders mirror these prophets of God of old, to authenticate the 316 00:20:49,560 --> 00:20:53,760 ministry of these men, to show to the world that they are 317 00:20:53,760 --> 00:20:56,640 genuine prophets of God. And this will be extremely 318 00:20:56,920 --> 00:21:00,800 useful in a time where there will be terrifying distractions, 319 00:21:01,960 --> 00:21:07,040 palpable demonic activity, and frightening deception on all 320 00:21:07,040 --> 00:21:09,800 sides. This kind of power that we read 321 00:21:09,800 --> 00:21:16,040 in verse 5 and 6 is necessary and it will show the world that 322 00:21:16,080 --> 00:21:19,320 these these prophets, they resemble the prophets of the 323 00:21:19,320 --> 00:21:20,960 Hebrew Scriptures. Therefore they represent the 324 00:21:20,960 --> 00:21:23,640 true God. And that is an indirect message. 325 00:21:23,640 --> 00:21:25,800 But we got to think about the practical implications of this. 326 00:21:26,080 --> 00:21:27,760 You've been with us week after week. 327 00:21:27,920 --> 00:21:30,360 Is the world in a good place at the time of these ministers 328 00:21:30,360 --> 00:21:32,600 preaching? Everything is falling apart, 329 00:21:33,720 --> 00:21:36,280 diseases and waters being corrupted and land being 330 00:21:36,280 --> 00:21:38,360 destroyed and things falling from the sky. 331 00:21:38,760 --> 00:21:40,680 And and with all of that, what do you have? 332 00:21:41,120 --> 00:21:46,800 Two men, whenever they desire, adding to their suffering, 333 00:21:48,600 --> 00:21:54,040 adding to their turmoil. And it's really going to show us 334 00:21:54,040 --> 00:21:59,720 why the world hated these guys. They make sense because of the 335 00:21:59,720 --> 00:22:02,400 torment they will inflict, not just by the truth that they 336 00:22:02,400 --> 00:22:05,360 preach, but even by the power that they will demonstrate. 337 00:22:07,160 --> 00:22:10,680 But there is a phrase, the last part of verse 6, that caught my 338 00:22:10,680 --> 00:22:13,080 attention and moved me deeply. Look at it again. 339 00:22:13,920 --> 00:22:22,640 As often as they desire, they will have the ability to perform 340 00:22:22,640 --> 00:22:24,920 any of these powerful acts whenever they wish and as many 341 00:22:24,920 --> 00:22:30,200 times as they want. That is incredible. 342 00:22:31,040 --> 00:22:34,080 That is staggering, and here's why it's intriguing. 343 00:22:35,600 --> 00:22:39,400 Much of Revelation, including this section, shows how God has 344 00:22:39,400 --> 00:22:43,360 carefully fixed and planned events. 345 00:22:43,360 --> 00:22:47,720 Down to what? The very hour the holy city will 346 00:22:47,720 --> 00:22:50,240 be trampled for 42 months? These two witnesses will preach 347 00:22:50,240 --> 00:22:53,560 for 1260 days. Later on, in the same section, 348 00:22:53,560 --> 00:22:55,240 we're going to see that an earthquake is going to Sheikh 349 00:22:55,240 --> 00:22:57,840 Jerusalem and a tenth of the city fell. 350 00:22:57,920 --> 00:23:04,720 That is precise, undeniable, sovereign acts of God. 351 00:23:06,440 --> 00:23:10,760 And yet in the in the middle of this, just witnessing the 352 00:23:10,760 --> 00:23:14,960 absolute control that God has over the affairs of the world in 353 00:23:14,960 --> 00:23:20,520 the final days, you get a hint that man is granted freedom of 354 00:23:20,520 --> 00:23:27,840 choice as often as they desired. This reminds me actually of 355 00:23:27,840 --> 00:23:32,320 another place concerning the last days, namely with Jesus 356 00:23:32,320 --> 00:23:37,160 Christ when He gave His own play by play prophecy of the final 357 00:23:37,160 --> 00:23:39,280 moments of human history. Let me remind you of this. 358 00:23:39,280 --> 00:23:47,040 In Matthew 2419 and 20, our Lord said, and alas, for women who 359 00:23:47,040 --> 00:23:50,600 are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those 360 00:23:50,600 --> 00:23:55,080 days, look at verse 20. Talking Matthew 2419 and 20, 361 00:23:55,080 --> 00:23:59,160 Look at verse 20. Pray that your flight may not be 362 00:23:59,160 --> 00:24:04,640 in winter or on a Sabbath, for then there will be great 363 00:24:04,640 --> 00:24:06,640 tribulation. Such has not been from the 364 00:24:06,640 --> 00:24:08,200 beginning of the world until now. 365 00:24:08,200 --> 00:24:10,200 No, and never will be. Pray. 366 00:24:10,960 --> 00:24:14,360 Pray for what? We'll pray that the conditions 367 00:24:14,360 --> 00:24:15,840 will be favorable in your travels. 368 00:24:17,240 --> 00:24:20,040 Pray that it will not happen where there will be traffic 369 00:24:20,040 --> 00:24:27,200 jams. And so Jesus here even indicates 370 00:24:27,880 --> 00:24:35,360 that prayer can still make a difference even in the context 371 00:24:35,800 --> 00:24:40,840 of predetermined events and elements of it being 372 00:24:40,840 --> 00:24:44,560 established. Do you see what I see? 373 00:24:46,200 --> 00:24:48,440 So here's what I want to say. You and I may not be able to 374 00:24:48,440 --> 00:24:50,760 fully understand how this all works, but one thing is certain. 375 00:24:50,760 --> 00:24:55,120 God's foreknowledge does not make our freedom an illusion. 376 00:24:56,920 --> 00:25:01,960 Our freedom is real, our actions or our inactions actually make a 377 00:25:01,960 --> 00:25:05,400 difference, and all of this makes our relationship with God 378 00:25:05,400 --> 00:25:12,280 what authentic and it makes our responsibility very genuine and 379 00:25:12,280 --> 00:25:15,680 personal as often as they desire. 380 00:25:16,720 --> 00:25:20,520 I love that thought as it's sandwiched between what days 381 00:25:20,520 --> 00:25:22,840 determined and events taking place. 382 00:25:24,560 --> 00:25:28,560 God's foreknowledge does not negate your responsibility. 383 00:25:29,800 --> 00:25:35,040 My brother and sister Jesus equally says pray, pray. 384 00:25:35,200 --> 00:25:37,720 Prayer makes a difference. Well preacher, can you explain 385 00:25:37,720 --> 00:25:40,760 all the mechanics? I can't do you much service in 386 00:25:40,760 --> 00:25:44,920 that area. But what I do understand is that 387 00:25:44,920 --> 00:25:48,160 God has asked of me to do certain things and I will obey 388 00:25:48,160 --> 00:25:51,840 Him, believing with all my heart that should I not do it, it will 389 00:25:51,840 --> 00:25:57,000 actually change or not change their ability. 390 00:25:58,120 --> 00:25:59,480 But let's consider their mortality. 391 00:25:59,480 --> 00:26:02,480 Now we haven't read this yet, but let's look at it in verse 7. 392 00:26:04,240 --> 00:26:11,320 And when they had finished their testimony, the beast that rises 393 00:26:11,320 --> 00:26:15,400 from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer 394 00:26:15,400 --> 00:26:20,440 them and kill them and their dead bodies will lie in the 395 00:26:20,440 --> 00:26:24,680 street of the great city That symbolically now the Greek there 396 00:26:24,680 --> 00:26:28,480 were for symbolically is actually spiritually, that's 397 00:26:28,480 --> 00:26:32,880 symbolically slash spiritually. It's called Sodom in Egypt where 398 00:26:32,880 --> 00:26:37,600 their Lord was crucified. This is the first time in the 399 00:26:37,600 --> 00:26:42,720 Book of Revelation, the words the beast that title this 400 00:26:42,720 --> 00:26:45,840 individual, the beast appears the first time. 401 00:26:47,480 --> 00:26:52,680 But reference to the Beast will actually resurface nearly 30 402 00:26:52,680 --> 00:26:55,080 times in the rest of the Book of Revelation. 403 00:26:55,800 --> 00:27:01,120 So obviously whoever the Beast is, he is an integral part in 404 00:27:01,120 --> 00:27:04,800 the events of the Last days. And all we know up to this point 405 00:27:04,800 --> 00:27:07,080 in his introduction is where he came from. 406 00:27:07,320 --> 00:27:12,680 The Beast came from the Abyss. We were here when we learned 407 00:27:12,680 --> 00:27:15,560 about the Abyss. This is in reference to the 408 00:27:15,560 --> 00:27:19,440 underworld where certain demonic spirits were imprisoned by God 409 00:27:19,440 --> 00:27:22,960 himself. This has then LED some to say, 410 00:27:22,960 --> 00:27:27,120 well the beast has to clearly be a demonic creature or even Satan 411 00:27:27,120 --> 00:27:29,600 himself. Is Satan appearing before these 412 00:27:29,600 --> 00:27:32,040 two witnesses and slaying these two witnesses? 413 00:27:33,760 --> 00:27:36,080 Well it's not until you continue Revelation where you discover 414 00:27:36,120 --> 00:27:39,320 who the beast actually is. More light is shed on this 415 00:27:39,320 --> 00:27:42,160 character. So look at Revelation 13. 416 00:27:42,320 --> 00:27:46,280 Just to give you an example how this is going to help us. 417 00:27:47,440 --> 00:27:52,000 Revelation 13 Look at verse one, John says. 418 00:27:52,080 --> 00:27:56,040 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea with 10 horns and seven 419 00:27:56,040 --> 00:28:00,120 heads, with 10 diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on 420 00:28:00,120 --> 00:28:02,640 its heads. And the beast that I saw was 421 00:28:02,640 --> 00:28:05,360 like a leopard. Its feet were like a bear's, and 422 00:28:05,360 --> 00:28:06,800 its mouth was like a lion's mouth. 423 00:28:07,320 --> 00:28:13,520 And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great 424 00:28:13,520 --> 00:28:16,240 authority. One of its heads seemed to have 425 00:28:16,240 --> 00:28:20,440 a mortal wound, but it's mortal wound was healed and the whole 426 00:28:20,440 --> 00:28:24,240 earth marveled as they followed the beast. 427 00:28:25,080 --> 00:28:28,200 It's very tempting to go deep into this passage, but we're 428 00:28:28,200 --> 00:28:30,560 going to refrain from doing so and look at just two simple 429 00:28:30,560 --> 00:28:33,960 observations about the beast number. 430 00:28:33,960 --> 00:28:36,960 We know based on this passage that the Beast is not Satan. 431 00:28:37,920 --> 00:28:40,560 Why? Because contextually, the dragon 432 00:28:41,000 --> 00:28:44,520 is Satan, and he empowers the Beast. 433 00:28:44,640 --> 00:28:47,320 That's clear. More than that, though, there is 434 00:28:47,320 --> 00:28:51,520 strong indication that the beast is actually flesh and blood. 435 00:28:53,120 --> 00:28:55,040 Why? Because John says that he he saw 436 00:28:55,040 --> 00:28:58,720 a mortal wound that the beast had and the wound was was 437 00:28:58,720 --> 00:29:01,720 healed. Well, some would say that this 438 00:29:01,720 --> 00:29:04,920 is reserved just for a symbolic picture of an empire falling and 439 00:29:04,920 --> 00:29:06,720 rising again. But if you continue Revelation 440 00:29:06,720 --> 00:29:10,720 13, which we will when we get there, there's great support 441 00:29:10,720 --> 00:29:13,400 about how this beast is actually an individual. 442 00:29:14,040 --> 00:29:16,440 And if that is the case, then there is something that will 443 00:29:16,440 --> 00:29:19,680 happen to this beast that will affect his body. 444 00:29:19,880 --> 00:29:23,160 It will be healed almost in a miraculous fashion that will 445 00:29:23,160 --> 00:29:28,200 even cause the world to devote themselves more ferociously and 446 00:29:28,200 --> 00:29:33,160 intensely to the beast. This leaves us with only one 447 00:29:33,160 --> 00:29:37,880 logical conclusion, that the beast is the Antichrist, that he 448 00:29:37,880 --> 00:29:42,040 is the prophesied coming world ruler that Jesus spoke about, 449 00:29:42,040 --> 00:29:45,920 that Paul spoke of, and it's given out in great detail in 450 00:29:45,920 --> 00:29:48,800 this marvelous book, Revelation. This is the Antichrist. 451 00:29:48,800 --> 00:29:52,240 And So what does it mean for us in Revelation 11? 452 00:29:52,240 --> 00:29:56,320 That the Antichrist will be the one who will personally deal 453 00:29:56,320 --> 00:30:02,040 with these two witnesses, that their message and their movement 454 00:30:02,040 --> 00:30:07,440 will be so enraging to him that he will deal with them with a 455 00:30:07,440 --> 00:30:11,720 devastating blow. You have to remember, Paul 456 00:30:11,720 --> 00:30:15,400 prophesied that in the last days one of the turning points would 457 00:30:15,400 --> 00:30:20,080 be the man of lawlessness entering into the temple of God 458 00:30:20,640 --> 00:30:24,320 and declaring himself to be God as he takes his seat there. 459 00:30:24,720 --> 00:30:27,000 Where's the temple of God? Jerusalem. 460 00:30:27,000 --> 00:30:33,080 And it could be that these two witnesses who are prophesying in 461 00:30:33,080 --> 00:30:37,760 the holy city, in the great city, are getting in the way of 462 00:30:37,760 --> 00:30:42,480 the Antichrist sustaining his headquarters in Jerusalem. 463 00:30:44,120 --> 00:30:46,520 They're not making his job easier as he is trying to win 464 00:30:46,520 --> 00:30:49,640 the worship of the world. Here they are preaching about 465 00:30:49,640 --> 00:30:51,520 the true Christ. Here they are preaching with 466 00:30:51,520 --> 00:30:57,880 power, interfering with his attempt to dominate the globe. 467 00:30:58,600 --> 00:31:05,040 And so finally, he will take action, but not until what Their 468 00:31:05,040 --> 00:31:09,880 testimony was complete. Don't you love that truth? 469 00:31:10,760 --> 00:31:15,480 I love it because it shows that even the Antichrist who is 470 00:31:16,040 --> 00:31:22,760 empowered by Satan will not be able to touch any of Christ's 471 00:31:22,760 --> 00:31:28,960 witnesses until he says so. Let's take it, take a breath 472 00:31:28,960 --> 00:31:32,520 now, OK? What is this truth show about 473 00:31:32,520 --> 00:31:38,120 our life in Christ? It shows that our existence on 474 00:31:38,120 --> 00:31:42,640 earth is tied to our service to the Lord. 475 00:31:44,800 --> 00:31:50,640 They could not be touched until their ministry was accomplished. 476 00:31:51,480 --> 00:31:56,880 And once their ministry was fulfilled, God allowed them to 477 00:31:56,880 --> 00:32:01,040 be killed. What does that say about life? 478 00:32:03,040 --> 00:32:08,040 Life is about living for Him. Life is about serving God. 479 00:32:09,040 --> 00:32:11,320 Life is about discovering your ministry. 480 00:32:11,920 --> 00:32:13,960 And even though if you don't have a clearview of what your 481 00:32:13,960 --> 00:32:17,080 calling is, and I put that in quotation marks, just knowing 482 00:32:17,080 --> 00:32:20,240 what God's will is from His Word and finding a place and a people 483 00:32:20,240 --> 00:32:24,000 to do it with, that's what your life is about. 484 00:32:25,880 --> 00:32:27,640 And I wonder if we think of it that way. 485 00:32:28,800 --> 00:32:30,480 I wonder if you think about your life that way. 486 00:32:32,400 --> 00:32:35,320 Paul did. Do you remember what he said to 487 00:32:35,320 --> 00:32:37,880 the Philippians and Philippians 122? 488 00:32:38,440 --> 00:32:43,800 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for 489 00:32:43,800 --> 00:32:46,840 me. What is he saying to the 490 00:32:46,840 --> 00:32:48,400 Philippians? Well, he's in prison. 491 00:32:48,680 --> 00:32:51,160 There's talks about him potentially dying, being 492 00:32:51,160 --> 00:32:54,120 martyred, and he's wrestling with, departing and being with 493 00:32:54,120 --> 00:32:56,160 Christ for that is far better. Amen. 494 00:32:56,160 --> 00:32:58,680 It is far better. But then he realizes that I only 495 00:32:58,680 --> 00:33:03,720 have one opportunity to serve God in a way that I can't in 496 00:33:03,720 --> 00:33:07,160 heaven. And so the only compelling thing 497 00:33:07,640 --> 00:33:11,280 for me to remain in this body, battered in bruises, succumb to 498 00:33:11,280 --> 00:33:16,160 all these things and to stay on this wretched planet is if I am 499 00:33:16,160 --> 00:33:21,880 fruitful for him. There is no other appeal from 500 00:33:21,880 --> 00:33:26,040 this world apart from that truth serving him. 501 00:33:27,280 --> 00:33:32,040 And that's what we find here. These men were taken once. 502 00:33:32,040 --> 00:33:35,680 They served well. Speaking of thinking a certain 503 00:33:35,680 --> 00:33:37,480 way, did you notice a contrast in these verses? 504 00:33:37,480 --> 00:33:42,080 Look again at verse 8 and their bodies, their dead bodies will 505 00:33:42,080 --> 00:33:44,960 lie in the street of the great city. 506 00:33:44,960 --> 00:33:48,240 That's worth highlighting. The great city that 507 00:33:48,240 --> 00:33:51,120 symbolically, or again I told you earlier, the Greek word is 508 00:33:51,120 --> 00:33:56,640 spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt where their Lord is 509 00:33:56,640 --> 00:34:00,240 crucified or was crucified. So in case there's any confusion 510 00:34:00,240 --> 00:34:03,000 of what this great city is there, there's no more debate 511 00:34:03,000 --> 00:34:04,480 now. It's it's Jerusalem. 512 00:34:04,480 --> 00:34:08,639 That's where our Christ was crucified and Jerusalem here for 513 00:34:08,639 --> 00:34:10,360 some reason it's called the great city. 514 00:34:13,760 --> 00:34:16,040 Whatever the reasons are for it being called great, they're not 515 00:34:16,040 --> 00:34:18,600 godly ones. Do you know why? 516 00:34:19,320 --> 00:34:26,480 Because in the very same breath, this city is condemned by being 517 00:34:26,480 --> 00:34:31,400 titled two of some of the worst cities in all of biblical 518 00:34:31,400 --> 00:34:37,199 history. And so in God's eyes, Jerusalem 519 00:34:37,199 --> 00:34:44,520 at this point is bankrupt. But in worldly terms, it's 520 00:34:44,520 --> 00:34:52,920 great. Here's how this challenged me in 521 00:34:52,920 --> 00:34:54,760 my perception of everything around me. 522 00:34:56,280 --> 00:35:00,000 Do I discern and evaluate spiritually, or am I prone to do 523 00:35:00,000 --> 00:35:05,920 so in my flesh? What's great in the eyes of the 524 00:35:05,920 --> 00:35:11,400 world, symbolically and spiritually, is horrendous to 525 00:35:11,400 --> 00:35:14,520 God. You know, some of you know that 526 00:35:14,520 --> 00:35:18,040 my wife and I had a chance to go to Rome just a few weeks ago, 527 00:35:19,360 --> 00:35:22,520 and there was so much about Rome that was great. 528 00:35:23,800 --> 00:35:26,840 The historical preservation, the architectural beauty was 529 00:35:26,840 --> 00:35:30,280 stunning. But throughout our stay there, I 530 00:35:30,280 --> 00:35:35,920 had to constantly remind myself to perceive these things from a 531 00:35:35,920 --> 00:35:40,440 spiritual standpoint and to make my final estimation there, 532 00:35:40,440 --> 00:35:44,000 especially when looking at these religious structures. 533 00:35:47,520 --> 00:35:51,000 Great. But spiritually, what is it? 534 00:35:52,720 --> 00:35:55,240 You know, there are a lot of Christians who are passionate, 535 00:35:55,240 --> 00:35:57,240 sometimes too passionate about politics. 536 00:35:57,920 --> 00:36:00,320 If they fail to consider the spiritual reality behind it, 537 00:36:00,840 --> 00:36:05,160 it's never in the conversation. It's just left and right and 538 00:36:05,160 --> 00:36:08,640 this news and that is, do you perceive it spiritually, though? 539 00:36:11,200 --> 00:36:13,800 You have others Christians who are enthralled by certain forms 540 00:36:13,800 --> 00:36:15,600 of entertainment but never reflect on the spiritual 541 00:36:15,600 --> 00:36:20,800 influences at work. You know Christ has something 542 00:36:20,800 --> 00:36:23,360 profound in light of this. When He was dealing with the 543 00:36:23,360 --> 00:36:29,120 self-righteous Pharisees in Luke 1614, He said, For what is 544 00:36:29,120 --> 00:36:32,080 exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God. 545 00:36:33,000 --> 00:36:37,000 Let me say that again, For what is exalted among men is an 546 00:36:37,000 --> 00:36:41,360 abomination in the sight of God. Well let me read you the whole 547 00:36:41,360 --> 00:36:43,520 verse. And he said to them in Luke 548 00:36:43,520 --> 00:36:49,280 1615, You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God 549 00:36:49,280 --> 00:36:51,720 knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is 550 00:36:51,720 --> 00:36:53,080 an abomination in the sight of God. 551 00:36:53,160 --> 00:36:55,400 Why is he saying this? Because in the verse right 552 00:36:55,400 --> 00:36:59,600 before it, we learned that the Pharisees were lovers of money 553 00:37:01,720 --> 00:37:04,800 and they justified it. In fact, they actually convinced 554 00:37:04,800 --> 00:37:09,320 people that their growing wealth was a sign of God's favor. 555 00:37:11,920 --> 00:37:17,240 And Jesus reminds them and us, your value system, Pharisees, 556 00:37:17,840 --> 00:37:21,760 that might be praised, you might have excused it and convince 557 00:37:21,800 --> 00:37:25,760 others of it, but in God's sight it's an abomination. 558 00:37:30,440 --> 00:37:35,080 You and I have to constantly come before the Lord and ask Him 559 00:37:35,080 --> 00:37:40,440 to sharpen our perception the way we understand the world, how 560 00:37:40,440 --> 00:37:43,520 it functions, what is valuable, what is not, what is to be 561 00:37:43,520 --> 00:37:46,920 treasured, what is to be despised, what is to be pursued, 562 00:37:47,120 --> 00:37:51,440 what is to be ignored. Because your default setting and 563 00:37:51,440 --> 00:37:55,480 mine is not to see it spiritually, it's to see it 564 00:37:55,480 --> 00:37:58,360 carnally. It's to see the the way the rest 565 00:37:58,360 --> 00:38:02,040 of the world does. And the closer you get to God, 566 00:38:02,320 --> 00:38:07,800 the more you will see the way he sees the city of Jerusalem. 567 00:38:08,000 --> 00:38:10,560 Great. Oh, but to God spiritually, 568 00:38:10,680 --> 00:38:16,360 Sodom and Egypt, this is striking and it carries 569 00:38:16,360 --> 00:38:19,320 instruction for us. We still have two more thoughts 570 00:38:19,320 --> 00:38:21,560 to consider. We moved out from their 571 00:38:21,560 --> 00:38:25,760 mortality to their indignity. Not their dignity, their 572 00:38:25,760 --> 00:38:27,600 indignity. Look at verse 9. 573 00:38:27,600 --> 00:38:34,520 Now, for 3 1/2 days, some from the peoples and tribes and 574 00:38:34,520 --> 00:38:40,800 languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse 575 00:38:40,800 --> 00:38:45,960 to let them be placed in a tomb. And those who dwell on the earth 576 00:38:45,960 --> 00:38:50,000 will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, 577 00:38:50,000 --> 00:38:53,400 because these two prophets have been a torment to those who 578 00:38:53,400 --> 00:38:58,520 dwell on the earth. This is a fascinating passage in 579 00:38:58,520 --> 00:39:05,040 a book that's primarily about the future, because what would 580 00:39:05,040 --> 00:39:09,480 have been unexplainable to John's immediate audience up to 581 00:39:09,480 --> 00:39:14,040 roughly 70 years ago, it's very understandable to us today. 582 00:39:15,000 --> 00:39:18,960 How could the peoples and tribes and languages and nations of the 583 00:39:18,960 --> 00:39:24,040 world gaze upon the dead bodies of these two prophets for 3 1/2 584 00:39:24,040 --> 00:39:29,640 days in one specific location? Is that hard to imagine today? 585 00:39:30,160 --> 00:39:32,800 Absolutely not. These slain bodies of these 586 00:39:32,800 --> 00:39:37,160 prophets will be so significant that it will be broadcasted. 587 00:39:38,240 --> 00:39:39,560 That's the only explanation for this. 588 00:39:39,560 --> 00:39:42,600 It will be broadcasted live on streaming platforms across the 589 00:39:42,600 --> 00:39:47,800 world, and not from an objective journalistic standpoint. 590 00:39:47,800 --> 00:39:50,760 No, no, no, no. It will be recorded as a 591 00:39:50,760 --> 00:39:54,160 celebratory event. They're they're gone. 592 00:39:55,120 --> 00:39:58,680 Finally, we don't have to watch another sermon short. 593 00:39:58,680 --> 00:40:01,480 We don't have to deal with another plague in these random 594 00:40:01,480 --> 00:40:03,920 cities. We have better chances to have 595 00:40:03,920 --> 00:40:06,480 drinking water. They're done. 596 00:40:09,320 --> 00:40:13,720 And so exciting will this news be that they will actually go to 597 00:40:13,720 --> 00:40:17,760 the stores, purchase presents, visit their friends and 598 00:40:17,760 --> 00:40:22,720 neighbors, and exchange gifts. Someone called this passage a 599 00:40:22,720 --> 00:40:26,640 Satanic Christmas. That's very fitting. 600 00:40:29,200 --> 00:40:33,480 You you can't think of another way, I'm sure, of trying to 601 00:40:33,640 --> 00:40:38,000 explain the joy of these peoples, the inhabitants of the 602 00:40:38,000 --> 00:40:41,440 earth, over the death of two righteous men who are calling a 603 00:40:41,480 --> 00:40:45,560 dying and collapsing world to repentance and eternal life. 604 00:40:49,000 --> 00:40:52,200 And this may be just a few short years ago, might have been also 605 00:40:52,200 --> 00:40:55,800 unthinkable to us. But I can't help but think about 606 00:40:55,800 --> 00:40:59,080 the recent assassination of Charlie Kirk and understand that 607 00:40:59,080 --> 00:41:05,120 we got a sobering reality check of just how vile people can be 608 00:41:06,080 --> 00:41:10,680 at the sight of a man who had his neck blown up by a bullet in 609 00:41:10,680 --> 00:41:13,400 front of people, including his family. 610 00:41:17,800 --> 00:41:23,120 More shockingly, this is the first time the word rejoice 611 00:41:23,400 --> 00:41:24,800 appears in the Book of Revelation. 612 00:41:26,720 --> 00:41:29,360 The only other occurrences in Revelation 19, seven where we 613 00:41:29,360 --> 00:41:34,800 read of the righteous celebrating, rejoicing, exalting 614 00:41:34,800 --> 00:41:37,320 in God in the marriage supper of the Lamb. 615 00:41:39,080 --> 00:41:41,000 Imagine this. How staggering is this? 616 00:41:41,040 --> 00:41:43,800 You're reading through the Book of Revelation and the first time 617 00:41:43,800 --> 00:41:47,440 you are confronted with the word rejoice on earth. 618 00:41:47,960 --> 00:41:52,760 Rejoicing on earth is when sinners are gleeful about the 619 00:41:52,760 --> 00:41:56,560 assassination of two of God's chief workmen. 620 00:41:59,240 --> 00:42:01,480 Let me take this opportunity to remind you and I that we live in 621 00:42:01,480 --> 00:42:03,160 a very wicked and depraved world. 622 00:42:04,160 --> 00:42:06,800 And listen. It has always hated the truth. 623 00:42:07,480 --> 00:42:09,280 It has always attempted to run from the light. 624 00:42:09,400 --> 00:42:13,240 But that hatred for the truth will intensify, and those who 625 00:42:13,240 --> 00:42:16,640 speak it will also be objects of people's hatred. 626 00:42:18,680 --> 00:42:22,120 So if you're despised, dear brother or sister, do not be 627 00:42:22,120 --> 00:42:26,280 surprised. It's only going to get more 628 00:42:26,280 --> 00:42:32,360 intense. The fate of these prophets isn't 629 00:42:32,360 --> 00:42:35,280 too surprising, though, is it? How many times have we read both 630 00:42:35,280 --> 00:42:39,280 an Old and New Testament of God's faithful messengers being 631 00:42:39,280 --> 00:42:42,480 killed, sometimes in the prime of their lives? 632 00:42:43,960 --> 00:42:47,640 But what we discover in our final heading is most definitely 633 00:42:47,640 --> 00:42:49,800 not common. Let's discover now their 634 00:42:49,800 --> 00:42:52,920 testimony in verse 11 down to verse 14. 635 00:42:56,280 --> 00:43:00,920 But after the 3 1/2 days of breath of life from God entered 636 00:43:00,920 --> 00:43:05,000 them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on 637 00:43:05,000 --> 00:43:08,200 those who saw them. Then they heard a loud voice 638 00:43:08,200 --> 00:43:10,280 from heaven saying to them, come up here. 639 00:43:11,160 --> 00:43:13,600 And they went up to heaven in the cloud, and their enemies 640 00:43:13,600 --> 00:43:16,920 watch them. At the hour there was a great 641 00:43:16,920 --> 00:43:20,800 earthquake and a tent of the city fell. 7000 people were 642 00:43:20,800 --> 00:43:24,160 killed in the earthquake and the rest were terrified and gave 643 00:43:24,160 --> 00:43:33,720 glory to the God of heaven. I sat back and I use my 644 00:43:33,720 --> 00:43:40,320 sanctified imagination at this point of my study that if indeed 645 00:43:40,320 --> 00:43:45,080 it will be modern technology that will be able to allow the 646 00:43:45,080 --> 00:43:49,760 world to look at these slain bodies for 3 1/2 days. 647 00:43:50,960 --> 00:43:54,040 Maybe, just maybe, again, sanctified imagination that 648 00:43:54,040 --> 00:43:58,640 while cameras are rolling and people are posting breaking news 649 00:43:58,640 --> 00:44:06,880 alert, this is not AI footage. Suddenly, unexplainably, 650 00:44:06,880 --> 00:44:10,960 miraculously, these two witnesses are alive again. 651 00:44:13,360 --> 00:44:16,760 You can just imagine the replays of these two slain bodies 652 00:44:16,760 --> 00:44:20,240 suddenly getting up to their feet and dusting their 653 00:44:20,920 --> 00:44:26,800 sackcloth. This is incredible. 654 00:44:28,080 --> 00:44:30,480 But in a book with so many miracles, not just Revelation, 655 00:44:30,480 --> 00:44:35,000 but our entire book, the Bible, this is not so hard to imagine. 656 00:44:36,840 --> 00:44:42,640 In fact, many, many years before this, there was another faithful 657 00:44:42,640 --> 00:44:48,000 witness, the Witness of Witnesses, Christ himself, who 658 00:44:48,000 --> 00:44:51,280 ministered in Jerusalem. And he too was killed. 659 00:44:51,840 --> 00:44:56,080 And he was buried for three days before he was resurrected. 660 00:44:57,280 --> 00:45:02,680 And now we read here of the Messiah's two witnesses who also 661 00:45:02,680 --> 00:45:04,840 minister in Jerusalem. They will be killed. 662 00:45:04,960 --> 00:45:09,960 They will be slain, though not buried for 3 1/2 days before 663 00:45:09,960 --> 00:45:13,800 they are resurrected. But here's the main difference. 664 00:45:14,560 --> 00:45:17,000 Their resurrection and essentially will be seen by the 665 00:45:17,000 --> 00:45:22,160 entire world. Even their enemies will behold 666 00:45:23,040 --> 00:45:25,760 this remarkable reversal of events. 667 00:45:28,080 --> 00:45:30,160 Why? Why is the Lord doing this? 668 00:45:31,280 --> 00:45:34,480 Why is He making it so public? Well, surely to vindicate His 669 00:45:34,480 --> 00:45:41,920 witnesses, but also to extend undeserved mercy to this 670 00:45:41,920 --> 00:45:44,840 generation as they are accelerating and racing towards 671 00:45:46,240 --> 00:45:51,480 eternal doom. This is God again in His great 672 00:45:51,640 --> 00:45:58,120 grace, allowing this world at this point to actually see 673 00:45:58,520 --> 00:46:04,160 resurrection and ascension to validate their message even 674 00:46:04,160 --> 00:46:09,080 more. Things are wrapping up as much 675 00:46:09,080 --> 00:46:12,000 as the judgments are increasing in intensity. 676 00:46:12,200 --> 00:46:17,000 So at this point is God's grace and trying to get the attention 677 00:46:17,000 --> 00:46:23,560 of these unbelievers. So instead of trying to wrestle 678 00:46:23,560 --> 00:46:30,640 with why and why them and just see God's mercy, just look at 679 00:46:30,640 --> 00:46:33,600 His wonderful grace and be moved by it. 680 00:46:34,080 --> 00:46:38,960 How much more can He do to awaken a generation that is 681 00:46:38,960 --> 00:46:43,400 inundated by so much filth and so much carnage and so much 682 00:46:43,400 --> 00:46:48,560 evil? And what happens? 683 00:46:49,880 --> 00:46:52,160 Well, if that wasn't enough, the Lord will cause an earthquake to 684 00:46:52,160 --> 00:46:55,200 shake the city of Jerusalem to confirm that what it just 685 00:46:55,200 --> 00:46:59,680 transpired was His doing. 7000 will perish as a tent of the 686 00:46:59,680 --> 00:47:03,760 city will collapse. But notice again in verse 13. 687 00:47:03,760 --> 00:47:06,960 Look at it. The rest were terrified and gave 688 00:47:06,960 --> 00:47:10,000 glory to the God of heaven. Who are the rest? 689 00:47:11,920 --> 00:47:16,200 Well, the thing that makes the most sense here is that they are 690 00:47:16,200 --> 00:47:17,640 the rest of the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 691 00:47:18,120 --> 00:47:19,960 Contextually, that's what makes the most sense. 692 00:47:21,720 --> 00:47:25,280 And what does it mean then that they gave glory to the God of 693 00:47:25,280 --> 00:47:29,880 heaven? Is this a forced confession, or 694 00:47:29,880 --> 00:47:33,440 is this genuine repentance? And there's debate about that. 695 00:47:34,120 --> 00:47:38,480 And you can actually make a strong case that this is real 696 00:47:39,240 --> 00:47:42,920 because whenever you see giving glory to God in the context of 697 00:47:42,920 --> 00:47:46,520 revelation, it is strongly associated with genuine 698 00:47:46,520 --> 00:47:49,160 repentance. And we don't have time to look 699 00:47:49,160 --> 00:47:52,200 at every reference, but we will as we move forward in this text. 700 00:47:54,440 --> 00:47:56,240 But let's just step out of this for a second. 701 00:47:56,920 --> 00:48:00,120 Whether this means that they genuinely repented or this is 702 00:48:00,120 --> 00:48:05,040 just a spontaneous, sudden kind of response of recognizing that 703 00:48:05,040 --> 00:48:09,960 God is actually real, one thing is absolutely certain. 704 00:48:10,560 --> 00:48:16,760 The testimony of these men will bring the people of Israel that 705 00:48:16,760 --> 00:48:22,080 much closer to their destiny, and that is them acknowledging 706 00:48:22,080 --> 00:48:27,120 Christ as their true Messiah. That is the impact of these men. 707 00:48:27,720 --> 00:48:30,800 We're seeing what Paul taught about in Romans 11 coming to 708 00:48:30,800 --> 00:48:34,720 fruition more and more. We saw it with 144,000. 709 00:48:34,920 --> 00:48:36,880 We see it with these two witnesses who very likely were 710 00:48:36,880 --> 00:48:41,960 Jews themselves. And as they are brought into the 711 00:48:41,960 --> 00:48:45,840 clouds, there is something that we rarely see happening in this 712 00:48:45,840 --> 00:48:48,920 book. Sinners giving God glory. 713 00:48:50,640 --> 00:48:54,080 And not just sinners across the board, but sinners in a 714 00:48:54,080 --> 00:48:57,600 particular city, A city that is called holy, a city that's 715 00:48:57,600 --> 00:49:00,360 called great. A city that spiritually is not 716 00:49:00,360 --> 00:49:04,320 pleasing to God, but because of His covenant towards them is 717 00:49:04,320 --> 00:49:07,560 doing His part to lead them to His pleasing will. 718 00:49:08,920 --> 00:49:11,960 Let me remind you as I close now, that what we've discussed 719 00:49:11,960 --> 00:49:17,240 in these past few weeks is the pause and the interlude between 720 00:49:17,240 --> 00:49:22,760 the 6th and the 7th trumpets. Next week, God permitting, we 721 00:49:22,760 --> 00:49:26,640 will look at the 7th trumpet and we will move that much closer to 722 00:49:26,640 --> 00:49:28,920 the end of the end. Let's pray. 723 00:49:49,560 --> 00:49:55,600 Oh Lord, your word is wonderful. How even in a text like this 724 00:49:57,760 --> 00:50:03,880 that is often cited as a platform of debate, has become 725 00:50:03,880 --> 00:50:08,440 our nourishment. We received instruction from it, 726 00:50:08,480 --> 00:50:13,360 and we glorify you for that. We thank you, Lord, that this 727 00:50:13,360 --> 00:50:16,080 has provided some clarity in our understanding of the last days, 728 00:50:17,280 --> 00:50:20,440 but we're, Lord, even more thankful that you were able to 729 00:50:20,440 --> 00:50:23,920 make it so relatable to us because Your word is designed to 730 00:50:23,920 --> 00:50:27,760 do so. So speak to our hearts, God. 731 00:50:29,160 --> 00:50:33,360 Speak to our hearts with these words, and maybe they echo in 732 00:50:33,360 --> 00:50:38,360 our hearts throughout this week. Lord, if anybody is here and 733 00:50:38,360 --> 00:50:43,200 they don't know you, we pray that you would use even this to 734 00:50:43,200 --> 00:50:47,920 awaken them to the saving love of Christ and that they would 735 00:50:47,920 --> 00:50:50,440 not waste a moment. They would bend their knee and 736 00:50:50,440 --> 00:50:55,480 realizing I was made for God and I was separated from Him, but he 737 00:50:55,480 --> 00:50:58,680 redeemed me and he built the bridge again and I can know him. 738 00:50:59,120 --> 00:51:01,920 I pray, Lord, with my brothers and sisters, that that would be 739 00:51:02,560 --> 00:51:06,440 that would be a testimony for the unbeliever in this place. 740 00:51:07,160 --> 00:51:10,600 For those of us who know you, Lord, we pray that you would 741 00:51:10,600 --> 00:51:13,920 sharpen our perception that we would see things the way you do, 742 00:51:13,920 --> 00:51:17,800 including our own lives. I pray Lord that you would 743 00:51:18,080 --> 00:51:22,880 energize each of us in our service to You because that's 744 00:51:22,880 --> 00:51:25,880 where life is, worshipping you and serving you. 745 00:51:26,160 --> 00:51:29,720 Before we meet you, we glorify you and we sing Your praises. 746 00:51:29,720 --> 00:51:32,440 Now in Jesus name we pray. Amen.