Understanding Through the Spirit of Prophecy

What we're discussing, what we're talking about, what we think about when we think about the feast of trumpets, it's absolutely inspiring. It's inspiring, it's uplifting, it's motivational, and it should be. And yet, for some people, it's very, very bad news. For some people, it's great news. For some people who are prepared, who are looking forward to, who await the coming of Jesus Christ, this can be a very good day.

It's a very positive day. But for many people around this world, it's going to be quite a different event, as I know all of you know. But, we want to be reminded. I want to take a look here in Revelation to begin with today.

In Revelation, starting in chapter 12, you actually find the people of God described in a number of different ways in the New Testament. And whenever you read through what Jesus stated, what the Apostle Paul primarily and others who wrote books of the Bible, books of the New Testament, they talk about the Church of God, the people of God, they talk about them in different terms. One of them is the household of God. One of them is the Israel of God, meaning a spiritual Israelite.

One of them refers to a spiritual house or a spiritual temple. Here in Revelation 12, you see the Church described as a woman. In chapter 12 of Revelation, you read about, and of course, in many ways, I'd like for us to think about the fact that as members of the Church of God today, as all of us have been drawn by the Father to understand Jesus Christ, there are some identifying signs. And we've had some of those discussed already today, and I will point out a few others. But here in chapter 12, you see somewhat of a battle between the dragon, obviously Satan, obviously the God of this world, the prince of the power of the air, the one who hates what God is doing, and a battle between that dragon and the woman.

It says in verse 1, A great portent appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun. And it starts talking about a woman, and then it talks about a great dragon. And I'd like for us to drop down, even into verse 6, and it says in talking about the woman. And the woman fled into the wilderness where she has a place prepared by God so that she can be nourished for 1,260 days. What's that talking about? Where is that?

What is that? It appears to be a period of time of three and a half years. It doesn't directly say where, but it does say the woman. The woman, being described as a description for the church, would be offered some protection, would be offered some encouragement. If we drop on down to verse 14. Verse 14, it says, 13, the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth. He pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of a great eagle so that she could fly from the serpent into the wilderness to her place where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time.

Again, two different references to what appears to be the same thing. Of a certain amount of difficulty that the church of God, a certain amount of difficulty that the church of God, the reference, of course, is earlier to Israel, ultimately the male child, Jesus, being born of the house of Judah. And then, spiritual Israel, again being the woman, being persecuted by the dragon. And what I want to focus on is in verse 17, Then the dragon was angry with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her children, those who keep the commandments of God and who have or hold the testimony of Jesus Christ.

So here we see a little bit of an identification. A little identity of who it is makes up this woman, who it is that should be making up the church of God. You see that they're going to be keeping the commands of God, which we're striving to do. We understand our need to do that. And also, hold the testimony of Jesus Christ. Now, what's that talking about? What does that mean to you? Do you hold the testimony, or have the testimony, of Jesus Christ?

Well, I think in some ways that could be a little bit confusing. There are a lot of people who talk about Jesus. We had better embrace Jesus Christ. We have to be in close connection with Jesus Christ. But you also see more definition to this over in chapter 19. Because here in chapter 19, you also see the church of God, the people of God, those who are going to be married in the great marriage that's going to occur.

In the description described here in Revelation 19, it talks about these people who make up the bride of Christ. Those who are going to enter into a glorious, wonderful relationship of love, of concern, of glory, that's going to last into the future, everlasting life. This is a description. If we drop down to verse 9, it says, The angel said, Write this down. Of course, this is John writing it down. He's writing down what he's told or shown to write down. And he says, Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb. And so certainly all of us want to be in that category. We want to be able to embrace Jesus Christ. In His testimony, we certainly have to live with an understanding of His sacrifice and understanding that our faith in Him and what He provides for us is essential. But it goes on in verse 10. Let me back up a little bit. Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb. And He said, These are the true words of God. In verse 10, then I fell down at my feet to worship Him. This is what John did. John saw this in vision. He was told by this angelic being that this is the case. These are the ones who are blessed. And he said to John, You don't need to do that. I'm a fellow servant with you and your brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus. You need to worship God because he says the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy. Now this doesn't seem to be getting clearer. This seems to be a little more confusing unless we allow it to simply tell us what it is that we need to know. Not only do we need to keep the Ten Commandments, or we are striving to do so. Not only do we have faith in Jesus Christ and understand that our testimony, our commitment to Him, is of primary value and importance and significance in our lives. But we're also going to be given a certain understanding. I think the Spirit of prophecy that's mentioned here is an understanding of prophetic events.

An understanding of things that are going to happen to the earth and why they're going to happen. And certainly, there are people that read the Bible. Many people try to read the book of Revelation. They often find it completely baffling. Some of them can categorize certain things. And clearly, anyone who reads the book of Revelation should be able to figure out, the end result is Jesus Christ returning to this earth and what He's going to do whenever He returns. And yet, how well do we understand that? How much is that a part of our understanding? We need to, I think, realize that as the people of God, God can give us an insight. He gives us insight into what's going to happen. Now, are we going to know everything that's going to happen? I don't think we are. There are a lot of details, a lot of specifics that have some application or easy to understand application, and some that are not very easy, some that are unclear as yet. But see, I think, and certainly we can all realize, that as we enter this fall Holy Day season, and certainly here on the Feast of Trumpets and then throughout the remainder of the Day of Atonement and then the Feast of Tabernacles and the eighth day, the last great day of the Feast, that as we celebrate those days, as we appreciate what they mean, as we tie those together with things that are specifically written about in the Bible, well then we gain an insight into prophecy, into the telling of the future, into what's going to happen. See, all of us believe the world tomorrow is coming. All of us believe the millennial rule of Christ on earth is what this world needs. A lot of people don't count that at all. You know, they just look at it as, well, I'm not sure what's going to happen. You know, maybe after I die, I hope something is good. But see, we understand that not only will a thousand years occur with Jesus ruling on earth and us assisting Him because He's given us that blessing and opportunity, but even a period of time beyond that when billions of people will be given an understanding of the truth of God and allowed to embrace the Ten Commandments and Jesus Christ and be able to also understand the spirit of prophecy as we're talking of here today.

But as we celebrate these festivals, the Holy Days, as we observe them and especially here, the latter part of them in the fall, these Holy Days guide our understanding in prophetic events that we actually see written about initially and somewhat in a general sense in the book of Daniel.

And when you tie that together with the revelation of Jesus Christ. Now, John was the physical servant that received that revelation. And yet when you look in Revelation 1, verse 1, we see your heading probably says, Revelation of St. John, I mean mine says Revelation 2 John, which is actually a little more correct. But the first verse says the revelation of Jesus Christ. Now, who knows what's going to happen? Well, God does. Jesus clearly does. And he is revealing here in this book, this book of Revelation, the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place.

And he made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testified to the Word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. And you see, he was to write these things down. You know, Jesus is the one who can explain the book of Revelation. If we want to understand that better, we can certainly read it. And you can read a lot of material about it, perhaps. Probably more helpful is to ask Jesus Christ to help us more clearly understand it, to help us understand what he wants us to know, what he wants us to see. And certainly, as we read here in this book of Revelation, we see the signs of the end of the age. That's the primary thing that we see. And as we tie together what Jesus said here in Matthew 24, with the horsemen that are revealed here in the book of Revelation. There are four horsemen that you easily are all familiar with. A horseman that indicate different things that are going to happen here in the end of the age. But whenever you tie what Jesus said together with the descriptions that we have here in the book of Revelation, we see a very graphic description. And like I said, some people may look forward to the return of Christ, but many people, you know, that's going to be a day of doom, a day of gloom, a day of distress, a day of unparalleled destruction and devastation and death. That's what's going to happen. See, that's what the Bible reveals. And of course, the four horsemen, the initial ones that you read about here in the first part of Revelation, describe the coming destruction that's caused by false religion. Not understanding, wanting to be religious, perhaps, but not truly understanding what the word of God says. And of course, that's a white horse. The red horse, you know, it's signifying what we see so...so what? Developing in the Middle East today, you know, war or the potential of war or the top of war, and not only in the Middle East, but clearly it'll be in the Middle East. But the horsemen describe the destruction caused by false religion and war, and then famine and pestilence. And that, of course, I know is not new to you. But see, I hope you tie that into the spirit of prophecy that God says we can have, that we can understand what the outcome is going to be and how is it that we can be motivated. We can be motivated by what we know is going to happen. I'd like for us to look in Matthew 24, because you see Jesus stating... in Matthew 24, Jesus states some very clear statements that we tie in with the book of Revelation. Here in Matthew 24, it says in verse 7, Nation shall rise against nation, kingdom against kingdom.

There will be famines, and there will be earthquakes in various places. And yet it says all of this is simply the beginning, the beginning of sorrow that is going to come on this earth. I know that today you can watch television easily. You can see a lot of warfare. You can see fighting. You can see destruction. You can see what's the current issue regarding Syria, regarding the use of chemical weapons in a mass thousand or fourteen hundred people that apparently died in a, you know, some type of attack by someone from somewhere. You know, that's a very minor thing compared to what's going to happen. Unfortunately, that's minor. It's going to be much more expansive than that. As this described, if we drop on down to verse, actually, let's see. If we say in verse 15, it brings it into an area in Judea. When you see the desolating sacrifice standing in the holy place as was spoken by Daniel, let the reader understand those in Judea are going to need to flee. See, here it starts talking about the Middle East. It's directly about Jerusalem. In other places, it's talking about the fighting that goes on over Jerusalem. And yet, down in verse 21, it says, For at that time there will be great suffering, such as not been from the beginning of the world, even until now, no, and never will be. See, whenever Jesus makes that kind of prediction, in verse 21, at the very worst time that the earth has ever seen, there have been some bad times on the earth. I'm sure things were pretty bad before the flood. Miserable! God said, I'm going to save eight people. Essentially, I'm going to extend favor of Noah. And then the seven others with him, and yet he obliterated everyone else. All of the people who were on the face of the earth did not live through the flood some 4,500 years ago. And yet, Jesus said, a time is coming that will be having greater suffering and greater misery than anything that has ever happened. And he says, in verse 22, if those days are not shortened or cut short, no one would survive. No one would live through what is going to happen on the earth. But he says, for the sake of the elect, and so he says there is a group of people, there is someone that he has chosen, and he has elected or selected, who are praying, praying for this return and praying for the conclusion and then for the beginning, because that's really what's going to happen. There's going to be a devastating conclusion. And then there's going to be a new beginning for all of mankind. But it says, for the sake of the elect, these days will be cut short.

I don't know how long that is. I'm not able to tell you anything about days and when things start and when things stop, but I do know what's going to happen. And so do you. Because we have a spirit of prophecy and understanding of an overview that we receive even through study of the Bible and understanding of the Holy Days that we observe on a consistent basis throughout every year. And of course, Holy Days that God has directly given to us in order to not only observe, but to enjoy.

So knowing what's going to happen, knowing how bad it is going to be in the end of the age. And of course, we're closer to that time than ever before. And yet, we're not quite there. Maybe we're closer than we even know. Maybe it is going to begin in a quicker time than we might imagine. And we might even wonder why would God, the God that we come to love and to respect, to appreciate, the one that we serve, why would the God of love and mercy, why would he allow such slaughter and devastation that's described in the book of Revelation?

Why is he going to allow that? Well, the fact is that as we understand a principle of God's judgment on mankind, as we understand God's principles in judgment, and of course, it was mentioned earlier about this day does picture a time of judgment. And it is a time of judgment. See, God actually views human life from a different perspective than we do.

We're physical, we're limited, we're limited to this physical form. We know death can be an end unless God revives us and resurrects us. And most people don't believe that, really, in actuality. I think we do. But see, God views human life from a different perspective than man does. Like I said, God was willing to send the flood to cover the earth. But of course, why did he do that? Well, he did that because of the exceeding wickedness of men at that time. And we can go back to Genesis 6 and read that, but you know, there's a very clear statement about why it was that that judgment came upon the pre-Noation world.

It was because of their exceeding wickedness, because of their sins, because of their defiance of God, because of embracing the God of this world instead of the Creator God. And then you find, certainly as God worked for Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and Jacob's children, the tribes of Israel, ultimately the nation of Israel, which was divided into the nation of Israel and the nation of Judah. See, what happened? Well, they went along a few hundred years, complete devastation. You know, they're overthrown. The house of Israel overthrown by Assyria, the house of Judah overthrown by Babylon, carried away and hauled off.

And they're over in the in the dungeons in Babylon moaning about the fact that, where's God? But of course, God even said He had raised up that nation, and yet He allowed them to fall in utter destruction because of idolatry and Sabbath-breaking. That was many other things, of course, you could easily add. But those were specific things that were directed because of their sin, because of their refusal, even as the pre-flood world was.

They refused to obey God. They refused to honor God with their lives. And so God brought a judgment. He brought a judgment upon Israel, and He allowed them to be in captivity for a period of time. And then when we study history, we know He brought them back. He brought them back. They're basically scattered today. Very scattered and in many ways can't even identify themselves. You know, they don't know that they are the people of God. But in the end time, God will bring a judgment upon all of mankind because of their sins.

See, that's why this is going to happen. That's why the end of the age is described in such graphic destruction. That He's going to bring a conclusion to this age, and then He's going to start over. And of course, this day, the day that signifies the return of Jesus to earth, the time He will intervene with a trumpet blast that we've already had described and read about, that time is a wonderful time for me and you to look forward to.

We look forward to that because we see that as an answer. And we see that in a sense as our rescue. And we see that as we read earlier in 1 Corinthians 15. There's going to be a resurrection at that time that we very much want to be a part of.

But see, for the bulk of the world, being accounted or accountable for their sins and actually suffering because of sin is what's going to take place. So when man's ways, when you look through the Bible and you see what it is that God says He will do, when man's ways become too wicked, now you have to say that pretty much the ways of man are unacceptable all the time, but when they become too wicked, I think we could say very easily, the world today and certainly my life today here in the United States is far, far more wicked in the society around me than it was when I was a kid.

It may have been bad and I didn't know it, but I don't think it was quite as bad. It's getting worse. It's getting considerably worse, as Mike mentioned in the sermonette.

You can't even hardly watch anything without running into blatant sin. And so when God sees man's ways becoming too wicked, there follows a time of righteous judgment, and then the end of that is that restoration occurs. That's what God is going to do. He's going to bring an end to this age. He's going to allow there to be a great deal of death and suffering and dying, and yet because of sin is why He allows that. And then He's going to provide a restoration. I want us to look in Ezekiel 18, because in Ezekiel 18 you see a little more about how God looks at things. And actually when you read through Ezekiel 16 and 17 and 18, if you take time to read back through there, this is talking about Israel. It's talking about Israel having been disobedient, having been despondent, having been given a lot of blessings, but not really enjoying and not really appreciating those blessings, not thanking God. And here in chapter 18, He talks about individual responsibility and how the people will, if they will turn, if they will be repentant, if they will be responsive. You know, God is far more than merciful. He will extend mercy. But He also says that when that isn't the case, then He's just as capable of bringing about His judgment. And so I want us to start here in verse 23, and yet this indicates really what God wants. Ezekiel 18 verse 23, "...have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked?" says the Lord God. And not rather that they should turn from their ways and live. See, He makes a statement that I don't want.

You know, I don't take a pleasure in the death of the wicked. That's not what I'm about. I'm about life. I'm about service and love and concern and caring. But He says that people are completely irresponsible. If people are completely, they're not even paying attention. And that's clearly the society we see today. They don't pay much attention to the words of God.

But if we go on down here a little bit, you see in this discussion people thinking that, well, the way of God is not fair. That's what it says in verse 25. People complain. You say that the way of God is not fair. Well, the way of God is plenty fair, according to what we're going to read. If you drop down to verse 30, He says, Therefore I'm going to judge you, O house of Israel. All of you, according to your way, says the Lord God, I want you to repent. And I want you to turn from your transgressions otherwise iniquity your sin will be your ruin.

Your sin will be your destruction. I'm not remembering what the New King James says there, but it implies that, well, I am righteous in the way I act. He goes on to say again, verse 31, cast away from you all your transgressions that you have committed against me. Get yourself a new heart and a new spirit. What do people need? All they need to be revived.

They need to be refreshed. They need the Spirit of God, and they need a transformed heart. That's what we have access to. We have access to as we properly seek that. And God closes in verse 32 by saying, I had no pleasure in the death of anyone, but I want them to turn. Turn and live. Because that's what he'd like to see. But as we know in the predictions that are leading into the end of this age, as we know that, then we see that people aren't going to listen.

People don't pay attention. People, as we see described here in the book of Revelation, and we're going to go there, and I think that all of you are familiar with the outcome that I'm talking about, about Christ returning and establishing His kingdom, and then allowing us to serve and learn to love and care for and nurture others. That's what we're going to be assigned to do.

That's what we're being called today to grow to where we can do that, where we can do that in assistance to the great King. But whenever you look into the book of Revelation and the end of the age, and what is going to happen between now and Christ's intervention, you find a series in the book of Revelation, you find a series of seals.

Seven seals. And then the last one of those involves seven trumpets. And then the last one of those, the last trumpet, the seventh trumpet, involves seven last plagues. See, that's when you can read through, and that's the schematic that you will run into. You'll find that actually Jesus Christ is the one who is worthy to open the seals, the one who is worthy to show us what's going to happen. And yet the seven seals lead into the seven trumpets, and finally the seven last plagues. Ultimately, at the end of that last plague, the intervention of Jesus Christ in world affairs.

Now, we should be familiar with that. Actually, when you look at the book of Revelation, you find that description in chapter 5 and 6 and 8 and 11. That's the description. Now, all of you know that there's 21 chapters in the book of Revelation, but you find that pretty well described. Seals and trumpets and plagues in chapter 5 and 6, in chapter 8. Of course, there are some inset chapters that I'm not focusing on, but in chapter 5 and 6 and chapter 8 and then in chapter 11, and we've read at least twice today, and we'll probably read it again in chapter 11 what the real answer is going to be.

But you see the answer. You see what's going to happen in chapter 11. But then you also see an expansion on the last plagues in chapter 15 and 16 and 19. Now, if you were going to teach a class on those, would that be the way you would outline it? I think we all need to be able to know what's there. And we all, as we read that, shouldn't be confused. Now, I've left out a number of inset chapters that have incidental, not incidental, but not direct sequential information, because there are chapters that talk about different things.

One of them we read earlier about the church and the dragon and the warfare between the woman and the dragon, and how we're going to need God's protection. And that's not going to be an easy time. Even as I read this one comment this morning from somebody who could see, well, the church is going to have lots of trouble before the end of the age, before Christ comes. But see, I think it's interesting as God gives us an understanding of prophecy, which I think is really what a spirit of prophecy is indicating, an understanding of the prophesied events, is what we rehearse, what we grow in as we keep the Holy Days, as we understand more of the application and description here.

In chapter 15, I want to go to that, and this is as the seven last plagues are about to be released on the earth. You see an interesting song here in Revelation. Revelation 15, again, from Jesus Christ. Revelation 15. And you see in verse 3, they sing a song of Moses and the song of the Lamb. Wonderful! Absolutely fabulous! A song that is uplifting, and yet it has great meaning. It says, Great and amazing are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Here in verse 3, the latter part of it, Great and amazing are your deeds. Just and true are your ways, O King of all the nations. Lord, who will not fear and who will not glorify your name?

For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your judgments have been revealed. See, here in this scenario, chapter 15, 16, and 19, which is a little more elaboration on what is summarized back in chapter 11, you see the statement made that, well, the judgments of God are upright and correct. He's judging the world because of sin, because of their refusal to respond. See, he said back in Ezekiel, I hate to see people die.

I'd like for sin to turn and live. And of course, that's what he wants for us. But he says, you know, my judgments are correct. They are just and they are true. If we go on in verse 5, after this, I looked in the temple of the ten of witness, and heaven was opened, and out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven last plagues.

And they were robed in pure linen with golden sashes across their chest. And one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever. And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until these seven plagues, these seven angels had ended. See, this is a prediction of what's going to happen. It's a prediction of very graphic destruction.

And of course, this is even beyond the more described activity of a false prophets and ministry and war and famine and pestilence. This is getting right down at the very end of the age. And in chapter 16, we see this further described. It talks of the third angel.

The third angel poured in verse 4 his bowl into the river in the springs of water and they became blood. You know, that would become a big problem for all human beings immediately. Big problem. And I heard the angel of the water say, You are just, O Holy One, who are and were, for you have judged these things, because they shed the blood of saints and prophets and they've given them blood to drink, but it is what you did, or it is what they deserve.

See, it is. What is there do? See, this is again talking about the judgment of God. Talking about how that His judgment is just and true, and how that that judgment is being extended to the world, because it is what they have earned, or what they deserve. And unfortunately, even though that sounds very destructive, we know that clearly is what is going to come upon the earth. And then you go on in verse 7, and He says, I heard the altar respond, Yes, O Lord God Almighty, Your judgments are just and true. See, this is what God is going to extend to those who refuse to respond.

And of course, the flip side of that is He tells us, He wants us to turn and live. He wants us to be engaged in a relationship with Him and in appreciation of Jesus Christ and of the mercy that He extends to us and of the protection that He says He can extend to us.

You know, exactly what that protection is or where it is, I don't know, but I know that He does. I know that Jesus Christ knows how He is going to protect people. And we hope we are a part of those people. If we're alive, He knows how He's going to protect us. As I mentioned earlier, and as some of our publications, even this past weekend, the telecast that we had was about not just the four horsemen of the Apocalypse, but the five horsemen.

And see, we should all identify with the fifth horseman. The fifth horseman is going to ride not with famine or pestilence or with false prophecy, but he is going to wage war on the earth. And this will be Jesus Christ intervening in world affairs. And even as I know, back almost a hundred years ago when there was a First World War, they called that First World War the war to end all wars.

And of course, it didn't turn out that that ended all the wars. That was only another in a sequence of wars that we have had throughout the last hundred years. But ultimately, the fifth horseman is going to create war on this earth, and yet it is going to be a war that will end all wars. It's going to be waged in righteous judgment. We see this in Chapter 19. Revelation 19. I told you, Chapter 15, 16, and 19.

They go together sequentially. Five, six, eight, and eleven go together earlier. And they kind of come to a conclusion. But 15, 16, and 19, those chapters, they give you a greater insight into what will happen as Jesus Christ is preparing to return. And it says in verse 1 of Chapter 19, After this I heard what seemed to be a loud voice in the great multitude in heaven, saying, Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power to our God, for His judgments are true and just, and He has judged the great whore who corrupted the earth with her fornication, and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants.

See, this is the fifth horseman, the fifth horseman that's going to ride, and who's going to bring a conclusion to man's defiance and his indifference toward God, his resistance toward the law, his refusal to honor God with his life and with his heart and with his mind. And if we drop down to verse 11, you see this graphic description that is one that we pray for, and yet again, as you read it, it's a bloody description.

It's a bloody description, but as we've said, this is God's judgment, His judgment on the sins of mankind. He says in verse 11, I saw heaven opened, and there was a white horse. So they'd had a white horse earlier, and of course, that white horse was a deceiver.

It involved false ministry and false teaching and deceiving people into being completely confused about eternal life and certainly being a part of the divine family of God, growing in a divine nature. So that's not what you find taught in a false ministry, but here, the true ministry of Jesus Christ, I saw heaven opened, and there was a white horse, and the rider is called faithful and true. And in righteousness, He judges and He makes war. That's exactly what He's going to do. His eyes are like the flame of fire on His head or many diadems. He has a name inscribed on Him that no one knows but Himself. He is clothed in a robe that is dipped in blood, and His name is called the Word of God. In the armies of heaven, the angelic coast, wearing fine linen white and pure, were following Him on white horses. And from His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron.

He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty, and on His robe and on His thigh, has written a name, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. See, that, of course, that intervention by Jesus Christ on this white horse and in great glory and with plenty of power, is going to inflict a lot of damage, a lot of damage on this earth. And of course, you see this described in the talks in verse 15 of Him wielding a sharp sword, which also is a description for the Word of God. A description of the pages of the Bible that we read and study, and that is a basic part of our lives. It needs to be the foundational part of our lives. And yet He says He's going to wield that sharp sword with which He will strike down the nations and He will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God. See, now that description doesn't sound like a kingdom of peace. Doesn't sound like a kingdom of restoration. Now, this is really what's going to happen before the restoration. If we look back in Isaiah 11, and you know in Isaiah there are a number of chapters that talk about the kingdom to come, that talk about the peaceful world tomorrow. And that, of course, is what we talk about. And it is what we celebrate at the Feast of Tabernacles. We want to be able to enjoy a peaceful kingdom that will be a kingdom of plenty and a kingdom of honor toward God, where the law will go forth and people will enjoy a relationship with God unlike they had seen before. But here in Isaiah 11, even in verse 6, where we have the descriptor that we have always had for 60 or 70 or 80 years now, of what the world tomorrow will be picturing a wolf living with the lamb and the leopard lying down with the kid and the calf and the lion and the fatling together and the little child leading them. I think I may have mentioned to you that emblem is one that we're familiar with. We use different facets of it because there are different depictions of similar things. I know that that seal was put on my mother's tombstone, her grave marker, because my dad liked that. He wanted that to be on there. And yet, interestingly, whenever you see this description, and of course verse 9 talks about, they're not going to hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain. The earth is going to be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. This description is one that we embrace and love and want to come to the earth. But see, what does it say up in verse 3? See, it talks about what's going to happen before the peace breaks out on earth. It says in the middle part of verse 3, he will not judge by what his eyes see or decide by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he will judge the poor. And he will decide with equity for the meek of the earth, and he will strike the earth with a rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.

See, that's talking about the same thing we're reading about in Revelation 19. Him coming and making war on earth, stopping the way of man, stopping the agitation that Satan has incited at the end of the age where people are actually going to be coming and doing battle with the one who's going to return to bring peace.

See, that's what he's doing. And yet we see that described here coming and ruling with a rod of iron. He's going to forcibly get everybody's attention. And even as I copied this out of one of our publications, because it describes it so graphically, as far as what's going to happen, it's kind of like, and I know it used to be some years ago when we had some massive fires. I think it was after the Gulf War. There were massive fires over in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. And they were trying to put those out. And of course, there were some people who were really good at that and different type of firefighters and some of them quite heralded as far as their ability. But how did they basically put many of those fires out? Well, this is a description. It says, when oil wells are burning out of control, often the only way that firefighters can extinguish the flame is by igniting in a way that they can't. It says, by igniting an explosion in the wellhead. And that explosion sucks out the oxygen and then makes it impossible for the fire to continue. Similarly, the righteous war that Christ will rage is like a massive explosion of force that brings the raging flames of war to a halt. And only then will the conditions be set for ushering in the peace of the kingdom of God. Even as we look for the peaceful kingdom and the wonderful righteous rule of Jesus Christ and our desire to serve in that kingdom, there's going to have to be a big explosion. There's going to have to be, and Jesus Christ is able and capable of doing that, and His judgment will be brought to this earth in order to, in a sense, expose that the way of sin doesn't work. And for those who live through that and who live into the beginning of the millennium, there'll be a lot of retraining going on. But excitedly, actually, if you go to Zechariah 14, Zechariah 14 is a description. Actually, we often use this regarding the millennium and regarding keeping the Feast of Tabernacles in the coming kingdom of God. Because it does describe that, it describes people learning to keep the Feast. And yet, the part that I want to focus on is earlier. Here in Zechariah 14, it talks about a time of warfare and battle. But then following that great battle, following that massive explosion, then peace and security will break out.

In verse 1, the day of coming for the Lord. In verse 2, I will gather the nations against Jerusalem to battle. Verse 3, then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations, as when he fights on the day of battle, and on that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives, which lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west, by a wide, wide valley. And down in verse 8, On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half of them toward the east, and half toward the western sea, and it shall continue in summer and in winter. You know, a huge transformation is going to take place, but what happened before? You know, a big battle. Huge judgment upon the earth. And then ultimately, in verse 9, the Lord will become king over all the earth, and on that day the Lord will be one, and His name one. And we have something to look forward to, something that's absolutely wonderful. There's a true picture of success in human lives. See, what do people really want? Well, they want something that they just can't have right now. People around the globe are not embracing peace right now. They're embracing warfare and sin. They're embracing destruction and getting my own way. That's what everybody is doing in every nation. You know, why do we have such chaos in Egypt, or chaos in Syria, or in Jordan, or even in Israel? I mean, they're sitting right in the middle of a tinderbox, ready to blow up.

And you find people in other parts of the globe who struggle. Struggle mightily just to eat. You struggle immensely. You know, the main factor of their lives is to find enough to eat to last the next day, and the next week. And in the way we live over here, you know, we've got such abundance, it's beyond.

In so many ways, it's beyond what we need. And yet, you know, a time is going to come that's described here after this battle, a time of peace, a time of wonderful encouragement. I want us to back up a few pages here to the book just prior to Zechariah, the book of Haggai. Because here in this book of Haggai, God had sent a message, in this case, this book is about the rebuilding of the temple, but it's even about another temple, a temple that is far greater than any physical temple. You know, that temple is the people of God. That temple is the dwelling of the Holy Spirit.

That temple can be you and me as we yield to the lead and the guide of the Holy Spirit. But I want us to look as God sends this message, even as at that time there was duress, there was destruction, they were having to return, and they were having to drudge out of the depths that they had fallen into. But God gave them a message of comfort and a message of reassurance, and He gave them a picture of hope. And so even though this day is a day of doom, and it's a day of destruction and war, because of sin, there is great hope. And as it goes ahead to say, starting in verse 4 here of Haggai, chapter 2, Yet now take courage, O Zerubbabel, says the Lord. This was directed specifically to Zerubbabel, as he was a physical servant who was doing a job in helping rebuild the temple. Take courage! Take courage, O Joshua, the high priest. Take courage! All you people of the land, says the Lord, work for I am with you, who says the Lord of Host, according to the promise that I made you when you came out of Egypt. He says, brethren, I want you to understand that even though the things that we see written in the pages of the book of Revelation are truly gruesome, and yet Jesus Christ is going to wage that war of judgment for a reason, because He does have to stop the warfare in order to extend the kingdom of peace. He says, take courage. He says, my spirit, in verse 5, abides among you. Do not be afraid. Don't be afraid. For thus, says the Lord of Hosts, once again in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land, and I will shake all the nations so that the desire of those nations will come. The people, whether they know it or not, they need the intervention of Jesus Christ in world affairs. God says, I'm going to shake the whole earth, and then I'm going to send the desire of all nations, and I will fill this house with splendor, says the Lord of Hosts. He says, silver is mine and gold is mine. And He says in verse 9, the latter splendor of this house shall be greater than the former. Says the Lord of Hosts, and in this place I will give peace, says the Lord of Hosts. This is describing a way in which He was looking at the temple earlier, but it's also describing a temple that is made up of individuals in which the Holy Spirit of God dwells. And so we should take courage, and we should not fear, but we should draw closer to God and truly realize that His message is a message of hope. It's a message of transformation. It's a message that is as a delightful message. And of course, the Holy Days, as we will continue to observe them in atonement, and in the Feast of Tabernacles in the last great day, will continue to expand our understanding of the prophecies that Jesus says will come to pass.

Today, in a sense, it's kind of futile to watch, but you see in television, you see conference, you see treaties, and you see summits, and you see peace talks that all will simply devolve into human factions and party spirit, and that will simply allow war to continue. And actually, there will only simply be an illusion of peace.

If there is any answer that comes from men, what's really going to come? The only end that is going to bring about true peace is going to be brought by the hand of God through the ride of the fifth horseman of Revelation. See, we know the earlier ones are going to bring destruction, but the final one, the final horseman, the fifth horseman, the rider on the white horse, is going to usher in the kingdom of peace, where training is going to be wonderful. And so the whole world awaits. Well, we read in Revelation 11, verse 15. Mr. Hudson read it this morning. I think one of the other speakers alluded to it or read this particular solution, and it is clearly the solution. But the whole world awaits the voices that will declare in Revelation 11, verse 15, that the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and forever. And brethren, we want to pray and let God will hasten that day.