What Do You Know
About LIFE?
What Do You Know
About DEATH?
Do You Know
The TRUTH?
Like the beauty of the world is for all to behold ...
may the information and articles here become precious to you.
Where will you go when it's your time to die?
You need to know this today. Tomorrow may be too late!
HINT: It is NOT through a church, baptism, or good works.
What Does The Future Hold ?
Exciting and EASY Study on REVELATION
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Here is a great church to attend in Trumbull County, Ohio
FAITH Baptist Church
1401 Shaw Avenue, Niles, Ohio 44446
(330) 652-8151
10:00 a.m. Sunday School
11:00 a.m. Morning Worship
6:30 p.m. Evening Worship
6:30 p.m. Wednesday Services
Pastor Lenny Towle, with wife, Mrs. Amy Towle
"And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb."
John is talking and he is telling us that this strong angel is now showing him "a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb". As John looks at this beautiful river, he tells us that it is as clear as crystal. It is a very pure and beautiful river.
John also tells us that this river is "proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb". Like mountains supply the water source to the valleys below, the throne of God and of the Lamb will supply this beautiful, crystal-clear river to the entire New Earth.
The Lord lets John tell us something else very important about this river. This "pure river" is the "water of life". Jesus said in John 4:14: "Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst". This "pure river of water of life", flowing from the "throne of God and of the Lamb" will refresh the entire New Earth forever and ever.
One more thing to notice about this verse. Notice that this "pure river of water of life" will proceed "out of the throne of God and of the Lamb". This verse says "throne", not thrones. This shows that God and the Lamb are One. In John 10:30, Jesus says: "I and my Father are one". This shows the Deity of God. And the "pure river of water of life" will flow freely and abundantly from the "throne of God and of the Lamb" just like the Holy Spirit flows freely from God's throne to those who ask.
"In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations."
Back in Genesis 2:9 we read that the "tree of Life" was created and placed in the center of the Garden of Eden. God has preserved the "tree of Life" from the Garden of Eden. God gave man the opportunity to eat of the "tree of Life" that was in the center of the Garden. The Lord encouraged the church of Ephesus in Revelation 2:7 to stand strong for Him because they were going to be able to "eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God." And now in this verse, we are told that the "tree of Life" will be "in the midst of the street of it". In the midst of what? It? Yes, "it" is the city of God, "New Jerusalem". The "tree of life" was in the "midst of the garden" in Genesis 2:9, and the "tree of Life" will be "in the midst of the street" of the New Earth.
Our verse here says that the "tree of Life" will be "on either side of the river". That just means that the river will run on both sides of the street that the "tree of Life" is on.
The next part of this verse says that the "tree of life" "bare twelve manner of fruits and yielded her fruit every month". Even though there will be time no more as we know it now, there will be months on the New Earth. The "tree of Life" will produce a different type of fruit "every month". This verse does not say that there will be 12 different types of fruit on the "tree of Life" at one time, it says "her fruit" ... one fruit, not fruits ... "every month". One fruit each month. People will be able to enjoy a new fruit each month forever and ever.
The last part of this verse says: "the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations". Deuteronomy 20:19 says: "(for the tree of the field is man's life) to employ". We will not know what blessings or duties the Lord has in store for us until we enter His Paradise.
"And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and His servants shall serve Him:"
This verse starts out with: "And there shall be no more curse". A curse is first mentioned in Genesis 3. A curse is a supernatural hindrance. The first curse occurred in Genesis 3:14 when God cursed the serpent: "And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life". This was a big hinderance to the serpent. Before the curse, the serpent could walk and talk. The serpent talked Eve into sinning. Now the serpent was cursed.
Man was also cursed. The second curse is told in Genesis 3:17: "And unto Adam He (God) said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life". God had commanded Adam directly to not eat of the "Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil". Adam disobeyed God. Adam was therefore hindered. Now man has to work for his food.
In Paradise, on the New Earth, God is going to remove all curses. God will remove all curses from man, animal, and the land. People will have no more pain or sufferings. Animals will have no more pain and sufferings, and the land will not have any more thorns and briers. All will be in perfect harmony and beauty.
This verse goes on to tell us that "the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it". The "throne of God and of the Lamb" is going to be right in the center of "New Jerusalem". This is going to be awesome. Not only are we going to be able to walk on a beautiful, curse free earth, but we will see God and Jesus right in the center of it all.
This verse also tells us that we ... "His servants shall serve Him". What an honour. What an honour to serve the "KING of kings and LORD of lords"! We should be doing our best to serve Him now so we will be prepared for that day. Jesus says to us: "If any man serve Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve Me, him will My Father honour" (John 12:26).
"And they shall see His face; and His name shall be in their foreheads."
The Lord is revealing to us that we will have the amazing privilege to look upon God Himself. God is a holy God. God Almighty said in Exodus 33:20: "And He said, Thou canst not see My face: for there shall no man see Me, and live". If God were to come down from Heaven right now, and we would try to look at Him, we would die. Our sin cannot look upon pure holiness. However, God Almighty is going to let us look upon Him in Paradise. We will be allowed to look upon our Holy Heavenly Father's face. We will look into His eyes of pure love, and we will feel the greatest feeling that our hearts could ever imagine. We will feel all the love God has for us.
God loves His own Son extremely. Yet, God loves us so much that God sacrificed His beloved Son for us. God the Father let mankind take His dear Son and crucify Him. Jesus was taken by sinful hands. He was lied about. He was beaten. He was made fun of. He was spit upon. Jesus had His flesh torn off His body by the cat-o-nine tails they whipped Him with. Then Jesus hung on the cross in shame for six hours. All this was done to God's Only Son as God Himself looked on. Yes, this broke God's heart just as much as it would break our hearts to watch our child suffer and be killed in front of us. But God the Father loves us so much that "He gave His only begotten Son" for us! The Father let His Son die for us so we could have have a home with Him. He adopted us.
"ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father" !
Romans 8:15
"Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable GIFT"
2 Corinthians 9:15
The LORD is also going to place HIS NAME in our foreheads ... "and His name shall be in their foreheads". This is showing God's ownership. He adopted us, and He claims us throughout all eternity! He loves us soooo much.
"And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever."
When our Heavenly Father puts us on His new earth, there will be no sun in the sky. We won't have to worry about lamps in our homes. It won't get dark there at all, not even a little. This is because "the Lord God giveth them light".
Another precious gift from God. 1 John 1:5 tells us: "that God is Light, and in Him is no darkness at all". God's Light is going to shine bright everywhere ... from way up in space to down to the "pure river of water". His Light is even going to shine in our homes. Imagine walking through your house feeling the warmth of His Light. We should be walking in our homes today, feeling the warmth of God's love in our hearts. Read your Bible and pray and you will see God's Light shine brighter and feel His holy warmth.
"And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to shew unto His servants the things which must shortly be done."
The strong angel is verifying to John about everything that John had witnessed. John has been writing everything down as he was told to do. If John had any doubt, God took it away by having the angel verify to John that everything he wrote is true. God would never have any of His servants write anything down that is not true.
The very first verse of Revelation (1:1) told us that "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto Him, to shew unto His servants things which must shortly come to pass; and He sent and signified it by His angel unto His servant John." God wants us to know without a doubt that: "These sayings are faithful and true".
The "Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to shew unto His servants things which must shortly come to pass" (this verse). The information that John wrote is also woven throughout the Old Testament by "the holy prophets". Revelation is God's way to reveal to us, in the last times, what has been said all through the Old Testament. Revelation is a more complete chronological order for us. We don't have to take Daniel, Ezekiel, Psalms, Jeremiah, etc. all together and try to figure it out. God reveals it to us here in the book of Revelation.
At the beginning of Revelation 1:2 we studied "Who (John) bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all thing that he (John) saw." That was in the first chapter of Revelation. Now we are in the last chapter of Revelation. God wants to make sure that we trust Him on His word
Then God says here almost the exact same words that He said in Revelation 1:1. Revelation 22:6: "to shew unto His servants the things which must shortly be done". God is telling us that time is running out. All these things written in God's Word "MUST come to pass" and "the things which must SHORTLY be done". Everything written from chapter 1 through chapter 22 will happen soon ... "shortly". Everything from the civil unrest before the Rapture, to the Rapture, to the revealing of the Antichrist, through his seven year reign on the earth, to the millennium period, to Christ destroying Satan and his demons, to the individual judgment of all people, to the unsaved people being cast into the Lake of Fire with Satan, to the saved people being given a new home ... a new earth with "New Jerusalem" in the center. And most of all being able to dwell with our Heavenly Father and His Son forever and ever.
"Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man (Jesus) cometh." (Matthew 24:44)
"Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book."
The Lord Jesus is speaking directly to each one of us in this verse. First, He says: "Behold". "Behold" means to perceive, to observe, to see. The Lord wants us to see what His Word is telling us. He wants us to perceive His Word, to understand it. And the Lord wants us to observe the things that He has written down. The Lord wrote His Word down for us because they are very important. So important that God had them written down. The Author of the universe wrote them down for us.
Then the Lord says here: "I come quickly". In Acts 1:11, angels asked the disciples: "Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven." This event occurred after Jesus had risen from the grave. The Lord had appeared to his disciples for several days before He went back to heaven. The disciples did not know how long Jesus was going to be with them. They did not know when He was going leave and go back to heaven. Jesus was talking with them, then all of a sudden Jesus "was taken up; and a cloud received Him out of their sight" (Acts 1:9). It was quick. The disciples did not have time to gather families and all their friends and say "Hey, Jesus is going to go up into heaven. Come watch Him". No. One moment Jesus was with them talking, and the next moment He was being lifted up into the air and disappearing into a cloud. This is how it is going to be at the Rapture. One moment we will be here on earth, and the next moment we will be lifted into the air to Heaven. You won't have time to plan. You won't have time to call your family or friends.
If you are saved, you will be gone "quickly".
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I Corinthians 15:52 says:
"In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed".
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(Refer back to our study on the Rapture in Revelation 3:10)
God goes on to tell us in this verse: "blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book." "Blessed" means that God will bring many good things upon the person who "keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book". The first blessing is salvation. Yes, God is kind to the unsaved, but the unsaved will not receive the blessings God has for the saved. For the saved, we have the blessing of "New Jerusalem", a home forever with the Lord. The unsaved will not have this blessing.
Some saved people think that just because they may be saved, they will receive all God's blessings. That's not true. If a Christian is not reading their Bible daily, praying, and seeking the Lord with their heart; they will miss a lot of blessings.
The Lord says "blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book". Those saints who "keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book" will receive extra blessings. One blessing is knowing what Revelation says, knowing what is coming. When a Christian knows what the future holds, they can prepare for it. We can prepare our hearts. We know the Bible says hard times are coming, even harder times. We know that Satan will be very hostile on this earth. We know some of us may die a rough death. But we also know that this will pass.
We know in our hearts that soon we will be in Paradise. We look forward to walking on the streets of gold with our Saviour. And when we get to Heaven, and Christ takes a hold of our hand, we are going to wish we would have done a lot more for Him.
"And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things."
In this verse, John is sharing his physical thoughts and feelings. He "saw these things" and he "heard them". Everything that John saw, he wrote down. He was a witness to all of "these things". John witnessed everything from Satan being bound, to God's throne in "New Jerusalem".
It must have been difficult for John to hear and see everything that we just studied. John must have felt very humbled and unworthy. John was being escorted around the time zone by a very strong angel of God's elite. This angel had protected John, scolded John, and lifted John up to see the glory of God on His throne. When this all sinks into John's heart he "fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed" him all these revelations. John was extremely thankful. John must have felt so small and unworthy to be in the presence of such a holy creature of God's to fall down before the angel.
Hebrews 1:14 tells us that angels are "ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation". There is a very good article about angels on this website ... Uneed2no.com/articles/angels.
The very next verse tells us how the angel responds to John ...
"Bless the LORD, ye His angels, that excel in strength, that do His commandments, hearkening unto the voice of His word."
Psalm 103:20
"Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God."
This strong angel scolds John. The angel says to John: "See thou do it not". Many people worship angels, even without thinking about it. The First Commandment in Exodus 20:3, God said: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." Verse 5 of Exodus 20, God states: "Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them". If this angel would have allowed John to bow down to him, the angel would have broken the First Commandment of God and defiled himself.
This angel goes on to explain to John why he is not to bow down to him. The angel explains why: "for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book". This strong angel explains to John that he, too, is a servant of God just like John is. This angel also proceeds to explain to John that he was a servant to the prophets back in the days. Then this angel also reveals to John that he is also a servant to everyone who "keep the sayings of this book". That means us today who are saved.
This angel also knew the consequences of letting someone bow down to him. This angel was present when Lucifer was cast out of Heaven (Isaiah 14:12-15). The Lord Jesus say Satan fall from Heaven: "And he (Jesus) said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven" (Luke 10:18). We studied in Revelation 12:7-9 about the war in Heaven when Michael and his angels fought against Satan, the dragon. This angel, that is talking with John, wants to make sure everyone understands that you do NOT bow down to angels. This angels clearly and precisely states: "Worship God"! Not angels.
There is an excellent article on Uneed2no.com/articles/angels.
Angel that "Worships God"
Fallen angel that wants others to worship him.
"And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand."
Now this very strong angel is giving John another command. He tells John to leave the Book of Revelation open. He tells John: "Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book". In the Old Testament time period, people did not have the Book of Revelation. That had other prophetic books, but they were not as revealing as the Book of Revelation. People really had to research and study other books of the Bible in order to get a glimpse of what we have learned in Revelation.
Remember the first verse of Revelation, Chapter 1? "The Revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave unto Him, to shew unto His servants things which must shortly come to pass; and He sent and signified it by His angel unto His servant John". Revelation is Jesus revealing to us what is going to happen to our earth, to people, to Satan and his followers, and to us who have accepted Christ as their Saviour. God wants this book of Revelation to be revealed all over the world. This is why God said: "Seal NOT". The Book of Revelation is open for everyone to read and study.
God Almighty wants the Book of Revelation to be published in every country and in every language for all people. God does not want the Book of Revelation sealed up. He wants it REVEALED to all. Why? Because "the time is at hand". Look around you. The time is indeed at hand for the Rapture to take place, and for Satan to rule over this earth for the following seven years. BE READY! "For the time is at hand"!
IT'S TIME !
"He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still."
This verse reflects the verse before it, Verse 10 "The time is at hand". Here in Verse 11, the time came, the Rapture. God said: "For the time is at hand". Once this time has passed, the "unjust" will be "unjust still". "He which is filthy" will "be filthy still". Once the Rapture occurs, you cannot make it happen again nor will it wait for you to get ready. Those people who refuse to accept Christ as their Saviour will be "unjust" and "filthy".
The word "unjust" is a legal term in the Bible. It refers to an official declaration of a court making on "just" or "unjust". In this case, people are "unjust" according to God's judgment court. The "unjust" people have not been "justified" by the blood of Christ. Acts 13:39 says: "And by Him (Jesus) all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses". The "unjust" in this verse refers to those who have not accepted Christ and may have tried to keep the law of Moses. These are people who try to get to Heaven my keeping the Ten Commandments or by doing 'good deeds'.
"Filthy" means covered with dirt, contaminated. An unsaved person is covered with the dirt of their own sins. These could be people who like to party, drink, do drugs, adultery, and even tell little 'white lies'. Before we accepted Christ, we were "filthy". 1 Corinthians 6:11 reminds us that: "And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God." The people who have not asked Christ to wash away their sins by the blood of Christ are "filthy" in God's eyes. Remember, God is holy and He cannot look upon sin (Habakkuk 1:13) "Thou (God) art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity".
This verse goes on to say that "he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still." 2 Corinthians 5:21 says; "For He (God) hath made Him (Jesus) to be sin for us (cross), Who (Jesus) knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." Us being "righteous" is not us becoming righteous in good works, baptism, keeping the Ten Commandments, etc. Our "righteousness" is the "righteousness of God in Him" (Jesus). At the Rapture, because "the time is at hand", we, who are saved, will go up to Heaven and will forever be in Heaven because Jesus put His "righteousness" on us. He washed us with His blood and will give us a robe of white. And "he that is righteous (blood of Christ), will "be righteous still and he that is holy," will be "holy" forever and ever in Heaven. Will you be ready? It's almost time.
"And, behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be."
The word "And" here ties this verse to the previous verse, Verse 11. We studied that "he which is filthy, let him be filthy still". The Lord says here that "My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be". In Revelation 20:12, we studied how every person's 'works' are written down in Heavenly books "and the books were opened ... and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works" (verse 11).
Verse 12 is Jesus trying one last time to warn people that they cannot get to Heaven by their 'good works'. First, let's make sure we understand what the 'work of God' is. The people asked Jesus in John 6:28 this same question: "Then said they unto Him (Jesus), What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?" These people also had the thought that they could do 'good works' to gain favor with God. This is what Jesus said to them: "Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him Whom He hath sent." The people of that day had a very hard time with this answer. They had always been taught and tried to keep Moses' law and the Ten Commandments. And here, Jesus was telling them that the only "work" they could do was to "believe on Him Whom He hath sent". They had a very hard time believing that Jesus was the Messiah.
I would like to pause here and touch on an issue that is going around in a lot of churches today. It is called 'Easy Beliefism'. Back in Genesis 3:4-5, Satan talked to Eve. He told Eve a lot of truth. However, it was mixed with a lie. 'Easy Beliefism' is a lot of truth mixed with a lie. It is very Satanic. Just like Satan told Eve that her "eyes shall be opened", Satan tells people today that all you have to do is 'just believe'. There is truth in this, but this is also a lie wrapped in it . This is why we MUST take all of God's Word, not just a few verses here and there. Romans 10:9 does say: "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." That sounds easy enough. Almost everyone believes in Jesus. Does that mean they are all going to Heaven? No, it does not ... but Satan wants us to just 'believe'.
There are a couple facts to keep in mind. First the Bible says "that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus". This is a requirement. First we must "confess". 1 John 1:9 states that "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." The first step in Salvation is confessing your sins to God. Letting God know that you know that you have sinned against Him.
Next we come to the words, "confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus". This was HUGE back when Jesus was walking on the earth. The Jews did not want to acknowledge that Jesus is their Messiah. It meant banishment from the Temple if people confessed Christ as the Messiah. So first, people had to realize their own sinfulness and second, they had to acknowledge that Jesus is the Messiah and that He died son the Cross for their sins. But don't stop there or you will fall short of true Salvation.
The verse continues with the third requirement. This is to "believe in thine heart". This is the HUGEST part. People can pray a prayer. They can say they 'believe', but if it is not down in their heart, it has no effect. It's our hearts that needs to open up to the Lord Jesus, not just our brains. Once we acknowledge our sins, acknowledge that Jesus died for us personally, and ask Jesus to come into your heart, He will. The Bible says then, "thou shalt be saved".
This is kind of a fine balance and Satan loves to upset balances. Yes, you need to "believe". "Believe" that Christ died for YOUR sins. "Believe" that He is the Lord Jesus. Then make Him your LORD by asking Him to come onto your heart. You can 'believe' that a chair is a chair. You can see it is a chair. You can touch it. But unless you sit down on it, it is not your chair. You can say you 'believe' in God all you want, but unless you put Him on the seat of your heart, He does not belong to you.
Empty
Accepted
Just 'Believe'
Remember what the scriptures say in James 2:19: "the devils also "believe" and tremble"!
Don't be fooled by Satan when he tries to tell you that all you have to do is "believe". No, you must accept. Accept the fact that you are a sinner. Accept the fact that Christ died on the Cross for your sins, and accept Him into your heart in childlike faith.
Now, we go back to our verse, verse 12, my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be." Rewards in the Bible are not always a good thing. In fact, most of the time it is a judgment thing. 2 Peter 2:13 says that unsaved religious people "shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you." These people may go to church with you. They may say they "believe". Just remember, "the devils also believe".
The next part of Verse 12 says that Jesus is going: "to give every man according as his work shall be." God is going to give these "Easy Beliefism" people a fair chance. God has told us all through the Bible that Salvation is ONLY through the Lord Jesus Christ. Acts 4:12 says: "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under Heaven given among men, whereby we MUST be saved." Romans 10:3 states: "For they being ignorant of God's righteousness (Christ Jesus), and going about to establish their own righteousness, have NOT SUBMITTED themselves unto the righteousness of God." Religious people today do not want to submit to the fact that Jesus is the ONLY Way to Heaven. They also want to add their 'good works' into their equation. This is what Jesus says about people who try to get to Heaven by their 'good works': "MANY will say to me (Jesus) in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name? and in Thy name have cast out devils? and in Thy name done many wonderful works?" The thing these many people lack is the fact that Jesus is the Only Way to Heaven. Not Jesus mixed with 'good works'. Isaiah 64:6 states that "we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags". The very best we can do is like a "filthy rag" in the sight of a Holy God.
Jesus tells us Himself what the reward will be for these types of people in Matthew 7:23: "And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity".
Don't be fooled by 'Easy Beliefism'. Make sure that you have truly accepted Christ into your heart. Make sure Christ is your Saviour and not just a mere form of religion. Jesus warns us that we are running out of time. He warns us again, in this verse, "behold, I come quickly". Will you be rewarded with a home in Paradise because you asked Christ to be your Saviour, or will you be rewarded by your 'good works' that God has said over and over in His word that our works will never be good enough? Are you going to let Jesus cleanse your sins or are you going to try to cleanse them yourself?
Jesus says: "repent ye, and believe the gospel" (Mark 1:15) and "except ye repent, ye shall likewise perish".
"I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last."
This is the Lord Jesus speaking in this verse. He declares that He is: "Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last". Jesus is clearly revealing that He is the "Alpha" over all. Alpha is used to describe the most dominant. Just like an alpha lion, Jesus is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah which we studied in Revelation 4:7. Alpha also represents 'alpha radiation'. Jesus is the "Alpha" of lights. His Light shines all over the world. His Light has been placed into the heart of every single person born (John 1:9). Christ's Light will never go out. Christ Jesus will shine radiantly throughout the universe for all eternity.
A
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"Omega" means an uncountable number. Jesus' time is uncountable. He has always been (John 1:2) and He will always be throughout eternity ... uncountable, never ending, forever and ever.
When Jesus refers to Himself as "The Alpha and Omega", this statement covers the entire universe ... Heaven, Earth, Solar Systems, Milky Ways, etc. Jesus also refers to Himself as "The Beginning and The End". Jesus is declaring that He was here when He created our heaven and our earth (John 1:2) and He tells us that He will be the "Last" One standing! He will destroy Satan and put an "End" to all evil.
"First" means that Jesus precedes all others in importance. Remember throughout our study that Satan has tried to become "First". Satan's last effort was his 'Antichrist'. Christ conquers the Antichrist. Jesus Christ, the Son of Almighty God, is the "First".
"Last" means to continue in time. Our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, will continue throughout eternity. His throne is established forever and ever.
"Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city."
In Verse 7 of this Chapter (22), we read: "blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book". "Blessed" means God bestows upon us many blessings ... gifts of different sorts. This verse says "Blessed are they that do His commandments". We already know that Salvation is through the shed blood of Christ and not through keeping the Ten Commandments. This verse is written for the very End Time when we are already living with Christ. We will already be on the New Earth walking the streets of gold in New Jerusalem. God will have already shown us His Temple. He will have already shown us the "pure river of water of life" (Verse 1 of Chapter 22). Now the Lord is telling us that there are still more blessings to come, especially to those "that do His commandments". The first commandment of God is found in Mark 12:30: "And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment".
When we mediate on our Saviour today. When we think how He left His perfect home in Heaven to come down to us. When we read about how He was treated down here at our home ... He was lied about. He was made fun of. People spit on our precious Saviour. They tore most of His beard off His face. They beat Him up. They took Him to court and threw Him in jail. All His friends left Him. They tore the skin off of His bones. His skull was torn open. They drove nails, like railroad stakes, through His hands and feet. He hung on the Cross for six hours while people mocked at Him. And He couldn't even have a drink of water. But the part of Jesus' body that took the most injury was His heart. Jesus' heart was broken for us. He let people do this to Him so He could let us enter into His streets of gold. So we could relax beside "a pure river of water of life". And when we mediate on these truths, how can we not keep this first required commandment of God: "And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with ALL thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength"? (Mark 12:30).
The Lord says here "that they (saved) may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city". After everything we have done to our Saviour, and after all the things which we have not done for our Saviour, He still says that we may enjoy His fruits of the "tree of life". He tells us that we may walk down His street of gold. He will let us go through the beautiful pearly gates adorned with precious gems. And He will invite us into His Holy Temple and will motion to us with His nail scared hand, to "Come and Dine" at His table.
"For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie."
The first two words of this verse says: "For without". This indicates everything that is outside of the New Heaven and the New Earth. The only place that is outside of God's realm is the "Lake of Fire". God will be throwing Satan, the False Prophet, the Antichrist "And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the Lake of Fire" (Revelation 20:15).
The Lord gives a list of those in the "Lake of Fire":
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Dogs = The word "dogs" was a term used to mark someone as impure and unacceptable. The Lord applies this to those who did not want to accept Him as their Saviour so He cannot accept them into His New Earth.
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Sorcerers = Are people who practice sorcery, witchcraft, etc., using the assistance of evil spirits.
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Whoremongers = Are people who care more about sexual pleasures than they do the Lord.
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Murderers = People who murder anyone. To Hate someone is just like murder according to the Bible.
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Idolaters = Are those who adore, worship, and even make idols and statues for worship. (Exodus 20:2-5 KJV). An idol can also be anything that has preeminence over God.
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A lie = People who lie, even 'little white lies'. This verse also includes those who love lying just because they think they can get away with it, those who lie for profit and gains, and those who are just afraid to admit the truth.
God gave another list like this in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10: "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God."
God also reminds us in 1 Corinthians 6:11 that: "Such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of God."
The only reason why we will be living in "Paradise" with God is because we "are washed", we "are sanctified", and we "are justified". We "are washed" by the Blood of our Saviour. We "are sanctified" by Christ living in our heart, and this creates justification = just as if we never sinned = "are justified" in the eyes of our Holy God. When God Almighty looks at us who are saved, He sins no sin. He sees the blood of His Son, with His Son sitting on our heart, making us pure and clean for His Father. We were included in the lists above, but Jesus says "But ye are washed, and ye are sanctified, and ye are justified". Jesus Christ is the only reason why we will be allowed to walk His streets of gold.
"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). This is what the Lord has been telling us from Genesis to the end of Revelation. We were never saved by our own good works. We are never saved under anyone else's name. No one else can cover our sins. Salvation is only by name of Jesus. And this verse declares "we must be saved". None of this 'just believe' stuff. It is realizing our own sinfulness, confessing our sin to Christ, and ASKING HIM into our hearts. You don't ask, you don't have.
The Lord has just revealed to us in Revelation 22:15 about those that are "without". The reason why the Lord is revealing this fact to us is because He has a job for us to do. You are now equipped with the knowledge of Heaven and Hell. You have studied the facts poured out in the Book of Revelation. Someday soon, we will all be standing, in space, in front of the Lord Jesus. The Lord will have the saved people on one side and the unsaved on the other. We will see each other. We will watch as God separates people. "And before Him shall be gathered all nations: and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth His sheep from the goats" (Matthew 25:32).
There will be nations and nations of people. There will be business people. There will be doctors. There will be the rich and poor alike. There will be families. There will be loved ones. Everyone will be there. No one is excluded. God will be sitting on His throne and will command His angels ... 'Move that one over there' ... 'Put that one there'. And God will separate all the people. He will separate the unsaved people from the saved. We will be looking at each other. We will be looking at the people who are not in our group. Children will be crying for their parents. Parents will be crying for their children. Husbands for their wives and wives crying for their husbands.
Matthew 25:33 continues: "And He (God) shall set the sheep (saved) on His right hand, but the goats on the left." Verse 34 says: "Then shall the King (the Lord) say unto them on His right hand (saved), Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world".
The group that is not told by the Lord to "Come, ... inherit the kingdom" will be confused. Remember, this is the group in Matthew 7:22: "MANY will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?" These people will have been deceived into thinking that they we 'good' people'. They will be crying out to God ... 'but we gave, we sacrificed, we went to church, we were baptized, we helped others" "we're nice". Notice the word 'we'. Never once was it Jesus forgave me.
As we of the saved group stand there, we will hear these pleas and see the bitter crying of the other group of people. The Lord says unto them: "I never knew you.' (Matthew 7:23). Matthew 25:41 continues: "Then shall He (God) say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels". "And these shall go away into everlasting punishment; but the righteous into life eternal" (Matthew 25:46).
Those of us who are saved will be watching as these people are pulled and dragged away to be "cast into the Lake of Fire" "And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the Lake of Fire" (Revelation 20:15). We will stand there helplessly as we watch our loved ones, neighbors, work buddies, and even strangers be lifted up by God's mighty angels and "cast into the Lake of Fire". They will be "cast". That means thrown. People will not be going willingly. They may even try to cling onto the angel's robe. It will be a fight. Did we really try hard enough to warn people when they were around us in our daily lives on earth??? What about those we love most ???
All of us have loved ones. We need to pray harder. We need to read our Bibles more thoroughly. And we need to reach as many people we can with the gospel. Our families are usually the hardest to reach but we have to keep on trying and praying. Pray that God will send people to our loved ones to tell them about Heaven and Hell "For the time is at hand" (Revelation 1:3).
Sure, it's nice to learn about Heaven. There are happy verses about the New Heaven and the New Earth; however, the urgency is upon guiding people to Christ. Taking someone's hand and put it into Christ's hand so He can lift them out of the bondage of Satan's grip. Revelation has more warnings about Satan and Hell then it has about Heaven and Paradise. When Jesus walked on the earth, He warned more about Hell than any other subject. This is because it is very serious. Take a look at any person when you are in a store. Picture in your mind that person being "cast into the Lake of Fire". Picture yourself standing in the group watching that person being thrown down into "the Lake of Fire". Now, what are you going to do about it? Are you too busy to care? Too embarrassed of the Saviour? It may be too late if you wait. The choice is yours. God gave us a job to do: Proverbs 11:30 says: "that he that winneth souls is wise". That means sharing the gospel so others can have a chance to go to Heaven.
Here is one of the easiest ways to share Christ with someone ... Uneed2no.com. All you have to do is share this website and it will point them clearly to our Saviour. Maybe someday, someone that was headed to the wrong group, will walk over to you in the right group and thank you for giving them the website to check out so they could be saved, too. (Praying that satanic forces won't take the website down It's a great tool.)
"If thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand" (Ezekiel 33:8b).
"I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and offspring of David, and the bright and morning star."
This verse starts with the two most beautiful names ever: "I JESUS". In Exodus 3:14, God introduces Himself as the great "I AM". "I AM" means that He is always with us. The name of JESUS is His personal name. The Lord JESUS wants us to know that He is the Great I AM and that He wants to have a personal relationship with us. He wants us to be close to Him. He wants us so close that He died for us. He rose from the grave to be able to bring us to His home. He wants us to be His. "Hereby perceive we the love of God, because He laid down His life for us" (1 John 3:16) and we all should know John 3:16.
If we could grasp this deep down into our hearts, we would walk closer to our Saviour. He left His beautiful home. He was treated badly here at our earthly home. He was physically attacked, yet He never complained. Then He gave Himself to the Cross which bore our sins. Our sins. He died but He arose! Then He went back into Heaven as He prepares for us a new home. He is building us a paradise. Then He is going to welcome us with gifts. He is going to serve us a banquet. He is going to walk the streets of gold in His nailed scared feet and let us walk beside Him. He is going to hold our hand in His nail scared hand. "Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow" (Philippians 2:9-10). That's JESUS!
JESUS even took extra measures to make sure we understand these things. He has sent His "angel to testify unto you these things". God sent His own personal angel to us. Jesus' personal angel, that He sent to us, also has a name. His name is the "Spirit of Truth": JESUS told us this in John 16:13-15: "Howbeit when He, the Spirit of Truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will shew you things to come. He shall glorify Me: for He shall receive of Mine, and shall shew it unto you. All things that the Father hath are Mine: therefore said I, that He shall take of Mine, and shall shew it unto you."
JESUS also says that His angel will "testify unto you these things in the churches". JESUS' personal angel, the Holy Spirit of God, has and will continue to testify about all things concerning JESUS in all the churches. "Churches" applies both to the Seven Church Ages, that we studied in Revelation, Chapters 2 & 3, and the brick and mortar churches we have today. We are living in the Laodicea Church Age. It is the final church age (refer back to Revelation 3). We are "lukewarm" and not on fire for the Lord like we should be. Revelation 3:16, JESUS said: "So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth". Understandingly so. Most of today's churches don't even use the King James Bible. Those that due are afraid to preach on sin ... "Making the word of God of none effect" (Mark 7:13).
How many churches can you find today that use the King James Bible, the most powerful Bible in America? How many churches have the congregation stand in respect to God's Word when it is read? How many people go to the Altar of Prayer to get closer to the Lord? We are definitely in the Laodicea Age. LaodICEa even has the word ICE in it to describe us. Cold for the Lord JESUS. But JESUS still has His person angel here for us. Ask JESUS to have His angel melt our ice and let's live for JESUS.
The Lord JESUS goes on in this verse to say: "I AM the root".