4.) Revelation Revealed

From the time that Jesus ascended back into heaven until He comes again, His office work has been and will continue to be centered in the heavenly sanctuary, and all the mysteries of that work are revealed in the book of Revelation. Both the important events that have and will happen in heaven, as well as the corresponding events upon earth, are recorded there. It is a book that is chronicled for God’s people through the ages since Jesus’ ministry on earth ended and His ministry in heaven began. However, there are some vital things to understand about the book of Revelation. First, it is written in code language. Just as earthly armies send important messages in code language to prevent the enemy from finding out their plan of attack, so Jesus has written His messages to His church in spiritual language that only those who are in communion with Him can fully comprehend. Therefore it is vital for us to put our minds and hearts to the stretch, for the instruction found in this book will guide us safely until He comes.

“In the Revelation are portrayed the deep things of God. . . .The Lord Himself revealed to His servant the mysteries contained in this book, and He designs that they shall be open to the study of all. Its truths are addressed to those living in the last days of this earth’s history, as well as to those living in the days of John. Some of the scenes depicted in this prophecy are in the past, some are now taking place; some bring to view the close of the great conflict between the powers of darkness and the Prince of heaven. . . .

“Let none think, because they cannot explain the meaning of every symbol in the Revelation, that it is useless for them to search this book in an effort to know the meaning of the truth it contains. The One who revealed these mysteries to John will give to the diligent searcher for truth a foretaste of heavenly things. Those whose hearts are open to the reception of truth will be enabled to understand its teachings, and will be granted the blessing promised to those who ‘hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein.’

“In the Revelation all the books of the Bible meet and end.” AA 584, 585.

Since Revelation spans the entire history of mankind from the ascension of Jesus until the restored new earth, we must see it as a story unfolding for each generation, and that the instructions and prophecies given will be understood best by those who recognize that they are ones to whom Jesus is referring. For example, the message to the church of Ephesus is specifically tailored to the strengths and weaknesses which Jesus saw in the first church in the Christian era, and their favor in His sight would be conditional upon their recognition and acceptance of His counsel. Likewise, the encouragement given to the church of Smyrna gave them the courage to endure persecution and even martyrdom for the sake of their Lord, who had endured the same in their behalf. So we can see that it is absolutely vital to understand where we fit into the timeline of the Revelation prophecies, for the counsel given by Jesus is specific to our needs!

Imagine what the consequences would have been if the forefathers of our church had not recognized themselves in Revelation 10:9-11! After the terrible disappointment, they found comfort and hope as they read about the little book that was sweet as honey in their mouths, but bitter in their stomachs. They received courage to go on with the message of the soon coming of Jesus, and “prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.” Rev. 10:11, KJV.

Now fast-forward to our day and time. Could it be that our generation is pinpointed in the prophecies of Revelation? Those who first preached the message of the soon coming of Jesus are asleep, waiting for the call of the lifegiver. It is up to us to “prophecy again” the message of His imminent return. For years—even generations, we have seen ourselves in the holding pattern of Revelation 7:1-4:

“After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent the wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree. Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land or the sea: ‘Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.’ Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.”

Have you noticed in the last few years—even months—that there is a definite shift for the worse in the tragedies that are coming upon the earth and its inhabitants? Very few people today would say that things in the world are better, or even status quo. There is a cry going up around the world that we are headed for disaster, and no one knows what to do to stop the proliferating problems in society and the economy of the nations. Where in Revelation do we find a prophecy of a shift which would match the feeling of danger and imminent doom that is spreading around the world today? Turn with me to Revelation 8:13-9:4, NKJV:

“And I looked, and I heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, ‘Woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpets of the three angels who are about to sound!’

“Then the fifth angel sounded: And I saw a star fallen from heaven to the earth. To him was given the key to the bottomless pit. And he opened the bottomless pit, and smoke arose out of the pit like the smoke of a great furnace. . . .Then out of the smoke locusts came upon the earth. And to them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. They were commanded not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing, or any tree, but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.”

It is interesting to note that this is the first time since Revelation 7 that the seal of God has been mentioned, but this time the seal has been, or is in the process of being, placed upon the foreheads of God’s people. Hence the announcement by the angel that God will now allow trouble to come upon the earth.

For those who have not yet read my two companion books, COUNTDOWN: 7 Trumpets for Today, and The Seal of God – the Sign of God’s Approval, I will give a brief synopsis of the present application of the 7 trumpets of Revelation, as espoused in my books:

1. The fall of the NY towers – September, 2001

2. Natural disasters of the 2004 tsunami, 2005 Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, etc.

3. Fall of the economy – September, 2008

4. Development of papal power – May/June 2012-September, 2015

5. Moslem terrorism, escalating war – Current

6. Major world war; close of probation; plagues; Armageddon – Future

7. Jesus comes!

As you can see, the signs all tell us that we are now in the 1st woe, or the 5th trumpet. How did I come to this conclusion? In brief, I had asked God years ago to explain the trumpets to me in the light of Ellen White’s comments:

“Each of the ancient prophets spoke less of their own time than for ours so that their prophesying is in force for us. The Bible has accumulated and bound up its treasures for the last generation. All the great events and solemn transactions of Old Testament history have been, and are, repeating themselves in these last days.” 3 SM 338, 339.

“In the great final conflict, Satan will employ the same policy, manifest the same spirit, and work for the same end, as in all preceding ages. That which has been will be, except that the coming struggle will be marked with a terrible intensity such as the world has never witnessed.” GC 11.

When I asked for light on these topics, God impressed me, “You will know when it happens.” As the years went by, I nearly forgot about my request—until 9/11! In a few short months God opened the scriptures to me and impressed me with this outline. Since then I, and a few close friends, have watched the countdown. We observed, as have others, that these momentous events have been approximately 3 ½ years apart. The 4th trumpet ended when the Pope visited America in September of 2015. And now we are seeing events around the world matching the description in the 5th trumpet. And we have only begun as I write this article, March 25, 2016. What will the next months and years bring us? Escalating war and violence, terrorism, economic problems of growing proportions—all things that will bring about the fulfillment of the prophecy, “Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth.” Luke 21:26.

But what about God’s people—His called, chosen and faithful ones (Rev. 17:14) who are following Him in His closing work in the heavenly sanctuary? I can only tell you of the experiences we are going through here and in other places where we have contact with friends. We have become more aware of demonic pressure upon us in areas where we have had previous victory. Our conclusion is that the opening of the abyss which God is permitting, is allowing demons to come back who have had limited access to us because of our faith relationship with Jesus, are now being allowed to come back for one final test, before being shut out from us forever. Why are they being allowed to tempt or harass us again? Because the memories are still in the brain, and have not been yet blotted out. As a result, we are crying out to God for the final and full deliverance, cleansing, and blotting out of memories of sinful thoughts and practices, and the infilling of the latter rain. And God is answering! What rejoicing in our ranks!

Free at last from memories of what demons have done to enslave us or torture our minds and bodies! And all through the power of Jesus and His cleansing blood—the final at-one-ment that He has promised.

I have come to believe that the seal of God is actually the sealing of the Holy Spirit in the areas of our brain where Satan once had access to tempt and harass us. Please read the chapter called “The Shaking,” in EW pp. 269-271. This is clearly what we are experiencing now. And it is available for everyone who is willing to go through whatever it takes to be close to Jesus. His presence is worth anything we have to let go of in this world! Now the quote from 4 BC 1178 makes more sense:

“Are our supplications ascending to God in living faith? Are we opening the door of the heart to Jesus and closing every door to Satan? . . .Are we emptying our hearts of all selfishness, and cleansing them, preparatory to receiving the latter rain from heaven? Now is the time when we are to confess and forsake our sins, that they may go beforehand to judgment, and be blotted out.”

It is interesting to note that during the ministration of the High Priest in the Most Holy Place, the veil between it and the Holy Place was drawn aside (1 BC 776). It seems to me that this action might symbolize the removal of the veil between our conscious minds and our hidden memories where our roots of sin began, and the resulting influence of the evil one and our susceptibility to his temptations. Jesus can now give us the information that we need to cooperate with Him fully as He heals and cleanses us of the roots that gives Satan entrance to our lives.

“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.” Heb. 12:14, 15.

“The tops have been cut down, but the roots have never been eradicated, and they still bear their unholy fruit to poison fruit to poison the judgment, pervert the perceptions, and blind the understanding. . . .When, by thorough confession you destroy the root of bitterness, you will see light in God’s light. Without this thorough work you will never clear your souls.” LS 326.

“Before that time [Jesus’ 2nd coming] everything that is imperfect will have been seen and put away.” 3 SM 427.

“If the eye is fixed on Christ, the work of the Spirit ceases not until the soul is conformed to His image.” DA 302.

“Christ . . . was to bear the penalty of the transgression of the law of God. . . .not to give men liberty to continue in sin, but to take away their inclination to sin, that they might not desire to transgress.” YI 4/6/1899.

You see, the latter rain cannot fall until the cleansing and blotting out of sin has taken place. Doesn’t that make sense? You can’t have Jesus and Beelzebub too! But then, what true Christian would want to keep a divided heart? When Solomon finished the magnificent temple that he made to house God’s glory, “The priests then brought the ark of the covenant to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place, and put it beneath the wings of the cherubim. The cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark and overshadowed the ark. . . .There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites after they came out of Egypt.” 1 Kings 8:6-11.

Notice that there was nothing in the ark but the tablets of the 10 commandments. This is the condition God wants for His cleansed people!

“For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said, ‘I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God and they will be my people.’ ‘Therefore come out from them and be separate,’ Says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.’ ‘I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters,’ says the Lord Almighty.

“Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.” 2 Cor. 6:16-7:1.

This is the cleansing which is available to every person who is willing to walk humbly with God and allow Him to work in their hearts by the Holy Spirit. This is why the new covenant promise says:

“This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” Heb. 8:10-12.

Brothers and sisters, this is the day of the new covenant fulfillment. The door of mercy will be open only a little longer. Please come into the ark under the angels’ wings while there is still time! The door is still open! Will you come now and follow Jesus all the way into the sanctuary—the hiding place where we can dwell safely through the time of trouble (Ps. 91)? The decision is up to you!