The will from heaven is displayed on the earth. The testimony of the mighty angel and he two witnesses. The earth will be under allusions as to Who they are rejecting.
Revelation 10: The Angel and the Little Scroll
1 Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, with a rainbow over his head, and his face was like the sun, and his legs like pillars of fire.
2 He had a little scroll open in his hand. And he set his right foot on the sea, and his left foot on the land,
3 and called out with a loud voice, like a lion roaring. When he called out, the seven thunders sounded.
4 And when the seven thunders had sounded, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven saying, "Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and do not write it down."
5 And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven
6 and swore by him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and what is in it, the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it, that there would be no more delay,
7 but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.
8 Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me again, saying, "Go, take the scroll that is open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land."
9 So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll. And he said to me, "Take and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey."
10 And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it. It was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter.
11 And I was told, "You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and languages and kings."
Revelation 11: The Two Witnesses
1 Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, "Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there,
2 but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.
3 And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth."
4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth.
5 And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed.
6 They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire.
7 And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them,
8 and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified.
9 For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb,
10 and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth.
11 But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them.
12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here!" And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them.
13 And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.
14 The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is soon to come.
The Seventh Trumpet
15 Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever."
16 And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God,
17 saying, "We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was, for you have taken your great power and begun to reign.
18 The nations raged, but your wrath came, and the time for the dead to be judged, and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints, and those who fear your name, both small and great, and for destroying the destroyers of the earth."
19 Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.
Things to think about…
1. Who do you think of the mighty angel is in Rev 10? He has a rainbow over his head, legs like pillars of fire, a scroll and a loud voice like a lion roaring, Rev 10:1-3. Is this Christ? I don’t believe so. This is a very powerful angel. Remember a powerful angel took the scroll from the lamb in chap 5. This could be the same angel. He is a representative of the Lamb and as such swears by Him who lives forever, vs 6. This picture is also representative of the angel that gave Ezekiel a scroll to eat, Ezek 2:9, 10.
2. It is interesting to note in Rev 10:7 which says “but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets”. The prophets could easily refer to Daniel, Ezekiel, Isaiah and Zechariah who all prophesied about this period in history. The mystery could be more than the revelling of the antichrist and the time of the covenant being broken with the Jews by the antichrist. The mystery may well be regarding the return of Christ and the setting up of His Millennial temple (Ezek 47,48) and kingdom Isa 65:17-25, 66:12, Zech 14.
3. John eats the scroll. It is sweet to the taste but bitter in the stomach Rev 10:10. The angel tells him he must prophesy to peoples, nations, languages and kings. John certainly does this – not only after Patmos as an old man, but mainly through this letter. The word of God is sweet for the Christian, but it contains some hard truths and often requires us to do things that ‘turn our stomach’. But the promise is that the Lord will never leave us nor forsake us. His Spirit allows us to remain faithful with His word.
4. John was given a measuring staff and told to measure the temple, Rev 11:1. But at this point the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed – AD70 and John is writing about AD95. So which temple is he talking about? Or is it a figurative rather than a literal temple. I believe it is a literal temple and I believe the timeframes are literal I.E forty two months and 1260 days. These are the same figures the prophet Daniel quotes, Dan 7:25, 9:27, Dan 12:11 and of course will have great significance at this point in history. Some commentators have thought Daniel’s numbers refer to Christ’s literal ministry on the earth, but John is quoting the same numbers post cross by many years – about 60 years at this point. The temple referred to will be the third temple that the Jews intend building on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. These two witnesses will prophesy for 3 and a half years in Jerusalem, Rev 11:8 – Jesus was crucified in Jerusalem, and this is where these men will also be killed.
5. These two witnesses will perform many signs and wonders on the earth, Rev 11:3-6. These two men have ministries and power similar to those of Moses and Elijah. Satan disputed over the body of Moses and Elijah was taken to heaven in a whirlwind. These prophets were the two who were with Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration with Peter, James and John. They may well be these two witnesses spoken of here. But will be destroyed by Satan, “the beast that rises from the bottomless pit”, Rev 11:7. This will make the earth rejoice for a season, Rev 11:10 – but then these two men will be resurrected after 3 and a half days. This is symbolic of the Lord whom they follow. But even at this point though 7 thousand in Jerusalem will be killed by an earthquake – the rest gave glory to God. Many Jewish people will be saved at this point in history – hallelujah. God’s promises to His people will be fulfilled.
6. Imagine the amazement of seeing these two men stand on their feet after 3 and a half days of being dead. Lazarus was 4 days dead in a tomb and was raised from the dead and of course our lord was 3 days in the tomb and resurrected. The 2 witnesses will testify to the resurrection and the judgement that will swiftly come on the earth after they are taken to heaven. A great earthquake in Jerusalem which will kill 7000 will begin the final period of sorrow and judgement upon the earth.
7. While these events are determined for Israel and Jerusalem there is a global plan that is being fulfilled, Rev 11:15-19. Ultimately the time of judgement will come upon the nations that have set themselves up against the Lord from all history up to this point – small and great will be judged.
Vision Point for cell groups
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
The reading for Sunday came from Jude.
1. Jude got distracted from his initial intent of writing the letter, vs 3. What was his initial intent and what caused him to be distracted and write the letter he did?
2. Discuss what Cain, Balaam and Korah did, vs 11. Why does Jude mention them?
3. Look at the characteristics of false teachers, vss 12, 13 and 16. How does the church defend itself from these individuals having an influence in church leadership?
4. Pray for the Pastor, CBC’s 2 Elders and the Ministry Leaders. Pray for wisdom, grace and discernment and boldness where required.
Prayer Points
1. Continued freedoms to remain in Qld.
2. Pray for testimonies that people will be doing every second week. Please consider when you would like to do yours when the pastor asks you to share yours.
3. Pray for other building projects – café roof, the repair of the house roof.
4. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to remain and increase.
Praise Points.
1. Doug’s testimony and faithfulness in the church
2. New volunteers stepping forward to help out.
3. Sunday’s worship Josh and Ben. Thanks to Tim, iMan and Melissa – technical team working well
4. The unity and grace on display at CBC.
Announcements
1. PlayPatch for toddlers at church, Fridays 9:30-11am. Please get the word out. See Maddison for details.
2. Recharge Youth – 6:30-8:30pm. Parents to contact Melinda for details.
3. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
