THANKS FOR JOINING US
FOR TODAY'S PROGRAM. THE PLAIN-SPOKEN BIBLICAL WISDOM
AND TIMELESS TEACHING OF ADRIAN ROGERS HAS GONE
AROUND THE WORLD, AND HAS BEEN DESCRIBED BY THOUSANDS OF
PEOPLE HE HAS TOUCHED AS “PROFOUND TRUTH; SIMPLY
STATED.” AND TODAY, HE'LL BE BRINGING US A TIMELY MESSAGE
FROM THE BOOK OF REVELATION AS WE CONTINUE OUR SERIES “THE
TRIUMPH OF THE LAMB.” DO YOU ENJOY A GOOD MYSTERY? WHAT
ARE THE ELEMENTS OF A GOOD MYSTERY? THE APOSTLE PAUL
CALLED TODAY'S LESSON “A MYSTERY,” AND ADRIAN ROGERS
SHOWS US WHERE TO GO IN ORDER TO UNRAVEL IT. NOW WE HAVE
A LOT OF SOOTHSAYERS TODAY, PROGNOSTICATORS, WE HAVE A LOT
OF ASTROLOGERS, WE HAVE A LOT OF SO-CALLED PROPHETS, BUT
THEY ARE NOT PROPHETIC, THEY ARE PATHETIC, TRYING TO TELL
US WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN. ALL THE WISEACRES IN THE PENTAGON
PUT TOGETHER, AND ALL OF THE, UH, LAWMAKERS ON CAPITOL
HILL, AND ALL THOSE WHO SIT IN EXECUTIVE OFFICES, AND ALL
THOSE WHO RUN THE BANKING INDUSTRY DON'T HAVE ONE SHRED
OF AN IOTA OF A SCINTILLA OF WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN APART
FROM THE WORD OF GOD.” HAVE YOUR BIBLES OPEN TO THE BOOK
OF REVELATION AND STAY WITH US FOR TODAY'S MESSAGE. AND DON'T
FORGET, YOU CAN LISTEN TO THIS MESSAGE AGAIN AND OTHER
MESSAGES IN THIS SERIES, AND DOWNLOAD PASTOR ROGERS'
OUTLINE, NOTES, AND A TRANSCRIPT OF THIS MESSAGE,
ALL AT LWF.ORG. NOW, LET'S JOIN ADRIAN ROGERS. [MUSIC]
THE SECOND COMING OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST IS CALLED WHAT?
“THE BLESSED HOPE.” BE FINDING REVELATION CHAPTER FOUR. WE'RE
ENTERING INTO THE THIRD GRAND DIVISION. JOHN WAS TOLD TO
WRITE THREE THINGS. “WRITE WHAT YOU'VE SEEN,” AND HE
WROTE WHAT HE SAW, AND THAT WAS A VISION OF CHRIST. AND
THEN HE SAID, “WRITE ABOUT THINGS WHICH ARE,” AND THAT IS
THE CHURCH AGE. BUT THE CHURCH AGE IS GOING TO END WITH
SOMETHING THAT WE CALL, “THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH.” AT THE
MIDNIGHT CRY, AT THE MIDNIGHT CRY JESUS IS GOING TO COME
FOR HIS OWN. THOSE WHO'VE BEEN TWICE-BORN; THOSE WHO ARE
HEAVEN-BORN AT THAT TIME WILL BE HEAVEN-BOUND. NOW OUR EYES
ARE ON THE MIDDLE EAST, AND OUR PRAYERS NEED TO BE THERE
BECAUSE THERE IS A SEETHING CAULDRON THERE OF TROUBLE, AND
ALL OF IT PORTENDS THE SECOND COMING OF THE LORD JESUS
CHRIST, AND YOU NEED TO BE READY, BUT YOU DON'T NEED TO
BE FEARFUL. SORROW LOOKS BACK. WORRY LOOKS ALL AROUND. BUT
HOPE LOOKS UP. THE SECOND COMING OF JESUS CHRIST IS
THE BLESSED HOPE. WHEN JESUS CHRIST COMES AGAIN, THOSE
WHO ARE SAVED AND STILL LIVING WILL BE MIRACULOUSLY
TRANSFORMED, WILL BE GIVEN A GLORIFIED BODY, IMPERVIOUS TO
GRAVITY, WILL BE CAUGHT UP TO MEET THE LORD IN THE AIR. AND
THOSE WHO HAVE ALREADY DIED IN THE LORD, THOSE WHOSE BODIES
SLEEP IN THE EARTH, WHOSE SPIRITS HAVE ALREADY GONE TO
HEAVEN; WILL BE RAISED FROM THEIR SLEEPING PLACE, FROM
THEIR GRAVES, TO MEET THEIR SPIRITS IN THE AIR AND TO BE
JOINED WITH US AND WITH THE LORD IN THE AIR. THE BIBLE
CALLS THAT THE, “BLESSED HOPE.” IT IS THE RAPTURE OF
THE CHURCH, IT IS THE HEAVENLY HOMECOMING. NOW LADIES AND
GENTLEMEN, I WANT TO TELL YOU, WE ARE ON A COLLISION COURSE
WITH DESTINY, AND YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO BE IGNORANT. SO I
WANT YOU TO TAKE YOUR BIBLES NOW AND LOOK IN REVELATION
CHAPTER FOUR. AS I'VE SAID, WE ENTER IN NOW TO THAT, UH,
THIRD DIVISION IN THE, THE GRAND DIVISION IN THE BOOK OF
THE REVELATION, AND EVERYTHING FROM THAT BLUE ARROW GOING
UPWARD ALL THE WAY FORWARD DEALS WITH, “THINGS WHICH
SHALL BE HEREAFTER.” REMEMBER JOHN WAS TOLD TO WRITE,
“THINGS WHICH YOU'VE SEEN”" “THINGS WHICH ARE, AND THINGS
WHICH SHALL BE HEREAFTER.” SO IT'S VERY CLEAR AS WE LOOK IN
VERSE ONE, WE'RE ENTERING INTO THE THIRD DIVISION. “AFTER
THIS I LOOKED AND, BEHOLD, A DOOR WAS OPENED IN HEAVEN AND
THE FIRST VOICE WHICH I HEARD WAS, AS IT WERE, OF A TRUMPET
TALKING WITH ME WHICH SAID”" NOW LISTEN, “'COME UP HITHER
AND I WILL SHOW THEE THINGS WHICH MUST BE HEREAFTER.'” SO
FROM THIS POINT ON, WE ENTER INTO THAT AREA THAT DEALS
WITH THE FUTURE, UH, WITH THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH AND
EVERYTHING THAT WILL TRANSPIRE AFTER THE RAPTURE OF THE
CHURCH. NOW WE'RE GOING TO USE SOME WORDS THAT BEGIN WITH,
“W,” IN ORDER TO HELP US TO UNDERSTAND THE RAPTURE OF THE
CHURCH. THE MIDNIGHT CRY, AND THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH.
FIRST OF ALL, THE W: WHAT, WHAT. WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
IS THE SACRED MYSTERY OF THE RAPTURE. NOW THE BIBLE CALLS
THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH A MYSTERY. NOW A MYSTERY IS NOT
A MYSTERY STORY LIKE YOU MIGHT SEE IN SOME NOVEL, BUT A
MYSTERY IN THE BIBLE IS A TRUTH THAT NO ONE WOULD EVER
FIGURE OUT OF HIS OR HER OWN ACCORD, BUT A TRUTH THAT
HAS BEEN REVEALED BY DIVINE REVELATION AND, UH, GOD HAS
UNLOCKED THE SECRET IN THE WORD OF GOD, AND THE BIBLE
CALLS THAT A MYSTERION OR A MYSTERY. NOW LOOK IN
REVELATION FOUR VERSE ONE, AND WE'RE GOING TO SEE SOMETHING
OF THE RAPTURE. JOHN HEARS A VOICE LIKE A TRUMPET WHICH
SAYS, “'COME UP HITHER AND I WILL SHOW THEE THINGS WHICH
MUST HE, BE HEREAFTER.'” AND JOHN IS CAUGHT UP THROUGH THAT
DOOR IN THE HEAVENS, AND HE FINDS HIMSELF NOW TRANSPORTED
FROM EARTH INTO HEAVEN. THAT, MY FRIEND, IS THE RAPTURE OF
THE CHURCH. PUT IN YOUR MARGIN THE CORRESPONDING NEW
TESTAMENT, UH, VERSE, FIRST THESSALONIANS CHAPTER FOUR,
BEGINNING IN VERSE 13. PAUL SAYS, “BUT I WOULD NOT HAVE
YOU TO BE IGNORANT, BRETHREN, CONCERNING THEM WHICH ARE
ASLEEP.” NOW THE CHURCH AT THESSALONICA WAS IGNORANT OF
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE DEAD WHO DIED BEFORE JESUS CAME, AND
THEY WERE MOURNING. THEY WERE SAYING, “WELL, WE'RE WAITING
FOR JESUS.” AND BY THE WAY, IN THAT DAY THEY WERE WAITING FOR
JESUS TWO THOUSAND YEARS AGO AND RIGHTLY THEY SHOULD
HAVE BEEN, BUT SOME OF THEIR BROTHERS AND SISTERS HAD DIED
AND THEY WERE WONDERING, ARE THEY GOING TO MISS THE COMING
OF THE LORD? AND PAUL SAID, “BUT I WOULD NOT HAVE YOU
TO BE IGNORANT, BRETHREN, CONCERNING THEM WHICH ARE
ASLEEP, THAT YOU SORROW NOT EVEN AS OTHERS WHICH HAVE NO
HOPE.” SOONER OR LATER MOST OF US WILL GO TO THE GRAVESIDE
TO SAY GOOD-BYE TO A LOVED ONE WHO KNOWS THE LORD JESUS
CHRIST, BUT WE DON'T NEED TO BE TEARING OUR HAIR. THANK
GOD, THANK GOD WE HAVE HOPE, AMEN? [AUDIENCE: AMEN] “DON'T
SORROW AS THOSE WHICH HAVE NO HOPE, FOR IF WE BELIEVE THAT
JESUS DIED AND ROSE AGAIN”" AND WE DO, “EVEN SO THEM ALSO
WHICH SLEEP IN JESUS WILL GOD BRING WITH HIM.” NOW WAIT A
MINUTE. THEY'RE ASLEEP IN JESUS, AND GOD'S GONNA BRING
THEM WITH HIM? WHY, OF COURSE. THE BODY IS IN THE GRAVE
SLEEPING, THE SPIRIT IS WITH THE LORD. AND SO WHEN JESUS
COMES AGAIN, THE BODY COMES UP, THE SPIRIT COMES DOWN.
AND SO HE SAYS, “EVEN SO THEM WHICH SLEEP IN JESUS WILL GOD
BRING WITH HIM. FOR THIS WE SAY UNTO YOU BY THE WORD OF
THE LORD, THAT WE WHICH ARE ALIVE AND REMAIN UNTO THE
COMING OF THE LORD,” AND THAT TELLS US THAT PAUL THOUGHT
THAT IT WAS HIGHLY LIKELY, PROBABLE, CERTAINLY FEASIBLE,
THAT JESUS WOULD COME IN HIS LIFETIME, BECAUSE HE USES
THE PERSONAL PRONOUN WE IN THE PLURAL SENSE. “WE WHICH ARE
ALIVE AND REMAIN,” HE THOUGHT PERHAPS IN HIS OWN LIFETIME
JESUS WOULD COME, “SHALL NOT PREVENT OR PRECEDE THEM WHICH
ARE ASLEEP.” NOW HERE'S THE PROMISE OF THE RAPTURE. LISTEN
TO IT, “FOR THE LORD HIMSELF”" NOT SOME EVENT IN HISTORY, EH,
NOT, UH, SOME CATACLYSM, BUT, “THE LORD HIMSELF, THIS
SAME JESUS, SHALL DESCEND FROM HEAVEN WITH A SHOUT AND WITH
THE VOICE OF THE ARCHANGEL AND WITH THE TRUMP OF GOD, AND
THE DEAD IN CHRIST SHALL RISE FIRST, THEN WE WHICH ARE ALIVE
AND REMAIN SHALL BE CAUGHT UP TOGETHER WITH THEM IN THE
CLOUDS TO MEET THE LORD IN THE AIR, AND SO SHALL WE EVER
BE WITH THE LORD. WHEREFORE, COMFORT ONE ANOTHER WITH THESE
WORDS.” IF YOU HAVE A, A LOVED ONE WHO'S IN THE GRAVE, JUST
GIVE THEM COMFORT AND SAY, “WHEN JESUS COMES, WE'RE
GOING TO HAVE A HEAVENLY HOMECOMING.” ONE OF THESE DAYS
JESUS IS GOING TO RISE FROM HIS THRONE IN THE LOFTY
HEAVENS, HE'S GOING TO HEAR THE FATHER SAY TO HIM, “SON,
GO GET YOUR BRIDE,” AND JESUS IS GOING TO COME STEPPING ON
THE CLOUDS. WHEN HE DESCENDS FROM HEAVEN, A SHOUT WILL COME
FROM HIS LIPS, THE TRUMPET WILL SOUND, AND HIS VOICE WILL
ECHO THROUGH THE SUBTERRANEAN TOMBS OF THIS EARTH, AND THOSE
WHO KNOW THE LORD JESUS CHRIST WILL HAVE THEIR EARS TUNED TO
HIM, AND WE WILL BE GLORIFIED AND RISE TO MEET THE LORD.
FROM THE SWELLING BOSOM OF THE SEA, THEY WILL COME. FROM
THE WINDING SHEETS OF DESERT SANDS, THEY WILL COME.
FROM THE BATTLEFIELDS OF THIS WORLD, THEY WILL COME. FROM
COUNTRY GRAVEYARDS, THEY WILL COME. “THE DEAD IN CHRIST
SHALL RISE FIRST, AND WE WHICH REMAIN AND ARE ALIVE WILL BE
CAUGHT UP WITH THEM TO MEET THE LORD IN THE AIR AND SO
SHALL WE EVER BE WITH THE LORD.” NOW, THE WORD THAT IS
USED IS THE WORD CAUGHT UP. UH, WE GET THE WORD RAPTURE
FROM THE LATIN WORD RAPTO WHICH MEANS, “TO SEIZE OR TO
CATCH AWAY, TO BE CAUGHT UP”" UH, THE GREEK WORD HARPAZZO
MEANS THE SAME THING. NOW AGAIN, I CALL IT A MYSTERY.
HERE'S ANOTHER VERSE I WANT YOU TO PUT IN YOUR MARGIN. UH,
FIRST CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 15, BEGINNING IN VERSE 51. PAUL
SAID, “BEHOLD, I SHOW YOU A MYSTERY. WE SHALL NOT
ALL SLEEP,” THAT IS, NOT EVERYBODY'S GONNA DIE
BEFORE JESUS COMES; THERE ARE MILLIONS WHO WILL MISS DEATH.
“WE SHALL NOT ALL SLEEP, BUT WE SHALL ALL BE CHANGED 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.” AGAIN NOW PAUL USES
THE WORD MYSTERY. THE WORD MYSTERY MEANS: “SOMETHING THAT
HAS BEEN HIDDEN BUT IT IS NOW REVEALED.” THE OLD TESTAMENT
PROPHETS SAW THE LORD JESUS CHRIST COMING IN POWER AND
GLORY. THEY SAW MESSIAH, THEY SAW MESSIAH REIGNING AND
RULING, BUT THEY DID NOT SEE THE CHURCH AGE, AND THEY DID
NOT SEE THE RAPTURE. THE ONLY WAY THAT, UH, PEOPLE TODAY
KNOW ABOUT THE RAPTURE IS NOT, UH, BY STUDYING WHAT THE OLD
TESTAMENT PROPHETS HAD TO SAY, BUT WHAT THE NEW TESTAMENT
PROPHETS HAD TO SAY. THIS IS REVEALED TO THE APOSTLE PAUL,
AND HE SAYS, “BEHOLD, I SHOW YOU A MYSTERY.” AND HE
EXPLAINED THE CHURCH AGE. THAT'S WHAT WE SEE RIGHT HERE,
THE THINGS WHICH ARE. THAT IS THAT INTERVAL BETWEEN THE TIME
WHEN JESUS CAME THE FIRST TIME AND WHEN HE IS COMING AGAIN
THE SECOND TIME. NOW WHAT A MIT, UH, WHAT A MAJESTIC AND,
AND MYSTERIOUS THING THAT IS GOING TO BE. UH, IF YOU WERE
TO TAKE SOME METAL, LET'S SAY ALL KINDS OF METAL, TAKE SOME
SILVER AND SOME GOLD AND SOME ZINC AND SOME COPPER AND SOME
IRON, AND SPRINKLE IT ON THE GROUND, BITS OF IT, PUT SOME
OF IT BENEATH THE SURFACE OF THE GROUND, AND IT'S ALL THERE
IN THE GROUND. THEN TAKE ONE OF THESE GIANT ELECTROMAGNETS
AND SWEEP IT OVER THOSE BITS, THOSE PARTICLES OF METAL THERE
IN THE GROUND. UH, SOME OF THE METAL WOULD RISE TO MEET THE
MAGNET. OTHER OF THE METAL WOULD STAY IN THE GROUND. THE
GOLD WOULD STAY IN THE GROUND, THE SILVER WOULD STAY IN THE
GROUND, THE ZEKE WOULD, ZINC WOULD STAY IN THE GROUND, THE
COPPER AND THE BRONZE WOULD STAY IN THE GROUND, BUT THE
IRON WOULD DO WHAT? IT WOULD RISE. NOW WHY WOULD THE IRON
RISE? BECAUSE IT HAS THE SAME NATURE AS THE MAGNET. WHEN
JESUS COMES AGAIN, THOSE WHO ARE HEAVEN-BORN WILL BE
HEAVEN-BOUND. THOSE WHO HAVE THE NATURE OF THE LORD JESUS
CHRIST, “THE DEAD IN CHRIST, WILL RISE FIRST AND WE WHICH
REMAIN AND ARE ALIVE WILL BE CAUGHT UP TO MEET THEM IN
THE AIR.” NOW LET ME SAY THAT THERE IS NOT JUST A, A GENERAL
RESURRECTION; WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THAT IN JUST A
MOMENT. “ADRIAN, DO YOU, YOU WERE COLLEGE EDUCATED,
SEMINARY EDUCATED, DO YOU BELIEVE IN THE RAPTURE?” YES,
YES. WELL, YOU SAY, “DOESN'T THAT SMACK A LITTLE BIT OF
SUPERNATURALISM?” YES INDEED, YES IT DOES. AND, AND YOU SEE,
THAT'S WHAT THE APOSTLE PAUL IS TALKING ABOUT. HE'S
EXPLAINING IT HERE IN FIRST THESSALONIANS CHAPTER FOUR.
LISTEN TO HIS REASON, “FOR IF WE BELIEVE THAT JESUS DIED AND
ROSE AGAIN,” DO YOU BELIEVE THAT? NOW IF YOU BELIEVE THAT
JESUS DIED AND ROSE AGAIN, WHY SHOULD IT BE DIFFICULT FOR YOU
TO BELIEVE IN THE RAPTURE? YOU SEE, “IF WE BELIEVE THAT JESUS
DIED AND ROSE AGAIN, EVEN SO IN LIKE MANNER THEM ALSO WHICH
SLEEP IN JESUS WILL GOD BRING WITH HIM.” SO WHY DO I BELIEVE
IN THE RAPTURE? NUMBER ONE, BECAUSE I BELIEVE THE GOSPEL.
WHAT IS THE GOSPEL? THE DEATH, BURIAL, AND RESURRECTION OF
JESUS CHRIST. YOU SEE, UH, THE, THE RAPTURE IS LINKED
TO THE REDEMPTION. GOD IS NOT FINISHED. IF YOU HAVE CALVARY
WITHOUT THE RAPTURE, IT'S LIKE HAVING EAST WITHOUT WEST,
UP WITHOUT DOWN. IT'S LIKE HAVING, UH, UH, NIGHT WITHOUT
DAY. YOU CANNOT HAVE THE INCARNATION WITHOUT THE
CORONATION. YOU SEE, I BELIEVE IT BECAUSE JESUS HAS ALREADY
GONE THROUGH THAT GRAVE AND COME OUT ON THE OTHER SIDE. I
BELIEVE IT, FRIEND, BECAUSE OF THE GOSPEL. I BELIEVE IT
BECAUSE THE WORD OF, OF THE LORD SAYS IT. UH, I'M NOT HERE
TO EXPLAIN IT AWAY. IT, FOR HE, PAUL SAYS IN VERSE 15,
“FOR THIS WE SAY UNTO YOU BY THE WORD OF THE LORD THAT WE
WHICH ARE ALIVE AND REMAIN UNTO THE COMING OF THE LORD
SHALL NOT PREVENT,” THAT MEANS PRECEDE, “THEM THAT ARE
ASLEEP.” NOW PAUL HAD DIVINE REVELATION. NOW WE HAVE A
LOT OF SOOTHSAYERS TODAY, PROGNOSTICATORS, WE HAVE A LOT
OF ASTROLOGERS, WE HAVE A LOT OF SO-CALLED PROPHETS, BUT
THEY'RE NOT PROPHETIC, THEY'RE PATHETIC [AUDIENCE LAUGHTER]
TRYING TO TELL US WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN. ALL THE WISEACRES
IN THE PENTAGON PUT TOGETHER AND ALL OF THE, UH, UH,
LAWMAKERS ON CAPITOL HILL AND ALL OF THOSE WHO SIT IN
EXECUTIVE OFFICES AND ALL OF THOSE WHO RUN THE BANKING
INDUSTRY DON'T HAVE ONE SHRED OF AN IOTA OF A SCINTILLA OF
WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN APART FROM THE WORD OF GOD.
[AUDIENCE: AMEN] THAT'S IT, THAT'S IT. “THIS WE SAY UNTO
YOU BY THE WORD OF THE LORD”" NOW, THAT'S THE, THAT'S
THE: WHAT. IT IS THE SACRED MYSTERY. LET'S MOVE TO THE
SECOND ONE. NOT ONLY THE WHAT, BUT THE: WHO: THE SELECT
MULTITUDE OF THE RAPTURE. NOT EVERYBODY IS GOING TO GO UP.
LOOK IF YOU WILL NOW IN VERSE FOUR, “AND ROUND ABOUT THE
THRONE WERE FOUR AND TWENTY SEATS.” ACTUALLY THAT WORD IS
THE WORD FOR THRONES, FOUR AND TWENTY THRONES, “AND UPON THE
THRONES I SAW FOUR AND TWENTY ELDERS SITTING CLOTHED IN
WHITE RAIMENT AND THEY HAD ON THEIR HEADS CROWNS OF GOLD”"
NOW WHO ARE THESE? THESE ARE THE DEAD IN CHRIST AND THOSE
WHO HAVE BEEN TRANSFORMED. PAUL SEES THEM AS TWENTY-FOUR
ELDERS. NOW, UH, WHY ARE THEY CALLED, “TWENTY-FOUR ELDERS”"
WELL, WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THAT A LITTLE BIT. UH,
YOU REMEMBER THAT, UH, TWELVE IS GOD'S GOVERNMENTAL NUMBER,
FOUR, FOUR IS THE EARTH NUMBER, AND THREE IS THE
DIVINE NUMBER. THREE TIMES FOUR IS TWELVE, BUT, UH, HERE
WE HAVE TWICE TWELVE, WHICH IS TWENTY-FOUR AND, AND WHY ARE
THEY CALLED ELDERS? UH, THESE ARE NOT, UH, ANGELS, SOME
PEOPLE MIGHT THINK THAT THEY'RE ANGELS, BUT THEY ARE
NOT ANGELS. UH, LET ME TELL YOU THAT, WHY, I, I TELL YOU
THAT THEY ARE NOT, EH, ANGELS. LOOK IN REVELATION FIVE VERSE
11, “AND I BEHELD AND I HEARD THE VOICE OF MANY ANGELS
ROUND ABOUT THE THRONE AND THE BEASTS AND THE ELDERS.” SO
YOU GOT ANGELS, BEASTS, AND ELDERS. WELL, SO WE KNOW THESE
ELDERS ARE NOT THE BEASTS, ACTUALLY THE ZOON, OR THE
LIVING CREATURES. UH, AND THEY'RE NOT ANGELS. SO, UH,
WELL, YOU SAY, “MAYBE THEY'RE JUST SOME KIND OF SYMBOL”"
NO, THEY'RE NOT, THEY'RE NOT SYMBOLS BECAUSE THEY TALK
ONE WITH ANOTHER. LOOK IN REVELATION FIVE AND VERSE
FIVE, “AND ONE OF THE ELDERS SAITH UNTO ME, 'WEEP NOT,
BEHOLD THE LION OF THE TRIBE OF JUDAH.'” THESE ARE NOT, AH,
INANIMATE, AH, SYMBOLS, THESE TALK, AND THEY'RE NOT ANGELS.
NOW, THEY'RE ELDERS. WHAT ARE ELDERS? ELDERS ARE
REPRESENTATIVES OF GOD'S PEOPLE. UH, I'M AN ELDER
OF THE CHURCH; I REPRESENT BELLEVUE BAPTIST CHURCH,
BUT I'M NOT BELLEVUE BAPTIST CHURCH, I REPRESENT, UH,
BELLEVUE BAPTIST CHURCH. THERE'RE TWENTY-FOUR ELDERS.
WHY TWENTY-FOUR? WELL AGAIN, TWELVE IS GOD'S GOVERNMENTAL
NUMBER, FOUR THE EARTH NUMBER, THREE THE DIVINE NUMBER, THE
RULE OF GOD ON EARTH, AND, UH, YET NOW WE SEE THIS SCENE
IN HEAVEN, THESE WHO'VE BEEN TAKEN FROM EARTH INTO HEAVEN.
IF YOU'LL STUDY THE BOOK OF THE REVELATION, YOU WILL FIND
OUT THAT, UH, THERE'RE TWELVE GATES IN THE CITY, THE NEW
CITY, THE NEW JERUSALEM, UP, THE PLACE THAT WE CALLED
HEAVEN OR GLORY. AND EACH OF THOSE TWELVE GATES HAVE THE
NAMES OF ONE OF THE TWELVE TRIBES OF ISRAEL, THE TWELVE
PATRIARCHS, THE TWELVE FATHER RULERS. YOU'LL ALSO NOTICE
THAT THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE CITY HAVE THE NAMES OF THE
TWELVE APOSTLES OF THE LAND. TWELVE PATRIARCHS AND TWELVE
APOSTLES; PUT THEM TOGETHER, THEY MAKE TWENTY-FOUR. THE
TWELVE PATRIARCHS: ALL THE OLD TESTAMENT SAINTS. WE'RE GONNA
MEET ABRAHAM, JACOB, ISAAC IN THE KINGDOM. AND THE TWELVE
APOSTLES; WE'RE GONNA MEET, PETER, PAUL, JOHN, AND ALL OF
THESE IN THE GLORY. PUT THEM TOGETHER, THEY'RE ELDERS, THEY
REPRESENT ALL OF US. FRIEND, THESE TWENTY-FOUR ELDERS
REPRESENT YOU. YOU'RE GOING TO BE THERE, THANK GOD, IN THAT
GLORY. NOTICE HOW THEY ARE DESCRIBED. THEY'RE CLOTHED IN
WHITE. UH, YOU, YOU SEE, SEE THEM HERE, “CLOTHED IN WHITE
RAIMENT?” LOOK IN VERSE FOUR, WHAT DOES WHITE RAIMENT
REPRESENT? WELL, WHITE RAIMENT REPRESENTS THE RIGHTEOUSNESS
THAT WE HAVE, UH, IN CHRIST AND BECAUSE OF CHRIST. NOW,
THE BEST INTERPRETATION OF MANY OF THESE SYMBOLS IS IN
THE BIBLE ITSELF, REVELATION 19 VERSE EIGHT, “AND TO HER”"
THE CHURCH, “WAS GRANTED THAT SHE SHOULD BE ARRAYED IN FINE
LINEN CLEAN AND WHITE, FOR THE FINE LINEN IS THE
RIGHTEOUSNESS OF SAINTS.” SO WE KNOW RIGHT AWAY THAT THESE
WHO ARE DRESSED IN WHITE ARE SAINTS. AND, UH, UH, THEY
HAVE, UH, CROWNS UPON THEIR HEAD. ISN'T THAT WHAT IT SAYS
HERE IN, UH, VERSE, UH, FOUR? THEY HAVE, UH, ON THEIR HEADS
CROWNS OF GOLD, DIADEMS. WELL, HOW DID THEY GET THE CROWNS?
WELL, THEY GOT THEIR CROWNS AT THE JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST.
YOU SEE, THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH TAKES PLACE, AND THEN
YOU HAVE THE JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST. NOW, THAT'S THE WAY I
KNOW THAT THE RAPTURE TAKES PLACE RIGHT HERE, BECAUSE OVER
HERE NOBODY'S GOING TO HAVE CROWNS OF GOLD. WE DON'T GET
OUR CROWNS UNTIL WE GO TO THE JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST.
AND HERE ARE THESE, WE KNOW THEY'RE SAINTS, THEY'RE NOT
ANGELS, THEY'RE DRESSED IN WHITE, AND THEY'RE WEARING
CROWNS UPON THEIR HEAD WHICH MEANS THAT THEY HAVE BEEN TO
THE JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST, AND SO WHAT WE SEE IS A SELECT
MULTITUDE OF THOSE WHO ARE IN HEAVEN. NOT EVERYBODY'S
GOING TO BE THERE. PUT IN YOUR MARGIN LUKE CHAPTER 17 VERSES
34 AND FOLLOWING. JESUS SAID, “'I TELL YOU IN THAT NIGHT,”"
HE'S TALKING NOW ABOUT THE MIDNIGHT CRY, “'IN THAT NIGHT
THERE SHALL BE TWO MEN IN ONE BED. THE ONE SHALL BE TAKEN
AND THE OTHER SHALL BE LEFT. TWO WOMEN SHOULD BE GRINDING
TOGETHER,'” THAT IS, AT THE MILL. “'THE ONE SHALL BE TAKEN
AND THE OTHER LEFT. TWO MEN SHALL BE IN THE FIELD. THE ONE
SHALL BE TAKEN AND THE OTHER LEFT.' AND THEY ANSWERED AND
SAID UNTO HIM, 'WHERE, LORD?' AND HE SAID UNTO THEM,
'WHERESOEVER THE BODY IS, THITHER WILL THE EAGLES BE
GATHERED TOGETHER.'” IF YOU SEE THE EAGLES, UH, CIRCLING
OVER A PIECE OF CARRION ON THE GROUND, YOU KNOW THAT BECAUSE
THE CARRION IS ON THE GROUND THE EAGLES ARE CIRCLING AROUND
THERE. WHAT HE IS SAYING IS THIS, THAT JUST AS THE EAGLES
WILL COME TO THAT CARRION, JUST AS A THIEF WILL COME TO
STEAL AWAY, JESUS CHRIST IS COMING AND WHERE JESUS IS,
WE ARE GOING TO BE GATHERED TOGETHER, WE'RE GOING TO BE
CAUGHT UP TO MEET THE LORD IN THE AIR. TWO IN ONE BED, ONE
TAKEN, THE OTHER LEFT. TWO AT THE MILL, ONE TAKEN, THE OTHER
LEFT. TWO IN THE FIELD, ONE TAKEN, THE OTHER LEFT. I LOOK
AT A CONGREGATION LIKE THIS. I WONDER IF THE SECOND COMING
OF JESUS, THE RAPTURE, WERE TO TAKE PLACE BEFORE I FINISH
THIS SERMON, YOU ALL LOOK SO DIFFERENT, I MEAN YOU ALL LOOK
SO MUCH ALIKE, REALLY. I MEAN, WE'RE ALL MORE OR LESS DRESSED
THE SAME, WE ALL HAVE BIBLES, WE'RE ALL LOOKING UP AND SO
FORTH, WE ALL LOOK ALIKE. BUT THERE IS A VAST DIFFERENCE
THAT SEPARATES PEOPLE EVEN IN THIS BUILDING: THOSE WHO ARE
SAVED AND THOSE WHO ARE LOST; THOSE WHO ARE READY FOR JESUS
CHRIST TO COME AND THOSE WHO ARE NOT. AND IT MAY WELL
BE THAT AT THE RAPTURE, THE PERSON SITTING NEXT TO YOU
WILL GO AND YOU'LL BE HERE. TWO WILL BE SITTING IN CHURCH,
ONE TAKEN AND THE OTHER LEFT. THERE IS A SELECT MULTITUDE.
NOT EVERYBODY IS GOING, UH, UP IN THE RAPTURE, ONLY THOSE
WHO ARE SAVED. AND SO THERE'RE TWENTY-FOUR ELDERS, THEY
REPRESENT A SELECT MULTITUDE. NOW, LET'S MOVE TO THE THIRD
DIVISION. WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE: WHAT, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT
THE: WHO, LET'S TALK ABOUT THE: WHEN. WHEN IS THE RAPTURE
GOING TO TAKE PLACE? WELL GO BACK TO VERSE ONE, LOOK AT IT,
“AND AFTER THIS I LOOKED AND BEHOLD A DOOR WAS OPENED IN
HEAVEN AND THE FIRST VOICE WHICH I HEARD WAS, AS IT WERE,
OF A TRUMPET.” REMEMBER THE TRUMPET SHALL SOUND? “TALKING
WITH ME, WHICH SAID, 'COME UP HITHER AND I WILL SHOW
THEE THINGS WHICH MUST BE HEREAFTER.'” NO IF, ANDS,
AND BUTS ABOUT IT. IT, THAT IT MUST HAPPEN. “AND
IMMEDIATELY,” UNDERSCORE THAT, “IMMEDIATELY I WAS IN THE
SPIRIT AND BEHOLD A THRONE WAS SET IN HEAVEN AND ONE SAT UPON
THE THRONE.” WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN TO JOHN? IT HAPPENED TO
JOHN SUDDENLY, IMMEDIATELY. HE WAS NOT EVEN EXPECTING IT.
THERE HE IS. HE'S BEEN, UH, LOOKING AT THE CHURCHES, HE'S
BEEN DESCRIBING THE CHURCH AGE, AND SUDDENLY THE TRUMPET
SOUNDS, AND IMMEDIATELY HE'S CAUGHT UP INTO HEAVEN. THAT'S
WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN TO YOU. WE'RE NOW LIVING IN THE CHURCH
AGE, BUT YOU'RE GONNA FIND OUT BEGINNING WITH CHAPTER FOUR ON
THROUGH THE REST OF THE BOOK, THE WORD CHURCH DROPS OUT. IN
THE FF, IN CHAPTERS TWO AND THREE WE HEAR THE WORD,
“THE CHURCH, THE CHURCH, THE CHURCH, THE CHURCH,” OVER
AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN, “THE CHURCH.” BUT NOW THE WORD
CHURCH DROPS OUT. WHY IS THAT? BECAUSE WE LEAVE THE AGE OF
GRACE, WHICH IS THE CHURCH AGE, AND IMMEDIATELY WHEN THE
TRUMPET SOUNDS WE'RE CAUGHT UP TO MEET THE LORD IN THE AIR.
NOW, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE: WHEN. WHEN IS JESUS CHRIST
COMING FOR HIS CHURCH? I DON'T KNOW, YOU DON'T KNOW, NOBODY
KNOWS, BUT HE AND THE FATHER KNOW AND JESUS IN HIS HUMANITY
EVEN DENIED HIMSELF THAT PRIVILEGE UNTIL HE WAS CAUGHT
UP INTO THE GLORY. WHY? WHY? IT IS A SACRED MYSTERY, AND IT
IS A TIME KNOWN TO GOD ALONE. THE BIBLE, JESUS SAID, “THAT
DAY AND THAT HOUR KNOWS NO MAN BUT MY FATHER WHICH IS IN
HEAVEN.” THE POINT, THE COMING OF JESUS, LISTEN TO ME, IS
ALWAYS NEAR, ALWAYS NEAR. WE'RE NOT WAITING FOR SOME
FULFILLMENT OF PROPHECY. NOW THAT MAY BE INTERESTING, IF
WE SEE THINGS, AS I MENTIONED: THE SEETHING CAULDRON IN THE
MIDDLE EAST. WE CAN SEE ALL KINDS OF THINGS THAT SEEM TO
INDICATE THAT THE COMING OF JESUS IS NEAR, AND WELL
THEY MIGHT, BUT NOW LISTEN CAREFULLY. NO SIGN PROVES THAT
JESUS IS COMING SOON AND NO LACK OF SIGNS SAYS THAT HE'S
NOT COMING SOON. I REMIND YOU THAT THE APOSTLE PAUL WAS
EXPECTING JESUS CHRIST IN HIS OWN LIFETIME. WAS PAUL WRONG?
NO, HE WAS ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. EVERY CHRISTIAN IS RIGHT TO
BE EXPECTING CHRIST IN HIS LIFETIME. HAVE, IF THERE
HAS TO BE CERTAIN SIGNS TO BE FULFILLED BEFORE JESUS CAN
COME, THAT TAKES AWAY THE IMMINENCY, THAT TAKES AWAY
THE EXPECTANCY, BUT EVERY CHRISTIAN, FROM THE TIME OF
THE ASCENSION TILL THIS TIME, SHOULD BE LIVING WITH THAT
“ANY MOMENT” MENTALITY THAT JESUS CHRIST MAY COME AT ANY
MOMENT. NOW I WANT TO GIVE YOU SOME SCRIPTURES THAT PROVE
THAT, AND I'M GONNA GIVE THEM IN A HURRY, SO JUST JOT THEM
DOWN. MATTHEW 24 VERSE 36, JESUS SPEAKING OF HIS COMING
SAID, “BUT THAT DAY AND HOUR KNOWETH NO MAN, NO, NOT
THE ANGELS OF HEAVEN, BUT MY FATHER ONLY.” IF SOME HIGH
MUCKETY-MUCK COMES ALONG AND TELLS YOU, “I'VE SET A
DATE FOR THE COMING OF JESUS, EIGHTY-EIGHT REASONS WHY JESUS
IS COMING IN '88,” LAUGH IT OFF, BLOW IT OFF. ASK HIM IF
HE'S SINCERE, SAY, “WILL YOU GIVE ME THE DEED TO YOUR HOME
THE DAY AFTER THAT HAPPENS”" MATTHEW 24 VERSE 38, “BUT AS
IN THE DAYS THAT WERE BEFORE THE FLOOD, THEY WERE EATING
AND DRINKING, MARRYING AND GIVING IN MARRIAGE UNTIL THE
DAY THAT NOAH ENTERED INTO THE ARK.” THAT IS, THEY'RE GOING
ALONG THE DAILY ROUND OF LIFE. THERE'S NOT GOING TO BE ANY
GREAT TRIBULATION, THEY'RE NOT IN THE GREAT TRIBULATION,
THERE'RE NOT THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING, THEY'RE JUST EATING
AND DRINKING, MARRYING, GIVING IN MARRIAGE, JUST GOING ABOUT
THEIR BUSINESS, JUST LIKE YOU'RE GOING ABOUT YOUR
BUSINESS TODAY. MATTHEW 24 VERSE 42, “WATCH, THEREFORE,
FOR YE KNOW NOT WHAT HOUR YOUR LORD DOTH COME.” MATTHEW 24
VERSE 44, “THEREFORE, BE YE ALSO READY, FOR IN SUCH AN
HOUR AS YE THINK NOT, THE SON OF MAN COMETH.” YOU SAY,
“I DON'T THINK HE'S COMING TODAY;” GOOD SIGN THAT HE
MIGHT. “IN SUCH AN HOUR AS YOU THINK NOT THE SON OF MAN
COMETH.” AND THEN AGAIN PAUL SAYS IN FIRST CORINTHIANS 15,
I'VE ALREADY READ THIS, VERSE 51, “BEHOLD, I SHOW YOU A
MYSTERY, WE SHALL NOT ALL SLEEP, BUT WE SHALL ALL BE
CHANGED IN A MOMENT.” AND THAT WORD MOMENT IS THE WORD THAT
WE GET OUR WORD ATOM FROM. IT IS THE SMALLEST INDIVISIBLE
PERIOD OF TIME KNOWN TO THEM AND, AND, UH, IN THE TWINKLING
OF AN EYE. I HEARD A WHILE BACK THAT THE AVERAGE
INDIVIDUAL BLINKS, TWINKLES HIS EYE, BLINKS HIS EYE, UH,
TWENTY-THOUSAND TIMES A DAY. I ALWAYS AM SUSPICIOUS OF THESE,
UH, THESE STATISTICS. WHO'S GOING TO COUNT HOW MANY
TIMES SOMEBODY BLINKS HIS EYE? [AUDIENCE LAUGHTER] BUT IT
DOES REMIND US THAT PERHAPS TWENTY-THOUSAND TIMES EVERY
DAY WE MAY HEAR THE TRUMPET SOUND, AND JESUS IS GOING TO
COME IN A MOMENT. IN AN ATOMIC PERIOD [CLAP] OF TIME, IN THE
TWINKLING OF AN EYE, THE LORD JESUS CHRIST IS GOING TO COME.
“WELL, PASTOR, WHAT ABOUT THE SIGNS? DO THE SIGNS TELL US
THAT JESUS IS COMING?” LET ME SEE IF I CAN GIVE YOU AN
ILLUSTRATION. NOW, DURING THE CHRISTMAS SEASON, WAY BEFORE
THE CHRISTMAS SEASON I SHOULD SAY, EVEN BEFORE, WELL SHORTLY
AFTER HALLOWEEN, THE STORES START PUTTING OUT CHRISTMAS
DECORATIONS. YOU NOTICE THAT? IT SEEMS TO GET EARLIER EVERY
YEAR. WELL, WHEN YOU SEE THOSE DECORATIONS IN THE STORE, DOES
THAT MEAN CHRISTMAS IS COMING? NO, IT MEANS THANKSGIVING IS
COMING! [AUDIENCE LAUGHTER] THAT'S WHAT IT MEANS. NOW, UH,
EH, WHEN, WHEN, WHEN WE SEE THE SIGNS, YOU SAY, ARE THEY
SIGNS OF THE TIMES? YES, BUT THESE ARE NOT THE TIMES OF THE
SIGNS. THOSE ARE THINGS THAT TAKE PLACE AFTER THE RAPTURE,
REALLY. NOW IF WE SEE THEM AHEAD OF TIME, THAT DOESN'T
MEAN THEY'RE NOT VALID, BUT WHAT I'M TRYING TO SAY, DEAR
FRIEND, UH, THE RAPTURE IS NOT JESUS COMING IN POWER AND
GREAT GLORY, IT IS JESUS COMING FOR HIS CHURCH BEFORE
HE COMES IN POWER AND GREAT GLORY. IT'S NOT CHRISTMAS,
IT'S THANKSGIVING. I HOPE YOU GET THE ILLUSTRATION I'M
TRYING TO MAKE. I'M TRYING TO SAY THIS; THAT JESUS CHRIST
MAY COME TODAY, NOW. NOW! AND YOU NEED TO BE READY. “FOR IN
SUCH AN HOUR AS YE THINK NOT, THE SON OF MAN COMES”"
ALRIGHT, NOW, LET'S MOVE TO THE NEXT THING. LET'S
TALK ABOUT THE: WHY. WHY THE RAPTURE? WHY NOT JUST WAIT
UNTIL THERE'LL BE A GENERAL RESURRECTION? WELL, GO BACK
TO CHAPTER FOUR VERSES TWO THROUGH FIVE, “AND IMMEDIATELY
I WAS IN THE SPIRIT, AND BEHOLD A THRONE WAS SET IN
HEAVEN,” AND I LIKE THAT. “A THRONE WAS SET IN HEAVEN,” HOW
FIRM A FOUNDATION YE SAINTS OF THE LORD, “AND ONE SAT UPON
THAT THRONE. AND HE THAT SAT WAS TO LOOK UPON LIKE A JASPER
AND A SARDINE STONE,” OR SARDINE, HOWEVER YOU WISH TO
PRONOUNCE IT. “AND THERE WAS A RAINBOW ROUND ABOUT THE THRONE
IN SIGHT LIKE UNTO AN EMERALD. ROUND ABOUT THE THRONE WERE
FOUR AND TWENTY THRONES,” OR SEATS, “AND UPON THE SEATS I
SAW FOUR AND TWENTY ELDERS”" WHY ARE THEY THRONES? BECAUSE
JESUS SAID, “IF WE SUFFER WITH HIM WE'RE GOING TO REIGN WITH
HIM.” WE'RE GOING TO SIT UPON THRONES JUDGING THIS WORLD.
WE'RE GOING TO ADMINISTRATE HIS JUSTICE. “AND FOUR AND
TWENTY ELDERS SITTING CLOTHED IN WHITE RAIMENT. AND THEY HAD
ON THEIR HEADS CROWNS OF GOLD AND OUT OF THE THRONE
PROCEEDETH, PROCEEDED LIGHTNINGS AND THUNDERINGS AND
VOICES AND THERE WERE SEVEN LAMPS OF FIRE BURNING BEFORE
THE THRONE WHICH ARE THE SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD.” NOW WHAT IS
THE MOTIVE FOR THE RAPTURE? THREE-FOLD, NUMBER ONE:
RECEPTION. OUR LORD IS GOING TO COME AND RECEIVE HIS BRIDE
TO HIMSELF. YOU KNOW WHAT JESUS SAID IN JOHN CHAPTER 14,
“IN MY FATHER'S HOUSE ARE MANY MANSIONS, IF IT WERE NOT SO I
WOULD HAVE TOLD YOU. I GO TO PREPARE A PLACE FOR YOU AND IF
I GO AND PREPARE A PLACE FOR YOU,” WHAT? “I WILL COME AGAIN
AND RECEIVE YOU UNTO MYSELF”" WHAT A DAY THAT WILL BE. WHAT
A DAY IT'S GOING TO BE! WHEN THE LORD JESUS CHRIST RECEIVES
THOSE WHO COME TO HIM AND HE RE, OR, OR, MY FIRST THRILL IN
HEAVEN IS GOING TO SEE MY LORD JESUS CHRIST. I'M GOING TO
SEE HIS SOVEREIGN MAJESTY. I'M GOING TO SEE THE LORD JESUS
SITTING UPON THAT THRONE. NO WONDER WE WANT TO SING: “OUR
LORD REIGNS.” AND, UH, WE'RE GOING TO SEE NOT ONLY HIS
MAJESTY, BUT WE'RE GOING TO GLORIFY HIS MINISTRY. LOOK AT
HIM, IN VERSE THREE, IT SAYS TO SEE HIM, UH, WE, HE, HE'LL
BE LIKE A, A JASPER STONE AND LIKE A, UH, HE'S GOING TO BE
LIKE A SARDIUS. WHAT IS THE JASPER STONE? DOESN'T SAY HE
IS ONE, HE'S LIKE ONE. WHAT IS THE JASPER? MOST LIKELY IT'S
A DIAMOND, BECAUSE IT'S PURE AND, UH, SPARKLING WHITE.
UH, HOW DO WE KNOW THAT? REVELATION 21 VERSE 11, THE
BIBLE SPEAKS OF THE HEAVENLY CITY HAVING THE GLORY OF GOD,
“AND HER LIGHT WAS LIKE UNTO A STONE MOST PRECIOUS, EVEN
LIKE A JASPER STONE, CLEAR AS CRYSTAL.” THAT SOUNDS LIKE A
DIAMOND TO ME. AND SO, YOU LOOK AT HIM AND THERE'S
THIS SPARKLING, PURE, CLEAR, TRANSPARENT, TRANSLUCENT,
SPARKLING DIAMOND. ALRIGHT, BUT THEN ALSO THE SARDIUS. THE
SARDIUS WAS BLOOD RED. SO I WANT YOU TO SEE THESE TWO
EMBLEMS OF OUR LORD. I BELIEVE THAT THEY SPEAK OF HIS PURITY
AND HIS BLOOD SACRIFICE FOR THE CHURCH. YOU SEE, HE IS OUR
HIGH PRIEST. THE HIGH PRIEST IN THE OLD TESTAMENT WORE
UPON HIS BREASTPLATE, HE HAD A BREASTPLATE, AND HE WORE
TWELVE STONES. AND THESE TWELVE STONES REPRESENTED THE
PEOPLE OF GOD THAT HE AS THE HIGH PRIEST [TAP, TAP, TAP]
HAD UPON HIS HEART. AND THE FIRST AND THE LAST ARE
REPRESENTED BY THESE TWO STONES, AND JUST LIKE
ALPHA AND OMEGA, THEY INCLUDE EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN. WHAT
IS, WHAT IS THE, WHAT IS THE MEANING? IT IS THAT OUR DEAR
LORD HAS US ON HIS HEART. HE LOVES US, AND HE WEARS, UH, US
UPON HIS HEART. HE IS OUR HIGH PRIEST AND HE EVER LIVES TO
MAKE INTERCESSION FOR US. AND SO ONE OF THE MOTIVES FOR
THE RAPTURE IS RECEPTION. THE OTHER IS RESCUE, RESCUE.
NOTICE HERE IN CHAPTER FOUR AND VERSE THREE THAT THERE'S
A RAINBOW ROUND ABOUT THE THRONE. UH, THIS WORD RAINBOW
IS THE, UH, GREEK WORD THAT WE GET OUR WORD IRIS FROM, OR, OR
IT'S LIKE A HALO. ALL AROUND THIS THRONE IS A RAINBOW. BUT
THERE'S SOMETHING DIFFERENT ABOUT THIS RAINBOW. THIS
RAINBOW IS GREEN, IT'S LIKE AN EMERALD. ALL THE WAY AROUND
THE THRONE IS AN EMBREL, UH, A EMERALD RAINBOW. BUT ALSO,
EH, IN, IN VERSE FIVE WE LEARN THAT THERE ARE LIGHTNINGS AND
THUNDERS AND A BREWING STORM. NOW THE RAINBOW MEANS THE
STORM HAS PAST, BUT LIGHTNING AND THUNDERS MEAN THAT THE
STORM IS COMING. AND ALSO THIS RAINBOW IS A PERFECT CIRCLE.
IT'S AN IRIS, IT'S, IT, IT'S A HALO, AND IT'S GREEN. RAINBOWS
ARE NOT ORDINARILY GREEN. GREEN, HOWEVER, IS THE COLOR
OF LIFE. WHAT DOES A RAINBOW STAND FOR? IT STANDS FOR
THE COVENANT OF GOD WITH HIS PEOPLE. REMEMBER AFTER THE
FLOOD, MOS, UH, EH, UH, NOAH STEPPED OUT OF THAT ARK. CAN
YOU IMAGINE THE CARNAGE AND THE SLIME AND THE, EVERYTHING
THAT HE LOOKED AT DOWN THERE ON THE EARTH, THE WRECKAGE?
BUT WHEN HE LOOKED UP IN THE VAULT OF HEAVEN, THERE WAS
THAT GLORIOUS, BEAUTIFUL RAINBOW, RED, ORANGE, YELLOW,
GREEN, BLUE, INDIGO, LIKE A SCARF, THROWN OVER THE
SHOULDERS OF THE STORM. BUT, WHILE THERE ARE SEVEN
PRISMATIC COLORS IN A RAINBOW, THERE ARE THREE PRIMARY COLORS
IN THE RAINBOW AND THE THREE PRIMARY COLORS ARE RED, BLUE,
AND YELLOW. NOW, IF YOU TAKE OUT THE RED, ALL THAT LEAVES
IS THE BLUE AND THE YELLOW. AND IF YOU PUT THE BLUE AND
THE YELLOW TOGETHER, THAT ONLY LEAVES GREEN, HA. WHAT IS
THIS? THE RED SPEAKS OF SUFFERING, BLOOD SACRIFICE,
THAT THE LORD JESUS CHRIST TOOK FOR US, TO LEAVE A, AN
EMERALD RAINBOW, A COVENANT AROUND THE THRONE FOR US.
AND NOTICE THAT IT'S A PERFECT CIRCLE. REALLY RAINBOWS WE
SEE, WE CALL IT A BOW; IT GOES LIKE THIS. BUT IF YOU WERE UP
HIGH ENOUGH TO SEE A RAINBOW, YOU WOULDN'T SEE IT LIKE THIS,
YOU'D SEE A PERFECT CIRCLE. WHAT DOES THE CIRCLE SPEAK OF?
IT SPEAKS OF ETERNITY, IT HAS NO BEGINNING, NO ENDING, AND,
UH, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES WE ONLY SEE HALF THE STORY, DON'T
WE DOWN HERE? WE GO THROUGH THE STORMS, AND WE LOOK UP,
BUT WE SEE A RAINBOW AND WE SAY, “WELL THANK YOU,
LORD; I KNOW IT'S GOING TO BE ALRIGHT.” BUT ONE DAY, FRIEND,
WE'LL KNOW AS WE'RE KNOWN. ONE DAY WE'LL SEE IT ALL, AND
ONE DAY THE CIRCLE WILL BE COMPLETE. NOT NOW, BUT IN THE
COMING YEARS. IT MAY BE IN A BETTER LAND, WE'LL READ THE
MEANING OF OUR TEARS AND THERE SOMEDAY WE WILL UNDERSTAND.
BUT DOWN HERE ON EARTH, NOW, THE RAINBOW'S UP THERE IN
HEAVEN. THIS BEAUTIFUL EMERALD RAINBOW ROUND ABOUT THE
THRONE, SPEAKING OF GOD'S COVENANT, TELLING US THAT WE
HAVE BEEN CAUGHT UP TO MEET THE LORD AND FOR US THERE IS A
RESCUE, THE STORM IS OVER. BUT [STOMP] DOWN ON EARTH WE ARE
GETTING READY. WE'RE UP HERE, THERE'S THE RAINBOW, BUT DOWN
HERE ON EARTH THERE'S A STORM BREWING, AND THAT STORM IS THE
GREAT TRIBULATION. NOW, IS THE CHURCH GOING TO GO THROUGH
THE GREAT TRIBULATION? NO! THE CHURCH IS TAKEN OUT BEFORE
THE GREAT TRIBULATION. WHY THE RAPTURE? WELL, RECEPTION BUT
ALSO, UH, DEAR FRIEND, RESCUE. NOW WE'RE NOT GOING THROUGH
THE GREAT TRIBULATION, I'LL TALK A MORE ABOUT THAT IN THE
COMING DAYS, BUT LET ME GIVE YOU A COUPLE OF SCRIPTURES.
FIRST THESSALONIANS ONE VERSES NINE AND 10, THE BIBLE SAYS,
AH, “FOR THEY THEMSELVES SHOW OF US WHAT MANNER OF ENTERING
IN WE HAD UNTO YOU, HOW YOU TURNED TO GOD FROM IDOLS TO
SERVE THE TRUE AND LIVING GOD,” NOW WATCH THIS, “AND TO
WAIT FOR HIS SON FROM HEAVEN WHOM HE RAISED FROM THE DEAD,
EVEN JESUS, WHO DELIVERED US FROM THE WRATH TO COME”"
I'M NOT WAITING FOR THE GREAT TRIBULATION, FRIEND, I'M
WAITING FOR JESUS. [AUDIENCE: AMEN] I'M WAITING FOR JESUS.
THERE'RE THOSE WHO TEACH THAT THE CHURCH IS GOING THROUGH
THE GREAT TRIBULATION. IT WILL NOT. I'LL TALK ABOUT THAT
NEXT WEEK. THIRD REASON, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE MOTIVE.
ONE, RECEPTION, THE SECOND IS RESCUE. THE THIRD IS: REUNION.
CHAPTER FOUR AND VERSE FOUR SPEAKS OF TWENTY-FOUR ELDERS,
IT REPRESENTS ALL OF THOSE OF US WHO'LL BE CAUGHT UP TO MEET
THE LORD IN THE AIR. REMEMBER FIRST THESSALONIANS 4:17? “FOR
WE WHICH ARE ALIVE AND REMAIN SHALL,” UH, “BE CAUGHT UP
TOGETHER WITH THEM IN THE CLOUDS TO MEET THE LORD IN THE
AIR AND SO SHALL WE EVER BE WITH THE LORD.” WHAT A DAY
THAT'S GONNA BE. NOW, LOOK UP HERE. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO
YOU? WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO ME? LISTEN CAREFULLY. DON'T
LET THIS JUST BLOW PAST YOU. WE SHOULD LEARN OF HIS COMING.
YOU SH, CANNOT AFFORD TO BE IGNORANT CONCERNING THE SECOND
COMING OF JESUS CHRIST AND BIBLE PROPHECY, AND THAT'S
WHY I'M PREACHING THIS SERIES. NUMBER TWO: YOU SHOULD LIVE
FOR HIS COMING. THE PROOF THAT YOU BELIEVE WHAT I'M SAYING IS
NOT WHETHER YOU GET IT IN YOUR NOTEBOOK OR GET IT IN YOUR
HEAD, BUT WHETHER YOU GET IT INTO YOUR LIFE. NUMBER
THREE, YOU SHOULD LOOK FOR HIS COMING. YOU SHOULD EXPECT HIM
TO COME. YOU'RE NOT WRONG TO EXPECT HIM TO COME. HE MAY
COME AT ANY MOMENT. NUMBER FOUR, YOU SHOULD LONG FOR HIS
COMING. YOU SHOULD DESIRE THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. THE LAST
PRAYER IN THE BIBLE IS FOR JESUS, UH, TO COME AGAIN. NOW,
ARE YOU READY? [THUMP] ARE YOU READY? ARE YOU BUSY ABOUT MANY
THINGS? I SHARED WITH YOU A STORY THAT IS SO PERTINENT
RIGHT NOW I NEED TO SHARE IT AGAIN. STEVEN COVEY HAS
WRITTEN A BOOK, TALKING ABOUT HOW WE NEED TO GET THINGS
PRIORITIZED. HE TOLD ABOUT A PROFESSOR THAT CAME INTO HIS
CLASS WITH HIS STUDENTS. AND THE PROFESSOR HAD A WOW, A
WIDE-MOUTH JAR AND IN THAT JAR HE PUT SOME BIG ROCKS AND HE
FILLED IT ALL THE WAY UP THE TOP. AND HE ASKED THE
STUDENTS, “IS THE JAR FULL”" AND THEY NODDED THEIR HEAD.
AND HE SAID, “NO, THE JAR'S NOT FULL.” AND THEN TOOK
SOME GRAVEL AND SPRINKLED THE GRAVEL ON TOP OF THE ROCKS AND
SHOOK IT AND THEN SMOOTHED IT OFF. THEN HE ASKED HIS
STUDENTS, “IS THE JAR FULL NOW?” THEY SAID, “YES, IT'S
FULL NOW.” “OH”, HE SAID, “IT'S NOT FULL.” AND THEN HE
TOOK SOME SAND AND POURED SOME SAND ON TOP OF THE
GRAVEL, SHOOK IT DOWN GOOD AND SMOOTHED IT OFF. SAID, “NOW,
[CLAP] NOW IS IT FULL?” BY NOW THEY WERE AFRAID TO ANSWER.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHTER] AND HE SAID, “I'LL ANSWER FOR YOU,
IT'S NOT FULL YET.” AND THEN HE TOOK SOME WATER AND POURED
THE WATER OVER THE SAND AND IT FILLED EVERY LITTLE CREVICE.
THEN HE ASKED THIS QUESTION, “NOW IS THE JAR FULL?” AND
THEY TIMIDLY NODDED THEIR HEAD AND SAID, “YES, IT IS NOW
FULL.” AND HE SAID, “YOU'RE RIGHT.” NOW WHAT IS THE
LESSON? WHAT IS THE LESSON? WELL, ONE LIFTED HIS HAND
AND SAID, UH, “THINGS ARE NOT ALWAYS AS THEY APPEAR TO BE”"
ANOTHER ONE SAID, “THERE'S ALWAYS ROOM FOR MORE.” HE
SAID, “NO! THAT'S NOT THE LESSON! HERE'S THE LESSON. IF
I HAD NOT PUT THE [TAP, TAP, TAP] BIG ROCKS IN FIRST, IT
WOULD BE TOO LATE TO PUT THEM IN. THAT'S THE LESSON”"
NOW FRIEND, WHAT ARE THE BIG ROCKS? YOU GET RIGHT WITH GOD.
YOU GIVE YOUR HEART TO JESUS CHRIST. I MEAN, THOSE ARE THE
THINGS THAT COUNT. A LOT OF THINGS YOU THINK ARE
IMPORTANT, FRIEND, ARE GOING TO TURN OUT TO BE GRAVEL AND
SAND AND WATER. WHAT ABOUT THE BIG ROCKS? I MEAN, ARE YOU
SAVED? [POUND] YOU GET THAT SETTLED, GET THAT SETTLED;
YOU'RE READY FOR THE REST, AMEN? [AUDIENCE: AMEN] BOW
YOUR HEADS IN PRAYER. WHILE HEADS ARE BOWED AND EYES ARE
CLOSED, IF, IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO KNOW JESUS CHRIST AS YOUR
PERSONAL SAVIOR AND LORD, I WANT TO HELP YOU. YOU SAY,
“PASTOR, I REALLY DO, I WANT TO KNOW JESUS, NOT JUST
BECAUSE OF THE SECOND COMING, I WANT TO KNOW HIM IN THIS
LIFE.” WELL, GOOD. LET ME HELP YOU TO PRAY. WOULD YOU PRAY A
PRAYER LIKE THIS? JUST PRAY IT SILENTLY BUT FERVENTLY,
SINCERELY, “LORD JESUS, I KNOW THAT YOU LOVE ME, I KNOW THAT
YOU WANT TO SAVE ME. YOU SHED YOUR PRECIOUS BLOOD ON THE
CROSS TO ATONE FOR MY SIN. THANK YOU FOR DOING THAT.
YOU CAME OUT OF THAT GRAVE TO PROVE YOU'RE THE SON OF
GOD. I NOW OPEN MY HEART AND I RECEIVE YOU BY FAITH, NOT ONLY
AS MY SAVIOR, BUT AS MY LORD. TAKE CONTROL OF MY LIFE,
AND BEGIN NOW TO MAKE ME THE PERSON YOU WANT ME TO BE. LIKE
A LITTLE CHILD, I TRUST YOU TO SAVE ME AND GIVE ME THE
COURAGE TO MAKE IT PUBLIC. IN YOUR NAME I PRAY, AMEN”"
[MUSIC] FRIEND WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THE FACT THAT
JESUS CHRIST MAY COME AT ANY MOMENT. IF HE WERE TO COME
TODAY, WOULD YOU BE READY? DO YOU KNOW HIM? DO YOU KNOW THAT
YOU KNOW HIM? WOULD YOU PRAY AND SAY, “LORD JESUS, THANK
YOU FOR PAYING FOR MY SIN WITH YOUR BLOOD ON THAT OLD RUGGED
CROSS. THANK YOU FOR BEING RAISED FROM THE DEAD. THANK
YOU FOR WANTING TO SAVE ME AND BEING WILLING TO SAVE ME. COME
NOW INTO MY HEART, FORGIVE MY SIN; CLEANSE ME, SAVE ME, LORD
JESUS.” FRIEND, PRAY THAT AND MEAN IT. AND IF YOU DO, WOULD
YOU WRITE TO US AND LET US KNOW? WE'LL SEND YOU SOME
LITERATURE TO HELP YOU GET STARTED IN YOUR CHRISTIAN
LIFE. [MUSIC] WE HOPE THAT TODAY'S PROGRAM HAS BEEN AN
ENCOURAGEMENT TO YOU. YOU CAN LISTEN TO THIS MESSAGE AGAIN,
LISTEN TO OTHER MESSAGES IN THIS SERIES, OR, DOWNLOAD THIS
MESSAGE, AS WELL AS PASTOR ROGERS' OUTLINE, NOTES, OR A
TRANSCRIPT OF THIS MESSAGE, ALL AT LWF.ORG. WHAT'S THE
MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION IN THE BOOK OF REVELATION? AND,
MORE IMPORTANTLY, WHAT'S THE ANSWER? IN OUR NEXT LESSON,
ADRIAN ROGERS SHOWS US BOTH. “WHO IS WORTHY,” NOW THIS IS
THE WHOLE QUESTION, “WHO IS WORTHY TO OPEN THE BOOK, AND
TO LOOSE THE SEALS THEREOF”" SO IF YOU WERE TO ASK THE LORD
JESUS, “JESUS, BY WHAT RIGHT DO YOU HAVE?” HE'D SAY, “I'LL
TELL YOU WHY. I'LL TELL YOU WHY I'M WORTHY. I'M WORTHY
BECAUSE OF CREATION; I MADE IT ALL TO BEGIN WITH. I'M
WORTHY, NUMBER TWO, BECAUSE OF CALVARY; I HAVE REDEEMED IT
AND I BOUGHT IT WITH MY BLOOD. I AM THE PRECIOUS LAMB OF GOD.
AND NUMBER THREE, I AM WORTHY BECAUSE OF CONQUEST; I HAVE
PREVAILED.” JOIN US NEXT TIME AS WE CONTINUE OUR SERIES FROM
THE BOOK OF REVELATION. THANKS FOR WATCHING, WE'LL SEE YOU
NEXT TIME. [MUSIC] [MUSIC] LOVE WORTH FINDING IS A VIEWER
SUPPORTED MINISTRY AND WE NEED THE HELP OF FAITHFUL VIEWERS
LIKE YOU AS WE SHARE THE LOVE OF CHRIST EACH WEEK. AND AS A
THANK YOU FOR YOUR FINANCIAL SUPPORT THIS MONTH, WE'LL
SEND YOU THESE FIVE “HOW T”" BOOKLETS ON BIBLE STUDY AND
PRAYER. THANK YOU AND MAY GOD RICHLY BLESS YOU.
