Revelation 3 vs 9-10

Revelation Chapter 3 Verse 9

 We have a possible clue here that the church in Philadelphia had a problem

perhaps others did not, or not as explicitly as the other churches…, that

they were under special persecution from the Jewish community in that

city. Christianity became a real black eye to Judaism. One of the reasons

why the Jewish religious elite despised Jesus and His followers so

much…, because essentially Jesus made an end to Judaism. The Old

Covenant being completed in Him and a New Covenant established.

 Hebrews 8:7-13, “For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no

place would have been sought for a second. Because finding fault with

them, He says: “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will

make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah

(Jeremiah 31); not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers

in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of

Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded

them, says the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the

house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their

mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they

shall be My people. None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his

brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for all shall know Me, from the least of

them to the greatest of them. For I will be merciful to their

unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no

more.” In that He says, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete.

Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.”

 Now, Jesus is not saying that this church will be worshipped. What is

meant here is that by their faithful witness, in the end, (because sometimes

it takes that long – but even so I promise you it is still worth it), many will

come and fall before them and find the one true God. It is good to

sometimes remember that Philippians 2:9-11 says, “Therefore God also

has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every

name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven,

and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue

should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

 These are a specific bunch. They say they are Jews and are not… What is

that all about? Romans 2:28-29, “He is a Jew who is one inwardly; and

circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose

praise is not from men but from God.” Sometimes if it walks like a duck

and quacks like a duck, sometimes it’s not a duck… Over the years of

being a pastor…I’ve learned that…, and that is exactly what Paul is saying

here. Ceremonially they are a Jew. Culturally, biologically, in action and

attitude, but the Jew unto the Lord is the one who fulfills the law. That

person is no longer…, but it is Christ that lives through them.

 Which are you? Would God place His approval on me, on you…how you

are living, handling the situation, thinking about that other person, loving

your spouse…? Delighting to do the Word of God! Do these things even

occur to you? I am concerned for many…

 What the Lord is saying here is simple. Stay the course, finish strong…and

the concern you’ve had for many, the wounds you have received from

many, will be turned into joy when you see some come to a real

relationship with God…and in that moment, on that day…they will look at

you through blurred eyes from the sorrow over their own flesh and the

relief of their own weight of sin…and they will see that you’ve been there

for years…knowing and experiencing and enjoying the freedom that they

finally know as they have finally given their whole life over to the

Lordship of Jesus Christ. The most excellent way to obliterate and defeat

your enemy is to make him your friend… (but that’s following Jesus talk

– not many desire to go that route…., that takes…, a little strength).

Revelation Chapter 3 Verse 10

 This is quite the clear statement. Those that do not ascribe to a pre-

tribulation rapture have a real problem in what we just read. Those that

deny the rapture all together have a significant problem in what we just

read. Jesus says, for this church, the real church, I will keep you from

(“ek” out of in the Greek, or away from) the hour of trial, (hour speaking

of a finite amount of time), the hour of trial which shall come upon the

whole world. A worldwide finite time of tribulation. Quite clear indeed.

And God says that the testing is for those who dwell upon the earth which

is a phrase used 9 times in the Book of Revelation to speak of the lost.

Revelation 17:8, “And those who dwell on the earth will marvel, whose

names are not written in the Book of life.”

 Now, within Christian orthodoxy, acceptable and non-essential to

endlessly debate about, are three primary perspectives regarding the

timing of the rapture in relation to the Great Tribulation. Before we go

there though, let’s just solidly establish that the Bible does predict, teach

and maintain that the Bride of Christ, the universal church consisting of

all born-again Christians will be raptured.

 I can take you to some 50 verses, types, and teachings throughout the

Bible to support this but let me just give you the most explicit. 1

Thessalonians 4:15-17, “For this we say to you by the word of the Lord,

that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no

means precede those who are asleep (dead). For the Lord Himself will

descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and

with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we

who are alive and remain shall be caught up (harpazo in the Greek,

raptus in the Latin – meaning to be carried away by force) together with

them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus, we shall always be

with the Lord.”

 This is not the second coming of Christ. We find that in Revelation

Chapter 19 and that is an entirely different scene and description. 1

Corinthians 15:51-54, “Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep,

but we shall all be changed. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the

last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised

incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruption must put on

incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.”

 And just so you have the whole picture and there is no confusion, the

rapture of the church involves both the living and the dead. It is the entire,

complete, full and comprehensive bride of Christ. For all times and all

peoples. So, the dead in Christ rise first. That does not mean that those that

have died in faith are waiting or in their graves. That is just their mortal

bodies. 2 Corinthians 5:8 says, “We are confident, yes, well pleased rather

to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.” Jesus said to

the thief on the cross, “Today, you will be with Me in paradise…”

 So the Spirit of man, just as Ecclesiastes 12:7 says, “The dust will return

to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it,” the

spirit of man goes immediately into the presence of God but the mortal

body is left behind, and at the moment of the rapture, the corrupted mortal

body is changed to a form prepared and suitable for eternal heaven and

joined to the Spirit, while those that are alive and remain simply get

translated from mortal life in a mortal body to immortality in an

incorruptible body. That is the rapture according to the Bible and clear in

the Bible… Those that deny the rapture are outside of biblical

orthodoxy.

 The three primary views are pre-tribulation rapture (the rapture occurs

before the tribulation), mid-tribulation rapture (also known as the “pre-

wrath rapture”) (the rapture happens at the half-way point of the

tribulation), and the post-tribulation rapture (the rapture happens at the

end (or near the end) of the 7-year Great Tribulation).

 Let’s look briefly at each one, how these views are supported Biblically,

and perhaps some issues with each. Let’s start with the post-tribulation

rapture. This one is the least supportable in terms of taking the Bible at

face value. In other words, you have to derive conclusions from

inferences made in scripture or by a combination of ideas/inferences

with no direct/overt specific scripture that supports this view. Also, in

general, post tribulationists have to also side with Replacement Theology

to get to their conclusion, meaning that the church has replaced national

Israel as the covenant people of God, which the Bible never says and

doesn’t support…, and that is all really wrapped up in how the post

tribulationist interprets the Biblical word, “saint.”

 The main lines of Biblical support for this view are hard to get to,

honestly…, but go something like this. Matthew 24:15-22, “Therefore

when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the

prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand),

“then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on

the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And let him

who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. But woe to those who are

pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! And pray that

your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. For then there will be

great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world

until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were

shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will

be shortened.”

 The post tribulationist concludes that the “elect” spoken of by Jesus in

Matthew 24:22 is the church (which quite obviously He is speaking of the

Jew) and therefore the church must go through the entirety of the

tribulation. This is about it for this position. Every other scripture support

for this view is actually not what the Bible says, but what the Bible does

not say, which is a weak argument. For example, Revelation Chapters 6-

19 don’t mention the church at all during the tribulation… Case for pre-

trib, right? Not according to the posty. Since the church is not mentioned,

there is no reason to believe the church is or isn’t there… See what I

mean about what the bible doesn’t say to support this position, very weak.

 Ok, let’s go to the mid-tribulation rapture. The mid-tribulation view holds

that before God pours His judgment (or wrath) out on all those that have

rejected Him, the church will be removed. They view the Great

Tribulation in two phases. The first three and half years being what they

call “natural” tribulation supported by the argument that the seal

judgements and trumpet judgments of Revelation are not divine

judgements but natural (not stated in the Bible by the way) and therefore

there is no need for the church to be absent for these to take place. It’s the

second half of the seals and trumpets that are the outpouring of the bowls

of divine wrath.

 This position also uses Matthew 24:29 as a proof text interpreting Jesus’

statement of, “after the tribulation of those days,” as being a statement of

shift from the natural forms of tribulation of the first half to the divine

wrath of God of the second half. The mid-tribulationist accepts what the

Bible is very clear about that God’s wrath is not for the church (we’ll

cover those scriptures when we discuss pre-trib), but at the same time

separates God’s wrath to be only the second half of the Great Tribulation.

 Perhaps instead of picking apart these first two views, lets simply look at

the pre-tribulation view and that will in and of itself present the Biblical

difficulties associated with the post and mid-tribulation views.

 First of all, we have to understand that Biblically the Great Tribulation

affects the whole world but biblically, it is not against the world. It is

against Israel. The purpose of the Great Tribulation according to Daniel

Chapter 9 is a time period when God focuses His attention especially on

Israel, dealing specifically with Israel, and is the seventieth week of

Daniel.

 Daniel 9:24-27, “Seventy weeks are determined for your people and for

your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sins, to make

reconciliation for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up

vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy. Know therefore and

understand, that from the going forth of the command to restore and build

Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty-

two weeks; the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in

troublesome times. And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off,

but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come shall

destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, and

till the end of the war desolations are determined. Then he shall confirm a

covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week, he shall

bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations

shall be one who makes desolate, even until the consummation, which is

determined, is poured out on the desolate.”

 Ok so just holding that truth alone, the Great Tribulation is not for the

church, not for the Bride of Christ. Biblically, it is for Israel (the wife of

God), and it’s not to destroy Israel but to save the Jewish people as a

whole (Romans 11:26, “And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:

“The Deliverer will come out of Zion, and He will turn away ungodliness

from Jacob”) and prepare for the restoration of Israel unto the New

Jerusalem at the end of the Millennial Kingdom. AND, the Great

Tribulation IS judgement being poured out in accordance with Daniel 9.

So, let’s talk judgement.

 Romans 5:9, “Much more then, having now been justified (judgement

satisfied) by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.” The

judgment of the Christian was dealt at the cross. Jesus’ blood is our

justification. So, Paul tells us here, judgement for the Christians has

passed and because of it we shall be saved from all future wrath/judgment

to come. 1 Thessalonians 1:10, “And to wait for His Son from heaven,

whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath

to come.” Very important, this “deliverance” is not within, that’s not the

word, it is deliverance out of… It’s the Greek word, “ryomai.”

 When Jesus was on the cross, the Pharisees said, Matthew 27:43, “He

trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said,

‘I am the Son of God.’” Same word. The Pharisees were not saying let

God deliver Jesus in and on or within the cross but definitely to come out

of the grip of the cross. More, 2 Peter 2:9, “The Lord knows how to deliver

the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment

for the day of judgment.” God does not deliver us in and on or within

temptation but out of… All that to say that the deliverance we are

promised by Paul in 1 Thessalonians 1:10 is not a deliver within the

tribulation but out of…

 1 Thessalonians 5:9, “For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain

salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 2:8-10, “but to those

who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey

unrighteousness—indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, on

every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek; but

glory, honor, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew

first and also to the Greek.”

 Zephaniah 2:3, “Seek the Lord, all you meek of the earth, who have upheld

His justice. Seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be

hidden in the day of the Lord’s anger.” Hebrew word for hidden here is

“satar,” and it’s literal meaning is “to be absent.”

 As we see the vials of judgment and wrath being poured out upon the earth

during the Great Tribulation, we hear voices come from the altar of God

declaring (Revelation 16:7), “Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and

righteous are Your judgments.” To pour judgment out on those that are not

deserving of judgment would negate the goodness of God… Genesis

18:23, “And Abraham came near and said, “Would You also destroy the

righteous with the wicked?” Genesis 18:26, “So the Lord said, “If I find in

Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for

their sakes.”” And the negotiate all the way down to ten…

 Jesus said in Luke 21:36, “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may

be counted worthy to escape (ekpheugo in the Greek meaning to flee out

of) all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of

Man.”

 I could go to types such as Lot and Sodom and Gomorrah, Noah and the

Ark being sealed, Enoch walking with God and God took him, Elijah

taken up to heaven in a whirlwind before the 7-year famine, Moses

meeting God on Mount Sinai, even John in the Book of Revelation… And

we will see this again when we get to Chapter 4, Chapter 4 Verse 1, “After

these things I looked, and behold a door standing open in heaven. And the

first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me saying,

“Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after

this.” Immediately, I was in the Spirit, and behold a throne set in heaven,

and One sat on the throne.”

 Post tribulation doesn’t work not only because it is not strongly

supportable biblically but also because it contradicts so many verses and

types and it challenges the goodness and holiness of God in His judgment.

Mid tribulation or pre-wrath rapture doesn’t work also not only because it

is not strongly supportable biblically but also because the entirety of the

Great Tribulation is referred to as the Day of the Lord, the Time of Jacob’s

Trouble, and the Day of Wrath as a totality. The interpretation of splitting

the Great Tribulation into the tribulation and the Great Tribulation fails

biblically.

 Pre tribulation rapture is mocked as those that ascribe to it are simply

called escapists and weak. Well, brother, sister, this is exactly the

conclusion you come to in order to be saved! That you need OUT of your

sin, OUT of condemnation, and there’s not way to earn it, you can only

escape it, be rescued from it, by the Savior who provided THE WAY! And

weak, no problem, I am weak…, but He is strong! Pre tribulation rapture

is strongly supportable by explicit scripture reference, consistency of

reference through the Bible and picture after picture and type after type…

 Perhaps we move on and that is best… Because in the midst of this entire

study, the most important question for you is will you be included…?