BROAD ANGLE

Why is it that almost every second preacher and religious program deal with the 666, the beast, Antichrist, tribulation, rapture, the lake of fire, Armageddon, the seven headed dragon, the four horsemen of the Apocalypse... the list is too long?

Perhaps, the Book of Revelations is in the biblical canon for a purpose? Luther did not want it to be included and for about 500 years this book was not part of the Bible, why? Too confusing? Perhaps? many trailed the events John writes about and got lost. One goes on and everything neatly fits and then... oops. Something does not jive. We start all over again and then oops again.


Is the Book of Revelations there for a test?

Note: John is not the beloved disciple of Christ, but another John. Most do not know it. In the Gospel and his letters John the beloved writes about God's love. Did God all of a sudden change His beloved disciple (John) Yohannan into a vengeful and angry man?

Some interpret that the first Christ is the loving Lamb of God laying down His life for the world, but the second Christ is the judge with the sword in hand, mounted on the white horse or with the flaming sword protruding from  his mouth.

The lamb changes into a lion even the Lion of Judah. Perhaps? In my humble opinion, so far, John Hagee explains the Book of Revelations the best. It makes sense, other trail behind him.

Nevertheless, the question remains, why so many go into it and quote it so much? If I were the anti-Christ I would have been spooked by now. One one hand the antiChrist supposedly is of a superior intellect, while on the other we must outsmart him. To me it it's a game of wits I suppose.  

Blood reaching horses' bridles is not exactly literal; and the list goes on (Revelations 14:6-8).

And I saw another angel flying in mid-heaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; and he said with a loud voice, "Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters." And another angel, a second one, followed, saying, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who has made all the nations drink of the wine of the passion of her immorality."

Do angels preach the gospel? The horses' bridle and blood, the seven headed dragon and an angel preaching the Gospel... Put these things together and you end up in a wrong place because in Acts 10 an angel tells Cornelius to send for a preacher called Simon Peter at Joppa. Angels don't teach, they only transmit God's direct word. Muhammad supposedly received Koran from angel Gabriel. Right there is an error because angels do not instruct nor teach. Human beings preach to other human beings, just like lioness teaches her cubs how to hunt.

How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? (Romans 10:14) 

Have ever you seen a dragon with two heads, yes, I have seen siamese snakes and other reptiles, but seven. You say allegory, simile, Greek mythology. Got ya. How far the metaphor can go? Do you know or expect all those on TV to explain. Tell me about that one third of the supposedly fallen angels. From which amount do you subtract that 1/3, from myriads?

My opinion? It's a waste of precious time because Jesus clearly stated, in Matthew 6:34, 

"So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

Let tomorrow take care of its self. Grow in the knowledge of truth today. Are there not 12 hours in the day? Walk in light and let the darkness of tomorrow handle itself.

Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.  And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; they have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name" (Revelations 14:9-11). 

My Lord! God seems to have the same hangups we have. He is vengeful and sadistic, He enjoys watching torments, fire, brimstone not just for one day, but forever and ever unabated; and His angels do too.

Watching the torture of those who did not accept Christ, the way John said they aught to, is something one really does not understand. Would you, a father, do that to your own children? If you do than you have a real problem; not God. 

There are the tares, which shall be permanently burned up in Gehenna, which is not forever, but in an instant because it is not the earthly kind of fire, but eternal or timeless fire. It is that fire that which Elijah called from heaven which incinerated everything in one instant (1 Kings 18). In other words, spiritual fire uses no time frame. The timeless God or the Eternal One uses timeless eternal tools.

Also the field will be no more, destroyed with an intense heat (2 Peter). The harvest is of His seed the good seed, His sons. Jesus said that after resurrection we shall be like angels. Like the angel (of Manoah in the book of Judges 13) who ascended to heaven in the flame. Fire did not scorch the angel, the wind, spirit, flame the ministering spirit and messenger. 

Matthew 22:30, Mark 12:25 and Luke 20:36 speak of us being the sons of resurrection and very much like angels, no more subject to flames and torments of which John of the Apocalypse speaks. 
    

Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus(Revelations 14: 12).

Hold on boy... Are you suggesting that if the saint falls he or she can't get up? There is no repentance? This holding on, IN FEAR, is not the Perfect Love (God the Father) who casts out ALL FEAR. 

Heaven will not be filled with those that barely made it by the skin of their teeth, trembling, hoping for mercy to be extracted from a "sadistic despot" this John portrays; or, for mercy that graciously flows from the Almighty Father whom John the Beloved proclaimed as being LOVE. Will the Father torment you because He Himself had not drawn you to the Son? (John 6:44)

Resurrection belongs to His seed, His sons and *daughters (*by then genders won't play any role, even daughters will be called His sons.) 

No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day (John 6:44).