April 3, 2025 • 26 mins
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Speaker 1 (00:05):
You can't judge a book by its cover, but you
can learn a lot about a book from what's written
on its cover, or, in the case of Revelation, from
its first few verses. Today, on Turning Point, doctor David
Jeremiah shares how the first eight verses give us a
picture of the entire Book of Revelation, along with other
(00:25):
helpful information to introduce his message the inside cover of
the book. Here's David.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
When we get a book at the bookstore that we
want to read, there's always a preface. We read the
preface and it tells us a little bit about why
the book was written and what we can expect as
we read in the pages that are before us. And
the Bible is the same way. Here in Revelation verses
one through eight, we have the preface to the Book
of Revelation, information that you will want to have before
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you begin to deal with the incidents that are present
in this book. So on today's edition and we'll continue
it on Monday, we're going to talk about the inside
cover of the book. From Revelation chapter one, versus one
through eight, the early verses of this last book of
the Bible. Hey, friends, don't forget The resource for this
(01:16):
month is the book entitled Escape the Coming Night. It's
an updated version two hundred and ninety pages. It's beautifully presented,
and it will help you understand the Book of Revelation.
Yours for the asking when you send a gift to
Turning Point during the month of April, I hope you'll
do that. And the study guides are available on our website,
which is David Jeremiah dot org. There you can find
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all the information about the CDs they go with this series,
and also the study guides that accompany it. This is
material that you can use to help you as you
understand this book and as you share its truth with others.
All available from Turning Point, especially now during the month
of April. All right, friends, here is the inside I'd
(02:00):
cover the book, Part one from Revelation, Chapter one, verses
one through eight.
Speaker 3 (02:07):
For the first eight verses of the Book of Revelation
are the information on the inside cover of the book.
Information to help you get excited about the book and
understand what it's all about. And I just want to
follow it through and the sections you would normally find
in any book. For instance, in most books that are
written today, there's a section called the preface, and the
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preface is kind of a mini introduction to the book itself.
And the preface of the Book of Revelation is the
first three verses of the first chapter, and these first
three verses tell us, in capsule form, something about the
book itself, what kind of book it is, and why
it's important for us to be involved in its study.
Speaker 4 (02:52):
Notice that in the.
Speaker 3 (02:53):
First verse under the preface, you will see that the
book itself is a prophetic book, as the revelation of
Jesus Christ. The word revelation in the Greek language is
one that we comprehend in the sense that we hear
it often.
Speaker 4 (03:10):
Even today.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
Movies are being made with this in the title, books
are being written with this in the title. The word
revelation in the Greek text is the word apocalypse, apocalypsis.
In the Greek it is the apocalypse of Jesus Christ. Now,
when we hear the word apocalypse today, we think of
the end times. We think of tremendously frightening things that
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are coming upon this world. But literally the word apocalypse
in the Bible, the word itself doesn't mean that at all.
It has taken its meaning from the book which has
its name. But the word apocalypse or the Greek word apocalypsis,
means an uncovering and unveiling, a setting forth, a manifestation
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of So the book itself, according to the Bible, is
the revelation or the apocalypse or the uncovering of Jesus Christ.
It is the making known of Jesus Christ, so that
we can come to see him and know him and
understand him. So often when we study this book we
forget that this book is not necessarily primarily about the
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end times, though it is. That it is not primarily
for us to be able to figure out how all
these events fit together, though it will do that. The
primary focus of the Book of Revelation is that we
might come to know Jesus Christ, and that we might
see him disclosed in all of his beauty to uncover. Now,
if you read on in the verse, you will notice
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it says the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave
to him to show unto his servants things which must
shortly come to pass this prophetic book. In the preface,
we're learning now that it's a book of prophecy, is
a book about the things which must shortly come to pass. Now,
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the word shortly come to p is a little Greek
word which is translated into Greek language and takai.
Speaker 4 (05:04):
We get our word tachometer from that phrase.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
The word in Takai means something that will happen quickly
or suddenly, So in a car, a tachometer keeps track
of the revolutions of the engine, but the word in
the Greek means something that will happen suddenly. One of
the problems we face is that when we read prophecy,
we understand as we read it that people who have
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lived generations before we have lived have been reading the
same prophecy. They read in the Book of Revelation, the
Revelation of Jesus Christ, the things which must shortly come
to pass, And they asked, well, is that going to
come to pass in my lifetime? I'm sure many who
have studied this book. I have some commentaries written back
in nineteen twenty five, and they talk about things shortly
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coming to pass. The word INTAKEI means not it's going
to happen tomorrow or the next day, but it means
once they start to come to pass, there's going to
be a rapid succession of events, and it will happen
very quickly. It doesn't mean we should expect it necessarily tomorrow,
though we will learn later that we should. But the
words shortly come to pass means that when the first
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event starts, it will be a rapid fire succession of events,
one right after the other, so fast you won't be
able to keep up with them. You won't be able
to watch them. It hasn't started yet. It may not
start in our lifetime, though I believe it will. But
once it starts, folks, you better hang on with both hands,
because it's right as fast as you can take it.
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That's what the phrase means. It is the revelation of
Jesus Christ concerning those things which will happen suddenly when
he is ultimately revealed to the world.
Speaker 4 (06:41):
That's what the book is about. It's prophetic. Notice.
Speaker 3 (06:44):
Secondly, the book in the preface we learn is a
pictorial book. Three or four times in the book we
are told that these are the things which we are
to be shown a demonstration. This is not just a
book that is written in words. This is a book
that is written in pictures. It is a visible book
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that demonstrates in symbols and in images, what's going to happen.
Speaker 4 (07:10):
Notice the second verse says, who bare.
Speaker 3 (07:13):
Record of the word of God and of the testimony
of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw?
So John is going to translate for us into words
the things which he saw. He took a mental picture
of those images which he saw on the isle of Patmos,
and now he's going to repaint that picture for us
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in this book. He didn't see words written across the sky.
He saw images and pictures and the demonstration of the
future events which God gave him while he was on
the isle of Patmos on the Lord's Day.
Speaker 4 (07:47):
So the book is a picture book. It's a book.
Speaker 3 (07:50):
About the images and the things which you're going to
happen in the future. How was the information communicated? Notice
that the Bible says in verse one that the Father
gave it to the son. The son shared it with
the apostle, and he used his angel as the intermediary.
So there is a number of levels of translation here. God,
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the Father gave it to God, the son who gave
it to the Angel, and the Angel gave it to John.
And then the Bible says that it's given to John
for his servants. So there's even another level of translation
or in doctrination. All right, let's stop for a moment.
In the preface, we're learning that it's a prophetic book,
and we're learning that it's a pictorial book. It's a
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book of images. But notice, thirdly, it's a profitable book.
The third verse says that blessed is he that readeth,
and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and
keep those things which are written therein for the time
is at hand. There are basically four statements in that
one verse, and those four statements tell us the four
ways that the Book of Revelation is profitable. First of all,
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it is a book which is profitable for personal application.
Speaker 4 (09:00):
Isn't it interesting that people don't read the Book of Revelation?
They pass over it?
Speaker 3 (09:05):
I read sometimes we treat the Book of Revelation like
the priests and the Levites treated the Samaritan. We pass
by on the other side, and we do that, don't we?
Why do we do that? I personally believe that Satan
hates the Book of Revelation. You say, why would he
hate that book? Most people can't understand it. No, he
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hates the book. And let me tell you why the
devil has turned thousands and thousands of people away from
the Book of Revelation. And do you think that he
wants the people to read this book and to learn
that he himself is to be cast out of heaven,
bound in the bottomless pit for a thousand years, and
eventually cast into the lake of fire. As you're read
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in the Book of Revelation of his coming doom, you
are not surprised that he has persuaded many people to
read the book, not at all. For here's the book
that tells the end of the adversary. And if you
know that he is a defeated foe, that helps you
to be victorious over him. Here's a book that tells
you the adversary who's tempting you every day, driving you
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crazy with his temptations. He's already been assigned, he's already
been judged. We're just waiting for the execution. No wonder
he doesn't want you to read the book. And I'll
tell you another reason he doesn't want you to read it,
Because this book tells about the glorious triumph of Jesus Christ,
who is his number one enemy. No wonder he fights
against us. But it's a profitable book, and the Bible says, listen, now,
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blessed is he that readeth. But notice secondly, it is
a book that is profitable for public assembly. Blessed is
he that readeth, and they that hear the words of
this prophecy. We are to read the book so that
others will hear it being read. Now, we don't do
much public reading of the Bible in our church services today,
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and I wonder sometimes if we're missing out on it,
because that's what was done in the early assembly. Now,
public reading and exhortation was an integral part of the
usual synagogue service. For example, verse three indicates that the
public reading of the Book of Revelation will meet with
a special blessing from God. So it's a book that's
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profitable for personal application and public assembly. Notice thirdly, it's
a book that is profitable for practical admonition. Notice the
end of the third verse, Blessed is he that readeth,
and they that hear the words of this prophecy, And
keep those things which are written therein the book is
not only to be read and to be heard, but
it's to be followed There's an interesting thing in the
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Book of Revelation that I don't think is found anyplace
else in the Bible. There's a phrase that is repeated
over and over again. We have a phrase something like
it in our English language that we use in discussing things.
Speaker 4 (11:51):
Often we say, if the shoe fits wear it.
Speaker 3 (11:55):
What that means is you have given a very general admonition,
and you don't know who it's for, but you know
it's for somebody, and so you just add, if the
shoe fits wear it. Let me show you that phrase
in the Book of Revelation. Look down in your bibles
at chapter two, verse seven, he that hath an ear
to hear, Let him hear what the Spirit saith to
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the churches. Notice verse eleven, he that hath an ear
to hear, Let him hear what the Spirit saith to
the churches. Verse twenty nine, he that hath an ear
to hear, Let him hear what the Spirit saith to
the churches. Chapter three, verse six, he that hath an
ear to hear, Let him hear what the Spirit saith
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to the churches. And it's found in verse thirteen and
in verse twenty two, and in the thirteenth chapter and
verse nine.
Speaker 4 (12:44):
What does that mean?
Speaker 3 (12:45):
That means that this book is not just for us
to intellectually assimilate, but there's something in here for us
to do. And what it says, he that hath a
ear to hear, let him hear. That means if the
shoe fits, wear it. If the book is saying so
thing to you that applies to your need and to
your life, then put it on and make it a
personal practice in your own life. It's a book that
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is for practical admonition. Peter wrote in tewod Peter, chapter three,
verses eleven. He's talking about the end of the world.
Now listen to his words. He says, seeing them that
all these things shall be dissolved. What manner of persons
ought you to be in all holy living and godliness.
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In other words, because of what the book says about
the end times, we are.
Speaker 4 (13:33):
To be different people.
Speaker 3 (13:35):
There ought to be personal application and practical admonition in
our own lives. Now there's another thing in the verse
that's often lopped off.
Speaker 4 (13:43):
It's the fourth thing.
Speaker 3 (13:45):
It is profitable not only for our own personal reading
and for public assembly and for practical admonition, but it's
profitable fourth for prophetic anticipation. Notice here's another time word
in the Book of Revelation for the time is at hand.
It's getting late. Daniel in his prophecy mentions that the
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time is at hand five different times, and it is
also given to us in Revelation twenty two ten. The
time is at hand, and the expression indicates nearness and eminency.
What that means is it is approaching, and it also
means there is nothing left that has to happen before
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the events take place. And we get all caught up
in calendarizing. But what is the answer to that. Let
me tell you something. The answer is that we are
to live always with this truth in mind. We are
waiting for the imminent return of Jesus Christ. He could
come at any moment. There's nothing left that has to happen.
I can't tell you one single prophetic event that has
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to take place before Jesus comes back. He could come
back tonight. That's the teaching of the book. The time
is at hand. It means it could happen in he moment.
I hear people saying, well, Israel has to be back
in the land, and Israel got back in the land,
and well they're not back in belief.
Speaker 4 (15:07):
And you can go through all of those things. But
I want to tell you something.
Speaker 3 (15:10):
I personally believe that Jesus Christ could come back and
nothing stands in his way right now. He could come
immediately to take his church out of here. That's the
imminent return of Christ. That's what it means. The time
is at hand, it's eminent. It could happen at any moment,
all right. Now, that's the preface of the book. It's
a prophetic book, it's a pictorial book, and it's a
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profitable book. That's kind of what you find on the
inside cover of a book. Now, the next section has
to do with the people who are addressed in the book,
and that's in the first part of the fourth verse.
John to the seven churches which are in Asia. Now,
isn't it interesting that Paul the Apostle sent seven letters
to seven different churches. Did you know that in the
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Bible that we have in our hands, in the New Testament,
we have all those letters. He sent a letter to Rome,
to Corinth, to the Glatians, to Ephesus, to Philippi, to Colossi,
and the Thessalonica. Paul wrote seven letters to seven churches.
John did one better. He wrote one letter to seven churches.
He didn't work so hard, He just wrote one letter
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and sent it to all seven. And the Bible says
that he sent this letter to all seven churches. Now,
sometimes when we study the book, we get this idea
that chapters two and three are individual letters that were
mailed to seven individual churches, and the rest of the
book is kind of a general exposition.
Speaker 4 (16:34):
No, that's not it.
Speaker 3 (16:35):
The whole Book of Revelation, including all the letters to
all the churches, were sent to all seven churches. So
the church at Ephesus got the same letter that was
sent to the church at Philadelphia and all the rest
of the prophecy. Notice what it says John to the
seven churches which are in Asia. If you want to
know what seven churches they are, look in the eleventh
verse and you will find them listed unto the churches
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which are in Asia on Toto, Ephesus, and Smyrna and Pergaman,
and Thiatyra and Sardis and Philadelphia and Laya to seea.
Now some folks say, why are there seven churches? Once
again we see the prominence of numbers, where there are
more churches in Asia minor than these seven. Absolutely, there
was a church in Hieropolis that didn't get a letter
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and didn't even get mentioned.
Speaker 4 (17:21):
Why did he pick out seven?
Speaker 3 (17:23):
You keep running into the number of seven, and in
my study, I keep running into it, the prominence of
the number seven. There are seven days in a week.
I learned that the cells in your body change every
seven years. Your pulse beats slower every seven days. There
are seven primary colors. There are seven notes on the piano. Oh,
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I know the black notes, but they're half notes, and
the eighth note on the scale is an octave up
from the first notes, so they're really just seven notes.
God does a lot of things in sevens. As you
study the Bible, you cannot escape It was in our
family devotions we're reading in the Book of Joshua, and
I discovered in the Book of Joshua that at the
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fall of Jericho there were seven priests at the head
of the march, seven trumpets, and on the seventh day
they marched around the city seven times.
Speaker 4 (18:16):
That's amazing to me.
Speaker 3 (18:18):
There are seven feasts of Jehovah Leviticus, Chapter twenty three,
seven sayings from the Cross, seven secrets, in the Kingdom
Parables Matthew thirteen. If you start sensitizing your mind to seven,
you'll find them everywhere.
Speaker 4 (18:32):
Why seven is the number of completeness.
Speaker 3 (18:35):
It's the number that says it's finished, it's total, it's entire.
And the seven churches you see are listed not because
they're the only churches involved, but because they're representative of
all the churches, and they represent the fullness of the
message to every single church, both in that time and
in this time. The reason that these churches are selected
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is that they form a rough circle, and in the
midst of that circle, John the Prophet sees Jesus standing
in his priestly garb, taking note of all that's going on.
If you look on a map, you'll see that those
churches are around in a circle. And the picture John
paints later on is Jesus standing in the midst of
his churches in the priestly garb, and he's looking around
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taking note of everything that's going on in the church,
just as he does today in our church and in
all churches. Tradition says that it was Domitian who sent
John to the Isle of Patmos, a Roman penal colony
on the coast of Asia Minor, this being the location
of John's exile while he was writing the book. It's
not surprising that the word C sea c is found
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in the book twenty six times.
Speaker 4 (19:44):
That's about all John had to look at.
Speaker 3 (19:46):
He saw the sea everywhere he looked, and he incorporated
into his revelation. John was the last of the apostles
to die. It is evident from the ninth verse of
this prophecy that John was acquainted with the churches to
which he was writing. Notice I, John, who am your
brother and companion in tribulation? John knew a lot of
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these people. He was friends with them, and as he
wrote to them, he understood what they were going through
and what they were experiencing in the persecution of that day.
So that's the people addressed in the book. Those are
the personality, if you will. Sometimes in a modern book,
that's in the section called acknowledgments, the people who are involved.
All right, now, John's taking care of that. We're looking
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on the inside cover. Let's take another look. Now, let's
look at the publishers of the book. Who published this book?
Where did it come from? Well, it's Triune publishers. Triune
publishers from heaven. Notice verses four and following John to
the seven churches which are in asia grace, unto you
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in peace, from Him which is and which was, and
which is to come, and from the seven spirits which
are before his throne. And from Jesus Christ to his
the faithful Witness, and the first Begotten from the dead,
and the Prince of the kings of the earth. Unto
Him that loved us and washed us from our sins
in his own blood. Here's the Trinity. The book is
from God, the Father, God the Spirit, and God the Son.
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Now let me show that to you because it's exciting.
First of all, from God the Father, John says, this
book is from Him who is and who was, and
who comes. That's the way it is in the text.
It's not his to come, but he is, he was,
and he will be. That's what it means. He's the
eternal God, he who was and who is and who comes,
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the lord over history, past, present in future. This is
the one who describes himself in the Old Testament in
these words, I am that I am, not.
Speaker 4 (21:50):
I was that I was, or I shall be that
I shall be.
Speaker 3 (21:54):
But I am that I am the ever present God.
You say, how do you know this is God the Father,
not God the Son. Well, I know it's not God
the Son because in verse five it says and from
Jesus Christ, so he's listed separately. So this is God
the Father, No, it is. Secondly, it's God the Holy
Spirit and from the seven spirits that are before the Throne.
Speaker 4 (22:17):
The book is.
Speaker 3 (22:17):
Published first of all by God the Father, and secondly
by God the Holy Spirit. You say, pastor, here's that
number seven again, the seven spirits which are before the throne.
That has to do with the fullness of the Holy Spirit,
the plenitude of the Holy Spirit. It has to do
with the power and diversity of the Holy Spirit. It
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speaks of all the various characteristics of the Spirit of
God holds your place in revelation. I won't run you
through the scripture much, but I want you to see
in the Book of Isaiah that there are seven characteristics
of the Spirit of the Lord. Isaiah chapter eleven. Turn
quickly there, will you please, Isaiah chapter eleven, and in
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verses one and two, you will find a listing of
the sevenfold characteristic of the Holy Spirit. It's exciting to
see it as it's here, and there came forth a
rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch
shall grow out of his roots, and the Spirit of
the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of Wisdom
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and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit
of Knowledge, and the Fear of the Lord. Notice, look
down the list. The Spirit of the Lord number one,
the Spirit of Wisdom number two, the Spirit of Understanding
number three, the Spirit of counsel number four, the Spirit
of Might number five, the Spirit of Knowledge number six,
and the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord number seven,
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the sevenfold Spirit of the Lord, the plenitude.
Speaker 4 (23:44):
Of the Spirit, all of it.
Speaker 3 (23:45):
The book is published by God the Father, and it's
published by God the Holy Spirit.
Speaker 2 (23:52):
And we're only halfway through this introductory lesson, and we'll
finish it up on Monday. I hope you'll join us then.
In the meantime, I've never been a better time for
you to get back to church. If you're not going
to church, you should begin find a church that honors
the Word of God and where Jesus Christ is lifted
up and get involved. This book is a reminder to
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us that churches are important in the last Book of
the Bible. It's three chapters of letters to actual churches
that existed when John was penning these words. The church
is important. It's God's plan for you and for me.
And you can't do well as a Christian if you
boycott the church. So please this weekend make the church
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your priority and watch us on television if you can
do it in the off hours, and be sure to
join us next Monday as we continue our discussion of
Escape the Coming Night right here on Turning Point.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
Our message today came to you from Shadow Mountain Community
Church and senior pastor, doctor David Jeremiah. Turning Point is
also on radio and TV this weekend. To learn where
to find it, visit our website David Jeremiah dot org,
slash Radio. That's Davidjeremiah dot org, slash Radio, or call
eight hundred nine four seven nineteen ninety three ask for
(25:18):
your copy of David's best selling in depth book on revelation,
Escape the Coming Night. It's yours for a gift of
any amount. You can also purchase the Jeremiah Study Bible
in the English Standard, New International and New King James version,
complete with notes and articles from doctor Jeremiah's decades of study.
What is God doing in your life as a result
(25:38):
of this ministry? Write to tell us at Turning Point
PO Box thirty eight thirty eight, San Diego, California, nine
two one sixty three. This is David Michael Jeremiah. Join
us Monday as we continue the series Escape the Coming
Night on Turning Point with Doctor David Jeremiah
You can't judge a book by its cover, but you
can learn a lot about a book from what's written
on its cover, or, in the case of Revelation, from
its first few verses. Today, on Turning Point, doctor David
Jeremiah shares how the first eight verses give us a
picture of the entire Book of Revelation, along with other
(00:25):
helpful information to introduce his message the inside cover of
the book. Here's David.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
When we get a book at the bookstore that we
want to read, there's always a preface. We read the
preface and it tells us a little bit about why
the book was written and what we can expect as
we read in the pages that are before us. And
the Bible is the same way. Here in Revelation verses
one through eight, we have the preface to the Book
of Revelation, information that you will want to have before
(00:56):
you begin to deal with the incidents that are present
in this book. So on today's edition and we'll continue
it on Monday, we're going to talk about the inside
cover of the book. From Revelation chapter one, versus one
through eight, the early verses of this last book of
the Bible. Hey, friends, don't forget The resource for this
(01:16):
month is the book entitled Escape the Coming Night. It's
an updated version two hundred and ninety pages. It's beautifully presented,
and it will help you understand the Book of Revelation.
Yours for the asking when you send a gift to
Turning Point during the month of April, I hope you'll
do that. And the study guides are available on our website,
which is David Jeremiah dot org. There you can find
(01:39):
all the information about the CDs they go with this series,
and also the study guides that accompany it. This is
material that you can use to help you as you
understand this book and as you share its truth with others.
All available from Turning Point, especially now during the month
of April. All right, friends, here is the inside I'd
(02:00):
cover the book, Part one from Revelation, Chapter one, verses
one through eight.
Speaker 3 (02:07):
For the first eight verses of the Book of Revelation
are the information on the inside cover of the book.
Information to help you get excited about the book and
understand what it's all about. And I just want to
follow it through and the sections you would normally find
in any book. For instance, in most books that are
written today, there's a section called the preface, and the
(02:31):
preface is kind of a mini introduction to the book itself.
And the preface of the Book of Revelation is the
first three verses of the first chapter, and these first
three verses tell us, in capsule form, something about the
book itself, what kind of book it is, and why
it's important for us to be involved in its study.
Speaker 4 (02:52):
Notice that in the.
Speaker 3 (02:53):
First verse under the preface, you will see that the
book itself is a prophetic book, as the revelation of
Jesus Christ. The word revelation in the Greek language is
one that we comprehend in the sense that we hear
it often.
Speaker 4 (03:10):
Even today.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
Movies are being made with this in the title, books
are being written with this in the title. The word
revelation in the Greek text is the word apocalypse, apocalypsis.
In the Greek it is the apocalypse of Jesus Christ. Now,
when we hear the word apocalypse today, we think of
the end times. We think of tremendously frightening things that
(03:34):
are coming upon this world. But literally the word apocalypse
in the Bible, the word itself doesn't mean that at all.
It has taken its meaning from the book which has
its name. But the word apocalypse or the Greek word apocalypsis,
means an uncovering and unveiling, a setting forth, a manifestation
(03:55):
of So the book itself, according to the Bible, is
the revelation or the apocalypse or the uncovering of Jesus Christ.
It is the making known of Jesus Christ, so that
we can come to see him and know him and
understand him. So often when we study this book we
forget that this book is not necessarily primarily about the
(04:18):
end times, though it is. That it is not primarily
for us to be able to figure out how all
these events fit together, though it will do that. The
primary focus of the Book of Revelation is that we
might come to know Jesus Christ, and that we might
see him disclosed in all of his beauty to uncover. Now,
if you read on in the verse, you will notice
(04:38):
it says the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave
to him to show unto his servants things which must
shortly come to pass this prophetic book. In the preface,
we're learning now that it's a book of prophecy, is
a book about the things which must shortly come to pass. Now,
(04:58):
the word shortly come to p is a little Greek
word which is translated into Greek language and takai.
Speaker 4 (05:04):
We get our word tachometer from that phrase.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
The word in Takai means something that will happen quickly
or suddenly, So in a car, a tachometer keeps track
of the revolutions of the engine, but the word in
the Greek means something that will happen suddenly. One of
the problems we face is that when we read prophecy,
we understand as we read it that people who have
(05:28):
lived generations before we have lived have been reading the
same prophecy. They read in the Book of Revelation, the
Revelation of Jesus Christ, the things which must shortly come
to pass, And they asked, well, is that going to
come to pass in my lifetime? I'm sure many who
have studied this book. I have some commentaries written back
in nineteen twenty five, and they talk about things shortly
(05:50):
coming to pass. The word INTAKEI means not it's going
to happen tomorrow or the next day, but it means
once they start to come to pass, there's going to
be a rapid succession of events, and it will happen
very quickly. It doesn't mean we should expect it necessarily tomorrow,
though we will learn later that we should. But the
words shortly come to pass means that when the first
(06:11):
event starts, it will be a rapid fire succession of events,
one right after the other, so fast you won't be
able to keep up with them. You won't be able
to watch them. It hasn't started yet. It may not
start in our lifetime, though I believe it will. But
once it starts, folks, you better hang on with both hands,
because it's right as fast as you can take it.
(06:32):
That's what the phrase means. It is the revelation of
Jesus Christ concerning those things which will happen suddenly when
he is ultimately revealed to the world.
Speaker 4 (06:41):
That's what the book is about. It's prophetic. Notice.
Speaker 3 (06:44):
Secondly, the book in the preface we learn is a
pictorial book. Three or four times in the book we
are told that these are the things which we are
to be shown a demonstration. This is not just a
book that is written in words. This is a book
that is written in pictures. It is a visible book
(07:06):
that demonstrates in symbols and in images, what's going to happen.
Speaker 4 (07:10):
Notice the second verse says, who bare.
Speaker 3 (07:13):
Record of the word of God and of the testimony
of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw?
So John is going to translate for us into words
the things which he saw. He took a mental picture
of those images which he saw on the isle of Patmos,
and now he's going to repaint that picture for us
(07:33):
in this book. He didn't see words written across the sky.
He saw images and pictures and the demonstration of the
future events which God gave him while he was on
the isle of Patmos on the Lord's Day.
Speaker 4 (07:47):
So the book is a picture book. It's a book.
Speaker 3 (07:50):
About the images and the things which you're going to
happen in the future. How was the information communicated? Notice
that the Bible says in verse one that the Father
gave it to the son. The son shared it with
the apostle, and he used his angel as the intermediary.
So there is a number of levels of translation here. God,
(08:11):
the Father gave it to God, the son who gave
it to the Angel, and the Angel gave it to John.
And then the Bible says that it's given to John
for his servants. So there's even another level of translation
or in doctrination. All right, let's stop for a moment.
In the preface, we're learning that it's a prophetic book,
and we're learning that it's a pictorial book. It's a
(08:31):
book of images. But notice, thirdly, it's a profitable book.
The third verse says that blessed is he that readeth,
and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and
keep those things which are written therein for the time
is at hand. There are basically four statements in that
one verse, and those four statements tell us the four
ways that the Book of Revelation is profitable. First of all,
(08:55):
it is a book which is profitable for personal application.
Speaker 4 (09:00):
Isn't it interesting that people don't read the Book of Revelation?
They pass over it?
Speaker 3 (09:05):
I read sometimes we treat the Book of Revelation like
the priests and the Levites treated the Samaritan. We pass
by on the other side, and we do that, don't we?
Why do we do that? I personally believe that Satan
hates the Book of Revelation. You say, why would he
hate that book? Most people can't understand it. No, he
(09:25):
hates the book. And let me tell you why the
devil has turned thousands and thousands of people away from
the Book of Revelation. And do you think that he
wants the people to read this book and to learn
that he himself is to be cast out of heaven,
bound in the bottomless pit for a thousand years, and
eventually cast into the lake of fire. As you're read
(09:48):
in the Book of Revelation of his coming doom, you
are not surprised that he has persuaded many people to
read the book, not at all. For here's the book
that tells the end of the adversary. And if you
know that he is a defeated foe, that helps you
to be victorious over him. Here's a book that tells
you the adversary who's tempting you every day, driving you
(10:11):
crazy with his temptations. He's already been assigned, he's already
been judged. We're just waiting for the execution. No wonder
he doesn't want you to read the book. And I'll
tell you another reason he doesn't want you to read it,
Because this book tells about the glorious triumph of Jesus Christ,
who is his number one enemy. No wonder he fights
against us. But it's a profitable book, and the Bible says, listen, now,
(10:33):
blessed is he that readeth. But notice secondly, it is
a book that is profitable for public assembly. Blessed is
he that readeth, and they that hear the words of
this prophecy. We are to read the book so that
others will hear it being read. Now, we don't do
much public reading of the Bible in our church services today,
(10:54):
and I wonder sometimes if we're missing out on it,
because that's what was done in the early assembly. Now,
public reading and exhortation was an integral part of the
usual synagogue service. For example, verse three indicates that the
public reading of the Book of Revelation will meet with
a special blessing from God. So it's a book that's
(11:16):
profitable for personal application and public assembly. Notice thirdly, it's
a book that is profitable for practical admonition. Notice the
end of the third verse, Blessed is he that readeth,
and they that hear the words of this prophecy, And
keep those things which are written therein the book is
not only to be read and to be heard, but
it's to be followed There's an interesting thing in the
(11:38):
Book of Revelation that I don't think is found anyplace
else in the Bible. There's a phrase that is repeated
over and over again. We have a phrase something like
it in our English language that we use in discussing things.
Speaker 4 (11:51):
Often we say, if the shoe fits wear it.
Speaker 3 (11:55):
What that means is you have given a very general admonition,
and you don't know who it's for, but you know
it's for somebody, and so you just add, if the
shoe fits wear it. Let me show you that phrase
in the Book of Revelation. Look down in your bibles
at chapter two, verse seven, he that hath an ear
to hear, Let him hear what the Spirit saith to
(12:17):
the churches. Notice verse eleven, he that hath an ear
to hear, Let him hear what the Spirit saith to
the churches. Verse twenty nine, he that hath an ear
to hear, Let him hear what the Spirit saith to
the churches. Chapter three, verse six, he that hath an
ear to hear, Let him hear what the Spirit saith
(12:38):
to the churches. And it's found in verse thirteen and
in verse twenty two, and in the thirteenth chapter and
verse nine.
Speaker 4 (12:44):
What does that mean?
Speaker 3 (12:45):
That means that this book is not just for us
to intellectually assimilate, but there's something in here for us
to do. And what it says, he that hath a
ear to hear, let him hear. That means if the
shoe fits, wear it. If the book is saying so
thing to you that applies to your need and to
your life, then put it on and make it a
personal practice in your own life. It's a book that
(13:08):
is for practical admonition. Peter wrote in tewod Peter, chapter three,
verses eleven. He's talking about the end of the world.
Now listen to his words. He says, seeing them that
all these things shall be dissolved. What manner of persons
ought you to be in all holy living and godliness.
(13:29):
In other words, because of what the book says about
the end times, we are.
Speaker 4 (13:33):
To be different people.
Speaker 3 (13:35):
There ought to be personal application and practical admonition in
our own lives. Now there's another thing in the verse
that's often lopped off.
Speaker 4 (13:43):
It's the fourth thing.
Speaker 3 (13:45):
It is profitable not only for our own personal reading
and for public assembly and for practical admonition, but it's
profitable fourth for prophetic anticipation. Notice here's another time word
in the Book of Revelation for the time is at hand.
It's getting late. Daniel in his prophecy mentions that the
(14:08):
time is at hand five different times, and it is
also given to us in Revelation twenty two ten. The
time is at hand, and the expression indicates nearness and eminency.
What that means is it is approaching, and it also
means there is nothing left that has to happen before
(14:28):
the events take place. And we get all caught up
in calendarizing. But what is the answer to that. Let
me tell you something. The answer is that we are
to live always with this truth in mind. We are
waiting for the imminent return of Jesus Christ. He could
come at any moment. There's nothing left that has to happen.
I can't tell you one single prophetic event that has
(14:51):
to take place before Jesus comes back. He could come
back tonight. That's the teaching of the book. The time
is at hand. It means it could happen in he moment.
I hear people saying, well, Israel has to be back
in the land, and Israel got back in the land,
and well they're not back in belief.
Speaker 4 (15:07):
And you can go through all of those things. But
I want to tell you something.
Speaker 3 (15:10):
I personally believe that Jesus Christ could come back and
nothing stands in his way right now. He could come
immediately to take his church out of here. That's the
imminent return of Christ. That's what it means. The time
is at hand, it's eminent. It could happen at any moment,
all right. Now, that's the preface of the book. It's
a prophetic book, it's a pictorial book, and it's a
(15:31):
profitable book. That's kind of what you find on the
inside cover of a book. Now, the next section has
to do with the people who are addressed in the book,
and that's in the first part of the fourth verse.
John to the seven churches which are in Asia. Now,
isn't it interesting that Paul the Apostle sent seven letters
to seven different churches. Did you know that in the
(15:54):
Bible that we have in our hands, in the New Testament,
we have all those letters. He sent a letter to Rome,
to Corinth, to the Glatians, to Ephesus, to Philippi, to Colossi,
and the Thessalonica. Paul wrote seven letters to seven churches.
John did one better. He wrote one letter to seven churches.
He didn't work so hard, He just wrote one letter
(16:15):
and sent it to all seven. And the Bible says
that he sent this letter to all seven churches. Now,
sometimes when we study the book, we get this idea
that chapters two and three are individual letters that were
mailed to seven individual churches, and the rest of the
book is kind of a general exposition.
Speaker 4 (16:34):
No, that's not it.
Speaker 3 (16:35):
The whole Book of Revelation, including all the letters to
all the churches, were sent to all seven churches. So
the church at Ephesus got the same letter that was
sent to the church at Philadelphia and all the rest
of the prophecy. Notice what it says John to the
seven churches which are in Asia. If you want to
know what seven churches they are, look in the eleventh
verse and you will find them listed unto the churches
(16:58):
which are in Asia on Toto, Ephesus, and Smyrna and Pergaman,
and Thiatyra and Sardis and Philadelphia and Laya to seea.
Now some folks say, why are there seven churches? Once
again we see the prominence of numbers, where there are
more churches in Asia minor than these seven. Absolutely, there
was a church in Hieropolis that didn't get a letter
(17:19):
and didn't even get mentioned.
Speaker 4 (17:21):
Why did he pick out seven?
Speaker 3 (17:23):
You keep running into the number of seven, and in
my study, I keep running into it, the prominence of
the number seven. There are seven days in a week.
I learned that the cells in your body change every
seven years. Your pulse beats slower every seven days. There
are seven primary colors. There are seven notes on the piano. Oh,
(17:46):
I know the black notes, but they're half notes, and
the eighth note on the scale is an octave up
from the first notes, so they're really just seven notes.
God does a lot of things in sevens. As you
study the Bible, you cannot escape It was in our
family devotions we're reading in the Book of Joshua, and
I discovered in the Book of Joshua that at the
(18:07):
fall of Jericho there were seven priests at the head
of the march, seven trumpets, and on the seventh day
they marched around the city seven times.
Speaker 4 (18:16):
That's amazing to me.
Speaker 3 (18:18):
There are seven feasts of Jehovah Leviticus, Chapter twenty three,
seven sayings from the Cross, seven secrets, in the Kingdom
Parables Matthew thirteen. If you start sensitizing your mind to seven,
you'll find them everywhere.
Speaker 4 (18:32):
Why seven is the number of completeness.
Speaker 3 (18:35):
It's the number that says it's finished, it's total, it's entire.
And the seven churches you see are listed not because
they're the only churches involved, but because they're representative of
all the churches, and they represent the fullness of the
message to every single church, both in that time and
in this time. The reason that these churches are selected
(18:58):
is that they form a rough circle, and in the
midst of that circle, John the Prophet sees Jesus standing
in his priestly garb, taking note of all that's going on.
If you look on a map, you'll see that those
churches are around in a circle. And the picture John
paints later on is Jesus standing in the midst of
his churches in the priestly garb, and he's looking around
(19:18):
taking note of everything that's going on in the church,
just as he does today in our church and in
all churches. Tradition says that it was Domitian who sent
John to the Isle of Patmos, a Roman penal colony
on the coast of Asia Minor, this being the location
of John's exile while he was writing the book. It's
not surprising that the word C sea c is found
(19:42):
in the book twenty six times.
Speaker 4 (19:44):
That's about all John had to look at.
Speaker 3 (19:46):
He saw the sea everywhere he looked, and he incorporated
into his revelation. John was the last of the apostles
to die. It is evident from the ninth verse of
this prophecy that John was acquainted with the churches to
which he was writing. Notice I, John, who am your
brother and companion in tribulation? John knew a lot of
(20:08):
these people. He was friends with them, and as he
wrote to them, he understood what they were going through
and what they were experiencing in the persecution of that day.
So that's the people addressed in the book. Those are
the personality, if you will. Sometimes in a modern book,
that's in the section called acknowledgments, the people who are involved.
All right, now, John's taking care of that. We're looking
(20:30):
on the inside cover. Let's take another look. Now, let's
look at the publishers of the book. Who published this book?
Where did it come from? Well, it's Triune publishers. Triune
publishers from heaven. Notice verses four and following John to
the seven churches which are in asia grace, unto you
(20:51):
in peace, from Him which is and which was, and
which is to come, and from the seven spirits which
are before his throne. And from Jesus Christ to his
the faithful Witness, and the first Begotten from the dead,
and the Prince of the kings of the earth. Unto
Him that loved us and washed us from our sins
in his own blood. Here's the Trinity. The book is
from God, the Father, God the Spirit, and God the Son.
(21:15):
Now let me show that to you because it's exciting.
First of all, from God the Father, John says, this
book is from Him who is and who was, and
who comes. That's the way it is in the text.
It's not his to come, but he is, he was,
and he will be. That's what it means. He's the
eternal God, he who was and who is and who comes,
(21:40):
the lord over history, past, present in future. This is
the one who describes himself in the Old Testament in
these words, I am that I am, not.
Speaker 4 (21:50):
I was that I was, or I shall be that
I shall be.
Speaker 3 (21:54):
But I am that I am the ever present God.
You say, how do you know this is God the Father,
not God the Son. Well, I know it's not God
the Son because in verse five it says and from
Jesus Christ, so he's listed separately. So this is God
the Father, No, it is. Secondly, it's God the Holy
Spirit and from the seven spirits that are before the Throne.
Speaker 4 (22:17):
The book is.
Speaker 3 (22:17):
Published first of all by God the Father, and secondly
by God the Holy Spirit. You say, pastor, here's that
number seven again, the seven spirits which are before the throne.
That has to do with the fullness of the Holy Spirit,
the plenitude of the Holy Spirit. It has to do
with the power and diversity of the Holy Spirit. It
(22:37):
speaks of all the various characteristics of the Spirit of
God holds your place in revelation. I won't run you
through the scripture much, but I want you to see
in the Book of Isaiah that there are seven characteristics
of the Spirit of the Lord. Isaiah chapter eleven. Turn
quickly there, will you please, Isaiah chapter eleven, and in
(22:58):
verses one and two, you will find a listing of
the sevenfold characteristic of the Holy Spirit. It's exciting to
see it as it's here, and there came forth a
rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch
shall grow out of his roots, and the Spirit of
the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of Wisdom
(23:19):
and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit
of Knowledge, and the Fear of the Lord. Notice, look
down the list. The Spirit of the Lord number one,
the Spirit of Wisdom number two, the Spirit of Understanding
number three, the Spirit of counsel number four, the Spirit
of Might number five, the Spirit of Knowledge number six,
and the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord number seven,
(23:41):
the sevenfold Spirit of the Lord, the plenitude.
Speaker 4 (23:44):
Of the Spirit, all of it.
Speaker 3 (23:45):
The book is published by God the Father, and it's
published by God the Holy Spirit.
Speaker 2 (23:52):
And we're only halfway through this introductory lesson, and we'll
finish it up on Monday. I hope you'll join us then.
In the meantime, I've never been a better time for
you to get back to church. If you're not going
to church, you should begin find a church that honors
the Word of God and where Jesus Christ is lifted
up and get involved. This book is a reminder to
(24:15):
us that churches are important in the last Book of
the Bible. It's three chapters of letters to actual churches
that existed when John was penning these words. The church
is important. It's God's plan for you and for me.
And you can't do well as a Christian if you
boycott the church. So please this weekend make the church
(24:37):
your priority and watch us on television if you can
do it in the off hours, and be sure to
join us next Monday as we continue our discussion of
Escape the Coming Night right here on Turning Point.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
Our message today came to you from Shadow Mountain Community
Church and senior pastor, doctor David Jeremiah. Turning Point is
also on radio and TV this weekend. To learn where
to find it, visit our website David Jeremiah dot org,
slash Radio. That's Davidjeremiah dot org, slash Radio, or call
eight hundred nine four seven nineteen ninety three ask for
(25:18):
your copy of David's best selling in depth book on revelation,
Escape the Coming Night. It's yours for a gift of
any amount. You can also purchase the Jeremiah Study Bible
in the English Standard, New International and New King James version,
complete with notes and articles from doctor Jeremiah's decades of study.
What is God doing in your life as a result
(25:38):
of this ministry? Write to tell us at Turning Point
PO Box thirty eight thirty eight, San Diego, California, nine
two one sixty three. This is David Michael Jeremiah. Join
us Monday as we continue the series Escape the Coming
Night on Turning Point with Doctor David Jeremiah
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