Sermon Central
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Revelation, Part 16 Series
Contributed by T.j. Conwell on Jul 11, 2007 (message contributor)
Summary: Study of the Book of Revelation
Revelation Part 16
Introduction
This lesson is a teaching lesson …
Today, we return to the book of Revelation in Chapter 11 to see the example of two souls who are unashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
These two souls are brought forth from God to preach the Word, showing John how he too must preach after being fed in Chapter 10 verses 10-11, and most importantly, showing us that we must continue to preach.
This message is a message for anyone who claims Jesus as their Savior, for it is our mission to help spread the message of salvation to this world.
Pray
John is now revealing to us the beginning of the turning point in the Tribulation years.
Point 1 – The Temple in Jerusalem (read v1-2)
The purpose of the rod given to John is to measure the Temple and Altar and those who worship there. The temple is being measured for our benefit, so that we may understand the size and most importantly, where the temple resides.
In 70 AD, the temple of God was destroyed by the ruler Titus, and today the Dome of the Rock now sits in its exact location. This sacred spot is considered most holy in Jerusalem, and hence why it is the center of so much controversy today. Jews, Muslims, and even Christians lay claim to this area as being sacred to them, and this world still fails to realize how important Jerusalem is to God’s plan.
In the New Testament the temple is talked about at great length. Matthew 24:15 says, “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place.”
Many may wonder what The Abomination of Desolation is. In 167 B.C. a Greek ruler by the name of Antiochus Epiphanies set up an altar to Zeus over the altar of burnt offerings in the Jewish temple in Jerusalem. He also sacrificed a pig on the altar in the Temple in Jerusalem – and this act is completely defiling to the Jews, and prophecy says that the anti-Christ will perform this very same act again, ordering that sacrifices are made to His image.
In 2nd Thessalonians 2:4 we are informed that the “man of lawlessness”, who is the Antichrist, will set himself up in God’s Temple and proclaim himself to be God.
Point 2 – The Timeline of Events (read v2 again)
The book of Revelation mentions time-periods and here is the explanation of those times:
12 months x 3.5 years= 42 months - considering a month has 30 days, 42 x 30 = 1,260 days.
This period of time is repeated time and again mainly in the Books of Daniel and Revelation. Allow me to give you several different descriptions of the dates here and back them up with scripture:
42 Months – Rev 11:2 and 13:5
1260 days – Rev 11:3; 12:6
3.5 years – Dan 9:27
Times, time & ½ time – Dan 7:25; Dan 12:7; Rev 12:4
All of these times refer to the Tribulation which is God’s judgment on this world; during this time God’s mercy continues to give mankind an opportunity to repent and ask forgiveness.
This brings us to God’s physical witnesses who proclaim the Gospel to all nations during this time. If you are a Christian today, these two witnesses ought to be heroes of yours.
They show God’s anointing (nothing can be done without the Lord’s anointing), they show God’s power (He can overcome anything), and they most importantly show total obedience to the Lord without fear of the world (God said He would make a footstool of your enemies in Psalm 110:1; Luke 20:43; Acts 2:35; Hebrews 1:13; and Hebrews 10:13.).
What God is seeking is these three things combined, and He is looking for that in all of us.
Point 3 – The Two Witnesses (read v3)
These witnesses receive power from God to preach the word!
If the book of Revelation is taken literally, these witnesses are two distinct individuals.
There are two because two witnesses are required to establish the truth of testimony!
Duet 17:6 “On the testimony of two or three witnesses a man shall be put to death, but no one shall be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.”
John 8:17 “In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two men is valid.”
The disciples were sent out by Jesus in two’s. Mark 6:7 says “Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village. Calling the Twelve to him, he sent them out two by two and gave them authority over evil spirits.”
In understanding who these two witnesses are, we have confirmation of one of them. Malachi 4:5 declares, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.”
