GOD TODAY?
Often God has given special messages to meet the needs of different generations: a message to help Adam and Eve after sin ruined their world, a message to the world that existed before the flood of the great waters, messages for Israel when Assyria or Babylon threatened. Jesus came with a special message for our day. Chapters 12 and 14 of Revelation summarize God's special message for us today. In this DISCOVER guide and the guide that follows, we will look at the message.
1. The Church Established By Jesus
The life and teachings of Jesus established unity of belief and close fellowship in the apostolic church that He founded. The apostles had an intimate relationship with the risen Christ. Paul gave a picture of the button closest to compare the relationship of marriage:
"I have espoused you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might you as a pure virgin to him." - 2 Corinthians 11: 2.
According to Paul, the church of being appropriated to Christ is pure woman, a bride of Christ, entirely fitting symbol of Christ's beloved church. In the Old Testament the same metaphor is used to describe Israel, even the elect. God said to Israel: "you as a bride you loved me" (Jeremiah 2: 2); "I am married unto you" (Jeremiah 3:14).
The Book of Revelation also speaks of the church as a woman:
"The main signs and wonder appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head" - (Revelation 12: 1).
The woman is "clothed with the sun". This statement suggests a church shining like the sun, because of being clothed with Christ's glorious presence. Jesus, "Light of the World" (John 8:12), shines through the members of his church, and they in turn should be the "light of the world" (Matthew 5:14).
The woman has "the moon under her feet." The moon represents the reflected light of the Gospel [shined] in ritual sacrifices by the people of God in the Old Testament. The moon being "under her feet" suggests that the reflected light of the Gospel has been overtaken by the service did Christ.
The woman has "a crown of twelve stars on her head." Stars fittingly represent the twelve apostles, men of noble character whose testimony about Jesus shines much until this day.
It is obvious, then, that information pertaining to the woman indicates that John sees in his mind change occurred from the people of God, Israel, in the Old Testament to the Christian church of the New Testament Jesus established. The sun, moon, and stars to reinforce service done by sending the light of this Christian church in sharing the Good News.
2. chronological events of Satan's Defeat
Enter the woman sets the stage for a great drama:
"She was pregnant, and she cried out in pain and agony of childbirth. Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with ten horns and seven heads, and each head had crowned. This dragon drew with his tail a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, ready to devour the child, once he is born. Then she gave birth to a son who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. her child was caught up to God and to his throne "- Revelation 12: 2-5.
Three key figures participate in this drama:
The woman, already identified as God's church.
The male child born to this woman "is snatched up to God and to his throne" and will someday "rule all nations." Jesus is the only child ever born in this world who has been taken up to the throne of God and who will one day rule all nations.
The dragon representing the devil, or Satan.
"And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels. But the dragon and his angels were defeated, and there was no longer any place in heaven for them. And the great dragon was cast out. Dragon that ancient serpent, who deceives the whole world. he was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. " - Revelation 12: 7-9.
The picture becomes clear once we understand the symbols. The devil and his angels "[exists] lost their place in heaven," they were "thrown around." Jesus was born into this world, the devil tried to kill Jesus, the male child, as soon as he was born. He failed, and Jesus was "snatched up" to God's throne.
Satan then set out to annihilate the Christian church that Christ established. John, who wrote Revelation, saw little great controversy between Christ and Satan raging on this earth. As the battle reaches a climax at Christ's crucifixion, John hears a voice shout from heaven:
"Then I heard a loud voice from heaven, saying: Now has reached savior and strength and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ: for the one who accuses our brothers in front of God has been thrown down. Well, he has thrown down the who accuses them day and night" - Revelation 12 10. (Compare John 12:31 and Luke 10:18).
Jesus won the victory over Satan at the cross. At the cross Jesus confirmed the certainty of the plan of "salvation" and provide "competent" to stand against the wiles of the devil. "Kingdom of God" and be strengthened, and the "authority" of the Savior to be our High Priest and our King was confirmed.
"Now has come the salvation" declares that the act had come into the history of the peak. The birth of Christ, the Savior of the world, has taken place (verse 5). Despite the strong temptation of Satan, Jesus lived a sinless life, died and rose victorious over sin and death (verse 10). Satan has been forever defeated (verses 7-9). Cross is exalted in all its power.
The announcement, "now has come the salvation," interests not only John, but the entire universe:
"Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them! Woe for the earth and the sea, because the Devil has come down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short." - (Revelation 12:12).
All heaven celebrated Jesus' victory. Christ blight the claims of any kind he had in the past about being Satan and his place in heaven, and the devil has ever failed and he lost his claim he says this is his world.
3. The Christian Church In Conflict With Satan
Before Jesus ascended to heaven He established the Christian church (symbolized by the woman). His death on the cross gave the Christian church the power to defeat Satan.
"They [the Christian church] overcame him [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death." - (Revelation 12:11).
Christ wants His church can pay its current capacity, ie, paying the fruit of his victory. Jesus defeated Satan completely through his church. Features three zinalitambulisha triumph in the church were continuously passing of centuries the Christian era:
"They conquered [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb." He caught up to the throne of God in order to make His blood effective in the lives of his followers. He can remove the memory of our sins can save us through His shed blood (1 John 1: 7), and give us the ability to live a healthy Christian life day by day.
"Hawakuyapenda their lives so much as to shrink from death." "Blood of the Lamb" made them willing to die for the cause of Christ; These "fear of death." God had suffered greatly so those Christian martyrs were already tortured and killed. Even young children were the ultimate sacrifice. A story is told of a Christian mother who was thrown to the lions in the Roman stadium that gave his allegiance to Christ and not to governments. Her young daughter,
rather than shrink in horror, she felt a fervent devotion welling up inside him. As the lions attacked her mother, she stood up and shouted, "I too am a Christian." Roman officials seized him and hurled to hungry beasts.
"They conquered [Satan] ... by the word of their testimony." Not words, but that is the word of their testimony, the testimony of their lives, their living witness to the power of Jesus Christ and his gospel. In the hour darkest of the Christian era, the army of Christians - from the fathers the first church to the maintenance of the Protestant church - overcame the worst the devil could throw it by force, through testimony only their powers of their lives.
Revelation 12:11 pictures the triumphant church that is full of winners: the apostles, martyrs, reformers, and other faithful Christians. Gently, honesty, courage, and their triumph has thundered down the centuries and overthrow the world.
Since Satan failed to destroy Jesus lived on earth, he now seeks to destroy Christ who lives within his church.
"When the dragon saw that he was cast down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to a son. But the woman was given two wings of eagles may fly very far from the dragon to its place into the wilderness where she is nourished for a period of three years and a half. So dragon cast out of the water as a river, her back to yakamfuata away with the torrent. But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and kuyamezaaa the water from the mouth of the dragon - (Revelation 12: 13-16).
Just as predicted, in the Dark Ages of the Christian era, Satan sent "a river" of persecution in order to make the church li "be led by the stream of the river." Satan wants to flag down Christ's influence by wiping out His church and He uses every trick his mind could devise an evil lot. Basically dragon represents Satan. But remember that Satan uses human institutions in his role as dragon to attack God's people. He used the Roman king Herod in his attempt to kill the Christ child as soon as he was born. He worked through the clergy who envy those who run for office and who crept up and harass the Saviour, and finally killed him on the cross. But that was seen as a major victory matchless Christ.
Agitated harshly against his defeat at the cross, Satan turned his wrath against the church that Jesus established. In decades [decade-ten] next after Christ's crucifixion, thousands were killed in the field of a circle situated in Rome (Colosseum), the empty areas of triangles were urban prisons that the groundwater, and in hiding in the desert.
Initially the authorities [government] secular initiated this persecution. But after the death of the apostles a gradual change crept into the church. During the centuries of the second, third, and fourth, many in the church began to change a bit the fact that were are taught by Christ and his apostles. Some leaders, fallen even began to persecute those Christians who insisted on the purity of belief [faith] of the New Testament.
Scholars estimate that about 50 million of those faithful were killed. In his bid to sink it and destroy the church, the devil sent "a river" of persecution in order to make it "to be taken [church] and the stream of the river." "And the earth helped the woman by ... swallowing the river" of persecution and false doctrine.
During the Middle Ages the persecution of [1100-1500], from the true church withdrew from the apostate leadership and hide "Wilderness, where he poandaliwa of God, that they should feed her 1,260 days" (verse 6). This prediction was fulfilled during the 1260 years of persecution from the year 538 to 1798 B.K. (One day often stands for a year in the prophecies of the Bible examples, see Ezekiel 4: 6).
During these dark centuries, faithful Christians who believe the Bible they found refuge wherever they could; for example, in the Waldensian valleys of western Italy and eastern France, and in the church of Celtic [Scottish Irish, Waweishi] of the British Isles.
4. Church of God in our day
That brings us to our day - that is, in the true church of Christ since the year 1798. As would be expected, the dragon is still angry with God's people. The great unseen war continues. In fact, Satan makes his greatest attack on the church just before the coming of Jesus.
"Then the dragon [devil] was very angry with the woman [God's church], and went to make war against the remnant of her seed - those who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus." - (Revelation 12:17).
This prophecy focuses on our day. Satan is furious; He made war against the descendants of the woman who left "- that is, against the people of God today. Check their mark zinazowatambulisha:
(1) those believers who in the last days "testimony of Jesus." Honestly they latches pure teaching of the Word of God, they witness to Christ through their lives mighty Christian.
(2) those Christians in the Last Days are prophetic. Receiving "the testimony of Jesus Christ" enabled John to write the book of Revelation (Rev. 1: 1-3). The final group of believers receive a similar gift: that is, direct testimonies from God through an earthly messenger. Their gift of prophecy focuses on God's revelation of their mission and their final destiny.
(3) those Christians in these last days also identified as "those who obey commands [ten] of God." They not only defend the integrity of the Ten Commandments, they also obey them. The love of God that is in their hearts earns loyalty given to heart (Romans 5: 5; 13: 8-10).
Those Christians in these last days follow the example of Christ and the early church to obey the commands [ten] God. This greatly provokes our enemy the dragon - that is, the devil. And he fought against the "seed" of the woman "who remain" because they testified that their love for God makes His followers they were obedient. Just as Christ commanded, saying:
"If you love me, keep my commandments" - John 14:15.
The life of those Christians in the last days shows that is possible to love God with all our hearts and to love others as we love ourselves. According to the words of Jesus, these qualities of character, love for God and love for people, sum up God's Ten Commandments (Matthew 22: 35-40).
The fourth of those commandments asks us to observe Saturday, the seventh day of the week, as the Sabbath. Because of their love for Jesus has imbedded in their hearts all the Ten Commandments [Heb. 8:10; Kut. 20: 3-17; Yak. 2: 10-12], let those Christians in these last days are Adventists.
The Sabbath is the essence of God's final message to his people in the book of Revelation, chapters 12 and 14: 6-15. All the powers of heaven are arrayed behind those Christians in these last days were described in these chapters. Living Saviour is their friend always, the Holy Spirit is doing his job "to make them stronger for power in their inner personality." His promise is sure. They will overcome Satan "by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony" (Revelation 12:11).
Is you want to be one of those Christians in these last days who "keep the commandments [ten] of God" and "hold to the testimony of Jesus"? Why not make that decision right now?
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