Pentecost—2011

Fred R. Coulter—June 12, 2011

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Greetings, brethren! Welcome to the Feast of Pentecost 2011. Time marches on and we’re getting that much closer to the Kingdom of God. We also know and understand that we’re living in the last days, and the last days bring a lot of perilous times and difficulties and things. We have seen those, but the main thing that we need to do is keep our minds on the goal—and that goal is pictured by Pentecost!

Let’s begin by going to Leviticus 23; we always go here to start because this is where all the Holy Days are listed in the Bible. God deliberately put them there for a very specific reason and purpose so that it would take faith to know and understand exactly what these days mean. It’s so easy to just go ahead and say, ‘Well, all of these things have been fulfilled, the law has been done away; we’re not required to keep those.’ or ‘It’s for the Jews.’

• That’s how they blind themselves!
• That’s how they miss the point!
• That’s how they have forgotten the resurrection and accepted the substitute of an immortal soul that goes to heaven.

It’s quite interesting, just like the Bible says in Isaiah 29—let’s go there first before we go to Lev. 23—here is what it is in the world today. Just a few weeks ago we saw that the Catholic Church was beatifying Pope John Paul II. Why would they do that? It’s a desperate attempt to try and shore up the attendance in the Roman Catholic Church. What do they do? They worship a dead man! We worship God the Father and the risen Christ! We have living faith in God! They have a pagan dead faith in a corpse and all of their other so-called saints that they have. It’s amazing—isn’t it?

If they were to read the Bible—oh, yes, they have the Bible in their ceremony; they bring it out and they kiss it; bow down to it; and they strip out one Scripture: ‘My text for today is…’ I want you to understand, brethren, what a tremendous blessing this is.

• This only can come from God.
• This can only come with His Spirit.
• This can only come if we’re yielded to Him to seek the Truth, the Truth,the Truth all the time.

Here is a profound truth that we always need to realize: You cannot accomplish a spiritual work—which is what God is doing in us with His Spirit and complete it to the end, to come to the resurrection—by physical means! By human endeavors! By exalting people!

Isaiah 29:11: “And the vision of all has become to you like the words of a book that is sealed, which they give to one who is learned saying, ‘Please read this,’ and he says, ‘I cannot, for it is sealed.’ And the book is delivered to him who is not learned, saying, ‘Please read this,’ and he says, ‘I am not learned.’ And the LORD said, ‘Because this people draw near Me with their mouth… [Isn’t that something! Oh yes, the name of Jesus! Oh yes, it is God!] …and with their lips honor Me, but their worship of Me is made up of the traditions of men learned by rote, and their fear toward Me is taught by the commandments of men’” (vs 11-12).

They don’t understand. That’s why Jesus said, ‘It is given to us to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of God.’ That is the secret plan of God!The secret plan of God is all wrapped up in this major Feast of Pentecost! It’s the culmination of first the Passover—forgiveness of sin, justification by faith through the blood of Jesus Christ and His resurrection. Then to put sin out of our lives through Christ and His Spirit and put in the righteousness of God. Then there are seven weeks to the harvest and we come down to Pentecost. That’s this day!

God says, v 14: “‘Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do again a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder…’” Brethren, that’s the work of the Church! That’s the work of preparing a people for the resurrection! The world can’t see it. The world doesn’t know it. Yet, right in the their midst, here we are. He’s called the weak. He’s called those who are ‘counted as nothing.’ He has called us to overcome and change, so that at the resurrection and the return to the earth, we can rule the world with Christ! Keep your mind focused on that.

“‘…for the wisdom of their wise ones shall perish, and the wisdom of their intelligent ones shall vanish’” (v 14). Isn’t that what has happened? Yes, indeed! That’s what’s wrong with the world. We are made ‘wisdom unto God’ through Christ, because of God’s wisdom, because of God’s Spirit. That’s what this day pictures, the receiving of the Spirit of God and the finality of it at the resurrection.

We find that in order to determine this day, it must be counted and it begins with the day after the Sabbath during the Feast of Unleavened Bread and is always within the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The first day of the count is the Wave Sheaf Offering, which is the ascension of the resurrected Christ, Who was resurrected toward the end of the Sabbath. It’s very interesting the way this is. It tells what it would be, how to do it and then we are to number seven weeks. That seven weeks pictures the harvest of the seven churches.

Now, there’s another Pentecost harvest which pictures the intervention harvest of God in the end-time. That will probably be far more than have been converted all the way down through the history since the Church was founded on the Day of Pentecost in 30_A.D.

Leviticus 23—He’s going to take the premiere sheaf of the firstfruits to the priest that is to be accepted for us! This opened the way for us to have contact with God the Father and Jesus Christ in heaven above. Then it tells how to count.

Leviticus 23:15: “And you shall count to you beginning with the next day after the Sabbath, beginning with the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven Sabbaths shall be complete…. [A complete week ending in the Sabbath.] …Even unto the day after the seventh Sabbath you shall number fifty days. And you shall offer a new grain offering to the LORD” (vs 15-16).

Then He says, for the Feast of Pentecost; here’s something interesting for us to understand and to know. Only with peace offerings was the meal offering, or the grain offering, offered made with leaven. Here we have this right here, v 17: “You shall bring out of your homes… [everyone was to bring identical loaves] …two wave loaves of two tenth parts. They shall be of fine flour. They shall be baked with leaven, They are the firstfruits to the LORD.” That’s us, brethren! We are the Church of the Firstfruits! We are the Church of the Firstborn! That’s only going to happen with the resurrection.

This day pictures a tremendous thing, brethren!

• Our hope!
• Our calling!
• Our goal!
• Our finality!

To be changed in a moment, in a twinkling of an eye,’ to be raised from the dead! That’s going to be a spectacular event. Why are they made with leaven? That ties in with the parable in Matt. 13:33, that a woman was to take leaven in put in three measures of flour until it leavened the whole thing.

The key to understanding is this: Only during the Feast of Unleavened Bread is leaven a type of sin. In this case, leaven is a type the unseen work of the Holy Spirit within the individual. Then when it’s leavened and baked it is permanently changed. That pictures the resurrection. This was quite a ceremony that was to be done there. Then He talks about the sacrifices that were to be brought to the temple and so forth.

Verse 21: “And you shall proclaim on the same day that it may be a Holy convocation to you. You shall do no servile work therein. It shall be a statute forever in all your dwellings throughout your generations. And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not completely reap the corners of your field. And the gleaning of your harvest you shall not gather. But you shall leave them for the poor and for the stranger. I am the LORD your God” (vs 21-22).

So, God cares and loves everyone. But what God loves more than anything else is that we love Him with all our heart, mind, soul and being; that we keep His commandments spiritually. That’s more pleasing to God than anything else.

Brethren, we know that they had the offerings that they gave as sacrifices at the altar, special offerings for the Day of Pentecost. Likewise, we take up an offering, too, because God tells us to. He says in Deut. 16 ‘three times a year shall all your males appear before the Lord’: the Feast of Unleavened Bread, Feast of Weeks—that’s what this day is, the Feast of the seven weeks of the harvest. ‘We shall not appear before the Lord empty.’

But what we are to do is count our blessings. Thank God for what He has given. And as we give in an offering, to show our dedication to God and our love toward God, is with an attitude of thanksgiving and praise and worship and love toward God, and dedication toward the day when He will give us eternal life. That’s really a tremendous thing, brethren!

(pause to take up the offering)

Now, let’s continue on and see that just as there was a type that we saw with the seven weeks of the harvest, so likewise, it pictures Israel coming to Mt. Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments which God gave on the Feast of Pentecost.

At that time, Israel was the firstfruits among the nations. It was an awesome sight in the giving of the Ten Commandments. This is what God wanted them to live by. And He would bless them:

• He would bless their land
• He would bless their crops
• He would bless their children
• He would bless everything that they set their hand to do

They would have so many blessings coming upon them they wouldn’t know what to do with them. The carnal mind, even with the Law of God—but without the Spirit of God—can never really keep the things the way that they should be unto eternal life.

After giving the Ten Commandments, the people said, ‘Moses! Moses! All the lightning, all the thunder, all the clouds, all the wind, all the noise—the sound of the trumpet—we can’t stand it! You speak to God and you tell us what God says and we’ll do it.’ Well, you know what happened with that; you know the story of Israel.

Now, we come down to the time of the New Testament. We come down to the Day of Pentecost 30_A.D. when the Holy Spirit was given. We’re going to see that this was prophesied in many places in the Old Testament. Let’s come to Acts, the second chapter, and let’s see right here concerning the Day of Pentecost, the giving of the Holy Spirit of God and what happened at that time.

We need to understand this: What you have in the translation in The Holy Bible in Its Original Order, a Faithful Version is a correct translation of what was transpiring. The phrase ‘was being fulfilled’ (v 1) is a special construct in the Greek. It is called an articular participle. It is present tense: was being fulfilled. It comes from the verb ‘pleroo’—to fulfill. Let’s see what happened, because on this day—the Day of Pentecost—Jesus Christ started His Church. We will see on this day—the Day of Pentecost—is when the resurrection and completed church will be raised to immortality.

Acts 2:1: “And when the day of Pentecost, the fiftieth day, was being fulfilled, they were all with one accord in the same place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like the rushing of a powerful wind… [Just like on Mt. Sinai, the wind. But, in this case, the Spirit] …and filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them divided tongues as of fire, and sat upon each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit; and they began to speak with other languages, as the Spirit gave them the words to proclaim” (vs 1-4). A tremendous miracle took place.

Let’s see that this was prophesied, Isaiah 44, where it talks about that God is going to ‘pour out’ His Spirit. Brethren, that’s what we need on the Church today. We need the Spirit of God. We need to be motivated

• by the Truth
• by the love of God
• by the faith of God
• by the righteousness of God
  
  
  • to preach the Gospel
  • to feed the flock

regardless of the circumstances around us! Do we understand that? We always need to look to God the Father and Jesus Christ. Yes, God has chosen men to preach the Gospel. And it’s required of all those who preach the Gospel to be faithful, to properly handle the Word of God—faithfully handling the Word of God. That’s what God said in Jer. 23—‘he who has My Word, let him faithful speak My word.’

Isn’t it interesting what the Apostle Paul told Timothy: ‘You can understand salvation from the Holy Writings—the Old Testament—through faith in Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 44:1: “‘Yet now hear, O Jacob My servant, and Israel whom I have chosen’” The Church is what? The Israel of God! We have all come from that olive tree that goes all the way back to Abraham—whether we’re natural branches or grafted in branches, doesn’t make any difference. The requirement is the same (Rom. 11). The oil is pictured as a type of the Holy Spirit, the power of God! Likewise, so is water.

Verse 2: “Thus says the LORD Who made you, and formed you from the womb, Who will help you, ‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant, and you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.’” Jeshurun is Israel waxing fat, Laodiceans of the Old Testament. That’s why we need repentance continually. There are good Laodiceans; the ones who repent and are zealous. So, let’s be the good Laodiceans.

Verse 3: “‘For I will pour water upon him who is thirsty, and streams upon the dry ground. I will pour My Spirit upon your seed, and My blessing upon your offspring.’” Think of that, brethren, That goes back to Gen. 15 with Abraham—right? Where God told Abraham: ‘Look into the heavens and count the stars; if you’re able to number them so shall your seed be.’ We’re told in the New Testament, if you are Christ’s, then are you ‘Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.’ Here is the promise, right here.

Verse 4: “And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the watercourses.’ One shall say, ‘I am the LORD’S,’ and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob, and another shall write with his hand, ‘For the LORD,’ and be named by the name of Israel…. [that pictures all of the Gentiles that will be brought in] …Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer even the LORD of hosts, ‘I am the First, and I am the Last…’” (vs 4-6).

Isn’t that what Jesus said? Yes! (Rev. 1; 20). And there are various phases of the work of God being finished. The night that He was arrested Jesus said, ‘Father, I’ve finished the work that You have given Me to do.’ That was everything necessary for the establishing of the New Testament Church, for the sacrificing of the offering of His life, and His whole being as the Creator God to forgive our sins. Then He said, ‘Father, give Me the glory that I had with you before the world existed.’ Then He went through the ordeal of everything concerning the Passover; was buried and raised at the end of the Sabbath; ascended to the Father on the first day of the count to Pentecost. He’s the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

Verse 6: “‘…and besides Me there is no God.’” That is on earth. At this time the Father was not revealed the way that Jesus revealed Him when He came for the preaching of the Gospel and His ministry. He came to ‘reveal the Father.’

Verse 7: “‘And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it and set it in order for Me, since I appointed the ancient people? And the things that are coming, and shall come, let them declare it to us. Fear not, nor be afraid; have I not told you from that time; and have declared it? So you are My witnesses…. [This is a prophecy of what we read in Acts 2.] …Is there a God besides Me? Yea, there is no other Rock; I know not one.’” (vs 7-8). At the time He gave this, He’s talking about the graven images that the people were making.

Then when we come to the New Testament, we find that the Father had been revealed. Jesus commanded us to pray to the Father, ‘for He loves us.’ We have access to God the Father in heaven above. Here’s the fulfillment of what we were reading. We also find in Isa. 55 that His Spirit is ‘poured out like water’ for all of those who are seeking Him.

Acts 2—here’s the story as it develops. Here’s the temple, where all the devout Jews would come. Just think about it! Remember during the ministry of Jesus Christ, for three and a half years, miracles were happening, people were being healed, the dead were being raised, tremendous signs happened on the day that Jesus was crucified and died. There was darkness over all the land for three hours because Jesus had to bear our sins all by Himself. And the Father could not look down upon Him because of what was going on. He knew that Jesus would be faithful to the very end. The last words He said on the cross was, ‘It is finished!’ That opened the way beginning here with Pentecost for the receiving of the Holy Spirit.

I imagine that the rumors went out to the Jews in different areas and lands close by Jerusalem. ‘They stole His body.’ Others said, ‘He’s resurrected from the dead. Boy, let’s go to Jerusalem and see what’s going to happen on this Pentecost.’ And I am sure that God inspired many, many more people to come to the temple on this day so there would be the Jews and Israelites from all the countries and they would witness

• this powerful display of God’s Holy Spirit
• the preaching of the apostles
• the beginning of the Gospel going to the world

right there at the temple! He did it at the temple because that’s where He placed His name. He did it there because everyone would know this is from God! He didn’t do over in Mayan land, as some people claim. He didn’t do it up in Russia. He didn’t do it in China. He didn’t do it in Africa. He did it in Jerusalem, and at the temple where He placed His name so that when this event began, everyone would knowthis is from God! He wanted them to know in spite of the different languages that they all spoke.

Acts 2:4: “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit; and they began to speak with other languages, as the Spirit gave them the words to proclaim.” Is the Spirit of God the spirit of confusion? NO! These were languages that were understandable to the people who heard them. What do we also have? Two miracles here:The apostles not knowing those languages would in their own minds be speaking in the Greek that they understood and it would go out to all of those from the different countries and they would hear in their own language. This was a phenomenal thing!

Verse 5: “Now there were many Jews who were sojourning in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven. And when word of this went out, the multitude came together and were confounded, because each one heard them speaking in his own language” (vs 5-6). Think of it! The 12 apostles up there speaking, preaching, teaching, telling about Jesus Christ; telling them about the resurrection; telling them about the crucifixion; telling them about the promises that were being fulfilled in the Old Testament so that they could receive the Holy Spirit. An amazing thing! An amazing day!

Verse 7: “And they were all amazed, and marveled, saying to one another, ‘Behold, are not all these who are speaking Galileans?’” They weren’t educated! They’re all fishermen! How can anybody from Galilee know anything? After all the ‘center of knowledge and wisdom is in Jerusalem!’ God does things differently than people think. God fulfills His will absolutely to perfection! But in a way that people—though if they would read the Scriptures—would be able to anticipate these things, but not fully understand how it’s going to be done.

They looked at each other and said, v 8: “‘Then how is it that we hear each one in our own language in which we were born? Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and those who inhabit Mesopotamia, and Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, both Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya which are near Cyrene, and the Romans who are sojourning here, both Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Arabians… [all of them; and there were more] …we hear them speaking in our own languages the great things of God.’…. [It doesn’t tell us the whole message—does it? No!] …And they were all amazed and greatly perplexed, saying to one another, ‘What does this mean?’” (vs 8-12). This was at the temple! Remember, this is after all the miracles and the preaching and teaching of Jesus Christ for three and a half years. So, some said, ‘They’re all drunk!’ (v 13).

Verse 14: “Then Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice and spoke out to them: ‘Men, Jews, and all those of you who inhabit Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and pay attention to my words. For these are not drunken as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day…. [9 o’clock in the morning; what do you expect?’] …But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel: “And it shall come to pass in the last days,” says God, “that I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; and even upon My servants and upon My handmaids will I pour out My Spirit in those days, and they shall prophesy”’” (vs 14-18).

Then he blends in to the prophetic events at the end, but, yet, there were types of all of these things taking place during the time of the crucifixion and the resurrection. Verse 19: “‘“…And I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and vapors of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord…. [He was prophesying the return of Christ from the book of Joel. We will see how that is in the book of Revelation in just little bit.] …And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”’” (vs 19-21). That was something!

Then he tells them about Jesus; tells them about His ministry; tells them that the rulers and the people and the Gentiles have killed Him, but God raised Him from the dead! Let’s just understand something very important here—which we need to realize—when we ask the question: Who killed Jesus? All of us are involved in His death because of our sins, because He died for our sins—correct? Yes!

• We have the high priest—he pictures all the religions in the world.
• We have the government with Pontius Pilate—he pictures all the governments in the world.
• We have the soldiers who participated in it.
• We have all the people who said, ‘Crucify Him! Crucify Him!’ They pictured all the people in the world!

That’s who killed Jesus Christ! ALL! ALL! Then Peter says, after he talked about the resurrection of dead, that he would not see corruption. It wasn’t David, because David’s grave was still there.

Verse 32, Peter says: “This Jesus has God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.” Remember, this is just ten days after they had spent 40-days with Him after He had been resurrected, being taught of Him, seeing Him in glory, seeing Him in power. The first time to really witness, because Jesus told them: ‘You go to Jerusalem and wait until you’re imbued with power from on high and you are to be My witnesses until the ends of the earth.’ They still are, through the Word of God! It goes out to the whole world. The Bibles are out there and it’s going to be at least one Bible for every person; here in America it’s four Bibles per every household. Isn’t that amazing!

Verse 33, he talks about Jesus: “Therefore, having been exalted by the right hand of God, and having received the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father, He [the Father] has poured out this that you are now seeing and hearing.” This is from God! You come to the temple of God in Jerusalem, this is from God! Yes, indeed!

Then he said that David is still buried, v 34: “For David has not ascended into the heavens, but he himself said, ‘The Lord said to my Lord… [He quotes Psa. 110] …”Sit at My right hand until I have made Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”’” (vs 34-35). Then he said, ‘Do you want to hear the conclusion of this. Here’s what needs to be done, because of these mighty miracles that are being done right now, through the power of the Holy Spirit in witnessing to you of the resurrection of Christ, in witnessing to you of the ministry of Christ, and God has poured His Spirit out.

Verse 36, he says: “Therefore, let all the house of Israel know with full assurance that God has made this same Jesus, Whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” I wonder how many were out there who were still of those who cried out, ‘Crucify Him! Crucify Him!’ Remember the first thing Jesus said when He was raised up on the cross: ‘Father, forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing.’

What if you were one of those—actually you were, removed, because our sins killed Christ—who were in the mob saying, ‘Crucify Him! Crucify Him!’? Here you’re standing listening to Peter and you’re seeing all the apostles preaching and witnessing of the resurrection of Christ. One over here in this area of the temple, another one over here in this area of the temple; two more over here in this area of the temple. Why, that whole area in the temple was filled with awe of the preaching and the power of God’s Holy Spirit to witness to them. God said ‘to the Jew first.’ And yes, it was.

Verse 37: “Now after hearing this, they were cut to the heart… [I wonder how many were standing there crying, weeping, repenting, because they participated.] …and they said to Peter and the other apostles, ‘Men and brethren, what shall we do?’…. [What is it that we do in the light of this tremendous thing that has taken place.] …Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized each one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you yourselves shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all those who are afar off…’” (vs 37-39). All the Gentiles, all the scattered Israelites, all the scattered Jews. Now the Gospel is going to the world. Jesus said to ‘go into all the world; preach the Gospel to every creature.’

Now look, brethren, at the means that we have to do it today. Just hope and pray that all the Churches of God would all repent, that each of us individually—whatever we are, whatever we’re doing—preach the Gospel with strength, power, Truth and love! We’re living in difficult times and we, likewise, need to repent everyday. That’s how we overcome: with repentance and the washing of the water by the Word, the changing and conversion of our mind so that we are being prepared for the resurrection in power and in strength. Listen, this world is dying! We’ve been called to save it! That’s why this Day of Pentecost is important.

Verse 40: “And with many other words he earnestly testified and exhorted, saying, ‘Be saved from this perverse generation.’” If that was true at that day, WOW! What is it today? Are we not in a perverse generation? Yes, indeed! We’ve got to yield to God! This is what it’s all about, brethren. Listen,

• there’s the preaching of the Gospel that has to be done
• there’s the healing of the sick that has to be done
• there is the witnessing to the world that has to be done

—and growing in grace, knowledge and understanding and the changing and conversion of our mind day after day after day. We have a lot we need to do.

Verse 41: “Then those who joyfully received his message were baptized; and about three thousand souls were added that day.” What a baptism ceremony that was! I imagine that every bathing pool around the temple, they were there busily baptizing them as Jesus said. Can you imagine that?

Verse 42: “And they steadfastly continued in the teachings of the apostles and in fellowship, and in the breaking of bread and in prayers.” This is eating meals together. Don’t let a Catholic come along and say, ‘Oh, the breaking of the bread is the mass.’ The truth is, they don’t dare break those little round wafers. Isn’t that amazing! Yes!

Verse 43: “And fear came upon every soul, and many signs and miracles were done by the apostles.” That’s quite a chapter. That’s how the Day of Pentecost started in the New Testament, and that’s why it’s so important and we’re going to see that we are the firstfruits.

This likens us to the firstfruits, and we are the firstfruits because we will be in the first resurrection, James 1:17: “Every good act of giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with Whom there is no variation, nor shadow of turning.” God’s will and God’s purpose and God’s plan is going to be fulfilled the way that God wants it. Brethren, we’re part of it. With the world dying the way that it is, we need the gifts and power of the Holy Spirit:

• to preach
• to teach
• to heal
• to witness
• to warn

as never before! Verse 18: “According to His own will…”  Why are you here in the Church of God?

• Because of the Father!
• Because of Jesus Christ!
• Because of the death and resurrection of Christ!
• And the giving of the Holy Spirit!

So that you and me and all of those in the Churches of God will be in the first resurrection! And all of those down through history that likewise overcame, by His own will!  I want you to think about that! I want you to pray about that! I want you to understand that the will of God the Father is being carried out in your life!

With His Spirit, v 18: “…He begat us by the Word of Truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all His created beings.” That’s us, brethren; that’s why we’re here. This is what the Day of Pentecost is all about!

(go to the next track)

Let’s continue on and see the events in the book of Revelation as relating to the Feast of Pentecost. Remember, we are the firstfruits. There is a harvest of God that we are going to see that is going to be a great harvest. We know that the framework of God’s plan, and also the framework of the book of Revelation, is based upon the Holy Days.

We find here in Revelation 6 the beginning of the events at the end with the opening of the seals. We come down all the way through the seals—we’ve gone over those before so we won’t go through it again now—and we come to the sixth seal. This is after the martyrdom of the saints. Of course, they’re going to know where everyone is, because of the means of being able to keep track of people. They’re going to know where everyone is who doesn’t have the mark of the beast and VOILA! off goes the head! That’s why there are those who are in the place of safety, so that the Church does not die out. Going to a place of safety God is going to do the choosing, and God is going to do the transporting through His angels to those who go there. We won’t be concerned with our works to save our physical necks, so that we don’t have to go through the Tribulation!

Let’s keep that in mind. Remember, Christ suffered for us; are we willing to suffer for Him? In the midst of all these terrible events going on, there’s going to come a day when God is going to reveal Himself and we will see this is just shortly before the Feast of Pentecost.

Revelation 6:12: “And when He opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as the hair of sackcloth, and the moon became as blood… [Just like we read there in Acts 2 from the book of Joel. The signs in the heaven above.] …and the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree casts its untimely figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the heaven departed like a scroll…” (vs 12-14).

The return of Jesus Christ doesn’t happen in an instant, in one day, swooping down and the resurrection takes place and swooping back to the earth. NO! It’s going to be known! It’s going to known because the ‘sign of the Son of man’ as the sun shining in its strength from east to west (Matt. 24) is how the return of Jesus Christ is going to be. This world will know and there will be many who will understand it’s Christ! But the majority are going to be thinking it’s an invasion from outer space. All of a sudden with the sign of the Son of man, shining from the east and the west, it’s going to look like there are two suns! The earth is going to shaken out of its orbit somewhat because of the shaking of the heavens, the shaking of the earth and everything that takes place with the ripping of the heavens opened.

That’s why no one knows the day or the hour, though we know that these events are going to fall on the Holy Days, we don’t know when they will fall because everything is skewed. And we won’t know when it’s supposed to be day or when it’s supposed to be night. That’s why the Father knows.

Verse 14: “…that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the powerful men, and every bondman, and every free man hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains” (vs 14-15).

When Christ arises to shake the earth, He’s going to shake the heavens! He’s going to shake the earth! He’s going to shake the sea! The return of Christ and the events that take place—there are going to be a lot of earthquakes that take place. Remember how quickly that these things can come—in an instant! From poverty coming upon you, your prosperity is gone, evaporated Whoosh! Just like that, we’ve seen it—haven’t we?—from some of the events that have taken place: the earthquake in Japan, the tsunami and all of the tornadoes that took place earlier this year in the United States. Quite a thing to understand and remember—isn’t it? Yes! We need to keep those things in mind. That’s what’s going to happen when this occurs. Everything is going suddenly change! God is going to have their attention for a while. Because just like everything else, that ‘second sun’ is out there day after day and they get used to it.

Verse 16: “And they said to the mountains and to the rocks, ‘Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him Who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, because the great day of His wrath has come, and who has the power to stand?’” (vs 16-17). No one is going to stop Jesus Christ! No one is going to stop the things at the end as they are taking place! It’s going to be awesome, indeed!

Now then, we find a phenomenal thing that takes place. After all of that, here we have the harvest of the 144,000 and the great innumerable multitude. We know they’re going to be in the first resurrection, because it tells us they’re all going to stand before the throne of God. They’re not going to stand before the throne of God until the resurrection takes place. Here’s what happens: After God shakes the heavens and the earth, there comes a great calm. Everything is still—supernaturally still!

Revelation 7:1: “And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that the wind might not blow on the earth, or on the sea, or on any tree. Then I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God; and he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to damage the earth and the sea, saying, ‘Do not damage the earth, or the sea, or the trees until we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.’” (vs 1-3).

That means receiving the Holy Spirit. Why do they receive the Holy Spirit this way?

1. This is God’s personal harvest!
2. There are no ministers around to counsel them for baptism!
3. By all the events that have taken place!

Of the children of Israel who are in captivity, they have had to have repented. No one’s going to receive the Holy Spirit of God without repenting! They see all these great signs. They fall on their knees. They cry out to God and say, ‘Oh, God, forgive me! Forgive us for what we have done! Forgive us how we have neglected Your Word! Forgive us that we have rejected You! Forgive us through Jesus Christ! Your return is coming; we yield to You!’ That’s going to be quite a thing, brethren; that’s what’s going to happen.

Notice, here are the ones who are sealed, first of all, v 4: “…one hundred forty-four thousand, sealed out of every tribe of the children of Israel.” Twelve thousand from each tribe and it starts out with the tribe of Judah (v 5).

You can’t be one of those because you already have the Holy Spirit—correct? If you have the Holy Spirit you’re already sealed—is that not true? Yes, indeed! Then it lists all the 12 tribes with the exception of Dan. As prophesied in Gen. 49 that Dan would wait for his salvation. How that is and comes together is a completely different story.

When do you suppose that this great harvest would be? We have the intervention of God with the rolling back of the heavens. Here is a special harvest to God and what pictures the harvest, and these are going to be last of the firstfruits. This is probably going to take place on the next to the last Pentecost.

Notice, not only of the tribes of Israel, v 9: “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude, which no one was able to number, out of every nation and tribe and people and language, was standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes and holding palms in their hands.” How many millions are going to be involved in this?

Brethren, we need to understand: God is going to reserve for Himself the greatest harvest. They’ll receive the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the next to the last one, because the last Pentecost—that doesn’t mean that Pentecost is going to stop; that means the last Pentecost in the sequence of prophetic events. The harvest of God is going to be greater than anything that men can do even with the help of God.

From Pentecost to Trumpets is a space of about four months—isn’t it? What’s the rest of the world going to be doing for those four months? Everything has been shaken because of the earthquakes, because of the rolling back of the heavens. Everything is catawampus as far as time goes. There are the ‘two suns’ going everyday, the sign of the Son of man and our sun for our solar system. They’re going to become used to that extra ‘sun’ out there. Then, by time we get down to Trumpets, that’s when the ‘trumpet plagues’ begin. Just like these first five seals, they come very rapidly until we get to the fifth, sixth and seventh seals. Likewise, do we have it here with the ‘trumpet plagues.’ These open up great and tremendous things that are going to take place. Then this becomes the year of the Lord—the time of His wrath, the time of the great battles that are going to take place on the earth.

We find in Rev. 7 that the angels are now involved. In Rev. 6 it’s men against men. Now Rev. 7 it’s the angels of God against men and the demons of Satan the devil. Now the super-secret technology, which comes out of the depths of the ‘abyss’ and all of those ‘locust’ that released out of there (Rev. 8) are all demons. They join with men and they fight with men, and they give supernatural strength to men; and a super-secret weapon, which is like a scorpion. So, for five months the kings of the north and the east—all of Russia, all of that whole area, all of China, all of Southeast Asia, all of India, Pakistan and Iran—temporarily, for five months—suffer from this devastating super-secret weapon that comes from the ‘beast’ out of Jerusalem. That is the first WOE!

The second WOE unleashes the greatest army that there has ever been. We know right now the preparations are being made to build the roads, the rail systems, all of those systems. During those four months, after the devastation, where there very little activity going on, they’re repairing all of the damage and they know that they need to get to Jerusalem. God is going to bring them! He says He’s going to put a ‘hook in their jaw’ and bring them.

So, this army of 200-million is going to come! You can’t put 200-million people in one place, so it’s going to be all along the way going clear back to western China. You’re going to have armies, armies, armies—200-million! That’s amazing—isn’t it? That’s two thousand armies of ten thousand strong each. Think about that! This is going to be gigantic and devastating! That’s why there are four angels—or demons—who are bound in the River Euphrates and they are loosed and the River Euphrates dries up so the way the kings of the east might be prepared.

So, after that five months of devastating super-secret power that thebeast has, going against the kings of the north and east, after that wears off here come these armies. Likewise, they are united with demons. Likewise, they have technology never before understood in our time. Here they come killing destroying, burning, looting, killing!

Revelation 9:16: “And the number of the armies of the horsemen… [there are men and demons combined] …was two hundred thousand-thousand; and I heard the number of them. And so I saw the horses in the vision, and those sitting on them, who had fiery breastplates, even like jacinth and brimstone. And the heads of the horses were like heads of lions, and fire and smoke and brimstone shoot out of their mouths. By these three, a third of men were killed: by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone that shoot out of their mouths. For their power is in their mouths; for their tails are like serpents, and have heads, and with them they inflict wounds” (vs 16-19).

Notice this, how hard-hearted are human beings? The 144,000 and the great innumerable multitude repented—didn’t they? They received the Holy Spirit of God. But here these are dedicated, demon possessed, ready to fight, never to give up, because Satan is driving them, driving them, because Satan knows that he has but a very, very short time now. He’s going to bring them to Jerusalem, just as God said that He would bring them—‘they will come.’ As we’re going to see, that ‘sun’ that is out there—there are two suns going—is the ‘sign of the Son of man’ is undoubtedly going to come hurling toward the earth with great power! It’s going to startle all the nations! We’ll see what’s going to happen with that.

Notice this, how hard-hearted were these men! Verse 20: “But the rest of the men who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the works of their hands, that they might not worship demons, and idols of gold and silver and brass and stone and wood, which do not have the power to see, nor to hear, nor to walk. And they did not repent of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornications, nor of their thievery” (vs 20-21).

Listen, brethren, Satan the devil and human beings combined together create a great and a horrible evil! We see what is going on in the world around us today. We have seen what is happening down in Mexico where more and more there is open demon worship going on! Where even the police, in order to protect themselves from the drug gangs, have given themselves over to Satan the devil. They wear badges on their uniforms to signify that as protection for themselves because the drug lords come in and lop off their heads. Great evil is done by them!

Revelation 10—the ‘seven thunders.’ No one knows what that is because he didn’t write it down. If any man tries to tell you what the ‘seven thunders’ are. They don’t have a clue! They don’t understand! You can’t combine them with the seals and you can’t combine them with the trumpet plagues—they are separate.

Now we come to Revelation 11 and the end of the two witnesses. From the time the Tribulation begins until we get to Rev. 11 toward the end, the two witnesses are there in Jerusalem prophesying, calling down plagues on the earth.

Revelation 11:3: “And I will give power to My two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.”

• Do we have those who proclaim themselves to be the two witnesses? Yes!
• Are they dressed sackcloth? No!
• Are they in Jerusalem? No!
• Are they calling down signs and wonders and powers from heaven? No!
• Are they calling down plagues and fire from heaven? No!

Remember this: Any who proclaim themselves to be the two witnesses, you’ve got to prove yourself within a period of 1,260 days, otherwise you’re a false prophet! You have a limited ministry! Then, at that time, the beast has to kill you and you have lay in the streets of Jerusalem three and half days and all the world is going to be looking at you. Then you have to be resurrected from the dead just a little bit before the last trumpet sounds. Any who profess to be of the two witnesses, you’re not.

If you want to know about the two witnesses and Elijah, you write in for that sermon—The Two Witnesses and Elijah. It will give you understanding. One witness will be the high priest from the temple who will be of the house of Aaron. The other one will be the governor of Judea who will be of the house of David.

• God is going to be the One Who calls them.
• God is going to be the One Who appoints them.
• God is going to be the One Who empowers them.

No man dare put himself into that position to presumptuously take that upon himself! Let’s see if there will be repentance.

We come down to where, v 11: “Then after the three and a half days, the spirit of life from God entered into them and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them. And they heard a great voice from heaven, say, ‘Come up here!’…. [That’s a startling thing—isn’t it?—after everything that has gone on? Yes!] …And they ascended into heaven in a cloud; and their enemies saw them rise. And in that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; and seven thousand men were killed in the earthquake. And the rest were filled with fear, and gave glory to the God of heaven. The second woe is past. Behold, the third woe is coming immediately” (vs 11-14).

As they’re going up into heaven, v 15: “Then the seventh angel sounded his trumpet…” This is on the Day of Pentecost, one year after the 144,000 and the great innumerable multitude are sealed. It says the ‘last trump’—right? How many trumpets are there? Seven! Is the seventh one the last one? Yes! This has nothing to do with the Feast of Trumpets, because many trumpets were blown as a memorial at different times during the day on the Feast of Trumpets! Think of this: The last trump on the Feast of Trumpets will be blown just right at sunset as the day ends. Therefore, the resurrection cannot be on the Feast of Trumpets. It can only be on Pentecost because it pictures the firstfruits. These are the firstfruits that are taking place.

Verse 15: “Then the seventh angel sounded his trumpet; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and His Christ, and He shall reign into the ages of eternity.’” This comes straight from God’s throne in heaven above. God is the One Who makes this take place.

Verse 16: “And the twenty-four elders, who sit before God on their thrones, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying, ‘We give You thanks, O Lord God almighty, Who is, and Who was, and Who is to come; for You have taken to Yourself Your great power, and have reigned’” (vs 16-17). And the nations were all happy and clapping their hands and running to meet Jesus and all of the newspapers were showing the great conversions of people. NO! That’s how the world pictures that it will come.

Here’s how the Bible tells us it will come, v 18: “‘For the nations were angry, and Your wrath has come, and the time for the dead to be judged… [that’s the resurrection—is it not? Yes, it is!] …and to give reward to Your servants the prophets, and to the saints, and to all those who fear Your name, the small and the great; and to destroy those who destroy the earth.’”

As a sign that this came directly from God the Father and from the throne of God, v 19: “And the temple of God in heaven was opened and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple; and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunders, and an earthquake and great hail.” Sound a little bit like it was at Mt. Sinai? Yes, indeed! Is this part of what we’re going to see when we’re being resurrected?

Let’s see what it’s going to be; what’s going to happen, Matthew 24:29: “But immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven… [That’s right there in Rev. 6:12. That ‘Son’ when the heavens roll back!] …and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming upon the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (vs 29-30). There’s that space of time, one year from Pentecost to Pentecost, and they’re going to see Christ come. Then that sign of the Son of man is going to come quickly, like streaking to the earth to destroy it. All the nations will be upset and all the armies will be stopped in their tracks for the time being. Then, all of a sudden, right over Jerusalem that sign of the Son of man stops! Immediately there is a great sea of glass in preparation for the resurrection. The world is going to look at that.

Verse 31: “And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet… [that’s when the last trumpet sounds] …and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” Will the world see the resurrection? They’re going to think this is bonafied invasion from outer space; aliens are coming to take over the earth. It’s true! God is an alien to the world—isn’t He? Christ is an alien to the world—isn’t He? Aren’t we strangers and sojourners on the earth? Yes, because we belong to the Kingdom of God! That’s something!

Let’s see something very important concerning the resurrection, 1-Corinthians 15—the resurrection chapter. If you read it carefully, Paul says, 1-Corinthians 15:35: “Nevertheless, someone will say, ‘How are the dead raised? And with what body do they come?’” Some were saying there’s no longer a resurrection. Even during the days of the apostles, false doctrines were coming in; false teachers were bringing these things. Isn’t that amazing? That’s why we have to hold onto the Truth. Everything that happens with the resurrection depends upon the resurrection of Christ.

Verse 20: “But now Christ has been raised from the dead; He has become the firstfruit of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by man also camethe resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruit; then, those who are Christ’s at His coming” (vs 20-23). That’s not going to take place until the seventh trumpet; and that’s not going to take place until the sign of the Son of man comes down to the area over Jerusalem into the clouds.

• They will see Christ!
• They will see the Sea of Glass!
• They will see the angels taking those who are resurrected to meet Christ in the air on the Sea of Glass!

Quite a fantastic thing that’s going to take place. Brethren, that’s what we are waiting for, because at that time—for it talks about the trumpet; for the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised. Verse 47: “The first man is of the earth—made of dust. The second man is the Lord from heaven. As is the one made of dust, so also areall those who are made of dust… [We’re dust!] …and as is the heavenly one, so also are all those who are heavenly…. [Do you want full assurance that you’re going to be in the resurrection? Read this with faith, belief and conviction]: …And as we have borne the image of the one made of dust… [that’s us right now] …we shall also bear the image of the heavenly one” (vs 47-49). We are going to have our bodies transformed and made like His glorious body!

• This is our inheritance!
• This is our calling!
• This is the meaning of the Feast of Pentecost—the resurrection of the firstfruits from the dead, to meet Christ in the air!

Then Paul wants to insure the brethren exactly what things are going to be like, v 50: “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, nor does corruption inherit incorruption…. [We must be changed!] …Behold, I show you a mystery… [It is. How is God going to do that? Because we have a body made of dust, it’s a guarantee that if we’re faithful to the end we will receive a glorious spirit body! That’s a mystery, a secret of God.] …we shall not all fall asleep, but we shall all be changed, in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (vs 50-52).

What is that going to be like? Listen, all of us who have been faithful for years, and we end up in our place of safety of the grave, when someone comes to the end of their life and have lived it to the full. We have a lady—Ethel Macmillan—in Maine. She is now in her 101^st year. She wasn’t able to make it to the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread in Manchester, N.H., so she wrote a note: ‘Please pray for me. I’m suffering from the effects of antiquity.’

We start out as wonderful little babies, new, fresh, we grow, develop in life however long we live and then we die. Yet, the spirit of man goes to God, perfected with the character of Christ. And then God uses this to resurrect us from the dead and transform our bodies. Don’t look at your old, decrepit body the way it is right now. All the problems and difficulties that we have with our bodies and with our health and being made of the dust of the earth are all going to be gone and over with.

Verse 53: “For this corruptible must put on incorruptibility… [It’s like a flower that comes to its full and withers and dies. Then, it springs forth in spiritual beauty and spiritual power.] …and this mortal must put on immortality.” We are going to live forever in the Family of God.

• This is our goal!
• This is our hope!
• This is the reason for this day!
• This is why we keep the Feast of Pentecost—and keep it on the day that God has determined!

We are the firstfruits of God the Father by His own will! Think of that, brethren! Let’s be inspired! Let’s be uplifted! Let’s have determination and hope and trusting in the power of God, the strength of His Spirit, the Truth of His Word.

Verse 54: “…then shall come to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory.’…. [By the resurrection] …O death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory?” (vs 54-55). We’re more than overcomers through Jesus Christ.

Let’s come to 1-Thessalonians 4 and let’s see where Paul also wrote about the resurrection here. It’s going to happen! Those in worldly Christianity believe that this is where the ‘rapture’ took place. I never knew it until the other day that I got a book. Bob Ellsworth who sells the Bibles gave it to me. It was written in 1814, and you know at that time they believed in the ‘rapture.’ They get it from here in 1-Thessalonians 4:14: “For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, in exactly the same way also, those who have fallen asleep in Jesus will God bring with Him.”

So, they say, ‘Yes, the souls have gone to heaven.’ But they never ask the question: How do they get where Jesus is in order to come with Him? The answer is a resurrection, not a ‘rapture,’ not souls in heaven. Let’s read all the way through the rest of it and we will see that it interprets itself. That’s how we need to understand the Bible; let it interpret itself.

Verse 15: “For this we say to you by the Word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall in no wise precede those who have fallen asleep.” We’re going to see all those resurrected from the dead rise first. That’s going to be quite a thing. Here’s the Sea of Glass over Jerusalem and all the armies are going to say, ‘Boy, look, they’re snatching bodies, they’re snatching people, the invasion is taking place from outer space. We’ve got to get all the armies over there! That’s how they’re gathered to Jerusalem.

Verse 16: “Because the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout of command… [BANG! Right into the clouds. The sign of the Son of man way out there in space, then all of a sudden it comes right to the earth and then stops right in the clouds, right over Jerusalem.] …with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds for the meeting with the Lord in the air; and so shall we always be with the Lord…. [We can’t be brought with Him until the resurrection, then we come with Him.] …Therefore, encourage one another with these words” (vs 16-18).

Let’s come to the book of Revelation and let’s see the resurrection itself takes place. It’s likened to a harvest. Revelation 14:14—isn’t that interesting, 2 times 7—“And I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and one like the Son of man sitting on the cloud, having a golden crown on His head; and in His hand was a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to Him Who was sitting on the cloud, ‘Thrust in your sickle and reap, because the time has come for You to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe’” (vs 14-15). The firstfruits! The firstborn! We are called the Church of the Firstborn and Christ is the firstborn from the dead among ‘many brethren.’ Think of that!

Verse 16: “And He Who was sitting on the cloud thrust forth His sickle upon the earth, and the earth was reaped.” What happens?

Revelation 15: 1: “Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and awesome: seven angels having the seven last plagues, for in them the wrath of God is filled up.” Notice the seven last plagues comes after the resurrection, not before! If you have a Trumpets resurrection, they must come before. But here they come after!

Notice what he saw, v 2: “And I saw a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who had gotten the victory over the beast… [The beast is possessed of Satan the devil and that goes clear back to before the creation of man! Isn’t that true? It goes right back to Adam and Eve, from the time of Satan the devil.] …and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, standing on the Sea of Glass, having the lyres of God.”

When you’re resurrected, where are you going to go? To the Sea of Glass! We’re going to be standing there. This will be the great congregation. I believe we’re going to see God the Father there, because we’re all be spirit beings—right? Didn’t we see where it said there was the throne of God? Yes! And Jesus is going to say to the Father, ‘Behold, the brethren that You have given to Me!’ And the first thing, we’ll all be dedicated to God the Father Who gave us the Holy Spirit so we could become His very sons and daughters. And through Jesus Christ and the power of the resurrection, now we’re on the Sea of Glass to meet God the Father and Jesus Christ for the first time—all the saints going back through history.

Verse 3: “And they were singing the song of Moses… [That includes all of those that God specifically called; and they were very few in number indeed!] …the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, ‘Great and awesome are Your works, Lord God Almighty; righteous and true are Your ways, King of the saints. Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You only are Holy; and all the nations shall come and worship before You, for Your judgments have been revealed.’” (vs 3-4). That’s a declaration of the rest, what is coming beginning with the seven last plagues and then putting away of Satan the devil and then the beginning of the Millennium.

What’s going to happen while we’re on the Sea of Glass? Isn’t that something? In addition to seeing the seven last plagues poured out, what’s going to happen? How is it that these things are going to occur? Well, here are the promises given to us, and we have to receive all of these.

1. The saints will receive a new name—because we’re born again from flesh to spirit. At our new birth we get a new name.
2. All the saints are given their rewards—the great and the small
3. The saints will receive their assignments as kings and priests. We’re going to be told, ‘You’ve been faithful you’re over so many cities. You’ve been faithful, you’re over so many cities. However all of the rest of it fits together.
4. Then the marriage of the Lamb and the bride is going to take place.
5. Then the marriage supper of the Lamb.
6. Then all of us will witness the seven last plagues poured out on the earth.

That’s going to be something, because God says that this vengeance we’re going to see. Think of how many people died wondering, ‘Oh, God, when are you going to avenge my difficulties? When are You going to arise and fight for me?’ This is when He’s going to do it, and all will see it. We will see the Battle of Armageddon. And when the Battle of Armageddon takes place that will be finished on the Feast of Trumpets and we’ll be gathered into God’s army and we’ll fight with Christ and return to earth with Jesus and establish the Kingdom of God and the government of God on the earth.

Brethren, that’s why we’re here. That is the meaning of the Feast of Pentecost. May God

• fill you with His Spirit
• fill you with His love
• fill you with His hope
• fill you with His faith

So that you can draw close to Him. At the grand and glorious day of this last Pentecost—during the reign of men—that you will be resurrected and meet Christ and the Father and all the saints, receive your reward and immortality forever and ever! Amen!

Scriptural References:

• Isaiah 29:11-14
• Leviticus 23:15-17. 21-22
• Acts 2:1-4
• Isaiah 44:1-8
• Acts 2:4-12, 14-21, 32-43
• James 1:17-18
• Revelation 6:12-17
• Revelation 7:1-4, 9
• Revelation 9:16-21
• Revelation 11:3, 11-19
• Matthew 24:29-31
• 1 Corinthians 15:35, 20-23, 47-55
• 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18
• Revelation 14:14-16
• Revelation 15:1-4

Scriptures referenced, not quoted:

• Matthew 13:33
• Deuteronomy 16
• Jeremiah 23
• Romans 11
• Genesis 15
• Revelation 1; 20
• Isaiah 55
• Acts 2:13
• Psalm 110
• Revelation 7:5
• Genesis 49
• Revelation 8; 10

Also referenced: Sermon:

The Two Witnesses and Elijah

FRC:bo

Transcribed: 5-11-11