Great Conference

Check out the GREAT conference going on at the Kansas City International House of Prayer - www.ihop.org - about the Book of Revelation and events regarding the end of the age.

End of Age Ministry

I. THE BRIDAL PARADIGM OF THE KINGDOM


2 The Kingdom of heaven is like a certain King (the Father) who arranged a marriage for His Son, 3 and sent out His servants to call those who were invited to the wedding…5 They made light of it and went their ways… 8 He said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy…9 Go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding…37 Jesus said, "You shall love the Lord…with all your heart, with all your soul, and all your mind.” (Mt. 22:1-9, 37)

God's eternal purpose for His creation is to provide a family for Himself and an equally yoked Bride for His Son as His eternal companion who will reign with Him in love. God is raising up a prepared Bride for His worthy Son. Our garments will proclaim the measure of our love.

Jesus referred to Himself to as a Bridegroom and the apostles as Friends of the Bridegroom (Mt. 9:15), His Kingdom as a marriage (Mt. 22:2) and the New Jerusalem as the Bride (Rev. 21:9).

II. THE KINGDOM MESSAGE: EVANGELISM AS AN INVITATION TO THE WEDDING

3 (King)…sent out His servants to call those…invited to the wedding; they were not willing to come. 4 Again, He sent out servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared My dinner; My oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding." (Mt. 22:3-4)

A. The Father sent servants or messengers to invite people to a wedding. In this parable, Jesus reveals His burning desire for us and longing for a deep relationship with us that will last forever. This reveals the purpose of humanity, the design of history and the highest focus for ministry.

III. NEGATIVE RESPONSES TO GOD’S LOVE: PASSIVITY AND HOSTILITY

5 They made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 The rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 When the King heard about it, He was furious. He sent out Him armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. (Mt. 22:5-7)

A. Passive resistance to Jesus: passivity about God’s deep desire and great provision for us is a serious crime of ingratitude. People say that they must be practical, but there was nothing practical about creation and the incarnation. God went out of His way for love. Farms and businesses are given to us as God’s gift to experience His love and express it back to Him. No blessing or ministry assignment in God is ever to take the place of our relationship to Him.

B. Active resistance to Jesus: hostility to God’s messengers (treated spitefully and killed)

Prophetic Ministry in End Times

A. Rev. 10:1-11:13 is a parenthetical section given immediately after the world crisis described in the trumpet judgments (Rev. 8:9) and in context to the unprecedented escalation of sin and deception (Rev. 9:21). God assures us that He will provide prophetic direction and power to all who call out to Him. The events in this section cover the entire final 3½ years.

B. Review: the five chronological sections (seals, trumpets, and bowls) tell us what will happen to the Antichrist’s empire. The five parenthetical sections tell us what will happen to God’s people. The parenthetical sections mostly describe Satan’s attack against the Church and then God’s intervention to help with power, protection, direction or reward. They answer two questions. First, “Why are these judgments are so severe?” In other words, how can a God of love be so violent? Second, “What will happen to the Church?” In other words, will we be safe in God’s favor and will we be anointed to stand against deception and persecution?

C. In Rev. 10-11, John assures us that God will release unprecedented prophetic direction and great power. Joel prophesied of a dynamic prophetic move of the Spirit in the End-Times (Joel 2:28-32; Acts 2:17-21). This outpouring of the Spirit will be manifest in many ways on international, national and regional levels (Acts 2:17-21; Eph. 4:11-13; Rev. 11:10, 18; 16:6; 18:20, 24).

D. In Rev. 10, God promised to raise up prophetic messengers (forerunners) to bring understanding to help people avoid deception. This is an important passage for forerunner messengers. There will be many false signs (Rev. 13:13; 16:14; 18:23; 19:20; Mt. 24:24; 2 Thes. 2:8-9).

4 Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 Many will come…and will deceive many…11 Many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 24 For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. (Mt. 24:4-5, 11, 24)

E. The focus of Rev. 11 is the Two Witnesses (prophets) who will preach with great power and release God’s judgments against the Antichrist’s systems for the final 3½ years (Tribulation).

F. This will be the Church’s most glorious hour in all history! Joel prophesied of a great outpouring of the Spirit on all nations that would occur before the Day of the Lord or Jesus’ Coming (Joel 2:28, 31). All God’s praying people will receive dreams, visions, and angelic visitations, etc.

28 I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy…29 On My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit…30 I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: blood and fire and smoke…31 before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord…32 whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Joel 2:28-32)

G. The Lord released a down payment of Joel’s prophecy on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:16). It was not completely fulfilled in Peter’s generation as evidenced by things as the sun and moon not growing dark with signs including blood, fire and smoke. The Spirit in Acts 2 only rested on 120 believers in one city, Jerusalem. The fullness of this prophecy requires a global dimension.

See complete notes at www.book-of-revelation-end-times.com

Trumpet Judgments

The Trumpet Judgments (Rev. 8-9)

I. THE SEVENTH SEAL AND THE RELEASING OF THE TRUMPET JUDGMENTS (REV. 8:1-6)


1 When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. 2 And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets. 3 Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. And he was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the Throne. 4 And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel's hand. 5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it to the earth. And there were noises, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake. 6 So the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound. (Rev. 8:1-6)

A. The seventh seal judgment on the Antichrist is the release of anointed prayer (Rev. 8:3-4) that releases God’s fire to the earth (Rev. 8:5) and the seven trumpet judgments (Rev. 8:6). There will be a dreadful yet glorious silence in heaven in the awful anticipation of the full release of God’s judgments because of seeing the seven angels positioned to release the End-Time judgments that culminate with Jesus’ return to earth and the complete destruction of wickedness. It took the priest about a half an hour to offer incense in the temple (Lev. 16:13-14; Lk 1:10, 21).

B. The five aspects of the seventh seal include the commissioning of the seven trumpet angels, an eighth angel is given heavenly incense to help the End-Time prayer movement which releases fire on earth with cosmic disturbances and an earthquake. We see the “incense ministries” in heaven which consist of prayer, worship and prophetic proclamations around the Throne.

C. God’s judgments are not released on the saints but by the saints. The purpose of the 7 trumpets is to release judgment on the kingdom of darkness to hinder the Antichrist’s empire from spreading evil and from persecuting the saints while creating the optimum context for many to be saved.

The Seals of Judgment and God's Protection

The Seals of Judgment and God’s Protection (Revelation 6 -7)

I. INTRODUCTION TO THE SEVEN SEALS

A. Jesus took the scroll that was sealed with seven seals from the hand of the Father (Rev. 5:7). It represents the title deed of the earth and the action plan required to cleanse the earth. One by one Jesus opens each seal which releases a terrifying judgment against the wicked.

B. The 7 seals are literal (not merely symbolic), future (their greatest fulfillment is future), progressive (increasing in intensity) and numbered (released in a sequential order).

C. Each seal leads to the unfolding of the next seal in a natural way. For example, the Antichrist of the first seal (Rev. 6:2) leads us to a World War in the second seal, which in turn causes famine and economic crisis in the next seal then pestilence and disease, etc.

D. The timing in which Jesus opens the seals is one interpretive key to Revelation. I believe Jesus has not yet opened the scroll. It was not opened at the time of Jesus’ ascension (30 AD) but sometime after Rev. 2-3 (90 AD; Rev. 4:1), and only after the bowls of prayer are full (Rev. 5:8). 1 After these things…I will show you things which must take place after this. (Rev. 4:1) 8 When He (Jesus) had taken the scroll…the 24 elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. (Rev. 5:8)

E. God’s judgments will be released against the Great Harlot and the Antichrist by a mature worldwide prayer movement in the way that Moses released the plagues of Egypt. God’s judgments against the wicked in the first 4 seals are a result of God taking His restraining hand off of evil men, thus allowing them to sin in an unrestrained way against one another. The Antichrist here acts against the Harlot yet the devastation reaches back to his worldwide empire.
F. The seven seals are released by Jesus, the Lamb of God (Rev. 5:5; 6:1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 12; 8:1). Jesus releases the seal judgments against the Harlot and the Antichrist’s empire. The purpose of all 7 seals is to release judgment on the kingdom of darkness to hinder the Antichrist’s empire from spreading evil, from persecuting the saints, while causing unbelievers to cry out for salvation. 1 I saw when the Lamb (Jesus) opened one of the Seals; and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a voice like thunder, "Come and see." (Rev. 6:1)

G. We receive the same 2-fold call that John received to come and see. John was to come or draw closer to God to position his heart to understand God’s heart and then to see or to pay attention. H. God’s judgment is not on the saints. His judgments remove all that hinders love.Principle of judgment: using the least severe means to reach the greatest number at the deepest level of love without violating anyone’s free will. 9 God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through…Jesus. (1 Thes. 5:9)

II. FIRST SEAL: ANTICHRIST'S POLITICAL AGGRESSION

III. SECOND SEAL: WORLDWIDE BLOODSHED AND THE FINAL WORLD WAR (REV. 6:3-4)

IV. THIRD SEAL: FAMINE AND ECONOMIC CRISIS (REV. 6:5-6)

V. FOURTH SEAL: DEATH TO ¼ OF THE EARTH’S PEOPLE (REV. 6:7-8)

VI. FIFTH SEAL: PRAYER RELEASING JUDGMENT (REV. 6:9-11)

VII. THE SIXTH SEAL: COSMIC DISTURBANCES (REV. 6:12-17)

VIII. FIRST PARENTHETICAL SECTION: WHO CAN STAND? (REV. 7:1-17)