Saturday, January 22, 2022

Behold, He is coming (Revelation 1:7)

A small group, in a small village, meets once a week to walk (perhaps, more like crawl) through the revelations of Revelation. 

You're welcome to join us. 

The following is a written format of our last study.  

It's just one verse, written about 1,900 years ago, but speaks volumes to us today...and tomorrow.

Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. Revelation 1:7.

Behold HE IS coming.

Singer, Bill Gaither, says it like this:

The marketplace is empty,

No more traffic in the streets,

All the builders' tools are silent,

No more time to harvest wheat;

Busy housewives cease their labors,

In the courtroom no debate,

Work on earth is all suspended

As the King comes thro' the gate.

 

O the King is coming,

The King is coming!

I just heard the trumpets sounding,

And now His face I see;

O the King is coming,

The King is coming!

Praise God, He's coming for me!

 

Happy faces line the hallways,

Those whose lives have been redeemed,

Broken homes that He has mended,

Those from prison He has freed;

Little children and the aged

Hand in hand stand all aglow,

Who were crippled, broken, ruined,

Clad in garments white as snow.

 

O the King is coming,

The King is coming!

I just heard the trumpets sounding,

And now His face I see;

O the King is coming,

The King is coming!

Praise God, He's coming for me!

 

I can hear the chariots rumble,

I can see the marching throng,

The flurry of God's trumpets

Spells the end of sin and wrong:

Regal robes are now unfolding,

Heaven's grandstand's all in place,

Heaven's choir now assembled,

Start to sing "Amazing Grace!"

 

O the King is coming,

The King is coming!

I just heard the trumpets sounding,

And now His face I see;

O the King is coming,

The King is coming!

Praise God, He's coming for me! 

Our current headlines reflect it, just as Jesus said it.

And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. Jesus – Matthew 24:6

 

 

…And there will be famines, pestilences,

 ...and earthquakes in various places. Matthew 24:7

 

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 
Jesus - Matthew 24:9-10

Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth…Luke 21:26

But let’s be perfectly clear, Jesus didn’t tell us these things to scare us, but to prepare us.

These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” John 16:33.

                                                                                          

Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them. Psalm 119:165

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

 

Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. Revelation 1:7.

Coming with clouds, has a deeper meaning than to simply say, He’s coming with the white fluffy things we see floating around in the sky. 

You'll love the answer. It's awesome. 

Revelation references Old Testament scripture, often; over three hundred times. However, John does it on the fly, without providing a footnote. He was probably too busy—and too awestruck by what he was seeing—to pause and say, “Oh yeah, this is that which was spoken by the prophet…”

Revelation 1:7, references Daniel 7:13-14:

I was watching in the night visions,

And behold, One like the Son of Man,

Coming with the clouds of heaven!

Daniel saw the same vision as John.  Jesus coming with clouds.

The best commentary on the Bible is the Bible and as we look at the whole counsel of the Word, we see a deeper meaning to what is meant by, coming with clouds.

Hebrews 12:1 tells us, we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. The cloud, isn’t referring to white fluffy things, but people; the faith giants listed in the Faith Hall of Fame, of Hebrews eleven.

1 Thessalonians 3:13 makes it clear that Jesus is not simply coming with clouds, but with people.

…so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.

John was given a glimpse of when Jesus comes back, on a white horse, to the mount of Olives, with all His Saints to win the battle of Armageddon.

To me, this is awesome. I’ve always wanted to go to Israel and I love horseback riding. Can you imagine the thrill? Dropping out of the eastern sky, riding in a heavenly posse, with Jesus in the lead?

Giddy up!

Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. Revelation 1:7.

Every eye will see Him. That means, it won’t be a secret.

Jesus may have come, the first time, meek and mild, through the womb of a virgin, on a silent night, with very few who even knew. He may even come, like a thief in the night, when He draws near to meet His Bride, caught up, in the air.

But not so, when He returns to the earth. Every eye will see Him, every heart will know Him.

Jesus sums it all up like this:     

For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be…Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. Matthew24:27, 30.

every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him

Those who pierced Him, is reference to Israel. But not only them. Us too. We’re all guilty. I hold the hammer. My bloody hands clutch the nails. So do yours. We all pierced Him…by our sin.

This refers to the words of the prophet, Zechariah.

“… then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn. Zechariah 12:10.

They will recognize HIM…with regret.

Zechariah continues. In that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning at Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. (Zechariah 12:11)

What’s Hadad Rimmon, in Megiddo?

The bitter mourning of that day is compared to the mourning for righteous king Josiah, after he was killed just northwest of Jerusalem, at Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. (2 Chron. 35:20–24).

Does Megiddo sound familiar?

Watch how intricately the Word is woven.

The Lord, through John, refers to the words of Zechariah, about the One they pierced. Zechariah explains how they will mourn like they did when king Josiah was killed in the valley of Megiddo; which just happens to be the place where Jesus is headed in Revelation 1:7; Armageddon.

Then, the prophet Zechariah loops you and I into the story by going into great detail about the mourning that will take place when every eye will see the One whom they pierced. Pay close attention to this great and precious treasure, hidden for us, not from us; for such a time as this.

Zechariah 12:12 And the land shall mourn, every family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; 13 the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of Shimei by itself, and their wives by themselves; 14 all the families that remain, every family by itself, and their wives by themselves.

If God says something once, pay attention. If He says it twice, sit up and take notice, it’s really important. If He says it three times, take it to heart, it’s vital. Here He repeats, eleven times, about getting away, alone, to mourn.  

Whoever has ears, let them hear, what the Spirit says to the Church, here and now, today.   

Perhaps, at long last, this will be the moment of surrender, as they get alone to mourn for the One, they pierced. The moment they work out their own salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12-13). When the prodigal comes home. When God finally gets to gather His people back to Him. Something He’s longed to do since that day, that mournful day, He waved goodbye to the first couple as they walked out of the Garden. Finally, that day, when He wipes every tear from their eyes. When blinders are removed, scriptures are fulfilled, and all Israel will be saved.

 

For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written:

 There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins (Romans 11:25-27).

 

You can be sure, after this moment, God will win the battle of Armageddon. There will be much bloodshed, much death, but make no mistake, God takes no pleasure in it; even the death of the wicked.

For it’s not His will that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9) but wants everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the Truth (1 Timothy 2:4).  

Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Lord GOD. Wouldn't I prefer that he turn from his ways and live? Ezekiel 18:23

For I take no pleasure in anyone’s death, declares the Lord GOD. So repent and live! Ezekiel 18:32.

Say to them: 'As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked should turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?' Ezekiel 33:11.

 

But that message isn’t only for those people, at that time, but for us, here and now.

The Word of God is alive, powerful and still speaks—even today. Especially today. 

Consider those words we just read. Over and over and over again, eleven times it said, every family got alone, and in that day, there shall be great mourning. 

Sit up, take note of the time in which we live. Never before in the history of mankind, has all the world, all at once, gone away by itself. Every family, by themselves. This worldwide quarantine is an echo of Zechariah, announcing loud and clear, Behold, the King is coming. Turn! Turn! 

Furthermore, never before has all the world gone into such worldwide mourning.  Only God knows the oceans of tears that flow from those in nursing homes, hospitals and alone in homes. The cure, has become the broken heart that kills.  

James speaks of this great mourning and adds yet another revelation to how relevant the Bible really is to the time in which we live. He says it like this

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. (James 4:8-9).

What does that have to do with us, here and now?

Well, the mourning, is obvious, as mentioned before. But James adds one more thing by stating, “Cleanse your hands…”

Never before has the entire world, with one voice shouted: WASH YOUR HANDS. That is Bible speak for: REPENT, Ezekiel used the word, Turn!

What the enemy meant for evil; God has used as a megaphone to shout His message.

Behold, He is coming. Return to Me. Repent. 

One last note. This verse says “all tribes” will mourn. That means folks from every walk of life, every location on the planet, will be of those who have rejected Him and therefore mourn, when they see Him.

But, there’s another group of people Revelation talks about in chapter seven. They are also from every tribe and nation of the earth. They are those who’ve repented (turned) from sin to Savior. They are those in bright white robes (cleansed from sin) and are overjoyed to see Jesus their Lord. They will be invited into His Kingdom to live with Him…happily ever after.

The other group, will stand before the Great White Throne, judged guilty, and cast, into the Lake of Fire, with the devil and his demons, forever and ever.

The divide is taking place right now. Folks are drawing lines, taking sides.

The choice is yours.

Bright White Robe or Great White Throne.

Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. 

2 Corinthians 6:2.


You're in my prayers.

I love you.

Most importantly,

Jesus loves you.

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