Many people say that Revelations is much to hard to understand and should not receive much attention. What does the Bible say?
 
Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near
Rev 1:3
 
In the very start it commissions us to do 3 things.
1. Read
2. Hear
3. Take to heart (AKA Do)
 
Why would a book that is far to hard to understand start in such a way? Perhaps because of where it comes from? After all, most think this book is a Revelation of John, but is it?
 
The revelation of Jesus Christ...
Rev 1:1
 
The very first line of the book answers that quite clearly. So who did Jesus receive this information from?
 
...which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place.
Rev 1:1
 
With that said one might say "so what", or one could refer to this verse...
 
which said: "Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea."
Rev 1:11
 
And given that mankind represents different "churches" (we will unfold this truth in a later lesson), but for now we can know that this all took place for mankind. So if you want a real blessing...
 
Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.
Rev 1:3
 
Then study the book of Revelation with me and be blessed.
 
Cheers
IBIJ
 
 

Question : In the Book of Revelation we find the verse, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty" (Revelation 1:8). But what do you do with Revelation 22:13, which appears to be Jesus speaking (see verse 16), when he says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end"? Doesn't the command by Matthew's Jesus to, "Go therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19) show the existence of a triune deity.
 
there can be only one true god, who has no beginning and no end, thus the book of "revelation" shows this
hypocrisy, and therefore can not be true...
 
my opinion, sorry
 
eliot

Hi EELDROP
 
What an excellent question.
 
Let me ask you...
 
and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'?
Matthew 19:5
 
In a Biblical marriage the above is what is suppossed to take place? Does it? Always? That's a subject for a different post, but the point is that you have two entities (mankind in this case) becoming one within the bounds of matramony.
 
Are they still two separate individuals? Of course.
 
Are they two operate as one when approaching the rigors of life? Certainly.
 
So are they two or one... and then theirs the common element of kids and how they fit into this equation.
 
Similarily, God the Father is God, Jesus Christ is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. Three very distinct and seperate entities and yet one. When a person comes to understand the principles of the marital union they are not far away from grasping the concept of trinity where 3 entities can simultaniously be 1.
 
With that being the case, I'm not sure how or why that would invalidate Revelation; but if it did don't you think it would have been removed from the Bible long ago?
 
Cheers
IBIJ

i see what you mean in a marital sense, but it scares me to think that god was one entity for eons, and then one day he "changed" his mind and became a trinity, of course he can do whatever he chooses, but i hope you can see my problem and question of faith...

..Pardon me, for 'butting-in'..{asking}, but where do 'get'
{as in, 'Chapter & verse'} that at any point in time.. or
even, 'before time', that God was a 'solo' entity?
 
..Even in Genesis 1, it reads:.."Let US {my emphasis} make
man in our own image." Some people 'explain away' the "us"
part, by claiming that God is addressing his angels, and/or
'arc-angels'; yet.. nowhere in the Scriptures does it say that
anyone other-than-God, has Creation powers{!}
 
..I {and others} believe that God 'reveals Himself' in stages;
with presumably many more details Yet to be 'revealed' in
'Eternity.'
..On another level, it's sort of like initially thinking of your
father as a familiar looking man, known to you, as, "dah-dah";
then.. years later, referring to him as "Dad"; then learning what
part he had in bringing you into this dimension; and then finding
out, {if your father happens to be a particular person}.. that his
full name is "William {'Bill'} Gates," who's the second-richest
person in the world; and then wondering, why he 'Only gave'
you a 'second-hand' car for your 16th birthday{!?} ] ;

Let's take a look at this verse...
 
16As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. 17And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."
Matthew 3:16-17
 
How many distinctly different entities are involved. Let's see...
 
As soon as Jesus was baptized... (Jesus indeed makes 1).
 
Spirit of God descending like a dove... (Spirit Of God (AKA Holy Spirit makes 2).
 
a voice from heaven said... (The Father God would quite clearly make 3).
 
3/1 - All God. All clearly distinct. All separate. All One.
 
Can you explain this verse any other way?
 
Cheers
IBIJ
 
 
 
 

Hi EELDROP
 
Sure can, but I also see an assumption that needs to be reconciled from your last post.
 
> god was one entity for eons, and then one day he "changed"
> his mind and became a trinity,
 
Who said He was only 1 entity ever? He is, was, and always will be 1 and 3 at the same time. To man this can be a mystery until you reflect upon the marital union correlation.
 
Cheers
IBIJ

Yes! Awesome!
 
Just what I was hoping for! Fundies engaged in an irrelevant discussion about god and the bible.
 
I do love the line "..shows this hypocracy, and can not be true"
 
That about sums it up.
 
All Hail Milk. It has never declared it was leaving and then came back. No hypocracy. Praise be to ice cream.
 
--SoCo

Hi SC
 
You may choose to follow your milkman, but how does that make our discussion "irrelevant" just because your more interested in your milk mistache?
 
Happy Sabbath
IBIJ

Hey, I thought that the trinity was a false teaching
borrowed from the Egyptian Osiris, Isis, Horus or the
Hindu Brahma, Visnu, Siva, among others....

Personally I kind of love the Mina Marie,Lisa Marie, and Bernardo
Dela (etc) trinity but there seems to be very few people who know
of it.....(Although I do know a very cute Vampire who is very familar
with it).
Diggy.w/luw/to/V!

..Beware, thus far I've restrained myself from 'copy & pasting'
a voluminous Christian-oriented thesis on what the Divine-
"Trinity" is all about; and if and when the time comes that I
feel I ought to; You, and All other Non-believers, will likely
feel supernaturally compelled to read the post{!}.. Not because
you want to; but just like those who feel compelled to climb
Mt. Everest, you will do so.. simply because the 'Subject-
specific' post is There!..{if it comes to that}, literally 'staring-
you-in the-face' {if you will}.. challenging your own smug-
selfish, set of {pagan} beliefs; of which Even You Yourselves
would secretly admit, 'I could've 'missed-the-boat' in this area!?'
 
{I inserted a 'smidgeon' of hyperbole and humor in the preceding
paragraph; that I like to think.. would've made 'the late' Christian
author, C.S. Lewis, 'proud'}. Sincerely, 'HoM'.. formerly,
'gamma'{burst}

As the word "trinity" goes, you are correct. However there is no denying references to a Father, Son, & Holy Ghost/Spirit. Many pagan ideas are mixed with Christian backings and unfortunately the same can be said about Christian ideas. Probably the best reason why simplying believing what God's Word says and not trying to make it say what it does not say is so critical.
 
Cheers
IBIJ