...The last book in the New Testament is the book of Revelation. It is a probably one of the most discussed and debated books of the entire Bible. The book of Revelation is one of the books of the Bible that most everyone seems to have an opinion about, but yet it is a book that is often misunderstood. This is mostly due to misinterpreted because it contains symbols that must be interpreted, along with different meanings of words. Many scholars of the Bible have studied the book of Revelation and still will have different opinions on what this book represents. We often find ourselves getting very frustrated when trying to figure out what this book is trying to tell us. One thing that most can agree on is that we know for sure is that this book is the final chapter in God’s plan for the human race. We can spend all day trying to figure out what these different things mean but the bottom line is, it doesn’t matter what we think and what we believe is going to happen. God is in control and God’s plan will be fulfilled regardless of what anybody thinks or believes might or might not happen. So how do we go about interpreting and understanding the book of Revelation? Dr. Cornelius Venema, president and professor of doctoral studies at Mid-America Reformed Seminary and associate pastor of Redeemer United Reformed church in Dryer, Indiana published in his article in the Table Talk magazine, dated January 1, 2012. In this article he gives us a five examples...
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...Revelation, Chapter 13 This will begin by giving you the scripture from the King James Version of the Bible, then will go into our description of what the verses mean. You will be able to read various additional information contained in more specific files under "Research Materials". To skip the Introduction for Revelation chapter 13, Chapter 13 Scripture Begins Here Revelation chapter 13 begins with a beast (the Antichrist) raising up out of the sea which represents the nations of the world. The beast is the Antichrist or the false messiah. He will be the final world ruler, also known as the little horn in the book of Daniel, chapter 7, v.8. "I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn [were] eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things." Antichrist Things during the end times will be chaotic. A time of confusion and uncertainty will cause the people to desperately look for a strong leader that could bring hope and security in a time of fear and apprehension. People will desperately seek a strong, charismatic, authoritative leader who can pull the world back from the very brink of disaster. Those people will get their wish as a powerful, charismatic leader spouting peace and unity comes on the scene. But he will turn out to be much more than they bargained for. He will be a dictator whose cruelty will be more...
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...org Hoole, John Dr., “Worship During the Millennium.” 22nd December 2014. www.Johnsnotes.com Hunt, Keith, “The Millennium temple? The Prophets Proclaim it?” Restitution of all things. 14th February 2014 www.Keithhut.com Resgin, David R. Dr. “The Rise and Fall of the Antichrist” Lambs and Lion ministries. 2nd February 2014 www.Lambandlionministries.org. Vlach, Michae J. Phd. “the Kingdom of God and the Millennium.” the Masters Seminary Journal. 3rd March 2013 Tonline/ articles “Worship During the Millenial.” 14th September 2010 www.westlakebaptistchurch.org Robert W . Porter Dr. No Cera Book of Revelation Date The Millennium 20 tells us that the Millennium is an era when Jesus Christ will rule the earth for 1,000 years. The word Millennium comes from a Latin word mille (thousands) annus (years) Christ’s rule will began when Christ return to earth at the battle of Armageddon and completely annihilate the and one word Christ and hid forces. Christ will then reign on the Earth from the throne of David for a thousand years. During this period Satan will be cerfined to the Abyss and the curse of sin will be lifted from the earth. Satan will be released after this one thousand year period and for a...
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...Apocalyptic literature is the exposure of something concealed in the past (Wilcox, J.A., 2018). Some forms of apocalyptic writing are interpretations of dreams and visions, or monsters and angels who speak about God’s imminent plans (Wilcox, J.A., 2018). Four characteristics found in apocalyptic writing include: sense of universality, cosmic dualism, ethical dualism, and predestination. The book of Revelation reveals strict and up-to-date facts and discussions “such as: angelic guides and interpreters, a cosmic perspective and eschatological emphasis, its origin in situations of conflict (good versus evil), distress and persecution for the in-group, striking contrasts and vivid content derived principally from dreams or visions, and an extensive...
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...Orthodox Church’s Interpretation of the Signs in The Book of Revelations * The biggest question man asks is: “Where am I going in the after life?” From a Christian perspective, they wish to be saved in the Second Coming in order to reach the Kingdom of Heaven. This can be traced back to the Book of Revelation written by John the Beloved, a disciple of Jesus Christ. According to many Christian dogmas, The Book of Revelation is regarded as an interesting, complex, and a controversial book. Through this book, the reader sees a joyous picture; an open gate in heaven. Revelation means revealing the divine mysteries to mankind. It is a very difficult, symbolic book to understand. It is the only prophetic book of the New Testament, which holds facts beyond human understanding. The book’s use of numbers, symbols, colors, and similes resulted in a unique interpretation from the Coptic Orthodox Church. 0 In the beginning of the book, John explains that his days are near. He visions a shining Jesus, surrounded by seven stars and seven golden lamp-stands. In 2:1–3:22, John is given orders to deliver a message to each of the churches, addressing specific strengths and failings of each church, providing encouragement to some and driving others to repent before Judgment Day. God holds a scroll sealed with seven seals, and nobody is worthy of breaking the seals except Jesus. The second half of Revelation begins with the opening of God’s sanctuary in heaven. A false...
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...A lot of places in the bible that may cause confusion in the world, but Revelation is one of the best at this as it has so many different meanings to groups, people, and religions. So many times in history, people have thought to have figured out Revelation and its mysterious ways, however it has always seemed to come out wrong in the end. One of the confusions of Revelation is the seven churches. Conclusions have been made that they have already happened, they are happening, and they have yet to happen. This essay will be discussing the seven churches, their meanings, and if they have happened, are happening, or will happen (Class). The seven churches are first discussed in Revelation chapter two and three. Found in Revelation 2:1-7,...
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...A PREMILLENNIAL VIEW ON THE 1000 YEARS OF REVELATION ________________ A Research Paper Submitted to Dr. Brian K. Moulton Liberty University ________________ In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for BIBL 450- B06 Daniel- Revelation ________________ By William E. Harris, III October 8, 2013 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction………………………………………………………………………………3 The Millennium Defined…………………………………………………………………3 Views of the Millennium…………………………………………………………………4 Premillennialism Amillennialism Postmillennialism Timing of the Millennium……………………………………………………………….6 Duration of the Millennium……………………………………………………………..7 Occupants of the Millennium……………………………………………………………8 Relationship of Israel and the Church to the Millennial Kingdom……………………..8 Personal Approach to the Millennial View……………………………………………..9 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………….10 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………..11 A PREMILLENNIAL VIEW ON THE 1000 YEARS OF REVELATION Introduction For many Christians, the millennium is a very important doctrine. The question of the differentiating views of the millennial kingdom in Rev 20:1-6 continues to be a source of fascination in evangelical discussion and dialogue. This paper will present the view of the writer as supported according to the scriptures. It will begin by defining the 1000 years of Revelation according to research and translation. It will briefly take a look at Premillennialism, Amillennialism and Postmillennialism...
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...What are five presuppositions for the task of theologizing? ➢ 1) there is a God and He has revealed Himself, 2) there are laws that are self-evident, 3) man has the ability to know things to the degree to which he directly observes them, 4) truth does not contradict itself, but is consistent and corresponds to reality, & 5) the mind accepts that which is logical and rejects that which is illogical. What are the tests used to verify theological truths? Explain. ➢ 1) test of consistency, 2) test of correspondence, 3) test of priority of data (what’s essential or irrelevant?), 4) test of cohesiveness, & 5) test of thoroughness (examine beliefs) pg. 12 What is the aim of Biblical theology? ➢ To arrange and classify the facts of revelation, confining itself to the scriptures for its material, and treating of doctrine only so far as it was developed at the close of the apostolic age. Where does Biblical theology get its material? ➢ Apostolic age What does historical theology study? ➢ The expression of theology in each age with an examination of its expressed aim, emphasis, omissions and forces that change its expression from generation to generation since the closing of the canon. What does dogmatic theology study? ➢ Study of varied beliefs and creeds of different religious sects and orders throughout church...
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...Janel Adrianne D. Dihiansan TH 121 – DD Ms. Puen November 27, 2013 Revelation in Our Midst In general, God reveals Himself through His creations. It is God’s self-communication, which is accessed in faith through grace. It is a gift. It is directed to the entire human race, and it is a matter of how we receive His message and interpret it in our own ways. The truths revealed may be inaccessible to the human mind – mysteries, even when revealed; the intellect of an ordinary man is incapable of fully penetrating. God reveals Himself in word and in deed. The essence of revelation lies in the fact that it is the direct speech of God to His people. Revelation does not stop even if someone else is delivering the message of God. The best example for this is Jesus Christ. Jesus was sent to us by His Father to proclaim His words and wisdom. He is the sole and universal mediator between God and all of humanity. Jesus is both human and divine. He is divine in the sense that He is the Incarnate Son of God. He is human in the sense that He walked this very earth and preached His Father’s teachings in a language understandable to all. Honestly, I do not have a very strong faith in God. Yes, I believe in Him and His teachings; I believe they are right and just. But if I actually think about it more realistically, is God really controlling every thing that is happening around us? Is He always in the “behind the scenes” part of our lives and our decision making process? For...
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...I am going to describe the outbreak of revival during the Great Awakening. First of all the Great Awakening was a Christian revitalization movement that swept Protestant Europe and British America and especially the American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s, leaving a permanent impact on American religion. It resulted from powerful preaching that gave listeners a sense of personal revelation of their need of salvation by Jesus Christ. Some historians have speculated that the shift from rural and agricultural to urban and commercial styles of life may have engendered guilt in those leaving "the old ways" behind. In a few towns the rapid spread of revival followed closely upon the heels of serious illness, especially the "throat distemper" (diphtheria) which carried away large numbers of New Englanders in the 1730s. In other awakened localities, economic problems had been a troubling source of tensions. Some merchants worried about the effects of conflict following Britain's declaration of war on Spain in 1739. Many others joined the merchants in concern about the absence of an adequate currency. It deemphasized the importance of church doctrine and instead put a greater importance on the individual and their spiritual experience. The Great Awakening arose at a time when man in Europe and the American colonies were questioning the role of the individual in religion and society. It began at the same time as the Enlightenment which emphasized logic and reason and stressed the...
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...DOGMATIC CONSTITUTION ON DIVINE REVELATION Dei Verbum Solemnly Promulgated by His Holiness, Pope Paul VI on November 18, 1965 The full text is available at http://www.cin.org/v2revel.html Numbers in square brackets [x] are footnotes which are found at the end of the document. PREFACE 1. Hearing the word of God with reverence and proclaiming it with faith, the sacred synod takes its direction from these words of St. John: "We announce to you the eternal life which dwelt with the Father and was made visible to us. What we have seen and heard we announce to you, so that you may have fellowship with us and our common fellowship be with the Father and His Son Jesus Christ" (1 John 1:2-3). Therefore, following in the footsteps of the Council of Trent and of the First Vatican Council, this present council wishes to set forth authentic doctrine on divine revelation and how it is handed on, so that by hearing the message of salvation the whole world may believe, by believing it may hope, and by hoping it may love. CHAPTER I REVELATION ITSELF 2. In His goodness and wisdom God chose to reveal Himself and to make known to us the hidden purpose of His will (see Eph. 1:9) by which through Christ, the Word made flesh, man might in the Holy Spirit have access to the Father and come to share in the divine nature (see Eph. 2:1S; 2 Peter 1:4). Through this revelation, therefore, the invisible God (see Col. 1:15; 1 Tim. 1:17) out of the abundance of His love speaks to men as...
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...Bibliology: Is the Bible credible? By Matt Massey Professor Ted Marvin Theology 3305 – Lectures in Systematic theology Outline I. Definition of Bibliology II. Importance of the Bible III. Reasons to trust the Bible A. The “A Priori Argument” B. The revelation of Jesus Christ C. Fulfilled prophecy of Scripture D. The suffering of the apostles E. The power of the message of the Bible F. The inexhaustible infinity of revelation G. Unity of the Bible H. Transcultural Appeal I. The honesty of the Scriptures J. The superiority and influence of the Bible K. The test of personal experience and the inward witness of the Spirit L. The indestructibility of the Bible M. History and archaeology gives credibility to the Bible N. The completeness and timelessness of the Bible O. The claims of the Scriptures themselves IV. Closing Bibliology is simply “the study of the Bible.” For Christians, the Bible is the most sacred of books and on it hinges the entire religion of Christianity. Were the Bible to ever collapse, Christianity would have no foundation on which to rest and it too would follow suit shortly thereafter. For the skeptic, the Bible is a book in which good ideas, morality, fables, myths, and oftentimes blatant lies are contained. It is the express purpose of this paper to examine the evidences which give rise to the credibility of the Biblical text. There are a great many different aspects of...
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...Islam and Judaism Islam and Judaism share a common origin in the Middle East and share many cultural and philosophic aspects between themselves. The similarities in the two religions derive largely from the influence of Muslim culture and philosophy on the practitioners of Judaism and Islam. In the Middle East Islam, Judaism, and Christianity are the three great religions. They all share similarities, especially in their origin, but also hold their differences. Judaism is a monotheistic religion, as is with Islam. It originated from the Hebrews, who believed that God was their special protector and was everything, the most powerful, and is present everywhere. Like Islam, Judaism has a holy book called the Torah, a sacred recording of laws and events in the Jewish history. The Jewish faith believes that God gave them the Ten Commandments through Moses, “the Lawgiver”. According to the Jewish tradition, God made a covenant, or agreement with Abraham, the founder of Judaism. Islam was strongly influenced by Judaism. Islam was founded by Mohammad and also holds a monotheistic approach to religion. Just like Judaism it has a holy book similar to Judaism’s Torah, called the Koran. The Koran contains the sacred text as spoken to Muhammad from God. The Koran not only teaches about God, but about how to lead a good, faithful life. Muslims believe in one all-powerful, compassionate God, known in Arabic as Allah. Similar to the Ten Commandments given by Moses in Judaism...
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...God’s incomprehensibility and the need of communication between God and Man are the main reasons for the necessity of the Scriptures. The inmate behavior of the fallen man to distort an oral comprehension of the divine truth required a written revelation to teach the human generations about the complexities of the sacred Word of God. The Holy Bible is the way God made a Statement to Man about his fallen state and the Way of Redemption from that. This statement by God was a necessary, sufficient, rational and authoritative mode of Communication to generation after generation of human kind. The topic of necessity of the inscribed Word of God is unfortunately, a topic which is discussed rarely. Some theologians do talk about the necessity of the divine revelation, but that is different from the topic of the necessity of Scriptures because not all revelations are inscribed. The scribed word of God does not comprise the totality of divine revelations (John. 20:30). It is important, however for a theology student to understand the necessity behind the scriptural form of the Word of God. In order to evaluate if it was necessary that God gave the Scriptures to the man, one should understand the meaning of necessity as well as what the Scriptures itself tells about the necessity of the Scriptures. DEFINITION OF NECESSITY Dictionary defines Necessity as “the fact of being required or indispensable” which means that it is the situation that is bound by some constrained circumstances...
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...just released a new book entitled “Dream Encounters,” in which she claims Christians can have access to a secret dream language that God uses to reveal “hidden knowledge” to believers. In this book Breathitt tells believers they will be enabled to use the “revelation” obtained from God through their dreams in order to unlock their “destinies” and live lives in which they are “productive, responsible, successful, prosperous, loved and fulfilled” (p. 138).i According to Breathitt, this is done by decoding information that God has “embedded” into our dreams and through which he continues to communicate with us in personal, ongoing revelation. But there are three significant problems with what Breathitt teaches, and I will attempt to develop why these issues are unsupported by Scripture. The three problems are as follows: 1. Breathitt’s teaching is more in alignment with a pagan and superstitious—even New Age— worldview than Christian 2. Breathitt puts forth the idea that each believer has a “destiny” waiting to be unlocked, accessed, known and lived out, an idea that is contrary to the teaching of Scripture—that, as Christians, we have no “rights” to our lives. And finally, 3. Breathitt's teaching about ongoing, personal revelation from God goes against the clear teaching of sola scriptura, which is that God speaks to us through scripture alone. Dream Interpretation is New Age To help explain how I can make the assertion that Breathitt's teaching on “dream interpretation” is much closer...
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