A Chronological Look at the Mysteries and Blessings of Revelation
Oct 26, 2023Episode 21
Aaron O’Connell
Join us as we unveil the blessings promised to those who venture into the study of Revelation. Along the way, we'll marvel at how Jesus fulfilled more than 324 of the known 1800 prophecies found in the Bible. At the heart of this journey is an assurance that, despite the world's trajectory, God is victorious, Christ is triumphant, and righteousness is inevitable.
In the second part of our discussion, we confront the rapture's timing head-on, sifting through evidence in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Matthew 7:21, and Revelation 12:6. As we ponder the enigma of Christ's Second Coming and the role of the rapture, we'll share the comforting notion of Jesus preparing a heavenly place for us. Moreover, we will expose the church's divine protection from God's wrath. Rounding off this enlightening discourse, we dive into the concept of the Millennium and the eternal state, exploring its implications for believers and non-believers alike. We conclude with a hopeful vision of the new earth and heaven, where believers will reign with Jesus for eternity.
Join us as we unveil the blessings promised to those who venture into the study of Revelation. Along the way, we'll marvel at how Jesus fulfilled more than 324 of the known 1800 prophecies found in the Bible. At the heart of this journey is an assurance that, despite the world's trajectory, God is victorious, Christ is triumphant, and righteousness is inevitable.
In the second part of our discussion, we confront the rapture's timing head-on, sifting through evidence in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Matthew 7:21, and Revelation 12:6. As we ponder the enigma of Christ's Second Coming and the role of the rapture, we'll share the comforting notion of Jesus preparing a heavenly place for us. Moreover, we will expose the church's divine protection from God's wrath. Rounding off this enlightening discourse, we dive into the concept of the Millennium and the eternal state, exploring its implications for believers and non-believers alike. We conclude with a hopeful vision of the new earth and heaven, where believers will reign with Jesus for eternity.
Revelation is the only book in the Bible that promises blessings to those who study it and take it to heart. And that's what my heart is for all my listeners To have blessings, to be able to be stressless, to have more peace. God is in control, no matter what is happening. You know how it ends, so let's take joy. Welcome to the WHY to Fitness Podcast. I'm your host, aaron O'Connell, and today we are talking about the book of revelations. One may wonder why I'm bringing up revelations, and there may be no wonder other people, given the all the events that are going on the world. People are looking around saying, wow, the end must be near all these things. But the reason, the main reason I'm doing it is because revelations is the only book in the Bible that promises blessings to those who study it and take it to heart. And that's what my heart is for all my listeners To have blessings, to be able to be stressless, to have more peace. And I truly believe when you start diving into revelations, you will end up having more peace, because then you know how the ending ends, there's no need to worry, you become secure, and that's what I want everyone to feel A lot of times when people start going through revelations, they read right off the beginning these things are going to happen soon and they take that as like oh, wow, it's going to be around the corner. It's going to be around the corner. And through that a lot of different people have said well, they've been saying that ever since Jesus's time, so it's not even going to happen. Revelations isn't real. Or they always attribute it to oh, it's going to be in my lifetime, it's going to happen soon. But if we really look into that word soon, the word is in taxi and what that means is quickly or speedily. It's almost like a tachometer. A tachometer isn't measuring your speed, of how fast you're going, it's how fast something is moving. It's quickly, it's speedily.
Aaron O'Connell:
So I really want to just dive in and start analyzing revelations. It's important because, as the church, we need to warn people of what's coming around. So even if they don't take your warnings, if you plant seeds, I'm bringing your testimony to them. You're trying to give God to them, you're preaching the gospel to them, yet they don't listen. Maybe when you're gone, when you've been raptured, they will remember the things that you said and then they won't go amongst all those that get lost. But they may be one of the tribulation saints that still will make it into heaven, and that's what my goal is for everybody is for as many people to make it into the kingdom of God, so let's just dive in.
Aaron O'Connell:
So first off, we need to look at how many prophecies there really are in the Bible, and there's roughly about 1,800 prophecies, and all of these really are in the future. Most of them are in the future of the prophecies, but it's crazy because every prophecy of the past that went up to Jesus has been fulfilled to the letter, zero errors. Jesus alone fulfilled more than 324 individual prophecies found in the Old Testament. The chance of a single man fulfilling just 48 of those prophecies found in the Old Testament would be 10, falling by 157 zeros. It's crazy. So just imagine 324. All that just to say that you can rely on the Bible and its prophecies to come true. Even if you said these things must take place, revelations isn't just some cryptic, symbolic thing. No, these things are gonna take place.
Aaron O'Connell:
Most people think the book of Revelation is the place to study future end times and events, but in reality, much of what's in the book of Revelation was actually already prophesied in the Old Testament through Daniel, isaiah, ezekiel, all through it. A study of those two Old Testament end-time prophecies will add clarity to the study of Revelation. So if you want to get the most understanding of end times, studying the book of Revelations, you need to dive into those Old Testament prophecies as well, because they're very important. When we're studying those end-time prophecies, we'll see that God wins, christ triumphs and righteousness prevails, which means Satan loses, sorrow, sickness, death disappear. New heaven and earth which when it says new heaven doesn't mean the heaven that's currently God's residing place is gonna be going away. No, it's sky and space, because there's three heavens mentioned. First heaven is where the birds fly, the second heavens are where the space is and then the third heaven where John, when he was writing Revelation, says I was caught up into the third heaven. So that third heaven won't be disappearing, but the earth and the universe as we know it will go away and emerge from those ashes of the old. God will establish that new heaven and earth. God wipes away the tears from every eye. Just how beautiful is that.
Aaron O'Connell:
So let's start going through the next level of events because, as right now we know, the world is gonna continue in a downward spiral and becoming more like it was in the times of Noah and the Sodom of Gomorrah and Gomorrah. We see this happening on a daily basis and it seems to be escalating faster and faster pace. Look at the world in Israel right now. Look at all the racism, look at all the nasty things that are going on. People are being lovers of themself. Right seems wrong and wrong seems right. There's so much worse going on and I'm sorry to burst your bubble. Things are not gonna get better. This world is not gonna get better. Things are gonna get worse. That doesn't mean stop praying, but I want you to understand that things are gonna be in a downward spiral until the rapture of the church.
Aaron O'Connell:
A lot of people there's a lot of debate about the rapture of the church and whether it's gonna be before the tribulation or past tribulation, so I'm gonna dive in just a little bit to why I believe and truly would bank on it. Have a hundred percent faith that the church will be raptured beforehand. 1 Thessalonians 413-18 is one of those verses that says those that accepted Christ as their Savior, since the time of Christ will suddenly be taken To be with Christ. Christ will return for the church in the clouds, not stepping on foot on earth. He didn't return yet. He will call forth first the bodies of those who believed in Christ and have died, followed by those believers on earth that have yet to die. They will be taken to heaven with Him. All unbelievers and those that say they are believers, who really are true and committed believers, will be up there, but those that are not true and committed will be left behind. There will be many that say they are believers but never really commit to and give in their life to Christ. This is Matthew 721, saying Lord, lord, I've done all these things, so it's so important to dedicate your life to Christ. But a lot of people argue oh no, no, we could be going through the tribulation times right now. The rapture isn't actually gonna happen. It doesn't explicitly say it, but here I'm just gonna offer some the evidence that I believe that points to the rapture. When the elders that John sees when he gets called up into heaven, they're wearing crowns, they received physical bodies, they're robed in white and dwell in heaven with God before the tribulation, before that starts. This is the church, this is you and me. This is Christians. These aren't the Old Testament saints or those that die in the tribulation because they don't get their bodies until after the tribulation. And the church has promised that we get our robes, that we get crowns. This is the church.
Aaron O'Connell:
Another point that I'd like to make is that the timing of his second coming is unknown to us. This is through Matthew 22, 44, 25, 13, mark 13, 32, 33, luke 12, 40. It's unknown to us. If the rapture happens after the tribulation, then the time would be known to us, because the Bible presents a day we can't know. It says Jesus will return in unknown time, but in Revelation 12, 6 says that the Jews will have to wait 1260 days for the Lord to return. The 1260 days begins when the Antichrist stands in the temple and declares himself to be God. This event will take place at the midpoint of the seven-year tribulation. The Antichrist has authority to rule for 42 months, which is that 1260 days, and then we'll be destroyed by Jesus at his second coming. The known in the unknown days must happen at different times because they're different events.
Aaron O'Connell:
The rapture is when we don't know it's gonna come. It's like a thief of the night. So we need to be prepared. We need to be prepared for when the bridegroom comes back for his bride. Jesus gives all these parables for that. But if the rapture is afterwards, we'll know. We'll see what people will know, because when Jesus returns at his second coming, he will return from a wedding. He was returning from the wedding. This is Luke 12, 36.
Aaron O'Connell:
At the rapture Jesus is married to his bride, the church, the Christians. Then, after the wedding, he will then return to earth and that's when he sets up the Millennial Kingdom, which is that great long party. Also, jesus said he would prepare a place for the church in heaven. Then he would come again to receive us to himself. Why would Jesus prepare a place for us in heaven and then not take us there? Because at the rapture he will come to receive us to himself. That's where I am heaven, there you may be. Also, if the rapture occurred at the same time as the second coming of Christ, we would go up to the clouds and then immediately come right back down to earth for the Millennial Kingdom.
Aaron O'Connell:
It contradicts John 14, 2 through 3. And these are just some of the reasons why I truly believe that the rapture is going to be beforehand. Also, revelations 3.10 says we will be kept out of the hour of testing which will come upon the whole earth. We will be protected from the Lord's wrath. The Lord's wrath is the tribulation when the bowls and the scrolls are being poured out, and it says right there in 11, revelations 3.10, that the church will be protected, will be kept from the hour of testing. But I don't want to exhaust that too much. That's why we need to be prepared, because if we are true Christians, we're gonna disappear and then the, the testing happens. The horrible atrocities that are happening right now on earth are gonna seem like child's play, because when the rapture happens, that's when the, when the Holy Spirit then will be removed from the earth.
Aaron O'Connell:
The Holy Spirit is God. He is an active person who actively a convicts us of our need for a Savior because of our sinfulness. He doesn't give up on us until at the end that rapture. In other words, a person can say no to the Holy Spirit Not too many times. Then boom, it's too late. He doesn't give up, he's gonna keep on calling. I recommend you to chase that.
Aaron O'Connell:
Then, as the rapture happens, it doesn't know exactly when the seven-year tribulation, whether it be right after the rapture or when the exact starting point happens, but after that the seven-year tribulation begins. And let me just put a caveat that I failed to mention in the very beginning of this podcast. Throughout the whole Bible, especially when interpreting prophecy, if it's symbolic, it's gonna tell you that it's symbolic. It will tell you what it symbolizes. You'll see it all through revelation. You'll see it all through all the prophecy, through Isaiah, ezekiel, daniel. But if not, we are to take it literally.
Aaron O'Connell:
The seven-year tribulation is a seven-year time and in that seven-year time is divided into two parts Two, three and a half periods. Because during the first three and a half year period Satan will be the deceiver and will sign a peace agreement with Israel. At the same time there'll be two Old Testament prophets that will be testified day and night in Jerusalem, testifying to Christ and drawing people to Christ. Remember, this was the role of the Holy Spirit before being removed from earth. There's gonna be people trying to kill these two prophets, but they won't be killed at that time. But after the three and a half years they'll be killed but almost in immediately resurrected and returned to heaven. But I gotta say something these two prophets, it doesn't mention who they are, but there's a point to who they are and that's pointed to the transfiguration. When Jesus was transfigured and all of a sudden, boom. They wanted to build shelters for the two people that came up. Who are those two people? Moses and Elijah? My guess is that Moses and Elijah are gonna be those two prophets. But let's continue.
Aaron O'Connell:
At the end of the seven-year tribulation, but also during those seven-year tribulations, this is when the bowls are gonna be poured out. This is when the scrolls are gonna be opened and it's just gonna be all hell. This is when there's gonna be the disease. This is when thirds of people are gonna be dying. This is all those types of things. But at the end of the seven-year tribulation, there's gonna be an all-out war that Satan will bring about. Christ then is gonna return to earth and just speaks to defeat Satan and his dominion and just like that, the war is gonna be over and all non-believers that are still alive will join all unbelievers to await their final judgment. In place that have died, where they'll be weeping and gnashing of taste. They'll be waiting for that final judgment. It's gonna be in that storm place of Hades.
Aaron O'Connell:
The only ones left on earth are those that put their trust in Jesus Christ during the tribulation and survived the massacre of Satan, because there will be a lot of people, a lot of people that didn't get raptured but then put their faith into Christ. But they're gonna be beheaded, they're gonna be tortured. There's gonna be so many crazy things going on, but there's gonna be a when those people die. They don't get their instantanies, get their bodies. Those are the ones that are referred to being under the altar, the souls underneath the altar, and revelations. But there's gonna be people that didn't die during the tribulation, that still believed in Christ. They will survive.
Aaron O'Connell:
And then, at that point, after that Satan, at the end of it, when Satan is defeated, he'll be bound up for a thousand years, referred to as the Millennial Kingdom, and all believers in heaven will return to earth and along with those that survived the tribulation and will reign on earth with Jesus for a thousand years. So who's all gonna be there? Those that died, the Old Testament, saints, the church that was raptured, those that died in the tribulation all of us will receive our eternal bodies, our new bodies, but we're also gonna be living amongst those that put their faith in Christ and were true believers in the tribulation. So we're gonna be married together, put together, but those that actually didn't die but are true Christians. They're gonna still allowed to be marrying. They're gonna still be allowing to have kids, but those that are in heaven and those have been raptured. We're gonna be more like the angels. We won't be given away. We won't be able to reproduce.
Aaron O'Connell:
So during these thousand years, people will be born just like they are today. They'll be born with a sin nature and also, just like today many are gonna read, reject Christ. How that's possible, as Jesus is ruling and all that stuff. Well, remember that Satan is bound up, but not as demons that served him. They're gonna continue to deceive people, causing people to reject Christ. So there's gonna be these kids being born and this is when where it speaks of kids that people can being a hundred years old is gonna be considered young. So there's gonna be a lot of people being born during this time, because Tiger is gonna be able to lay down with, with rabbit. You know there's gonna be a lot, far less sin going on, but it's still gonna have a lot of people being deceived and at the end of the thousand years, there's gonna be a final battle where Jesus is gonna come out victorious with just a single command.
Aaron O'Connell:
But those thousand years is very important for a number of reasons it allows God's promises to Israel to be fulfilled on earth, it rewards those who have been faithful during the tribulation, it allows justice, peace and righteousness to fill the earth, it allows Christ to reign on the throne of David and it prepares for the final judgment of Satan. But the millennium is not heaven, it's not the end. It's only a foretaste of the glories that will last forever in the eternal state, because then at the end of that millennium, like I said, there's gonna be that last hurrah where the devil gets released and he then goes and gathers all the rest of the people and then gets defeated and that's where he then gets tossed in the lake of fire with all of the other non-believers, all that have died, all that are there, that are going on, and they will be there forever, forever, being tortured. Because that comes when the judgment, where all those non-believers from the beginning of time will stand before God and be judged for the rejection of Christ and then sentenced to eternity in hell. Also, at that time, all believers from the beginning of time, from beginning of time, the Old Testament believers New Testament, the church, the people that died during the tribulation, those that didn't die during the tribulation. Everybody will be judged and rewarded according to what they did, what we've done for others and for Christ. There's gonna be levels. There's gonna be. We're gonna have different nations. We're gonna not all look the same. We're gonna have different roles. That's why it's so important to be just going all 100% for Christ, to not be lost in the patterns of this world, but instead be constantly seeking God how you can further the kingdom of God, because when all of that is finished, then Christ is gonna replace the old earth and the heavens which sky and space with the new earth and heavens, where the new Jerusalem will be established and all believers from the beginning of time will then reign with Jesus for eternity in that new earth and heaven.
Aaron O'Connell:
I don't know about you, but that just sounds amazing that I don't have to go through that tribulation, that I'll be raptured and protected from all of that. That's only if you give 100%, make Lord 100% of all of your life, all of your life, which is what I want for everybody today. If you do have any questions about revelations, whatever it may be, please contact me, aaron at Y2fitnesscom. Go on my Instagram, y2fitness, wherever social media it is. Contact me, ask me questions. I'm here to help, but I really just want you to dive into revelations because I want you to experience that blessing. I want there to be no stress or struggle. Too many believe that this is all they have, that things are gonna be worse, and they just constantly are stressing. But we know that God is in control, no matter what is happening. We know how it ends, so let's take joy in that.