BIBLE PROPHECY: God Speaks to His Anxious & Hurting People

Bible Prophecy 

God Speaks to His Anxious & Hurting People

June 13, 2020

Sabbath School Bible Class

Larry R Evans

Introduction

Waiting is not easy.  Having faith in God does not end the cries for an end to suffering. Violence in our cities, the coronavirus pandemic, devastating tornados and typhons, and starving orphaned children all make waiting for the coming of Jesus difficult.  At the same time, it is hard to read the Bible without seeing that God is even more anxious to put an end to the hurts of the world. God is not silent.  His intentions are clear. He has a plan. We have a hope. Waiting is still not easy.

In the past, God has spoken hope through Bible prophecy. Today, He is doing the same. He is aware how hard waiting is for us. He knows we are impatiently asking “How long?” and “What about justice?”

When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” (Rev. 6:9,10)

In a previous study, we saw the advantage of reading the Bible in a reverse order.  Remember?  We began first with the promise and the call to Abraham (Gen. 12:1-3).  As we read the sequence of events backwards, we saw how that prophetic promise to Abraham was answering the conditions of the world at that time:  The Tower of Babel, the flood, the conditions leading up to the flood, the murder of Abel, the deception of Adam and Eve, and the perfect home equipped with a special time to be with God—the Sabbath.  Such a reading shines a bright light upon God. It also clarifies our own identity and how sin derailed God’s original plan. Bible prophecy becomes a lesson book about God’s plan to bring order out of chaos. Prophecy shines the spotlight is upon His overwhelming desire to be with His people!  

“Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” (Rev. 22:7)

Prophecy in Response to Lamentations

Have you ever noticed that soon after a calamity strikes, the first thought is often, “Why me?” Somehow, we’ve gotten it into our heads that God’s job is to make us happy and keep us happy. No doubt, God does want us to be happy. However, to bring lasting happiness involves a longer process. To get to where we are at the moment didn’t happen overnight.  To get us to where we need to be will take time.  Sometimes it means going on a journey that is often difficult.  Somethings cannot be “fixed” with the wave of a magic wand. As is often said today about relationships that have failed, “It’s complicated.” Nevertheless, God wants to hear from us, and the collections of psalms is a prime example. I do believe God saved those psalms for special times like today. Approximately one third of the psalms are laments. 

There is a difference, however, between whining and lamenting. Lamenting is calling God’s attention to what He already knows.  We may be hurting. Life may seem to be unfair. We may have been taken advantage of and even attacked and abused. Remember, when we go to a doctor and tell him where it hurts, we are not whining. We are just explaining where it hurts. Though God knows already, His gracious character realizes how important it is for us to share anyway. That’s what a trusting relationship is.  That kind of lamenting or sharing is really a cry of faith.  We are telling Him where it hurts.  We are asking for help. We are placing our trust in Him to understand and to help. That is faith, not whining. We may offer our own suggestions as to how the problem can be fixed but in fait we rest our case in His wisdom and His timing (Isa. 55:8).

The rebellion of sin impacts multiple relationships on this earth and beyond. The wait has taken far too long even for Him.  He knows where our collective journey is going but like a compassionate waiting Father, He gives us enough insights to know He is working on fixing the problem. He asks us to trust and to remain faithful during the interim. Those advance insights are what we call Bible prophecy. They are given to encourage his people who are hurting and anxious for His coming.

Secular Voices Sound an Alarm

The following are excerpts from the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists

“To: Leaders and citizens of the world
Re: Closer than ever: It is 100 seconds to midnight
Date: January 23, 2020”

The Bulletin equips the public, policymakers, and scientists with the information needed to reduce man-made threats 
to our existence.

“On Thursday, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, which takes stock of the threats posed by nuclear war and climate change each year, moved the Doomsday Clock to 100 seconds before midnight. We are now measuring how close the world is to catastrophe in seconds -- not hours, or even minutes. It is the closest to Doomsday we have ever been since the clock was created in 1947.” -- CNN

All voices seem to suggest we are living in serious times.  During the pandemic the number requesting Bible studies has grown tremendously. The search for understanding is growing. How we read the Bible and more specifically, how should we read Bible prophecy is important.  

It is easy to read into Bible prophecy the context of our present times.  Dr. Jon Paulien directs our attention to an important observation. 

“The safest course is to understand the Bible’s view of the end on its own terms, rather than expecting direct answers to the kinds of questions that only people in our day could have asked.” (What the Bible Says about the End Time, p.34)

Some Basics for Understanding Bible Prophecy: 

Clearing the Way to Hear God Speak

Very briefly, let’s consider: (1) Methods of Interpretation, (2) The Repetition and Enlargement Principle

Methods for Interpreting Prophecy 

Preterism—The term comes from the Latin meaning past. Prophecies like the destruction of Jerusalem, the Antichrist and the Great Tribulation have been fulfilled in the past.

Futurism— projects the emphasis of prophecy into the far future. It was used by the proponents at the time (the Jesuit, Luis de Alcazar) to protect the papal church of the Middle Ages from the accusations of the teachings of the Reformation.

Historicism—views prophecy as a progressive and continuous fulfillment over time. 

Daniel 2 and 7 – Examples  

Most of us are familiar with Daniel 2.  Nebuchadnezzar had a dream but needed help remembering it.  Daniel prayed and was able to not only recount the dream but interprets it as well.  The dream was of a great image of a person. Different parts of the body or the image were made of different metals. The different parts were successive nations: Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome.

In Daniel 7 the same sequence of empires is addressed but this time they were described not as part of an image but are depicted as grotesque beasts. (lion, bear, leopard, and a terrible beast from which came a little horn that speaks boastfully.). Why the difference portrayal of similar but expanded situation?

Paulien explains it this way, 

“Why the difference? To the pagan king, the nations were portrayed in the form of an idol.  This is natural, since he understood the nations of the world to be glorious, shinning representations of the gods they served.   To the Hebrew prophet Daniel, on the other hand, the empires of the world were portrayed as the saw them: vicious, ravenous beasts that were enslaving and destroying his people. God respected the language and cultural setting of each of these men in order to communicate a message about His plans for the future.” (Ibid, p.35)

 Continuing,

“The Bible testifies that when God seeks to communicate something about the future, He draws on the language culture, and experience of the people He speaks through to communicate His message effectively.” (Ibid p.35)

What we see in Daniel 2 and 7 are clear biblical examples of what we referred to earlier as “Historicism.”  We can see a clear progressive and continuous fulfillment over time. Why is this so important.  If we don’t recognize the historistic principle, we can easily fall into the line of reasoning of the popularized dispensationalism.  This is where God is seen to have divided history into (arbitrary) defined periods or ages to which God allotted distinctive administrative principles – at one time God used law, at another time God used promises and later He used grace. This is called progressive revelation as opposed to covenant theology which is why our earlier study of Abraham was so important. Dispensationalists promote the idea of the Secret Rapture that comes before the time of trouble (tribulation).

With the historistic principle applied, it becomes evident that the “little horn” emerges from Rome (Dan. 7:7,8).  Both the Preterist and Futuristic approaches shift attention away from this truth.

Some Reflections on Today’s World and the End

We certainly live in a world which is increasing in disunity, yet it is interesting to see how much the world is being held together in a trance-like paralysis. Within a few short months the coronavirus became a pandemic. It was and still is an overwhelming plague. Nearly everyone was to be confined to staying at home.   When venturing outside the home we were advised to maintain social distancing.  It is an uncanny unity. Nevertheless, well over a hundred thousand died in just the United States. 

As a result of the pandemic, economic breakdowns swept world. In the United States the bubble of “peace and prosperity” was burst in at least two ways:  First, economically speaking businesses came to a near halt with thousands being forced out of jobs. Secondly, though there never was a true unity, rampant disunity sprang forth as a result of the cruel death of George Floyd.  The pent-up energy from being confined to home for weeks was released in protest that called for needed justice reform.  However, it was accompanied by some who carried with them greed and a violent destructive behavior defined best as anarchy.  Justice reform is needed but without an agreed upon moral standard there is no consistency. Arbitrary forced allegiance does not last long.   

It normally isn’t a good idea to jump into the middle of a book of the Bible and especially a prophetic book of the Bible like Revelation and draw conclusions.  At the same time, I’m not sure that silence in times like we are living is a good idea either. Perhaps just a few observations would be enough to encourage you to take Bible study even more seriously.

The Principle of Recapitulation (Repetition) and Enlargement

And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. (Rev. 12:17)

The dragon (Satan – v.9) makes war with God’s people who are identified by their loyalty to him in both word and deed.  Rev. 12:17 is a concise statement. How that war plays out is repeated but enlarged in chapters 13 and 14.

In chapter 13 our attention is drawn to two beasts: one that comes out of the sea and one that comes out of the earth. These bear the goals and ambitions of the Dragon or Satan. These become the agencies of Satan in the battle against God’s loyal followers. The intensity of the battle is clearly seen in verse 15 and following where do-or-die tactics are forced upon those who do not comply. There are many important specifics that need to be studied and explained but for now let’s look at the big picture. 

In chapter 14 we see a sharp contrast.  Instead of beasts we see a Lamb on Mt. Zion which is symbolic of Jerusalem or the city of God. With the Lamb are those identified as having His character or name. Unlike the do-or-die tactic of the beast powers we are introduced to the proclamation of the three angels’ messages: the everlasting gospel which is manifested in this conflict as worshiping the Creator.  It is the Creator who gives identity; it is the Creator who established the moral absolutes; it is the Creator who is taking back the world for our redemption. But He does this with fair warning and a call to return. Each person is given a choice just as they did at the time of Noah.

The message of the three angels, however, is counterfeited with the message of the three frogs or impure spirits. (Rev. 16:13).  The battle lines are drawn. Notice this description of the end times by Ellen White,

… anarchy is seeking to sweep away all law, not only divine, but human. The centralizing of wealth and power; the vast combinations for the enriching of the few at the expense of the many; the combinations of the poorer classes for the defense of their interests and claims; the spirit of unrest, of riot and bloodshed; the world-wide dissemination of the same teachings that led to the French Revolution--all are tending to involve the whole world in a struggle similar to that which convulsed France. {Ed 228.2}

Is there any question that this describes our time? This was the case during the French Revolution.  History does repeat itself but this time we are seeing a global revolution.

The Prophetic Promise

But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob,

And He who formed you, O Israel:

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have called you by your name;

You are Mine.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.

When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned,

Nor shall the flame scorch you.

For I am the Lord your God,

The Holy One of Israel, your Savior; (Isa 43:1. NKJV)

And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with themand be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” (Rev. 21:1-3, NKJV)

The last words in the book about the life of Jesus, The Desire of Ages is a reminder of our link to heaven and celebration waiting for us.

The family of heaven and the family of earth are one. For us our Lord ascended, and for us He lives. “Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them.” Hebrews 7:25. DA 835.2