THE LAW OF REVELATION (Part 1) – Revelation Central

A CHRISTMAS TRIP

Luke says as these shepherds watched their flocks during the night, the glory of God shined all around them. Now can you imagine that? It’s pitch black and then, suddenly, everything around them is illuminated! Then an angel appears and announces that the awaited Savior of the world has been born and is lying in swaddling clothes in a manger in Bethlehem. But it’s still not over. Besides this angelic messenger and the glory of God that is all around them, a vast, multitude of angels appears praising God, saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests” (2:13).

Speak Lord, But is it Really You?

Of all experiences that exhilarate people, chief among them is when God speaks directly to the human soul. One inspired word to a thirsty, hungry traveler can refresh and sustain more than a thousand meals. It was Elijah who heard God’s instruction to “rise and eat” that received nourishment to navigate 285 miles for the following forty days

ALL MY FOUNTAINS ARE IN YOU

Moses had completed his 40-year mission of guiding the Israelites through the wilderness, now the Promised Land was but a few steps away. Canaan was 60% desert, with approximately two-million Jews ready to inherit it, but what good would this land be without water? So before the Israelites took one step into their inheritance, Moses combined God’s promise to grant them land with his promise to grant them water: “For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills” (Dt.8:7). I have a question: How could God possibly fulfill this promise when Canaan was 60% desert? Where were these “brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out”? God answered this question in Isaiah. . . .

GOD RAISES DEAD DREAMS

Scripture uses death to identify man’s greatest enemy and there’s nothing man fears more. When a person expires, losing all vital signs, doctors, medicine, and science stand powerless in its presence. Only God can resurrect. But this sermon doesn’t deal with the physical cessation of life, it deals with death of a different nature. The death of God’s divinely inspired promises and visions. I’m persuaded that many Christians are in the gestation stage of a specific promise God has given them. Perhaps years ago He planted a dream and you’re still awaiting its fruition. Maybe even hope has begged you to admit that promise is dead. But the God that resurrected Christ from the dead can resurrect your promise.

UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE LAST DAYS

What makes the Last Days unique? As the Prophets and Apostles described them, they included dark sayings, foreboding warnings, and coded messages. Did you know that the dispensation known as the Last Days has a definite starting point? But equally important, Jesus and the Apostles embedded a dynamic “Call to Action” to Christians for these days that must not be ignored! Additionally, there is a primary message, along with an overriding objective, for all people to recognize. Finally, the Bible includes a preset day of termination for the Last Days.

PARDON ME!

In Psalm 32, David proclaims the blessedness of the one whose sins are forgiven. And he does this in a unique way. He uses three expressions for sin and then employs three expressions of God’s pardon for sin. Here’s what I mean: David called one category of sins transgressions, which indicates “rebellion against God”; another he simply called sin, which describes “knowingly missing the mark”; and the third category he called iniquity, which speaks of a “vile perversion.” Those terms cover the entire gamut of our sinfulness—major and minor. But then after showing us three categories of sin he uses three expressions to show how God pardons our sins:

WHAT NEVER HAPPENED ON THE DAY OF ATONEMENT

Let’s journey back several thousand years to Jerusalem during Passover week. This was the holiest of the seven Hebrew festivals that attracted thousands of worshipers. Some traveled hundreds of miles to attend this celebration in the religious capital of the world—Jerusalem. What a sight it must have been! For seven days the Priests appeared in their royal apparel, led the people in worship, offered sacrifices, and blew shofars (2 Chronicles 30:21). Everything was leading to the Day of Atonement when the High Priest would present the blood of a Passover lamb for the people’s sins. Not only was Jerusalem sightly its aroma was pungent.

“Disclosing Prophecies; Inspiring Hope for the Endtime”

Robert D. Pace

This is Part 1 of 2, in a series of brief articles on “The Law Of Revelation”

God has embedded laws into the universe that govern all areas of life. Laws that are incontrovertible and designed for our welfare. The Law of Polarity, the Law of Cause and Effect, the Law of Motion, and the Law of Reciprocity all affect us. And from a Biblical/spiritual perspective, God has ordained a Law of Revelation. It is a principle that determines who gains access to God’s counsel. While the basics of Scripture are written for all to understand, it also contains mysteries, secrets, parables, and riddles for the disciple to investigate and unravel. This is where the Law of Revelation emerges.

The Apostle Paul informed us that “spiritual matters” can only be appraised by “spiritual” people—that is, Christians. Matthew 13:11 says, “To you [Christians] it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them [unbelievers] it has not been given.” Like a vault situated behind iron bars and placed inside thick, block walls, so has God hidden His mysteries from the unconverted. It is only the regenerated, whose mind and innermost-being has been quickened by the Spirit of God, that can understand God’s counsel.

However, it is evident that some disciples have greater insight to God’s Word than other disciples. Even Simon Peter was amazed at the depth of revelation God granted to the Apostle Paul (2 Peter 3:15-16). Moreover, God’s sovereign choosing and dispensing of spiritual gifts determine revelatory depth. But beyond God’s autonomous determinations, the Bible provides kingdom principles that Christians can utilize for understanding God’s mysteries. One principle involves our posture before God.

The Lord said in Isaiah 66:2, “This is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my Word.”

Psalm 25:9 says, “He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way.”

Isaiah 57:15 says, “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit.”

Besides Jesus—“the Word made flesh”—Moses is the Bible’s foremost person of revelation. Moses conversed face-to-face with God and wrote more Scripture than anyone. He understood mysteries from the beginning of creation to the end of the age. He joined Christ and Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration and discussed the Messiah’s crucifixion and death. But there is an explanation for Moses’ incredible ability to perceive mysteries and, again, it relates to his posture. Numbers 12:3 says, “Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth.” You see, people that best discern God’s voice are those that live in utter humility. It is literally the passageway to revelation!

Do you know the message that was most difficult for the Apostles to understand? It was Christ’s predictive message of His death on the Cross. Up to His final hours, Jesus tried to explain His mission to suffer and die, but the Apostles couldn’t hear it. Peter, with his preconceived ideas, jumped up and said, “[Lord,] this shall never happen to you” (Matthew 16:22). That’s when Jesus rebuked him with the words, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

But notice who did understand Christ’s plan to die on the Cross: it was a woman that soaked His feet with tears, and anointed them with perfume. It was someone that couldn’t get any lower! As the twilight of the Crucifixion appeared, the Apostles had gathered around Jesus perhaps wondering which miracle He would next work to wow the masses. But not this woman; she was saying “Goodbye” to Jesus. She had deciphered His message to die on the Cross and was anointing Him for burial (Matthew 26:6-13).

Humility is perhaps chief among the principles that open the door to revelation. I hope you will look inward and evaluate your posture before God. It might answer some questions regarding your ability to perceive, hear, and understand the secrets of God’s Word.

(Read Part 2 Here)