Episode 43: Revelation and 1 Chronicles

In this episode of North Bible Recap, Pastor Rodney and Pastor Christian explore David's preparations for the temple in 1 Chronicles, unpack Revelation's message of hope, worship, and Christ's ultimate victory, and reflect on the timeless wisdom and prayers found in Psalms 86–90. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:09

Well, good day everybody, and I am so glad that you are with us today for North Babel Recap. How about it, Christian?

SPEAKER_00 0:16

So glad that you guys have it joined. Whether you're watching, you're listening. What we would love for you is to like and subscribe if you're watching on YouTube. Uh share, if you're on Facebook, if you're on Spotify, make sure you leave us a review. Also on Apple. That's gonna help the algorithm get it to the right people as they're typing things and they want to learn more about the Bible. And of course, if you are being blessed by this and you're learning something, let us know. Uh I love when people come to us on the weekend and let us know hey, I'm following the Bible recap, uh, learned this this week. So keep doing that. It is.

SPEAKER_03 0:48

I really enjoy too. Uh because sometimes you like wonder you want some feedback. Yes, it's uh anything in life, you kind of like to have a little bit of feedback, and so it's good to have some feedback, but uh really want you to you know expand the audience by you know sharing it with people, and we thank you for being a part of that. Okay, hey Christian, um we're we're dump jumping into some great stuff today. Yeah, we're gonna look at uh in just a moment later on, we'll look at uh chronicles, uh chapters 16 through 29, and then also Psalms, uh chapters 86 through 90. But we're kicking off today.

SPEAKER_00 1:23

Yep.

SPEAKER_03 1:23

Rumro, please. Come on. Here we go. Book of Revelation.

SPEAKER_00 1:27

Yeah, I wish Samson was sitting in this chair today.

SPEAKER_03 1:30

Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. I think all of us would rather um so we're gonna just look at lay the foundation, uh, chapters uh one through five, uh, which are so crucial. Yeah. Uh one of the things that I want to note that even a typo in even uh today's notes and stuff is oftentimes people talk about revelations. And so even pastors will say, Hey, today turn with me to the book of Revelations, uh, chapter number three, whatever it is they're turning to. And um, I I remember my dad, whenever I first started preaching, I'd always say, Hey, turn to the book of Revelations. And probably the first several years of my ministry, I just was so used to saying that. My dad would correct me every time, and he would say, Son, it's one revelation, yep, yep, not revelations. Yeah, and so he is correct, and so it is a revelation of Jesus Christ, but yet there is a lot going on in that book of Revelation. That's right. That's right. So we're gonna jump into it now, okay? You're you're the you're the lead man, so take us.

SPEAKER_00 2:35

So um main thing that we need to know about the book of Revelation, it's that uh there are many different views on this, and depends on what type of circle you grew up. Uh, and we're gonna get to talk about that here in a in a minute, but I just want to let you know, as you are listening, to look at this book and as you're following, to try to forget about all the things that you have heard in the past about about this book. And let's just ask the Holy Spirit to guide us, which is what we do every time that we open the Bible, is Holy Spirit, teach me your word. I don't want to come with it with what I already think that I know, but I want you to reveal yourself to me. And I think that's important when we read this book because there are so many different views. Um, some of them could be right, could be wrong. We don't know the it the reality of that is. But overview of the book of Revelation is that the author, it was most likely John the Apostle from the island of Patmos. Now, this is an island that was 40 miles away uh from from the land from the from from where Ephesus and all of that was. And something interesting about this land, this is where Rome will send political revels, and they will send them over there. So we have John the Baptist, John John John the Baptist, John the Apostle, it's there, and he is writing from uh there. So uh a lot of um a lot of most scholars believe that it was John the Apostle, the the brothers. Now, there are two dates when this was probably written. The first date is 64 AD to 70 AD. This is during Nero's persecution, and the later date, which is what most people believe, it was from AD 90 to 96. This is the the reign of Domitius, which he was an emperor that was bringing back, um, he wanted loyalty and he wanted people to worship the emperor, which we know in Christianity we don't worship anyone but Jesus. So, because of that, and the Christians are not worshiping, there is extreme persecution. Uh, so uh the audience is written to the seven churches of Asia Minor. Uh, I have them here. Uh, I don't want to try to pronounce them.

SPEAKER_02 4:54

That's okay. We don't have to.

SPEAKER_00 4:55

But as you read uh Revelation, you're gonna see Philadelphia.

SPEAKER_02 4:58

We got Philadelphia.

SPEAKER_00 4:59

I will say Ephesus. Um, so there are seven different churches in Asia Minor. Now, this is not all of the churches that were there, but this were probably the most prevalent uh churches in those areas. Um, one thing that I found that it was um very interesting about how this letter is written, the way that uh John is writing to each of the churches, as you have a map, I have a map on my study Bible. Uh, if you don't have a study Bible, you can look this up online. The way that he wrote, starting with Ephesus, and then in going to the other churches, is actually how a mailman will deliver a letter. So this letter was written in a way that it was it had us uh a way of where it was gonna go first and to the last church.

SPEAKER_03 5:44

Which which is which is significant because that's he did that very intentional because it's probably going to be the root route of the deliverer, the person who has taken what he has written, going from one audience to the next audience. And there was a sense of order to that that was really, really good. And it's interesting to note that John historically um obviously was thrown on the aisle of Patmos, but there was actually attempts to kill him before he even got there. Church history, this is not revealed in the word of God, but church history, which is very uh accurate and a consistent uh understanding of some of the attempts to kill John. Uh one is that he was apparently taken and put into a pot of oil, the heat turned up, and the flames he stayed in that and they they were planning on bowling him to death. And which is really interesting. Um that that does not sound good at all. Yeah, but God sustained his life, and God sustained his life for this revelation.

SPEAKER_00 6:49

Yep, yep. And so so um we need to ask ourselves what does revelation mean? Now, the Greek work of revelation is apocalypsis. Now, here's where we get a lot of different views because often people think of apocalypsis as like the end of time, like what's going to happen when the world is going to end, which I think that has driven a lot of different views on this book. But understanding what this word means is it's very important to understand the book because the word apocalypsis in the Greek actually means unveiling, a disclosure, or a revelation, which is like it's it's important for us to understand that because often we will read this thinking, this is what's going to happen at the end of the world. No, what's happened in the book of Revelation is that John is writing of these visions that he is seeing because he is revealing to the Christian of the first century of what's going to happen. And what's going to happen, it's that Jesus win.

unknown 7:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 7:53

This whole book is about, you know, all this persecution, everything you see, and just remember that Jesus is victorious.

SPEAKER_03 8:00

I think that's the that's the key thing to top of your brain, every time you read uh the book of Revelation, wherever you're at, is that Jesus wins. Jesus makes all things new. Yep. He's going to restore all things when everything's said and done. And that's the that's the end of this world as we know it. Now it's a crucial to understand that this um end of the world is actually not actually the end of the world. Okay. It's a new world and a new earth, a new earth, a new heaven, a new earth that the Bible speaks to very clearly. That's very important to understand, because it's like this earth is not done away with, it's made new. Yeah. It's kind of like your life. If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation. Okay, I gave my heart to Jesus. I'm a new creation, but I'm the same Rodney. This earth is going to be the earth, but it's going to be made new, where there's no more sin. And so that that's the winning. Yeah. He wins. He's victorious. That's the understanding of really the overarching theme of the book of Revelation.

SPEAKER_00 9:04

And what God is doing in through this book is that He's pulling back the curtain so believers can see the reality like from heaven's perspective. Like all these things that are you're seeing are going to pass. What matters is that which is one of the main ideas. They have three main ideas of this book that I want to share with you. Uh, but the main thing is the revelation that Jesus is victorious. So there are three um big ideas in this book. The first one I just mentioned is that Jesus wins. Not Rome, not Caesar, not the dragons that it talks about, not the beast, which we're gonna touch a little bit on the beast, um, because you know, we often we think that this beast is a Satan. Is it is it the beast that is gonna be released in the last days? What does this beast mean? So uh something for us important to understand is what apocalyptic literature is, because this letter is written in apocalyptic literature, and what this basically means is that it's a style of writing that uses symbols, visions, imagery, numbers, and heavenly revelations to reveal God's perspective on what's going to happen in the world. Every time that we are reading the Bible, we have to understand that the Bible, and Pastor, you have said this many times, it's it's it's not written necessarily for us, but it is but it is for us at the same time. How often that you mention that say the Bible is written it's not written to you, but it's written for you.

SPEAKER_03 10:30

Yeah. So there's a big difference, okay? Um, so it's not written, it was written to a specific group of people at a specific time and space. Yep. But the principles and the overarching understanding of Jesus wins and the themes that he's going to give are for us today. Yep. Yep. Very much for us today. Um, that we can understand that my this is this word is alive, it hasn't changed, it's it's for me today, it just wasn't written to me.

SPEAKER_00 10:58

Yep, yep. So it's important for us to understand because uh often that's when we can start creating these narratives where uh this is what this means in the end times and the end of the world. No, this actually letter was to a specific group of people in this church's. Uh, so that's the first one is that Jesus wins. So uh main the second main idea is it's this this book is about worship, and it's something that often we can we can overlook in the this theme in the book of Revelation. And the question isn't um what's going to happen at the end, but the question is who will you worship? Will you worship the lamb or you or will you worship the beast? So that John is writing this to reminding them about worship. So often it's not a I I grew up, Pastor Rodney. Maybe you grew up in a circle like this, but often preachers will use revelation to bring fear, which led me to not want to read revelations. Like I remember when I met Natalie, she was she wanted to talk about the book of Revelation and the end times because the church that she was part of put a lot of emphasis in that. I did not want to even mention it because of this how scared I grew up. Uh, did you grow up in a in a in a similar yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 12:17

I I grew up hearing a lot about Revelation and and um and the concepts, it could create a lot of fear uh in our hearts and lives. Um but I began to learn to realize that um understanding that one one God does not give the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and a sound mind. Yep. And secondly, is that really when you understand that this is a it's it is not nonfiction, it is uh very much um real to life. I mean it's it's it's it's written as it's going to happen. And so to real but look and say that wow, we win. And so there's no reason to be afraid, and that as a child of God, I find security and strength and understanding that he has paved the way and fought the victories for me, and then I just get to enjoy the the victory parade when everything's said and done, because this is what this book of Revelation is about. It's about um, you know, he wins, worshiping him, uh the lamb of God, and then we're gonna enjoy this great victory parade someday, exactly from a new heaven and a new earth.

SPEAKER_00 13:22

Yep. So Revelation repeatedly moved from conflict into worship. This is a big thing in this book because the Lamb is victorious. Why would you worship the beast? Why would you not uh why would you leave the Lord because of the set because of persecution? It's always calling back to perseverance, to endure. Um, and the third main idea is hope. Um, this is another thing that often because of we see you know the dragons, oh the beasts, all these things that we bring, we think it's fear. Actually, this book was a book meant to bring hope to people, that no matter the circumstance or the situation, just know that Jesus will always win. And when we read the the book of Revelation, now I read it with that. I know this is not a scary book, I know this is a book that was meant to bring me hope in the midst of trials, persecution, or anything that I'm that I'm facing.

SPEAKER_03 14:20

And and much of that imagery that we're gonna hear is is speaking um to actual events of the day. And so, even um, whether it be the dragon representing you know the system of the world, yep, and what it was trying to do, many of the his audience was facing great persecution. Yep. And he was giving them hope. Keep worshiping Jesus in the end, you're gonna win. You may you may have to, and even lays this down. He said, You may have to even uh lay down your life, uh, but that's still not a word of discouragement, it's a word of hope that to be absent from this body is to be with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And so, yeah, though this imagery can be overwhelming, I admit that. Um, but I want you to just keep dialing in to remember those things that Christian just talked about. Jesus wins, therefore, I'm gonna worship him, and I'm gonna be worship true. Worship is not just singing a song and praying and bowing down, all that's a part of it, but it is a lifestyle, it's a choice to honor God with everything you have and to give praise and glory to him through your life actions. And then finally realizing that there's hope, there always will be hope in Christ Jesus because we do.

SPEAKER_00 15:37

Yep. Revelations 1, I think how it starts is the revelation of Jesus Christ. It's not the revelation of the beasts, of the dragons, of anything. The revelation that we're reading is the revelation of Jesus Christ, that he is Lord, that he is the lamb that was slain. I mean, there is beautiful passages in here at the same time. There are some that are a little bit more complicated to understand. Uh, but this was a letter that was meant to be read out loud, and we see that um in uh verse uh uh uh three. So, and this is normal because of in the early church, um, they gather and somebody would actually read these letters out loud, and the people will listen to it to them. So, this was a letter that was meant to all these uh churches in Asia. So, chapter one, we see that uh, and many Christians uh that are coming together and gather together, they're listening to the words of John, and this was actually bringing them hope because of the persecution that they were uh seeing. So there is a uh the vision of Christ. Um, this image is powerful. Jesus is not is not distant from his church, he is present among his people, and that is that is a truth that it's it was true then and is true today. And we have talked about this in the countries that are the have seen extreme persecution, we see the church flourishing and we see that God is with them uh through through the persecution.

SPEAKER_03 17:10

Absolutely. I do love that imagery there though, of Jesus walking among the lampstands. Because the lampstands are speaking to the different churches, and we should be a light. In fact, Jesus speaks to that in the gospels that we are the light of the world. Um that we you know I remember the song that I sung when I was a kid of of being light, the gospel, let your light shine before men and don't hide it under a bushel. Yeah, I don't know if you heard that song. No, okay, okay. I don't know if you grew up in Puerto Rico singing that song. Uh this little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine. This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine. Shine all over in wherever town you're from. So shine all over Oklahoma City, yeah, shine all over Guthrie. Yeah, shine all over, you know, Bolivia. Yep, and wherever it is that your light shine for Jesus Christ. And so we are lots of the gospel, but then the reason why we are is because Jesus is walking among us.

SPEAKER_00 18:07

Yes, that's good. Um, he goes on and says that he is the Alpha and the Omega. This is very important because uh this letter, it's saying that Jesus is the beginning and is uh the end. Um, so this again brings a lot of hope that doesn't matter what happens in the in between, he won in the beginning and he will still win at the end. So Alpha and the Omega, this is this is a phrase that represents uh the past, present, and the future. Um, and this is important because throughout the whole book, the victory of Jesus is not for the future, we live in the victory of Jesus even today. Yeah, so he won at the cross, and it's not that he's gonna win at the end. We often think that because we go through difficult situations, that that's the enemy winning. No, a lot of the times it is through those seasons, difficult seasons, that God is preparing us and God is using them, and often we see that as we're being defeated, but no, in reality, it's God is preparing us, but he doesn't win in the future, Jesus is winning today as well.

SPEAKER_03 19:15

Absolutely. You know, you you mentioned, in fact, I heard you say um that that Jesus stands outside of time. Yep. Okay, in in this in the book of Revelation, Jesus is outside of time, he's not in time. In fact, before Jesus came to the earth, he was outside of time. Yep. So Jesus, God, Holy Spirit, God the Father, Jesus, are not held by time and space like we are. Um but Jesus chose to come outside of time and space, eternity into time and space to be born as a child. Then he lived his life for 33 and a half years in time and space. And then after his resurrection, he stepped back outside of time and space. You know, even though he was here on earth for those 40 days, he he was still outside of time and space, and then he goes back, and so he's outside of time and space, which allows him to be able to have a perspective to give to the church that we can't see and understand because he is outside of time and space.

SPEAKER_00 20:21

Yeah, it's it I think it's just hard for us to understand because we are not outside of no, no, no. You just only know, I only know right now, I don't even know what's gonna happen tomorrow.

SPEAKER_03 20:31

Absolutely, and even when I say that, I I'm saying something that I have never experienced. So I can't fathom it fully. Yeah, I understand the concept of it, uh, and I think science even can understand that there are these dimensions that are outside of us, but we we still can't wrap our mind around it. But it is still true.

SPEAKER_00 20:54

Chapter two and on, it starts talking and naming some of these churches. Now, some of these churches receive some some harsh uh love, I would say. Um, but we can we can learn today about what God was speaking to this specific church. So these are all different churches in different parts of the Roman Empire. Um, but every church received some of the same invitation. And the same invitation is to remain faithful. They all faced persecution, some of them a little bit more extreme, depends on where they were. Uh they they they were uh facing some of the same uh like compromise, like they were compromising in some of the same uh areas. This is why uh Jesus and some of them called him lukewarm, and it says, I'm gonna spit you out of my mouth. Um, but they were all facing some of the same thing at different levels, but the main thing that the author was telling them it was to remain uh faithful. Um, because why? Because the one that conquers is Jesus. Um So uh this is something that it's important. Now I'll say here in the church of Ephesus, one thing, one verse that I've always spoke to me is verse number four. It says, But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. And Jesus, the Lord, is calling this church back to that first love. Do you remember, Pastor Ronnie, when you first became a Christian? You know, and like you it and I love seeing people in their first love, that when they read the word of God, nothing compares to this. But but then we experience life and we see you know hardships, and all of a sudden the things that we love about the Lord, then we don't love as much anymore. And what Jesus is going back is to the first that first um love that you had for him, that you were zealous about him, that you wanted to tell everyone about the Lord. God is not only calling the Church of Ephesus back to that first love, but he's calling every single one of us to not be cynical, to to go back to that time where whatever the Lord said, we will do. I'm sure that you have seen people go out of the first love and never returning back. Because I think it's part of life. You're gonna experience some things and you will have to, okay, I gotta, I gotta seek the Lord like I once did.

SPEAKER_03 23:19

Yeah. No, I uh life has a way of jading us, uh, or you can allow life to drive you to the foot of the cross and to Jesus. You know, it's kind of like marriage. I I've never had a wedding that I've ever done where their words are, I'm going to love you for the next 20 years, or I'm going to love you for the next five years, or when this happens and that's part of their vows, and then I'm out. No, I've never, I've never, every one of us, it's till death we do part. Yeah, and it's always these vows of like in sickness and health, you know, rich and poor, and the literally the worst that the world can bring, but yet still nearly 50% of marriages in a divorce. And then many others that are still in they're married, but aren't they lost that first that that zeal, that passion, that you know, and I think that and I've experienced it mean you know with Shannon is that you you you have to work at keeping that. You have to put yourself in positions so that you can keep that fire burning. Yep. You have to be very intentional, forgiving, loving, caring, serving each other. And it's the same way with Christ, because the Bible compares it to a marriage is that literally he is the groom and we are the bride. And then when we profess him as Lord and Savior, what are we doing? We're saying, I do to him. That we are coming together in this marriage where we live surrendered to him till death, we do part. But yet, how many Christians get cold in their faith and they lose what they once had? Yeah, it happens again and again and again. You can't just it's like any marriage, you can't just assume it's going to always be there. If you do, you're gonna lose. You've got to strive. When the Bible says work out your salvation with fear and trembling, that doesn't mean we work for our salvation. No, Jesus is the groom who has done it all for us, but then we work out our salvation, and that requires the word of God, requires the spirit of God, obeying the nudges and being living our life. It requires people that will help us along the journey to correct us, to show us those things we can't see. Because all of us are vulnerable to slip and drift away. Yep. But we don't have to, we can draw closer to Jesus. Who he used to share the word on fire for God and how that he became successful, and somewhere along the way he lost his way, yeah, drifted from God. So sad. It doesn't have to be that way. Um, but it's not going to happen by chance. Yep. We have to put in the work to keep that fire burning. Yep. It's not on his end. Yep. It's not him that's keep falling short on the promises and faithfulness. It's us.

SPEAKER_00 26:25

I like that you talked about that we have to put in the work because I think that in our society, especially in the Christian culture, it's all about Jesus did it all, Jesus did it all. And he did. He his we cannot do anything to earn his love, to earn his salvation. There is nothing we can do because we're a flaw. But the we do have to put in the work to be in community. God is not gonna just put the desire for you. Sometimes you have to put yourself in that situation and allowed the Holy Spirit to do that work in you. So I like that you talked about that because often, you know, we just say, Well, you know, that the Lord will put the desire in me. Yeah, the Lord will put a desire in you as you take the first and second step and third step into that. So uh, but anyways, chapter four and five, and this is where we're gonna end. Um, if you have anything else that you would like to bring in, you feel free.

SPEAKER_03 27:19

No, I just only one thing before you go to four and five is just he we he says oftentimes, anyone who has ears to hear must listen, must listen to the spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches. And then of course he keeps emphasizing what you talked about, whoever is victorious will not be harmed by the second death. Yeah. So even in the dying, we don't have to worry about, you know, a second death. Yeah. Because we will only die once, then we'll live forever.

SPEAKER_00 27:49

I think that often we when it comes to death, you know, we we understand that we're gonna live forever in eternity, but I I feel like often I don't quite understand that because when when I lose someone, I feel like I'm losing them forever. Um in reality, we're just losing them in this life. Um, but that's what I'm saying, you know, even you're not the second death, it won't won't take you. Can I ask you a question about, you know, uh, I think it's chapter three, verse uh 15, 16 says, so because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. Very harsh words. What how would you describe a lukewarm Christian today? And how can we avoid being in that state of being a lukewarm Christian?

SPEAKER_03 28:41

That's that's a good question. I don't know if I've ever been asked exactly that question. And I think that um when we are not grateful and take for granted what has been given to us so freely, and we allow ourselves to neglect this great salvation, uh, and we don't walk in humility, uh, we begin to have a sense of pride, uh, as if the grace that saved you is not the same grace that's gonna sustain you. That makes sense. And when we begin to walk in that, we are we are treading on dangerous ground. I don't know where it is, so I can't say that that person, you know, that I can give you exactly you've crossed that line. But man, I don't want to flirt with that line that Jesus talked about. I don't want to flirt with it, but but some of those things I just mentioned, like uh ingratitude, uh complacency, um taking for granted the grace of God that saved us. Um the same God that saves us is the same grace that saves us is the same grace that we need every day. That's why he says, My grace is sufficient. But then if we if we are truly humble before God and understand there's a pursuit for him, a desire for him. And man, there's a lot of Christians that I see and I wonder, like, oh man, are they they're lukewarm Christians? I feel it in my spirit. I cannot pronounce that judgment fully on them, yeah. Uh, because I'm not God, but boy, there's I will warn them, and if I see, I'll say, hey, here's what I see. This is what I see. Be careful, yeah, be careful, uh, because you know, when he says that, that's a pretty heavy heart, like you said, a harsh statement, and I don't want to be there. Man, it gets me teared up thinking about it, yeah, is that I want to be found, you know, doing what he wants me to do and honoring him and being you know passionate for his kingdom.

SPEAKER_00 30:45

I I think that for me, I I try to pay attention to if I don't want to be in worship or if I don't want to raise my hands, sure. And I have lost that that awe of God. I just when I feel and I sense that I don't want to be here, I don't want to go to church, I don't want to go to group, I don't which those things, you know, it depends on what you have have going on in your life. Some of the things are gonna be natural, but if but you will know the desire of your heart, sure. But you're like in the presence of God and you're just like, I don't really want to raise my hand. That's something where I force myself, and it's not fake it until you make it, but I'm reminding myself you're not Lord of your life. Yeah, the Lord is the Lord of your life. So you know, raise your hand, you know, go forward, ask for prayer. I think he's just covering that pride of you where you think that you have made it. I think when you ever feel like I'm good, that's a dangerous place to be.

SPEAKER_03 31:42

That's very true. Thank you for that. So Revelation 4 and 5. Here we go.

SPEAKER_00 31:48

So we have uh um the throne of God. We have in chapter four, John sees this revelation, this image of the throne of God. And I think what's important here is that before God shows John the beast, he shows him the throne. And often in scripture, before God told Adam and Eve what they could not eat, he showed them what they could eat. Yeah, and I think it often we focus on the negative, not on what he showed us before. And I think that's very intentional where God is before you, before I show you the beasts and and the dragons and all of those things. Let me show you the throne of God. I think that's very it's key uh to understand that the throne comes before the chaos. God gives us salvation before we even are uh are are are going through any hardships in our life or persecution. There is always the God shows us, hey, here's what what what we're we're gonna be doing at the end. So in the chapter five, uh you here have you hear uh John hears the lion of Judah, um, and then you know what he what he sees is the slain lamb. So um this is a I I saw this in a Bible project that this point is it's a pattern that is repeatedly uh John hears one thing and then he sees another. The lion conquers by becoming the lamb. The victorious Jesus comes through the sacrifice of love. So this this whole book has a lot of symbols and images, but I think what we cannot forget is he wins.

SPEAKER_03 33:34

Yeah. So very good. And you you you mentioned the the Bible project, you've heard us say it before on here. Go go listen. I think that it really will give you a because they have so much visual in that also. Yeah, uh, that if you listen to the overview for Revelation, it's very insightful.

SPEAKER_00 33:51

Yep. One thing I want to leave before we leave on, and this is something that I learned actually through an Arma uh study that I did on the book of Revelation, which is Dr. Manny Orango, that is gonna be in the up and to the right soon.

SPEAKER_03 34:03

Um, so uh and I would encourage you to listen to his too. Yeah, his his um uh teaching on revelation or overview of revelation is very insightful because he gives you the different perspectives in regards to specifically the different views on how over the last hundred years, because it's it's important to some of the view I grew up with were Revelation. Um now none of us know 100% for sure, but was probably I I I no longer lean into how I was initially trained in regards to my view of the book of Revelation. And um, and so I think it's very important because it's easy to get caught up into that these events are happening right now, and or they're gonna be right in and we've got to be watching for them to happen, and we've got to watch for those countries to align and everything just right, and this is gonna be that dragon, and this is gonna be this you know, beast, and all and we be very careful, be very careful because what happened with Jesus when he showed up the first time, they weren't ready for him. You know why? They knew the scripture frontwards and backwards, they discussed it, but they had perspective that they had established in their mind of what was going to be and what he was going to look like when he came, that they missed him completely. So good. I don't want me and I don't want you to be able to have read through a lens of revelation that we begin to conjure up our own ideas of what is going to happen in the last few days, and then therefore we actually end up missing the bigger message of one of what's going on here. Yep. And so understand that we are in the last day. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. But the last day didn't start, you know, when uh Israel became a nation, like some people are gonna be teaching, or like right now, what's going on in the Middle East, that now we are in the last day. No, no, we were in the last day when Jesus rose from the dead, ascended back to heaven, and sent the Holy Spirit and the launch of the church, the last days were put into motion.

SPEAKER_00 36:10

I think it's very important that even in what happened in the book of Revelation, and the point that John is trying to get across is that, you know, and I have it here in my notes that it says that modern Christians often want a breakthrough. The book of Revelation emphasizes in overcoming.

SPEAKER_03 36:28

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 36:28

We overcome through the word of the land, uh the blood of the lamb, and the word of our testimony. Often we want a breakthrough. Why? Because the breakthrough is quick and I don't have to do anything. But they have to overcome the persecution. So don't be so focused on a breakthrough, but ask the Holy Spirit, ask the Lord to give you the strength to overcome all things.

SPEAKER_03 36:47

Well that verse that you just quoted, you didn't finish it completely because they overcame him. How? By the blood of the Lamb, the word of their testimony, and they love not their lives even unto death.

SPEAKER_00 37:04

Maybe I left that out because I don't like that part as much.

SPEAKER_03 37:10

Understandable. Uh but but but it is but but it's kind of like one of the great martyrs that I heard years ago, and I can't think of the name of the person, but I've got so many things that I've read over the years. But he he said this when they talked about his death. Well, I they can't kill me, I'm already dead. And we are if we're already we've already died in Christ, um this the death that we're all going to face is not a scary thing, it is a victorious moment.

SPEAKER_00 37:40

So 2 Chronicles, we're gonna go through it's not 2 Chronicles, 1 Chronicles chapters 16 through 29. I'm just gonna mention a few of this this the things here because we have already talked about this in 1st and 2nd Kings. This is now the Chronicles of the Kings. So uh Second Chronicle in this section, uh, what's happening is David is preparing for the future. Um, he is we're gonna read about how he's preparing to build a temple, uh, and and and all of those things, which is the most important part of what we're gonna talk about today. But um, kind of section one, chapter 16, um, worship comes before uh the victory. Uh chapter 17 is the Davinic covenant. This is where David tells the Lord, I want to build you a house. And the Lord tells him, There's too much blood in your hand, you cannot build me a house. Man, if I was David, I would be pretty bombed, you know, because great king, but he did not let that be the reason why he did not prepare and got all of the things for his son Solomon to build the key, the the build the the temple, which is a great lesson.

SPEAKER_03 38:49

Oh, absolutely. It's a great lesson. You know, we just spoke on this past weekend. Of course, when this comes out, it'll be back. But we on Hezekiah, just just to of course, whenever this comes out, it did just a few weeks ago. We talked about Hezekiah. Hezekiah, uh so sad because he did so well all most of his life, and now he's getting older, and he begins to boast in himself and his accomplishments, shows everything, and to the Babylonians, the Babylonians eventually come and take over. But but bottom line is when he's told about uh that that judgment is not going to come to him, it's gonna come to his generation, his kids, and how they'll be taken captive and killed and all this stuff. And he was like, Great, at least it's not happening to me. What kind of father? Yeah, and what happened to Hezekiah that so on fire for God, and then he loses that. But David here, he was every time he messed up, he was willing to take it upon himself. Yep, he said, Judge me, God, come, he said, I call out for your mercy, but also I'll receive your correction. And and then in this moment he's told that you're not going to build the uh tabernacle, uh, I mean the the yeah, the the the temple. But what does he do? He does everything he can to prepare and set up his son for success. And he does, he has all the supplies, he gets all the plans, he lays everything out. He he does everything to be able to, and I want to be that, and I want you to be that for your children. Yep, I want us to be that for future generations. Is that we are laying the foundation right now for future generations, yep. And I hope that we lay a foundation that is is they will want to follow that the what the word of God, the temple of God, even we're building and expanding in three different locations right now in uh Bolivia, um and in Guthrie, and in Oklahoma City. What is that about? Yeah, this is gonna outlive me, it's gonna outlive you, and it's gonna outlive the buildings, and it's not just about buildings, it's about the the next generation that is going to experience Jesus in that house and their lives are gonna be changed.

SPEAKER_00 41:03

I love that David, and and we can finish with this in 2 Chronicles, is that he did not allow himself to feel bad about himself. The Lord said, You're not gonna build me the house, and he said, Okay, but I'm gonna get all of the things ready so the next generation can build the house that the Lord deserves in a place of worship. Beloved that David spent his final years gathering resources. You mentioned some of this, preparing leaders for it, creating plans, and empowering his son. Go back several several weeks ago when we're talking in 2 Samuel, how he is praying, or I believe it was first King, the first the first chapter, he is telling his son, you know, obey the Lord. It wasn't just preparing him to build a temple, he was preparing him to lead uh God's uh God's people. And I think that's like when when you raise up a leader to take for you, which I think that David did it well with his son. Now we know that David wasn't perfect, Solomon wasn't perfect, but the will of God was fulfilled during the during that time. Um, and I think that we have to always ask the question, who are we preparing? Who are we building? I text my wife today uh in our in our scripture reading plan. I I I we're recording this before it goes live. So, but today's reading was uh 1 Chronicles chapter 4, Jabus Prayer. That was the first sermon that I preached was that scripture, and I told my wife, I want Isla for us to mem for her to memorize this scripture because it meant something deep deep in my life, and I want to pass down that to her, and I hope that she does that to her children. That's what we need to do as spiritual fathers and mothers, which we all are to someone, and I think it's not about building, it's not about it's about preparing the next generation to continue to seek the Lord.

SPEAKER_03 43:05

May we, Lord, may we do that, may we show them the way, may we lead the way, and may they go the way of Jesus Christ. You know, in chapter 21, just kind of a quick overview, David does the census. Yep. What's going on here?

SPEAKER_00 43:25

We're speaking so highly of him, so I didn't want to talk to them. I guess it's important. It's important, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 43:30

I think it's important because how many times do we make mistakes? We're we're never above making stupid decisions in this flesh.

SPEAKER_00 43:40

I would tell people nobody can convince me like I can convince myself to do something stupid.

SPEAKER_03 43:45

And so we've that's why we gotta have the right people around us that can speak into us. And David just makes a decision that is not a healthy decision. Yep, he demands that uh his army be. Counted. Now, again, that on the very surface level, it's like, God, why are you upset about that? He's gonna just count the men. It's a hard thing. There's more to it than just that. Yeah. The issue of the count wasn't just counting numbers. And it's not like, well, can we not count church attendance or you you mentioned you know followers, baptisms, various other things. Um, yes, it could be a problem, but it doesn't have to be a problem. Yep. But for his situation here, even his own army general said, Why are you doing this? We don't need to do this. Yeah. This is but David was boasting. He was he was reliving his old days and finding a sense of boasting. And and God was like, No, this is a bad deal. I don't want you to boast in what you've accomplished right now. I want you to stay focused on building the laying the groundwork for your son to build the temple. And he got sidetracked. Of course, then ends up being a very beautiful thing in that um you know, becomes a judgment of God. He cries out to God, and then he goes and God says, build an altar, and he goes to the threshing floor of uh you remember the guy's name?

SPEAKER_00 45:15

No.

SPEAKER_03 45:16

Armin? I can't think of his name right now. I don't have it in front of me. Um, Crystal, you know who it is? Armin? I think is who it is. I forget, I forget his name. Sorry about that. Sorry about that. But anyway, he goes and he offers this um farmer to buy his land. The farmer says, Oh, no, no, no, I'll give it to you. All right, he's willing to just give it to him. I'm gonna give it to you. And he says, No, I will not offer sacrifices to the Lord my God that cost me nothing. And that's powerful because oftentimes we want to give God the things that cost us nothing. Throughout the Old Testament, you find giving blemished animals, giving your second best, giving, no, no, no, no. God says, I want your best. Yep, I want your best. That's why the tithe is so important, the 10%, bringing the first fruits to God. Now, that that does not relinquish another 90%. We're responsible for the other 90%. But ultimately, God wants our lives. And that's the the 10% is a symbol of that. Yep. It's like you're I'm giving him my life, but he wants all of us and the best of us. And then, of course, that happens, he offers a sacrifice, the plague is stopped. But that place becomes where the temple would be built. And ultimately, where he would Solomon would build the temple. We don't have time to go into that, but then the fire of God would come down to the altar. But that was the location. Yep. Oh, that was it. Yep. Okay, now let's dive into the book of Psalms. Yep. And we're gonna look at uh chapters 86 through 90. And um, so just just kind of a quick overview of some of this is uh chapters 86 starts off with David. Uh, he is the man behind the writing, and uh he begins to um really call out to God uh humbly. Um, he really emphasizes the emphasis here in chapter is that God hears the humble prayer. Okay, now I'm not gonna take time to go into all these. Uh chapters 87 is really about the glory of God's city, about uh the kingdom of God is open to all nations. The emphasis there is that everybody is included. Sometimes when we read the Bible, we think that it is exclusive, but that's not the case. The Bible is inclusive to all people. Yep. Now, it is exclusive because many people will reject and want it their way. You've got to go God's way. That's why Jesus said, I am the way, I am the truth and life. You can't get to the Father but by me. What he's saying is this my message is open, inclusive to all people, but it's exclusive to only those who choose to follow me. Yep.

SPEAKER_01 48:08

Yep.

SPEAKER_03 48:09

Okay. And so that was chapter 87. Chapters 88 is um really just being able to have faith in times of darkness, difficulties, sorrow, to continue to seek after God. So I think for all of us, look at the heading each time and to be able to see who wrote that chapter of Psalms. Because obviously, Psalms is written by a lot of different authors, um, mainly David, but many others. So chapter 86 is at the top. I said um David, right? Chapter 87, who's it say, the sons of Korah? Chapters 88 is sons of Korah, right? Look at chapter uh 89. What does it say? A miscal. Uh-huh. A song of Hema, the Ezarite. Okay, he actually is a descendant of uh Korah, too. And then of course he continues on in chapter 89, and it's Him again, Ethan the Ezra. So these are two different individuals. Okay. So it's interesting, but each one of these, when you see that, it's a descendant of Korah. Yeah. Okay. Again, this is those the original Korah was David appointed him to be over the tabernacle and the worship and the music and all this stuff. And now these are the descendants over the years that have been riding. Now I want to go to chapter number 90, and we're going to wrap up with this. Yep. Okay. Because chapter 90 is significant because actually it starts with book four of Psalms. How many books are there in Psalms? Five. Five, yes. So we at the very beginning of Psalms, we talked about this. So it breaks into five books, okay? And book four is Psalms 90 through 106. Now, it's important to note that because it's meant to reflect and compare to what?

SPEAKER_00 50:05

The five books of the Torah.

SPEAKER_03 50:08

Yes, the Pentateuch, uh, the Torah. So those are the five books, uh, which are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Yep. And each one of those mirror okay, those books. Okay. So we are in book four, and I want to read uh Psalms um chapter 90. It says, look at the heading again. What does it say at the top? A prayer of Moses, the men of God. A prayer of Moses. This is cool. Yeah. So Moses shows up in the Psalms. Now, this has been written hundreds of years before. But the children of Israel kept these writings. I think it's so beautiful. In fact, I think it's amazing when you look at the genealogies, which you know, we we looked into Chronicles, it can be kind of boring. Yeah, but it's boring, yes, for me a little bit, and I have to force myself to look at it. Every once in a while I'll find a nugget in the that's what I look for in the um in the um lineage or the genealogy that is really cool. But you know what? If somebody handed you a list of names and they said, Christian, here is every father from you to your dad, all the way down for 40 generations. I would love to see all the way back to with a little bit every once in a while of story on each one of those individuals and what they did and where they were from and where they moved. You think it'd be that'd be cool? That would be amazing.

SPEAKER_00 51:39

Yeah, I can't I can go past two generations.

SPEAKER_03 51:42

Yeah, no, and most people today, I can go four generations, maybe five generations. We kind of have an idea. That's it. Yeah, most people can't. This is the importance of this genealogies. That's why it's so amazing. As a matter of fact, that's why it's so astounding. That's why God's word is not boring. You're boring, I'm boring, but God's word is brilliant. Okay, so Moses, and we're just gonna read um Moses here. Listen to this. It says, Lord, Moses is saying, Through all the generations, you have been our home. Let that sink in for just a moment. Okay, David's preparing to build a temple. There's the tabernacle there, but where's really home? Just with God in relationship. The ESV says, You have been our dwelling place. Our dwelling place. I heard somebody say years ago when their husband would move a lot and around, and and basically what they said was this that because somebody said, Well, where's home for you? Because they'd be hotel to hotel, hotel, and you know, staying in places, it really had no home. And she said something that was so wise and so real. He said, Home is where my husband is. Home is where God is. Yep, yep. Okay, wherever we find ourselves, home is where God is. Okay, uh, before the mountains were born, before you gave birth to the sea and the world, from beginning to end, you are God. You turn people back to dust, saying, Return to dust, you mortals. For you, a thousand years are as a passing day, as brief as a few night hours. You sweep people away like dreams that disappear. They are like grass that springs up in the morning. In the morning it blossoms and flourishes, but by evening it is dry and withered. We wither beneath your anger. We are overwhelmed by your fury. You spread out our sins before you, our secret sins, and you see them all. We live our lives beneath your wrath, ending our years with a groan. Seventy years are given to us, some even live to eighty. But even the best years are filled with pain and trouble. So they disappear and we fly away. Who can comprehend the power of your anger? Your wrath is as awesome as the fear you deserve. Teach us to realize the brevity of life so that we may grow in wisdom. O Lord, come back to us. How long will you delay? Take pity on your servants, satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love, so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives. Give us gladness in proportion to our former misery. Replace the evil years with good. Let us, your servants, see your work again. Let our children see your glory. May the Lord our God show us his approval and make our efforts successful. Yes, make our efforts successful. I just love that. I read that this morning. I was like, I just need to read it, everybody.

SPEAKER_00 55:13

Yeah. I think it's important to understand. I think often we can see the whole Bible. We have to think in this in the context of Moses. Yeah. You know, deliver from the Egyptians, they have seen God's glory, protection, provision. Beautiful song. All right. Hey, what a great time.

SPEAKER_03 55:31

Thank you very much. Thank you. Any words for our people listening?

SPEAKER_00 55:36

Thank you for listening. Uh, keep sharing this with people. Um, let us know how this has been helpful, how we can improve it, how we can get better. And thank you for listening.

SPEAKER_03 55:46

Hey, keep reading along with us. Um, we love you very much, and I'm so glad that you joined us for North Bible recap.