The 7 Cities of Revelations Part 2

Good evening, Welcome to Voice in the Wilderness. I'm Don Noble of Pure

Heart Ministries, and I welcome you today with exceedingly abundantly and overflowing joy.

I am so excited to be teaching this series on the Seven Cities of Revelation.

I think you're going to love it as much as I do. And

probably part of my excitement is that I have been physically been to each one

of these cities, and they are all located within the Nation of Turkey.

I've also been to the island of Patmos. So for me, it's like

reliving a most wonderful, rich experience. So I want to be able to

share that rich experience with you as we learn about these seven cities. Last

week I talked to you about who wrote the Book of Revelation, John the

Apostle, one of the well. He considered himself the most beloved apostle,

and I think that of them all, John and Peter were probably, you

know, number one in number two. They were just full of God,

full of revelation, and they loved Jesus and they certainly advanced his kingdom while

they were on this earth. But John was exiled because of persecution to the

island of Patmos, or it's often referred to as the Isle of Patmos.

He was exiled there by the Emperor Dimission, which was a Roman emperor,

and John was under intense persecution. He was obviously preaching the truth. He

was against pagan worship, and Demission demanded that he be worshiped as a god.

So when you have someone that is that vocal about not worshiping the emperor,

authorities are going to find out about it. Anyway, Patmos was a

Roman penal colony, so lots of prisoners were sent there. And this island

is very interesting. If you look at a map, would I would encourage

you to google a picture of the map of Patmos. It almost looks like

a seahorse. It's a very strange looking island. It is only seven a

half miles long and it's only six miles wide at its widest point. It

is located southeast of the Nation of Turkey, so it wasn't that far away

from the Nation of Turkey. And so today I've kind of subtitled this message

today as the Lamb is on the Throne. So I'm going to continue to

give a preface before we actually get into the actual scriptures, and I want

to talk about the Lamb. See although jesus ministry earthly ministry was kind of

sandwiched between his incarnation and ascension, Revelation asserts that the Son of God as

the Lamb, has completely finished his redemptive work by his blood. Sinners have

been forgiven, cleansed, liberated, and made kings and priests. And we

see all of that in the Book of Revelation when you actually get into reading

the full book. All ensuing manifestation of his applied victory are all based on

his finished work on the cross. So Satan has been defeated and bound,

and Jesus race from the dead, is enthroned as the absolute sovereign individual over

all creation. He is King of kings and Lord of lords, and he

is entitled to the same ascriptions of adoration as God, the Creator. Right

they are one. The only one who is worthy to execute the eternal purpose

of God is the Lion of Judah, who is not a political messiah,

but a sacrificed lamb, the Lamb. The Lamb is his primary title,

and it is utilized twenty eight times in the Book of Revelation as the one

who has conquered. He has the rightful authority and the power to control all

forces of evil and their consequences for his purposes of judgment and salvation. The

lamb is on the throne. It is important for us to remember that Jesus,

even though we are living in a very ugly time in this world,

Jesus has rightful authority, and he has power to control all the forces of

evil and their consequences for the purposes of his judgment. And He's going to

execute judgment. Trust me, the scriptures are very clear. There's going to

come a point in time, and I know you and I probably wish that

point in time. We're like right now, we're close, but it's not

right now, and we're very close. And you've heard me say that over

and over and each day, no kidding. The more I look at the

news, the more I see what's happening, not just in America but around

the world, it makes me shudder, and then I really realize that we

are that close. And actually, since I'm on that subject, I'm going

to throw in a little nugget for you. I just watched yesterday two short

videos put out by the Papacy in Rome, and we have the Pope,

Pope Francis talking about how he wants to unify all the different religions, and

you'll see in this video that he is bringing together the Muslims, Christians,

Buddhists, the Jews. And he's what he's actually saying because it's he's speaking

in Italian or maybe he's speaking in Latin, but there's a subtitle wonder it,

so you can see exactly what he's meaning. And it's all for the

purpose of unifying the church. Well, as far as I know, Jesus

made it very clear that he is the way. So Buddha's not the way.

Owl's not the way. Jews who don't believe in Jesus are, you

know, they're they're they're out of it. They're out of the Covenant here.

And so what we see happening right now, right now, and there

were two short videos just came out that Francis is positioning the church, will

just call it the church. He's positioning the Church for the one world religion.

And he's making the push right now. So when I say it's close,

it's close. What I mean. Pope Benedict did not do any of

that. John Paul didn't do any of that. But we have a different

kind of person who is sitting in Rome as the head of the Catholic Church,

and he is a Marxist. I mean, he admits he's a Marxist,

so what do we expect? But he is really working diligently to bring

forward a one world religion. Therefore we can conclude that the time is very

soon. Okay, let me get back to where I was. Jesus race

from the Dead is enthroned as the absolute sovereign over all creation. He is

the king of kings, and he is the Lord of lords, and the

Lamb is on the throne. Now, the Lamb, as one like the

son of Man, is always in the midst of his people. And you'll

see that in several references in the Book of Revelation one nine, chapter three

twenty two, chapter fourteen one who whose names are recorded in his Book of

Life chapter three, verse five, chapter twenty one, twenty seven, he

knows them intimately and with immeasurable holy love. He watches over, he protects,

he disciplines and challenges us. We share fully in his present and future

victory. Hallelujah. And you can you'll read that as you if you desire

to pursue reading the rest of the book, you'll you'll see that clearly as

well as in his present and future marriage Supper of the Lamb. He dwells

in us verse chapter one, verse thirteen, and we dwell in him chapter

twenty one, verse twenty two as one like the son of Man. He

is also the lord of the final harvest. And he pours out his path

in judgment upon Satan and Satan's allies, and the spiritually dead, and all

those who have chosen to dwell on the earth. But the Lamb of God

is coming. Get excited because the Lamb of God who is coming to consummate

his eternal plan to complete the creation of the new community of his people in

a new heaven and a new Earth. Now that's down the path, because

after the rapture, after he conquers his enemies, we are going to spend

a thousand years ruling and reigning with Jesus Christ. And then after that,

after Satan is finally bound forever and cast in the lake of fire, there

will be a new heaven and a new Earth. So you see, we

don't need to lose hope, We don't need to be scared or worried or

fretting about the future. We don't have to be concerned about the economy,

digital money, AI, the mark of the beast. We have the Lamb

with us. The Lamb is in us and we are in him. And

so it's exciting that you know he's going to consummate his internal plan, no

doubt. So be encouraged. Now. The description of the Holy Spirit,

as we're going to read as the seven Spirits of God, is very distinct

in the New Testament, and the number seven is a symbolic, qualitative number,

conveying the idea of completeness, and every time it's related to God,

it's the idea of perfection. So numbers are important in the Bible. If

you've never been taught about numbers, I'm sorry, but numbers are very important.

And the number seven means completeness, and when it's related to God,

it means perfection. The Holy Spirit then is denoted in terms of the perfection

of his dynamic manifold activity. And let me tell you there's going to be

a lot of activity. I know people are sitting back and they're scratching their

head and they're saying, where is God like why isn't he doing something about

all this craziness that's going on. Oh, trust me, he is going

to do something about it. But you know, God is rich in mercy,

Paul said. And he's waiting. He's waiting. He's trying to he's

Lord of the Harvest, of the final Harvest, and he's trying to get

as many into the Kingdom of God as possible. So is you. And

I I can't speak for you, but I often think, Oh, Lord,

come quickly. But yet I know that there are many people that need

saved. The seven lamps of Fire referred to in chapter four, verse five

suggests his illuminating, purifying, and energizing ministries. And that's really what God

is. I mean, he's light, and he's pure and holy, and

he's full of energizer. The fire of God. That the seven spirits are

before the throne and simultaneously are the seven eyes of the Lamb, signifies the

central try unity of God, who has revealed himself as Father, Son,

and Holy Spirit. This is a mutual indwelling of the persons without dissolving the

distinctions of essential being and function. In other words, we know that there

is God, the Father, God, the Son God the Holy Spirit.

Although they have their distinct functions and being, they are one. We can't

wrap our mind around it. But the Bible says it, and by faith

we believe that. And as you study scripture you can see that it becomes

quite evident. Each of the messages to the seven Churches is from the Exalted

Lord. Yet the individual members are urged to hear what the Spirit says.

We are the individual members, we are part of God's Church, were urged

to hear what the Spirit is saying to us, And the Holy Spirit only

says what the Lord Jesus says. Amen. The Spirit is thus the spirit

of prophecy. Every genuine prophecy is inspired by the Holy Spirit and bears witness

to Jesus. The prophetic visions in this book are communicated to John only when

John is in the Spirit. The content of these visions is nothing less than

the revelation of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. All genuine prophecy demands

a response. The Spirit and the Bride say come. Everyone either hears or

refuses to hear this appeal. The Spirit is working continuously in and through the

Church, and I to invite those who remain outside the City of God to

enter. That's the great commission. Each of us have a personal responsibility responsibility

for the great commission each of us, and we are to invite those who

are outside, they are still enemies of God, to enter in to the

Kingdom of Light. And only by the empowering of the Holy Spirit is the

bride we are. The bride is the bride enabled to witness and patiently endure.

And I would say right now that as time is marching on, You're

going to need and I'm going to need patience to endure, because I believe

that persecution for many Christians is around the corner. We already have seen many

of our brothers and sisters persecuted in this nation. We know they're being persecuted

across the Pond, Asia, you know, all those different countries, India,

China. You know our brothers and sisters are being severely persecuted. We

haven't experienced that yet in the United States, but we're seeing glimpses of it

every day. The Holy Spirit thus penetrates the present experience of those who hear

with foretastes of the Kingdom's future fulfillment. And so the Holy Spirit just kind

of gets us excited about what's coming in the future. We have a few

minutes left. I'm going to go ahead and start the Book of Revelation,

and if you have your Bible, please open it to chapter one. I

am reading out of the New King James version this evening, so you can

follow. And it starts out John writes, the Revelation of Jesus Christ.

I'll stop there, revelation. That Greek word there is apocalypsis. You have

heard the word apocalyptic revelation. That word apocalypsis means the unveiling of a reality

that previously has not been perceived. So the whole book of Revelation is the

unveiling of a reality Jesus Christ, that previously has not been perceived, which

God gave him, Jesus to show his servants us things which must shortly take

place or quickly take place. And he, Jesus sent and signified it by

his Angel to his servant John verse two, who bore witness to the word

of God and to the testimony of Jesus to all things that he saw.

Verse three is important. It says, blessed is he who reads and those

who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written

in it, for the time is near. And that word in the Old

King James is the word for the time is at hand. In the New

King James, it says for the time is near, and it means this

imminent, imminent, soon to come to pass. When John wrote this,

it's been two thousand years. It certainly doesn't wouldn't have felt imminent to those

then, but it certainly feels imminent to me. And it feels like it

is soon to come to pass. I believe it. So there's a blessing.

There's a blessing for you and I when we read and we hear the

words of this prophecy, and we keep those things which are written in it.

In other words, we hang on to it. We hold on to

it. And when we get into the seven Cities and each of these churches,

you've got to hang on to the words. You need to hang tight

about what is being written to you. And I amen. Verse four,

John to the seven churches which are in Asia, grace to you now.

So he's writing to all seven churches. He says, grace to you and

peace from him Christ, who is and who was, and who is to

come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from

Jesus Christ, the faithful Witness, the first born from the dead, and

the ruler over the kings of the earth. I'll stop there for just a

seventh second. The seven spirits here picture the Holy Spirit, and and what

is representing here is Christ manifold and perfect dynamic activity of the Holy Spirit.

So the Holy Spirit is made up of the seven spirits of God. And

when it says that Jesus Christ is the faithful Witness, ah, I want

to take you to Isaiah fifty three. Excuse me, Isaiah fifty five,

verses three and four. You know that Isaiah, I mean he prophesied about

Jesus. He says, here incline your ear come to me, and me

is capitalized here, and your soul shall live, and I will make an

everlasting covenant with you the shore mercies of David. Indeed, I have given

him as a witness to the people. In other words, God has given

Christ to us as a witness to the people, a leader and commander for

the people. And then we see in the Gospel of John chapter eighteen,

verse thirty seven, Jesus is standing before Pilot, and Pilot says to Jesus,

are you a king then? And Jesus answered, you say rightly that

I am a king for this cause I was born, and for this cause

I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth.

Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice. So we see that

being called a faithful witness. We see that Isaiah prophesied it. We see

that Jesus even told ponscious Pilate that he was a witness. Let me finish

verse five. To him Christ, who loved us and washed us from our

sins in his own blood, and has made as kings and priest to his

God and Father. To him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

I am not going to have time because what I want to do is

talk to you about verse five and six, and I'm out of time.

So we'll start there next week. And then we will definitely start with the

first city in the Book of Revelation, and that will be the city of

Ephesus. This is Dawn Noble. You can go to www dot pureheart dot

today and listen to this message again. You can download the iHeartRadio app,

go to Pureheart Ministries and listen to the podcast twenty four seven. I would

love for you to email me Dawn all lowercase letters Dawn at Pureheart dot today

and I really do mean with all of my heart that I appreciate your prayers.

Please can in you to pray for this ministry because you know, I

often wonder. You know, I'm on a secular station. I'm not on

a Christian station, so I often wonder how much longer I'll get to be

on this secular station. So please keep praying for me, and if you

would please consider helping to keep me on this station. It's expensive. You

can send a check to Pure Heart Ministries PO Box eighty five, Valley Grove,

West, Virginia, two six o six. Oh. That's Pure Heart

Ministries PO Box eighty five, Valley Grove, West, Virginia, two six

o six. Oh. Well. I hope you enjoyed this evening. I

certainly am excited about it, and I really do really do look forward to

being with you again next week. Shalom shalom, Peace be unto you.