POP26 - Revelation
If you have some suggestions or comments you would like to pass
on to me about these pages you may do so at:
DawnSayer@webpal.org
There are as many paradigms
as there are people.
We all view the world differently.
Some people view the world
as having been created a few thousand years ago -
others think that it may have been
millions or billions of years ago.
Whatever one imagines
it is too little
because we are dealing with
the Infinite and Eternal
and that is a different concept.
A different paradigm.
A different way of looking
at the world and Reality.
Some people see Creation in a "magical" way.
Others feel that they have a "scientific' appreciation of Creation.
But no matter what our concepts
the best that we can know today is that
they are limited and relative to the Absolute Reality.
There are many speculations held by people
about the nature of reality,
the nature of creation,
the source and purpose of our being.
I hear a great variety,
about reptilian evolution,
seeding from the stars,
special creation from the dust,
and many others that I won't delve into.
The two extremes which I challenge are
scientific materialism
that says man has all the answers in his intellect
with no need for revealed religion
and its opposite pole
dogmatic orthodoxy
which says all Truth has been already revealed
and no further Truth can be revealed.
It has been to the followers of scientific materialism
that I have made the attempt
to prove mathematically
that Jesus was the Christ
and that the Bible was a reliable source of prophecy.
While the mathematical proof that Jesus was the Christ
was a difficult emotional challenge to the atheist and agnostic
the next mathematical proofs from the Bible
will be an equally difficult emotional challenge
to any of a dogmatic orthodox religious inclination
who have managed to hold on to this point.
Because whereas before
we used mathematical proofs
to show from the Jewish Old Testament Scriptures
that those Scriptures contained prophecies about the Christian Religion
we are now going to use the Christian Gospel
to show with EVEN GREATER MATHEMATICAL SURETY
that the New Testament contains prophecies about other religions
such as the Moslem and the Baha'i.
There are many marvelous prophecies in the Book of Revelation,
but they are mostly concealed from Christians
who give fantastic superstitious interpretations about them.
The Book of Revelation contains prophecies
about things both past and future.
It is through understanding its prophecies about things past
that we can have confidence about its prophecies of things future.
In my next email
I shall get into the mathematical proofs
and while I shall not spend a lot of time
dealing with the prophecies themselves
other than showing the mathematical key to them
my dear saintly wife has asked that I at least share with you
a typical interpretation of one of those Scriptures.
Many a Christian has opened the Book of Revelation
to find Marvelous Prophecies and Exhortations
directed to several small and insignificant congregations
in the vicinity of Israel.
The Churches Addressed
were not those actual specific congregations,
but the church names were used in the Prophecies
as type designators or markers
for whom to the Messages were actually addressed.
Each of these tiny little congregations were but symbols
for the Religions of the World.
Each one being used as a Symbol for one of the
World's Major Religions.
This is why they were so Important as to be addressed
in this Summary Book of Christian Revelation.
What was actually being addressed was
each of the World's Major Religions.
The Seven Religions were:
1. Sabaenism:
Southwest Arabia and later Ethiopia-
Revelator unknown. 4000 - 5000 B.C.
2. Hinduism:
India -
Krishna. 2000 - 3000 B.C.
3. Judaism:
4. Zoroastrianism:
Persia -
Zoroaster. 900 - 1000 B.C.
5. Buddhism:
India -
Buddha - 500 - 530 B.C.
6. Christianity:
Palestine -
Christ. 26 A.D.
7. Moslem:
Arabia -
Mohammed. 622 A.D.
While a study of each of the ancient religions would be interesting
and I might be able to make it interesting to some of you
since I have a degree in Comparative Religions
it is far beyond the limits of this presentation.
Nevertheless, it was not beyond the view of the Bible.
And it was to each of these Religions
that the Book of Revelation was addressed.
Rev: 1:4
" John to the seven churches which are in Asia ----"
The messages are not addressed to the Churches (Religions)
in the order (above) of their appearance,
but one who has studied the religions
can determine which Church is which
by the nature of the Message delivered unto it.
The references to things like
Seven Stars being in the Hand (or Crown) of the Messenger
or the Seven Golden Candle Sticks
are symbolic
and again refer to the Seven Religions being in the Hand
and Kingdom of the Lord,
and that He walks among them.
One might note also that it is the Angel of Each Church
that is addressed.
Rev. 2:1 Ephesus
Rev. 2:8 Smyrna
Rev. 2:12 Pergamos
Rev. 2:18 Thyatira
Rev. 3:1 Sardis
Rev. 3:7 Philadelphia
Rev. 3:8 Laodiceans
Each Church (Religion) is generally praised
for some aspect of its behavior
and chastised for some other aspect.
And thus it is with any open minded student
of comparative religion
that usually we can find some
strong beneficial point in each religion
along with some characteristic weakness in its followers.
I am not as much a student of the Book of Revelation
as my dear wife.
(She does not like for me to refer to her as saintly,
but I tell her that since everyone else does also,
how can I deny it. But let me tell you also,
it is not always easy living with a saint.)
My wife has deeply studied the book,
has taken courses with numbers of churches,
maintains 3 ring binders on the subject,
and a library of reference books.
She would have me tell you much more,
than this little bit,
but that is not my intention here,
and it is only in deference to her
that I have told you so much as I have.
Next time, now, I can return
to the mathematical proofs.
Peace and love,
Bruce Beach
DawnSayer@webpal.org