 Recording is on. Good morning everyone. Welcome to BC 213, our course on the End Times. Let's take a moment to pray together and we'll get started. I'm sure the others will join us soon. Let's pray together. Good one of you. Please lead us in prayer. Let's pray. J.H. Father we come to you under the name of Jesus. We thank you for this day. We thank you for the class we are about to have. We thank you that you're a God who speaks with us. You're a God who wants us to know what will happen in the future. And God as we are learning about the deep truths, the hidden truths in the Bible, have just opened our mind and heart and understand it. We believe that we have got the mind of Christ and we believe that we can understand because your Holy Spirit is teaching us. We bless our pastor. Be with him and guide him and we pray for everyone else who's about to join. God we pray that we will get the good Wi-Fi connection throughout the sessions. And this class will be a blessing to us so that we can be a blessing to others. Be with us in goodness. In Jesus name I pray. Amen. Amen. Amen. Thank you. Thank you. Good morning once again. Okay, so last week we looked at some, you know, what we could say as background information. We looked at, let me just say this thing is not straight. We looked at Israel as a nation and God's dealing with Israel and some background information. So I'm just going to quickly review that and then we're going to go forward. Our goal in this next lesson, which is lesson number four, is to get an overview of the end times. We're going to see how these, a panoramic view that means sequence of events of the end times. Now this is lesson number four is a big lesson, meaning it will take us a couple of weeks to cover. But it's also, I would say, the main part, the core of this course. So let me just quickly review what we did last week. Just go through the PDF and then we will move forward into lesson four. So this was last week we talked about Israel, the land of its people in Bible prophecy. It's good to have some background, both for this course and next year. When we look at Daniel and Revelation in detail, this background information will be very useful. So we talked about how God had promised the land to Abraham, this region. We talked about, I mean, I didn't necessarily go through the history, but we just outlined it here, all the way starting from Abraham, all the way what happened over time, the conquests, the different armies that came and took over that area, that part of the world and displaced the people of Israel, the Jewish people from their land and so on, all the way till when they came back, when they were declared as a nation, 1948, and some of the wars that were fought right after that. And where we are today, you know, the ongoing peace process in the Middle East. So it's good to have that background. Some of the significant events, the regathering of Israel and the birth of a nation that was foretold in Scripture. We see Israel there, but we also see that there are parts of the land which are now occupied by the Palestinians. So there is constant conflict going on on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip between the Palestinians and Israel. So that is something for us to keep in mind. We also know that Israel is surrounded by Arab nations just everywhere. And so we pointed out these two areas of conflict. The key to what's happening there is the Temple Mount, which we said, you know, historically it's very significant for Israel. That was a place where Abraham came to offer Isaac and the King David purchased it, Solomon built the temple, so on. So it's very significant. And today, on that same site, we said there is the Dome of the Rock and there is the Al-Aqsa Mosque. And so therefore it is occupied right now, or let's say it is primarily a religious site for the Arabs or the Muslims. And the Jewish people are allowed to come in on the Western Wall and do their prayer there. So that's the access they have. And that's the situation right now, but also means it's a lot of conflict there. And like we said earlier, the Jews or the Israelis are looking, or some of them at least, anticipating being able to see a temple rebuilt on that place. Another point of contention are the Jewish settlements. We said that Isaac prophesied about the re-establishing of all these areas and all of that has been fulfilled. And the land has been regained, the settlements, the housing projects, the homes have been built all around those areas. But also it is a cause for conflict because the Palestinians feel that Israel is encroaching on their land, on the land that they feel it's theirs, so that tension always happens. But what is the Bible foretold? A very interesting prophet in Isaiah 19 that a time will come when Israel, Egypt, and Syria will all be aligned to each other. Today it's very unlikely. But Isaiah 19 speaks of that. He speaks of a highway built from Egypt all the way to Syria. That means it's cutting through Israel and Egypt, Israel will become allies. So we anticipate that most likely this would be fulfilled during the millennium. And lastly we talked about Israel, Zion, and Jerusalem. How it is very important to God. Jerusalem is referred to as the city of the great king. So it's a very important city. And you see in scripture different special terms given to Jerusalem. So it's a very special place to God and to the people of God. And the relationship between the kingdom of God, Israel and the church. So God is still at work. He's still at work with Israel as a nation. He's also releasing his kingdom through the church, which is born again believers through them. God is also continuing to work. And Paul explains this very beautifully in Romans 9-11. We'll study that in detail. In the third year you'll study that. And he explains it so beautifully that right now God is working through the church. But his eventual goal is to bring us both together. Jews and Gentiles bring us together. And make us one people under one new covenant. So that's what God is working towards. And he's made a way for that to happen. And both Jews and Gentiles come to faith in Christ. And they become one new man into the presence of God. Through the way Jesus Christ has made for us. And so right now the church has, we look favorably towards Israel, to Jerusalem and Israel. Pray for them. But at the same time, like we discussed a little bit towards the end, that we don't condone wrong. If Israel is doing wrong, you say it is wrong. If they are ill-treating people, you say that's not right. So there is a balance. We do pray and bless them. We recognize them as God's chosen people. And we went through an overview of what the Bible tells us what will happen. We will be looking at this in chapter four as we get into the details. But they just give an overview of what the Bible has foretold concerning Israel. Jerusalem will be a troubled spot. And all the nations will turn against Israel. So that's something to look at. Look out for how the nations are interacting with Israel, what's happening in Jerusalem. Another important thing is that there will be a world ruler or a significant leader who will come, the Antichrist. And he's going to set up a peace treaty. It will be a seven-year peace treaty that he will establish to bring peace to the Middle East. But in the middle of the seven years, he will break that treaty. He himself will break it. So the Bible talks about that. Now, we may not be, we won't be here to see that, but at least we know that's something that will happen. And there are several scriptures on it. We will get into the scriptures in lesson number four. The Bible also talks about seven years of tribulation. And the seven years of tribulation are very specific to Israel. That means, yes, the judgment will be poured out on the whole earth, and all the nations will be suffering and going through the tribulation. But the focus during this time is Israel. And like we said, this Antichrist is going to set up a seven-year peace treaty in order to keep peace. But then the treaty is broken. And the second half of the seven years, the second three and a half years, is referred to as the great tribulation. It is called the time of Jacob's trouble. So the second half, that's the time. They are going to face trouble like never before. They've never seen or experienced anything like it in the second three and a half years, the time called the great tribulation. There will be these 144,000 Jews during the tribulation. We will talk about that later. I'm just giving a little overview. Then the Bible also talks about the battle of Armageddon and the second coming. The nations are going to gather together for battle because of this one nation. Nations are going to come together. And there's going to be conflict happening in the valley of Jehoshaphat or the valley in the Migido Valley. And that's where the battle of Armageddon will unfold. And then, Millennium, Christ will rule from Jerusalem. He will rule the nations. That also we will look at in the coming chapter. So these are some of the key things the Bible tells us about Israel, about Jerusalem. Now, what we wanted to do in the next lesson, lesson number four, is we want to get a panoramic view. It means start to finish. We want to go through the whole sequence of events. So we are going to take our time here. I want us to understand the sequence of events. And then also along the way, we will answer some related questions. As we talk about these events, some related things we will look at, questions will come up. So this chapter, basically, is for us to be clear in our minds what we understand as a sequence of events. And also how we arrive at that. Why do we say it? And so on. So hopefully we will be able to address those questions. Let's begin with Acts chapter one, verses six through 12. I don't like to request somebody to read that. Acts chapter one, verses six through 12. Please somebody could read it for us. Therefore, when they had come together, they asked him saying, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom of Israel? Then he said to him, it is not for you to know times of seasons, which the Father has put in his own authority, but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. And you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and the end of the earth. And now when he had spoken these things, while they watched, he was taken up and the cloud of cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly towards heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel who also said, men of Gary Lee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus who was taken up from you into heaven will so come in like manner as you saw him go into heaven. Okay, then they returned to Jerusalem on the Mount called Olives, which is near Jerusalem. So, we are familiar with this, the final instruction. So, you know, the disciples, this is after the resurrection, after his resurrection, the Lord Jesus showed himself alive for 40 days. And the disciples asked him the question, oh God, Lord, are you going to get the kingdom back to Israel? So at that time, obviously, they were under the domination of the Romans, the Roman Empire. And so they were expecting the Messiah to bring power back into the hands of Israel. That means overthrow the Romans, get rid of them. So they are expecting Jesus to do that, you know, because they know the Scriptures. At least they've heard, you know, Daniel 7, Daniel talks about the kingdom will be handed to the saints, you know. So their interpretation, they say, the kingdom has to be in our control. So they're saying, will you restore the kingdom back to Israel at this time? And then Jesus says, look, that timing, the timing of that, he says, it's with the Father, right? That means in other ways, now is not the time, it's going to happen in the future. The time when the Father has planned for it. But now the time is for you to go to all the nations and be a witness. And for that, the Holy Spirit is going to come. And I was paraphrasing his response. So we are currently here in what we refer to as the church age. The Lord Jesus ascended to heaven and he said, for the kingdom to be restored to Israel. That means, you know, Jesus is going to rule from Jerusalem. That's in the Father's hand. All right, that's somewhere coming up in the future. That's in the Father's hand. But now you have a responsibility. I'm going to send the Holy Spirit. You're going to receive power and you're going to be my witness to the ends of the earth. And then he was caught up into heaven. So you can imagine Jesus has this glorified body. It's a body they could touch. It's a body they could see. But it was a body that could pass through walls. That means it was a body made of a different material. It was not flesh and blood and bone like we have. But it's a different kind of a body. It's a different material that we are not aware of what that material is. And yet it's something that they could see, something they could touch. Jesus told Thomas, Thomas, touch me. He did something very different because in that body he just wound up. And as they saw him go up, the angels spoke there and there were two angels. And they said, you know, hey disciples, the same Jesus will come in like manner as you saw him go. He's going to come back. The same way you saw him go, meaning he was just caught up into the clouds. Which means he's just going to come through the clouds. You know, that same Jesus is going to come. And he ascended from the mount called Olives. And he will descend and he will land right there on the mount of Olives. That's where he will come and the Lord himself will descend. And just to show you that reference, okay. I flip back into the Old Testament. I'm just going a little out of the notes, but just go back into the Old Testament. Zechariah chapter 14 verses 3 and 4. Zechariah 14, 3 and 4. Somebody can read that. Zechariah 13, 3 and 4. Zechariah 14, 3 and 4. Then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations as he fights in the day of battle. And in that day, his feet will stand on the mount of Olives which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the mount of Olives shall be split into two, from east to west, making a very large valley. Half the mountain shall move toward north and half of it towards the south. Thank you. So what did the angel say? The angel said, the same Jesus will come in like manner as you see and go. Where did he go from? Acts 1 verse 12, from the mount called Olives which is near Jerusalem. Where is he going to come back? Zechariah 14, 4. The Lord will stand in that day. His feet will stand on the mount of Olives. So he's going to come back right there. That will happen here when he comes back. Second coming up Christ, right here. He's going to come back. He's going to land or descend on that same mountain. So anyway, back to Acts 1. The angel said, the same Jesus whom you saw him go, he's going to come back. So Christ is going to return. Now what we want to understand is, what are all the things that are going to happen? And how is it going to unfold? And we want to look at the scriptures on these things and then answer related questions. So what I will do is this. First is, I will give us an overview using this chart that you're seeing. I will just explain it. And then we will look at the scriptures. And try to, from the scriptures, show why we have positioned things, these events, where we have shown them in the chart. So we will explain it. Now remember, like we said in the introduction in the very beginning, that there are people who have a different view of where these things will happen. We are aware of that, but we will show you from scripture why this timeline or the sequence of events is something we are convinced about. And of course, if you have any questions, as we go through this lesson, you're most welcome to ask. So where are we now? We are now in the church age. We are towards the end of the church age. So we are somewhere here, towards the end of the church age. 2,000 years ago, just before Pentecost, the Lord Jesus said, you're going to receive power and you're going to be my witnesses to all the nations. Here we are 2,000 years later. The calendar is 2023. Gregorian calendar. We are somewhere here towards the end. Now in chapter five, lesson number five, we will talk about the signs. What are the signs telling us that we are very close? We will look at that. In this chapter, we are looking at the sequence of events. So the signs will look in the next lesson. But we are here. What is the next immediate event that we are looking forward to happening? We are looking forward to the rapture, what we refer to as a rapture of the church. That means the Lord Jesus will come and take his church to heaven. Church meaning believers, born again believers will be taken up into heaven. At this point, he is not going to land on the earth. People will not see him here on the earth. The Bible tells us we will meet the Lord in the air. Now at that moment, everyone who has died in Christ will be raised up. Everyone who died in Christ will be raised up. They will receive their glorified bodies and we who are alive and living on the earth at that time. We also will receive glorified bodies and we will all be with him together in heaven. And we are going to be in heaven for seven years, seven earth years. That means seven years in relation to the earth. Seven years. And in heaven, there are certain things that are going to happen. The Bible reveals that to us. We will be assured into our mansions in heaven. We will be given rewards for the work we've done. There will be the marriage supper of the lamb and we will look at all of these things. So we are in heaven for seven years. During the seven years is what we refer to as on earth are the seven years of tribulation going on here. And a lot of things are happening here. So the book of Revelation from chapter six all the way to end of chapter 19 is telling us what is going to happen during these seven years. And we will go through it. We'll get an overview of what is happening here during these seven years. Now, just for our understanding, the middle of the seven years, at the end of the first three and a half years, middle of the seven years, is a turning point. Meaning the entire period is called tribulation. The second half of the seven years is called great tribulation. Meaning it's going to be really bad. So we will look at that. Revelation six to Revelation 19. At the end of the seven years of tribulation, that is Revelation 19, there is the battle of Armageddon. So this is where the nations of the earth are aligning and coming against Israel to destroy Israel. And they've come primarily, Joel chapter three verse one and two says they've come because they want to divide the land. So meaning this conflict, the Israel, Palestinian Israeli conflict, you know, to divide the land has escalated to such a point where the nations are coming. There are those nations that will probably support Israel. There'll be those nations that are against Israel and they're all coming to the battle of Armageddon. They're coming because to divide the land, forcibly divide the land. But that's the moment that Christ will come. This time he's coming with all the hosts of heaven. He's coming with the angels, with the saints. Everyone's coming with him. And this is where we read Zechariah 14, 3 and 4. He will descend at the Mount of Olives. Revelation 19 says the sword with a word of his mouth, he will destroy all his enemies. This is the time that the Antichrist and the false prophet will be removed from the earth. And you know, there will be great devastation, but this is where it will culminate and Christ will set up his kingdom. The believers who died during the tribulation will be raised and all the saints who ever lived. That means all testament saints, believers, and the believers who died during the tribulation will be here. They'll be raised and they'll rule and reign with Jesus for 1,000 years. We refer to this as the Millennium rule and reign for 1,000 years. Revelation chapter 20. During this time Satan is bound, taken out of the way. He's bound for 1,000 years and we see what will happen during the Millennium. We have some insight into life during the Millennium, given to us in Scripture. At the end of 1,000 years, Satan is lost for a brief period of time and he's going to be able to deceive nations. And he'll try, he'll make us one and final attempt to go against Jerusalem, against the people of God. One final attempt, but God will intervene. That's the end of Satan's time on earth. He is going to be bound and forever cast into a lake of fire. And at that time, every person who ever lived will be raised. That means all those who died in times past, all those who died in the junior tribulation, and those who die during the Millennium, they will be raised. The unsaved will be raised and they will all stand, everyone will stand before the great white throne judgment. Great white throne judgment. Now remember, we are already believers. The believers are already separated. The sheep and the goats are already separated. So it's not a judgment of the sheep. The sheep are already in the kingdom, but it is a final judgment. There are all those who, the goats, meaning those who refused were not saved, who refused Christ and don't know Jesus. This is the final great white throne judgment. And then they will be forever separated and sent to the lake of fire. Then there will be new heavens and the new earth. That means everything on earth will be destroyed by fire. The heavens, what we know today as this big universe, everything will be renovated. God is going to change everything. So we don't even know how all of that is going to happen. But the Bible talks about new heavens and the new earth. And there will be a new earth and the heaven that God was. The heavenly Jerusalem will come and be placed on earth. And then we get into what we refer to as eternity future. That we're going to be with God. God himself will be present here. And in the new heavens and the new earth, Revelation 21-22, it says there's no sun, no moon, no need for any of those lights. God himself is a light. So that universe, which I would call new heavens and new earth, is going to be very different from the universe that we know of now. Everything's going to change. Now for us, this universe is so vast, it's so big. But for God, He just measures everything with a span. I mean, it's not big for God. So He's going to be able to bring everything together, renovate everything, make everything new. And the new heavens and new earth is going to be very different from what we know of today. Now, this is a very high level outline of the key events. We haven't got into all the details, which we will do as we get into the scriptures. So any questions about this high level outline? I'm not getting into the details. I'm just giving us an outline. So any questions about it? And then we will start getting into the details. So let's take some questions. All right. Anyone here with any questions? Yeah. My questions may be silly because I've never read The End Times. I never read Revelation that much. So we said Saturn will be born for a thousand years. And then you said he'll be losing the game. So is there any mention like how many years he'll be losing? Is there any mention in the Bible? This is one of my questions. And then I have one more question also. So we said like after that, after he's losing, I think you said like all the unbelievers also, they will be raised. Everyone who's there, they will be raised. So does it mean like people in hell also will be coming for the judgment? Or yeah, I'm just confused. So those who are suffering in hell, so they will come for the judgment or what? I'm sorry. It's very silly because I never read it. No. So the answer to both these questions are in Revelation 20. Revelation 20. So in Revelation 20 it says, we're looking at verse 7 and verse 8. So that's where Revelation 7, chapter 20, verse 7, 8 and 9. So that's where it tells us that Satan, at the end of the thousand years, he'll be released for a brief moment of time. But here it doesn't tell us how long. It doesn't give us any indication. He's just going to go out to deceive the nations and gather together and then God comes and destroys that. This is Revelation 20, verse 9. So the answer to your first question is, no indication is given how long. But we can say or we could, maybe I would use the word assume intelligently, of course, that it's going to be very short. It's for a brief time that he's going to be released. How short? What duration? Is it a matter of days? Is it a matter of weeks? We don't know. It's not given to us here in Revelation, chapter 20, verses 7 to 9. Then the answer to your second question is, that it's in the same chapter, Revelation 20, and verse 12. It says 11 and 12. It says, now we've seen this great white throne judgment. It says, I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God. And it says, and the dead were judged. This is verse 12. And it says in verse 13, the sea gave up the dead, death and whore in it. Basically every person, including those who are dead, which means today their spirits are in hell, they are going to stand before God. And then what will happen? Verse 14 says, death and hell, Hades were put into the lake of fire. So the lake of fire is an eternal place of torment. The cast in the lake of fire. So to answer your second question, those who are in hell now, they're going to stand before everyone, every person ever lived. They'll stand before the great white throne. And then those whose names are not written in the book of life, they are going to be cast into the lake of fire. Death and hell will be cast into the lake of fire. And that's how everything will end. Okay. So the lake of fire is different from hell, right? Yes. So hell is a place of torment right now. It is a place where there is suffering. We know that. But hell will be cast into the lake of fire. So we can see it as a very different place. And the lake of fire, of course, is signifying some eternal torment. Okay. Second, another question here from John. The prayers offered by Jews now at the West gate, would that be of any significance? I assume they're not praying in the name of Jesus. Correct. So today there are Jews who are, you know, we don't have the religious Jews. Those who still practice Judaism, whether they are praying in Jerusalem or they play around the world in their synagogues, they are praying. So they don't pray in the name of Jesus, but they are praying to Yahweh, God, with the light that they have and following the Old Testament. Now we know that these Jews are not born again. We know that they are following a religious form or tradition. Whether or not they have any spiritual understanding or how much light they have, we don't know. But they are our goal, we are called to preach the gospel even to them, just like what the early church did. They preached the gospel to the Jews, for them to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. How does God look at the prayers of the unsaved Jew? That means the Jews who don't have no faith in Jesus Christ. How does God look at them? Well, they are still unsaved. Yes, they are part of Abraham's covenant, but whether they are in that personal relationship with God or not, we don't know. It's like the people during Jesus' time, right? They were not saved. They just went to the temple and came, or the synagogue and came, and they didn't have, they were not born again. Now, they also need to come to faith in Christ to be saved. So to answer your question, would that be of any significance? You know, significance, meaning? I was asking like, would they be praying for the restoration of their country, or would that prayer be heard or answered, that kind of thing? Yeah, I'm not too sure. I mean, I don't know the right answer to that question. I'm just trying to think about it. And I think, you know, it is possible that, you know, I mean, it is possible, just like in the Old Testament, before people were born again, before people came to faith, personal faith in Christ, that their prayers were heard, they're in the sense that God saw what they were going through, and they cried out to God, or you can even think about, you know, other examples, like the Roman Sancturian and others who were not even Jews, but God saw what they were doing. So from that perspective, I'm thinking that it's possible that they could be Jews who are not, you know, they're not just doing like a tradition, but they're seeking God and seeking God for their land, seeking God for the Messiah still. And I think in that case, God definitely sees their heart and hears their prayers. But about salvation, we know that both Jews and Gentiles need to come to faith in Christ. That we are very clear because, you know, Paul writes that often in Romans. But will the Jews calling on Yahweh God, will their prayers be heard? I think so. Just based on, you know, what we see in the Old Testament. I can only say I think so. I don't know for sure, but I think God will look at that. Yeah, sure. As I had one more question regarding the millennial reign, would there be deaths or would people who are living at that time would be living 4,000 years old? Would there be deaths at that time? So for this, we can go to Isaiah chapter 65, where the prophet Isaiah gives us, and I think this is probably the only passage, that gives us insight into life in the millennium. So let me point out the correct verses. And yeah, in Isaiah 65. And so, you know, it was 17 to 19. He's talking about, you know, new heavens and new earth. So he's talking about after the millennium. But then from verse 20, he's talking about life in the millennium. And he mentions things like this. You know, he says, an infant, no more shall an infant live but a few days. That means an infant is going to put it in a straight way. An infant will live out the full life, not an old man who has not fulfilled his days. That means people will live to a good, long, old age. They will live out their full life. Then he says, for the child shall die. This is Isaiah 65, 20. For the child shall die 100 years old. But the sinner being 100 years old shall be accursed. And then he continues talking about life in the millennium. You know, they will build houses. That's verse 21. Verse 22, they will plant vineyards. They will enjoy the work. Verse 23, you know, they will not labor and reign. They will not bring for children for trouble. And they will call on the Lord. Verse 24 and verse 25, in the wolf and the lamb will feed together and so on. So he has described for us life in the millennium. That this is probably the only passage that's giving us insight into that. But going back to verse 20, so based on verse 20, he's telling us that people will live out a good, long life, which in this case he mentions 100 years old. But he does say the child shall die 100 years old. And, you know, a sinner, a man who's not willing to turn to God even during the millennium, which means there will be people who refuse to, you know, recognize Jesus during the millennium. They will live out their full life, 100 years old, but will be accursed. That means they won't be saved. So based on verse 20, my response to your question is, yeah, people will die during the millennium. But what we can see from what he's described is the nature of things will be changed because he's saying the wolf and the lamb will feed together. So the nature of things is changed, but people will still be rebellious. They still have to be taught the word of God. We see that in Zechariah 14 and other places where believers will have to teach people the way of God. So believing in Jesus is not going to be automatic or coming into alignment. It's not going to be automatic. People may still be rebellious. Like he says, the sinner, you know, 100 years old, he's always still a sinner. He's going to be condemned. So based on that, yeah, the answer is, yeah, that people will die during the millennium. There'll be people who believe and die, and there'll be people who refuse to believe and die during the millennium. Yes, Pasha, thank you. Thank you. Okay, so what we've done is we've just given an overview outline. Now we want to get into the details bit by bit. Okay, so it's a long journey we're going to make because we're going to journey from where we are today through the seven years of tribulation on through the millennium and all the way into New Havens and New York. Okay, so we're going to make that journey. Look at the sequence of events bit by bit. And of course, we'll answer questions as we go along. All right, so let's take a break here. We'll be back in 10 minutes and we will continue this after the break. Thank you.