Why Should We Care About Bible Prophecy?

0:00 Real Life presents the Jack Hibbs Podcast with intention and boldness to proclaim truth, equip the saints, and impact our culture. Who cares about Bible prophecy? The more that you read about these things, the more that you start to get stirred up and say, wow, I want to be part of that crowd. I want to know that. And so when you really begin to understand that God's Word that He tells us about the future is not to freak us out. You can get the outlines of this podcast by going to jackhibbs.com slash podcast. Today, if this podcast lifts you up and encourages you to live a more fulfilled life in Christ, then make sure you leave us one of those five-star ratings.

0:48 To us, that's like saying amen or yes. Then that rating will encourage others to listen. Now open your hearts to what God's Word has to say to you. Here is Jack Hibbs. So why is Bible prophecy important? It's extremely important. In fact, it's all important. Revelation, the book of Revelation. God tells John... To write this down. Write the things which you have, number one, seen. And the things which are, that is present for John. And the things which will take place after this. Revelation 119 is a great, great model by which to interpret your Bible when it comes to Bible prophecy.

1:31 If you're reading from Genesis 3, verse 15, which is the first prophecy of the Bible, Genesis 3, verse 15. All the way to the end of the book of Revelation chapter 22. What is being spoken of. In the book of Habakkuk. Could be Zechariah. It could be Mark. It doesn't matter. But what's prophetic and you're not sure about it, you write it down and you see where it might apply. Is what I'm reading about the past? Is it about the present? Or will it be about the future? And I'm going to put this in one of those three buckets. And I told you last time that as you learn more and as time goes on before your study and your study develops, you might pull some of those verses out and put them in different places.

2:20 The beautiful thing is you wind up establishing a firm understanding of Bible prophecy because God wants you to know it, folks. He wants you to understand it. He wants you to live. In fact, every generation has lived in Bible prophecy. The danger is who recognized that? You see, the Bible says the sons of Ishakar in the Old Testament, God says that they're the ones who knew what Israel should do because they were able to discern the times and the seasons in which they lived. That should be us. Revelation chapter 4, verse 1. I want all of you to write this down, please.

3:00 Revelation 4, verse 1. John says, The apostle is writing this down, and I want all of you to think very critically. After these things, metatauta is the Greek word. After these things, after this, look. So John, after all this stuff, after these things, now, look. It's a command. And behold, that is, I saw a door standing open in heaven. Everybody walk through with me now. You're John. You've seen what was, what is, and what's going to happen after these things.

3:47 So the outline is given. John writes it down. He's grateful for it. The description of the churches, got it. All of a sudden, now that that letter, those seven letters written by Jesus to the churches is complete, it's as though God rolls up his sleeves and goes down to business. And he says to John, after these things, behold, John says, watch what happens. A door standing open in heaven. The first voice which I heard was like a trumpet That's interesting. Why not water?

4:27 The voice of water is often recorded in scripture. I'm not making this a hard press biblical interpretation. Let's just take on the thought. What John is saying. I heard a voice speaking to me like a trumpet. In the believer's life, what role does a trumpet play, if anything, in the church's life? We'll just, well, we don't know yet. We're playing dumb right now. It was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, come up here, class.

5:13 Where is here? Here. Where the door is open, correct? Everybody got that? Not hard. Come up here and I will show you things which must take place after this. After what? After you have come up here. Look how smart you guys are. This is understanding Bible prophecy. This is fun. So John, some scholars, I'm just pushing the envelope. Some scholars throughout the last 2,000 years believe that John is a type or symbol of the church.

5:55 John is the oldest living apostle. Did you know John is the only one who died of natural causes? All of the rest were killed, martyred. John's longevity, John's age, John receives the book of Revelation, John hears the trumpet, a door is opened in heaven, and so watch this. At this moment, Revelation chapter four, some say is the last mention of the church because John is a member of the church. Maybe that's a stretch, but we do know this. John's the last apostle we're going to hear about in the book of Revelation.

6:43 His career is done. Listen, if you have to close your eyes to get this, that's fine. From where he's standing, he sees a door opened in heaven up there. The next time John sees a door, he sees a door with you and me with him. And we see the backside of the door and it is opened and we depart. Revelation 19, it says there, the bride of Christ, the church with Jesus Christ comes out of heaven through the door to earth.

7:25 So yeah, I mean, that's exciting stuff. Some of you are kind of like, what? So listen, here's the amazing thing. From Revelation chapter four, verse one, the church is never mentioned again in the book of Revelation until Revelation 19. And when you see her again, she's quite a gal. She's on a horse. We are... Wearing fine linen, clean and bright, which is the righteous acts of the saints, it says. And so when you put the Christian as the bride of Christ together, she's got a wedding gown on.

8:08 But she's going out with the Lord as he makes war upon the inhabitants of the earth. During the tribulation period and at that point at the end. So she's riding a horse. I don't like horses, but apparently I'm going to warm up to them. The reason why, it's very vain. I don't like animals that are smarter than I am. That's all. And stronger. But, okay, so John, or I should say Revelation 4, verse 1, so important. John chapter 14. The same John, by the way. John 14, verse 1. Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me.

8:49 In my Father's house, up there, are many mansions. And if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. Did not Jesus ascend up there? To prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself. That where I am, there you may be also. Watch the flow of this, everybody. Watch the flow. 1 Thessalonians 4, verse 16. 1 Thessalonians 4, verse 16. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

9:31 Then we... Isn't that interesting? Paul the Apostle used the word we for himself. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up... That's the word rapture in Latin. Together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Notice the flow of this. Titus 2.13. Looking for the blessed hope and the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. One more. 1 Corinthians 15, verse 50. This is awesome. Before I read it, there's a period of time coming. We don't know when. That there will be those who are living that will not see death.

10:13 They will be caught up by the Lord himself. Those who have died in Jesus, their bodies will be resurrected just momentarily beforehand. Can you imagine? Resurrected glory. Their bodies will come out of the ground. resurrected glorified bodies will be reunited with their spirit right now. If your mom, your dad, your sister, your child, your son, think about your baby that died or think about aborted babies. They're in heaven. Some of these people who are debating, side note, some of these people who are debating about, does a baby that's aborted have a soul?

10:59 No. God, exactly. God said, I was in your mom's womb before any of your parts were put together. I was there assembling you. Sometimes, you know, people want to play God or somehow change the narrative. No, no, no, listen. God's the giver of life. Watch this. Watch what happens here. Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood, like you and I are now, cannot inherit the kingdom of God. In other words, this space suit doesn't work up there in that realm where he's at. We need new constituted skin, glorified skin.

11:42 I'm all for that, by the way. Behold, I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep or die, but we shall be changed. In a moment, in a twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet, for the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised incorruptible and we shall be changed. And all God's people said, that's our future. That is thrilling and very exciting. The third point is this. Who cares about Bible prophecy? The more that you read about these things, the more that you start to get stirred up and say, wow, I want to be part of that crowd.

12:25 I want to know that. And so when you really begin to understand that God's word that he tells us about the future is not to freak us out. Now would be a good time for me to insert what we are not talking about when it comes to prophecy. Many people have been offended and abused, and I agree with you. Where you've been raised up or you went to some kind of a church and brother John or Joe or sister John, Susie had the gift of prophecy and she's going to tell you your future. What? There is the gift of prophecy in the Bible given by the Holy Spirit, but it ain't the telling of the future.

13:09 The gift of prophecy in the New Testament is the one of heralding forth the word of God to a particular situation or to a people. It's applying the word of God to a particular people or whatever the need is. It's the spirit of God working through you. If you have the gift of a prophet or prophecy, you will not tell them about their future. You will project and announce the word of God, which already is. When somebody comes along and says to you, oh, I have the gift of prophecy. And so why don't you sit down? I'm going to tell you about your future. Dude, you need to get up and run. That is insane, sick, and that is a mind-controlled trip.

13:52 And a lot of people who are in hyper-Pentecostal movements have been really damaged by that stuff. I know you love that person, but you can't marry them because God's got somebody else for you. God told me to tell you that. You know how many times I've heard that from people? They've come here bruised and broken, and that's what happened in their lives at some other gathering. where they were going to get married. This couple was, everything was great. And then the leadership stepped in and said, now we have a word from the Lord. It's a word of prophecy. You're not to marry him. You're to marry him over there. Hey, everybody, if you're in that situation, get running now.

14:36 Get out. It's wrong and it's manipulative and it's not of God. That's not the prophecy we're talking about. We are talking about the prophecy that God himself has written down in the Bible and we are to know that. So much so, when we say who cares about Bible prophecy, I wrote myself this little note that's on page five if you guys scanned the notes. It says, recorded human history has proven that biblical prophecy has never been fulfilled vaguely or generally or casually. But rather, biblical prophecy has been fulfilled accurately, specifically, and consistently.

15:21 You know that's true. When one of God's ancient prophecies are fulfilled, it's not like it goes by and nobody notices it. Those who are watching and knowing the word of God, they get it. Listen, when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday on the little donkey, do you remember what he said to them? He started crying. He was the only one crying in the entire crowd. And he said, oh, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, if you had only recognized this thy day, the peace that awaited you, but now it's taken from you. And you will not see me again until you say, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

16:03 That's what Israel will say at the second coming. More on that in the future. Remarkable. Who cares about Bible prophecy? You do, and here's the reason why. Number one reason. Say, I don't care. Yes, you do. Are you a Christian? Yes. Are you saved? Yes. Well, do you want to know why you care about Bible prophecy? Because the first Bible prophecy ever is in Genesis 3.15. And it's all about you. It's all about me. God says, I will put enmity, warfare between you, Satan, and the woman, Eve, and her descendants. And between your offspring, seed, the Greek word is sperm, and her sperm.

16:50 What? She don't have that. That's because this is a messianic prophecy. That's why the S is capitalized, folks. That means from the woman will come the Messiah. And the warfare is going to be between your descendants, Satan, and her descendant. That God would become flesh to save mankind from our condition. He, Messiah, the seed, shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.

17:36 Some of your Bible translations on the margins say bruise or to crush. And I like the word crush better. Listen, you can get your heel crushed. And be fine. Satan is going to crush, or Satan crushed, the heel of Jesus in his humanity when Jesus was living on earth, physically. But you cannot survive a head crushing. The Messiah is going to crush the head of the serpent, of Satan. And... Who cares about Bible prophecy? Well, we all should because there's a danger of ignoring Bible prophecy.

18:18 1 Thessalonians 4, verse 13 commands it. But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning, and he goes on to talk about the coming of the Lord. Do not be ignorant. The word ignorant in Greek is this, do not be willfully ignorant. Wow. To intentionally not want to know, to not be aware of, or to decide to not know that which can be known. In other words, can you imagine somebody holding a flashlight in front of you and you go, nope, I don't wanna know the way. No, here's the flashlight, here's the path. No, no, I can't see it. No, it's not there. Open your eyes, man.

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