The Two Witnesses - 240206

SPEAKER A Hello, I'm Steven Groom. Welcome to let God speak. This week we will look at the identity of the two olive trees or two olive branches in Zechariah, also found in the book of revelation, as well as the identity of the two witnesses found in revelation, chapter eleven. This lesson will show us the battle against the word of God as revealed in scripture and history. Please join us for this exciting study. On our panel today we have Gayl Fong and John Kosmeier. Welcome to our study today. Before we begin, let us bow in prayer. Dear Lord, please help us to understand how important the word of God is for our salvation as revealed in this Bible study today. And we ask all these things in Jesus name. Amen. Today's study is on the imagery used for the word of God in both Zechariah and revelation. And my first question is to you, Gayl, what does the Old Testament book of Zechariah have to say about the two olive trees or the two olive branches? SPEAKER B Well, in the book of Zechariah, in chapter four and verse eleven, Zechariah refers to the two olive trees that are on the right side and also on the left side of the candlestick. And the candlestick was one of the three articles of furniture in the holy place of the temple or sanctuary. And in verse twelve of chapter four, in the book of Zechariah, it talks about there it states that the olive branches are the source from which the golden oil flows into the golden pipes, into the seven branch candlestick, which emanates light. SPEAKER A Very good. And that's all very interesting, Gayl, but, and this is highly symbolic, John, isn't it? What does that mean for us when. SPEAKER C You go to verse 14 of the same chapter, and I'm reading from the new King James version, it says so. He said, these are the two anointed ones who stand beside the Lord of the whole earth. And the anointed ones represent the Holy Spirit, both Old Testament and New Testament, and that imparts to human beings who are wholly consecrated to God. SPEAKER A Very good. Leaving the Old Testament book of Zechariah and going to book of revelation, it picks up on this language, doesn't it? Because John the revelator often refers to the Book of Zechariah. It also talks about the two olive trees and two lampstands that stand before the lord of the earth. How much power does John say that is given to these entities? SPEAKER B Well, in revelation eleven and verse five, it states that if anyone desires to harm them, that they're destroyed by fire and that that's going to be. Ultimately, their fate will be destruction. And in verse six, it says, these have power to shut heaven so that no rain falls in the days of their prophecy. They have power over water to turn them to blood and to strike the earth with all plagues as often as they desire. So extreme power, ultimate power. SPEAKER A Wow. We should take notice of them. This is also powerful imagery. What does it mean, John, again? SPEAKER C Well, interestingly enough, in the Book of James, he talks about this in chapter five and verse 17. And he says, elijah was a man with a nature like ours. And he prayed earnestly that it would not rain. And it did not rain for three years and six months. We're going to come back to that. And then he prayed again and the heavens gave rain and the earth produced its fruit. And this is where, when the power of the Holy Spirit works, it works very powerfully. In fact, when you think of what happened with Moses through his word, which of course was the power of God, he produced plagues, turning water to blood, as in exodus seven. And at the end time, ultimately, God's word, pronounced judgments upon all those who reject it. SPEAKER A Yes. So that shows that the power of the word of God on people, doesn't it has, like a judgement standard. SPEAKER C It said that the words in the mouth of God's messenger is like fire and that the person who rejects it is like wood. SPEAKER A Yes. SPEAKER C And it burns them. SPEAKER A So it shows how important our behaviour is. In revelation, chapter eleven and verse three, the two olive trees are referred to as God's two witnesses. What does this imagery imply, Gayl? SPEAKER B Well, this metaphor speaks to the fact that the word of God has a perpetual presence and power. And because it is of divine origin and having been transmitted through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and ultimately our eternal fate, depends on how we respond to the scriptures. SPEAKER A Yes, once again, showing how important, how we respond to the word of God. In revelation, chapter eleven, verse two, going back a bit, a verse, it talks about a period of 42 months when the holy city is trodden underfoot. And verse three, once again speaks about a period of 1203 score days when the two witnesses are prophesied in sackcloth. So are they speaking about the same period of time? And what is it speaking about, John? SPEAKER C It's speaking here about the time when the word of God will be totally trodden underfoot. It won't be listened to, banned, set aside, banned for 1260 years, because 42 months and three and a half years, they happen to come to 1260 days. SPEAKER A So they're the same period of time. SPEAKER C Same period of time. And that's when the word of God will be cast down. SPEAKER A Wow. So, Gayl, what is the significance of the two witnesses being clothed in sackcloth? SPEAKER B Well, sackcloth signifies mourning, and this signifies that the word of God had to be given out secretively. It implies that there was persecution levelled at those that preached God's word or taught it, or those that read God's word actually, as well. So they lived under extreme duress during this period of time because they were following the Lord and living up to the dictates of their conscience. And it often cost something to follow the Lord. SPEAKER A Yes. It's a long period of time, isn't it? As we'll see, this period of 1260 days or 42 months is given in many places in revelation twelve, 5614, verse 15, and Daniel, the Old Testament book of Daniel, chapter seven, verse 25. What period of time are we speaking about, John, here? SPEAKER C This is the period of time during the persecution of the dark ages. And it goes from 538 to 1798, when human tradition overshadowed the word of God. SPEAKER A Okay. And so the word of God was banned, and it had to be sort of secretly given by the faithful remnant who refused to listen to the banning of the word of God. Is that right? Let's move on to verse seven of chapter eleven of the book of Revelation. And it says that when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, speaking about the two witnesses, and shall overcome them and kill them. What is this speaking about, Gayl? SPEAKER B So, yes, so when they finish their testimony, so it refers to looking forward towards the end of the 1260 days year prophecy there. And the beast refers to a power that seeks to destroy the two witnesses or the scriptures. And Satan is always seeking to destroy the influence of scripture through people and group, or people groups. And it ascends out of the bottomless pit. So it has to be understood, indicating it's an entity, a new entity that has no truth and no foundation. Being an atheistic power, it shall kill them. That is, it shall seek to destroy the two olive trees or the scriptures. And this was fulfilled with the first french republic from 1792 to 1804, when they made war on religion. SPEAKER A Yes. Satan is always seeking to work through government so he can make the best benefit to cancel out the power of the word of God, doesn't he? Revelation. Let's move to the next verse, verse eight. It says, there dead body shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also, our Lord was crucified. What's this speaking about, John? SPEAKER C It's almost unbelievable, but this actually happened in France. And I want to read to you what happened. This french republican power shall succeed for a time. The reference to which is spiritual Sodom and Egypt. The use of spiritual means, it is not literal. Sodom is symbolic of the moral degradation. Such was the condition of France during the revolution. Egypt was known for its denial of the existence of and its defiance of the commands of the true God, as stated by pharaoh when in Exodus, chapter 20, who is God that I should worship him? I do not know the Lord. These atheistic attitudes were characteristic of the leaders of the revolution in France. SPEAKER A Yes, thank you for that. It's a terrible time. Aren't we glad we're not living in these times? Moving on to the next verse, verse nine, it says, and they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies. They're speaking about the two witnesses, three days and a half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. Wow. What does this speaking about? SPEAKER B Yes, this is you emphasised there. Steven says that in that verse nine, there says that the bodies of God's two witnesses would lie unburied for the three and a half days. That's prophetic days representing the three and a half literal years. And there has not been a greater insult ever heaped on any writings than the book we call the Bible. Atheism was at its height in the french revolution, at least for about three and a half years. And this period extended from November 26, 1793, when a decree issued in Paris abolished religion, to June 17, 1797, when the french government removed its restrictive religious laws. Perhaps they saw the incredible damage that had been done. SPEAKER A Wow. And those three and a half days is the same period of the time as the 1260 days or years, and the same period of time as the 42 months. Isn't that right? Can you give us more background, John, on how the French Revolution fulfilled this prophecy? SPEAKER C Steve, let me read a bit more history that backs up what you've said about revelation eleven. The French Revolution began in 1789. Now, in the French Revolution, and here was a christian nation, and this is what it does. In the French Revolution, the government officially established the cult of reason as a state sponsored atheistic religion. Fancy legislating godlessness as the belief of the nation. And it intended to replace Christianity. A festival of reason was held nationwide on November 10, 1793. Churches across France were turned into temples of reason, and a living woman was enthroned as the goddess of reason, she became the source of all wisdom. Bibles were burnt in the streets. God was declared non existent, terrible. And death was pronounced to be an endless sleep. So it's no wonder that we have there a picture of their bodies lying unburied in the street. And then Satan worked through godless men to kill God's two witnesses, and he nearly succeeded. SPEAKER A Thank you for that. John, can you give us an example of a godless person who sought to fight against the word of God? Gaylic. SPEAKER B Yes. Satan uses people to further his cause. And one such example was Voltaire. And he once boastingly said, and I'll just read the quote, I am weary of hearing people repeat that twelve men establish the christian religion. I will prove that one man may suffice to overthrow it. And here he boastingly claimed that he himself will destroy the influence of Christianity and the word. And Voltaire paved the way for the ideas that would fuel the french revolution. SPEAKER A Wow. What a terrible time that was. Was voltaire or anyone else successful in fulfilling his promise of destroying the influence of the scriptures? SPEAKER C John he was for three years. But after that, fortunately, it was risen again. And here it was fulfilled. In November 26, 1793, a decree was issued in Paris abolishing religion until June 17, 1797. However, this was only for that short period of time. SPEAKER A Fortunately, fortunately, the word of God will not be suppressed forever, will it? So after this period of abolished religion and deathful ban upon the word of God, was there a resurrection of sorts of these two dead bodies that laid in the streets? SPEAKER C Gayl? SPEAKER B Well, I'll just read revelation 1111. And the Bible says now, after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God entered them and they stood on their feet and great fear fell on those who saw them. So we see here, as this prophecy indicated, that at the end of the 18th century, the two witnesses came back to life again. And God raised up men and women who were committed to hastily spreading the gospel to the ends of the earth. And propelled by the power of the Bible and by the Holy Spirit, missionaries were sent around the world. And to many, God's word seemed dead. But God raised it up again in the hearts of believers. And one example of this during this time was William Carey. And he travelled to India and translated the Bible into dozens of local dialects. There are others like Moffat and Livingston to Africa and Judson to Burma. And you've got the British Bible Society, the American Bible Society, that translated the Bible into different languages. So, praise the Lord. Yes, it must have seemed again, it. SPEAKER A Must have seemed at times during the french revolution that people would think that it was dead forever. The word of God was dead and buried, and nothing could happen. The fact that it's called a resurrection implies that God himself raised the scriptures back to life through influencing people to come back. The same as the 1260 literal years from 538 to 1798 we call the dark ages. I mean, after such a long period of time and many generations, it must have seemed that it was finished forever. But God's word has said it will not remain that way. But a tax on God's word is not limited to the 18th or 19th centuries. Were they all around us? We can see we're being assailed this way and on the left hand, to compromise on principles as revealed in the word of God, to give up on God in one way or another. John, what would you have to say to anyone who might be tempted to give up on the principles, to give up on God as revealed in the scriptures? SPEAKER C When you go to the biggest chapter in the Bible, psalm 119, and there are all of 170 something verses, when we read verse 89 here, it says, forever, o Lord, your word is settled in heaven. And so God gives us the insurance that the word of God will always be there. Steve, ironically, what happened in France was that after the French Revolution and the Bible that you were talking about as being spread now to nations everywhere, Voltaire's house became the warehouse for the Bible and the printing press that he had used to print his attacks upon God's word in France. And of course, that was spread everywhere because Voltaire became famous, that very press was used to print bibles. And that was 50 years after he said that within a hundred years, the Bible world had been a book of myths. SPEAKER B Amazing. SPEAKER A So God has the last laugh, so to speak. SPEAKER C God is the one who assures us, look at history and see what happens. SPEAKER B God has ultimate power. SPEAKER C What a blessing. And so, you know, it's wonderful to know that God has control. SPEAKER A Yes. Continuing our study in revelation, chapter eleven, verses 15 to 18 comes to a glorious climax, doesn't it, Gayl? SPEAKER B It does. The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord. And Christ is victorious. Evil is defeated. Jesus wins and Satan loses. And Christ shall reign victorious forever and ever. I love that righteousness triumphs. We would do well to heed the following instruction given by Ellen White in the great controversy. It reads, whatever is built upon the authority of man will be overthrown. But that which is founded upon the rock of God's immunity, immutable word shall stand forever. So we can truly trust God's word. And I just love that fact. Also, I love how God is called in verse 16, where he's called the one who is and who was and who is to come. We give thanks to Lord God Almighty, the one who is and who was and is to come, because you have taken your great power and reigned. SPEAKER A So far we've looked at how there's been a battle in history, and then people working for Satan have tried to suppress the word of God and destroy it. But there's a message to go to the whole world at this time that will separate these two groups, those who wish to destroy the scriptures and those who live by it. In three messages in the book of Revelation, John. And what is that message? SPEAKER C When you turn to revelation, chapter 14, we find here that there are three angels. Now, the first angel, this is what he says, verse six. Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel. To those who dwell on the earth, to every nation, tribe, tongue and people, this everlasting gospel is actually the two witnesses, because gospel means good news. Now in the Old Testament you've got good news that Jesus is coming. When you come to the New Testament, which of course was the second witness, it tells us that Jesus is coming. It's the same message, except that the first coming was when Jesus came 2000. SPEAKER A Years ago and the New Testament prophesies of his second coming. SPEAKER C Absolutely, and that is future for us. And so those who attack the Bible, they can attack it as much as they like. It's been dead, raised again, it's not going to die again. And this is where this good news of the gospel comes. And there are three messages. And the second message is that Babylon is fallen. The confusion and the battles that are fought in the world over God and of his kingdom and of his word, that is all part of this great battle that's coming on. SPEAKER A And Babylon is like a confused religion, is it? SPEAKER C Absolutely. SPEAKER A There's many different denominations and religions, yes, nowadays. SPEAKER C So the battle of confusion will always be there. And the answer is get back to. SPEAKER A The witnesses, back to the witnesses, back. SPEAKER C To the oil, back to the seven golden candlesticks. That's where God is. SPEAKER B Amen. SPEAKER C And what a blessing it brings to us when this message comes along and touches our hearts and our lives, and then we can spread to others. And the Bible is very much alive and well today. SPEAKER A And the third angel's message is something in relation to the first angel's message, isn't it? Do not worship the beast in his image how is that related to the first angel message? When you worship God, and when you. SPEAKER C Come down to verse twelve, here is the patience of the saints. Here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. And this is where it calls us back to the faith of Jesus and to the keeping of the commandments, and. SPEAKER A Especially the Sabbath in the first angel's message, which has been largely neglected by. SPEAKER B The worship the creator. SPEAKER A Worship the creator in the Sabbath, which is neglected by most protestant denominations today. And the third angel's message are called to reject worshipping the beast, which is given in a false Sabbath. Isn't it so in regards to the climax of this world's history, Gale, what does revelation 1119 tell us about what John saw opened in heaven? If you'd like to read that. SPEAKER B Yes, I'm just reading verse 19 of revelation eleven. Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of his covenant was seen in his temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake and great hail. So here, John, he has a view into the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary. And there is the ark of the covenant. In the most holy place, he sees this glorious presence of God between the two angels, the two cherubim. There those figures on the cover of the ark of the covenant. And within the ark of the covenant is the law of God. And although we are saved by grace through faith, obedience to God's law reveals whether our faith is genuine. And we can only do that through the power of the Holy Spirit, strengthening us to follow what our heart's desire is, to love God and worship him and follow him. SPEAKER A Thank you for joining us today. Gayl thank you for joining us. John. That's all we have time for today. As we saw in this week's lesson, the two olive trees or branches and God's two witnesses are the metaphors for the Old and New Testament scriptures, just as there are the Old and the New Testament. There are also two types of people in this world, those who seek and follow the Lord Jesus Christ and those who do not. If you are on the part of those who do not, you can decide right now and change your place to begin seeking and following Jesus through obeying the truth in the scriptures today. We are glad you are with us today on let God speak. You can view all past programmes on our website. Three abnaustralia.org dot au teachers notes can be downloaded there. You can email us on lgs three abnaustralia.org dot au dot do join us again. God bless. SPEAKER B You have been listening to let God speak, a production of 3ABN Australia television. To catch up on past programmes, please visit 3abnaustralia.org.au. Call us in Australia on 02 4973 3456. Or email [email protected]. we'd love to hear from you.