Corona Chronicles - Crown of Gold

Okay. Hello and welcome back to the corona chronicles. We're looking through the book of revelation. Yesterday, we looked at the first part of chapter 11, which talks about God measuring his people. So he knows them perfectly.

There's not a single Christian that he that he's forgotten about or he's he's missing. Every single sort of son and daughter he has is accounted for. And we also saw that the trampling on the holy city or God's people is only for 42 months. So it feels like a long time, but it's limited. It's it's got an end date.

So we see again once more that this judgment is is restrained and god is sovereign. And we also saw these 2 witnesses who sort of represent church, god's people. Mhmm. And they are clothed in sackcloth, so they are in in repentance themselves, and they're also preaching to the world to repent. And we saw that whilst they are doing the lord's work, they can't be harmed.

And that's where we got up to in verse 6 and now I'm gonna read from verse 7. Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the abyss will attack them and overpower and kill them. Their bodies will lie in a public square of the great city, which is figuratively called sodom in Egypt. Where also their lord was crucified. For 3 and a half days, some from every people, tribe, language, and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial.

Inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts because these 2 prophets had tormented those who live on the earth. But after 3 and a half days, the breath of life from God entered them and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them. Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, come up here and they went up to heaven in a cloud while their enemies looked on. At that very hour, there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. 7000 people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to God to the God of heaven.

The second woe has passed. The third woe is coming soon. So the the people have got to finish their testimony and then it looks like they lose next, doesn't it? There's a series of of events that actually look quite devastating. So first of all, this beast comes up and kills them.

And then secondly, their bodies are lying in the public square and they're refused burial, which being refused burial is something that's kind of shameful. Yeah. You're meant to you know, give dignity to a person by by burying them properly. But here, they're they're just lying in a public square. Mhmm.

And the inhabitants of the earth are are gloating over them and having some kind of festival, like giving each other gifts. Mhmm. It's kind of like anti Christmas in a way. Yeah. It's like Jesus has as it come, it's like his his people have gone.

Yeah. And we'll celebrate and give each other gifts. So it looks pretty it looks pretty bad, actually. Except for the fact that if you look a bit closer, you see actually that step by step This mirrors the ministry of Jesus here here on on the earth. So it was only when Jesus finished his ministry that he allowed himself to die.

He kept saying, no, it's not my time, and he would just walk through a crowd, a mob who were trying to kill him like, no. Not yet. Mhmm. And then other people were trying to kill him and he would disappear and go, no. The time has not come.

Mhmm. And it was only on the cross when he said, it is finished. That he he allowed death to to sort of overtake him. And here, that's what's happened to God's people. Mhmm.

When they finish their testimony, then they're allowed to die. Yeah. Absolutely. And as you say, they're they're following their messiah on the road to the cross, aren't they? So they they too were existing in figuratively, sodom and Egypt.

Yeah. You know, these cities which stand for anti God -- Yeah. -- in a blasphemer Yep. And just as their lord was crucified in a place like that in that system. So they have been they've been shamed as you say like he has been shamed.

There's this gloating. You know, but but then verse 11, there's a there's a big there's a big butts there. Yeah. But after the 3 and a half days, the breath of life from God entered them and they stood on their feet in terror. Struck those who saw them.

So these these witnesses, this church are following Jesus into the tomb, but they've come out again. Yeah. They've resurrected like their lord was and the breath of God has come back in. The gospel testimony can't be defeated. Mhmm.

It may look like it's pathetic and weak and gone. But actually, it's it's it's alive and well and there's there's terror there, isn't there? Mhmm. And then in verse 12, this this mirroring as you put it only continues. So then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them come up here and they went up to heaven.

So they've died with him. They've risen with him, and now they've ascended with him. Mhmm. So the church is in union with Jesus. In in all of in in in every aspect here, as they go about go about his work.

And that is that is an amazing thing. I mean, I was I was I was thinking as I as as I was reading this that it reminds me of the Mark Twain quote, which people will know the details of it, maybe. But when when apparently in America, his obituary had been written and published before he'd even died. And from England, he wrote saying the reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated. Which is just a fantastic line, isn't it?

Yeah. And that's what's going on here. You know, there's gift giving and there's gloating. But Jesus is saying the reports of their death have been greatly exaggerated. You know, they are in fact alive and they are triumphant and they they are mine.

Yeah. And they get the opportunity to see it here as well in the inverse 12. So it's not that in, you know, whilst they were dead, they sort of slipped away into heaven. Mhmm. But this is very public.

This, isn't it? You know, they they stand on their feet. People are watching this happen and then they ascend It's almost something about like the resurrection in itself is proof and something to be marbled at, isn't it? And and to look at the truth of this. Yeah.

Absolutely. They're gazing upon it. And then when they've gone verse 13, you know, there's a severe earthquake and there's There's jud there's judgements coming on them now. Mhmm. You know, they're they're the ones who thought they had given out the judgement.

Yeah. But now they're the ones who are gonna face it. From God for for for what what they've done. And and so so I think I think all of this taken together is is an encouragement because often church around the world is maligned, isn't it? And it's seen as small and irrelevant and pathetic and you and you get people saying, they've had leaders in the past hold up bibles and say, I promise you, I I will wipe out this book, you know, you will see the last this book disappear.

And the church is seen as just a, you know, a sort of relic of an ancient past. Yeah. But actually, we are the church triumphant, aren't we? Mhmm. And the gospel will prevail.

Yeah. And no matter what persecution comes, we will be with our laws. And so there's there's an encouragement both for us in this country and for Christian Christians around the world. And tomorrow we're going to go up back into the heavenly scene and hear some loud voices.