L.2. REVELATION' S DRAGON.

      SUB-TITLE: Where did PAIN, SUFFERING AND DEATH COME FROM?  By Desire Media , Inc, 2013, with my many THANK YOU's

                                                       THE STORY.

     JOSEPH BATES , at the age of 17, was called into  a Danish court to give testimony about the voyage his ship was on. Due to the war between England and France the Danes were ordered to stop any ship helping Britain and Bate's ship was helping her. The captain of the ship had secretly offered all the crew a handsome reward if they lie, and say they had no business in England.
     When called into court the judge had a surprise for them. Coming to the witness stand Bates was told to place his two fore fingers and thumb into the holes of the big box in front of him, which he did. Then he was told to speak the truth, for a lie would h\cause the box to cut off his fingers and thumb, so in fear he spoke the whole truth. Then Bates was set free.
     Now was this box really a foolproof lie detector that would separate his fingers from his hand?
NO! Of course not, but for all who believed the judge's story if worked just fine.
     Is there a 100% fool=proof lie-detector? Yes, it is YOUR Bible, and this is going to show and reveal GOD's truth about HIM and His word especially Revelation,s Dragon.  LET'S BEGIN.

1. why is our world so FULL OF PAIN, SUFFERING AND DEATH?
     Revelation 12:7 "And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,"
NOTE: Here we learn that a war was fought in Heaven yet! One was Micheal { Hebrew means "Who is like EL=GOD?] the other, known as "The Dragon."

2 So who are these two Heavenly combatants?
     Daniel 12:1. " And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: ....."
     Revelation 12:9. " And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."

Note: It's NOT difficult to the tell which is good and which is evil, agree? We are still the SUBJECTS of this same war, a war over your soul and mine! Notice that the Devil is also called the dragon, and Satan means "adversary". While Micheal is the Great Prince that stands for GOD's people.

                     WHO IS "MICHEAL"?
       
      The Bible tells us more about the identity of Micheal. Not only is He a great Prince that stands for GOD' s people, He is also involved in the resurrection of the dead, both the Just and Unjust, each at their appointed times.
     Jude 1:9  "Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee."  Here we see He's the Archangel who resurrected Moses from the grave. Next we see He was, and IS the ONE who will resurrect all those who believed and died in Christ in...
    1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 . "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words." To cement this identity go to...
     John 11:25-26. "Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?"

NOTE: Please know, the Bible NEVER speaks to Jesus as being an Created being a Angel. The term Archangel means only  "The Highest Messenger". In fact MICHEAL in the Hebrew means "Who is like GOD.", thus in the Hebrew all this put together reads as : "The Highest Messenger, Who is like GOD."
Lesson 3 we shall learn more about this Supreme Being who will IN GOD's time resurrect the dead!

3. DID GOD REALLY, CREATE A DEVIL?
    NO!
    Ezekiel 28:15. "Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee."
Note: Please remember, we have, nor have we been given, any sense of time elapsed, until Lucifer, looked at his reflection, ans if we can use the analogy of a cat before a mirror, seeing a fully grown male lion, self pride filled him to overflowing, to the point where iniquity or lawlessness, was found in him. Instead of doing good, he became self-centered and ambitious for his own purposes. He turned from being Lucifer [Star of the Morning - "Light Bearer"] to Satan the adversary.
     Isaiah 14:12. "How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!"

NOTE: MOST people picture the devil as a red monster with horns, bat wings, a pitch fork, [actually a trident from Pagan god of the seas Poseidon, today is shown symbolically as the Fleur- Die- Lis] hooves and a spear-point tail. This is the cartoonist caricature he wants all to see him as, so that when he appears as a beautiful angelic[ angel of light] being none will suspect that he is really the Devil in disguise.
     Matthew 7:15-16. "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?"
Note:. Satan and his will deceive many, by disguising themselves, as one of GOD's people, in order to deceive and lead used astray. A wolf will have much success catching GOD's sheep if he is dressed as a sheep, right?

4. WHAT WENT WRONG WITH THIS BEING NAMED LUCIFER?
     Ezekiel 28:17. "Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee."

5. BUT, WHAT DID HE HOPE TO GAIN BY REBELLING?
    Isaiah 14:12-15. "How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!  For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit."

Note: Lucifer, wanted to ASCEND, into heaven, and EXALT, his throne. In his selfish ambition, he actually wanted to TAKE THE PLACE OF GOD.

6. WHO won the WAR in Heaven?
     Revelation 12:9. "And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."

7. How many angels were cast out with him?

Note: Not only did Satan get tossed out of Heaven but also 1/3 of the angles got heaved out with him......
      Revelation 12:4  And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: ........"   Revelation 1:20 . "The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches."

8. WHERE did the War move to?
    Revelation 12:12. "Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea ! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time."

Note: This war, over the souls of humanity, is on this earth. We are the ones who must contend with this supernatural and awful enemy, but a believer in Christ, never stands alone! Is this important to you?

9. WHY  did the war move to this earth?
     Genesis 3:3-5. "But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."

NOTE: God said, do NOT eat from this tree lest you die, but the devil in a disguise of a serpent, said "you will not surely die", [ this became the Pagan's "Die and go right to heaven or hell dogma] > All of Heaven had heard the devil's accusation against GOD. He said, I could do a better job than GOD if I were given a chance. So the Devil got his chance in the Garden of Eden, where he was able to offer man an alternative to obeying GOD. When man rebelled, and listened to Satan, rather than GOD, he opened the door for the devil to have access to earth, and to remove Adam as the King of earth, and place that mantle on his own shoulders, and thereby be able to offer Christ the earth to rule, IF Jesus but would kneel before him in worship! By the way that's what Satan wants your worship! { A fact to place in your memory bank, for another lesson}

10.  Why din't GOD eliminate the devil right then and there?
      Matthew 13:27-30. "So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?  He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn."

Note: Jesus said, "Let the wheat [humans]  and tares [false wheat- Satan converts] grow together until harvest.SO IF. . . if GOD had destroyed Satan/Lucifer on the spot, would that have resulted in the rest of the Angels obeying out of love or from fear? Jesus said to wait until the angels gather the Tares.Weeds into bundles at harvest time, to burn them, in the Lake of Fire' s one time use.

11. WHAT re some of the devil's goals and tactics?
      1 Peter 5:8."Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:"   Revelation 12:13. "And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child"  [Woman here is the Pure Church * see Keys to unlocking Bible  Symbols*
     .Revelation 16:14. "For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty."
     Revelation 13:14. "And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do ...."
      2 Corinthians 11:14. "And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light."

                                 A STORY
     MY friend,, Larren Cole, the author of this series "Revelation Revealed", tells this story.
His friend, a Minister,  from a different faith, and he, were holding a few Bible studies together, until his friend made a statement, that was contrary to what the Bible speaks to. Larren then pointed out, several Bible verses, to shown his friend's  error! As they were using his friends Bible at the time, the owner took hold of the his Bible, closed it, and said, "Look I had a angel in white visit me, while I was in my bed, and he stood right there and said, no the Bible was printed in error, but this is the corrected truth, which I spoke to you"!

Note: Can that be true? YES! But the message was a lie! As no Angel form GOD would ever give a message that's goes against GOD' s Word, agree?....  The Devil is seeking to devour anyone he can. He is a persecuting power. He can work miracles [THINK OF ALL THE"WISPY 'MARY' IMAGES"  and the bleeding blood and olive oil idols] and he can even transform [means to be able to change his appearance] himself to appear as an Angel of Light.

12. HOW can we tell the difference between GOD and Satan?
      Isaiah 8:20. "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them."
Note: In other words, if what they say does NOT fit within the Bible, the Word of GOD, it is because they have no light, no truth in them! If something does NOT agree with the Bible, its not true nor truth!

13. WHO has more power?
     Jude 1:24. "Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,"

Note: "Falling" = sinning, thus Jesus has the power to keep those who are willing to obey Him, from sinning!
            All Satan can do is lie, harm and destroy, by many methods including the use of the forces of nature.

14. What is Satan' s final destination?
      Matthew 25:41. "Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels."


NOTE: (j.b.) Please do NOT let the "everlasting fire" throw you, it's only the Bible's way of saying "Until the job or the desired results are done! Sodom was also destroyed by everlasting fire, but is it still burning? NO, the job got done!
 But how can we know?
Malachi 4:1-3. "For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts."
Note: Once one has been reduced to ashes, is there still life?
     Ezekiel 28:18-19. "Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffic; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more"

Note: Match this to Revelations 21 and 22 as all this activity shall be back on this earth!

15. Is there any chance that sin will re-appear?
     .Nahum 1:9-10. "What do ye imagine against the LORD? he will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time. For while they be folden together as thorns, and while they are drunken as drunkards, they shall be devoured as stubble fully dry."

Note: Due to the extreme mess we humans have lived in this sin filled earth, none shall ever to sin again. Suffering, pain sorrow and death, shall NOT rise up the second time!

16. SHALL WE HAVE ANY REMINDERS OF SIN?
       Zechariah 13:6. "And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends."

Q: Would you like to look fore ward to a life in a world without sin, or pain, or sorrow?
     Revelation 21:4. "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."

Next #3. "Revelation' s Rapture"  Will Jesus return secretly? To rapture His Saints?

Learn more? Visit a Seventh day Adventist Church, any Sabbath/Saturday @ 9:15 AM. You just may be happily surprised at you welcome, and what you'll learn.

Thank YOU for your time.
Questions?...................Comments?
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