Rev’d Up part 11
Thesis for series: We need to receive a fresh revelation of Jesus Christ every single day so we do not fall asleep at our assigned mission. We need to know He is coming back soon! Having a vision of Jesus will also give us the inner strength to stand for the Gospel in a hostile world even to the point of death. But we also need to see God’s Throne in Heaven and see His glory, majesty and power. He holds the throne of absolute power over this world – no demon – no ruler – no Caesar – no person – no angel – He is the one with the authority to determine the future.
Key verse of Revelation: Text: Revelation 12:11: “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.”
Introduction to Series:
The book of Revelation—Means to be able to see something clearly which once was hidden from sight. This is what the book of Revelation does for us. It takes off the veil and reveals more than any other book in the Bible - JESUS CHRIST. It reveals to a suffering persecuted church a victorious Jesus Christ. It's the climax to the entire Bible fueling HOPE AND FAITH! It challenges the church to be ready because He is coming back very soon!
Time is spoken of in this book – it references the past – deals with the present and looks into the future. We need to take to heart the message of this apocalyptic book and prophecy because it will give us inner strength, joy, perseverance even in the midst of persecution.
This revelation wants us to see Jesus – if we see Him – as He is, was and will be in the future - it will change us, encourage us, revive us and it will Rev us up to stand up for the Truth! Seeing Jesus will also enable us to smile through the trial as we face the persecution for standing up for truth in a world filled with lies and a battle for the soul of mankind!
Sermon 10 - Revelation Chapter 6 - “The 6 Seals”
Thesis: Chapter 6 of Revelation unveils Jesus the only found worthy to redeem mankind to God also the only one worthy to release the judgments upon evil in the end times. The message of this chapter to the church is to come to Jesus and lock arms with Him to fight and vanquish evil from this world. We either on His side or the enemies side.
Scripture Text:
1 I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. Then I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, “Come!” 2 I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.
3 When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” 4 Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other. To him was given a large sword.
5 When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. 6 Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, “A quart of wheat for a day’s wages, and three quarts of barley for a day’s wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!”
7 When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” 8 I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.
9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. 10 They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” 11 Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed.
12 I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, 13 and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as late figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. 14 The sky receded like a scroll, rolling up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.
15 Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. 16 They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”
Introduction:
Our chapter today talks about Jesus and really focuses on a a Great battle where the Lamb and Father are out to judge and fight against evil – this section of Revelation is pointing to the present because this battle is raging today but more so to the future and the “ The Great Battle against evil in the end times – it’s between Jesus and Satan – mankind is in the middle by the way. Men will choose to participate in this battle on the side of good or evil. God and Jesus are great warriors and we have a choice to be a part of this story of taking the force of good “The Kingdom of Heaven” against evil “The Kingdom of Darkness” to vanquish it once and for all from the earth. It’s coming – it’s already happening in the spiritual realm around us.
When you picture Jesus – do you picture Him as a great warrior? What image do you have of Jesus?
Exodus 15:3 “The Lord is a warrior, the Lord is his name.”
We are in this fight and moving toward a The Great Battle for the soul of mankind. Jesus has already taken the scroll from God the Father and He is going to fulfill the salvation purpose for mankind. But Jesus is also going to be the one who unleashes the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse on the earth and judgment will come to the evil ones in this world. Jesus is releasing the seals so get ready…
There has been a battle raging all around us since Satan tried to over throw Gods throne but most people ignore the battle for the soul of mankind. Because of their denial they get taken out of the fight living as if there is no war between good and evil. Many are clueless to the great battle going on right now and many don’t believe this Great War and judgment on evil is coming. Those who oppose God and His Word are going to face his wrath –so it is coming – sooner than most people think.
I am going to ask the question again, “Do you see Jesus Christ as a warrior for God the Father?” Do you know your position in this great and coming battle for the souls of the earth? Are you in God’s army or the enemy’s army? Whose side have you chosen to be on.
John Eldridge states, “We live in a world where spiritual powers are at war. The day is coming when the lion will lie down with the lamb, but that’s not now, that’s later…now it’s battle. And any of us who claims to be a Christian is playing a role in this battle, whether you like it or not. This isn’t a fairy tale; it’s real. We must begin to see life as an assault against our hearts and against the image of God in us. We must begin to resist, to fight back.” We need to align with Jesus.
1 Peter 5:8-9: 8 Be self–controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
James 4:7: 7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Ephesians 6:10-17: 10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Reality check: God has created you- to be his intimate ally, to join him in the Great Battle. You have a specific place on the front line a assignment God made you for. Are you in or out!
God has a warrior mission for you – especially you men – Winston Churchill was called upon to lead the British through the desperate hours of World War 2. He said, “I felt as if I were walking with destiny, and that all my past life had been but a preparation for this hour and for this trial.”
C.S. Lewis stated, “Enemy-occupied territory-that is what this world is.”
I want to challenge you to look around your settings, environment this week and tell me that as a Christian you are not in enemy territory! Listen to the talk, the messages, the deception the assault on good and the glorifying of evil.
Revelation is unveiling to us that the Lamb is a warrior – He is battle hardened and He is not afraid of the Devil and His demons they are going to be judged along with every person who aligns on their side. It’s going to be a horrendous time as this battle will rage over the earth and it will be even more global and impacting that World War 2. It’s going to touch and impact every person on the earth. Jesus is the one releasing the 4 horseman – they have a divine mission appointed by God and directed by Jesus.
Dr. Nichols taught me that prophecy can have dual meanings – God’s Word is multidimensional and can apply to a spiritual time frame – a historic time frame and a future time frame all in the same passage - I believe this passage of scripture or this revelation applies to today’s present reality – the war of good and evil is already being fought – it relates to the the past when the apostles started spreading the Gospel and started giving up their lives for the Kingdom of Heaven and they in turn established the churches, it points to a future time frame at the Great War in the end. When final judgment is released by Jesus onto the earth.
Point to note: Jesus is the only found worthy to deliver mankind and He is the only one with the right to judge mankind because of His great sacrifice of Himself on the cross. So he opens the scroll and sets things in motion for judgement to the earth. He brought salvation to mankind and the time is coming when he will judge all who rejected His great gift of salvation.
Revelation 6- the message to us today – to Christian Hills Church!
Notice each rider is released by the Living creatures at the throne – when they say “Come!”
Jesus used this phrase often in His teachings and as a invitation to participate in the Great battle or mission with Him – He would say “Come!”
Revelation 22:17: 17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.
Matthew 11:28-30: 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Matthew 14:25-29: 25 During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. 27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” 28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” 29 “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.
We need to not fear the waves and we need to step out in faith and come to Jesus and align with Him to wage war against evil.
Isaiah 55:1-13: Invitation to the Thirsty
“Come, all you who are thirsty,
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost.
2 Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and you will delight in the richest of fare.
3 Give ear and come to me;
listen, that you may live.
I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
my faithful love promised to David.
4 See, I have made him a witness to the peoples,
a ruler and commander of the peoples.
5 Surely you will summon nations you know not,
and nations you do not know will come running to you,
because of the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel,
for he has endowed you with splendor.”
6 Seek the Lord while he may be found;
Call on him while he is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake their ways
and the unrighteous their thoughts.
Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them,
and to our God, for he will freely pardon.
8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10 As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
12 You will go out in joy
and be led forth in peace;
the mountains and hills
will burst into song before you,
and all the trees of the field
will clap their hands.
13 Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper,
and instead of briers the myrtle will grow.
This will be for the Lord’s renown,
for an everlasting sign,
that will endure forever.”
T.S. – So, as we walk through this amazing chapter of Revelation 6 I want you to pay attention to the word “Come” as the horseman are released on the earth by Jesus.
1. The 4 horsemen of the apocalypse released by the The Lion of The Tribe of Judah the Slain Lamb – the bloody Lamb – as He opens the seals.
a. The white horse.
i. This horse represents conquest – the taking back old lost territory on the earth.
1. The White represents this rider’s purity and holiness some say it is Jesus himself riding this horse leading the others into battle.
a. Some scholars adhere to this thought and go so far as to say this represents the spread of the Gospel after Jesus ascension in Heaven and describes what happens in the book of Acts.
2. The vision of this mission is going to be victory through conquest taking back what was taken or conquered by the opposing force. It’s representing the taking back what the Devil had stolen.
a. Do you understand that this is happening right now on the earth but more is coming through this rider on the white horse.
i. He is coming again focused on conquest of evil – so come and join the slain Lambs army! Are you willing to come?
b. The Gospel has taken back spiritual territory which was lost ever since Jesus released this wave of renewal from the cross and unveiled His power to win through His Resurrection.
3. Note this horse represents a time of war to get this victory – people will be slain in this war for the souls of mankind – for the truth to go forward people will die so that other people are set free.
ii. The rider on the White horse – is it Jesus?
1. The rider had a bow
a. This first rider is charging into battle for the Lamb or is it the Lamb who released it’s power on the earth through His great sacrifice and leads the change against evil being the first one out of the gate?
b. The bow is a weapon of warfare but it is also used as a way to deliver messages in its day too.
c. Is this representing the spread of the Gospel -I think so! But it can mean what happened in Acts, what has happened with the spread of the Gospel even to this very moment and also point to a final push for victory before Jesus returns in His full glory.
2. The rider wore a crown
a. This represents having authority to conqueror to take back the land which was taken by another by force.
b. The crown represents one who is honored and wields great power.
i. I believe this unveils the power of the Gospel to take back what the Devil had stolen.
3. In the end Jesus is said to come back on a white horse with His white robe dipped in blood to avenge evil and injustice to his people and wield the sword of truth.
a. Revelation 19:1-21
b. The fiery red horse is released second as Jesus opens the 2 seal!
i. The horse represents war, civil war, bloodshed, and division on the earth.
ii. The rider will take away peace!
1. When the Gospel was released it split apart nations, families, cities and societies. It tore religions apart and cultures a part – just read Acts – The New Testament and Church History.
a. The red represents blood shed, War, a bloody civil war,
2. Question: How many martyrs since Jesus death and resurrection?
a. The best guest is 7 million to date if not higher.
b. There have been 900,000 martyrs just in the last 10 years!
i. https://www.christianpost.com/news/over-900000-christians-martyred-for-their-faith-in-last-10-years-report-173045/
c. Do you think we have been in a bloody war since the Resurrection? “A Great War” since Jesus death, resurrection and ascension? I do!
3. The rider will cause people to fight against each other and kill each other over the message released by the Lion of Judah and the slain Lamb.
a. Jesus said, Matthew 10:34-39: 34 “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to turn “‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter–in–law against her mother–in–law—36 a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’ 37 “Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; 38 and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”
b. We know at the end of times the bloodshed will increase between good and evil! We know the division and blood shed will escalate in the last days – so I have to ask are you ready – are you locked arm with Jesu for this fight.
iii. The rider is wielding a great sword which causes war and division.
1. What is the Sword – the Word of God? The Sword of the Spirit.
a. It’s called great and it divides people to fight against each other and causes people to kill each other over its being wielded.
2. We know in the “The Great War” many will die by the wielding of this powerful sword in the battle between good and evil.
3. See Revelation 19:15 “Out of His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations…”
4. It’s been happening since Jesus Resurrection but this too will escalate prior to His Second Coming.
c. The black horse is released by the 3rd seal and by Jesus the Warrior.
i. The black horse represents famine a condition which always follows wars and is a means God uses to judge corrupt societies.
ii. The rider of the black horse
1. Holds a scale in his hand
a. Seems to indicate men will eat their bread with measure because there will not be an abundance of food.
b. So, with famine comes shortage of food.
c. A quart of wheat referenced here means a person’s daily sustenance of food to survive.
d. A denarius which is money represented how much a laborer made in one days worth of work.
e. This most likely represents economic upheaval, inflation, recession, depression, panic – hunger and starvation.
i. So, no extra money for materialistic things, like cars, paying for recreation, like cable tv or phones, no money for pleasure, no money for luxury’s because the money a person is making is only enough to feed them.
f. The phrase “do not damage the oil and the wine” is a command by the living creatures to the horseman to not touch the oil and the wine – which some believe represents the Gospel – a protection on it and the church?
2. Famine in Scripture comes as a result of judgment for sin and Ezekiel calls it one of the 4 severe judgments of God.
d. The pale horse is released forth with the Word “Come” again!
i. He represented death and Hades followed Him for all who died disconnected from Jesus!
1. Will go to Hell! Hades will swallow them up!
ii. This rider had the authority and power to destroy ¼ of the earth’s population with the sword, famine, plague and by wild beasts!
1. This is another one of Ezekiel’s reference to God’s four judgments on rebellious nations and people.
a. See Ezekiel 14:21
2. This in my view has not happened yet, but it will in the end of time be a result of the Great Battle.
2. The fifth seal is opened up and it reveals all the souls who had been slain for the message of the Lamb to this world.
a. This in my view represents all who have died for Christ since His death and Resurrection to this specific point in time.
b. These souls cried out for justice – in their prayers to God.
c. They were slain for their testimony to Jesus and to the truth of His Word.
d. Each one of the slain was given a white robe and told to wait a little longer until the number of the martyrs was complete. Then they would be apart of the judgement of evil in this earth.
i. See Revelation 19:14: “The armies of Heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean.”
3. The sixth seal is opened by the slain Lamb.
a. This is the great and terrible day predicted by the Lord in Malachi, by John The Baptist, by Apostle Paul, by Peter, and by Jesus at his Olivet discourse on the Mount of Olives in Matthew 24.
i. The result is a massive earthquake largest ever on the earth.
ii. The sun turns dark.
iii. The moon turns blood red.
iv. The stars fall from the sky.
v. The sky rolls up and everything is removed form it’s place mountains and islands.
1. Many feel this signifies and points to a nuclear war!
b. The result of this seal being opened is a full assault on the earth and her wickedness and a awakening of the kings, presidents, princes, politicians, generals, rich, mighty, slaves, free men hiding out from the wrath of the Lamb and the one who sits on the throne.
i. There is no doubt who is hurling judgement on the wickedness of the earth.
ii. The great day of their wrath has come and it’s a day of reckoning for evil and wicked people.
iii. This points to the future! This day is coming!
Conclusion:
Have you changed your view of Jesus? Do you see Him as He is a mighty warrior?
Are you ready to come to Him – cry out to Him – stand up for Him and stand against evil? To fight side by side with Him and even put your own life on the line for the Gospel. For truth and for what is right?
This week marked the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
This man is one of the souls under the altar crying out for justice – he is one of the slain for the cause of Christ – he was slain because of the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus and the truth he spoke and stood for. The truth of what is right and wrong – the truth of what is good and evil! He was willing to put His life on the line for this message from God to the people of the United States!
His speech “I have a Dream” is so prophetic —- I listened to again this week. I encourage you to listen to it again on YouTube or read it below as I also did.
I Have a Dream by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.
Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.
But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free; one hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination; one hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity; one hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself in exile in his own land.
So we’ve come here today to dramatize a shameful condition. In a sense we’ve come to our nation’s capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was the promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note in so far as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked “insufficient funds.” But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so we have come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.
We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy; now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice; now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood; now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children. It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro’s legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content, will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.
But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the worn threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protests to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy, which has engulfed the Negro community, must not lead us to a distrust of all white people. For many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.
There are those who are asking the devotees of Civil Rights, “When will you be satisfied?” We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality; we can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities; we cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro’s basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one; we can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their selfhood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating “For Whites Only”; we cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro in Mississippi cannot vote, and the Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No! no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until “justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi. Go back to Alabama. Go back to South Carolina. Go back to Georgia. Go back to Louisiana. Go back to the slums and ghettos of our Northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.
I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaveowners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I HAVE A DREAM TODAY!
I have a dream that one day down in Alabama — with its vicious racists, with its Governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification — one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I HAVE A DREAM TODAY!
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low. The rough places will be plain and the crooked places will be made straight, “and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.”
This is our hope. This is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brother-hood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day. And this will be the day. This will be the day when all of God’s children will be able to sing with new meaning, “My country ’tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my father died, land of the pilgrim’s pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring.” And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.
So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire; let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York; let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania; let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado; let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California. But not only that. Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia; let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee; let freedom ring from every hill and mole hill of Mississippi. “From every mountainside, let freedom ring.”
And when this happens, and when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: “Free at last. Free at last. Thank God Almighty, we are free at last.”
Source: Martin Luther King, Jr., I Have A Dream: Writings and Speeches that Changed the World, ed. James Melvin Washington (San Francisco: Harper, 1986), 102-106.
It is clear in studying the life of this Christian Martyr that he heard Jesus say, “Come!” He heard Jesus say come like Peter did when Jesus walked on the water to them on a rough stormy sea see Matthew 14:22-32. When he heard Jesus to come out on the water with Him Peter got out of the boat and walked toward Jesus on the stormy water. He stepped out in faith – he confronted his fear and responded to Jesus when he said “Come!” Yes, Dr. Martin heard come and he responded to the Lord, he steeped out into the stormy sea, he did not allow his fear to hold him back and when he stepped onto the water he heard Jesus said this mission of racial equality is yours , I have Calle you to do this, be courageous fight this battle and be willing to die to so that freedom would come.” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Yes, Lord!”
As I listened to his prophetic speech again, “I have a dream” and as I talked with Christa this weekend on what she is doing at IHOP Atlanta. I had to get involved – I also had to let you see what she is coordinating in Atlanta – the “One Race Stone Mountain” event which is Saturday August 25, 2018. Their group has received bomb threats for this event through the Park District.. But, I see more Christians rising up to take the fight to the Devil – they are choosing to be warriors for Jesus like Dr. Martin Luther King and they are willing to align in Jesus army to take back what the Devil has stolen. They are willing to stand for righteousness and use with Sword of The Spirit to defeat evil. They willing to be a soldier for the Kingdom of Heaven and be a part of ushering in a great revival and harvest in this end time.
So, for you to understand what Christa is a part of I want you to watch this video explaining what is going to happen on Stone Mountain on August 25th and how this is a fulfillment of the prophetic word of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in his speech “I have a dream!” Listen to the story!
Play the video from IHOP prophetic word story!
The challenge to this Church – to you – is for you to hear is His from Jesus to “Come” - To understand Jesus is a warrior and He wants you to come along side of Him and enter the fight with Him for revival, renewal and restoration of this fallen world. He wants you to pray and intercede for One Race on Stone Mountain this August 25th – Why? This can become a moment of release for a great revival in this country! But you have to respond to Jesus – to his word “Come!” Jesus want you to be a part of this through prayer, intercession and moving the message of the Gospel forward in this area of Chicago.
So “Come” today and cry out to God for restoration, revival, and renewal to come on our nation – for restoration to be released – for spiritual freedom to be released – for intercession pray to be released for revival – pray for our city. “Come” and be the warrior God has called you to be!
Let’s respond to the prophetic word:
And when this happens, and when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: “Free at last. Free at last. Thank God Almighty, we are free at last.”
So, let’s align with Jesus and win this war for the souls of mankind in our nation. Because He is coming soon!
Altars are open to come to join in the fight and respond to His voice “Come!”
