The book of Revelation speaks of the end times and the true people of God, a Remnant Church which Satan will make war against. Satan will come against the remnant Church with everything and anyone he can use. Revelation 12:17 �And the dragon [Satan] was wroth with the woman [Church], and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the Commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.� It grieves me to say that Satan has used even Christians to do this and has been so successful over the centuries that we find that what is popular is not always truth and what is truth is not always popular.
Revelation also speaks of the reward awaiting the remnant Church. Revelation 2:7 �He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the Churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.� This verse tells us clearly that if we are around at the end of time, then if we want to be saved, we must be part of this remnant Church. The questions then are, what is a remnant, how do you become part of it, how do we identify who is the remnant Church or which Churches are part of the remnant Church if it is not just one particular denomination?
The word 'church' does not appear in the Greek or Hebrew Scriptures,this is a man made word.
The Greek word 'ekklesia' means Assembly,or congregation.
The book of Revelation is usde by most men calling themselves senior pastor,pastor,teacher,leader and a host of other names,the book is used to tell of the pretribulation rapture,which we know does not appear in the Scriptures.
The 'church' of Philadelphia is used to uphold the rapture theory.
These men say that the word 'church / ekklesia does not appear after the third chapter of Revelation,so they say this proves the pretribulation rapture theory.
WHat does the Book of the Revelation of Yeshua actually say about this.
Rev 3:22 The one who has an ear, hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies.
Rev 7:9 After these things I saw, and behold, a great crowd which no one was able to number them, out of every nation, even tribes and peoples and tongues, standing in front of the throne, and before the Lamb, having been clothed with white robes, and in their hands palm branches.
Rev 7:10 And they cry with a great voice, saying, Salvation to our God sitting on the throne, and to the Lamb.
Who are these called out from EVERY nation (ethnos)
Tribe:
phul�: a clan or tribe
Original Word: φυλή, ῆς, ἡ
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Transliteration: phul�
Phonetic Spelling: (foo-lay')
Short Definition: a tribe, race
Definition: a tribe or race of people.
5443 phylḗ (from 5453 /ph�ō, "to generate") � a tribe (race, lineage); the descendants of a common ancestor, like the progeny springing from Jacob (Israel).
People:
laos: the people
Original Word: λαός, οῦ, ὁ
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: laos
Phonetic Spelling: (lah-os')
Short Definition: a people, the crowd
Definition: (a) a people, characteristically of God's chosen people, first the Jews, then the Christians, (b) sometimes, but rarely, the people, the crowd.
2992 la�s (the root of the English term, "laity") � a people, particularly used of "the people of the Lord" (= Heb ʽam).
2992 (laos) is the usual term for "the people of God" and thus typically used in the LXX (OT) and the Gospels, for believing Israel (Jews).
Example: Heb 4:9: "So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people (2992 /la�s) of God" (NASU).
Tongue:
gl�ssa: the tongue, a language
Original Word: γλῶσσα, ης, ἡ
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Transliteration: gl�ssa
Phonetic Spelling: (gloce-sah')
Short Definition: the tongue, a language, nation
Definition: the tongue, a language, a nation (usually distinguished by their speech).
1100 glṓssa � tongue, used of flowing speech; (figuratively) speaking, inspired by God, like the evidence of tongues-speaking supplied by the Lord in the book of Acts to demonstrate the arrival of the new age of the covenant (i.e. NT times).
[The normative experience of the 120 believers received "tongues (1100 /glṓssa) as of fire" (Ac 2:3) and miraculously spoke in other actual languages, i.e. that they could not speak before (Ac 2:4f). This sign was repeated in Ac 10:46, 19:6 � furnishing ample proof (three attestations) that the Lord had incorporated all believers into Christ's (mystical) body (1 Cor 12:13).]
Are these people not the 'ASSEMBLIES'
How then could people not see that the assemblies are around during the time of the TRIBULATION.
Believers are not exempt from the wrath od man,we are exempt from the wrath of GOD Almighty which happens during the bowl judgements.
These bowl judgements contain the anger of GOD,yet this does not occur until the 15th chapter in Revelation.
Rev 15:5 And after these things I saw; and behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in Heaven was opened!
Rev 15:6 And the seven angels having the seven plagues came forth out of the temple, having been clothed in clean and bright linen, and golden bands having been girded around the chest
Rev 15:7 And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls filled with the anger of God living to the ages of the ages.
Rev 15:8 And the temple was filled with the smoke of the glory of God, and with His power. And no one was able to enter into the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels should be completed.
Rev 16:1 And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels: Go and pour out the bowls of the anger of God onto the earth.
Rev 16:2 And the first went away and poured out his bowl onto the earth. And it came to be a bad and evil sore onto the men, the ones having the mark of the beast, and the ones worshiping its image.
Rev 16:3 And the second angel poured out his bowl onto the sea. And it became blood, as of a dead one, and every soul of life died in the sea.
Rev 16:4 And the third angel poured out his bowl onto the rivers, and onto the springs of the waters; and it became blood.
Rev 16:5 And I heard the angel of the waters saying, You are righteous, Lord, the One who is, and who was, and who will be, because You judged these things,
Rev 16:6 since they poured out the blood of the saints and of the prophets; and You gave blood to them to drink, for they were deserving.
Rev 16:7 And I heard another out of the altar saying, Yes, Lord God Almighty, Your judgments are true and righteous.
Rev 16:8 And the fourth angel poured out his bowl onto the sun. And it was given to him to burn men with fire.
Rev 16:9 And men were burned with great heat. And they blasphemed the name of God, the One having authority over these plagues and they did not repent to give Him glory.
Rev 16:10 And the fifth angel poured out his bowl onto the throne of the beast. And its kingdom became darkened; and they gnawed their tongues from the pain.
Rev 16:11 And they blasphemed the God of Heaven, from their pains and from their sores. And they did not repent of their works.
Rev 16:12 And the sixth angel poured out his bowl onto the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up so that the way of the kings from the rising of the sun might be prepared.
Rev 16:13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
Rev 16:14 For they are spirits of demons doing signs, which go forth to the kings of the earth, even of the whole habitable world to assemble them to the war of that day, the great day of God Almighty.
Rev 16:15 Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is the one watching and keeping his garments, that he does not walk naked, and they may see his shame.
Rev 16:16 And He assembled them in the place having been called in Hebrew, Armageddon.
Rev 16:17 And the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a great voice came from the throne from the temple of Heaven, saying, It has happened!
Rev 16:18 And voices and thunders and lightnings occurred. And a great earthquake occurred, such as did not occur since man came into being on the earth, such a huge earthquake, so great!
Rev 16:19 And the great city came to be into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. And Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give to her the cup of the wine of the anger of His wrath.
Rev 16:20 And every island fled away, and mountains were not found.
Rev 16:21 And a great hail, as the size of a talent, came down out of the heaven upon men. And men blasphemed God from the plague of the hail, because its plague is exceedingly great.
Rev 18:20 Rejoice over her, Heaven, and the holy apostles, and the prophets, because God judged your judgment on her.
The Bride of Yeshua suddenly appears in chap.19
Rev 19:7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
Rev 19:8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.
Rev 19:9 And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.
I believe people need to read the Book of the Revelation of Yeshua for themselves in small groups of people being led with the Holy SPirit,not being given to the teachings of men.
There is no remnant church in scripture. There is a remnant of Israel though, and this is what Revelation 12:6-17 deals with. The Greek word in Revelation 12: 17, remnant, is loipos. Strong's Exhaustive Concordance Number 3062, which is said to mean "remaining ones, which remain, remnant, residue, rest."
Romans 9: 27 says "Esaias also crieth concerning Israel, Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved:" Remnant is from 2640, kataleimma, a remainder, a few, remnant. Paul is quoting Isaiah 10: 22.
Then Romans 11: 5 says "Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace." Remnant is from 3005, leimma, a remainder, remnant. The remnant of Israel in Romans 11: 5 is the small number of physical Israelites who accepted Christ.
In the Old Testament, remnant is translated from more than one Hebrew word.
Isaiah 10: 20-22 says "And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.
21. The remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God.
22. For though thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, yet a remnant of them shall return: the consumption decreed shall overflow with righteousness."
In Isaiah 10: 20-22 remnant is from 7605, shear, or sheh-awr, "remainder, remnant, residue, rest."
In Jeremiah 31: 7, "For thus saith the LORD; Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations: publish ye, praise ye, and say, O LORD, save thy people, the remnant of Israel," remnant is from 7611, sheeriyth or sheh-ay-reeth, "a remainder,or residual, portion,that had escaped, be left, remain,remnant, residue, rest."
The remnant of Israel is never "all Israel," which dispensationalism says is one people of God, alongside or superior to the "church" another people of God, different from Israel.
Zephaniah 3: 12-13 says "I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the LORD.
13. The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: for they shall feed and lie down, and none shall make them afraid."
No 7611 is also used here. Zephaniah 3: 12-13 is a very interesting text because it describes some of the traits of the Remnant of Israel. Remember that Revelation 14: 4-5 says "These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.
5. And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God."
Guile is pretty much the same trait as speaking lies and having a deceitful tongue in Zephaniah 3: 13.
The false doctrine that God has two distinctly different peoples that he deals with in different ways, "all Israel," or all of physical Israel, the descendants of Abraham, and the "church" has been hammered into the thinking of evangelical Christians for over a hundred years by John Darby, C.I Scofield, Lewis Sperry Chafer, Charles Ryrie, Hal Lindsey and their many followers.
Classical dispensxationalism - John Darby, C.I. Scofield, Lewis S. Chafer - postulated that God has two separate peoples, the Jews and the "church," and also postulated than every time the world Israel appears in scripture it always means physical Israel, the descendants of Abraham. Therefore, dispensationalism became a self-fulfilling system. Since it postulated that Israel must always be physical Israel, therefore in Romans 11: 25-26, "all Israel shall be saved" must be a prophecy saying that in the future all of the descendants of Abraham will be saved. it cannot be a statement saying that since everyone who is saved is of Israel, no matter that their genetics, so all Israel shall be saved.
The Catholic and dispensationalist "church" is a meeting, an assembly, a congregation of those who claim to be of the Body of Christ, the saints, or the spiritual house of I Peter 2: 5, which is Israel reborn in Christ where as Galatians 3: 28-29 says there is neither Jew nor Greek. John Tyndale in his 1525 English Bible consistently translated ekklesia as congregation, and not as "church."
But thanks for the interesting post on Revelation 12. There is indeed a Remnant of Israel, and there will be a 144,000 who carry out the mission mentioned in Daniel 11: 33, those who understand will instruct many, a prophecy which had a fulfillment in the work of the Apostles in the First Century. The Remnant exists now, and the 144,000 will all be sealed before the angels restraining will stop holding back the "four winds of the earth" (Revelation 7: 1). Does releasing the "four winds of the earth" correspond with the seven year dispensationalist tribulation? The tribulation may very well not last seven years, and it may not be recognized as the tribulation during its early part, and the Christians in false doctrines may never recognize the 144,000 who will exist then.
Good post Shalom:applause:... the remanat church will be the people of God who have received Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, both Jews and Gentiles are the spiritual remanant church(assembley, congregation whatever you care to call them) there are still the peopel of God and of Jesus Christ who have believed.
Revelation 12:17 ...'And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which KEEP the commandments of God, and have the TESTIMONY of Jesus Christ.'
These are the genuine followers of Christ who have refused to bow to satan.
