REVELATION LESSON 16

    Revelation 6:7 "And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard
the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see."

    This time it is the voice of the beast, or living being, and not
Jesus, Himself, speaking.

    Revelation 6:8 "And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his
name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power
was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with
sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the
earth."

    This "...pale..." here, means a sickly color, a sickly green
color, as if sick to the death.  "...Death, and Hell..." are grouped,
meaning a termination of earthly dwelling.  Death is inevitable for
every one of us. Death of the body, that is.  Hell does await some,
but heaven awaits Christians. Hell is sometimes a word used for the
grave. In that particular instance, Hell would follow death, because
our bodies lie in the grave until resurrection day. Death and real
hell is reserved for the lost.

    I really believe this is a time in the end that is spoken of as a
time when  men's hearts will fail them for fear of things that are
coming upon the earth, Luke 21:26.  We have the capability to knock
the earth off of its axis with the nuclear bombs.  Fear is rampant,
not only here in the U.S., but around the world. All it would take is
for one crazy man to push the wrong button and total destruction would
occur.

    I really do not believe that this fourth seal is the total
annihilation. I believe that this has to do with wars, such as the one
in Israel now, famine and drought worldwide, and death from hundreds
of other things. An example, the plant in Russia, Chernobyl, which
exploded. "Chernobyl" means wormwood. The Bible says a third of water
will become wormwood, Rev.  8:11. I really believe this happens later
in the scenario.

    A few hundred years ago, nearly all of Europe was Christian, and
now less than one half of one percent is.  God will not allow such
mass disbelief.

    The things we are reading here in the four horsemen, I believe, is
before the rapture of the church.  Some is spiritual and some is an
actual physical problem.

    The first horse, white, is Jesus conquering death and hell.
    The second horse, red, speaks of the martyrs for Jesus of all
ages, and of wars.
    The third horse, black, speaks of famine, drouth, and horrible
inflation.
    The fourth horse, pale, brought death and hell.

    This death is from natural causes and famine, hunger, and with
beasts. These beasts, as we said, are not necessarily animals, but
there is a group of killer bees in South America now. Death is the end
of all. All of the first three horses end in this fourth horse. I
believe during this period, mentioned here, the Christians shall still
be here on the earth. The reason we are, is to see if we Christians
will stand during these terrible times, or if we will fall with the
unbelievers.

    Satan takes peace from the earth, but Christians have THE PEACE,
Jesus, in the midst of the problems. In Matthew 24:7, "For nation
shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there
shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places."
And in Matthew 24:13, "But he that shall endure unto the end, the same
shall be saved." As you can see, the Christians are still here when
this occurs.

    Revelation 6:9 "And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under
the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and
for the testimony which they held:"

    These souls that were under the altar were those who were slain
upholding the Word of God. Just as John was banished to the Isle of
Patmos for the Word of God. Both, lay their lives on the line for the
Word. Even today in countries like Russia and Czechoslovakia, it is
apt to cause you to lose your life if you are too dedicated to the
Word.  In our society, we are made fun of and called a "holy Joe" or
"goody two shoes" if we show our great devotion to God and His Word.

    So many churches have forgotten that persecution comes to the true
believer. Many teach that if you are not living prosperously, both
physically and spiritually, that you are not in right standing.  Quite
the opposite is true. We must be crucified with Christ. We must get
our flesh under subjection.  In Galatians 2:20 "I am crucified with
Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and
the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son
of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." The Christian has
tribulation which makes him strong. We are no better than our Master.
If He suffered, we will suffer. The difference in our suffering and
His, is that our's is generally not unto the death.

    Revelation 6:10 "And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How
long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood
on them that dwell on the earth?"

    John did not see these souls with his physical eye, but saw them
in the Spirit. These souls were waiting for the Judge of all the earth
to interrupt the evil of the devil and his persecution of the saints
who remained there. Their cry was the same, in a sense, as the
Christians who say, come quickly Lord Jesus.  This is not a reprimand
of the Lord, but just a pleading for it to all be over.  These souls
are not wanting vengeance, but are just crying out for the Lord to end
all of it and set up His kingdom. Who better can sympathize with our
generation of martyrs than the martyrs of the past. Some of the
martyrs of today are not physically killed, but are persecuted by
their peers.

    Revelation 6:11 "And white robes were given unto every one of
them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a
little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren,
that should be killed as they [were], should be fulfilled."

    White robes are the uniform issued to all believers in the Lord
Jesus. They have been washed in the blood of the Lamb.

    From this one scripture, Rev.  6:11, you can see that the spirits
of believers rest in heaven, until the rapture when their bodies
reunite with their spirit in heaven. We cannot rush God, and neither
can these who are waiting in heaven.

    When the fullness of time comes, the time that God has chosen,
Jesus will appear in the clouds and blow the silver trumpet of
redemption. He will gather all believers with Him in heaven. He will
not come one hour early or late. He will be on time.  It will be at
the specific time He chose from the foundation of the earth.

    These martyrs are our fellow servants.  They arrived in heaven the
same way we will, through their faith unto the death.
"...fellowservants..." here probably means the Christians of our
modern day who are persecuted, but will not be martyred. The
"...brethren..." probably means those of our time who will be
martyred.

    The white in these "...white robes..." shows that these have been
victorious over the problems in this earth.

    Additional scriptures: Leviticus 26:22, Hebrews 11:40, Job 39,
Malachi 3:17-18,and Hebrews 11:13,40.

    Memorize Luke 21:26 and Matthew 24:13.


















                      REVELATION QUESTIONS 16


1.  Who spoke when the fourth seal was opened?
2.  What was the fourth horse's color?
3.  What was the name of the one that sat on him?
4.  What was he given power to do?
5.  What does this "...pale..." mean?
6.  "...Death and Hell..." grouped means what?
7.  What is the grave sometimes translated?
8.  Men's hearts will fail them because of what?
9.  If one crazy person pushed the wrong button, what could happen?
10. What does Chernobyl mean?
11. Who is the rider of the first horse?
12. What color is the second horse?
13. What does it mean?
14. What does the black horse symbolize?
15. Where does the author believe the Christians will be during the
    four horsemen?
16. In Matthew 24, name four terrible things that occur?
17. Who shall be saved in Matthew 24:13?
18. When the fifth seal was opened, who did John see under the altar?
19. Why were they slain?
20. What are two names Christians are laughingly called, by the world?
21. What comes to the true believer?
22. Some of the modernists would have us believe what?
23. In Gal. 2:20, we are told that we must be ------with Christ.
24. What is the difference in our suffering and Jesus' suffering?
25. What were these souls under the altar crying out?
26. What is the cry of the true believers?
27. What type of clothing did the martyrs have?
28. What was the reason Jesus had not already come?
29. What sign in the clouds will occur when the end comes?
30. When did God set the time for the end?
31. Write St. Luke 21:26.
32. Write St. Matthew 24:13.
33. What is your own personal opinion of the four horsemen of the
    Apocalypse.