Today was Week Two of a three week study of God’s prophetic program from eternity past to eternity future in light of current events. Everything we see in the news and other media sources shows a global culture that out of control. It is imperative that we stay the course in our faith and trust in Jesus Christ as our coming savior, and realize that he is in control!
In order to understand our Bible, we need to understand the principle of progressive revelation. Being omniscient, God the Father knows everything, forseeing every event in human history, and recording prophecy of many major events in this incredible book. We must remember – Foreknowledge is not causation. Just because God knows events are going to take place, it does not mean that he caused the events to occur. He does, however, use certain events to further his prophetic program established in his word.
As we saw in Genesis 3:14-15, he cursed the serpent, and prophesied that the seed of the woman – Jesus Christ, was gong to bruise the head of the seed of the serpent. Revelation 19:11-21 and Revelation 20:10 is the fulfillment of the very first prophecy in the Bible – total victory over the beast, the false prophet, and the dragon, Satan!
The three reasons God has given progressive revelation in our Bible:
- To further explain a previous revelation. Deuteronomy (2nd Law) was given to further explain the commands given in Exodus and Leviticus.
- To modify a previous revelation. The dispensation of promise / the patriarchs was modified, not replaced, by the dispensation of Law. The Abrahamic convenant was not replaced. It was enhanced.
- To replace or supercede a previous revelation. The Jews operate on “obey then believe.” They operate on seeking signs – seeing is believing. We, who are in this dispensation of grace, believe in the finished work of Christ, and then obey – believing is seeing.
Today, we looked at a prophecy concerning the resurrection from the testimony of Job. Since the Church Age was a mystery hidden from the beginning of time, Job’s prophecy must have been about another resurrection. Progressive revelation leads us to the conclusion that the resurrection Job spoke of occurred at the resurrection of Christ, when he spent three days and three nights in the heart of the earth, preaching to the spirits in prison (1 Peter 3:18-20, 2 Peter 2:4-10), coming out the grave leading all the Old Testament saints who had been waiting in Abraham’s bosom / paradise, out with him (Matthew 27:50-53; Epheisians 4:8-10). It was a physical resurrection for them all.
Job 19:25-27: For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.
Job declared that he would experience a physical resurrection, and that he would “in his flesh see God.” That happened at the resurrection of Christ. But, the redeemer will stand upon the earth in the latter day occurs at the 2nd advent. The rapture of the church age saints is a mystery (1 Corinthians 15:50-54, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18), which occurs in the air, seven years before the 2nd advent when the Deliverer, Messiah King Jesus comes to destroy the wicked, and save Israel from her sins (Romans 11:25-27).
We will finish our overview of God’s prophetic program this coming Sunday.