The Fulfillment of the Eternal Purpose

"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city, and on each side of the river stood the tree of life." (Revelation 22:1-2).

Now let us pay attention to what the Lord is going to show us here. Where is the tree of life? In the paradise or in the New Jerusalem. Now we were told that on each side of the river stood the tree of life. So wherever the river of life is, we also find the tree of life there. When you discover the river of life, you will also discover the tree of life.

What is the tree of life? If we want to understand the meaning of the tree of life, we must let the word of God explain it to us. In Genesis it spoke about the tree of life. If we come to Revelation, the Holy Spirit shows us what the tree of life is. The interpretation of the tree of life is given in Revelation. We have to read carefully here if we want to know the tree of life; there is a connection here. The connection is the river of life. The river of life flows from the throne of God and of the Lamb.

The universe has a dual centre

If you want to know the river of life, you have to trace it back to the throne of God and of the Lamb. In other words, where you find the river of life, you also find the tree of life. The river of life can be traced back to the throne of God and of the Lamb. That means that the tree of life also has to be traced back to its source which is also the throne of God and of the Lamb. Here, the Lamb is the secret. If you want to know anything about the tree of life, you have to trace it back to the Lamb. That is a very important thought that we derive from these verses.

Let us go back to Revelation 7:17. "for the Lamb at the centre of the throne will be their shepherd." The Lamb is at the center of the throne. This is a very important verse. The throne is the center of the power of the universe, and the Lamb is at the center of the throne. In other words the Lamb is the center of power. If you want to explain the universe, it is very clear; the universe is centered in Christ. And here it is so clear: we can know the eternal will of God. If you want to quote one verse from the Bible to tell people what God's desire is, this one shows that the whole universe is centered in Christ.

But more than that, the Bible speaks of the Lamb. Why the Lamb? The Lamb refers to Christ; but more than that, to Christ crucified. Not only Christ. Christ died for us on the cross.

The Bible uses a very simple word to tell us the two great subjects in the whole universe. The whole universe has only one center: Christ. It's very clear. Unfortunately, after man's fall, God had to restore us. God wanted to bring salvation to mankind. This is the story of the cross. The cross became the center of the universe. That's why Paul said: "I don't want to know anything, but Christ crucified."

Not only Christ glorified, but Christ crucified. Christ glorified is a very well-known topic for all the rabbis and for all the Jews. However, Paul said: "I only have one topic, Christ crucified." When we speak about Christ crucified, there are two thoughts behind it: Christ and the cross.

After man's fall, we discover that the cross is the only solution. We can never take away the cross; we cannot have Christ without the cross, nor the cross without Christ. It is impossible. This is the gospel; this is God's purpose. Now we discover that in this universe we have a dual center, a center that has two thoughts behind it: Christ and the cross. How can we combine these two thoughts together in one word? When we read Revelation, it is the Lamb. The Lamb is the center of the throne, and the throne is the center of the universe. It is very clear.

No wonder Paul says: "I do not know anything except Christ, and Christ crucified." We cannot just shout a slogan; we have to know where the Bible tells us that this is so. I wish everyone of you could memorize Revelation 7:17. It is very interesting that the Lamb will do something: "The Lamb will lead them to the streams of living waters." These streams of living waters are nothing but the river of life.

Let us remember that when the Lamb is on the throne, there is a river that flows out from the throne. And if we want to know any thing about life, it is necessary to trace the source back to the throne. The river of life, or the tree of life; any connected thing with life, you only have one interpretation; there is only one source, when you go all the way back to the Lamb. And the Lamb that is on the center of the throne, will lead us to the river of life, he will point us to the river of life. More than that, if you find the river of life, you will also discover the tree of life. The river of life has to be traced back to the throne where the Lamb is, and the Lamb always leads us to the river of life. It is a mutual interpretation. The Lamb interprets the tree of life, and the tree of life interprets the Lamb. This is a very, very important concept.

John's wonderful experience

Now, why in Revelation do we have the Lamb everywhere? It is mentioned twenty-eight times in Revelation. This has something to do with John's experience.

The apostle John had a wonderful experience when he was almost a hundred years old, inspired by the Holy Spirit. This old man began to remember. John's memory took him back, to the early days. As an old man, he had probably forgotten many things. However, he would never forget those things that he had witnessed in the early days. That's why he began to write the first chapters of his gospel.

And when he wrote that gospel, he remembered; his sweet memories of the past, of his early days. One thing he would never forget. He would never forget that experience: the memory of his first encounter with his master.

In our lives, if there is somebody that we love so deeply, if we walk with him or with her for twenty, thirty or fifty years, when we are very old and we look back, we will always remember our first encounter with that person who we loved so much. This memory will never fade.

So in the gospel according to John, he speaks of many places that are not mentioned in the other gospels. For example, John mentions the Bethany that was beyond the river Jordan. That is not the Bethany near Jerusalem. No. It is the Bethany which took four days travel to reach it. It is a place that is in the southern part of Syria today, and it is exactly the place where the Lord fed Elijah with the crows. Now, in the other three gospels, there is no mention of the Bethany that was beyond the river Jordan. However, this place was important, and John always remembered that it was there where he met his master for the first time. That encounter changed his whole life. That place determined the future of his life. Other people could forget, other disciples could forget, but John never forgot.

Those sweet memories came back to John, and he remembered that he was John the Baptist's disciple. It was not easy to be his disciple. You had to be very strong, because John's disciples always helped to baptize people, and from that we can deduce that the apostle John was healthy and very strong. He was with Andrew, another who would later be a disciple of Christ. However, in the beginning, both John and Andrew were disciples of John the Baptist.

And when he was with John the Baptist, he heard the voice: "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."

In the Old Testament times, all the sins were covered under the blood of the lamb or of the animals that were sacrificed. At that time, all the sins were covered by the blood. The sins were still there. The only thing was that you didn't see them. They were under the covering of the blood.

Now, behold the Lamb of God.

When Abraham offered his son Isaac, you remember that Isaac asked a question: "Where is the lamb?" In the whole period of the Old Testament, not only Isaac asked this question. Many people asked: "Where is the Lamb?" They had the sacrifices of the animals, they had the blood; their sins were covered under the blood. However, they needed the Lamb of God that would truly remove all the sins of man forever. Not just to cover them, but to remove them completely. In times of the Old Testament, the people of Israel suffered greatly, always asking: "Where is the Lamb?" From Isaac onwards, the people asked: "Where is the Lamb of God?"

However, one day, Thank God, there was a wonderful voice, and the answer to this age long question was heard. John the Baptist, when he saw our Lord Jesus, he said: "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." John the Baptist's disciples wanted to know the will of God; they wanted to know the answer to "Where is the Lamb?" They never thought that they would have an answer. Year after year, there was no answer. In the Old Testament they asked questions, but never obtained the answers. However, now we have the answer: "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."

You can imagine the impact that that had in John and Andrew's hearts. It was not only one phrase. There was another day when these two disciples were together with their old master John the Baptist, and there was another cry "Behold the Lamb of God." Now, the master had to go. Immediately, John and Andrew followed the Lamb. From that time on, John became a follower of the Lamb. This explains Revelation 14. What are the overcomers? They are the followers of the Lamb wherever he goes.

This is the Apostle John's story. What is an overcomer? An overcomer is nothing but a disciple of the Lamb. That's why we are not surprised, in Revelation, to find: the Lamb... the Lamb... the Lamb. It had been like an earthquake in his life. He couldn't forget. His eyes were opened up when his old master said: "Behold the Lamb of God", and John the Baptist lost all his best disciples.

How do you know that your work is successful? The more spiritual your work is, when you are most successful in your ministry is when your best disciples follow the Lamb. Not you, but the Lamb. This is the most successful ministry that the Lord has given to us. Oh, how often we want to have a crowd around us. Never do that. That doesn't mean success. That means a great failure. In the beginning of John's gospel, there was a successful servant of God: the more he worked, the more he lost his disciples. Remember one comment; somebody said: "Look, they all follow him." And John the Baptist responded: "May he increase and I decrease."

Why are we here? Why do we serve the saints of the people of God today? Do we look for success? Yes. However, success doesn't mean having a crowd around us. No, success means you become lonely. If you were surrounded by a crowd, if you really point people to the Lamb, if you truly say: "Behold the Lamb", the best of your disciples will follow the Lamb. However, you will be so happy, filled with joy. "May He increase, may I decrease." He is the Groom. And this Groom is looking for His bride. Thank God! Andrew and John are part of the bride so when John the Baptist heard the Groom's voice, he was so happy. That is the beginning of the story of the Lamb.

Now, who follows the Lamb? Of course, we know that John followed the Lamb, and also Andrew. Very interestingly: from the moment that he began to follow the Lamb, when he began to write his gospel, we discover that it is very different from the other three gospels. Why? Because in the other gospels you only find one Passover. What does that mean? Our Lord began to preach when he was thirty years old. If there was only one Passover it means that our Lord only reached thirty one years of age. However, that is not true. How do we know? Because John told us. In his gospel, John speaks of three Passovers. So brothers, now we are sure that our Lord Jesus' life on earth lasted about thirty three years.

Why three Passovers? Remember, when John followed the Lamb, his life was determined, and marked by Him. When he came to the first Passover, what does that mean? That he had followed the Lamb for one year. When we come to another Passover; another year. The Passover is the story of the Lamb. We discover how John wrote his gospel. We have three Passovers. It is very interesting.

Peter and John probably went to the temple on the day of the Passover, at noon. All the people of Israel went to the temple, and there were about two hundred and fifty thousand lambs that were slain. At night, all had to eat the Passover meal. Between midday until three o'clock, all the priests would slay those lambs.

On the first Passover, John and Peter probably went to the temple representing the group, and they probably brought the lamb back to the place where they were staying. That is the first Passover. John knew very well that he followed the true Lamb of God. All those other lambs were nothing but a shadow. When he looked at the lamb, he knew that it was nothing but a shadow.

So, we have the first year, then the second year and then, the third year. According to John, Jesus died on the cross on the very day of the Passover. Around twelve o'clock in the afternoon our Lord cried out: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" At three o'clock, he died; exactly in the period between twelve o'clock and three o'clock in the afternoon when the priests were busy slaying all those lambs. They were nothing but shadows. John was at the feet of the cross. Dear brothers and sisters, he saw with his own eyes, the Lamb of God on the cross. Remember, here we find the Lamb. The other two Passovers were only shadows. However, on this Passover, he saw the Lamb on the cross.

The cross of Christ is the tree of life

Remember, it is the Lamb that refers to the tree of life, it is the Lamb that leads us to the river of life, and wherever you have the river of life we will find the tree of life. At the same time, the tree of life can always be traced back to the Lamb. What does that mean? Only the apostle John tells us: in the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden. In the midst of the garden, the Lamb was on the cross. According to 1st Peter, he himself bore our sins in his body on the tree. Now, in the midst of the garden there is a tree. The Lamb is on the tree. The Lamb always points the tree out to us, and the tree always traces back to the Lamb.

Brothers and sisters, what is the tree of life? The cross of Christ. It is very clear, do you see? Because Jesus Christ died on the cross for us. Now, according to John's interpretation - which clarifies it for us- when Jesus died on the cross for us, the cross was shame and death for our Lord but for us it is life. That is the tree of life for everyone of us.

Now you remember Psalm 22:1: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" This is the prophecy of our Lord on the cross. And when we read verse 6, "but I am worm and not a man", what does that mean? Why is he a worm and not a man? Very interesting.

The word "worm" in Hebrew is the same word given in the book of Exodus, scarlet. In the tabernacle there were different colors, and among them, there was scarlet. It is the same word. And what does that mean? That worm was not a normal worm, it was a special worm.

In the olden times, if a king wanted to have a royal robe made with a scarlet color, where did they get the dye from? At that time they didn't have a chemical process. So, to make a scarlet robe, they had to find many worms from that species. The stomach of this worm was full of scarlet liquids. So, when you squeeze that worm, you obtain the dye. Do you see, brothers and sisters? That's where they obtained the scarlet color from.

This worm type always lived on trees, especially those with large trunks. And whenever a storm would come, the mother would try to protect its eggs or its young worms, by putting them under her stomach, and would cover them with her own body, and she would be pressed against the trunk. When the tempest got worse, she would protect the young generation by pushing herself even more forcefully against the trunk, until the thorns of the tree would penetrate her body. When the storm passed, the next day, the mother would die, and you would discover the little worms moving here and there. And if sunlight shone on that tree, if you looked from a distance, it would be as though blood had been spilt on that trunk. The mother gave her life so that her young could live. Now the youngest generation would have a dawn, because the mother gave her life for them. Brothers and sisters, for those young worms, this tree is the tree of life. So no wonder that Psalm 22 speaks to us of the wonderful story of the cross.

Why have we gone to such extremes to explain all this? When we receive Jesus Christ, Thank God, he is our Savior. We were sinful. Now, our sins have not only been covered, he has taken them away, because he died for us on the cross. Actually, he died for us on the tree, and that tree, is the tree of life for you and for me. When we receive Jesus as our Savior, it means that we take the tree of life, and not only that: the life is in Christ. Now we have Christ's life in us. No wonder Paul said: "No longer I, but Christ who lives in me."

The tragedy of humanity

Thank God, this life is the obedient life; this is the Son of God's life. It is the only life in this universe. When we live according to that life, we grow, and then we are being transformed into the image of Christ. When we meet together, when more people are saved and they are multiplied and they fill the earth and they subdue it, when we are under the authority of God, then we become the delegate authority. We bring heaven everywhere, we bring the authority of God to all parts; we bring the Kingdom of heaven everywhere. That is the eternal will of God.

What do you call these people who have Christ's life in them? In the Bible, they are called the Church. Through the Church, the manifold wisdom of God can be made known to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places. No wonder, in Matthew chapter 25, there were two groups of people: He will separate the sheep from the goats. Now, the Lord says to His sheep: "Come, you who are blessed by my Father, take your inheritance, the Kingdom prepared for you since the foundation of the world." Of course, our Lord meant that now this people would enter into the Millennial Kingdom; when our Lord was on the earth He said. "The Kingdom of heaven is at hand." One day our Lord will return and He will usher in this Kingdom, and so He speaks of the Kingdom that was prepared for us since the foundation of the world. That is part of the Millennial Kingdom.

When we come to the Millennial Kingdom, it means that something goes back to the Garden of Eden. If man had not fallen, and had really filled the earth and subdued it, that Kingdom would have been fulfilled in that time. Oh how sad it was that Adam fell. And now we have the tragedy of mankind's fall. Somehow the will of God was frustrated.

Everything changed. The climate changed. That's why in the cool of the day God walked in the garden; the wind began to blow. Why? Because sin had entered into the Garden of Eden. It changed the climate, and the earth was cursed; it ought to have been the Garden of Eden, but it became a desert. That's why, because of that curse, we find the thorns and the thistles, and that's why, out of the four rivers, two of them were probably buried in the sand.

Everything changed. In chapter 3 of Genesis mankind's tragedy begins. However, mankind's fall was not instantaneous. It began with sin, but from chapter 3 to chapter 10, we discover that there are three movements of this fall. Chapter 3, man fell into sin. Chapter 6, man fell into the flesh. And when we come to chapter 10, man fell into the world.

Now it is not only an individual rebellion. In chapter 11, we have a collective rebellion. When that happens, this apple has been rotten to the uttermost. When we come to chapter 10, we count the number of the nations, and we discover that there are seventy nations. Now, in God's mind, He used those seventy nations to represent this world. Now we understand why our Lord sent twelve disciples from the sea of Galilee; to go to the lost sheep of Israel, because the house of Israel has twelve tribes. However, when he went to Bethany, beyond the Jordan, he sent seventy disciples. That reminds us of Genesis 10; the seventy nations that represent the world.

Among those seventy nations, there were some that were located on the bank of the river Tigris and of the Euphrates. Nimrod was the founder of the nation of Babylon, and also of the Kingdom of Assyria. One kingdom along the Tigris river, and another along the Euphrates. The founder of Babylon became the leader of the whole world. Finally they decided to build the tower of Babel, and that was a collective rebellion against God. The seventy nations became one empire, under one ruler who was an anti-God. This is what will happen before the return of our Lord. When we come to Revelation, there will be many nations that will become one under the rulership of the anti-Christ.

So, we discover an antichrist in Revelation, and an anti-God in Genesis. Again we have the mirror symmetry. Nimrod was a great warrior, he was able to call all the nations to be against God, and the god of this world was behind him, because the whole world is under the wicked one. It shouldn't surprise us then that Satan was able to offer Jesus Christ the glory of all the kingdoms; he presented the glory of seventy kingdoms here. That is his realm. But then they united against God. That is what happened.

In order to know the end, you must know the beginning

Brothers and sisters, if you want to understand Revelation, you must understand Genesis. Now we discover that those two rivers in the beginning were blessing of life for the whole world, but after man's fall, they become instruments in the hands of the enemy of God. From that moment on, they became two factors of persecution in the hands of Satan.

Now we understand why in chapter 9 and 16 of Revelation, the Bible speaks about the Euphrates. Do you remember the story? Especially after chapter 9 of Revelation, during the sixth trumpet there will be four fallen angels and they will be released. When they are released, they will carry out a plan. According to this plan, in a certain year, a certain month, on a certain day, at a certain hour, one third of the population will be wiped out. There are three weapons; three plagues which refer to the weapons. If there are three weapons that can kill more than one third of the world, they must be weapons of mass destruction. So, along the Euphrates, be it in Iraq or Syria or Turkey, one day, before the Lord returns, we will discover weapons of mass destruction there, and one third of mankind will be wiped out.

The September 11th attacks in New York were only the beginning of what will happen. In New York only three thousand people died. Now people are aware of the danger of the weapons of mass destruction. This is only the birth of a new terrorism. This new terrorism will reach its peak when the angel blows the sixth trumpet.

In the beginning, in the Garden of Eden, the river Euphrates was supposed to be a blessing of life for the world; now it has become a curse. Today we live under the shadow of terrorism. I think that September 11th was awake up call for the people of God. We know that the Lord will return very soon. So, we are not surprised that at the end of Revelation we find Babylon. Thank God, "Babylon is fallen, Babylon is fallen!" That means that before the return of the Lord there will be a Babylon at the end time. In Genesis there was a Babylon in history, and that power will be raised up again; because if it is not raised up, how can the bible say: "Babylon is fallen?" No wonder that today, when we read the newspaper, Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Iran are always in the main headlines. This is very important, do you see the mirror symmetry here? Sometimes you are so busy with the antichrist that you forget about Nimrod.

Where do the religions of this world come from? Revelation tells us that Babylon is the mother of all those religions. If we want to trace the origin of all the religions, we must look back to Babylon. All the religions, all the idols, start from Babylon. This is very important to know the development of religions. When the Babylonian religion reached India, it became Buddhism; when it entered Egypt, it became another religion. However we can trace it back to Babylon.

Babylon was very famous for its astronomy. Unfortunately, some of this knowledge fell into the hands of the priests from Babylon. Then they distorted it, and it became astrology. Even some things that today can only be calculated with a computer. Many people were obsessed, and That's why they worshiped idols because of this. So no wonder that Revelation 17 tells us the religious Babylon. In other words, before the return of the Lord, all those religions will return to their mother; they will become one religion. That happens in Revelation. Let us not forget: one religion in Genesis 11, one religion in Revelation 17.

Do you see the one to one correspondence; the mirror symmetry here? If you want to know the end, you have to know the beginning. People are busy with Revelation and they forget Genesis. This is impossible. But everything has changed now; before we had the Garden of Eden, now it became desert, with thorns and thistles. Two of the rivers are probably now buried under the sand, and the two rivers that still exist have become instruments of persecution in the enemy's hands.

The whole history of the Old Testament has witnessed this fact. The ten tribes from the northern kingdom of Israel were taken captive to Assyria - the river Tigris. And, a hundred years later, the two tribes from the southern kingdom were taken captive to Babylon - the river Euphrates. Now we can see all the nations being organized under the system of human leadership of Nimrod. Not only building the Kingdom of Babylon, but also the tower of Babel; they want to build their own name, they rebelled against God. Now you understand the meaning of the world, and why the Bible says: "love not the world"; anyone who loves the world, or becomes a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. It is impossible.

If you know what happened; the source of the world, then we know how the cross has already solved this problem of the world. So no wonder Paul said, "As far as I am concerned, the world is on the cross, and as far as the world is concerned, I am on the cross. In other words, as far as the world is concerned, I am finished. As far as I am concerned, the world is finished. So, there is no way for us to mix with the world. Now this apple is really rotten to the uttermost. Thank God. God promised has that one day the woman's seed will deal with the enemy and will bring back the kingdom of God. Before that, the seed of the woman would be the Savior of mankind, who would die for us on the cross, so that we could have the tree of life. This is God's promise; now the hope is with the woman's seed, mankind's savior.

Abraham's calling

Now, how will the woman's seed be fulfilled? God again began to work in the enemy's territory: In Ur of the Chaldees. Ur was like the metropolitan city of London today. In Abraham's time it was almost the capital of Babylonia; in the heart of the enemy's territory. Abraham grew up in that atmosphere of idol worshipping. According to archaeology, there were two thousand types of idols there. It takes a computer to classify them. It is a hopeless case. Because Abraham had been educated and brainwashed in that type of situation; when Abraham thought about God, it was always in the plural. So you can understand how Abraham was brought up in that environment. It is impossible for Abraham to discover that there was only one God. He was brain washed. He only knew the idols in his surroundings. But in order to bring the Savior of mankind to the world, God chose Abraham.

Before Abraham saw God, he had a religion. It was a false religion. It was a comfort to him. That's why religion was so popular. So in the environment of darkness, which had been created by Satan, Abraham needed some light. He worshipped idols; the idols could comfort him, so that in that dark world, those idols were almost like candlelight. He could not live without candlelight. Thank God, one day the God of glory whose light is like the light from the sun appeared to Abraham. Under the sunlight, he was still holding that candlelight. He never knew how to define darkness. In his dictionary there was a word called darkness, but Abraham didn't know how to define it. When he put the candlelight under the light from the sun, it was the first time he realized that this was darkness. Thank God he no longer needed to keep hold of the candlelight once he was bathed under the wonderful light from the sun.

That's why God called Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees and he became the first Hebrew. What is the meaning of Hebrew? If you read the whole Bible, that word first appears in Genesis chapter 14. Hebrew means "the one who crossed the river". Abraham was the first one who crossed the river Euphrates. He left the Kingdom of idols and followed the true and living God, even though he didn't know where he was going. Now, that is a life of faith.

So now you know the story of Abraham; God called Abraham out of Ur, and to say farewell to the Kingdom of the darkness. Thank God, he reached the other side of the river Euphrates, and here we have heaven on earth, here we have Canaan, the Promised Land. This was how the life of faith began in Abraham. But why? The purpose was that one day the woman's seed would be born. So from the person of Abraham God wanted a family - the family of Jacob-, and then God wanted a nation - the nation of Israel-. Why did God do this work? One day the woman's seed would be born in Bethlehem.

Now you understand that when the woman's seed was born he would crush the head of the serpent on the cross and would bring the Kingdom of heaven to this earth. Then, one day, the enemy would be thrown down into the lake of fire, and through Christ, the eternal will of God will be done on this earth, but not only Christ, but also His followers; also the church.

When the enemy of God knew about this plan, he tried everyway to destroy Abraham. However, it was going to be very difficult: Abraham had a first-hand vision; he had been face to face with the living God. Once he had crossed the river, he would never turn back. Now, all the Kingdom of darkness became nervous, because if they allowed the story to continue, when the woman's seed was born it would be the end of the enemy. They wouldn't allow that to happen. So, before Abraham engendered Isaac, before the house of Jacob was formed, the enemy had to do something to frustrate the will of God.

This is very important. Before Jacob's house had been formed, Satan had to do something. On the one hand, Satan and his followers regretted the loss of one of their subjects. Abraham and his people used to be worshippers of idols. The enemy lost his faithful subjects. But what's more, they knew that one day, through Abraham, that seed would bring the enemy to nothing. So the enemy tried everything to prevent that from happening. He knew that it was almost impossible to defeat Abraham.

However, Abraham was weak in the beginning, and he gave some ground for the enemy to work on. You remember the story. When Abraham left for Canaan, God said: Leave your family, your tribe, and go. Abraham obeyed God. However, he was only half obedient. Abraham took his father and also his nephew Lot with him. Why? Because he didn't have any sons. He was almost seventy five years old, he almost an old man. On his way to Canaan, of course, he had faith in God; however, he was very weak, he was afraid. He didn't know anything about Canaan; he didn't know anything about tomorrow. What could happen? On route to Canaan, he could have a stroke. Now, if he had Lot with him, he knew that at least Lot could take care of him. So out of his weakness, he took Lot with him.
When my daughter was a baby, she didn't have a sense of security, and because of that, she always grabbed a diaper in her hand. During the night, if she woke up, she would be afraid and would look for a diaper. When she found it, she fell asleep again. Do you understand? When Abraham entered Canaan, he brought his diaper with him. Lot was his diaper. A man who takes his diaper, means that he has not grown up, and That's why God had to wean him. Only when he was weaned was he able to grow. That's why, Lot had to go.

Remember that Abraham had the vision. Lot didn't have vision. Lot was a very good follower, but he had never seen the living God. Because of that half obedience Lot became the ground that the enemy could work upon. So, brothers, be careful. If you have a vision of the Lord, although Lot is following you, somehow he must also have a first-hand vision of God. How do we know that those who follow don't have vision? Finally Lot chose Sodom and Gomorrah; he moved his tent ever closer to these cities. You know the story. When he came to Sodom and Gomorrah, there was a way in which the enemy could catch Lot.

Babylon versus Jerusalem

Let us look at the story in chapter 14 of Genesis. There was a battle between four kings and five kings. Who were the five kings? They were from the area of the Dead Sea, and two were from the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. The five kings were defeated, and many people who lived in Sodom and Gomorrah were taken captive. Lot was one of them. It was almost impossible for the enemy to get Abraham back to this side of the river, but the enemy of God put a trap here. He knew that a man who has vision is almost impossible to move. So he dealt with his follower; and Lot was a follower, without vision.

The enemy of God worked in Lot and finally he moved to Sodom and Gomorrah. Then the war broke out, and Lot was taken captive. If it had not been for Abraham, Lot would have returned to the other side of the river. So now you understand the enemy's trick; although those people were from the other side of the river now they brought them back to this side, and if they had all been brought back to this side, there wouldn't have been any possibility for Jesus Christ to be born in Bethlehem. So do you serious how serious half obedience is?

Now, allow me to explain about those four kings. These four kings are from the other side of the river, one of them is the king from Babylon, and another is the king from Elam; they were an army from the other side of the river. This is the first battle in the Bible. It was not a local war, a tribal war, but a big war between regions. In today terms, it was an international war. This is the first battle of this kind in the whole Bible.

When we come to Revelation, we have the war of Armageddon; the last international war. Here we see the mirror symmetry. So, we must understand this war very clearly.

So, why did these people who came from the other side of the river have to fight against the five kings? Because there was treasure in that sea. Every time there was an earthquake, some material would float on the surface of that sea, and that material was very precious. The Egyptians used that material to make the mummies in Egypt. There was treasure in the Dead Sea. If we look at the political and economic situation in that time, why was there this war between the four and five kings? For economic reasons; the same thing is applied today. There must be some economic reason or political reason. So that war was probably because of the treasure.

But more than that, you have to understand your enemy. You need to know how strong your enemy from the other side of the river is. Don't forget, Babylon was always the leading nation of the world. It was a super power at that time. But more than that, according to the Bible, when they traveled all the way from the other side of the river to the Dead Sea, they conquered every place on the way. There was no way, but they found a way. And that way is very important. It is the king's highway mentioned in the Bible, and that way was created by war, by conquering the enemy.

Who were the enemy? If you study chapter 14, those enemies were giants. How do we know? In the Bible, king Og had a very, very large bed. That shows us that the people there were very large. According to archaeological discoveries, they found their tombs and they were very big. Because of that war, they destroyed all the giants. In other words, the giants were no match for those people; it was the most fearful army in the world at that time. Even if you were a giant you would be defeated.

This was the enemy's trap. Abraham loved Lot, and when he heard that Lot had been captured, he didn't even think. That love was so deep. He never thought it through, he didn't make any calculations. He didn't even know who the enemy was. Then with only three hundred and eighteen people from his family, he chased the enemy all the way to Dan. A miracle happened and finally he brought Lot back.

Now, brothers, think about this. Abraham was hitting a rock with an egg. What happened? The rock broke. Of course the egg should have broken. But he never thought about what he was doing. However, later, he was afraid. How do we know? In chapter 15, God says to Abraham: "Don't be afraid." Now he was afraid, when he sat down to think about what he had done: three hundred and eighteen people are unable to defeat the super power of those times. What could have happened? We know that not only Lot would have been taken back to Babylon, but also Abraham. It was not Lot who the enemy wanted, but Abraham. When that happened, there wouldn't have been a family of Jacob, nor a nation of Israel, nor the woman's seed, nor mankind's Savior, nor the cross, nor the Lamb. Nothing.

This was the enemy's trick. Thank God, on the way back to Jerusalem, to Abraham's surprise, Melchizedek, the king of Salem, came to meet him. He not only greeted him. He tried to explain to Abraham what had happened. So, he told him: "Blessed be the most high God who put the enemy into your hands." Now we understand why three hundred and eighteen were able to conquer that super power. Abraham remembered. Outwardly speaking, it was a war for the treasures of the Dead Sea. Outwardly speaking, it was a war between four kings and five kings. But if you have spiritual eyes, it was the battle between Babylon and Jerusalem. We believe that this was the first time Abraham's eyes were opened. Even though he lived in tents, now he began to wait for the city that has a foundation and which was being built by God Himself.

That was the first encounter between Babylon and Jerusalem. Revelation has the last encounter between Babylon and Jerusalem, in chapters 17 and 18. "Babylon is fallen, Babylon is fallen." Chapter 17: the religious Babylon. Chapter 18: the political and economic Babylon. Finally, the antichrist, just like Nimrod, wants to unify the whole earth; to have a unified economic world, with a currency of 666. Without that, you cannot survive. And one religious world. One religion. They all go back to Babylon. And one political world.

This is once again the repetition of chapter 11 of Genesis. In Genesis we have the beginning of the story, and in Revelation we have its end. But, thank God, in chapter 17 and 18 we find the religious, political and economic Babylon that represents the world which is under the evil one. It represents the glory of the Kingdom of the world, which are united together. Satan offered it to our Lord but He rejected it.

Thank the Lord, "Babylon is fallen, Babylon is fallen." The Kingdom of the world will become the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ through the church. The manifold wisdom of God will be made known to the principalities, rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. The New Jerusalem will come down from heaven to the earth.

Babylon means that man is seeking God; they wanted to use the tower of Babel to try to reach heaven. That is religion; they use bricks. Jerusalem was built with rocks; rocks were created by God. Now, in Babylon there are no rocks; there are no mountains. So they made bricks. Bricks are an imitation of rocks. And that is religion: it is not the gospel.

What it the gospel? It is God who seeks for man. It is not man trying to reach heaven. At the very end, the New Jerusalem comes down from heaven. Peace from heaven. You never labor to obtain peace; you never labor to win heaven. Only Babylon does that.

"Babylon is fallen, Babylon is fallen." Thank God, the New Jerusalem will come down from heaven. Jerusalem means peace. Now heaven comes down, and now peace comes from heaven. When we see the New Jerusalem on this earth, finally the eternal will of God will have been completed.

The manifold wisdom of God is shown through the Church

Our time has finished. However, I think that we have heard enough for this time. If you read the whole book of Genesis, we now know how rich that book is. Why? Because we have the interpretation from Revelation. We know how rich the book of Revelation is, because we have the interpretation from Genesis.

Thank God, although we have not finished everything, I think that you are able to fill in the details. I think that it is very easy now.
Thank to the Lord. Finally, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God will be shown to the angelic beings. Now the angels won't only worship God as God almighty. Now they are learning a lesson through the church; the manifold wisdom of God which is expressed through the eternal will of God.

May the Lord speak to our hearts.

Copyright © AGUAS VIVAS | CHILE 2004