End Time Insights

Jesus is the Lamb and the true Messiah of Israel. He was sent by God to redeem men from every nation by his sacrificial death . Jesus is the Faithful Witness and the Ruler of the Kings of the Earth, and these designations are inextricably linked. The first establishes how he obtained the second, his sovereignty. Through his death, Jesus redeemed his people, and because of his “ obedience unto death ,” God exalted Christ and made him Lord over all things:

The Book of Revelation applies messianic promises of the Old Testament to the present reign and exalted status of Jesus Christ . Jesus has governed the Cosmos since his death and resurrection. He is seated at the right hand of God, where he rules as the prince of the kings of the earth. “ The woman produced a son who is the shepherd of the nations… And her child was caught up to God and his throne .”

Jesus of Nazareth unlocks the Hebrew scriptures and our understanding of the last days, and he reveals the nature and the mysteries of God . Jesus unveils the “ mysteries of God ,” and only he is qualified to reveal the nature of the “ unseen God .” Only in him are  all the promises of God fulfilled. He is the key that unlocks the Hebrew Bible and explains the “ times and seasons .” This is especially so in the  Book of Revelation  which is a “ revealing of Jesus Christ .” He is the absolute Lord who reigns over all things from God’s Throne – (Revelation 5:9-14).

The Nations and the Kings of the Earth are found in the City of New Jerusalem because of the redeeming work of the Lamb . The  Book of Revelation  presents us with paradoxical images and visions that do not conform to our expectations about how God works.  Christ’s  purpose in subjugating His enemies and judging the nations differs radically from so-called “human wisdom.” Just as his contemporaries did not understand Jesus, so we too often fail to comprehend the “ Slain Lamb ” and how he is “ shepherding the nations ,”  present tense , from the Messianic Throne.

Jesus is the promised King from the Line of David who guides the Nations of the Earth to the Holy City, New Jerusalem  – Revelation 12:5. The “ Son ” pictured in the twelfth chapter of the  Book of Revelation  is the Messianic figure of the  Second Psalm  who is destined to “ Shepherd the Nations .” Following his Enthronement, Heaven declared, “ Now is come the Kingdom of God and the authority of His Messiah .” His reign commenced following his “ Faithful Testimony ” given in his Death, and his victory through his Resurrection. He is also, therefore, the “ Firstborn of the Dead .”

The kings and nations of the Earth are found in New Jerusalem because of the Lamb’s redemptive work . The Apostle Paul describes the proclamation of “ Christ crucified ” as “ God’s wisdom and power .” The proposition that God overthrew Sin, Satan, and Death through the execution of a lowly man from the small village of Nazareth is “ foolishness ” to men and contrary to this world’s “wisdom” and ideologies. Even the spiritual “ powers and principalities ” did not understand what God was doing and sealed their fate by crucifying the “ Lord of Glory .”

War began in Heaven with the Dragon poised to destroy the Messianic Son as soon as he was “born” – Revelation 12:1-6. In Chapter 12 of the Book of Revelation , John saw a new “ sign ” in the heavens, the Woman “ clothed with the sun, and the moon beneath her feet .” She was wearing a “ crown of twelve stars .” She was pregnant and about to give birth to one identified as “ son .” This “ son ” appeared in fulfillment of the Messianic promise in the Second Psalm , the King and Anointed Son of God who was destined to “ Shepherd the Nations .”

Jesus, the Faithful Witness, now reigns supreme over the Kings of the Earth, and he is shepherding the nations to the Holy City of New Jerusalem . Jesus is called the “ Ruler of the Kings of the Earth ” in the Prologue of  Revelation . This declaration is made in the  present tense  since his sovereignty is based on his Death and Resurrection. He does not rule by hereditary right, economic power, or military might, but because of his redeeming death. The slain “ Lamb ” is the one who sits on the Throne, and his authority extends even over “ Death and Hades .”