Seven Keys to Understanding Prophecy

Mark 1, verse 14: "Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, 'The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.'" My friends, the coming kingdom of God that Jesus preached is yet future. It is the foundation of Bible prophecy. You need to understand the plain and powerful prophecies of your Bible.

On today's program, we'll discuss seven keys to understanding Bible prophecy and we'll be offering you a free study guide, the Master Key to prophecy: "The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy." You need to know the future and the good news of the kingdom in Bible prophecy. Join us on this vital edition of "Tomorrow's World." ♪♪♪ Bible prophecy reveals the future of the world and, frankly, the future of the universe. Your Bible has proven the power of prophecy.

I hope you've been able to see our telecast's amazing prophecies fulfilled from Nebuchadnezzar's dream of a statue in the Old Testament book of Daniel to John's New Testament visions of the book of Revelation. Your Bible reveals major end-time events with mysterious prophetic symbols such as the beast of Revelation 13 with seven heads and ten horns rising up out of the sea, and the harlot woman of Revelation 17 sitting on a scarlet beast with seven heads and ten horns.

How can you understand the meaning of these symbols? On today's program, we'll discuss seven keys to understanding Bible prophecy and we'll be offering you an inspiring free study guide, the Master Key to prophecy: "The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy." This free booklet will give you a greater understanding of Bible prophecy than you've ever had before. Be sure to write down the contact information to order your free copy.

My friends, these seven keys to understanding prophecy will help you understand the most amazing future and events that relatively few people on earth even come close to understanding. Key number one to understanding prophecy is: The Bible interprets its own symbols. As we saw earlier in the program, the book of Revelation contains symbolic language. If you have your Bible, turn to the book of Revelation or Apocalypse.

Revelation, the 1st chapter, gives a description of the glorified Messiah, the Son of man standing in the midst of seven lampstands. At verse 16 of the same chapter, describes him as holding seven stars. What do these stars and lampstands symbolize? You don't need to guess, I don't need to guess. The Bible itself tells you its meaning.

Revelation 1, verse 16: "He had in His right hand seven stars, and out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength." Verse 20 gives us the answer: "The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands which you saw are the seven churches." In Bible symbolism, stars are angels, and lampstands are churches.

The writer of the book of Revelation or the Apocalypse continues in the next two chapters, writing God's message and admonition to the seven churches in Asia Minor or modern-day Turkey. Of course, the apostle John was writing this book near the end of the 1st century AD. Let's look at a couple other biblical symbols: prophetic literature uses the word "mountain" as a symbol of a kingdom empire or government. Turn in your Bible to Jeremiah 51, verse 24.

Your Bible probably has a heading to chapter 51 such as, "God's Judgment or Vengeance Upon Babylon." God is declaring his punishment on the great empire of Babylon. Jeremiah 51, verse 24: "'And I will repay Babylon And all the inhabitants of Chaldea For all the evil they have done In Zion in your sight,' says the LORD. 'Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain, Who destroys all the earth,' says the LORD.

'And I will stretch out My hand against you, Roll you down from the rocks, And make you a burnt mountain.'" Yes, God will judge rebellious nations symbolized here as mountains. What mountain or kingdom will rule the whole earth? As so many prophets exclaim, the kingdom will be the kingdom of God ruled by the King of kings, the Savior Jesus Christ. Bible students are familiar with the prophecy in Isaiah, the 2nd chapter.

Isaiah 2, and verse 2: "Now it shall come to pass in the latter days That the mountain of the LORD'S house Shall be established on the top of the mountains, And shall be exalted above the hills; And all nations shall flow to it. Many people shall come and say, 'Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths.' For out of Zion shall go forth the law, And the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

He shall judge between the nations, And rebuke many people; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore." A mount in Bible prophecy can symbolize a kingdom, empire, or nation. Here we see the good news of God's kingdom which will establish world peace.

We've explored a couple examples of symbolism: stars are symbolic of angels, a mountain can be symbolic of a kingdom or government. So key number one to understand Bible prophecy is: The Bible interprets its own symbols. The second key to understanding biblical prophecy is: The proof of fulfilled prophecy. Fulfilled past prophecy gives us confidence in the fulfillment of future prophecies.

We'll discuss this important key in the next part of our program, but first, I'd like to offer you our free informative booklet, "The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy." What does Bible prophecy predict for the future of these great nations? To understand Bible prophecy, we must know where in the Bible great nations are mentioned, nations such as the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand.

Most theologians and preachers are way off base in their prophetic frameworks because they lack that knowledge. Our free booklet, "The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy," gives you that vital information. This booklet will give you the historic and biblical proof of prophecies relating to these countries. So pick up the telephone right now and request your free booklet, "The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy." Just ask for the booklet on prophecy.

You can also order this free booklet on our website at TWTV.org/Prophecy or you can write to us at one of our regional addresses. male announcer: For today's free offer, call... or go to TWTV.org/Prophecy. This clear and straightforward resource will help you understand this vital truth straight from the pages of the Bible.

If you're calling for the first time, you will also receive a free annual subscription to "Tomorrow's World" magazine, ten inspiring issues discussing news, science, and modern culture will help you make sense of your world from a biblical perspective. Call today and join millions around the world who are turning to "Tomorrow's World" for truth, prophecy, and hope in these confusing times. Call now or go to TWTV.org/Prophecy.

In the first part of our program, we discussed a vital key for understanding Bible prophecy: The Bible interprets its own symbols. These seven keys are vital in helping you learn the future of the world and your own future.

Daniel is called before the king and proceeded to describe the great image in the king's dream. Daniel 2 and verse 31: "You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome. This image's head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.

You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces." Daniel told King Nebuchadnezzar that he was the head of gold represented in the image. Daniel said in verse 38: "You are this head of gold." History confirms Daniel's prophecy of the subsequent empires symbolized by the statue. What world-ruling empires followed after Nebuchadnezzar? The head of gold represented the Babylonian Empire from 625 to 539 BC.

It was replaced by the Medo-Persian Empire from 558 to 330 BC, represented by the chest and arms of silver. The belly and thighs of bronze represented the Greco-Macedonian Empire of Alexander the Great from 333 to 31 BC. The two legs of iron represented the Roman Empire from 31 BC to 476 AD. And finally, the ten toes on two feet of iron mixed with ceramic clay represent a future revival of the Roman Empire. The prophecy of Daniel are genuine.

The predictions of these four empires did come to pass.

And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah." Luke 4, verse 17: "And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: 'The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.'"

But was that all of the prophecy? Turn back to the prophecy Jesus read. Notice the two mission statements here, Isaiah 61 and verse 2: "To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God." Jesus closed the book he was reading, right in the middle of a verse. He omitted the second part of the verse referring to the day of vengeance. Why?

Because the remainder of Isaiah's prophecy applies to Jesus's Second Coming when the day of the Lord, the day of God's vengeance and wrath takes place. There is a time gap of about 2,000 years between the fulfillment of the first part of the verse and the second part of the verse. Key number three for understanding Bible prophecy was to understand prophetic time gaps. Key number four for understanding Bible prophecy is to recognize prophetic duality.

Turn in your Bible to 1 Corinthians, the 15th chapter, verse 45, for example: "And so it is written, 'The first Adam became a living being.' The last Adam became a life-giving spirit." Who was the last Adam? Verse 47 gives the answer: "The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is of the Lord from heaven." Yes, the second Adam was Jesus Christ. Jesus's Olivet prophecy in Matthew 24 is also an example of duality.

Some of the terrible conditions Jesus described did take place when Jerusalem was destroyed. But that was just a type or a forerunner of the final climactic fulfillment. Jesus warned us in Matthew 24, verse 21: "For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened."

Yes, prophecy is dual and we ought to learn the lessons of history. The destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman armies in 70 AD was just a type of the Great Tribulation that lies yet ahead. Key number four for understanding Bible prophecy is to recognize prophetic duality. Where is the United States mentioned in the Bible? Or under what names can we locate it? Where can we find Great Britain in the Bible?

Obviously, the modern names do not appear but the ancestors of those nations are prominently named in the Bible. We'll discuss number five in the next part of our program. Our free booklet, "The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy," will give you a thorough explanation on where you could find our modern nations in the Bible. You can begin to understand much more about end-time prophecy when you have this accurate knowledge of the modern descendants of ancient biblical nations.

Our free booklet, "The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy," will give you the historical and biblical information to identify these major nations in prophecy. Be sure to request your free copy.

The Bible mentions by name such nations as Egypt, Libya, and Ethiopia, and it may surprise you that Assyria will eventually be one of the prominent nations in tomorrow's world along with Egypt and Israel. You can read about that in Isaiah 19, verse 23. Also read the 10th and 11th chapters of Isaiah, but who is modern Assyria?

In our "Tomorrow's World" magazine, we previously published a full article on the subject entitled, "A Fourth Reich?" Here is what Doctor Douglas Winnail wrote in the article, page 17, quote, "While most historians are reluctant, or fail, to make any connection between the disappearance of the Assyrians and the appearance of the Germanic tribes, the fact remains that no other nation's history and national character resembles Germany more than does that of Assyria."

The simple knowledge of the origin of nations in the Bible gives us a clearer understanding of Bible prophecy. One final quote from the article on page 30, quote, "When the Bible speaks of Assyria in the end times it is speaking of Germany," end of quote. Key number five for understanding Bible prophecy is: Know the biblical origin of nations. But can you find the United States in end-time prophecy? It's there, if you know where to look. Be sure to request the free study resource we're offering

John the Baptist was baptizing massive crowds of people who were moved by his preaching. The Gospel writer, Matthew, describes what happened. Matthew 3 and verse 1: "In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!'" Later, Jesus Christ preached the same message. You can read that in Mark 1, verses 14 and 15. And what was the response to John's preaching?

Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance.'" Another purpose of prophecy is to give opportunity to those in future captivity to repent and come under God's deliverance as God promises in Deuteronomy 4, verses 27 through 31. My friends, are you preparing for the Second Coming of Christ? Understanding Bible prophecy and facing reality will help you prepare. On the Day of Pentecost in 31 AD, the apostle Peter exhorted the thousands in his audience to repent and be baptized.

You can read that in Acts 2, verse 38. Peter motivated the crowd to change their lives. He said in Acts 2, verse 40: "'Be saved from this perverse generation.' Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them."

My friends, if you've studied biblical baptism and if you have come to the place in your life where you have repented and have accepted Christ's sacrifice and his authority over your life, we invite you to counsel with one of our ministers. We have representatives in many regions around the world. Just call the number on your screen or write to one of our regional offices. Key number six for understanding Bible prophecy is: Understand the purposes for Bible prophecy.

Bible prophecy demonstrates the awesome sovereignty of God as it tells us in Isaiah 46, verses 9 and 10. We'll discuss the final key in the conclusion of our program. But first, I'd like to offer you this amazing free booklet that reveals major prophetic trends and events in the future. It's titled, "The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy." My friends, you can know the future of America, Britain, and western civilization.

Bible prophecy reveals what historians, world leaders, and political analysts do not know and cannot know, but you can understand. You can understand where the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Australia and New Zealand are mentioned in Bible prophecy. What are the biblical origins of these nations? This free booklet will give you the answers.

You need this vital key to understanding Bible prophecy, so pick up the telephone right now and request your free copy of "The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy." There's no cost or obligation. Just ask for the booklet on prophecy. You can also order this booklet on our website at TWTV.org/Prophecy or you can write to us, one of our regional addresses.

Call today and join millions around the world who are turning to "Tomorrow's World" for truth, prophecy, and hope in these confusing times. Call now or go to TWTV.org/Prophecy. Richard Ames: On today's program, we've discussed vital principles of prophecy. Bible prophecy reveals the future and the good news of God's coming kingdom. It also warns us of dangers to come that we can take action and seek God's protection. You need to understand what lies ahead.

Key number seven to understanding Bible prophecy is: Learn God's prophetic framework. Some wrongly believe that Jesus Christ will come after the prophesied millennium, but your Bible shows clearly that Christ will return to set up a literal kingdom here on earth for a literal period of 1,000 years. The book of Revelation describes a period of 3 1/2 years leading up to the return of Christ.

The first 5 seals of Revelation outlined in chapter 6 cover a period of about 2 1/2 years of the Great Tribulation. Jesus spoke about that in Matthew 24. The sixth seal is the heavenly signs. The whole world will be put on notice when this event occurs. Let's read that in Revelation 6 and verse 12: "I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood.

And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up," listen to this. "And every mountain and island was moved out of its place." The whole world will be shocked and terrorized. The world will then realize that the time of God's judgment has come.

Revelation 6 and verse 15: "And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains and rocks, 'Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?'" What follows the heavenly signs?

The heavenly signs introduce the one-year prophetic time period known as the Day of the Lord. The famous Day of the Lord is mentioned in some 30 prophecies in your Bible. This is the year of God's punishment on the nations and it culminates in the well-known announcement of Christ's return and the establishment of the kingdom of God on earth. That's the exciting good news or prophecy.

Revelation 11 and verse 15: "Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, 'The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!'" As you can see, the Bible gives us an overall framework of prophecy. Key number seven for understanding Bible prophecy is to learn God's prophetic framework. My friends, Bible prophecy is God's revelation to human beings about his plan for all humanity.

You can begin to truly understand biblical prophecy if you choose to seek God wholeheartedly. The Bible clearly outlines the judgments that God is going to bring upon the western nations if we persist in our immoral anti-God lifestyles. But you can escape that judgment if you turn to God and obey him. Be sure to request our exciting free booklet titled, "The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy." It will help you in your study of Bible prophecy and help you prepare for the future.