Interlocked

To conclude the series, we go through one final Faith in Action Drill: critically evaluating worldviews. We examine what a worldview is. It is a map of our beliefs that lead to our behaviours. A worldview is made up of four interconnected levels and we will examine what they are and how we can use this understanding to analyse the worldview of someone we’re engaging with so we will know where they are coming from. We can also use the drill to check if we are thinking biblically. Then we go into how to review all that we have learnt by going through the 55 challenge statements. And we conclude with six final thoughts on the importance of continuing our study of Scripture so that we know Yahweh better and better, and therefore know how to live, how to respond to the world around us and what to expect of God in the future. The whole point is become a thriving disciple who is able to disciple others into spiritual maturity. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/55-Faith-in-Action-VI.pdf

The class works through the statements in the Faith in Action exercise. The first step is to identify the assumptions, its sources of truth and the type of logic used. Then we draw on the biblical events and use God’s truth as revealed in the biblical events to respond to the statement. We learn how to take apart the idea for ourselves, then if needed, we form a polite, respectful response if we need to reply to someone. This is how we use the biblical framework to “think God’s thoughts after Him”. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/54-Faith-in-Action-V.pdf

Another Faith in Action drill is learning how to evaluate thoughts, ideas and philosophies that come from a non-biblical worldview. We first examine the book of Acts to see how the apostle Paul shared the gospel with Jews and God-fearing Gentiles, people with an understanding of the Hebrew Scriptures. Then we compare that with how he shared the gospel with the philosophers in Athens. At the Areopagus, he used a different approach. He used the biblical framework to surround or flank their worldviews. He began by addressing the gap in their knowledge about the Creator-God and he explained who Yahweh is, what He has done in history and how He holds all people accountable to Him and how He would come to judge the world in the future. This comprehensive speech resulted in a number of the people putting their faith in Christ. Then we will follow Paul’s model and work through an example of talking to a friend who holds a non-biblical worldview. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/54-Faith-in-Action-V.pdf

We’ve concluded our journey through the Bible’s meta-narrative from Genesis to Revelation. We have examined the major events of history and have looked ahead to the major events of the future. We can now construct an interlocked network of truth, or a biblical framework, which we can use as the foundation of our worldview. Using the biblical framework, we can then critically examine the Christian material that we read, watch and hear. In this faith in action exercise, we will first go through the key doctrines that the New Testament events are teaching us. Then we will go through what it means to think biblically and how to use the framework to analyse so-called Christian material to see if what we’re reading, watching or listening is truly biblically or poor teaching or even false teaching. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/53-Faith-in-Action-IV.pdf

We conclude the narrative of God’s Word by first examining how it is possible that there are so many unbelievers in the Kingdom. The problem with fallen mortal mankind is that the sin nature still leads people to rebel against the God whom they can see and personally interact with. Then we continue with the final battle, also named Gog and Magog where an untold number of rebellious mankind follow the released Satan for one more battle against Jesus; we see Satan’s defeat and permanent banishment to the Lake of Fire; and we see the Great White Throne judgment where all unbelievers from across human history are brought before Jesus to be judged. We see Jesus sentence the unbelievers to the Lake of Fire and also get rid of death and the grave, for He no longer has need of them after this. Then Yahweh brings in the new heaven and new earth and the new Jerusalem descends from heaven to the earth. God is moving to live with immortal mankind on earth. His home is with His people. The new creation is a place of perfection, untouched by sin and evil. Immortal mankind will reflect God’s glory and enjoy God forever. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/52-The-Kingdom-of-God.pdf

At last, we get to see the Kingdom of God return to earth! Immediately after the Tribulation, the prophet Daniel describes a 75-day gap before the Kingdom begins. King Jesus will personally and physically reign on the earth from His capital in Jerusalem for a thousand years. During this time, Satan is bound up in the bottomless pit. He will not have any influence on the earth during this time. King Jesus and His resurrected people will govern the planet and the physical environment of the earth will be renewed and will be flourishing. Mankind will flourish and will be finally be able to exercise responsible dominion well. All the prophecies and covenant promises of God will finally be fulfilled. The believing nation of Israel will perform as God intended and be the nation of priests for the whole world. Besides the resurrected people who will be in the Kingdom, it will also begin with the mortals who have survived the Tribulation and who have put their faith in Christ. These believing mortals will be the ones who can continue to marry and have children. And these mortal children will each have to make a personal decision to place their trust in Christ. At the end of the thousand years, God will release Satan one last time and he will gather the mortals who never actually put their trust in Christ for salvation. The devil will lead them into one last battle against Yahweh. But Yahweh will destroy them all swiftly. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/52-The-Kingdom-of-God.pdf

We conclude Lesson 51 by examining John’s description of how Babylon at the end times will be destroyed by God. While the evil earth dwellers mourn the loss of Babylon, they are aware that Yahweh is the One judging Babylon. In heaven, there is a different reaction—one of celebration for Yahweh has judged evil. We also see that Revelation’s description of Babylon’s destruction is not the first time God has described it. The prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah have also recorded prophecies of Babylon’s destruction at the end times. Then we see in heaven, the prelude to the second coming of Christ. We see that the church, the bride of Christ, has prepared herself to return with Jesus to the earth. Jesus then comes back with His church, as well as His angels. On earth, there is the great battle at the place called Armageddon. The Antichrist, the false prophet and their evil forces who are attempting to fight Jesus will be destroyed by Him rapidly. And then Jesus judges the survivors of the Tribulation. He judges the mortal Jewish survivors, dividing them into two groups: those who reject Him and those who have come to faith in Messiah. Those who reject Him are removed from the earth, leaving only the believing mortal Jews who will then form believing national Israel. They will get to enjoy the Kingdom of God with their King. Likewise, Jesus will also judge the surviving mortal Gentiles. The Gentiles who reject Him, He will remove from the earth and the Gentiles who have come to faith in Christ will be allowed into the Kingdom. Thus the Kingdom of God will begin on earth with believing mortals and the returning resurrected believers. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/51-The-Kingdom-of-Man-Destroyed.pdf

We conclude Lesson 50 by examining the seven bowl judgments, the last of the Tribulation judgments. These seven are very similar to the plague judgments of the Exodus. There we saw Yahweh judging Egypt. Now we see God judging the rebellious world. When the bowl judgments are complete, a voice announces, “It is done!” This is in much the same way that Jesus at the cross announced, “It is finished!” God is the One doing the work of judging the rebellious earth, clearing it in preparation for the returning Kingdom of God. The book of Revelation describes how the rebellious people on earth know it is Yahweh who is sending judgments (just like it was in Egypt) and yet many unbelievers refuse to repent. It shows that no one is ignorant of God. Lesson 51 begins at 1:20:50 and we now go back to the start of Tribulation to observe the politics of the Tribulation years—how an end-times Babylon (the great prostitute) has great economic, cultural and religious influence on the world but then the Antichrist (the scarlet beast) and the coalition of ten kings overthrow Babylon. Then the ten kings agree to hand over complete power to the Antichrist, opening the way for him to rule the world. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/51-The-Kingdom-of-Man-Destroyed.pdf

As we continue our journey through Revelation, we go to Revelation 12 and study the two beasts. The first is the ultimate false christ, often known as the Antichrist. We will learn he is a Gentile whom Satan empowers with his power and authority. We see that both Daniel and John in Revelation describe the beast as a man as well as the kingdom he takes over, the final version of the pagan, rebellious kingdom of man. The Antichrist is aided by a second Satan-empowered beast (a second man) who is also known as the false prophet. This false prophet is able to perform signs and wonders (like God’s prophets) to convince the Yahweh-rejecting peoples of the world to think that the Antichrist is the true god. The false prophet directs the unbelieving world to worship the Antichrist and he also takes economic control of the world by forcing the unbelievers of the world to take the mark of the first beast so that they can trade and buy food. Though the world increases in evil, Revelation makes it very clear Yahweh is still in charge and allowing these things to happen. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/50-The-Beasts-and-The-Bowl-Judgments.pdf

We conclude Lesson 49 by examining who the two witnesses are and what they do. And we see that the “third woe” or seventh trumpet is the announcement of Christ’s second coming to judge the rebellious peoples of the world and then to establish His Kingdom. Then moving into Revelation 12, we see a very brief and symbolic summary of the history of Israel and her battle with Satan and also what happens to Israel during the time of the Tribulation. And finally, we see that Satan is at last cut off from heaven and can no longer go there. This angers him greatly and he goes all out one last time to destroy Israel but Yahweh steps in to protect believing Jews. We conclude with the question: “Is the Tribulation really that bad? With the world being so evil, aren’t we already living in a time of tribulation?” Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/49-The-Trumpet-Judgments.pdf

We finish Lesson 48, looking at who the 144,000 sealed people are and also the countless multitudes who are worshipping Jesus. We also discuss the prophecy given to Ezekiel about Gog and Magog and the battle they lead against Israel, and we look at possible timings for this event. Thereafter, we continue with Lesson 49 and see how the seventh seal unleashes the seven trumpet judgments. These next set of judgments are far worse that the seal judgments. By the sixth trumpet judgment, another third of the world’s population has died, bringing the death toll to half of the world’s population. Truly, Jesus is judging the rebellious inhabitants of the earth. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/49-The-Trumpet-Judgments.pdf

Now we begin to see what John was shown—the future events of the Tribulation. John is brought up to God’s throne room in heaven and he witnesses Yahweh being worshipped. We go through a quick overview of how to understand what John has recorded for us. Then we head straight into the events of the first six seal judgments. John first sees from heaven’s perspective how Jesus initiates the Tribulation by breaking the first seal on the scroll. Then after seeing Jesus break open the first six seals, John is shown from the earth’s perspective what happens to the peoples of the earth. False christs, war, famine, death, martyrdom of Tribulation age believers, astrophysical signs in the heavens as well as geophysical disasters on the earth. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/48-The-Tribulation-of-Israel-Begins.pdf

We conclude this lesson by examining the question of when the events of Revelation 4–22 will occur. There are four main views of Revelation 4–22: (i) these events have already happened in the past (Preterist); (ii) these events are unfolding now in the present (Historic); (iii) these events are not real but are metaphors and timeless (Idealist); (iv) these events will happen in the future (Futurist). Which view best fits with the character of God and His revelation from Genesis to Revelation? We see the throughout Scripture, God is recording and describing real history. In addition, following the understanding of the apostles and the early church, we see they read God’s Word in a plain, straightforward way. They understood Scripture to be God describing actual history involving real people, real places, real events that happened in real historical time. In reading the Bible this way, the early church came to the understanding that Revelation was describing future events. Next, we go through an overview of the events of the Tribulation, Christ’s second coming, the Kingdom of God, the final battle, the Great White Throne Judgment and the ushering in of the new heaven and earth and the Eternal State. Access the notes at: https://interlocked.online/s/47-Overview-of-the-End.pdf

We conclude Lesson 46 by examining the consequences of believing in the premillennial, amillennial and postmillennial views of the Christ’s return to the earth. We see that what we believe about the future does impact how we live today. So it’s important to understand God’s Word correctly. Then we continue with Lesson 47: Overview of the End. In this first section, we look at what Revelation is about and we examine the letters that Jesus wanted John to deliver to the seven churches. These letters are Jesus’ evaluation, praise, complaints and encouragement for each church. There are many lessons for us to learn from Christ’s messages to the early churches. Access the notes at https://interlocked.online/s/46-Gods-Plan-for-Israel-and-the-Church-Part-2.pdf and https://interlocked.online/s/47-Overview-of-the-End.pdf

We continue to examine God’s plan for the church. We see how Israel has earthly enemies (other nations), but the church’s main enemy is Satan. That is why Paul exhorts church-age believers to put on God’s armour for spiritual warfare. The main aspect of this warfare is a battle of the mind—a battle of worldviews, philosophies and ideas. Then we go on to examine how the church will be removed and protected from the time of Israel’s Tribulation. Safe in heaven and now with resurrection bodies, Jesus will evaluate His church at the Judgment Seat of Christ and reward believers. And the New Testament reminds us again and again that the removal of the church is imminent, meaning it can occur at any time. Then finally, at the end of the Tribulation, the resurrected church will return with Christ at His second coming to start the Kingdom of God on earth. We then examine the three main views about the future (Premillennialism, Amillennialism, Postmillennialism) and how they developed. Access the notes at https://interlocked.online/s/46-Gods-Plan-for-Israel-and-the-Church-Part-2.pdf

We examine God’s plan for the church and contrast that with God’s plan for national Israel. We will see that the church and Israel are two separate peoples of God with two separate destinies. Some points we examine are: the church started on the day of Pentecost. The church on earth is united with the ascended, seated Lord Jesus in heaven. The church is called the body of Christ and is indwelt by the Holy Spirit. The church’s mission is to make disciples of Christ. Access the notes at https://interlocked.online/s/46-Gods-Plan-for-Israel-and-the-Church-Part-2.pdf Also access the Hebrews paper at https://interlocked.online/s/Hebrews-are-the-warnings-about-losing-justification.pdf

We continue examining God’s plan for national Israel, particularly looking at what the apostle Paul says in Romans 11. We examine closely what he says about God sovereignly directing Israel, then setting aside national Israel for a time because of its rebellion. He then focuses on using church-age believers to tell the world about the Messiah. When the church age is done, we see how God resumes His plan for Israel. Through the future Tribulation, He will cause Israel to come to national faith in the Jewish Messiah. And the Messiah will bring back the Kingdom of God. Access the notes at https://interlocked.online/s/45-Gods-Plan-for-Israel-and-the-Church-Part-1.pdf We also have an extra presentation on “Whose land is it?”, focusing on the land that God had given to Abraham and his descendants as a permanent possession. Access the extra notes at https://interlocked.online/s/Whose-land-is-it.pdf

After the Fall, Yahweh promised a Saviour who would rescue mankind. God sovereignly chose Abraham and his descendants, the nation of Israel, to work out His plan to send the Saviour. Through Israel, God intended to fulfil His plan to bless the world. But Israel rebelled to the point where God sent them into exile. Since that time, the Jewish people have been waiting eagerly for Yahweh to send His Messiah and restart the Kingdom of God on earth. When the Messiah came, the majority of the Jews rejected Him, so Jesus the Messiah delayed the return of the Kingdom. Instead, He started a new group called the church. Nevertheless, God had not abandoned the people of Israel. God gave prophetic literature to help believers understand His future plan for Israel, the church and the rest of the world. In this lesson and the next, we will study God’s plan for Israel and the church. Both Israel and the church belong to God, but He has different plans for them. We need to be very clear on what God has told us He will be doing so we can have clarity, assurance and security even as we live our lives here and now. Access the notes at https://interlocked.online/s/45-Gods-Plan-for-Israel-and-the-Church-Part-1.pdf

We continue our journey through our family history, looking at key people of the Reformation and continuing to see the impact of reform in the universal church. We see also how the church was influenced by the Enlightenment, the Romantic period, then Liberalism and the response from the Fundamentalists, and then the impact of the events of the early 20th century. Through the often messy and chaotic developments, we see God’s hand at work, guiding His body to learn and cling on to His truth and helping believers walk in obedience to fulfil the mission of the church: to bring God’s salvation message to the ends of the earth. Access the notes at https://interlocked.online/s/44A-Supplement-Where-did-all-the-Christian-denominations-come-from.pdf

In this supplementary lesson, we take a closer look at 2,000 years of church history to examine where did all the Christian denominations come from. We stand in the stream of history and whether we realise it or not, the way we understand God, worship Him and “do church” has been influenced by the Christians who have come before us (the ones upstream from us). So we want to examine the lives of the brothers and sisters of the faith before us. We will examine their struggles, their failures and their faithfulness. We will see how despite mankind’s sin and the attacks of the evil one, Christ still guides His church towards the goal He has in mind. Access the notes at https://interlocked.online/s/44A-Supplement-Where-did-all-the-Christian-denominations-come-from.pdf