Note: The entirety of this message is found in my booklet, "
Opening the Seals to the Book of Revelation." Jesus is coming again. He is returning to earth one day. He spoke of it to His disciples when He was here the first time (See Matthew 24, Luke 17, Luke 21). When He ascended into heaven, as the disciples watched Him rise and disappear into the sky, angels spoke to them and told them that He would return the same way.
Acts 1:9-11
9 And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 10 And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. 11 They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”
Of course, some people don’t believe this. But as Christians, we do. However, we must keep the overall plan and purpose of God foremost in our minds. We don’t want to grow weary, become skeptical, or allow doubts and distractions to take us away from doing our part in His plan for mankind.
2 Peter 3:3-5
3 Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, 4 and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.” 5 For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, 6 through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water.
Peter discusses the mockings of mockers in the end times who say that everything is continuing as it was since the beginning of creation. Nothing’s changed. Where’s the Lord? Peter says it “escapes their notice,” or they forgot, about Noah and the entire population of the world being destroyed by a flood due to the rampant sin at the time. This had occurred about 2500 years before this was written (It’s been about 4500 years now).
He goes on. . .
7 But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. 8 But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. 9 The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.
He says not to let it escape your notice, even if it has escaped other people’s notice, that the Lord does not forget His promises. He’s not slow, He’s patient. It’s His mercy that makes it seem like a long time coming. He’s waiting for more people to come to repentance before He sends His Son Jesus back to earth to finish up what was started. For those who do not, there will come a terrifying day called the Day of the Lord.
10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.
The day of the Lord is going to happen, suddenly. But instead of like Noah's flood, it will be with fire and intense heat.
11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,
This is a somber thought, one that leads us into the fear of the Lord. We must not live like the mockers, thinking it’ll never happen in our lifetime, or if it does, that it’s not going to be that big of deal. We must conduct ourselves in holiness and godliness while waiting for Him to return.
Then Peter says something interesting,
12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! 13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
Looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God. Even though this earth will eventually burn up, we are to still look for and hasten, or speed up, His coming. He has promised us a new heaven and a new earth—one which contains righteousness.
14 Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, 15 and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation;
Peter is encouraging them not to listen to the reasonings of the mockers who think that all is well and it just doesn’t look like the Lord is going to come back, but to be diligent to keep ourselves spotless and blameless--ready for His coming at any moment.
Let’s look at verse 12 in the Amplified Classic regarding the hastening of His coming:
2 Peter 3:12 AMPC:
12 While you wait and earnestly long for (expect and hasten) the coming of the day of God.
We are waiting and earnestly longing for the coming of the day of God. It seems that our longing, and our expectancy of this day, actually hastens its coming. Even if we don’t know exactly when it will be.
Look at what Jesus said:
Matthew 24:36-39:
36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. 37 For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be.
They didn’t understand until the flood came what was going to happen. Then it was too late. The door to the ark was already shut (Genesis 7:1-16).
Matthew 24:42, 44
42 “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming.
44 For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.
Nobody knows the day or hour when Jesus will return to the earth to receive His own to Himself. It will happen when we don’t think it will. So we must always be ready. Yet, we can recognize when it is getting close, even when it is right at the door.
Matthew 24:33
33 so, you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door.
The time for the Lord's return is getting close. For those who believe in Him, it is our hope. The promise of His kingdom rule over the earth should thrill our hearts as righteousness and justice will be found in it. For those who don't believe, there is a judgment coming. Yet we are now in a time of grace to make our choice, and get ready. It's not too late, yet.
We are living in the "Time of the Gentiles,” as well as the Church Age, which ends with the coming of the Lord. We gain some understanding about this time leading up to His Second Coming in the book of Revelation.
The Four Horsemen of the First Four Seals The Church age is, of course, the era of the Church, which began after Jesus’ ascension and continues until the time of His return. During this time the gospel is being preached, while at the same time satan tries to stop it or undo its effects. This has been going on for 2000 years. The book of Revelation portrays it as four horsemen circling the earth with each passing cycle bringing Jesus’ coming closer. (See Revelation 6:1-8).
Then, in Revelation 6, at the 5th seal, we see the martyrs under the altar in heaven crying out for Him to avenge their blood, asking, “How long?”
Then in Revelation 8, after the 7th seal, after the ½ hour of silence, the prayers of the saints, incense, and fire from the altar are thrown to earth, and the sounding of the trumpets begin.
What do we learn from this?
I believe our longing for Jesus to come and set up His righteous rule, actually quickens His coming. As Peter said, “Wait and earnestly long for” it. Expect and hasten it. There is a trigger—the trumpet trigger of Revelation when the countdown to His return begins.
I believe these prayers of the martyrs and all the saints that we see at the 5th and 7th seal, this longing for His righteous rule, is when the countdown clock is started, and is indicated in Revelation by the sounding of the trumpets.
Forty years ago, there were those who didn’t want Jesus to come back yet. They wanted to live their lives, see their children grow up etc. They weren’t very passionate about seeing Jesus’ return. On the other hand, there were those who thought He was coming any second and they were irresponsible, went into debt, didn’t plan for the future etc. These ones weren’t aware of the fact that the Church has a part to play in His return. Yet before Jesus returns, we see martyrs and all the saints praying, and a violent, heavenly response to these prayers.
Jesus used the analogy of a birth when speaking about the end times (Matthew 28:8). When a woman is pregnant, birth is inevitable. As it gets close, there may be false labor pains, early labor pains, but there finally comes a point of no return. The water breaks, and the birth begins.
I believe the sounding of the trumpets begin the final countdown to His return. Once the trumpets start, there’s no turning back. The clock starts ticking.
But what exactly triggers the trumpets? The final thing seems to be the prayers. We read it right there at the 5th seal—the cries of the martyrs and after the 7th seal from the prayers of the saints. The prayers of the saints set off the trumpets and begin the countdown clock.
But there are other things involved. There are (at least) four things that trigger the trumpet-sounding countdown.
The Preaching of the Gospel of the Kingdom in the Whole World
Jesus said the end would come after the preaching of the Gospel of the kingdom to all the world (Matthew 24:14). We see the preaching of the Gospel represented by the white horse of the 1st seal. It must continue until the end so when He comes, He will find faith in the earth (Luke 18:8)
The Church becoming His Ekklesia
When we, the Church, learn to govern under His authority, as His ekklesia, we enforce Satan's defeat and ultimately, he is thrown out of heaven. When the disciples began to understand and operate in their authority in Christ, Jesus said He saw Satan fall like lightening from heaven (Luke 10:18). Once he is displaced from heaven, his time is very short.
In Revelation 8:1-12 during the first four trumpet blasts, we see things falling, or being thrown down, from the sky—hail & fire, a great burning mountain, a great star, and then the sun, moon, and stars darkened. Once Satan is cast down, he has great wrath, knowing he has a short time (Revelation 12:7-9). This happens when the Church knows their authority over him and begins to use it.
The Church becoming His pure Bride
We become the Lord’s pure Bride when we make ourselves ready to meet Jesus, and passionately desire Him. No longer do we want Him to delay His coming so we can “live our lives.” We want to be with Him! We seek purity because of our longing for our Groom. This too hastens His coming. (Revelation 19:7-9, Ephesians 5:26-27, Hebrews 9:27-28, 1 John 3:2-3, 2 Corinthians 11:2, Colossians 1:22, James 4:5).
The Cries of the Martyrs and Prayers of the Saints
This is the passionate prayer for the Lord’s judgment and His righteous rule to come. We desperately want His righteous rule over the earth. We are not cowering in a corner; we are doing what He's called us to do. Yet we are grieved over the lost souls and the level of wickedness in the earth and corruption in the governments. We know that only His rule will make things right. Again, we see this represented in the 5th and 7th seals. (Revelation 6:10, 8:3).
In the last chapter of the Bible, Revelation 22, Jesus said three times that He was coming quickly (verses 7, 12, and 20). In the same chapter, John wrote that “The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’ (verse 17). And then, “Amen. Come Lord Jesus.’” (Verse 20).
Jesus taught us to pray, “Your kingdom come!” Or really to declare, “Kingdom of God—come forth!” (Matthew 6:10).
How long does the clock run?
To understand the closing of this age, it’s also helpful to understand Daniel’s vision of the seventy weeks. While Daniel was “speaking and praying, and confessing” his sin and the sin of his people, Israel, the angel Gabriel came and gave him “insight with understanding.” (Daniel 9:20-23).
The short version in explaining this is that seventy weeks (each week representing one year) were decreed for Israel and the holy city to “finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place.” (Daniel 9:24). Sixty-nine of the seventy weeks have been fulfilled. There is one week (seven years) left.
Why does this matter? Because this final seven-year period is what will usher in Jesus’ Second Coming and reign on earth. This is how we know there are seven years of this prophecy yet to be fulfilled. Right now, we are living in this gap period between the 69th and 70th weeks, the Church Age, that will bring us to the end when Jesus returns and sets up His kingdom on the earth. This gap period is where God’s dealings with the nation of Israel as a whole is put on hold while the nations of the earth come to Him (Romans 11:11, Genesis 17:4-6, Genesis 22:18, Galatians 3:16).
At least four times in the book of Revelation there are periods of 3 ½ years mentioned.
Revelation 11:2: John was told to measure the temple, but not to measure the court outside the temple for it had been given to the nations who would tread the holy city underfoot for 42 months (3 ½ years).
Revelation 11:3: The two witnesses will prophesy for 1260 days (just under 3 ½ years).
Revelation 12:6 The woman (Israel) fled into the wilderness where she would be nourished for 1260 days (just short of 3 ½ years). And again Revelation12:14 says the woman was nourished for a time, times, and half a time (one year, plus two years, plus a half a year= 3 ½ years).
Revelation 13:5: The beast was given authority to act for 42 months (3 ½ years).
We might ask, are these 3 ½ year periods taking place at the same time? Or are they staggered? It appears that these periods will fit together somehow to make up the seven years needed to finish Daniel’s last “week.” We also read of a period of around 3 ½ years in the book of Daniel:
Daniel 12:11-2: Daniel was told that from the time the regular sacrifice is abolished, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there would be 1290 days. He added that the one who keeps waiting until the 1335 days is blessed.
Though we many not be able to put all the time periods in the order they will unfold, it’s more important to focus on being close to Jesus and follow His Spirit in taking our place and part. Part of it depends on us. We’re waiting for Him to come and He’s waiting for us to get going!
Rapture at the Last Trump
Paul talked about God’s people who are alive and remaining at the last trumpet arising to receive their glorified bodies. This is what we call the rapture.
1 Corinthians 15:51-52
51 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.
1 Thessalonians 4:15-17
15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.
When is the Rapture? We don't know the exact time, but we know Jesus is preparing a place for us now (John 14:3). He said He will come like a thief in the night (Revelation 16:15), but we can know the season, even though we don't know the day and the hour (Matthew 24:32-33). We do know that we are not destined for His wrath (Romans 5:9, 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10, 1 Thessalonians 5:9), which is shown in the book of Revelation as bowls being poured out (Revelation 16:1).
I think it's dangerous to assume the Church will be raptured before the mark of the beast is instituted. The mark may begin to be instituted before the rapture. (I would dare say it has already begun), but even if there is a rapture prior to the mark of the beast, we don’t want to cross a line now that we won’t be able to uncross later. To somehow become lulled into thinking it is okay, and not realize we've missed the ark and taken the mark. Remember, the door to the ark was shut seven days before the rain began—long before the floods which actually killed them started.
In the meantime, we, the Church, have a part to play in His return. We can hasten His coming. We must be about His business, preaching the gospel to the nations. We must fall deeply in love with Him and purify our heart. We must know our authority in Him and enforce His kingdom rule; and we must pray and long for Him to come and make things right, but we must also long for His coming, and expectantly wait for it.
Amen. Come quickly, Lord Jesus.
More details are available in my booklet, "
Opening the Seals to the Book of Revelation."Revised October 2025
