Hidden in plain sight

Mark 10:28-30:
Then Peter began to say unto him, 

Lo, we have left all, and have followed you. 

And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that has left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the aion (age) to come aionios (perpetual/everlasting) life [zoe].

"The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John" (Revelation 1:1).

I am the Alpha and the Omega, 

the Beginning and the End, 

the First and the Last. 

(Revelation 22:12-13)

"Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is the one who watches and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame." -- Revelation 16:15.

Some of the things that are hidden in plain sight in the book of Revelation.

THEME: PROMISES TO THE ONE WHO OVERCOMES

1. "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give him to eat of the Tree of Life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.". (Rev.2:7)

2. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death. (Rev.2:11)

3. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give to him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knows except he who receives it. (Rev.2:17)

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4. And he who overcomes and keeps My works to the end, to him I will give power over the nations. And he will rule them with a rod of iron, as the vessels of a potter they will be broken to pieces, even as I received from My Father. And I will give him the Morning Star. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. (Rev.2:26-29).

5. The one who overcomes, that one will be clothed in white clothing. And I will not blot out his name out of the Book of Life, but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. (Rev.3:5-6).

6. "Him who overcomes I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will go out no more. And I will write upon him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, New Jerusalem, which comes down out of Heaven from My God, and My new name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." (Rev.3:12-13). 

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As we can see from the above and from the message to the seventh church below, each time He spoke directly to His seven churches at the beginning of His Revelation to the churches, Jesus closed with a promise TO THOSE WHO OVERCOME. 

After the seventh and last time, He is not recorded as talking directly to His churches again until He interjects John's vision of the 6th bowl of wrath to say:

Revelation 16:15:

"Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is the one who watches and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame."

The last time He spoke directly to His churches He said:

(THEME: keeping our garments lest we walk naked): 

Revelation 3:

And unto the angel of the Assembly of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the head of the creation of God; I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.

 

So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.

Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:

I counsel you to buy from Me gold tried in the fire, so that you may be rich; and white clothing, so that you may be clothed, and so that the shame of your nakedness does not appear. 

And anoint your eyes with eye salve, so that you may see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten; therefore be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him and he with Me. 

To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me in My throne, even as I also overcame and have sat down with My Father in His throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. (Rev.3:14-22).

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Now, John writes a great deal about the rise of a beast from the abyss who goes to war against the saints in the days preceding Christ's judgment of the same beast and his false prophet, saying things like:

If anyone worships the beast and its image, and receives a mark in his forehead or in his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the anger of God, having been mixed undiluted in the cup of His wrath. And he will be tormented by fire and brimstone before the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. And they have no rest day or night, those who worship the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name. – Revelation 14:9-11.	And all dwelling on the earth will worship it, those whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain, from the foundation of the world. – Revelation 13:8. And if anyone was not found having been written in the Book of Life, he was cast into the Lake of Fire. -- Revelation 20:15.
Here is the endurance of the saints. Here are the ones who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. -- Revelation 14:9-12.	But the fearful, and the unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, will have their part in the Lake burning with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. -- Revelation 21:8.
And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshiped his image. These both were cast alive [záō] into the lake of fire burning with brimstone. – Revelation 19:20. Záō always = “alive in the body” in the New Testament (without exception).	And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the Word of God, and who had not worshiped the beast nor his image, nor had received his mark on their foreheads, nor in their hands.  And they were alive in their bodies [záō] and reigned with Christ a thousand years. – Revelation 20:4.
And the rest [loipoí] were slain [apokteínō] with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh. -- Revelation 19:21. apokteínō means to put to death, to kill, to slay, to destroy.	But the rest [loipoí] of the dead did not live again [anazáō] until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection of the body [anástasis].  Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. The second death has no authority over these, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and will reign with Him a thousand years. (Revelation 20:5).

THEME: "It is Done!"

Jesus exclaims, "It is Done!" twice in the Revelation: 

The first time is when the seventh and final vial of God's wrath is poured out (Revelation 16:15-17). 

The second time is when He says,

"And He sitting on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. 

And He said to me, Write, for these words are true and faithful. And He said to me, 

--- It is done --- 

It is done. I am the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who thirsts I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely. HE WHO OVERCOMES will inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he will be My son. 

But the fearful, and the unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, will have their part in the Lake burning with fire and brimstone, which is the second death." (Revelation 21:5-8).

1. The two themes: The promises to those who overcome, and "It is done!",

.. are telling us who the Lord is speaking to (with regard to which generation this Revelation is ULTIMATELY speaking to).

2. The theme "Blessed is the one who watches and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame." links the lukewarm church to that (above) generation - the churches that will be in existence at the time of the Lord's return. 

Nevertheless there will be exceptions expressed by the two (of the seven) churches who were only commended by the Lord for their faithfulness.

3. Every event that is recorded in-between the Lord's last direct word to His seven churches and the time He exclaims, "Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is the one who watches and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame." (Revelation 16:15) 

is talking about what will be taking place on this earth in the 42 month reign of the dragon's beast, his false prophet, and their ten kings.​

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