In this episode we welcome back some familiar guests to the podcast for updates on their ministries. The episode has two parts. Fern and Audrey return to the podcast to talk about the launch of their new online curriculum, accompanied by Brenda, a consultant for the project, and Marie, who served as a beta tester for the first course. The long-awaited curriculum is part of Discovering Mercy, Fern and Audrey’s ministry to trauma sufferers. Our other guest is T. Dirk Smith, Vice President of EEM.org, a ministry that prints Bibles in over twenty languages for free distribution throughout Eastern Europe and beyond. Despite the pandemic (or perhaps because of it), EEM has seen a remarkable increase in desire for Scripture in those countries in which it operates.
Fern & Audrey are no longer associated with Discovering Mercy. Fern & Audrey are still helping survivors. You can contact them at [email protected]
Part 2 of our in-depth look into the role played by the Old Testament in Revelation 3 focuses the otherworldly “keys” in Rev 3:7 (“who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens” and its earlier counterpart, Rev 1:18 (“[I am] the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades). What are these keys? What does the metaphor represent? Are Death and Hades places or entities, or both? How does earlier Old Testament material help us understand what John is saying?
Revelation 3 contains John’s letters to Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. John uses the Old Testament in a number of places in these letters. Some have been discussed in earlier episodes of this series on the use of the Old Testament in the book of Revelation. Our discussion in this episode, Part 1 of Revelation 3, focuses on phrases not yet discussed (e.g., “they will walk with me in white” … “white garments” … the “Book of Life” … “hour of trial”). Part 2 will be a concentrated look at save for Rev 3:7’s reference to the “key of David” in conjunction with Rev 1:18, the “keys of Death and Hades.”
Revelation 2:8-29 contain the letters to the churches of Smyrna, Pergamum, and Thyatira. A number of content items in these verses draws on items discussed in episode 360 (Rev 2:1-7). In this episode, we rehearse some of that older content, comment briefly on the “synagogue of Satan” phrase, but ultimately focus on new connections to the Old Testament: the believer’s reception of “hidden manna,” a “white stone,” and a “new name.”
This episode resumes our series on the Old Testament in the book of Revelation. Revelation 2 raises questions about the identity of the angels in the early chapters of the book, an identification that is linked to the lampstands. As noted in earlier episodes, the lampstands have a distinct supernatural (members of God’s council) context, drawn from the Old Testament. How does that context work in Revelation 2-3, where John is instructed to write to the angel of each church? In addition, who are the Nicolaitans? In this episode we explore how the Old Testament contributes to answers.
