Revelation 8:6--9:11; 16:1-11
Purpose: To show that God’s awful wrath will not turn sinners to God.
Aim: I want the listener to see that grace is the only answer to God’s coming wrath.
INTRODUCTION: We have come to the final seal or chapter in the scroll that was opened in heaven by Jesus Christ back in chapter six. In this seventh and final chapter there are seven trumpets announcing God’s wrath and seven vials that contain God’s wrath against this world. One Bible commentator observed, "John seems to have gathered together all the horrors and terrors from all the stories of the avenging wrath of God and hurled them at the unbelieving world in one last terrible deluge of disaster." [1]
The message of God’s wrath is a powerful message, but it is NOT the most powerful message in the Bible. In our Lord’s story about the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man who wound up in hell thought that a message about God’s wrath and judgment would be powerful enough to persuade his brothers to get right with God. Luke 16:30-31 30 "But [the rich man] said, ’No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’ 31 "But he said to him, ’If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’ " (NAU)
The most powerful message in the Bible is the Gospel. As Paul made clear in: Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.... (NAU) 1 Corinthians 1:18 For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (NAU)
If the message of the wrath of God is not powerful enough to change lives, then why is God pouring out His wrath on mankind? We find the answer to that question in 1 Corinthians 1:19-20 19 For it is written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And the cleverness of the clever I will set aside." 20 Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? (NAU)
The arrogance of those who have refused God’s grace must be wiped out in order to preserve God’s position of purity and holiness. Jeremiah 9:23-25 23 Thus says the Lord, "Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; 24 but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things," declares the Lord. 25 "Behold, the days are coming," declares the Lord, "that I will punish all ... (NAU)
We see the arrogance of man all around us today. In America, for example, we have replaced God with government. We look to Washington to meet our every need and solve our every problem. The Bible predicted that this would happen. Psalm 2:1-6 1 Why are the nations in an uproar And the peoples devising a vain thing? 2 The kings of the earth take their stand And the rulers take counsel together Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, 3 "Let us tear their fetters apart And cast away their cords from us!" 4 He who sits in the heavens laughs, The Lord scoffs at them. 5 Then He will speak to them in His anger And terrify them in His fury, saying, 6 "But as for Me, I have installed My King Upon Zion, My holy mountain." (NAU)
David goes on to warn us that humble dependence on God is the only way to avoid God’s wrath. Psalm 2:10-12 10 Now therefore, O kings, show discernment; Take warning, O judges of the earth. 11 Worship the Lord with reverence And rejoice with trembling. 12 Do homage to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way, For His wrath may soon be kindled. How blessed are all who take refuge in Him! (NAU)
Let’s see what God’s wrath will look like.
REVIEW:
1:1-20 I. John’s Vision of the Past "the things which you have seen"
2:1-5:14II. Christ’s Vision of the Present "the things which are"
Ch.6-22 III. John’s Vision of the Future "things which will take places"
6-7; 12-14 A. Satan’s war against God’s creation
8-11; 15-18 B. The wrath of God: the seventh seal
1. The preparation for God’s wrath
8:1-2 a. A dramatic pause in heaven "silence in heaven"
8:3-5 b. The prayers from believers "prayers of all the saints"
8:6 c. The gathering of the angels "angels...prepared themselves"
15:1-4 d. The song of the martyrs "sang the song"
15:5-8 e. The display of God’s glory "temple was filled with... the glory of God"
LESSON:
➽2. The desolation through God’s wrath
➽The Disaster
➽The trumpets(Heaven’s view)
➽The bowls(Earth’s view)
➽The bombarding storm
➽Vegetation burned 8:6-7
➽Sores on man 16:1-2
Joel 2:30-31 30 "I will display wonders in the sky and on the earth, Blood, fire and columns of smoke. 31 "The sun will be turned into darkness And the moon into blood Before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. (NAU)
➽The boiling sea
➽Fish & ships destroyed 8:8-9
➽Men on the ocean die 16:3
"...in A.D. 79, Mount Vesuvius erupted and decimated the city of Naples. Pliny, who witnessed this, wrote that he sky turned blacker than night. When the island volcano, Santorin, erupted it poured boiling water into the sea, turning it blood red and killing many fish." [2]
➽The blazing sky
➽Water becomes bitter 8:10-11
➽Water becomes blood 16:4-7
The Bible says that wormwood or bitterness is a result of sin.
Jeremiah 9:13-16 13 The Lord said, "Because they have forsaken My law which I set before them, and have not obeyed My voice nor walked according to it, 14 but have walked after the stubbornness of their heart and after the Baals, as their fathers taught them," 15 therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, "behold, I will feed them, this people, with wormwood and give them poisoned water to drink. 16 "I will scatter them among the nations, whom neither they nor their fathers have known; and I will send the sword after them until I have annihilated them." (NAU)
Jeremiah 23:15 "Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts concerning the prophets, ’Behold, I am going to feed them wormwood And make them drink poisonous water, For from the prophets of Jerusalem Pollution has gone forth into all the land.’ " (NAU)
Chapter 16. Here we have the answer to the question we saw in Revelation 6:10-11 10 and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?" 11 And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also. (NAU)
➽The blackened sky
➽Light is reduced 8:12-13
➽Men are burned 16:8-9
Chapter 8. Light will be reduced by a third. Jesus said in Luke 21:25 "There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, (NAU)
8:13 announces that the last three trumpets or woes will be even worse.
➽The buzzing locusts
➽Hell’s darkness9:1-11
➽Government’s darkness 16:10-11
9:1 A star can refer to an angel. Revelation 1:20 ...the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches.... (NAU) Jude 6 And angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned their proper abode, He has kept in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day, (NAU)
9:2-4 Notice that the power these demons had is severely limited. The only power they had "was given them." 2 Peter 2:4,9-10 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment; 9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment, 10 and especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority. Daring, self-willed, they do not tremble when they revile angelic majesties, (NAU)
9:5-6, 11 Satan’s purpose is to destroy. Abaddon means destruction and Apollyon means destroyer. When Satan offers freedom and pleasure like he did to Eve in the Garden of Eden, he is lying. 1 Peter 5:8 Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. (NAU)
9:7-10 John could be seeing some modern military weapons, maybe ones that haven’t even been invented yet. [Picture] But remember, this is how the events on earth look from heaven’s viewpoint. There is darkness on the earth so man can’t see what is being described. Those who are on earth could only hear and feel what was going on.
Chapter 16 Notice how Jesus described hell: Matthew 25:30 "Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (NAU)
CONCLUSION: Common sense tells us that if people just got scared enough they would run to Jesus for safety. The events in the book of Revelation prove that the fear of pain will not usually persuade someone who is living for himself to turn to Christ.
➽The power to change comes only from the Gospel.
➽Religion will not protect you from God’s wrath.
Matthew 7:22-23 22 "Many will say to Me on that day, ’Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ 23 "And then I will declare to them, ’I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’ (NAU)
➽Hard work will not protect you from God’s wrath.
Ephesians 2:8-9 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. (NAU)
➽Sincerely believing a lie will not protect you from God’s wrath.
Proverbs 16:25 There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death. (NAU)
The Good News that Christ died in your place on the Cross is the only way to be completely free from the fear of God’s wrath. 1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. (NAU) Christ’ love for His own is perfect! It is beyond amazement to think that our Creator would come to earth to die a cruel and painful death for His creatures who have defiantly gone their own selfish way.
Are you trusting completely in Christ’s love to protect you from God’s wrath? If you are, how long has it been since you praised and worshipped Jesus for loving you?
If you are not trusting God’s righteousness to protect you then you only have God’s wrath to look forward to.
➽"If men are not won by grace they will never be won." William R. Newell
[1] William Barclay. Page 164
[2] “From Suffering to Singing” by Bob Marcaurelle Page 23
