2024 Feb 4th, Sunday Morning Service

We're going through this series because this book of Revelation needs to be understood.

The Old Testament says every word of God is pure the New Testament says every word is profitable. We want to look at every word. So this morning we're going to continue our study of chapter 8. This is a very powerful in some ways a very shocking series and at the same time a very joyous and hopeful one because it portrays for us in very clear terms. The future of God's own children and the future of those who reject Christ the Judgment of God, and that's the tragedy. Let's look at verses 6 through 12. And the Seven Angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound the first sounded and there was hail and fire mixed with blood and it was hurled to the Earth and a third of the Earth was burned up and a third of the trees were burned up and all the grass was burned up the second Angel sounded and something like a great Mountain burning with fire was hurled into the sea and a third of the sea became blood and a third of the creatures which were in the sea and had life died and a third of the ships were destroyed the third Angel sounded and a great star fell from heaven burning like a torch. And it fell on a third of the rivers and on the Springs of waters.

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I need the pace and I can't so I'm doing it here.

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The star is named wormwood and a third of the waters became wormwood and many people died from the waters because they were made bitter the fourth Angel sounded and a third of the song a third of the Moon and a third of the stars were struck so that a third of them would be darkened and the day would not Shine for a third of it and the night in the same way as we approach the events just described. All of Heaven is absolutely silent.

first one says there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. What it do stat silence was the breaking of the seventh seal. And what is in the seventh seal is described here by trumpet judgments. So was all of the host of Heaven gathered around the Throne of God to see what is written on the scroll that is unrolled. They are stunned into silence and after a brief period of Silence than the actions begin. What is described in that final seventh seal encompasses seven trumpet judgments and seven Bowl judgments the final deadly Vengeance of God that is poured out on the earth in the last time. Is described here. These are terrifying judgments. It's Little Wonder That Heaven itself is stunned into silence all of them together make up the unavoidable wrath of God during the. Of time which the Bible calls the day of the Lord. There is a sense in which this is a man's day a man can sort of do what he will with in some limitations. There's also a sense in which this is Satan's day. He is given certain Liberty within the parameters of God's tolerance and between Satan and man, they orchestrate the world in its system. But the day of the Lord is coming when the Lord takes over and establishes the kingdom of his son Jesus Christ, but before establishing of that kingdom is a destruction of the domain of Satan and man Now The Words which we just read take place during the time the Bible calls the tribulation that Rath culminates in the final Holocaust of judgment known as the day of the Lord the day of the Lord begins in the Sixth Seal, but there are five other seals of judgment to come before it The Sixth Seal is broken and there's a great earthquake the sun becomes black as sackcloth made of hair the moon becomes like blood the stars of the sky fall to the Earth. The sky is split apart like a scroll when it is rolled up and every mountain and Island are moved out of their places. This is the day of the Lord. It is a fearsome event described there at the end of chapter 6. The elements of it may continue the impact of it may be residual because those kinds of Holocaust are bound to have some long-term effect. It comes and it hits and that it is followed by the seventh seal and I believe the probably what you have described in the seventh seal described particularly as the blowing of these trumpets might just be giving us these people are crawling out from under the Rocks. They've just suffered the horrors of The Sixth Seal and we don't know if there's a Time Gap how long that time Gap might be but just when they maybe have settled back into some kind of acceptance of the way things are they are hit with a terrifying and rapid-fire trumpets and bull judgments that wrap up the final day of the Lord. We're now well into the tribulation and down to the final months of that. Is these events take place and what is depicted then a chapter 8 under the trumpet judgments and later in the chapters to come with the bull judgments in great detail about the judgments and we're looking at that detail. So as we come to 8:6 the world is already suffered through years of trouble Satan has been running loose false peace War famine pestilence has plagues earthquakes death has reigned over the Earth deadly destruction from God has occurred all ready by the time you come to the trumpet judgments and a Christ has risen, his reign of terror has become he has Massacre both Jews and Christians. He is terrorizing those who affirm their faith in Christ and he is dominating the World by this time. He has successfully deceived the world and following him. And so was fully in charge there's more to be said about his career in the chapters to come but the world has been going through the worst imaginable time in human history and they haven't seen anything yet. Finally the seventh trumpet will be blown a seventh angel will blow the seventh trumpet and it will all be over but before that final blowing about final trumpet all these trumpet judgments must also come to pass and you see all the hosts of Heaven can see that on the scroll and that is why they are stunned into silence. And then remember in the midst of their silence an angel moves and takes a golden censer and after going through some Priestly functions. He takes it in verse five and throws it to the Earth and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake. This is the seventh seal at least its opening as a Dev. Stating earthquake hits the Earth and then becomes the signal for the angels to blow their trumpets. So first six and the Seven Angels Who had who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound them now they're going to sounded sequence again. We don't know how long a time. This is we do know that one of the trumpets alone will last for 5 months according to 9:10. So there is some months involved in this the only one given a Time reference is the fifth angel and we really don't know what overlap there might be between the judgments. We only know what the scripture tells us what the angels have been waiting and I don't want you to think for a moment that they've only been waiting for 30 minutes. They haven't even though Heaven has been silent for about a half an hour. They've been waiting for a long time. I think they probably been waiting since the fall there has been anticipation in heaven that God would take back his world from Satan and Fallen man these angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound them remember now, they're described back. And first to as the Angels who stand before God called the presents Angels very elevated Angels who love and worship God in Christ with all their holy being who longed for Vindication and in some unique way stand before the very presence of God Gabriel is identified as such a present Angel one who stands before the Lord and they know that when they are given the word to blow their trumpets, they will initiate the most stupendous and devastating convulsions. The Earth is felt since the flood A good comparison might be a comparison between Joshua and Israel Jericho in the Old Testament Jericho was about to be visited with judgement destruction here. The whole earth is about to be visited with judgement destruction at Jericho seven blasts on seven trumpets by seven priests after a seven people fold. March on the 7th Day signal judgement here 7 blast on seven trumpets by seven angels during the seven-year tribulation signals judgement. Now I want to read you in 7 verses that I read are the first four trumpets and they're fairly brief and straightforward. The first for trumpets takes 7 versus and listen to that's the last three take 50 versus

The first four are related they are unique and yet they're related. They are intense but is not as intense as the last 3 and God has chosen to give us much more detail on them. Now these for trumpet judgments that I read to you have to do with the Earth. They are not being taken symbolically. They are being taken literally some people say this is all symbolic political judgment or social judgement or commercial judgement or economic upheaval. All of that kind of thing is going to be described later in the book what you have here are literal physical judgments on the Earth. Now let's look at the first trumpet verse 7 the first sounded and there was hail and fire mixed with blood and it was hurled to the earth. And the third of the Earth was burned up and a third of the trees were burned up in all the green grass was burned up. The first Angel sounded. The Horn of Wrath is blown the other six are waiting their turn and judgment triggered is quite interesting. There was hail and fire. There are a couple passages in the Old Testament where you see hail associated with Divine judgment, Isaiah 28 to Job 38 22 and 23 were God sent ale as a form of judgment and we shall see it again later on in the Book of Revelation. And fire we know of we all remember the story of Sodom and Gomorrah back in Genesis here. Is this Angel blows here. We are toward the end of the time of the tribulation and out of the sky comes hail and fire. We don't know any more than the fact that it comes. We don't know necessarily what it is or why it comes or where it comes from but we shouldn't be too surprised because you will remember back in verse five. It says that angel through a sensor to the Earth and is it came flying through space before it hits the Earth peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and that would all speak about hail and then as well the flashes of lightning would certainly ignite then it ends with an earthquake. The Earth is already been experiencing unbearable things. We saw in chapter 6 the collapse of the sky the devastating trembling and shaking of the earth and just as they're recovering from now. The Earth starts to shake again and I'm quite confident that this shaking would be the severe shaking yet. Just when things have gone back to some kind of calm the world begins to Rattle and Shake again from a scientific standpoint an earthquake of this magnitude could easily trigger volcanic eruptions volcanic eruptions could occur all over the globe send lava raining all over perhaps reflecting the imagery of the Angel remember what the angel through was a sensor filled with what fire Kohl's Henry Morris the scientist writes it is possible that worldwide volcanic explosions would be a normal consequence of a worldwide violent earthquake the masses of water vapor blown Skyward might well condense in the intense up draft as hailstones and showers of Burning Love of my will be cast upon the Earth the blood of him trapped men and animals b b been gold with them or possibly Showers of liquid water drops might be so contaminated with dust and gases as to appear blood red. Silver seven says hail and fire mixed with blood and they were all thrown to the Earth. This physical Holocaust isn't too far afield from what scientists fear. You remember study in The Sixth Seal. We saw how scientists fear the collapsing Universe raining meteorites and asteroids it may well be that this is what is being described here. We don't know it could be volcanic eruptions. It could be raining asteroids coming out of the sky and the tearing up of the sky, of course changing the weather patterns bringing a complex rain and hail flaming fragments of shattered, the asteroid or meteor coming blood red with smoke through the sky crash into the Earth, whatever the particular scientific explanation, it's clear what scripture says look at the result. A third of the Earth was burned up. The result is going to be a blazing fire that's going to burn one. Third of the world than a third of the trees were burned up. The Earth's forests are going to be devastated and that all the green grass was burned up. No shrubs. No grass no vegetation. No crops. The devastation will result in the loss of wood for construction the loss of watershed for protection the massive death of animals crops, totally devastated which provide food for animals with people eat as well food directly used by the Earth becomes devastated and the globe is scorched. This is a suitable judgement on man because you were remembering Romans 1:18 through 20. It says for the wrath of God is revealed from Heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of people who suppress the truth in unrighteousness because that which is known about God is that That within them for God made it evident for them for since the creation of the world is invisible attributes that is his eternal power and divine nature have been clearly perceived being understood by what has been made so that they are without excuse man should have been able to look at the world and the amounts creation and have concluded that there is a God and that God is powerful. They should have seen God and creation but they didn't verses 21 through 23 or even though they knew God they did not honor him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their reasonings and their senseless Hearts were darkened claiming to be wise they became fools and they exchanged the glory of the uncropped on corruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man, kind of birds four-footed animals and crawling creatures. And then in verse 25 for the exchanged the truth of God for falsehood and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator. Man words worships mother nature and the Earth man has failed to honor God failed to recognize. God gives God. No thanks gives God no place rejects his manifest glory in the creation and worship the creation rather than the Creator that preoccupation with Mother Nature that environmental atheism that evolutionist that says God is in everything and everything is God that kind of atheism that says man is no more valuable than a frog or a rat or a rock. And so God will destroy their false god men of made it got out of the earth and animals and even themselves and God will devastate the earth and its animal population as well as human population people worry about the ozone God's going to destroy the ozone layer all that stuff flying out of the sky is going to do a number on it. God will take over and God will get involved in global warming. God will turn up the heat. God will destroy the rainforest God will Slaughter the plants and the animals and as I've been saying all along if you think we're messing up this world wait till you see what he does to it.

And not only will their Source of Life be taken but their God will be destroyed for their God is creation. Look at the second trumpet in verses 8 and 9 the second Angel sounded and something like a great Mountain burning with fire was hurled into the sea and a third of the sea became blood and a third of the creatures which were in the sea and had life died in a third of the ships were destroyed the first trumpet dealt with the land the second trumpet deals with the c a god judges of another point of his provision for man. And again, man is not accepted the fact that God created the sea to be a blessing the man man has refused to acknowledge God refuse to thank you man has become a worshiper of that part of creation as well. And so the Lord is going to destroy that idle even his own creation so devastated by sin. So the second Angel sounds and calls forth cataclysm number two and it says something like a great Mountain not a great mountain with something like a great Mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea. Now. You don't have to be a college graduate to figure out what that might be some meteorite some piece of a star will come out of the sky only it's going to be something like a massive Mountain crashing into the ocean. Just what scientists now fear the massive Rock continent surrounded by combustible gases, which ignite as they enter the atmosphere and making a flaming ball and is it's going to be steered right at the Earth by the force of God's power. I believe everybody is going to be able to see this on TV going to take a while to get here and all kinds of predictions are going to be made about where it's going to hit and if it's going to miss it's going to hit. Some people won't have to watch it on television. I'll be right there to see it. Everybody will see it as the Earth moves around at some point and when it hits it's going to hit the sea and immediately of third of the sea becomes blood now. There's no way to know what this is whether it's actual blood that comes from the devastation of the animals in the sea. The fiery explosions that are going on. The gas is around it or going to set off a smoke which blankets the sun in the moon with a reddish color that makes everything look like blood again. Dr. Henry Morris rights the ability to turn water into blood either by filling it with the actual blood of dead animals or more likely by transforming a chemically or biochemically into blood red water Poison by multitudes of dead microorganisms as in the well-known red Tides, which occurred modern oceans that made such an impression on ancient Israel that it was recounted in their songs. Such as Psalm 78 and Psalm 105. You have been a very simple statement that the Waters of the sea become blood what that means. I don't know whether it's the reflection of the gassiest read in the sky or whether it's the chemical changes that occur when this mountain hits the see whether it's the death of microorganisms. It is an important. It's the point in verse 9 that is important a third of the creatures in the sea that had life died in a third of the ships were destroyed the ships go because it's going to create a tsunami tidal wave like the world has never seen a third of the creatures were in the sea are going to die. This is going to freak out the save the whale folks. Poison in a third of the sea is going to kill a third of its population from minut organisms to the largest whales the food chain will be terribly disrupted whatever the poisonous effect might be equally as dramatic is going to be this Title Wave is going to destroy a third of the ships in the world the Mad disruption of Commerce that this will cause no fishing no ships. No transport Garcia visions that God gave to some of the Old Testament prophets in which they saw this as they looked into the future. For example Hosea 43 there for the land morons and everyone who lives in at languages along with the animals of the field and the birds of the sky and even the fish of the sea disappear. Zephaniah 13. I will remove human and animal life. I will remove the birds of the sky and the fish of the sea and you have a very similar word of Prophecy in the very early part of Isaiah's prophecy where he sees the same kind of thing happening as God comes in judgment. He talks about the mountains in the hills and all of those things being devastated as well as the sea not just the land. Then we come to the third trumpet with the whole Heaven collapsing in on people in earthquakes and fire Devastation of the sea verses 10 and 11 the third Angel sounded and a great star fell from heaven burning like a torch and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the Springs of waters, the stars named wormwood and a third of the waters became wormwood and many people died from the waters because they were made bitter. This takes a different approach at first the hail and fire comes everywhere all over the land and second is one great Mountain comes roaring out of the sky and plunges into the sea, but this great star burns like a torch and apparently as it comes through the atmosphere at the synagogue rates and spreads all over the globe and falls on the rivers and the Springs everywhere. And at this point I just need to remind you that summer going to survive and go on to the kingdom, but the rest of the world is rejecting the longer they fight it the longer they resist the harder their hearts become so that at the end they will not repent if they can survive all of this and not turn to God their hearts are hardened. Say Angel Number 3 adds to the celestial Fanfare and a great star falling out of Heaven burning like a torch. It could be something like a comment. We really don't know but it's certainly what Jesus called Luke 21:11 fearful sights and great signs from heaven. This Celestial body disintegrates as it nears the Earth scatters over the globe its Flames touches Springs and rivers and this is really devastating you can live for a while without the crops because there are certain things stockpiled at certain things can certain things preserved you can live for a while without the ocean without the sea water but you can't live without fresh water. And again, the third of the world is judged a third of the rivers and the third of the springs and verse 11 says many people are going to die verse 9 talked about sea animals dying of ships being destroyed for 7 talks about trees and grass now. We're getting to the people You can live without seawater. Then you can live for a while without crops, but you can't live without the water. Now the name of the star is called wormwood and it's an app named wormwood is the deadly liquor substance called Absinthe. The word is used in the New Testament only in this one verse so it's kind of hard to trace back to its precise meaning but the term wood worm wood is also used several times in the Old Testament. It's translated once in King James as Hemlock. It's a poison in Deuteronomy, 29 18 and Proverbs 54 notes that it is very bitter. It produces drunkenness. According to Lamentations 3 15 and eventually death All of this just to point out that wormwood refers to something better some poison. That is actually deadly whatever this poison is. It is lethal a third of the waters became wormwood. It says in verse 11 and as a result many men died from the waters because they were made poisonous the river still run, but they run with deadly poison. The wells are full, but they're full of death the lakes of Rippling with lethal water. Then the 4th trumpet vs. 12 the fourth Angel sounded and a third of the Sun a third of the Moon a third of the stars were struck so that a third of them would be darkened in the day with. Shine for a third of it in the night in the same way. Now the attention moves away from Earth, we've dealt with land salt water fresh water. And now we look up and there's a partial eclipse the strikes the Sun the moon and the stars. You can only imagine the Panic on Earth as people are an ecologically seminars all over the globe trying to figure out how to react and try to figure out how to deal with the devastation and in the process before they can even approach a problem another one hits. Everybody is really into save the Earth and before they can come up with any solution the sky starts to go sun moon and stars reduced by a third again Henry Morris rights interesting Lee a naturalistic style. Dentist might have ejected such a thing is impossible this however would be to say more than he knows the nature of both the internal reactions in the sun and the external reactions on the sun surface are still unknown solar physicists until recently were confident that the sun's output of radiant energy resulted mainly from thermonuclear Fusion processes in the sun's interior now, however, the absence of the flux of solar neutrinos from the sun which would be generated by such reactions is causing the complete rethinking of the whole problem recent evidence that the sun is measurably shrinking in size apparently means that much of the sun's energy output results from gravitational collapse. Presumably this would be true of other stars as well. That's if the gravitational shrinking of the sun could be slowed down for a Time. Possibly. It's light output would also slowed down then he asks can Angel somehow reduce the gravitational forces of the forces of the Sun's mass since no one knows exactly what gravity is. Anyway, who's to say they can't sell solar physicists even got to do not really comprehend either the full nature of gravitational processes or a solar radiation processes. And since it is at least Plaza the God's Mighty Angels do understand such things. We're safe in assuming God's hosts are quite capable of complicating this tremendous iata's in the normal operation of all heavenly bodies and quote.

Of course. All he is doing is using scientific terminology to say God can do whatever he wants.

He cranked it up. He can crank it down. The loss of solar heat will cause radical drops and temperature over the Earth what that means is severe changes in meteorology violent storms weather changes that are absolutely unpredictable and unknown to man. There will be a total Interruption to the Botanical and biological Cycles. Is that begins to change everything in the world starts to go mad and Luke 21 25 and 26. Jesus said there will be signs in the sun and moon and stars and on the earth distress among nations in perplexity at the Roaring of the Sea and the waves people fainting from fear and the expectation of the things that are coming upon the world for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Descend it all up and then added verse 27 and then they will see the son of man coming in a cloud with power and great Glory.

All of this is leading up to that statement. Whatever would have been left on Earth to grow won't be able to grow now food becomes unavailable all those things that Isaiah and Jeremiah Ezekiel Joel Amos Zephaniah and Jesus said will come to pass. And can it get any worse? verse 13 Then I looked and heard an eagle flying and midheaven same with the loud voice. Woe. Woe woe to those who live on the earth because of the remaining Blast Of The Trumpet of the Three Angels who are about to sound worse is yet ahead. And again, I say all of this because men reject God and Christ the first for trumpets unimaginable, but nothing like the three yet to come now is the hour of Salvation. The disciples asked when is this going to come to pass and Jesus said nobody knows so be ready at any time in the way to be ready cuz the place your faith in Jesus Christ whom the Bible says delivers us from the Wrath to come. Let's pray. Father God our prayers and no one here today would say I reject Christ. I will not worship God I defy him I choose judgement. We thank you that's in can be covered by the blood of Christ. And for the one who placed his faith in him. There is complete and eternal forgiveness. And therefore there is no judgment for those who are in Christ. We thank you for that. Great truth, and we ask that you would make that real to every heart that we may flee to Christ to embrace the Salvation that he freely offers us and we thank you and your son's name. Amen. Thank you. You are dismissed.