Sermon Tone Analysis

Revelation Series #16

 

Part 3 of Chapter 11

 

*The 7th Trumpet, 24 Elders Worship*

 

Do you Remember the Last words from Revelation that we read two weeks ago?

 

11:14 - /The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon/

 

so now, let's move to the final section of chapter 11 and the beginning of the Final Trumpet, the beginning of the greatest outpouring of God's wrath that the world has seen or heard of

 

READ - 15-19

 

Viewpoints

 

Historicist - the 6th trumpet included everything from 9:13 through 11:14 … The intervening material has depicted a period of 1260 years, which include papal persecution of the true church, the Reformation has occurred and a conflict with the Turks which conquered "a third of mankind".

Now we hear the 7th trumpet which ends the 1st series of visions.

This trumpet brings us to the end of the age.

It is not a momentary sounding but an extended period including the pouring out of the 7 bowls of wrath, the last of which brings the end of the world.

The bowls, begin to be fulfilled in the French Revolution but the last few bowls still await the fulfillment at the coming of the Lord.

Preterist - though it is announced that the kingdoms of the world have become the kingdoms of our Lord … this is NOT a declaration that the entire earth has at this point come under the forcible and conscious rule of Christ, as at the end of time.

The time frame here is the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70 … David Clark says

/The first great opposer is swept awayand the 'kingdoms of this world' no rather the rule or sway of this world belongs to Christ.

Now the kingdom was really given to Christ at his ascension but two things had to happen before it was rightly on its way as a world conquering power.

The first was spiritual, outpouring of the Spirit at Pentecost; the second was physical, the breaking down of the barrier of Judaism in the fall of the first great opposer.

Then Christianity became a world religion./

They go on to say that there may be a tendency to read in the expression, /"the time of the dead, that should be judged"/ ; a reference to the final resurrection and judgment of all the dead at the final coming of Christ.

Jay Adams says though … /this marks a transitional period in chapter 12.  Before everything is about Judaism and after everything is about the Roman Empire/

 

OK

 

Futurists - There is a wide spectrum of understanding of these verses among Futurists who are for the most part Premillennialist.

But here is a run down.

Most see this 7th Trumpet as Announcing the 2nd Coming of Christ to remove all opposition and take authority and establish his millennial Kingdom.

Which may raise the question of chronology … Wolvoord says "/how can kingdoms of the world become at this point Kingdoms of Christ when, as a matter of fact, seven vials are to be poured out?

The answer is that just as the seven trumpets are part of the seventh seal, so the seven vials are part of the seventh trumpet/

 

"He shall reign forever and ever" is not a discrepancy with he shall reign for 1000 years.

In the millennial reign he begins and it continues for eternity in the new heaven and the new earth.

There also then is a resurrection of the dead, it seems, and a judgment in v18.

But dispensationalists believe the Church is Raised at the Rapture … and the Wicked at the end of the millennium.

But this seems to place them at the same time.

Which would be too late for the church and too early for the wicked.

Wolvoord explains "this is the resurrection of the righteous dead rather than the wicked who are not raised until after the millennium".

He and Lindsey and others would define this as NOT the church but the believers of the Old Testament era and those who became believers during the Tribulation who will be resurrected and rewarded at the end of the Tribulation.

While this then gives us 3 Resurrections, 4 if you count the Witnesses, others would explain it this way … the seventh trumpet is both the commencement AND the end of the Millennium.

It is marks the Second Coming of Christ at the Beginning and resurrection at the end.

Ironside writes "the 18th verse covers the entire millennium and carries us on the judgment of the wicked dead, to the end of time … The day of judgment then would be 1000 years long"

 

This would say then that the 7th trumpet is a synopsis, a table of contents as wiersbe says to the rest of the book and the rest of history … MORE ON THIS LATER

 

Spiritual - The trumpet brings in the final reign of God and he shall reign for ever and ever.

It is the close of Act III of the drama.

After ch.

6, this is the 2nd picture given to the end.

Instead of giving details, this trumpet gives us a picture of heaven after the judgment and shows us what the judgment means for God and his Kingdom.

Many manuscripts omit "and is to come" in verse 17, if this is accurate, then the Lord NOW is simply the who IS and who was … because there is not further reason to predict his coming

The ark of the covenant, is a reminder of God's faithfulness.

The chapter ends with a display of the solumn artillery of heaven (alford)

 

 

 

 

So … The second woe has ended, that is the 6th Trumpet and now the 7th Woe

 

Let's remember quickly the Trumpets

1)   Hailstones - destroy 1~/3 of grass and tree

2)   Mountain-like Fireball in the Sea turns to blood … destroys 1~/3 of ships, animals in the sea

3)   Star-like a torch (wormwood) destroys 1~/3 of fresh water

4)   1~/3 of Light is darkened day and night

5)   Demons who are imprisoned are released and attack those without GOD's mark for 5 months

6)   Army comes from the Euphrates and 1~/3 of earth's population killed

 

Two Witnesses have been on earth for 3 ½ years seemingly immortal they are killed, lay dead for 3 days in the street, then get up and are called up into heaven

 

Earthquake hits Jerusalem 1~/10 of buildings destroyed and killing 7,000 people of record, and it would seem that a number turn to Christ in response.

Now comes the 3rd, final, and worst woe, at the end of the 7th Seal.

We are in the 2nd ½ of the 7 year tribulation period

 

Go back with me to Rev 10:7 - /In the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets/

The NLT words it this way /When the seventh angel blows his trumpet, God's mysterious plan will be fulfilled.

It will happen just as he announced it to his servants the prophets/

 

Those words are important for us to understand this section of scripture.

This passage seems to be broad and inclusive, it seems to lump together things that elsewhere happen over different periods of time.

Now if I were to have said to you a month ago, "In the 2005~/06 Day of Football bowls, Teams will be Crowned Victors, Teams will be Crushed and Defeated, Steers will overcome Gladiators, Lions will outlast Indian Warriors, Worthless Nuts from Columbus will devastate leprechauns from South Bend.

Cheerleaders and Grown Men will cry, Boys and Old women will Cheer; bones like hearts will be broken, knees will be bent in submission and in injury; some will dive and catch glory, others will stretch out to grasp air; some will run over opposition, others will run as it were into a wall; and only one will remain unvanquished."

Now … Besides being impressed by my eloquence, If I said all of that … would you expect those things to happen all on the same day?

Is it a contradiction for me to lump all of those things together or is it natural to lump them together before a more detailed description of the Bowl Season?

Now we see … what is happening here in the last part of chapter 11.

The 7th trumpet sounds but it will also come to include 7 bowls or vials of God's judgment.

The 7th Trumpet announces the completion of all things, but all things are still yet to be completed.

Warren Wiersbe calls this section the "Table of Contents" for the rest of the book.

So we need to recognize that the 7th Trumpet doesn't just give a staccato blast … no it is a LONG EXTENDED DRAWN out BLAST … it is DURING that blast … that lasts the final period of the Tribulation …

It is long enough that the 7 Bowls of God's Wrath are poured out, Satan and his Antichrist are defeated, Christ returns with his own and takes ownership of this world and so here … it begins ….

Here it is laid out for us and then will be explained more deeply in the following chapters

 

Let's divide this Summary into 3 parts tonight

 

*1.

Coronation of a Victorious King*

 

Now some have said that this picture is flashing forward to the End of the Tribulation and the Winning of the Final Battle

Others would say that this is just saying that the World is open to Jesus now …

Others say that this is a pronouncement in Heaven of what was about to be fulfilled … I personally tend to lean toward the latter … It is being declared in Heaven as God is about to allow the final workings of his plan to make it a reality in all of the Universe on every dimension, to let all see and experience in full reality what has ALWAYS been …

 

Can we just get a Glorious Picture of Jesus here tonight

This IS the Revelation of Jesus Christ isn't it?

There *were Loud Voices* - perhaps the entire angelic choirs of Heaven announce this Victorious Pronouncement of Truth …

 

The KINGDOM (singular is the best reading) - /basileia ~/bas-il-*i*-ah~// royal power, dominion, rule, not to be confused with an actual kingdom but rather the right or authority to rule over a kingdom … the territory subject to the rule of a king

 

Right now the World is it's own Kingdom.

There are many countries but they are all while subject to a Sovereign God, under the influence and dominion of Satan.

The Kingdom of God is in the Human Heart.

Because of our Sin and choices, a Sovereign God has given over limiter control.

This world has been experiencing the result of being a fallen world.

It is a world turned over to Satan.

We may call this a Christian nation but it is not.

There are Christians here but we are no more a Christian nation than England, than France, Than Russia, than Iraq.

You may not like that but this Kingdom has been allowed to be influenced and under the Dominion of Satan

But in those days it will be more so than ever before.

The Restrainer, the Holy Spirit will be removed as his Temple, the individual hearts of the Church has been caught up into glory.

And this world will LOOK and Feel like Satan's dominion, his playground.

But THEN the Territory of Satan, the Kingdom of this world, has BECOME the Kingdom of our Lord and Jesus Christ

 

Satan will be dethroned …

 

Satan offered Jesus the Kingdoms of the world once … "just bow down to me one time" … but Jesus wouldn't go the cheap route for disobedience always results in temporary pleasure, temporary treasure, temporary power, temporary wisdom, temporary authority

 

But Jesus was obedience to Death, even death on the cross and he has received and inheritance …