The Seven Bowls of God's Wrath | Revelation 16:1-9 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Bible Study Series)

It's a pleasure to be with you here today.

You know, as I was preparing this message, I was reminded

that we often forget that when the Lord Jesus lived on the

earth and ministered through his incomparable preaching and

teaching, He did more than just explain what he would accomplish

through his death and resurrection.

He did more than just teach us how to worship the Father and

treat one another, including our enemies.

He did more than give us insight into the spiritual realm and the

eternal world. He also predicted the future,

and specifically, He told us in wonderful detail what the world

will undergo in the period just before His return.

Moreover, people often overlook that what Christ preached and

prophesied about the end of the world is expanded and given to

us in further detail in the very last book of the Bible, the Book

of Revelation. Which means that the recorded

words of Jesus in the Gospels regarding that era known as the

Tribulation period is, is just a summary of what would later be

fleshed out through the Apostle John in the final account of

Holy Writ. And before we look at this study

and these incredibly precise prophecies in the Book of

Revelation, I want us to be reminded about a certain comment

that Jesus Christ himself made about that era that is quite

sobering. So usually at this point I would

invite you to the Book of Revelation, but let's take a

peek in the book of Matthew in chapter 24 looking at verse 21,

Matthew 24, beginning in verse 21,

Jesus Christ says here, for then there will be great tribulation,

such as not been from the beginning of the world until

now. No and never will be.

And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would

be saved. But for the sake of the elect,

those days will be cut short. Now what does Christ mean when

he says those days? If those days had not been cut

short, no human being would be saved.

It's it's quite simple, though perhaps for some difficult to

accept. If the Lord did not in his

permission to unleash all these calamities and catastrophes

which are manifestations of his wrath and holy justice, if he

did not determine an end to them, if they went on

indefinitely, no one would be able to survive.

It would be absolute and complete annihilation.

And this speaks to the severity of God's wrath toward those in

that final generation. At the same time, it also

reveals to us that God's judgment will not be executed

arbitrarily. It will not be uncontrolled.

It will be calculated, it will be orderly, and it will end at a

determined point. And we are going to be reminded

of this as we look at the fascinating visions that amplify

what Christ taught in this very chapter in Matthew as we look to

Revelation chapter 16. So now let's turn to our main

Revelation 16 · chapter mention

text and read from verse one down to verse 9.

As many of you know, what we find here is the final sequence

of the Lord's judgment before he revamps and transformed this

very world through the reign of the promised physical Son of God

and his Kingdom. And this final sequence is known

as the seven bowls of God's wrath.

We've already examined the seven seals.

We already studied the seven trumpets.

But after this last series, there is no further judgement of

this magnitude to come. What you and I are about to

enter is the last of the last of God's wrath in the Tribulation

period. This is it.

This is a significant turning point in our study of the end

times, and we will not rush through this chapter because

there is much that it has to offer.

And one way of organizing these seven bowls of God's wrath in

our understanding is by realizing that they are

organized in three main parts. The first four bowls are

designated to affect the natural world.

The 5th and the 6th bowl will be directed towards the political

realm of that time, namely the Kingdom of the Antichrist and

the rulers of all nations. And finally, the 7th bowl is the

apex of all judgments. This is going to be poured out

symbolically as we're going to read in the next few weeks, and

it is going to be the final cleansing agent that will wipe

the world clean before Christ ushers in the fullness of His

Kingdom on the earth. And for the sake of time today,

we will consider the first four bowls this afternoon and see

what God will do in creation as He is wrapping things up.

The very closing moments of human history are before us in

this prophecy, and it should sober us, and it should remind

us of the great majesty of our God, among other things that we

will see today. So let's look at it, the first

four bowls beginning in verse one.

Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven

angels go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the

wrath of God. So the first Angel went and

poured out his bowl on the earth, and harmful and painful

sores came upon the people who bore the mark of the beast and

worshipped its image. The second Angel poured out his

bowl into the sea and it became like the blood of a corpse and

every living thing died that was in the sea.

The third Angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the

springs of water, and they became blood.

And I heard the Angel in charge of the water say, Just are you,

O Holy One, who is and who was? For you brought these judgments,

for they have shed the blood of Saints and prophets, and you

have given them blood to drink. It is what they deserve.

And I heard the altar saying, Yes, Lord God the Almighty, true

and just are your judgments. The 4th Angel poured out his

bowl on the sun, and it was allowed to scorch people with

fire. They were scorched by the fierce

heat and they cursed the name of God who had power over these

plagues. They did not repent and give him

glory. Father, we choose to give you

glory today. We choose to repent because we

know that in repentance we find life, we find forgiveness, we

find mercy. We pray Lord, that as we look at

these verses, you would captivate us, make these truths

real to us. Oh Lord, we're fully aware that

even looking at these horrifying prophecies we can allow our

minds to wander. Instead, we pray that every word

that will be shared would arrest us as we realize the reality of

who you are and rejoice in it. In Jesus name we pray.

Amen. Let's look at these bowls one by

one, shall we? We look at the first one in

verses 1 to 2, and we notice that this bowl, when it is

poured out, will be poured out on the earth.

Remember, the first four bowls deal with creation, deal with

the natural order. And this first Angel, without

hesitation, responds to the voice from the temple in heaven,

which is God speaking, and he lets out what seems to be a

plague that harms the body. It says here in verse 2 that the

Angel, the first Angel, went out and poured out his bowl in the

earth. And harmful and painful sores

came upon the people. The people.

Now, what are these sores? There's a lot of speculation,

but most likely we're talking about cancerous tumors.

We're talking about severe agitation to the flesh.

We're talking about something that will be of great magnitude

in terms of the pain and the distress and the discomfort, but

we have to be very careful. God is not, again, arbitrarily

just letting loose this act. It is aimed at a particular

group, and that group here in verse 2 are those who bore the

mark of the beast and worship its image.

This is quite interesting. We find here that the mark of

the beast is something that people will wear, will brand

themselves with in this period of human history as a way of

pledging their allegiance to somebody who will one day rule

the world and claim himself to be God.

And in doing so, they are actually trying to preserve

their own survival. Remember, the Antichrist is

going to coerce the masses to give their devotion to him.

And so in order to spare themselves from economic

distress and to ultimately escape the death penalty, many

people will bow their knee to the Antichrist.

And what's so startling is that whatever provision or promise

the Antichrist makes for these people who think that this is

the best choice that I have in this time of uncertainty and

calamity, this is the best option.

Well, ultimately he will fail to protect them and provide for

them in the greatest time of need when God's wrath shows up.

And there are a couple of very important truths that we can

draw from this. The first is that most people,

even today, not just then but now, make decisions without

accounting for judgment day. They don't factor in that final

day of accountability. So they plan and they purchase

and they pursue and they invest thinking that whatever I do in

this life is all to my existence.

And that's what people will do then.

But if you know the Bible, then you are aware that over over

again in the Scriptures we are reminded that yes, a majority of

people will in fact live to profit in this age alone while

forfeiting everything else in the life to come.

And we have to avoid that temptation.

In Proverbs 11 verse 4, the Holy Spirit says riches do not profit

Proverbs 11:4

in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from

death. Riches can offer a lot in this

world, but God shows us in the single verse, and we find it

throughout the pages of the Word of God, that riches can offer

you nothing when it comes to the most important thing about you,

what will happen to your soul? And that's what we find here, a

clear example of those who accepted the mark and who may

have counted themselves among the winners.

One of those Christians rejecting the mark of the beast

because of their allegiance to Jesus.

Is Jesus helping you now to survive?

Does Jesus put food on your dinner table for your family?

Antichrist does. Where are the answers in your

Christian faith? With all the disasters around

us, Antichrist seems to provide some help.

But whatever winning they think that they are enjoying is but

for a brief time. In fact, those who rejected the

mark, namely Christians, and suffered because of it end up

escaping something far more costly.

Many people make decisions without taking into account

Judgement Day. Secondly, we also find here that

this first bowl illustrates the painful outcome of false

worship, the results of placing your adoration, your devotion

towards something or someone else apart from God.

There is irony in this plague. Think about it.

You had this group, the masses, the nations, marking themselves

on their right hand or their forehead in order to pledge

their loyalty to this man. And when God pours out this

first of the last of judgments, He inflicts their bodies.

And when you look at this more carefully, you have to

understand that this disease that breaks out did not just

come for the afternoon. We get the impression from the

context that it was lasting, didn't just disappear after a

few minutes. Look at Revelation 16 verse 10

Revelation 16:10

to get confirmation of that. It says here the 5th Angel

poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast and its

Kingdom was plunged Into Darkness.

People nod their tongues in anguish and curse the God of

heaven for their pain and sores. So by the 5th bowl the sores are

still there. They did not repent of their

deeds. Brothers and sisters, please

lean in and hear this. This is just one of the many

examples in the Bible that there is a kind of worship we offer

that brings us lasting peace, and there is a kind of worship

that we can engage in that invites lasting pain.

You know what's the difference? You know what makes a

difference? The object of your worship.

If you and I give our affection and our submission and our love

toward anything above God, it may provide immediate relief,

may give you a sense of pleasure, it may offer you the

identity in the wholeness that you've been looking for your

whole life. But whatever it may offer, I

tell you based on the authority of God's Word, it will always be

followed by sorrow, because the blessings of worship can only be

realized when they are directed towards the one who alone

deserves the worship. That's God.

You know many people are familiar with Psalm 16, verse

Psalms 16:11

11. You have made note to me, the

paths of life at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

In your presence there is fullness of joy.

We love that it. It shows the endless pleasure

that God gives us in His presence, the uninterrupted joy

that is found in Him. And yet many people fail to

understand that David also said something about place.

Placing your sorrow and something apart from God or

placing your substance and your satisfaction is something apart

from God. In verse 4 of that same Psalm,

he says the sorrows of those who run after another God shall

multiply. That's often not quoted.

You chase anything else more than God.

You adore anything else more than God.

You serve anything else more than God.

What's guaranteed is the multiplication of sorrow.

That is just a part of God's order of things.

It is established in His law because you and I were created

to love Him supremely. So we all have the choice,

finding the fullness of joy and the the joy of of his presence

and his bliss and his fellowship that will never be taken from

us, that will never run dry, or the chase after anything else

that tries to persuade you. And sorrow will be met.

Certainly that's what we'll see at the end of times.

People will pursue the Antichrist thinking that he is

their answer and in the end they are met with sores and much

sorrow. Let's look at the second bowl in

verse 3. The second Angel poured out his

bowl into the sea, and it became like the blood of a corpse and

every living thing died that was in the sea.

So again the 1st 4 bowls deal with nature.

Now we go from something being poured on the earth and that

speaks namely about those who inhabit the earth, to now a

second Angel pouring out his bowl into the sea.

And all we have to mark from the second bowl is the fact that

every living thing died that was in the sea.

Now, why is that significant? I'll tell you one reason.

Yes, it illustrates just how devastating this blow will be on

the economy of this generation, but it also is another

confirmation of the way the Book of Revelation should be

interpreted. There are alternative views of

how we should unpack this set of prophecies, and one way that you

and I can ground ourselves in the proper way is by

understanding that Revelation is generally chronological, and so

this is one other proof text for that truth.

So we see that the sea is being harmed here, but this is not the

first time that the sea was affected by God.

This is the bold judgments. But let's rewind to the trumpet

judgments. Come with me to Revelation 8,

Revelation 8:8

verse 8, and I'll tell you in a second why all of this is

important. Revelation 8, verse 8, it says

Revelation 8:8

here the second Angel blew his trumpet.

These are judgments that happened some time before this

bold judgment. The second Angel blew his

trumpet and something like a great mountain burning with fire

was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood.

1/3 of the living creatures was in the sea that died, and a

third of the ships were destroyed.

It's clear, isn't it? There's an escalation taking

place here, and there are some who propose otherwise, and it

really confuses the simplicity of the unfolding of these

prophecies. All I'm saying is take this

text, tuck it away in your heart if you're ever challenged by a

viewer perspective of this book that calls you to abandon the

simple timeline of it, because understanding how this all flows

has greater implications of how we view the end times than we

might think. So things are getting worse.

Things are getting more intense, things are leading up to the

culmination of the age. OK, but is there any practical

insight with the second bowl? Absolutely.

You ready for this? It's simple.

God's patience has virtually run out.

Time is up. The reason why he only affected

1/3 of the sea and 1/3 of virtually most of the natural

world and the trumpet judgment is because he still gave them a

chance. He didn't completely obliterate

it, He still dispensed mercy. But they they keep rejecting it.

And so now you come to this moment and you realize he's

actually removing everything. Enough is enough.

Human history is coming to a close, and the world is being

prepared as it is being cleansed, for the Son of God to

renew it and to cover it with His glory in a way that humanity

has never experienced. How does that impact you and I?

Here's how it does. This future reality reminds us

of just how fragile our world is, just how flimsy you and I

are. Have you ever just gone about

your day and thought to yourself, who's holding all of

this together? Well, in Genesis, you and I

learned that with a word, God spoke everything into existence.

And in Revelation, we learned that with a word, He can bring

an end to absolutely everything with a word.

And today, according to Hebrews, all of our systems are in order.

We get to go fishing. We get to have food, we get to

have clear skies, we get to have rain.

The sun is placed exactly where it needs to be positioned not to

destroy us because God upholds it with the power of his word.

And there's a time coming with with that same word.

He'll say destroy it and it will be destroyed and nobody can stop

it. Be humbled today.

I'm humbled. I'm borrowing my next breath

from Him. My heart is beating because of

His mercy, and so is yours. All these politicians and all

these people in power thinking that they can actually determine

things. You are at the mercy of Almighty

God. You can't even tie your shoe

without God's permission. And so God is humbling these

sinners, but it doesn't mean that the Saints can't be

humbled. We must be humbled and we must

remember your God. We come to the third bowl in

verses 4 to 7. This is something very unique in

comparison to the other bowls. It says here in verse 4, the

third Angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs

of water, and they became blood, very similar to what happened

with the sea. But then there's this

interruption. An angel's about to speak.

And the reason for that is because we go from the sea to

different bodies of water being contaminated, namely rivers and

springs of water. So what?

What kind of practical implications does this have?

People can't have drinking water anymore.

That's a problem. For obvious reasons.

The basic necessity for survival is now removed from the world.

And the readers perhaps looking at this, maybe you're thinking

this and you're wrestling now because you're trying to

reconcile this God who claims to be a God of love and compassion.

And we haven't even get past the third bowl and he's already

removed water from people's lips.

He's cut off the refreshment, the replenishment, their fuel.

We know there are some parts of the world now where people don't

have access to clean water. Imagine the entire world being

stripped of that gift. Nowhere to go, no supply, no

nation that is a safe haven. No matter where you look, the

news breaks out. There is nothing for us to

drink. Imagine the carnage.

Imagine the added frustration of those who are already trying to

deal with their sores and businesses that have been run to

the ground because the sea is now poisoned.

And now, before you can even blink, there is nothing for me

to put to these dry, calloused lips.

Who is this God? And we're ready to sit on the

judgment seat and analyze him and accuse him.

And an Angel speaks to his defense.

The Holy Spirit knows how we're thinking and he knows

potentially what we're dealing with in our own hearts.

So notice what happens at this point.

There's an answer, verse 5. And I heard the Angel in charge

of the water say, just are you a holy One who is and who was for

you brought these judgments, for they have shed the blood of

Saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink.

It is what they deserve. Simply put, God is not doing

this out of cruelty. He's not being unpredictable.

He doesn't have sudden mood changes, and he just felt like

doing this because he's sadistic.

The first thing you and I encounter at this point that

we're trying to make sense of how these events and how these

acts reflect His heart of mercy and grace is that He's also

just. He's holy and to affirm God's

righteousness in these acts, the Angel brings to our attention

something that we probably have forgotten, that those who are

facing such suffering deserve it.

They have massacred Christians across the world in a way that

the church has never seen. The greatest slaughter of

believers will take place during the Tribulation period.

It will be spearheaded by this Antichrist fellow, and it will

be performed by those who are his followers.

They will hunt down Christians. They will RIP apart families.

They will wreak havoc on a scale again that is unprecedented.

Verse 6. For they have shed the blood of

Saints and prophets. So what does God determine?

You shed innocent blood. Here's blood to drink.

You killed innocent people, you're guilty.

And I will let you drink blood because you poured it out.

It is what they deserve. Listen, you and I don't want

what we deserve, because what would be our do is absolutely

terrifying. But thanks be to God, as I speak

today, the same one who offers this blood to drink gives us

something that we don't deserve. You know this very well, don't

you? It's not blood that poisons us

but heals us. It's not blood that causes us to

die but makes us alive. It's not blood poured out in

judgement. It's blood poured out for the

forgiveness of our sins. This imagery here of blood being

offered to drink takes us back to that night when Jesus Christ

was betrayed and he looked at his own who would indeed forsake

him. And he says in Matthew 2627,

after taking the cup, giving it thanks, he gave it to them,

saying, drink it, drink it, all of you.

For this is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for

the forgiveness of many. And tragically, there will be a

generation as revealed in Revelation 16, who have rejected

the blood of this covenant offered by the Saints and the

prophets who will be preaching and witnessing at this time and

will instead be forced to drink the blood of God's wrath.

And verse 7 says, and I heard the altar saying, the altar is

personified. They should bring us back to

chapter 6 when the martyrs in heaven cry out to God for

vengeance. And they said, Lord, when?

When will you vindicate us? And the Lord assure them in a

short time that time is here. Delayed prayer doesn't mean

denied prayer. These Saints wanted God to

defend them and deal with their enemies, and God came at the

right time. God always comes at the right

time. I know this is a very sobering

prayer request. Take that for any prayer

request. He never forgets your cry.

He never forgets the unfairness, the persecution, the injustice

that's been committed against you.

He loves you. He cherishes you more than you

can imagine. You shed blood.

OK, here's blood to drink. But we come now to the 4th bowl.

We saw the first Angel pouring out on the earth.

We saw the second one pouring into the sea, the third one

pouring into the rivers and springs of water.

And now we come to the 4th Angel in verse 8, and we read the

fourth Angel poured out his bowl on the sun and it was allowed.

Notice that phrase. It was allowed.

Again, we're going back to the authority of God here.

It was allowed. You know, the sun needs

permission from God to shine. The sun needs permission from

God to radiate a certain level of heat and to remain a certain

size. The sun needs God's permission,

and it was allowed to scorch people with fire.

So we come here. We realize that God seems to be

cornering the world. This judgment is becoming

comprehensive. The earth, the sea, the springs

of now, the sun, and the description of the sun's deadly

rise and temperature reminds us of Isaiah's prophecy about the

end times. You don't have to turn that, but

maybe mark this in your margins. And Isaiah 26 verse 24, verse 6.

Isaiah 24 verse 6 says therefore a curse devours the earth and

Isaiah 24:6

its inhabitants suffer for their guilt.

Therefore the inhabitants of earth are scorched and few men

are left. And combining what we've seen

thus far in these bold judgments, we can sense just how

tormenting this unparalleled heat wave will be.

There's no water to drink now. There is no seat to cool off in.

They're already being agitated by whatever is breaking out on

their skin, and this rapid sequence of unexplainable events

impacting the entire planet will cause even these worshippers of

the Antichrist to acknowledge this has to be God.

This is not. This is not happenstance.

This is not random. This is being orchestrated by

God. This is supernatural.

And don't get too excited, because although they will

recognize God as the power behind these plagues, they will

they will fail to admit the reason for them.

Look at verse 9. They were scorched by the fierce

heat. The atmosphere itself will be

like an oven. And they cursed the name of God

who had power over these plagues.

They did not repent and give him glory.

So instead of reflecting and maybe thinking all of this is

the fruit of our rebellion, our wickedness, this widespread

destruction is because of us, they choose instead to blame God

and point the finger to the heavens and blasphemy His name.

Can we just like sit back and try to digest this?

At the same time, the fact that a lack of repentance is being

highlighted here on a positive note shows us that God was

hoping for it. That even though He is taking

everything absolutely away from them, he's longing for them to

realize the foolishness of their sin, their mistrust in a man who

claimed to be God, and to surrender to the true God.

And they refused. So after all the preaching of

the Saints during the Tribulation, the mighty miracles

performed by prophets, the supernatural messages of angelic

beings, God tries with a final attempt by enforcing pain and

amplifying it to jolt this generation from their sinful

craze. And instead of being humbled,

they harden their hearts. I know this might be hard for

our sanctified minds to imagine and comprehend, but there are

many people now, not just that now, who love to sin.

They love to sin like more than you think.

They love to injure people and murder.

They enjoy raping women. They take delight in kidnapping

young girls and trafficking them.

They take no issue in abusing their bodies with drugs and

drunkenness and sexual immorality.

They prioritize themselves above everybody, including God, and

they think they're on the right for that.

There are people in the masses who are enthralled and who can't

imagine living outside of pitch darkness, and they absolutely

loathe the idea that there would be a God who'd call them to

repent of such things and would choose rather a brutal,

torturous death than to submit to him.

I know, I know, it's hard for us to imagine.

A lot of us in here come to this church three times a week, and

this is our world. And that's great.

It should be. We are followers of Christ.

This is our home, But Revelation gives us insight into just how

depraved and warped sinners are. And you and I would be no

better. Apart from the grace of God,

they love it. They love it so that when a God

of purity and holiness comes and steps into their world and shows

them the true way, they hate him for it.

I remember when I first got saved, I was so excited.

I mean, I, I realized I'm forgiven.

I realized I'm not going to be condemned.

And I was like many of you who were first safe hungry.

I wanted to know as much as I can.

I tried witnessing to people and they would give me pushback and

objections. I'm like, listen, I don't have

the answers, but I'll get back to you have my word on it.

So I would watch debates and teachings and I remember this

still obviously still marked marked me.

I remember reading a comment, I think it was a discussion

between atheists and Christians on a panel and I was looking at

what people were saying on the YouTube and one of the comments

said this. It actually like took my breath

away. But then I come to the Bible and

I realized, no, it's true. One person said a very simple

thing, but it was so weighty. He wrote the following I rather

go to hell than be in heaven with your God.

I want to tell you something. There are more people who

believe that and want that than you think.

I know our sanctified minds can't think about it.

No way. Yes way.

Most of the world in the end, will curse God as He is judging

them. They don't even plead for mercy.

They don't ask for just some reprieve with whatever energy

they have left. They want to blasphemy Him.

If you were here last week, you remember that in chapter 15 we

made the case how John was mirroring the events of the

Exodus in his description of the last days.

And he did so in part to communicate how in the same way

God delivered Israel from the tyranny of Egypt, bringing them

into the Promised land by using plagues and judging the wicked,

their oppressors, He will also usher in the Church from this

world into his everlasting Kingdom by judging the wicked.

But the, the parallels didn't end at the end of chapter 15.

They go on. In fact, maybe you've, you've

picked up on this, that some of the plagues that we've already

looked at in these bold judgments are similar to the

plagues in Egypt, right? Boils and rivers turning into

blood. And the comparisons continue,

and they go deeper than even that.

I want to argue that in chapter 16, the stubbornness of the

evildoers and those who oppressed and and came against

the true people of God is reflective of the stubbornness

of the Egyptians while they were trying to adapt to the plagues

that were being poured out on them.

And I want to give you just one example of that.

And this is where we're going to end.

If you would come with me to Exodus 7 and look at the first

plague with me beginning in verse 20, not just similar

plagues, but similar stubbornness.

Exodus 7, verse 20. Moses and Aaron did as the Lord

Exodus 7:20

commanded in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his

servants. He lifted up the staff and

struck the water in the Nile, and all the water in the Nile

turned into blood. Why did the Nile turn into

blood? This was the first thing that

was done to get Pharaoh's attention to let God's people

go. Do you know why?

Because earlier in Exodus, Pharaoh made a decree.

Any Hebrew boy that is born to the Israelites throw them into

the Nile. You get the picture?

You shed blood, here's blood to drink.

Did we just see that in Revelation?

You shed blood, here's blood to drink.

Same God, same God. His justice isn't wavered.

But what I want to draw your attention to is how the

Egyptians responded to this judgment.

This might actually make you chuckle a little bit.

Look at verse 24 and all the Egyptians dug along the Nile for

water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile.

What a picture. Can you envision it?

So their main supply and source of water is contaminated?

And what's the response of those who depended on it, who realized

that this was a miracle? They dug along the sides to say,

OK, if we can't, we'll go to the Nile.

Let's go to something else. What would be the same thing to

do? OK, there's a message behind

this. Maybe God's trying to get our

attention. Clearly He is demonstrating our

guilt and what we've done against Israel and their

children. But instead, what you find here

is that they pivot. It's a resilience, but it's a

scary 1. Instead of being humbled,

they're willing to endure the consequence of their sin.

Instead of looking up and saying, OK, God, we hear you

loud and clear and we we understand the error of our

ways, what do you ask of us? They look down and they try to

find a way to have their own way.

And then you read through Exodus, and you read through the

Old Testament, and you read through the New Testament, and

then you come to the last book of all, and you realize in God's

final plagues that human nature has not changed.

And it could be even today that as we come to a close in this

message, that you find yourself enduring things and instead of

going to the fountain of life, you are digging holes, trying to

find your own water. It will not satisfy.

It will not bring the answers that you were looking for.

You worship something or someone else, including yourself, more

than God. Sorrows are promised to

multiply, but all those unnecessary sorrows can come to

a halt once and for all if you come to Christ.

Unfortunately, and I've said this in Revelation before,

please give me permission to say it again.

Some people can only understand the language of pain before they

wake up and realize who Christ is their need for a savior.

I don't want you to be that person.

I don't God doesn't want to notice that he's already done so

much. This is the last.

This is the last resort here by touching everything.

It was after so many other attempts to get to get them to

see his greatness and his glory. And so my genuine desire for for

the person here today who maybe stumbled into this place out of

curiosity. Or maybe you feel like you've

found success in evading things and tiptoeing around the truth

and sustaining your kind of way of life and what you want to do

in the sins you want to keep while still, you know, giving

respect to God in the church. You can't maintain that for

long. Just give up, just surrender.

Take this cue and realize this is more than just prophecy.

This is this is a realization afresh of who God is today.

And I choose to hear Him loud and clear.

We ask, Lord, that you would help us hear you loud and clear.

And Lord, as heavy as a message as this was, you intended to be

heavy. So, Lord, we've done our best to

not try to lighten this message. Lord, as we continue in

revelation, we have listened to a lot about judgement, but at

the same time, you have provided rays of hope in it and through

it. We've seen your kindness.

We've seen your patients. And so look, even now, as we try

to absorb all the things that were explained from these

prophecies, help us land in your mercy, Lord.

For the Sinner who doesn't know you hearing this message, may

today be the day where they become a child of God.

For the children of God here who are pained by these things, and

rightfully so, may they also rejoice in knowing that they are

not destined for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our

Lord Jesus Christ who died for us, so that whether we are awake

or asleep, we might live with him.

Thank you that we get to live with you.

We can no only everlasting joy in you.

Glory be to your name, O God. We now stand, and we choose to

be like this Angel. And in the midst of facing and

trying to comprehend judgment, we can say, just are you, O Lord

Holy are you, O Lord, you as the judge of the all of all the

earth will in fact do right. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Let's stand church.