The Final Fury of God's Wrath--The Bowl Judgments

THE SEVENTH TRUMPET: THE BOWL JUDGMENTS Spring Valley Mennonite; March 24, 2019; Revelation 11:15-19; 14:14-20; 15:1-8; 16:1-21; Psalm 2:1-9 Last week we concluded our observation of the sixth trumpet judgment and noticed an exciting announcement to the righteous that there was to be no more delay; the final trumpet is about to blow! The seventh trumpet contains the final outpouring of God’s wrath on Satan and his minions, both demonic and human. John heard the heavenly audience rejoicing as they heard that the time has come for all remaining barriers to the establishment of the Kingdom to be removed. Daniel predicted this, as he recorded in Daniel 2:44: “And in the days of those (final) kings of the earth the God of heaven will set up a Kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever.” As far as these events fall on the timeline of the seven- year Tribulation, at this announcement, we are most likely in the final months. Satan, the Antichrist, and the False Prophet, that unholy trinity, have consolidated political and economic power all over the world. Wars have continued to rage over the world as all opposition to their rule has been crushed. But they rule over a rapidly diminishing population, as natural disasters mixed with demonic activity result in high death tolls. One might wonder what kind of a strategy it is for Satan’s demons to destroy his own followers, but remember that Satan’s ultimate weapon is death, and eh wants to lock as many people up in death as he can. But God has protected numbers of believers, both Jewish and Gentile, scattered across the globe. These believers have been ruthlessly pursued and have been in constant danger. Multitudes have been martyred. Chapter 11 records the seventh Trumpet being sounded: Listen to the announcement in Rev. 11:15-17: I. THE ANNOUNCEMENT MADE Read Revelation 11:15-17. Upon the sounding of the seventh trumpet, loud voices of praise are heard in heaven. A new kingdom is described, the kingdom of the Father and the Son, Who will reign for ever and ever. Psalm 2:6-9 is no longer a future hope, but in the process of coming to be. (Read vv. 6-9 of Psalm 2.) The fulfillment of this heavenly announcement awaits only a short period of intense judgment, the Bowl Judgments, culminating in the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus. Note that in verse 15the “Kingdom of this world” is singular. As we look around us, we see what we would consider various “kingdoms”; Russia, Europe, China, Israel, the Islamic countries, the Asian sub-continent, the United States, and so forth. Our State Department recognizes 196 separate countries. These kingdoms vary politically, but they are all part of one kingdom, heavily influenced by Satan, some more than others, depending on the strength and influence of the church in that country. When Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness, he offered to give our Lord “all the kingdoms of the world” if Jesus would fall down and worship him. Of course, Jesus refused that offer, but Jesus never disputed Satan’s ownership of these kingdoms, or his right to make the offer. While God establishes governments for the benefit of mankind, those same governments refuse to acknowledge God’s authority over them; Psalm 2:1-5 (Read). Satan is the present ruler of the world, something Jesus affirmed three times in the book of John; John 12:31: “Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world shall be cast out.” But now, as John hears the announcement that the predicted Kingdom is about to come about, the 24 Elders raise their voices in thanksgiving, giving thanks that the power of God is now to be completely unleashed to abolish evil, and destroy those who destroy the earth, namely the unholy trinity and their followers. John MacArthur says it like this: “Satan will not relinquish his kingdom without a struggle. In a desperate and doomed effort to maintain control of the world, God will allow him to overrun it with hordes of demons during the fifth and sixth trumpet judgments (9:1–19). But his efforts will not keep the true King from returning and establishing His earthly kingdom (cf. 19:11–21; 20:1–3, 10). Jesus Christ will return to sit on the throne of His father David (2 Sam. 7:12–16) and take over the whole world from the satanically controlled people who now possess it. This is really the theme of Revelation—the triumph of God over Satan as evil is purged from the world and Christ becomes its holy ruler.1 The kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ speaks of the Kingdom in the broadest terms, not differentiating between the Millennial Kingdom and the eternal kingdom to follow. The eternal and Millennial Kingdom will merge at the end of the thousand years and Christ will reign forever and ever. The form of the kingdom will change, but it will never end or be interrupted. While the inhabitants of heaven were rejoicing, the nations on earth had an entirely different response: (Verse 18) the unbelieving nations were enraged, a word which indicates a deep-seated, burning rage against God. All the judgments so far experienced, instead of being received as a warning to repent, hardened them into deep rebellion and resentment. Eventually, they will all gather in an organized force to fight at a place called Armageddon, a desperate, last-ditch effort to prevent Christ from establishing His Kingdom. Their efforts will fail. As stated in verse 18, at the right time, God’s wrath falls in full measure. II. THE FINAL FURY OF GOD’S WRATH Turn to chapter 14, verses 14-20 (Read) Like a ripe field of grain, the wicked ness of the earth is full and ready to reap. Verse 20 speaks of the battle of Armageddon, where the blood of warriors and horses will flow deep. We will look at that last battle in detain in our next message. Now look at chapter 15. The last seven plagues, the bowl judgments are about to be poured out on the earth. (Read vv. 1-8) The Tribulation martyrs are gathered before the throne, singing a song of praise to the “King of the Nations”, recognizing how all the nations will come and worship before King Jesus. Philippians 2 speaks of how “every knee will bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” Every knee, either willingly, or unwillingly, in belief or formerly in unbelief will bow. This also speaks of all nations in the Millennial Kingdom as they pay homage to King Jesus as He reigns over the world. Seven golden bowls, full of the wrath of God are given to seven angels. These bowl judgments are described in chapter 16. 1. The first bowl: verses 1-2 (read): Loathsome sores on all who have the mark of the beast. These are painful, ulcerous, disfiguring sores which cause great disability and continuing pain through these final days. 2. The second bowl: verse 3 (read): All seawater is turned to blood, and every creature in the oceans die. Imagine the smell! A couple of notes here: each of these bowl judgments are described with only a few, concise words. This gives the indication that they happen rapidly, one after another in a short amount of time. Another note, which relates to a growing present movement relating to environmentalism: In the Tribulation, God is systematically destroying the environment that seems to be becoming an object of worship and veneration today. In our country, some potential presidential candidates are calling for a “Green New Deal” dedicating trillions of dollars to transform America to complete dependence on renewable energy in the interest of climate control. I would not be surprised if this “Save the Planet Movement” becomes the basis for uniting all the world religions into a One World Religion. Just a thought… 3. The Third Bowl: vv. 4-7 (read): All fresh water becomes like blood: as the world has shed the blood of the martyrs, the ungodly now are forced to drink bloody water. No water source escapes this plague. 4. 4th Bowl: vv. 8-9 (read): Scorching heat, as the sun’s intensity is increased—speak of global warming! Note the response: blaspheming God rather than repenting and realizing their sin is the cause of the plague. 5. 5th bowl: vv. 10-11 (read): In contrast to the scorching heat of the sun, there is now darkness. In the darkness, the pain caused by the sores of the first bowl cause the ungodly to continue in their blasphemy, cursing God for their plight. (Have you noticed how pain seems to be magnified when lying awake in bed at night?) 6. 6th Bowl: vv. 12-16 (read): Three powerful demons go out to gather Armies for a final slaughter, enabling the crossing of the Euphrates which is dried up: The armies gather at the plain of Megeddo—Armageddon. This speaks of oriental armies marching from the East to this final battle. 7. 7th and final bowl judgment: vv. 17-21 (read): Massive destruction, planet-wide. The largest earthquake ever experienced, cities crumble, mountains and islands moved, earth’s geography will be changed drastically (mountains leveled by the power of the earthquake). Then, huge hailstones—100 lbs. hurled to earth, destroying everything—no building could withstand such hail, much less people and armies. The stage is set for the return of Christ, as the armies of the world are gathered to Armageddon in Satan’s final attempt to prevent King Jesus from establishing His earthly Kingdom. The Kingdom of this world will become the Kingdom of our God and of His Christ. Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom will be established.