Certain Judgement That Hardens

Introduction

Let me start out by telling you that passages like Rev. 9:13-21 aren’t fun to preach because they highlight something that’s rooted very deep within the human condition, sin, and the fact that people love it. ----Beginning back in Rev. 8 with the first four trumpets you see the end time judgements really begin to pick up steam. And then, as you cross the threshold into Rev. 9 you read of a warning that’s issued, “… Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow!” (8:13b). Then, when you finally venture into the 9th chapter you see God’s wrath really begin to be unleashed upon those who have opposed and rejected him while at the same time witnessing the fact that he protects those who place their faith in his Son, Jesus Christ. ---- From the perspective of the person either listening to or reading all of this the interesting thing is that everything you’ve heard or read about up to this point is a direct reflection of the truth that God hears and answers the prayers of his people. ---- Rev. 9:13-21, the passage we’re going to look at, is no different because it carries this same theme of answered prayer forward, except it adds a very important point, in the end, when the wrath of God is unleashed, you see the true hardness of the human heart. If there’s one thing we can take away from Rev. 9:13-21, it’s this, guard your heart because judgement meant to bring repentance can harden those who love their sin. ---- Let’s look at this passage.

Read Rev. 9:13-21

9:13-16 “Judgement is Certain?”

Illustration: (Young mom in grocery store w/ kids) I remember being in the grocery store one time when I saw a younger mom who was having some trouble with her two kids. Most of you will know how it is, you go in the store, grab a buggy, and because you want to get your shopping done you put one, or possibly even both, of the kids inside the buggy. Then, off you go! ---- I happened to run into this mom and her kids on the frozen foods isle, right where they keep the ice-cream. I smiled and went on by, but as I passed, I overheard one of her kids say, “Mom, can I have those popsicles, they look so cool!” To which, the mom replied, “I’m sorry honey, but we’re on a budget and we just don’t have the money right now!” ---- Do you want to take a wild guess at what happened next? ---- Well, after the screaming fit that lasted around two-minutes the kid climbed out of the buggy and then proceeded to refuse when his mom told him to get back in! Then the parent count began, one; two; three; “If I get to five and you’re not back in that buggy I’m going to …” Well, you can probably guess what happened, there was a stand-off between mother and child right there in the middle of Food Lion, and do you know what happened? ---- Nothing! ---- because the punishment this young mom kept threatening her little boy with never came. Friends, the God we serve isn’t like that mom on the frozen food isle at Food Lion. When God says punishment is coming, you can rest assured that there’s a judgement that is certain, and that’s what we see in vv.13-16.

Explanation: In v.13 John says, “the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God”. We’re not explicitly told in the text, but I’m certain that we’d be on safe ground to understand that the voice John heard was that of God. And what did John hear him say? ---- Verse 14 tells us that a command was given to, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.” We’re actually given the purpose statement for their released at the end of v.15, it’s so that they could “kill a third of mankind”. ---- Now, what’s interesting about this command is what John tells us at the beginning of v.15. He says that these angels have been “prepared for the hour, the day, the month, and the year …”, to do exactly what’s described in these verses we’re looking at.

Argumentation: Now, if you’re listening to me and you’re a follower of Jesus Christ, what that should tell you is this: you serve a God who is in complete sovereign control over everything that goes on, both now and in the future. Nothing slips by him! What’s said here in these verses lets you know that God has a plan, and part of his plan is the foregone conclusion of a judgement that is certain.

Appeal: Friend if you’re listening to me and you don’t know Jesus as your Lord and Savior these verses point you to the fact that a day of reckoning is coming, and on that day, you will have to give an answer as to why you rejected the salvation that’s available only through faith in Jesus Christ! Why not place your faith in him today so that you won’t have to risk facing what’s mentioned in the next portion of chapter nine? Speaking of that, let’s take a look at it.

9:16-19 “Judgement that is Terrifying”

Explanation: John begins the section that runs from vv.16-19 with a rather bleak picture, saying that a vast demonic army rides on the horizon. He says that “The number of mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand; I heard their number.” When you multiply those numbers out you get 200,000,000, now that’s a sizable fighting force!

Illustration: To give you an idea of the sheer size of the force John “heard” about, I want you to think about the period of time leading up and surrounding WW2. Many of you, like me, probably had relatives who fought in WW2. ---- After the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, Germany’s army was limited to a token force of 100,000 for the purpose of self-defense, but after several years of undercover Nazi rearmament Hitler had secretly raised a force of 4.7 million men! When war finally broke out the German army was the largest to have ever been assembled up to that point, and world looked on in absolute terror as this well-oiled war machine began to invade and conquer the nations that surrounded it! Do you realize that the force John “heard” about is 42.6 times as big as the German army? And as terrifying as the goose-stepping Nazi’s were, it doesn’t hold a candle to what you read in vv.17-19 because there, John sees a judgement that is terrifying!

Explanation: Look at what John says in v.17, “17 And this is how I saw the horses in my vision and those who rode them: they wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire (hyacinth) and of sulfur, and the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads, and fire and smoke and sulfur (brimstone) came out of their mouths.” Now, this is obviously symbolic, but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t point to a future reality. ---- For the first people who heard Revelation read, it would have likely caused them to think of the invading Parthian armies east of the Euphrates River. ---- The Parthians were the archenemy of Rome who had a well-earned reputation for being brutal and ruthless with those they conquered, and the citizens of the imperial city were terrified that one day they would invade. For them, that meant a complete upheaval of the social order they were accustomed to. From our perspective it points us to a similar truth because of what’s said concerning the carnage in v.18, “18 By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed, by the fire and smoke and sulfur coming out of their mouths.” (because/ “For” v.19), 19 … the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails, for their tails are like serpents with heads, and by means of them they wound.”

Appeal: Let me ask you, where do you stand right now in relationship to Christ? If you haven’t placed your faith in him, this is what may one day befall you, a judgement that is terrifying! But let me say, it doesn’t have to be like that because salvation is offered through faith in him! My goal is not to scare you into confessing Christ, but simply to remind you that in and through him is where, and only where you’ll find salvation! ----

9:20-21 “Judgement that Hardens”

The last two verses of chapter 9 point us to a biblical truth that can be hard to swallow; judgement is often sent to bring about repentance.

Illustration: If you read Isaiah 19, you’ll read about how God sends judgement on Egypt with the ultimate purpose that they repent and turn to him, and in their case they do. Isaiah 19:22a says, “And the Lord will strike Egypt, striking and healing, and they will return to the Lord …” However, in Rev. 19:20-21 that’s not the case because you read about judgement that hardens.

Explanation: John writes, “20 The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, 21 nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.” ---- Do you know what this is a picture of? ---- It’s a picture of people who love their sin, they relish it, they wallow in it, and I want to ask you a question, is it a picture of you?

Appeal/Conclusion: When you look in the mirror, do you see this person staring right back at you? ---- Commentator Craig Keener is dead on the money when he says the following about this text, “Christians flirting with compromise with the world should think twice …”[1] Is that you today? If it is, I want to call you to repentance and back Jesus Christ because it’s only in him and through him that you’ll find salvation. ---- Guard your heart because the certain judgement meant to bring repentance can harden those who love their sin.

Closing Prayer

[1] Craig Keener: Revelation, 277.