Sermon Tone Analysis

For the last several weeks we have been covering the End Times.

We have talked about prophecies that have been fulfilled, we have look at events that have been foretold by the sun, moon, and stars, and last week we covered the rapture of the church.

How many of you like to travel?

You makes plans for that trip.

You have an itinerary.

This is something that you plan and think out and maybe discuss with your family.

You want to make sure that you have a perfect family trip.

You want to enjoy the journey.

An itinerary helps us prepare and makes the week more meaningful when we get there.

The Bible says that one day, there will be a time that the earth will go through, a seven year period called “The Tribulation,” or a time of distress, just before the second coming of Christ.

It will be a terrible time, as God judges the people of the world.

It will be a time where people will get left behind from the rapture, but there will be unbelievers that will turn to Christ and be sealed from God’s wrath in the midst of all the storm and chaos.

God has given us a timeline of what that 7 year period will look like.

Today, I want to give you a look into what that time period will look like.

We are going to cover the first 19 chapters of Revelation.

I believe these are some of the most fascinating chapters in all of the bible.

So, if you have your bibles, go with me to the book of Revelation.

Before we begin, many times you will hear people say Revelations when referring to this book.

However, if you will, notice that there is no s on the end of Revelation.

It was one revelation that John had.

Not multiple.

Let’s begin.

According to many experts in Bible prophecy, the likely last major prophecy to be fulfilled before the beginning of the Tribulation is Ezekiel’s War—a war described in Ezekiel 28 and 39, between Israel and the nations of Russia, Iran, and Turkey, along with a few other allies.

Right now those three nations of Russia, Iran, and Turkey all have troops stationed inside the country of Syria.

The Syrian government is very close to collapsing today.

Should that happen, Russia, Iran and Turkey will be neighbors on Israel’s northern border.

7 Events You can Put on the Timeline of the Tribulation

Event 1 - Ezekiel’s War is Likely the Last Major Prophecy that Needs to be Fulfilled Before the Tribulation Begins

When that war breaks out, start looking up, because the Rapture is probably about to occur and the Tribulation timeline is about to begin.

Event 2 - The First Major Event of the Tribulation Will Be a Treaty with a World Ruler Who Will Later Be Identified as the Antichrist

If you remember from last weeks message, the word “week,” is “seven.”

A week’s worth of years is seven years.

So, what Daniel is saying is, “the Antichrist will make a seven-year covenant, that he will break half way through, at the 3 1/2 year point.”

It is possible that those here on earth during the Tribulation won’t recognize the Antichrist until 3 1/2 years after this treaty is signed, because he will be smart and persuasive.

He’ll appear benevolent.

Jesus said in Matthew 24...

You won’t see the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place, which is the temple, until “the middle of the week” which is 3 1/2 years in.

Event 3 - The Tribulation is a Seven-year Period that Ends with the Return of Jesus

Wanted us to know about this time period so he wrote us an entire book call Revelation.

The book of Revelation begins with a vision of Jesus.

In Revelation 1, the Apostle John, who sat next to Jesus at the Last Supper, witnessed His empty tomb, spent time with Him after the resurrection… in Revelation 1, John see Jesus in the throne room of heaven, as the Alpha and Omega, and John says,

Jesus is now so glorious that John fainted.

This is the same Jesus who is revealed in the book of Revelation.

Revelation describes the Tribulation, but its major purpose is to reveal Jesus to us.

Revelation 2 and 3 are letters to 7 churches of John’s day.

Revelation 4 and 5 picture the throne room of God, where the multitudes of heaven are worshiping this Jesus.

In Revelation 5, God the Father holds up a scroll with seven seals on it.

Seven is the number of perfection.

So this is a really important scroll.

An angel asks the question, “Who is worthy to open the scroll?”

No one is able, because no one is worthy of such an important responsibility.

Finally, one of the worshipers points to Jesus and says--”The Lion of Judah, the Root of David, He is worthy.”

Jesus comes forward, and with perfect power and perfect insight and perfect knowledge, opens it.

The book of Revelation is going to tell us very scary things.

So, before the scary things happen, God reveals the power and majesty of his son, because no one needs to be afraid when the Lion of Judah is near.

The story of the Tribulation period begins in chapter 6, where the Lamb of God peels open and breaks each of its seven seals, one at a time.

Each seal releases some sort of devastation on the earth.

Event 4 - During the Tribulation, God Releases Judgment Through a Series of Seven Seals, Seven Trumpets, and Seven Bowls

The chronology of Revelation is hard to chart, because the seals, trumpets and bowls overlap and sometimes describe the same plagues.

God’s judgment unfolds in a series of sevens, because God’s judgment is perfect.

Even 5 - Revelation Introduces Seven Characters Who Play a Part in the Drama

Character #1 - The Dragon (Satan)

The dragon is Satan.

The Dragon makes war in heaven for 3 1/2 years, until he is defeated by an angel army and thrown to earth.

Character #2 - The Woman (the Church)

Look at Revelation 12:14

“A time” is a year, “times” is two years, and “half a time” is half a year.

So, at the 3 1/2 year mark, the woman begins to experience persecution and is carried on eagle’s wings of divine protection for the rest of the Tribulation.

Character 3 - The Beast of the Sea (Antichrist)

The beast has 10 crowns.

He’s a ruler of many nations.

The beast...

In Daniel 7, the leopard represented the Greek empire, the bear represented Persia, which is modern day Iran, and the lion represented Babylon, which is modern day Iraq.

It’s therefore likely that the beast will be from the Middle East.

In Jewish literature, things that come from the sea are from the Gentile world.

The Beast, who is the Antichrist, will be a demon-possessed Gentile, and in a counterfeit imitation of Jesus, he’ll almost-die and almost-rise from the dead.

Forty-two months is 3 1/2 years - lots of things heat up at the 3 1/2 year mark.

Character 4 - The Beast from the Earth (the False Prophet)

Things that come from the earth are Jewish.

During the final 3 1/2 years, this Beast, who is also called “The False Prophet,” will be Jewish, most likely the Muslim Jesus, prophesied in their scriptures, who will come and deceive many, convincing them to follow the False Messiah, the Antichrist.

This False Prophet will control most of the world’s economic system through his “mark.”

The Dragon, and the two Beasts form the unholy trinity.

But God holds true to His promise to a core group of worshipers.

Our next group of characters...

Character 5 - The 144,000

Character 6 - The Angelic Announcers

These three angels fly overhead to announce the eternal gospel.

Character 7 - The People of the Harvest

In Matthew 13, Jesus spoke about the great harvest at the end of the age.

Listen carefully.

The sole reason Jesus left heaven, the sole reason He laid aside His glory as the Only Begotten Son of God, the sole reason Jesus took on flesh and lived a lowly and limited human life, and the sole reason He went to the Cross was to diminish this harvest at the end of the age.

As terrible as Satan the Dragon is, and the Antichrist, and the Beast from earth, this harvest is and ever will be God’s greatest regret.

If He could have saved them, He would have.

Even today, He is holding out His hand and holding out hope that each and every one of us would turn towards Him and accept His love and forgiveness, so that we can spend eternity with Him, rather than away from Him in the place where there will be perpetual weeping and gnashing of teeth.

But look at verse 43 again...

Revelation starts with seven messages to seven churches.

It moves to seven sealed judgments, and seven trumpet judgments, and seven characters who all play a part, and seven bowls of judgment.

Revelation is written like a play, with overlapping scenes.

A seal judgment is taking place on stage right at the same time a trumpet judgment is taking place on stage left, while a bowl judgment is getting ready to take place at center stage.

At the very end, they converge.