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Transcript

Who Can Stand? (The Sixth Seal) | Revelation 6:12-17 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Revelation Bible Study Series) · Bible Study with Pr. Daniel Batarseh | Verse by Verse Series | Maranatha Bible Church - Chicago

• 0:06
  Well, before we go to Revelation 6 and continue in our teaching
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  of the seven seals that Christ will break in the Tribulation
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  period, I invite you to turn with me in your Bibles to Luke
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  17 for a brief moment to look at a few verses the gospel Luke
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  chapter 17 beginning in verse 26.
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  Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days
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  of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking
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  and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when
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  Noah entered the ark and the flood came and destroyed them
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  all. Likewise, just as it was in the
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  days of Lot, they were eating and drinking, buying and
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  selling, planting and building. But on the day when Law went out
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  from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed
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  them all. So will it be on the day when
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  the Son of Man is revealed. Isn't it interesting that in
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  Christ teaching about the last days, the world appears to be
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  going on as usual? There will be the routine of
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  feasting and fellowship. There will be business deals
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  made, romance blossoming, families coming together,
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  construction projects underway. It seems quite interesting that
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  these things will go on, and though these activities are not
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  inherently evil, Jesus Christ highlights them in order to show
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  us humanity's general and unfortunate response to the
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  trials and the turmoils of the Tribulation period.
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  It makes me wonder how can there be this level of normalcy
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  maintained, especially after we learned about the emerging of
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  false Christs, wars and rumors of wars, pestilences,
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  earthquakes, the mass death of Christians across the globe.
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  We looked at that when we saw these first five seals being
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  broken. And yet, my mind came to this
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  passage to remind me that there will still be buying and
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  selling, there will still be weddings, there will still be
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  buildings being built and trade happening.
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  And I believe the reason for this is largely because of the
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  great indifference that most people will have in that final
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  generation. And that's startling.
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  Chances are the reason for this is because they will brush off
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  these occurrences as things that humanity has always known.
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  Sure, what we're seeing is awful here, but it's nothing new.
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  Man speaks like that today. And in addition to that, we have
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  to understand that in the Tribulation period, the events
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  preceding the return of Christ, there will be an intense disdain
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  towards believers, even the believers who will be there
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  during the Tribulation. And so the message of the
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  Tribulation Saints will largely be ignored and even mocked, just
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  as Noah and Lott were dismissed as they were trying to warn
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  their generation of coming judgement.
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  And I say all of that to mention how whatever normalcy will be
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  realized and protected, I'm sure will be very difficult to manage
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  after the breaking of the 6th seal.
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  Something is going to shift. What God is going to do and what
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  we're about to study will surely captivate the world's attention,
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  unlike the previous seals. Now I invite you to Revelation 6
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  and begin with me here in verse 12.
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  When he opened the 6th seal, I looked and behold there was a
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  great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, the
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  full moon became like blood, and the stars of the sky fell to the
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  earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit.
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  When shaken by a Gale, the sky vanished like a scroll that is
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  being rolled up, and every mountain, an island was removed
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  from its place. Then the kings of the earth, and
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  the great ones, and the generals and the rich and the powerful,
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  and everyone slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and
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  among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the
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  mountains. And rocks fall on us and hide us
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  from the face of Him who is seated on the throne, and from
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  the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of their wrath
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  has come, and who can stand? Father, we ask that you help us
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  with these verses and inspire awe in each of us as a result.
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  And more than that Lord, we pray that you would draw this Sinner
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  to the throne of grace and that there would be salvation while
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  it is still available. In Jesus name we pray Amen and
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  Amen. At first, it really seems like
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  what we just read is the end of the end, the end of all things.
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  I mean, this description seems to suggest that this is the
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  moment of Christ bodily return to the earth to rule and reign
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  forever. But I find that difficult to
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  accept for the simple reason that this is the 6th seal, and
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  there's still one more. And once we see the 7th seal
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  breaking, it will set into motion the seven trumpets.
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  And after the seven trumpets, we're going to have the seven
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  bowls of God's wrath. And so to say that this is a
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  snapshot of the Savior coming down and wrapping all things up
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  is a little challenging to conclude.
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  However, there are those who would say that that is the case.
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  Those who hold to alternative views of the Book of Revelation
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  would suggest that what you have here indeed is Christ's return,
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  because the way they understood the Book of Revelation is as
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  follows. We have the seven seals, then we
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  have the seven trumpets, and then we have the seven bowls of
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  God's wrath. And some understand these sets
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  of judgments as cyclical. They're not a linear thing,
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  they're not sequential, they're not advancing in a timeline.
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  But there are replays of the same events, though it's
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  slightly different details. So there are some who understand
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  it in that way. What you find here with these
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  seals is going to be repeated with the seven trumpets, and
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  it's going to repeat it with the seven bowls of God's wrath.
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  And although the Book of Revelation is not strictly
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  chronological in every detail, I'm persuaded that a plain
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  reading of it would lead anybody to understand that it is indeed
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  a steady progression, even with the differences of the
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  judgments. When you come to the trumpets
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  and the bulls, you can't deny that they become more intense.
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  In fact, by the time you get to the bulls, it's total
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  destruction. There's nothing left.
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  Everything is being cleaned up under God's wrath.
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  And if that's the framework of interpreting this book, at least
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  the most beneficial and realistic one, then what do we
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  do with this seal that reads like a finale?
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  I mean, what follows this? Well, as dramatic as the scene
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  is, I'm persuaded that when you consider the whole book, this is
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  merely a preview of God's full wrath.
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  This is not the conclusion. This is just a hint.
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  And you're going to see that in the coming weeks that things are
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  only going to get worse and worse.
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  So rather than this being a concluding curtain drop,
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  understand it more as a signal flare, reminding and telling
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  this final generation God's judgment has come.
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  Be prepared for eternal justice. And the primary purpose of this
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  terrifying display of power is to awaken this generation to the
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  realization that God has been behind all the calamities that
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  they endured. And He is soon approaching now
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  to give His final verdict. I understand the 6th seal to be
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  a major warning sign for a crowd of people who go on eating and
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  drinking, marrying, building, selling and buying.
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  You can't dismiss that God is behind this.
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  Look what I'm doing here. And as I was meditating on this
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  passage, thinking how we can benefit from it, staring at
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  these verses, praying and wondering how can we make this
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  digestible, I realized something.
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  Something stood out to me. The word great shows up a total
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  of three times. Did you notice it?
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  Look again here at verse 12, when he opened the 6th seal.
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  I looked and behold, there was a great earthquake.
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  Not just an earthquake, great. Look at verse 15.
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  Then the kings of the earth and the great ones, significant
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  people being mentioned here, the great ones, and look at verse 17
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  for the great day of their wrath has come and who can stand?
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  That's helpful. Let's consider these things
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  separately. I want to talk to you today
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  about the great earthquake, the great ones, and the great day of
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  God's wrath. Let's look here at verse 12
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  again. I remember one of my professors
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  in seminary mentioning in class that he was preparing to do a
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  deep study. Ready, a deep study on
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  earthquakes in the Bible. I don't know if you ever got
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  through with it, but when he said that, I mean, you can only
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  remember so much in school, right?
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  For whatever reason, that stuck with me.
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  What an interesting subject to study.
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  Earthquakes in the Bible, they're everywhere in the
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  Scriptures. Have you noticed that?
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  And they are, more importantly, brought up at key moments in
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  redemptive history. In fact, whenever God shows up
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  at a very pivotal time, He loves to make His presence known on
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  the earth by shaking it. So you remember in Exodus 19
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  when the Lord meets with his people Israel at Mount Sinai?
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  We read there in Exodus 19 that when he arrived, the mountain
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  greatly trembled. Think now of our precious Lord
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  Jesus in Matthew 27, as He's there hanging suspended on a
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  cross, and as He was absorbing the wrath of God, bringing it to
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  completion. We read there that the earth
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  shook and the rocks split. And now, as we are examining the
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  final moments before the return of Christ, we find more than one
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  account of earthquakes. This is not the only earthquake
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  in the Book of Revelation, by the way.
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  There are a handful of them mentioned, and we'll see that
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  down through Revelation chapter 1616.
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  Now, some who don't want to take this too literally will say that
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  this description of cosmic disturbance is symbolic.
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  It's symbolic of the fall of empires and governments.
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  And the reason why they would say that is because when you go
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  to the Old Testament, similar imagery is often used to define
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  just that, the fall of rulers and their kingdoms.
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  But listen, you always have to work with the context.
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  I believe that the context suggests otherwise.
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  There should be no doubt in any of our minds that we're reading
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  about a real prophecy, about real people who are responding
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  to a unprecedented yet very real earthquake, one that will occur
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  on a global scale. And the aftermath of this will
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  be so great that it will affect the atmosphere, perhaps through
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  volcanic eruptions. And if that wasn't enough, it's
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  going to be accompanied by the showers of meteors and stars
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  crashing into our world. This is terrifying.
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  This is frightening, and it should be.
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  But what's the point? What's the point of all of this?
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  And it helps to remember the earlier seals and what they
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  entailed. Think now, think, think, think.
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  Careful student of the Scriptures.
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  What's different about this seal with the previous ones?
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  There's one important difference.
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  When you looked at the 1st 4 seals, what you see is God's
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  judgment being released, but through human agency, the rise
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  of the Antichrist, wars and rumors of wars.
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  And because of those wars you have a famine, a man made
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  famine, and following that you have disease and pestilences and
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  all these things. God, in those previous judgments
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  act indirectly on the earth, but now when we come to the 6th
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  Seal, He's not working through humans.
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  He is directly interacting with human affairs.
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  He is showing up Himself. He's not just removing His hand
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  and letting us in our sinful nature destroy each other.
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  No, He is pressing His hand and He's showing all humanity that
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  He is the coming judge. That is the main difference that
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  we see here. Natural disasters have a way of
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  humbling us. They never fail to remind us how
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  puny we are and how fragile we are.
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  And to the honest, in response to these things, no matter the
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  scale, they will acknowledge that man is not really in
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  control. Oh, we borrow from the resources
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  of the earth, and we think that we can establish our own
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  territories. Sure, sure, sure, sure.
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  But when the world shakes, it never fails to remind us You're
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  not really in control if you're honest.
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  Some are so proud they dismiss these things.
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  And to the discerning, not only will they confess that we are
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  not really in control, they will acknowledge that someone else
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  is. The earth is the Lord's and the
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  fullness thereof. The psalmist says that's what
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  God is proving here. I'm in control and as
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  frightening as this great earthquake in this chapter,
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  maybe I don't believe it's the Lord trying to say through it.
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  I am God, don't mess with me, though He does do that
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  sometimes. I'm persuaded in my reading of
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  this book that even in this I see and I hear God saying I am
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  God. Come to me, surrender, give up,
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  stop fighting, stop resisting, stop ignoring.
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  Realize that this world is mine. Realize that this world is not
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  permanent. Realize that I'm coming back to
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  this world. That truth will become more
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  clear as we look at future disasters in Revelation.
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  In fact, in your own time, you go to these chapters following
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  and you'll realize that with some of these disasters, you
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  have an interesting commentary. We're talking about the final
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  lap of all things. And yet with some of these
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  catastrophes, the Holy Spirit writes, and they still did not
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  repent and give glory to God. So even though this window of
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  grace is soon to be shut, we see God still wanting to use these
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  events to draw men unto himself, and they will refuse.
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  And this truth of God using even things like this to draw sinners
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  is found in other passages in Scripture.
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  So last night I got thinking about earthquakes.
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  Not going to do a deep study on it, but I thought of another
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  one. Let's turn there in Acts 16.
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  This is when Paul and Silas were imprisoned in Acts 16 verse 25.
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  And I had to be careful because what I read here kept me there
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  for a while. I was just relishing in it.
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  And I thought, we're preaching on revelation here.
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  I can't stay in Acts, but look at Acts 1625 down to verse 26.
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  About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns
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  to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, and suddenly
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  there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the
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  prison were shaken, and immediately all the doors were
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  open and everyone's bonds were unfastened.
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  I've heard this passage preached so many times.
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  Maybe you have as well. And what's often emphasizes, Do
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  you see what prayer and praise can do in the midst of your
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  pain, Right? God came through.
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  God invaded the space. God answered.
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  And that's right. You can, you can preach it.
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  You can teach it that way. You can find consolation from
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  this passage. But here's what dawned on me.
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  God shows up with a great earthquake.
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  And you know what he didn't do? He didn't deliver Paul and Silas
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  and kill their oppressors at the same time.
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  He didn't do that. Moreover, he didn't just shake
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  that prison and release only Paul and Silas.
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  That's where it got good for me. Look again at verse 26.
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  Carefully read your Bible slowly, the last sentence, and
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  immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's bonds
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  weren't fastened. Come on.
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  Those of us who know this story, how have we imagined it?
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  The earthquake came. Paul and Silas were set free.
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  The door swung open and the jailer says, ho, ho.
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  And then they, you know, preach the gospel to me to get saved.
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  They go to this house and the house will get saved.
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  That's not what happened. The sounds of chains falling to
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  the ground was universal in that prison.
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  It wasn't just Paul and Silas. It was every prisoner, every
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  prisoner after this earthquake were freed.
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  Well, hold on. So I read again, I'm like, did
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  the prisoners pray? Did they sing praise?
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  No, they were just listening. They were just absorbing and
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  trying to make sense of these two crazy guys that were singing
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  at midnight. And when God decided to
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  vindicate his missionaries, in his mind he chose to set free
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  the other prisoners, not just his servants.
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  You see why I stuck here? I was just relishing in this.
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  I was basking in this God. You had in mind these other
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  jailers, you had in mind these other folk.
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  I understand Paul and Silas being freed, being rescued, but
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  you're giving an opportunity to these other criminals.
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  And if I don't be careful, I'll get carried away here.
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  So let me just say this. What can we take from this?
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  That God's mercy can be found even in earthquakes, no matter
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  how traumatic or tragic they are.
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  The great earthquake that will get the world's attention.
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  What makes the 6th seal different?
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  It's God showing up directly, and the world will understand
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  it. But let's come now to the great
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  ones in Revelation 6 and verse 15.
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  How will the inhabitants of the earth respond to the great
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  shaking? Here let's consider it.
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  Verse 15 reads. Then the kings of the earth and
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  the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful
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  and everyone slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and
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  among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the
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  mountains and rocks fall on us. This verse teaches us something
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  incredibly important beyond demonstrating that this
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  earthquake was so massive that it will impact everyone.
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  That's obvious. Take note of the different
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  social classes mentioned, kings, generals, the rich and powerful,
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  and even slaves. It's so obvious here that there
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  is a diversity of social classes and occupations and status.
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  But here's what moved me When God stepped on the scene, none
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  of those distinctions mattered None.
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  They all fled for the hills. They all stuck their heads
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  between cliffs, between rocks. They all flung themselves into
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  caves. None of these things made a
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  difference when God showed up. Listen, who you aspire to
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  become, how men recognize you, your accolades, your
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  achievements mean nothing if you are not right with God zero.
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  Because at the end of the day, let me remind you, and you're
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  going to be reminded of this frequently in the Book of
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  Revelation. Everything, everything,
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  everything. Your most prized possession, the
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  thing that you sweat so much for, even if you sweat blood,
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  whatever it is that you invested in the matter, it is that you
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  are impassioned about. Listen to me very carefully.
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  It will all be stripped away and the only thing that will truly
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  count is what you did with Jesus Christ.
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  What did you do with His message?
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  What did you do with the person of Christ?
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  That's all that matters if you're a king or a slave.
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  Regardless, they were all found on equal ground when God showed
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  up. It seems as though John borrowed
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  from Isaiah. Listen to these words from
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  Isaiah too, because I just gave you an application for the
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  unbeliever, but this is something for the believer in
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  Isaiah 2 verse 20. You don't have to turn there,
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  but tell me if this sounds familiar.
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  The prophet says in Isaiah 220. In that day mankind will
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  castaway their idols of silver and their idols of gold, which
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  they made for themselves to worship to the moles and to the
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  bats. And people worship these kind of
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  things. Yeah, they still do today.
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  Verse 21 To enter the caverns of the rocks and the clefs of the
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  cliffs, from before the terror of the Lord, and from the
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  splendor of His Majesty when he rises to terrify the earth.
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  Sound familiar? But Isaiah gives us an
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  application in the final verse of this chapter.
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  Look at verse 22. Stop regarding man and whose
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  nostrils is breath, for what account is he?
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  So Isaiah wants you to see men of all kinds of status, of all
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  kinds of achievements and accomplishments, of all kinds of
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  power, men who sit in palaces and men who are also pappers, no
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  matter who they are, understand that in the presence of God,
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  they're nothing. So why are you afraid of man?
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  Why are you so obsessed with people's opinions?
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  They're borrowing their next breath from God.
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  They're weak. Why do we make so much of
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  pastors? Why do we elevate them too much?
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  Why do we think that they're cherubim with a tie on?
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  They're humans and they're borrowing their next heartbeat
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  from God. Why do you fear your enemies,
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  The threats, the intimidation? Who cares?
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  Because in light of God's presence, they're nothing.
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  They're nothing. So I look at Revelation 6 and I
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  see all these great ones cowering, dropping everything
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  and flying to the mountains. This is the fate of those who
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  oppose God. So why am I to fear if God is on
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  my side now? God will show up in a great
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  earthquake. But as we read in Acts 16, he
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  can show up with a great earthquake now, and he can
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  localize it to your home. He can localize it to the local
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  church. He's in charge.
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  He can do everything. And I serve this God.
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  You serve this God. But what I find more fascinating
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  than this wide range of people not only fleeing from this
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  massive disruption is that they also prayed because of it.
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  Did you notice that? However, their prayers weren't
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  quite what we hoped for? Look at verse 16 again of
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  Revelation 6, calling to the mountains and rocks, not to the
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  Creator, but to creation. Not to the rock of our
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  salvation, but to literal stones.
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  God can save anyone. We need to have that hope He can
• 27:11
  rescue and redeem any person, no matter how wicked they are.
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  At the same time, we have to be willing to acknowledge that
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  there are some who will still refuse to surrender to the
• 27:23
  Savior even in the face of undeniable power and authority.
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  You would think that with these who survived this disaster that
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  they would finally realize it and call out to the Lord, but
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  they don't. They're more willing to call out
• 27:39
  to inanimate objects More than that.
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  Listen, there are some people that hate the truth and love
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  darkness so much that they rather face a horrible death
• 27:52
  than bend the knee to Jesus Christ.
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  Can you imagine that? Can you imagine praying to a
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  mountain fall on me? This is how warped man's heart
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  is. This is how dark the soul is
• 28:07
  apart from Christ. That even as he is undeniably
• 28:11
  shaking the very foundation beneath our feet, people will
• 28:15
  still deny him and refuse him. This is sobering, but it's true
• 28:20
  nonetheless. And if calling to mountains and
• 28:25
  rocks wasn't strange enough, what's even more remarkable is
• 28:30
  the belief of this people that they can actually escape
• 28:35
  judgement. What are they asking the rocks
• 28:40
  to do? Fall on us so that we can hide
• 28:43
  from the one who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the
• 28:47
  Lamb? I mentioned this a few weeks
• 28:49
  ago. I've never seen a lamb angry.
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  Have you? I was so curious when I realized
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  this that I had to Google it and it was the cutest thing I've
• 28:55
  ever seen a lamb angry. Look it up at lunch, you can't
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  find anything. They don't have horns, they
• 29:04
  don't have fangs, they don't have claws.
• 29:07
  They're clouds with feet. And yet here we realized the
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  wrath of the Lamb. I understand the wrath of a
• 29:18
  lion. Why this imagery?
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  To show that the same one who laid down his life in great love
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  for us as a Lamb will also when they come in wrath.
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  I mentioned to you this last week, be careful of those who
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  present and preach a Jesus who is empty of wrath.
• 29:37
  He doesn't exist. He does not exist.
• 29:41
  He may exist in cartoons or in popular TV shows that try to
• 29:46
  represent Christ. It's not the Christ of the
• 29:48
  Bible. The wrath of the Lamb will come
• 29:53
  one day and they thought they can hide from it.
• 29:58
  What a foolish thought. They fail to realize that the
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  only way to evade the wrath of God is to hide in Christ
• 30:08
  Himself. We don't use that language
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  frequently when we talk about salvation, but it's in the Word.
• 30:15
  One of my favorite pictures and language used is in Hebrews 618.
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  Can we turn there in Hebrews 618?
• 30:24
  Hebrews. What an amazing book.
• 30:27
  One of the reasons why it's so enthralling to me is because
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  it's dripping with Old Testament references and allusions,
• 30:35
  including this Hebrews 618. So that by two unimaginable or
• 30:41
  unchangeable things rather, in which it is impossible for God
• 30:45
  to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong
• 30:51
  encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.
• 30:54
  You see what he's saying. This author, this mastermind,
• 30:58
  this brilliant theologian who put together the book of Hebrews
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  by the Spirit, he tells his audience, we who have fled for
• 31:06
  refuge. Now, you can take that at face
• 31:08
  value. Yeah, we, we flee for refuge in
• 31:10
  Christ. But he's referring to the cities
• 31:12
  of refuge in the Old Testament, that if you committed
• 31:14
  involuntary manslaughter, God had determined allotted cities
• 31:19
  accessible at any point, no matter where you are in the
• 31:21
  promised land. These cities have been
• 31:23
  designated that you can actually find your way there and that you
• 31:28
  had a chance to run to the cities of refuge lest the
• 31:31
  avenger of that person's blood find you and justly deal with
• 31:36
  you. Now the author here talks to
• 31:40
  Christians and he says we who have fled for refuge, implying
• 31:45
  what? That Christ is the greater city
• 31:47
  of refuge. And notice this, He says we who
• 31:51
  have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement.
• 31:57
  Encouragement is tied to the experience of Christ being our
• 32:01
  refuge. He's talking about us possessing
• 32:05
  an immovable, unshakable, firm, constant trust that no one will
• 32:14
  avenge me. No one will come after me, no
• 32:18
  one will destroy me. And if you were here, precious
• 32:21
  believer, and you can't say with confidence that I know strong
• 32:26
  encouragement in the Redeemer being my refuge, all that
• 32:31
  signifies is that you have yet to learn just how safe and
• 32:36
  secure Christ is. Can I tell you one reason why
• 32:42
  He's greater than the cities of refuge in the Old Testament?
• 32:45
  The cities of refuge in the Old Testament were only for the
• 32:48
  innocent, but Jesus is for the guilty.
• 32:53
  The cities of refuge were for those who accidentally killed
• 32:55
  someone. But even if you are here today
• 32:57
  and your hands are stained with blood and nobody else knows
• 32:59
  about it, you can flee to Christ and he will protect you.
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  You repent, you run to Him. He will shield you.
• 33:06
  You will be hidden in Christ, so that even when this great
• 33:09
  earthquake comes, even when these final judgments are
• 33:12
  unleashed, you'll be untouched. Which brings me to my final
• 33:20
  point. As great as a wrath of the Lamb
• 33:24
  will be, it can be escaped. Let's talk about the great day
• 33:29
  of wrath. We just talked about the great
• 33:30
  ones. Look at verse 17.
• 33:33
  For the great day of their wrath has come.
• 33:35
  Notice that God is 1 but in a plurality of persons For the
• 33:40
  great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?
• 33:45
  I don't want to spend the remaining time before we break
• 33:48
  bread here to discuss the greatness of God's wrath.
• 33:52
  We'll have much more revelation to to explore related to that.
• 33:58
  I just want to simply answer the question that these kings and
• 34:01
  great ones and slaves and free asked in response to it.
• 34:07
  Who can stand? It's a rhetorical question.
• 34:13
  It's so clear no one, not one person, no matter how powerful
• 34:18
  or wealthy they are, no matter how loved, no matter what kind
• 34:21
  of lawyers you have, will be able to endure the wrath of God.
• 34:26
  Every person will be consumed. God does not judge impartially.
• 34:33
  He will faithfully vindicate His name and faithfully deal with
• 34:37
  those who have denied His Son and deny the blood.
• 34:42
  But there is one group of people that can stand.
• 34:48
  Paul tells us in Romans 5. This is our final passage.
• 34:51
  It's worth turning there and verse one and two.
• 34:58
  Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have
• 35:04
  peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
• 35:07
  Through him we have also obtained access by faith into
• 35:11
  this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the
• 35:18
  glory of God who can stand and face the great day of their
• 35:26
  wrath. And Paul says you don't have to
• 35:30
  worry about standing before God's wrath because in Christ,
• 35:35
  through faith, because of grace, you stand firmly in grace and
• 35:46
  his forgiveness and His refuge, and nothing can change that.
• 35:53
  Can I ask you a question using this idea of standing as an
• 35:55
  image? What line are you standing in?
• 36:01
  Just imagine with me two lines. Here's line number one, being
• 36:07
  prepared to face the great day of God's wrath.
• 36:09
  Are you in that line? I'm not really thinking about
• 36:13
  it. I got a wedding coming up.
• 36:15
  That's not going to change this appointment.
• 36:19
  I'm not really thinking about it.
• 36:20
  I'm so caught up with business and my building projects.
• 36:23
  OK, You think that's going to change anything?
• 36:28
  I'm popular. Who cares?
• 36:30
  Look at the kings and the generals.
• 36:31
  They're going to find themselves in caves one day.
• 36:34
  I'm A Celebrity. I feel bad for you, actually.
• 36:39
  What does it matter what people say about you or write about
• 36:42
  you? You're dependent upon another
• 36:46
  breath and only God can grant it.
• 36:49
  What line are you standing in? Are you in line number 1 today?
• 36:52
  Is your appointment to face this unthinkable experience of the
• 36:57
  fury of God's holy justice? Or are you in line number two?
• 37:01
  You're saying what's in line number 2?
• 37:04
  The opposite of line number one, that you are prepared to face
• 37:11
  his immeasurable love and to receive not wrath but
• 37:17
  fellowship, not holy anger, but overwhelming affection.
• 37:25
  Are you in that line? You're saying, well, look, I
• 37:26
  don't know which one I'm in. In fact, I'm inclined to think
• 37:29
  I'm in line number one. Well, if you're in line #2 you
• 37:31
  know, you can actually be removed from that and find
• 37:34
  yourself in the line that I'm speaking about here saying, how
• 37:36
  do I get there? The bridge, the transfer is
• 37:42
  believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, trusting that He is the
• 37:45
  lame of God who takes away the sin of the world.
• 37:48
  Trusting that you are deserving of His wrath, but also a
• 37:51
  recipient by faith of His love if you were to believe it.
• 37:55
  And you have nothing to worry about.
• 37:58
  In fact, when you find yourself in this line, this sacrifice is
• 38:01
  so great that God will put guardrails and keep you in that
• 38:06
  line. And no matter who's here, no
• 38:08
  matter what force, nothing can separate you from standing
• 38:12
  there. Nothing can take you away from
• 38:14
  the destiny of being in His glory forever and ever.
• 38:19
  That's the greatness of the sacrifice.
• 38:22
  And I find it exciting that the way we do communion here is that
• 38:25
  we get on the line and we're going to take a piece of that
• 38:31
  bread and a small portion of that cup to remember.
• 38:36
  Romans 5, verse 2. Through him we have also
• 38:40
  obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand.
• 38:45
  I want you to think about that, believer, as you are ready to
• 38:47
  partake this afternoon. You are coming here and
• 38:52
  rejoicing in the truth. That wrath is not for you.
• 38:56
  I don't want to face this right? You don't have to.
• 38:58
  If you're listening to me, if you're trembling there, I'm
• 39:00
  trying to keep yourself together.
• 39:02
  You don't have to know this wrath.
• 39:04
  You don't have to face the wrath of the Lamb.
• 39:05
  But what might do that? You must embrace the Lamb of
• 39:07
  God. And if you have not done that,
• 39:10
  do it today. Don't you dare mindlessly
• 39:15
  participate in this, not knowing where your salvation lies more
• 39:19
  than you participating in any ordinance.
• 39:22
  Call out to the Lord, ask Him to forgive you, repent of your sin,
• 39:27
  and He will flood your heart with an assurance that will
• 39:30
  provide strong encouragement. Believer, I encourage you to, as
• 39:35
  we sing, to reflect on your own heart.
• 39:38
  Are you truly living for Christ? I know all of us in here feel
• 39:43
  unworthy if we think about it long enough that we're not as
• 39:46
  faithful as we can be. I'm not talking about that.
• 39:47
  I'm talking about justifying disobedience.
• 39:51
  I'm talking about you ignoring something the Lord has been
• 39:53
  convicting you about and you have not dealt with it.
• 39:56
  If you are holding on to something, don't grab these
• 39:59
  elements yet. Do business with God that will
• 40:03
  please Him more than this. But believer, this is a time of
• 40:08
  celebration. We're reading about these
• 40:10
  judgments and we're going to stand in line and say that's not
• 40:13
  my portion, that's not my future.
• 40:18
  I stand in the grace of God. Let's pray.
• 40:33
  We thank you, Father, you are so kind to us.
• 40:42
  How even in these prophecies about the future we can learn
• 40:45
  about who you are today. And Lord, we have come to
• 40:48
  rejoice in our redemption. We've come now to obey what you
• 40:53
  have instructed your church to do, and that is to take these
• 40:56
  elements and to reflect on what you have done and what you will
• 40:59
  do. Lord, thank You that because of
• 41:02
  your love for us, what we can anticipate is a feast.
• 41:08
  You told us that you would not drink of this cup again until
• 41:11
  you drink it with us in Your Kingdom.
• 41:14
  And so, Lord, we thank you that what we saw here in Revelation 6
• 41:17
  is not for us. And Lord, for the one who is not
• 41:20
  sure what their future holds, may today be the day of
• 41:22
  salvation, and may they receive Christ wholeheartedly and
• 41:26
  experience this great love that we are rejoicing in.
• 41:29
  Continue to be with us, Lord, move our hearts as we taste and
• 41:33
  see your kindness once more in Jesus name, Amen.
• 41:39
  The praise team is going to come and join us and to lead us in a
• 41:42
  reflective song as that's taking place.
• 41:45
  Sing these lyrics and tune your heart to the sacredness of this
• 41:51
  moment. Don't think about your sin
• 41:55
  unless you need to repent of it. Think about the Savior.
• 41:59
  Think about His obedience, His perfection, His righteousness on
• 42:04
  your behalf. You're not coming here because
• 42:06
  of your performance. You've come here because He has
• 42:09
  done all the work and you're a recipient of His mercy.
• 42:14
  That's why you're coming here. OK, well, let's stand now.
• 42:17
  Let's celebrate.