Poetic Justice

Henry wrote about this text. He said you know the unbelieving world thinks that everything belongs to them.

This is there are. This is their error there.

See their rivers their world.

They believe that a lot have the right to determine the angel here announces the truth about God. This is his birth. This is his animal.

This is created human race and heel on the right charge and determine where the colonialist triumph over Great Britain or Hitler's defeat in World War II. No matter what war would make your list is the most significant, it pales in comparison to a battle that is yet to be fought the battle of Armageddon which will change the face of the world.

Welcome to wisdom for the heart. Today Stephen Davey opens God's word to the book of Revelation to explore in detail, this coming conflict.

Today's message is called poetic justice mentions some of the words either found in the book of Revelation are described in the book of Revelation.

You get a reaction. Just about anybody whether or not a person spent her time in church or other agnostic just mention words like the rapture and you get an opinion mention number 666 and the look at you twice and have an opinion like I read I heard about it and found this that that recently, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, successfully gained permission in 2003 to change Highway 666 to Highway 491. You might want always only thinking that they were highly sick sick sick to travel well is been named that because in 1923 when they named it was simply this branch or spur off of Interstate 66 and they spent the decade try to get rid of it finally granted the right to change the road name not because of superstition. By the way, or because they were concerned about the coming Antichrist, because they simply couldn't keep the highway signs from being stolen. People just wanted to have it in our own homes. I guess mounted on the laws and the veterans for whatever reason with just about everything those words like rapture Antichrist in 666 have to do with end times. The capture certainly the attention of the world, perhaps as much, as any other word from the book of Revelation is the word Armageddon just about everyone knows that the word Armageddon has something to do with the end of the world for those who are little more informed will know that it's a reference to location and the coming final world war were now a series beginning today. It will take us right through the battle of Armageddon and John will deliver to us the details of the rise and fall of that will happen in living color details of the final cataclysmic events that wrap up the final days of civilization as we know it in the kingdom which follows as Christ returns with his church to set up the millennial kingdom. So John the apostle will reveal the was all that as the last civilizations of the world rush toward this this climactic battle.

The battle of Armageddon. Mankind will not be in control, God. The kingdoms of this world pass away the kingdom of our Christ is forever and then beginning with Revelation chapter 16, seven angels were previewed in chapter 15 have stepped forward and now chapter 16 gives us the details as they stepped forward with seven bowls filled as it were, with the wrath of God to be poured out in one final series of events just before Christ splits the skies open in his triumphal return to establish his kingdom.

Verse one that I heard a loud voice from the temple, the Neos, the holy of holies saying to these seven angels, go pour out on the earth, the seven bowls of the wrath of God is seen as both figurative and literal.

The bowls are literal bowls, but they figuratively express the pouring out as it were, of elements seen as the wrath of God is seen and personifies wrath as if it were some kind of liquid in these bowls of these angels are carrying with some ceremony.

The language implies some kind of ceremony as they file out of the holy of holies to distribute the wrath of God representing the law of God, which has been broken by the way, these bowls are shallow saucers. The Greek word is the Yahweh, which refers to a wide, shallow bowl, much like a saucer like the one you might pour milk into for your care to have one.

That's not in the text.

Let me go back to it. I let me give you for categorical observations and I want to dive in, but let me give you for categorical observations about these bowls that will help make sense of them as we can. Number one, they are rapidly delivered rapidly delivered all of this will affect the earth and the human race. Over the course of a few days to weeks at best. The language implies that one ball after another, will be poured out without any delay and they are poor by the way, the verb indicates they're not drip, tort, or lightly spilled there literally is if there turned upside down suddenly and poured.

That leads me to the second observation that you need to understand these bowls are cumulative, distressing with only a brief pause in verse five, these bowls are poured out one after another, adding judgment upon judgment horror upon horror much like the plagues of Egypt because there is delay in the plagues of Egypt. There are all sorts of scientific explanations.

Maybe read the Reader's Digest version read it in the Reader's Digest and the Exodus health the plagues all began with a volcanic eruption which covered the light of the sun, the water turned poisonous and red.

For some reason, which drove frogs in the land and are in their Diane bread flies and gnats which killed cattle infected people: and on course they have to generalize the effects of the plague so that one in every household seemed to die you know the Bible specifically attributed the place to the miraculous power of God through his servant Moses, including the killing of every firstborn from every family who refuse to follow the protecting plan of God which foreshadowed the atoning work of Christ as they put blood on the doorpost of their homes and found there in safety. You can no more explain these events apart from the hand of God than you can explain so many other things in the Bible. Certainly the miraculous events which the naturalist wants to void from Scripture we just try apart from the hand of God explaining the creation of the new heaven and they were. We just explain a city made of transparent glass or goal looking like glass. Revelation 21 explain single gates of that city, all carve each one from a single pearl winter there some kind of monster oysters working those things up now as we speak. While you're at it, explain the resurrection of Lazarus wrapped tightly to breathe would be like you breathing through a pillow, smothering your faith.

He's dead for four days.

Nothing to eat or drink. It cannot be explained apart from the voice of sovereign God explain the resurrection of Christ, like ladies and gentlemen, these bowls of wrath of the supernatural work of God through his created universe where he actually violates the laws of nature. He created and you will see he has the right to do that he will turn nature upside down will the third observation is this they are specifically directed. You will notice as we look through this that in verse two, only the followers of the antichrist are plagued with these sores, it seems possible that the fifth bowl of darkness. In verse 10, only affects the throne of the kingdom of the antichrist. Although I would toss my head and with those who believe that his kingdom is global, but there seems to be some protection at least from the first one for those who truly do believe they will be spared some of the effects.

Although every believer will be affected either directly or indirectly from every act of judgment. Number four. This is my fourth observation. These balls of judgment are not only rapidly delivered and cumulatively distressing and specifically directed their forcefully terminally destructive as you and I will discover life on the planet will change for everyone. Unbeliever and believer. Those who come to faith in Christ during the tribulation. Christ does return and he does set up his kingdom with his capital in the new Jerusalem and the were not told, there's plenty of evidence with what happens in the kingdom to assume the God not only miraculously turns nature upside down. He writes sit back turns the oceans and seas back to clean sources of water. The truth is, if he didn't earth would be uninhabitable. We know that Christ will reign on the earth with his bride, the church brings with them.

Millions of people who accepted the gospel during the tribulation who will enter this millennial kingdom is Revelation 20 feels okay enough of the overview.

Now let's take a closer look at this final series of judgments from the hand of a holy God bowl number one.

Simply put, unbelievers are plagued with painful sores. Look at verse two. So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth and it became a loathsome and malignant sore on the people what people the people who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image. They do not then affect believers. John writes here, it only affects those who have the mark of the beast.

This is part of God's warning to his angel earlier in Revelation, where he warned them don't take the mark.

If you do, you will drink unmixed that is on diluted morass from God. Those who refuse now suffer in what is a symbol of their coming eternal physical suffering in hell that also serves as a further warning to those of you that it was image, and many have not yet bowed millions from every tongue private nation have not yet bowed and won't go enter the kingdom having believed in Christ.

And so this becomes then not only a warning that I do it, but it becomes an exposure of the Christ as a false Messiah in.

In other words, it's saying lucky look at what happens to the followers of the aircraft are covered with these running ulcers.

These abscesses and he cannot heal them. He is a false physician is a fraud. Go to Baltimore to the ocean seas are turned in the blood. Verse three. The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea and became blood like that of a dead man and every living thing in the sea died that you notice this carefully. This translation put well did not say that the sea became a like the blood of a dead man.

It said it became blood. What kind of blood blood like a dead the Greek word used here for blood is North China which gives us our word AHIMA work hematology which is the study of function and nature of blood.

This is a literal blood as unbelievable as it might sound, the oceans of the world become an instant blood.

We cannot imagine the horror of this judgment.

We cannot imagine the corpses of sea mammals and creatures and fish piled on shore and floating dead upon the waters surfaces. The effects of the food supply of the world will be catastrophic. One believing scientist wrote in this toxic ocean. Nothing can survive and soon all the billions of fishes and marine mammals and marine reptiles in the innumerable varieties of Marine invertebrates will perish, but still further, poisoning the oceans and contaminating the seashores of the world in this present world sea organisms provide the basis for the world's great food chain in the ocean itself is the anchor of the Earth's essential cycle C and its creatures had once been a spring of a life.

Now it becomes a turgid pool of death is the wrath of God poured out the third ball is freshwater sources printed will look bad enough another Angel message for livers for the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and springs of water as other freshwater sources and they became blood not like blood.

They became kind became blood of anybody's thinking something is really bad, but I live in Kansas away from that arrive in Colorado. I'm fairly insulated. I we still have rivers and and melting snow drinking water and springs, then in the legs so we were to be all right, think again. This is a comprehensive miraculous act of God so that his command through his angel. All water sources turn in the blood. All inland water leaving people with nothing to drink, listen, unless God miraculously reverses his judgment mankind cannot survive without water and before long all bottled water drinks of every kind of water stored in tankers water stored in towers water of any and all forms will run out. This becomes then the global scene of an earlier warning of God's judgment upon the Egyptians because they harden their hearts through their leader Pharaoh remember how one of those plagues was the turning of the Nile River into literal blood contamination. Here, however, is comprehensive global world's oceans. You imagine the environmentalists nightmare, but the destruction of the remaining freshwater supplies is going to be even more staggering.

This is catastrophic.

This is a blow to fallen humanity you believe they were worshiping their God.

No, the true God reigns with the word is taken everything they need effectively to survive way the people certainly wonder how God could do something like this. It is indeed a God of compassion and the God of love and a God of grace Patty do this. So God anticipates that kind of question. Following this kind of catastrophic judgment. In fact, about the time you think mankind is going to ask this question and get some kind of explanation even though there warned earlier you that this man and the act of judgment will come to drink unmixed fury from God.

God does condescend and he threw an angel. Another Angel delivers an explanation which effectively defends his character. Verse five and I heard the angel of the waters as the angel given authority over the waters saying righteous are you who are and who were oh holy one because you judge these things, for they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink.

They deserve it. How terrifying are these words to human race.

This is poetic justice. In fact, even though I believe fully the wrath of God. In fact I cling to the wrath of God having been played out of the body and life of Christ on my behalf and yours who believe still for me to read these words come to the end of it recent and they deserve it is startling. They deserve it poured out the blood of Christ followers. So now God pours out blood same Greek word for poor is used in this paragraph poured out the blood of the saints, God pours out his wrath that they poured out the blood of those who would follow Christ. This is been a bloodbath for those who belong to Christ. Now God bathes them blood is actually deeper than that human race has effectively dismissed the true and living Christ shed his blood on their behalf and they rejected his blood and now they have nothing but blood which cannot save this even more than that.

They deny the creator and are now punished the hands of creation, they refuse the healer and now they suffer incurable, boils and sores they refused to follow the lion who began his public ministry by turning water in the lot and the wine.

Now in this judgment turns water into blood. The tread upon the blood of Christ shed the blood of the saints, and now they have only blood. It's as if there floating blood they deserve and that startling to read. They deserve even those of us who believe in the wrath of God find that hard to read and they deserve to precursor of that day when we will with Christ see the judgment of all those who disbelieve, thrown into hell and understand fully and say deserve the truth is we all deserve judgment of God doing her. We all have rebelled. We all have violated the law of God and the wages of sin is what death the just and right payment for being a sinner and his death and we will experience physical death but not eternal torment and suffering. Why the wages of sin is death, but praise God for the little conjunction is change the eternity for us to believe the just payment for sin is death, but the free gift of God is everlasting or eternal life through Jesus Christ our we all deserve judgment. God but he came upon Christ, and we have accepted Christ go free. Interesting how Paul used the same word for poor PO you are used here in Revelation for the bulls pouring out the wrath of God when he wrote in Romans five the love of God has been poured out within our hearts even more ironic to discover for me that his word is also used in acts chapter 2. Where were told that God poured out upon those who believed his Holy Spirit and hours for those who believe we have a pouring we have a lot of God poured out and were hard to have the Holy Spirit poured in our lives for those who do not believe they will experience the wrath of God poured out against them is the height of poetic justice.

The angel says God is right.

God is true in judging the world. In this way, the very first book of the Bible in Genesis 18 Abraham asked this rhetorical question shall not the judge of all the earth deal justly in the last book of the Bible. The angel answers here, righteous are you all holy one because you judge these things. Verse seven yes, oh Lord God the Almighty, true and righteous are your judgments as you do what is right. Matthew Henry a century ago great commentator wrote about this text. He said you know the unbelieving world thinks that everything belongs to them. This is there are. This is their error. There see their rivers, their world they believe they alone have the right to determine and judge and it's true the angel here announces the truth about God.

This is his earth. This is his air. These are his emotions.

These are his. See and like this is his animal creation. This is created human race, and he has the right to judge and determine as sovereign Lord. This is my father's world. Let me never forget though the wrong seems oft so strong. God is the ruler yet.

This is my father's world.

The battle is not done. Jesus, who died will be satisfied and earth and heaven become one so this last series of judgments that we are just introducing today were immediately given the true God is the world that does what is right, sin deserves judgment in you here today can also here within this an invitation surrender now to the sovereign. The invitation he was everything he owns. You and he will have the right to judge and determine your eternal existence.

So surrender to him now while there is time for his grace to be poured out his love poured out his spirit poured out into your life come to the Savior. He will forgive everything God owns everything, Christ will forgive everything received from him. This free gift of salvation. Why, because how can you well. He has already paid for everything in it. Instead of having future judgment poured out upon you. In fact, he may be alive when this occurred.

Should the rapture happens have the love of God poured out upon your heart the grace of God lavished upon the Holy Spirit given freely to you as you become a part of the body of Christ as you join the wedding session which is with that we bring to a close this first of several messages in a series called Armageddon in the fall of Babylon. Stephen has entitled today's message poetic justice you're listening to wisdom for the hearts. This is the Bible teaching ministry of Stephen Davey, a great way to learn more about us is to visit our website which is wisdom online.org whether your new listener or you've listened for a while but have never taken us up on our introductory offer.

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