Revelation 9:1-12

This title is not swearing or vain threats as we hear this expression frequently used today. In Revelation 9, the place of eternal torment called hell literally breaks out upon the earth. We cannot imagine a time when darkness prevails more than the description in this prophecy. It will be a dark time to be alive unless you have God.

Revelation 8:13 with Acts 14 and Psalm 37

We left off right in the midst of the end of the world. This is a time of calamity and catastrophe like the world has never seen, but how should we live in light of this coming reality? What attitudes characterize the lost, and how should the saved view these events? For that we turn to Acts 14 and Psalm 37 to gain perspective on how we should live in the meantime.

Revelation 8:7-13

What does the word apocalypse mean? It comes from the greek word Ἀποκάλυψις which means to uncover. This word carries two ideas (1) revealing Christ, His second coming, making manifest the Sons of God and (2) the final judgment and the destruction of the world. Today we are looking at the point in time when the world falls apart. It is the end of the world in which Christ will be revealed and the world will be judged. We should give God glory in the earth because He is “Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty” (Revelation 1:8).

Revelation 8:1-6

Picking up where we left off in this remarkable scene, we see the effectiveness of the prayers of all the saints in God’s dealings in the world. And second, we see God’s timing, in His mercy, to redeem the world and His people. With each passing second of silence, heaven waits, the angels adjust their trumpets and prepare to give their ear-piercing blast, earth groans under the cruelty and ugliness of rampant rebellion, and we can rest in believing that God’s timing is best. Hang in there, keep waiting just a little while longer!

Revelation 8:1-5

There are two remarkable aspects of this passage in Revelation 8 that have the potential to impact our lives in a marvelous way. First, we see the collected prayers of the saints down through the ages that result in the decisive action of the Lord in the world. And second, we see the timing of God in pouring His concentrated wrath upon the world. Both aspects are incredibly helpful for us to meditate upon.

Revelation 7:9-17

In life, we rarely see the spiritual impact of our daily obedience to God, but in Revelation 7 we are given a glimpse into the results of these 144,000 Jewish evangelists. This reminds us of the invisible impact of our service to God, it shows us that the most important thing is living for Him, and it encourages us that even when we can’t see the effects of our obedience, eternity will tell the full story. And we also have the same comforts offered to these people awaiting us when we get to heaven.

Revelation 7:1-8

We switch our focus from the judgments that come upon the earth to God’s protection of a group of 144,000 Jewish evangelists during the time of the tribulation in chapter seven. Here we see God preserving His people from the destruction that would befall the rest of the world in order for them to fulfill a specific role God has for them. This chapter encourages us to keep serving God in the midst of the darkness, and to keep doing the job God has called us to do.

Revelation 6:12-17

In the latter part of the tribulation, the earth gets absolutely pummeled by God’s judgment in the form of these catastrophes: (1) a great earthquake, (2) the sun darkened, (3) the moon turned blood-red, (4) stars falling to the earth, (5) the heavens released, and (6) mountains and islands displaced. This judgment precisely mirrors the teachings of Jesus in Matthew 24. As we think on these miraculous events, let us remember that though heaven and earth will pass away, God’s Word will never pass away. And God has given us real, tangible confirmation that this is true in the fact that the Jewish people have never been erased. That is our proof that these things will come to pass just as Jesus said they would.