We heard this morning how the Feast of Trumpets represents Christ’s coming. 

Now we want to focus on the events of that coming—not be lulled into a sense of complacency.

Mt. 24:1-9, 32-33, 45-51

Trumpets—a warning sound. Book of Revelation – revelation of what? Revelation of events prior to coming, the coming and afterwards. Trumpets sound all through Revelation – announce different events.

Rev. 1:10, 19 What you see is happening, and what will happen in the future.

Rev. 2-3  Successive Church periods to the coming of Christ – notice last Rev. 3:29–at the door.

Rev. 4-5 Scene as the end time arrives – God hands Jesus Christ a scroll with planned events

Rev. 5:9

Rev. 6 Seals opened – in sets of seven – perfect number – completion

Rev. 6:1-2  False religion – permission to conquer – Dan. 11: King of the South to push K. of North

Commentary by Ralph Peters, a prolific writer. He retired United States Army Lieutenant Colonel, He spent ten years in Germany working in military intelligence Peters later became a Foreign Area Officer, specializing in the Soviet Union. He attended the Command and General Staff College. His last assignment was to the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence 

2009, The War After Armaggedon.

The War after Armageddon' by Ralph Peters tells a cautionary tale about the future consequences of internal American and international relationships. America is struggling for her survival and the war between Islamist 'fanatics', Christians and politicians leads to raging war resulting in Armageddon. The novel suggests complete chaos and destruction in a 'ruthless future war' that exist in the future. Apart from America, the war suggests a chain of destructive events in Europe and the Middle East.

Newsweek claimed, "Peter's battle scenes are masterpieces of perspective...it is hard to imagine a better portrayal of modern war" and Publisher's Weekly wrote, "Military strategist Peters applies the predictions of his nonfiction Wars of Blood and Faith to this outstanding cautionary tale of a near-future war set in the Middle East.

 

Wars of Blood and Faith: The Conflicts That Will Shape the 21st Century – 2007

“Except in North America and northwestern Europe, the great religious wars of the last two millennia never really ended—they were only taking naps, due to the exhaustion of one party or both. The Sunni-Shiah contest is 12 centuries old—as old as, but deeper than, Islam’s struggle with the West….Now, with bewildering speed, history has come back, insisting on its durability and casting the last hundred years as an aberration. We have reentered the long river of struggles over elemental issues: God and blood. We have to reset our calendars and recalibrate our mentalities….This will be a century of contradictions. The age of supertechnologies is also the new age of superstition, of great religions reduced to cults that worship bloodthirsty begoeymen. The defining struggle of our time—the source of conflicts great and small—weill be between those who believe in a merciful God and those who worship a divine disciplinarian. This philosophical divide will kill many millions.”

 

Rev. 6:3-4 Second Seal – Deadly Wars Increase. The second horseman is war and bloodshed. He rides on a "fiery red steed," whose color symbolizes slaughter

 Peters: “The 21st century will see an unprecedented expansion in the varieties of organized violence…And the fiercest challenges may come neither from the conventional nor irregular forces as we know them, but from governments and organizations willing to wage wars in the spheres now forbidden or still unimagined.”

 

September 11, 2009
Eight years ago today, our homeland was attacked by fanatical Muslims…Three thousand American citizens and residents died. We resolved that we, the People, would never forget. Then we forgot. We’ve learned nothing. Instead of cracking down on Islamist extremism, we’ve excused it. Instead of protecting law-abiding Americans, we reject profiling to avoid offending terrorists. So we confiscate granny’s shampoo at the airport because the half-empty container could hold 3.5 ounces of liquid. Instead of taking a firm stand against Islamist fanaticism, we’ve made a cult of negotiations — as our enemies pursue nuclear weapons; sponsor terrorism; torture, imprison, rape and murder their own citizens — and laugh at us. We’ve forgotten what we owe our dead and what we owe our children. We’ve even forgotten who attacked us. We have betrayed the memory of our dead. In doing so, we betrayed ourselves and our country. Our troops continue to fight — when they’re allowed to do so — but our politicians have surrendered. Are we willing to let the terrorists win?

Most dangerous place on earth -- Iran will have made significant progress toward a nuclear weapon by the end of this year. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Iran will soon have more than 7,000 centrifuges operating at Natanz, where it has already produced enough low enriched uranium for one nuclear weapon if the uranium is converted to a highly enriched form. It appears that Iran is rapidly mastering uranium enrichment as well as advancing its missile program, two of the three components of a successful nuclear weapons program. It is unclear how much progress Iran made on the third, weaponization

 

Peters: The rulers in Tehran need us as an enemy (along with Israel). A demonized foe is essential to their grip on power. And all that rhetoric about the impending end of time and the return of the Hidden Imam? A key faction -- which includes President Ahmadinejad -- believes it.

Rev. 6:5-6 Third seal – largely a consequence of wars – famines. The third horseman is poverty and famine. He rides on a "black horse" and symbolizes the effects of war and bloodshed: sorrow, mourning, and desolation. Scales -- This amount suggests food prices about twelve times higher than normal (Beckwith, p. 520) and implies inflation and famine conditions.

 

Rev. 6:7-8 Fourth seal – pestilences. “"Pale" (chloros) denotes a yellowish green, the light green of a plant, or the paleness of a sick person in contrast to a healthy appearance. This probably refers to the death brought by pestilence, or plague, which often follows famine (Luke 21:11).

 

Rev. 6:9-10 Fifth seal – Great tribulation begins

the Greek word psyche has various meanings and probably stands here for the actual "lives" or "persons" who were killed rather than for their "souls." They are seen by John as persons who are very much alive though they have been killed by the beast.

 

Rev. 6:12 Sixth seal – Heavenly signs

 

Rev. 8-9: Seventh Seal – Seven trumpets

 

Rev. 11:15 Seventh Trumpets – Seven Woes

 

Rev. 19 Coming of Christ

Real danger spots – Iran – North Korea – Europe – Treaty of Lisbon – Pope more active.

1 John 2:28-29  Important – trumpet sound – be alert, not groggy. Trumpets -- Protect His own.