Trumpets - the Climax of End Time Events

(7) Ken Loucks - Trumpets - The Climax of End Time Events - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrdtW1u-jIE

Transcript:
(00:02) Well, greetings and welcome to anyone who's online. Uh, happy feast of trumpets. So, you know, this is the it's like the most incredible of the holy days in some ways. It's not to me it's not the most important, but maybe it's what one of the most significant and that everything comes together like all of the end time events crescendo on this day.
(00:26) It's kind of an exciting day because of that. like everything that that we hope for culminates on this day and that's what this day represents. Look, we're all can't wait for this to end. I mean, you can't have been in the church, especially for the last, oh man, the last three, four, five years have just been hard. And it's not going to get easier.
(00:52) I mean, you just have to know we maybe it feels like we're in a bit of a respit, but you know, peace and safety, that whole deal, and then the end comes, that's when kind of what it feels like. We're in sort of a lull, the eye of the storm, maybe. I don't know. But I know that we're all hoping for, as it says, we all yearn within ourselves for the end of this age and the beginning of the next one. Jesus Christ is going to come and he's going to depose the God of this age.
(01:18) Like that thought alone is so comforting to me. He's going to crush all of the systems of human governance which have proved over thousands of years to not work. He's given us time. God will not have been short on giving us every opportunity to prove we just are not capable of ruling ourselves. We need the King of Kings and God's government to truly see and enjoy what real peace is.
(01:58) I want us thinking as I was preparing this particular message about why is it that we rehearse, you know, I think we know conceptually why we rehearse each of the holy days. So we we're reminded I was reminded recently of how easy it is you get just far enough past a holy day that some of the elements of it become a little less clear than they were as you were in the midst of it.
(02:23) And it can be easy to let that sort of fog of time and distance corrode a little bit of our understanding. And so I think it makes incredibly good sense that God said every year you rehearse, you remind. It's too easy for it to slip away, for a little bit of something to get in there that corrods, erodess, and diminishes what our understanding is of the truth. And so, we get to go back through. We get to be reminded of what this day truly means, what it's really all about.
(02:50) For me, on this day, I was in in terms of mental preparation, study, and prayer. I've been thinking about the the reality of of all the harshness of what's coming with this a world that's going to endure incredible pain and suffering. We we if we are where God says we should want to be, we should be in a place called safety where all of the events that we read about on this day, we're not a part of that.
(03:24) We're preserved from enduring that there will be a remnant that's going to be here that God says must go through that fire to be tested. Do you want to be a part of that group? I don't. My guess is you don't either. So then to me as we go through this and we rehearse this part of this should simply be a sobering reminder of what we don't want to be a part of.
(03:52) Like this is serious and what's coming is going to be horrific beyond I think what any of us can possibly imagine. I think the movies do the best they can to give us a vision of terrible things. But you're not in the middle of that movie. You watch that on the other side of a 2D screen, detached from whatever it is that's being depicted. What's coming is real, far more real than anything Hollywood can produce.
(04:19) And so I want to rehearse today what's coming. Not only as a reminder of what's coming. So that as we see these things unfolding, we know what we see, but also so that we are reminded again of the soberness of what's coming. And that we don't want to be a part of that.
(04:37) And that we need to be doing everything we can to not be a part of that, to be counted worthy, as Luke says. I want to begin today by reviewing the seals that are pictured by this day. End time events are revealed to us in the book of Revelation through John's vision of a scroll with seven seals. We have, I think, in our minds a vision of what a scroll rolled up paper looks like and a seal on it of wax that has a a ring, a signant ring that has depressed into it that marks that seal.
(05:20) And there are seven of on seven of them on this scroll. The church has long understood that the first four seals on this scroll, what we call the four horsemen of the apocalypse, those were opened almost immediately when Christ ascended and became our high priest sitting at the right hand of God. Of course, those weren't just future only prophecies.
(05:53) They describe conditions that have stretched across the last 2,000 years of human history and they are the constant backdrop of this world under Satan's rule. And of course, they're going to continue to intensify right up until the end. I want to start over in Revelation chapter 5 just to be reminded since there's no way as Mr.
(06:16) Portius commented earlier that we can go through everything that we could go through and read every scripture we could read on on on this day. Given two sermons, we still can't cover even remotely half of what's available to us. So, let's begin with pulling out some of the pieces that we need to see and to understand. Revelation 5:1 simply says, "And I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back sealed with seven seals.
(06:40) " And of course, this goes on to explain, well, who's capable? Who's worthy to even open these seals? And it's revealed that it is only Christ who can remove the seals and tell us what's in there. It's also important for us to understand, as I covered a little bit on the Sabbath, that much of what we're reading about here is a vision given to John. Now, that vision is just that.
(07:06) It's him being shown lots of things, both real and symbolic. It's really important for us as we walk through things to let the real be real and the symbolic be symbolic and not to get them backwards. All right. One of the things I was meditating on this morning was how it's interesting that the real is usually corroborated elsewhere.
(07:30) If we for example we look at ex at what happens at the end time with the resurrections, we see the resurrections are corroborated in 1 Corinthians 15 and 1 Thessalonians 4. And so the real is corroborated outside of the vision that John was given. But yet much of what he was given is also symbolic to help us to understand what is real.
(07:54) But, you know, poor John had to try to explain things that were well beyond his experience to be able to explain. So, let's go over now to Revelation chapter 6. And if you're on the younger end of things and you want to know where do I find the first six seals, they're in Revelation 6. Nice and easy to find them.
(08:21) So let's go here to Revelation 6:es 1 and 2 where it reads, "Now I saw when the lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a voice like thunder, come and see." And I looked, and behold, a white horse, he who sat on it had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.
(08:46) You know, the the the imagery here is intentional if you contemplate what it's supposed to look like when Jesus Christ returns on a white horse to conquer. But that's literally where that similarity ends because these are not two similar figures. So notice that yes, he rides on a white horse, but he carries a bow. Now, he doesn't carry a sword. And if you remember Revelation 19, Christ comes back on a horse carrying a sword.
(09:19) This rider's on a white horse, all right? But he only has one crown. Christ says he has many crowns. And here he has a bow and not a sword. That's not insignificant. He's given authority to conquer, but not to save. This represents false religion, a counterfeit Christianity that began to spread almost as soon as Christ ascended to heaven and the church was created.
(09:42) But I want you to notice something about this bow because it's there's no arrows described. Simply a bow. But go over with me to Ephesians. Ephesians chapter 6. Ephesians 6 verse 16. Notice something here with me. Ephesians 6:16 says, "Above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.
(10:16) " Okay, so we're given here as Paul tells us spiritually, armor. And a part of our armor is a shield called faith with which we are you to use to quench these fiery darts. Now, where are these darts coming from? It says the wicked one. Well, the word for darts here is the Greek word B- E L O S. B- E L O S.
(10:39) And that is defined as a missile or spear or arrow. We notice that John's vision didn't tell us anything about arrows. It mentioned a bow. Well, the writer represents false religion, but looks like it represents Christ. The clue is in the weapon. The arrows for the bow are provided by Satan. Fiery darts are fiery arrows.
(11:11) And these, of course, are his lies, his deception, false doctrines, false teachings, which would be a part of that false religious system, not a part of God's church. Christ himself warned of this in the ET prophecy over in Matthew. We'll read this in Matthew 24. Matthew 24:es 4 and 5. Verse four says, "And Jesus answered and said to them, take heed that no one deceives you, for many will come in my name, saying, I am the Christ, and will deceive many.
(11:56) " He's not saying in this case that people are coming to say that they are Christ. He's saying they're coming in Christ's name declaring they represent Christ and that they would deceive many. You know, I every time I see the word many and church in a same context, I look around a room like this and realize how small we really are. We aren't many.
(12:24) You've been excluded from the deception. You've been called out of that. And God has revealed the truth to you. But to the vast majority of people who call themselves Christians, they don't have the truth. The church they go to doesn't preach the truth. The their bow is filled, the quiver for their bow is filled with the lies and deception of the god of this age, not from Jesus Christ.
(12:59) John Gil says in his commentary, "The writer represents a usering power under the guise of Christ, but not Christ himself." This is exactly what happened in the first century. A false Christianity arose, claiming the name of Jesus Christ, but teaching doctrines that he did not teach. This deception has continued throughout the centuries, shaping the religious landscape of the world.
(13:23) You know the greatest maybe the most accurate description of the great harlot is that she is the mother of harlots. And of course we have a enormous church which was the original Christian church from whom sprung many different offspring all with similar but not the truth based from Jesus Christ. This deception has continued through the centuries shaping the religious landscape of the world.
(13:58) And we can watch and see that we have the advantage of looking back over time to have witnessed and be able to see all of that has that has gone by. So the second horse then follows quickly. You might want to keep your finger in Revelation as we do what I tend to do, which is to bounce around to flesh something out. We're back in Revelation chapter 6.
(14:17) I'm going to place my marker here, too. And now we're in verses 3 and 4. Says, 'When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, "Come and see. Another horse, fiery red, went out, and it was granted to the one that sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another. And there was given to him a great sword.
(14:45) " This horse, of course, is red, which is the color of blood. It represents war. from the conquests of the Roman Empire to the endless cycle of conflict in every century since. Think I think have we all heard this that there's something like only 250 years in the history of man where there hasn't been war. And of course over the last 2,000 years all we've seen is war after war after war.
(15:10) I would say war has been the defining mark of human government apart from God again. So, we're going to bounce back and forth here a couple of minutes here between Matthew 24 and Revelation 6 because Christ gave us in his own testimony the meanings of the things that we read in the revelation he later gave to John.
(15:34) So, the revelator first explained what was coming before he gave the revelation to John. So, here we are in Matthew 24 6 and 7. He says, "And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars, which is what we see constantly today. See that you are not troubled, for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines, pestilences, earthquakes in various places." We'll get back to that.
(16:11) The word for nation is ethnos, meaning peoples or ethnic groups. Let's do a Google search real quick and find out how many ethnic wars are going on concurrently right now. This has been a constant part of our history. Albert Barnes comments that this prophecy is quote not a single conflict but a state of continual agitation and war marking the age until the very end. Now we read back in Revelation.
(16:42) If you kept a marker, you'll get here quickly. Revelation 6:es 5 and 6. And keep your finger over there in Matthew 24. All right. Revelation 6 now verses 5 and 6. It says, "When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, come and see.
(17:05) So I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand, and I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, "A quart of wheat for a daenarius, and three quarts of barley for a daenarius, and do not harm the oil and the wine." The scales represent trade and food distribution, but the prices are wildly inflated.
(17:33) A day's wage is what's being described for a measure of grain. This symbolizes famine and economic collapse conditions that naturally follow in the wake of war. I if you just look up what's gone on in Palestine from the war between Hamas and Israel, we can get a sense of what's being described here and how we have to truck uh food in there constantly to try to feed those people. Famine and starvation is the consequence of war.
(18:04) And we're trying to do something to remedy that. Matthew chapter 24 and verse 7. The latter half now of that was and there will be famines, pestilences, earthquakes in various places. Adam Clark notes that the black horse denotes extreme scarcity and distress particularly as a consequence of wasting wars.
(18:34) In every century, from Rome's grain shortages to modern-day global food crisis, famine has claimed millions of lives. Back over in Revelation chapter 6, we note the fourth of the horses, verses 7 and 8. Revelation 6 7 and 8. When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the four living creature of the fourth living creature saying, "Come and see.
(19:07) " So I looked, and behold, a pale horse, and the name of him who sat on it was death, and Hades followed with him. It says, "And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth to kill with the sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth. So this horse represents pestilence and death in all its forms.
(19:35) Disease outbreaks, plagues, epidemics, and the vulnerability of populations weakened by war and famine. Luke records that Jesus warned of pestilence as pestilences as well. And that's Luke 21. Luke 21 11. It says, "And there will be great earthquakes in various places and famines and pestilences, and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven.
(20:18) " The four horsemen together create a picture of the world under Satan's influence. religious deception, constant warfare, recurring famine, devastating disease. These have been present throughout history, shaping the story of human suffering. But as prophecy shows, they will intensify as we get near the end of the age, leading directly to the opening of the fifth seal, which is the great tribulation.
(20:50) These seals remind us of two crucial truths. First, they show us that Christ is in control of the timing under the father. It's the lamb who opens the seals, not Satan. The world may look chaotic, but God is guiding history towards his purpose. God's in control. And second, they remind us that we live in a world that has already been under judgment since the first century.
(21:18) The seals are not a future warning alone. They are a present reality and have been here, these first four seals, since Christ ascended and the church began. So, this should sober us. We're not waiting for the four horsemen to appear. They're already here. These seals have already been loosed by Christ himself.
(21:48) But the fifth seal, the great tribulation is still ahead of us and it's going to be unlike anything that has ever come before. So when we open the fifth seal, let's turn over now to Revelation chapter 6 again. We're we're here verses 9- 11. Now when he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held.
(22:20) And they cried with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, until you judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?" Then a white robe was given to each of them, and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who would be killed as they were were completed.
(22:48) Look, just to be clear, this is not this is this is imagery, okay? Are these people actually speaking from the grave? The answer is no more than Abel spoke from the grave when God said to Cain, "Your brother's blood cries out to me." Was his blood actually crying out to him? Or was is this God saying, "I witnessed and know what happened?" In the same way, I have witnessed and know what has happened to my saints.
(23:15) They are not laying in the grave in vain. These are those who've been martyed for the truth. And of course, it's symbolic showing that the persecution will arise again just as it has at other times in history. And the church has always faced persecution. But here Christ reveals that the final wave of martyrdom is yet to come. There is another martyrdom coming of the church.
(23:49) Jesus described this same period in the ette prophecy back to Matthew chapter 24 verses 15- 21. Matthew 24:15 says, "Therefore, when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet standing in the holy place, whoever reads, let him understand.
(24:19) Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days. And pray that your flight may not be in the winter or on the Sabbath.
(24:39) For then there will be great tribulation such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time. No, nor ever shall be. This is a pivotal prophecy. Christ is pointing back to Daniel 9 and Daniel 11. There will be a political religious leader. We call them the beast who will exalt himself by placing an abomination in a holy place.
(25:09) That act marks the beginning of the great tribulation. Now Jesus does not say temple in this passage. She says holy place. That's an important distinction. The Greek phrase refers to a location set apart for sacred use. Not necessarily a fully rebuilt temple. There are some who believe that there must be a third temple built.
(25:40) And I would ask you this, well, what if there's not? Can Christ not return? Often times it's too easy for us to get fixated on an idea that must be so and then everything's built off of that. Remember when I commented in the message on Saturday that I gave the kids at camp a blueprint, a simple square in which all the rectangular and square blocks fit. If you rotated the cornerstone though, you could make every single block fit perfectly against that.
(26:07) If you rotated it, it no longer fit the blueprint. Lots of people will rotate that block a certain way because they make an assumption, have a presupposition, they think something means something, and everything they build from that fits neatly. It just doesn't fit the blueprint anymore.
(26:30) really important that we understand that we don't only build completely around that cornerstone, but the cornerstone must be set correctly. That's why it's so important that we distinguish doctrine correctly. Don't leap off the end of the bridge with an assumption and then make everything fit your assumption and feel like, "Oh, I have a revelation that the church doesn't have." Because that seems kind of popular now.
(26:54) Of course, that's probably been popular for a while. So, this is just one of those where I'm saying I do not believe that we have to have a fully rebuilt temple before Christ comes back. It may be, but it's not mandatory because everywhere we would look in scripture to validate that, I don't find validation for that.
(27:28) For example, if Christ meant temple, why did he say holy place? You think he doesn't know the word? He knows the word. If he meant temple, he would have said he would have said temple. He didn't use the word temple. He said holy place for a reason. That's why I wanted to say to you what that word means and why it doesn't have to be a temple rebuilt. This is I gave you the cliff notes of my Bible study during the feast, which you're not going to hear because I'll be in Australia.
(27:54) It's not going to be recorded. Cliffnotes version right there. All right. Scripture shows that sacrifices can resume without a complete temple structure. For example, I don't have time to go through this. I will in my Bible study at the feast. I'm just wetting your appetite. Maybe you'd like to change your plans and go to Australia.
(28:17) But if you go to Ezra chapter 3, that's an interesting read because the temple hasn't been rebuilt and yet sacrifices begin on an altar, set apart and sanctified for that purpose, wetting your appetite. Go look it up. So this prophecy may point to a future altar or designated worship site likely on the temple mount where sacrifices will once again be offered.
(28:44) The abomination will be an act of defilement in that holy place. And when it happens, it will be a clear signal that the tribulation has begun. The word tribulation comes from the Greek word which means pressure, affliction, distress or crushing oppression. Theyer's lexicon describes it as a pressing together oppression, affliction, tribulation. This is not ordinary trouble.
(29:14) What's coming? And Christ makes it plain. It's a time unlike any before in human history. There will never be a time like this again. The duration of this tribulation is consistent throughout prophecy. Let's notice back in Daniel chapter 7. Daniel 7:2 where it says he shall speak pompous words against the most high shall persecute the saints of the most high and shall intend to change times and law.
(30:03) Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time. And so we're going to find that is 42 months. Is that right? Times times and half time which is 3 and 1/2 years. We find that this is the phrase that's repeated for the same amount of time. 3 and 12 years. Daniel 12:7 repeats this duration as does Revelation 13:5 where the beast is given authority for 42 months.
(30:30) This is the length of the great tribulation. And I want you to understand when a seal is opened, it continues until Christ returns. The first four seals which began immediately almost as soon as Christ ascended to heaven, those have been in place and will continue right up until Christ returns. The fifth seal beginning the great tribulation opens and then does not end until Christ returns.
(30:55) This seal represents the wrath of Satan. And that of course his wrath is poured out on the world, but it's also poured out upon the church, God's people. So, Revelation shows us that not all of God's people will suffer the same fate. Some are going to be protected by God during this time. Revelation 12. Revelation 12:es 13 and 14.
(31:34) Verse 13 says, "Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child." That's Christ. But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle that she might fly into the wilderness to her place where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time from the presence of the serpent which is Satan.
(32:03) The woman represents the church. some portion of the church will be taken to a place of safety for the same three and a half year period as the tribulation. We don't know where that is. Despite our best wranglings with scripture over many, many decades, I can tell you this. We don't really know. God knows.
(32:28) He has this place already in mind. It's picked out, preserved, and ready for us. He doesn't need for us to guess where it is. He hasn't set us on the mission of trying to figure out where it is. And I guarantee you, the minute we think we've got it figured out, it ain't that.
(32:46) Whatever we think it is, it's probably not that. And we don't have to worry about it because our job isn't to try to figure out where that is. It's to be ready to go there. Let God worry about where it is. The language of two wings of a great eagle reflects God's protection. Not a literal flight any more than Israel was described as being taken out of Egypt on the wings of a of an eagle. But they didn't fly anywhere.
(33:18) But not all the faithful are spared from persecution. Notice verse 17. Now we're still here in Revelation 12. Verse 17 says, "And the dragon was enraged with the woman." And so you know the woman here is we we see one word and woman means church but the church has eras to it groups of people representing different aspects of the church. We see a group of people called Sardis. We see a group of people called Philadelphia.
(33:46) We see a group of people called Leodysian. We see God in Revelation 3 and:e 10 saying to the Philadelphiaians that you're going to be protected from everything that's coming. We see his message to the Leodysans, you're not going to be protected from what's coming.
(34:14) You're going to have to endure that fire for your own good because notice verse 17 again. And the dragon was enraged with the woman and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. They're not deceived. The problem with the Leodysian church is not that they are deceived. They know the truth. They're described as lukewarm about it.
(34:43) And God says, "But I wish you were either cold or hot, but because you are lukewarm, I will spew you out of my mouth." You're going to have to be tried and tested to see just how serious you are about the truth. So the time of this tribulation is not man's wrath, nor is it God's wrath. It is Satan's wrath.
(35:19) Verse 12, here we are in Revelation 12. Back up to verse 12. It says, "Therefore, rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them. Woe to the inhabitants of the earth though and the sea for the devil has come down to you having great wrath because he knows that he has a short time.
(35:42) Jesus emphasized how severe this period would be. Back again in Matthew 24 and verse 22. Matthew 24 and verse 22 where it says look unless those days were shortened no flesh would be saved but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened. This phrase no flesh would be saved can be understood as no human life left alive.
(36:22) In other words, unchecked, this time of tribulation would lead to total annihilation of the human race. But Christ promises to cut it short for the elect's sake, our sake, his church, the bride. The great tribulation then is a period of unparalleled distress lasting three and a half years triggered by the abomination of desolation and marked by Satan's direct persecution of God's people. It's the next major prophetic marker after the four horsemen.
(36:56) And it sets the stage for what follows, the heavenly signs, the day of the Lord. I mentioned to you Revelation 3:10 because this is what we should be aiming for when we know what's coming to be accounted worthy as Luke records for us to be members called by Godian. Revelation 3:10 says, "Because you have kept my command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial, which shall come upon the whole world to test those who dwell on the earth.
(37:37) " After the four horsemen and the great tribulation, the prophetic sequence brings us to the sixth seal. And this is one of the clearest and most dramatic markers. It can't be missed by anyone. Over here in Revelation 6 again, verses 12-4. Revelation 6 12-14 says, "And I looked when he opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackloth of hair, and the moon became like blood, and the stars of heaven fell to the earth as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind."
(38:28) Then the sky receded to a scroll when it is rolled up and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. I I don't know what that's going to be like. It sounds absolutely terrifying. I mean, have you ever been in an earthquake? Some of us, maybe many of us have been in an earthquake.
(38:46) I've been in a few shakers, mostly when we lived in Alaska. And they're startling. I'll admit that. They're startling when you when you all your shelves are rattling and the you know the the precious glassware that you have up high is all rattling around and shaking and you're in your bed and it feels like there's an earthquake cuz there's an earthquake.
(39:09) Yeah, it's terrifying honestly. Well, these these don't represent symbolic language. This represents real things that are going to happen. It's global. It's cosmic upheaval. The sun darkened, the moon turning to blood, the stars or meteors falling in mass numbers. You can't hide from it. The heavens themselves shaken.
(39:35) I don't know what it would look like for them. I I maybe it's maybe it's like the worst version of hurricanes all simultaneously happening all across the earth or something. Even the landscape, mountains and islands are moved out of their place. These signs are not isolated to the book of Revelation either.
(39:57) The prophet Joel described them as unmistakable precursor to the day of the Lord. back here in Joel chapter 2 and verse 30. Joel 2:es 30 and 31. It says, "And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood and fire and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.
(40:35) These are an announcement. The word before here is critical. These signs do not occur after the day of the Lord begins, but immediately before. And they serve to tell everyone there's a shift in end time events about to happen. Mankind's time under Satan's rule has reached its end and God's about to act.
(41:03) Christ also spoke of these heavenly disruptions in his oliveette prophecy. Let's notice over here in Luke just to give you a little diversity. Luke chap 21 and 26. Luke 21:es 25 and 26. And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, in the stars, and on the earth distress of nations with perplexity, and the sea, and the waves roaring, men's hearts failing them from fear, and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
(41:51) This phrase up men's hearts failing them literally means they will faint or collapse from terror. Humanity which has survived war and famine and disease and even the horrors of the great tribulation will finally come face to face with the reality that a power greater than themselves is shaking the heavens and the earth. Imagine.
(42:17) Imagine human beings who think they're in control of everything, realizing you're not in control when you see the entire world shaking under you and you are utterly powerless to do anything about that. There's no nukes that you can shoot out at the meteors crashing into the earth. There's there's no you have no power to stop the mountains from shaking and from islands being moved out of their place. You're powerless.
(42:46) Utterly powerless. That has to be kneeh shaking to people who think they have all the power. And this is why the heavenly signs are so important in the prophetic sequence because they serve as a dividing line. Up to this point, the suffering has been the result of human conflict and Satan's wrath. People are nuking each other.
(43:09) They're shooting their weapons at each other. All of that is within their seeming control. All of what's coming is not. The prophets Isaiah spoke of this moment connecting it directly with the day of the Lord. Isaiah 13:es 9 and 10. Isaiah 13:es 9 and 10. Verse nine, behold, the day of the Lord comes cruel with both wrath and fierce anger to lay the land desolate, and he will destroy its sinners from it.
(43:51) For the stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light. The sun will be darkened and its going forth, and the moon will not cause its light to shine. The consistent pattern here before God's wrath is poured out, the lights of heaven are darkened.
(44:10) The world is plunged into both literal and spiritual darkness. And then God acts decisively. How many people do you think will respond to what they see? Back to Revelation chapter 6 verses 15 to 17. Revelation 6 15-1 17 says, "And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains, and the rocks, fall on us, and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. for the great day of his wrath
(44:58) has come. And who is able to stand? So notice that the world is not deceived by this. This indicates their eyes are open. They see it for what it is. This is different from everything they've been experiencing for the previous two and a half years. They're going to recognize that what they are witnessing is the beginning of God's wrath.
(45:26) and the day of the Lord. Yet instead of repenting, they seek to hide. You know, he could have if if if they truly had desired to be right with God, why don't we see the people falling down on their faces, tearing their clothes, praying to God for forgiveness? If they know it's God, why aren't they asking for forgiveness then? Instead, they hide themselves as if you can do that from that same God.
(46:02) The heavenly signs mark a decisive turning point. They conclude the tribulation and announce the arrival of the day of the Lord. In the prophetic sequence, they're a bridge between Satan's wrath and God's direct judgment. Because after the heavenly signs, prophecy moves into its final phase, the day of the Lord.
(46:25) This is the time of God's direct intervention into world affairs. And scripture repeatedly calls it a day of darkness and gloominess, a time when God's wrath is poured out on a rebellious world. Zephaniah 1:es 14 and 15. Zephaniah 1:es 14 and 15 verse 14. The great day of the Lord is near. It is near and hastens quickly. The noise of the day of the Lord is bitter.
(47:00) There the mighty men shall cry out. That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of devastation and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness. This is not the same as the great tribulation. That tribulation is Satan's wrath, limited by Satan's power. The day of the Lord is unlimited in the power of God and his wrath.
(47:35) Revelation 8:es 1 and 2. Revelation 8:es 1 and two. When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. And I saw the seven angels who stand before God. And to them were given seven trumpets. The day of the Lord unfolds through the sounding of these seven trumpets. Each trumpet blast signals another judgment poured out on the earth.
(48:17) The first four affect the environment, vegetation, seas, rivers, and heavenly bodies. The fifth and sixth trumpets unleash demonic torment and massive military conflict. And these judgments are severe and terrifying. But it's the seventh trumpet that's the most important to us. Revelation 11 and verse 15. Revelation 11 and verse 15.
(48:53) Then the seventh angel sounded, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever." This is the climax of the entire prophetic sequence. With the seventh trumpet, the rule of this world changes hands.
(49:19) the dominion of Satan and his governments, they all come to an end. The reign of Jesus Christ is going to begin. Paul describes what happens at this moment. Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. 1 Corinthians chapter 15 verses 51 and 52. Verse 51 of 1 Corinthians 15. Behold, I tell you a mystery.
(50:01) We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. Notice the timing. At the last trumpet, not before, not be, not during any of the earlier trumpet blasts. It's at the seventh and last trumpet. The resurrection of the saints occurs precisely at the sounding of this seventh trumpet.
(50:35) Paul confirms this again in his letter to the Thessalonians. This is why you want to memorize 1 Corinthians 15 and 1 Thessalonians 4. These are your resurrection chapters of verses uh chapter 4 16 and 17. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with a voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
(51:18) Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord. I spoke on purpose on the Sabbath to remind you that there is no place in scripture where we go to heaven. Every single scripture you find about people standing before God in the heaven is a picture of relationship.
(51:51) That is symbolic language. I cannot emphasize this enough. You don't take the symbolic and declare it to be real while you take the real and declare it to be symbolic. We just read what is real. Jesus Christ descends at the seventh trumpet and we are changed. The dead in Christ are uh resurrected and we are changed.
(52:16) We rise to meet him in the air. We do not descend to get past him from heaven before he gets here. We rise from our resurrection to meet him in the air where the clouds are. And we do not ascend into heaven to stand on the sea of glass and have a wedding supper. That is not in the scripture. Those descriptions are symbolic of relationship. That's it.
(52:50) I want to be emphatic about that. really clear. I don't want you to be confused because there are alternate teachings about that that are not true. I want you to know what the truth is. What the scripture says is what it says. This is the moment the feast of trumpet pictures, the return of Jesus Christ, the resurrection of the saints, and the beginning of God's government on earth all converge on this day. All on that seventh trumpet.
(53:20) That's what this day pictures. What follows is Christ's direct intervention in world affairs. He returns not in weakness but in power. And that of course is over in Revelation 19 11 through4 describing Christ's return. But again, we mix here. You have to understand I I really want to make sure I keep saying this because you have to understand this is a vision.
(53:50) elements of this vision are not real or physical. They're interpretive. You have to realize that. Let's look at this. Revelation 19 11-14. Let's look at what it says. Revelation 19 11-14. Now I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse and him who sat on him was called faithful and true and in righteousness he judges and makes war.
(54:16) His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed him on white horses.
(54:43) We, what do we know? This is the question I repeatedly ask on the Sabbath. I'm going to continue to ask this question. What do we know? The resurrection happens when Jesus Christ returns and we rise to meet him in the air. And so, if this is describing a whole bunch of people coming with Christ, he's already descended.
(55:02) We've met him in the air and now he's going to touch down on the Mount of Olives. We are with him, but only from the air down. We don't come with him from heaven. And verse 15 says, "Now out of his mouth goes a sharp sword that with it he should strike the nations, and he himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He himself treads the wine press of the fierceness and the wrath of Almighty God.
(55:32) And he has on his robe and on his thigh a name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. It's after this that the beast of the false prophet are destroyed. Satan is bound and the reign of Christ's begins on this earth. Zechariah was given a vision of this day also in Zechariah 14:es 3-5. I understand I get a little bit passionate.
(56:12) Bear with me as I do that from time to time for your sakes honestly. Zechariah 14 verses 3-5. Then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations as he fights in the day of battle. And in that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, from east to west, making a very large valley.
(56:44) Half of the mountain shall be moved toward the north, and half of it toward the south. Then you shall flee through my mountain valley. For the mountain valley shall reach to Azal. Yes, you shall flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah. Thus says the Lord my God will come. Thus the Lord my God will come and all his saints with you.
(57:12) That's where the story leads. So we know what the feast of trumpets means. We can trace the seals, the tribulation, the heavenly signs, the day of the Lord. We know the climax comes at the seventh trumpet when Christ returns and the saints are raised. But the real question is this. Are we alarmed? Are we sobered? Does this wake us up? Are we terrified at the thought of being caught up in this? I hope so.
(57:55) The only hope we have of not going through what is coming is to stay awake, to endure, and to make ourselves ready for Christ's return. Because there is a place of safety reserved for those God calls Philadelphians. A place where you will be protected and preserved from all that is going to come. Let's make sure we are among those who watch and pray always that we may be accounted worthy to escape all these things which will come to pass. This is what this day pictures.
(58:28) I hope it sobers us all.