1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,960 We like to start our Sunday mornings by saying welcome to all of you who may be joining us 2 00:00:04,960 --> 00:00:09,600 for the first time here in our sanctuary or if you're joining us online, welcome. 3 00:00:09,600 --> 00:00:12,960 We're so glad that you're here to worship with us today. 4 00:00:12,960 --> 00:00:17,960 I am Pastor Nathan and today we're going to be looking at Revelation chapter 9 and the 5 00:00:17,960 --> 00:00:22,120 topic is hell is unleashed. 6 00:00:22,120 --> 00:00:28,480 So if you were here hoping for a happy study today, well we have salvation in Christ so 7 00:00:28,480 --> 00:00:35,600 it's always a happy study, but you know the topic of devils and demons is something that 8 00:00:35,600 --> 00:00:42,080 in our culture is often propped up by comedians and philosophers and even movies and entertainment 9 00:00:42,080 --> 00:00:46,880 to taunt Christians for their professions of faith, to mock them. 10 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:52,720 You know the very concept of a supernatural being of any kind being real is something 11 00:00:52,720 --> 00:00:55,720 that's just mocked by many in the world. 12 00:00:55,720 --> 00:01:01,400 You know some will mock Christians by saying we believe in the big daddy in the sky when 13 00:01:01,400 --> 00:01:03,440 we talk about God. 14 00:01:03,440 --> 00:01:10,860 And so the ideas of the supernatural, God, Satan, angels, demons are relegated in many 15 00:01:10,860 --> 00:01:14,600 ways to the spheres of entertainment and mythology. 16 00:01:14,600 --> 00:01:20,200 You know the doubt of devils and demons being real is even something that affects professed 17 00:01:20,200 --> 00:01:22,700 believers, professed Christians. 18 00:01:22,700 --> 00:01:31,960 In an older study from 2009, Barna did a study where they looked at 1871 professed Christians 19 00:01:31,960 --> 00:01:37,760 and they asked them some questions about their beliefs, questions about God, Jesus, the Holy 20 00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:40,760 Spirit, Satan, and demons. 21 00:01:40,760 --> 00:01:46,120 And in this study they did, they found that 78% of these professed Christians, which is 22 00:01:46,120 --> 00:01:52,000 going to be weird, only 78%, but said that they do believe that God is the all-powerful, 23 00:01:52,000 --> 00:01:54,840 all-knowing creator of the universe who rules the world today. 24 00:01:54,840 --> 00:01:58,880 And that's a fairly core belief of Christians, right? 25 00:01:58,880 --> 00:02:04,220 But only six in ten said that they believe Satan is a real being and not just some metaphorical 26 00:02:04,220 --> 00:02:06,720 symbol of evil. 27 00:02:06,720 --> 00:02:11,600 You know as humans we can tend to disregard what we can't understand. 28 00:02:11,600 --> 00:02:18,120 We tend to disregard that which we can't wrap our minds around and we're inclined to just 29 00:02:18,120 --> 00:02:20,880 write off things that we cannot see. 30 00:02:20,880 --> 00:02:24,600 And sometimes people say, you know, if I could just see angels and demons, if I could see 31 00:02:24,600 --> 00:02:27,040 God then I would believe. 32 00:02:27,040 --> 00:02:31,880 But just because something is mysterious, just because something is a little bit beyond 33 00:02:31,880 --> 00:02:36,040 our understanding doesn't automatically mean it isn't real. 34 00:02:36,040 --> 00:02:37,040 The author C.S. 35 00:02:37,040 --> 00:02:41,520 Lewis said, there are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about 36 00:02:41,520 --> 00:02:43,120 the devils. 37 00:02:43,120 --> 00:02:45,520 One is to disbelieve in their existence. 38 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:50,000 The other error is to believe and then to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in 39 00:02:50,000 --> 00:02:51,240 them. 40 00:02:51,240 --> 00:02:57,280 They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician 41 00:02:57,280 --> 00:02:59,800 with the same delight. 42 00:02:59,800 --> 00:03:06,160 You know as believers who read and study the word of God, the truth is Satan and demons 43 00:03:06,160 --> 00:03:07,160 are real. 44 00:03:07,160 --> 00:03:09,080 They are very real. 45 00:03:09,080 --> 00:03:16,840 They are a very real restless evil that is constantly looking for ways to destroy lives. 46 00:03:16,840 --> 00:03:21,000 And during the tribulation period that we've been studying in Revelation, any who doubt 47 00:03:21,000 --> 00:03:26,480 that truth will be sorely and severely corrected. 48 00:03:26,480 --> 00:03:31,800 Revelation 9 brings us to what many consider to be the midpoint of the tribulation. 49 00:03:31,800 --> 00:03:35,600 There's many different views on the layout of Revelation. 50 00:03:35,600 --> 00:03:41,480 Some look at the seven seals and the seven trumpets and the seven bowls as 21 consecutive 51 00:03:41,480 --> 00:03:45,560 judgments and there's a lot of support for that. 52 00:03:45,560 --> 00:03:50,720 Some look at the seven seals and the seven trumpets and the seven bowls as a retelling 53 00:03:50,720 --> 00:03:55,480 of the same seven year tribulation period and there's some merit to that view as well. 54 00:03:55,480 --> 00:03:59,600 But most agree that by the time you get to Revelation 9 or at least the events of Revelation 55 00:03:59,600 --> 00:04:03,480 9 are describing the midpoint of the tribulation. 56 00:04:03,480 --> 00:04:07,680 You know the tribulation period which is spoken of in Daniel chapter 9 often referred to as 57 00:04:07,680 --> 00:04:12,360 the 70th week of Daniel, the midpoint is when the tribulation becomes what's called the 58 00:04:12,360 --> 00:04:14,400 great tribulation. 59 00:04:14,400 --> 00:04:19,760 The last three and a half years of this seven year period of God's judgment coming upon 60 00:04:19,760 --> 00:04:20,760 the earth. 61 00:04:20,760 --> 00:04:26,360 A period that was spoken of in great detail by Jesus himself in Matthew chapter 24 and 62 00:04:26,360 --> 00:04:27,360 25. 63 00:04:27,360 --> 00:04:31,520 This last three and a half years is preceded by what we've studied so far with the church 64 00:04:31,520 --> 00:04:37,200 being raptured out of the world and then God beginning to bring his judgment upon the world 65 00:04:37,200 --> 00:04:39,780 for its sin and its rejection of him. 66 00:04:39,780 --> 00:04:44,600 This judgment that came upon the world itself, creation itself as well as the inhabitants 67 00:04:44,600 --> 00:04:46,080 of the world. 68 00:04:46,080 --> 00:04:50,680 We saw this judgment being poured out by the seven seals being broken and the first four 69 00:04:50,680 --> 00:04:54,120 trumpet judgments that we've looked at so far. 70 00:04:54,120 --> 00:04:57,880 In Daniel chapter 9 it paints more of the picture of what's taking place during this 71 00:04:57,880 --> 00:05:04,340 period as the Antichrist comes on the scene which we saw in the first seal being broken. 72 00:05:04,340 --> 00:05:09,080 At that time he makes his seven year covenant with the nation of Israel allowing them to 73 00:05:09,080 --> 00:05:14,000 rebuild their temple and to resume their sacrifices in the temple. 74 00:05:14,000 --> 00:05:17,760 It was during this first three and a half years of the tribulation period that we saw 75 00:05:17,760 --> 00:05:20,840 144,000 Jews sealed. 76 00:05:20,840 --> 00:05:24,280 We're going to see a little bit later that there was also two witnesses that were preaching 77 00:05:24,280 --> 00:05:28,240 the gospel of Jesus Christ during this time worldwide. 78 00:05:28,240 --> 00:05:33,480 Over this first half of the tribulation period we saw a number of what people refer to as 79 00:05:33,480 --> 00:05:35,400 partial judgments of God. 80 00:05:35,400 --> 00:05:37,200 The one third judgments, right? 81 00:05:37,200 --> 00:05:41,960 One third of the sea, one third of the land, one third of the rivers as God was judging 82 00:05:41,960 --> 00:05:47,560 the very creation that mankind has risen up to be their God as they wanted to worship 83 00:05:47,560 --> 00:05:51,560 Mother Earth and ask for the mountains and rocks to protect them. 84 00:05:51,560 --> 00:05:56,120 In all this God is demonstrating his authority over the land, over the salt water, over the 85 00:05:56,120 --> 00:05:58,480 clean water and over the sky. 86 00:05:58,480 --> 00:06:02,960 God is saying to the people who worship creation, I am the creator. 87 00:06:02,960 --> 00:06:05,480 I am the one to be worshiped, not my creation. 88 00:06:05,480 --> 00:06:10,040 But in the middle of that seven year period, right at the three and a half year mark, it 89 00:06:10,040 --> 00:06:15,600 tells us that the Antichrist will then break his covenant with Israel, that he will stop 90 00:06:15,600 --> 00:06:21,440 their worship in the temple and that he himself will enter into the temple and demand to be 91 00:06:21,440 --> 00:06:24,160 worshiped himself as God. 92 00:06:24,160 --> 00:06:28,400 An event known as the abomination of desolation and it's at that time at that midpoint of 93 00:06:28,400 --> 00:06:33,880 tribulation where the Jews are then given over to be intensely persecuted by the Antichrist 94 00:06:33,880 --> 00:06:36,720 for the remaining three and a half years of tribulation. 95 00:06:36,720 --> 00:06:39,960 A time also references Jacob's trouble. 96 00:06:39,960 --> 00:06:45,340 So it's at this midpoint of the tribulation when things start to escalate dramatically. 97 00:06:45,340 --> 00:06:47,880 Things start to get really, really bad. 98 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:53,280 And it's at this time when the supernatural starts to seep into the reality as people 99 00:06:53,280 --> 00:06:54,280 are living. 100 00:06:54,280 --> 00:06:56,480 The supernatural becomes evident. 101 00:06:56,480 --> 00:07:02,400 Demonic activity becomes very clearly seen as Satan moves from working invisibly, working 102 00:07:02,400 --> 00:07:07,040 behind the scenes, which he has been doing for so long at this point, to then begin working 103 00:07:07,040 --> 00:07:11,000 overtly and overt activity upon the earth. 104 00:07:11,000 --> 00:07:14,720 And these judgments, because God is allowing these judgments onto the earth, it's like 105 00:07:14,720 --> 00:07:18,720 God saying to mankind, you want sin? 106 00:07:18,720 --> 00:07:20,700 You want a world without me? 107 00:07:20,700 --> 00:07:25,280 You want a world controlled and given over to your pleasures and Satan himself? 108 00:07:25,280 --> 00:07:28,760 You want unrestrained indulgence and all of that? 109 00:07:28,760 --> 00:07:32,560 Well here you go, and all hell is unleashed. 110 00:07:32,560 --> 00:07:37,180 That's what we're going to be looking at today, but first we're going to worship God. 111 00:07:37,180 --> 00:07:41,840 Because we the church know that we've been saved, we've been forgiven, and we know that 112 00:07:41,840 --> 00:07:44,860 we will be saved from this time of judgment. 113 00:07:44,860 --> 00:07:48,360 And we are still in a time where we have a gospel to preach to so many that they would 114 00:07:48,360 --> 00:07:50,400 be saved as well. 115 00:07:50,400 --> 00:07:54,880 And so we're so thankful and grateful to God for the salvation we have, the salvation from 116 00:07:54,880 --> 00:07:59,080 the judgment on our sin, but also to be saved from this terrible time of judgment that is 117 00:07:59,080 --> 00:08:00,120 coming upon the earth. 118 00:08:00,120 --> 00:08:02,840 And so with that, let's pray and let's worship God. 119 00:08:02,840 --> 00:08:07,880 Father, Lord, as we look at Revelation, it's heavy stuff. 120 00:08:07,880 --> 00:08:14,320 It's heavy stuff, it's terrible stuff, it's horrific, Lord, what is coming upon the earth. 121 00:08:14,320 --> 00:08:17,800 But Lord, you gave it to us in your word that we would study it, that we would know it, 122 00:08:17,800 --> 00:08:19,040 that we would learn it. 123 00:08:19,040 --> 00:08:24,240 Lord, we know that this entire book of Revelation is a revelation of Jesus Christ, Lord, in 124 00:08:24,240 --> 00:08:30,200 every single letter that is in Revelation is something that teaches us about you. 125 00:08:30,200 --> 00:08:35,080 And Lord, I pray, God, that as we move through this terrible time of tribulation that is 126 00:08:35,080 --> 00:08:39,600 prophesied in this book, Lord, that we would learn about you. 127 00:08:39,600 --> 00:08:43,160 And God, what we do learn about you is how you feel about sin. 128 00:08:43,160 --> 00:08:47,040 Lord, that sin is not something to be dealt with lightly. 129 00:08:47,040 --> 00:08:50,780 Sin is not something that is to be just sloughed off, Lord. 130 00:08:50,780 --> 00:08:52,560 The supernatural world is real. 131 00:08:52,560 --> 00:08:59,040 You are real, angels are real, Satan and the demons are real, God. 132 00:08:59,040 --> 00:09:03,120 And Lord, we should take all of that very seriously in our lives, that we would be people 133 00:09:03,120 --> 00:09:08,000 who live with eternity in mind. 134 00:09:08,000 --> 00:09:13,000 People who say we believe in God, we believe in Jesus, Jesus, we believe in sin, we believe 135 00:09:13,000 --> 00:09:16,200 in forgiveness, we believe in salvation. 136 00:09:16,200 --> 00:09:19,240 This also means, Lord, we believe in your word and everything that's in it, and we know 137 00:09:19,240 --> 00:09:21,240 this time is coming. 138 00:09:21,240 --> 00:09:24,400 So God, we just want to start as we're going to look at it today, Lord, praising you and 139 00:09:24,400 --> 00:09:27,480 thanking you, God, for the salvation that you have granted to us. 140 00:09:27,480 --> 00:09:29,840 Lord, we love you so much. 141 00:09:29,840 --> 00:09:31,120 We thank you for saving us. 142 00:09:31,120 --> 00:09:34,120 We thank you for the salvation you've given us, Lord. 143 00:09:34,120 --> 00:09:38,400 May we read these things and study these things, God, and be motivated to go out and warn those 144 00:09:38,400 --> 00:09:41,080 who don't yet know you about the judgment to come. 145 00:09:41,080 --> 00:09:42,400 God, we thank you. 146 00:09:42,400 --> 00:09:44,160 We love you in Jesus' name. 147 00:09:44,160 --> 00:09:45,160 Amen. 148 00:09:45,160 --> 00:09:46,160 All right. 149 00:09:46,160 --> 00:09:52,600 So we are in Revelation chapter 9, if you will turn or swipe there with me. 150 00:09:52,600 --> 00:09:58,280 Revelation 9 opens up with the fifth trumpet judgment. 151 00:09:58,280 --> 00:10:04,080 It's the first of the final three trumpet judgments, the first of what are called the 152 00:10:04,080 --> 00:10:08,060 three woes at the end of Revelation chapter 8. 153 00:10:08,060 --> 00:10:12,320 If you remember at the end of Revelation 8 there, there was an angel or an eagle in the 154 00:10:12,320 --> 00:10:13,320 sky. 155 00:10:13,320 --> 00:10:15,200 It depends on how you interpret the word there. 156 00:10:15,200 --> 00:10:21,920 But some messenger of some type that declared, woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth 157 00:10:21,920 --> 00:10:25,360 for the remaining trumpets are about to sound. 158 00:10:25,360 --> 00:10:31,120 And these three woes, that word woe is used to indicate that dramatically intensified 159 00:10:31,120 --> 00:10:33,600 judgment is about to come. 160 00:10:33,600 --> 00:10:39,040 And a part of the reason that these final three trumpet judgments are dramatically intensified 161 00:10:39,040 --> 00:10:44,720 is that unlike the first four trumpets, these judgments now target people. 162 00:10:44,720 --> 00:10:48,040 If you remember the first four trumpet judgments targeted creation. 163 00:10:48,040 --> 00:10:49,780 They targeted the earth. 164 00:10:49,780 --> 00:10:52,760 They targeted the land and the sea and the sky. 165 00:10:52,760 --> 00:10:57,240 But now the judgments that God is allowing to be poured out, declared upon the earth, 166 00:10:57,240 --> 00:11:02,500 are now targeting human beings themselves rather than the natural systems around them. 167 00:11:02,500 --> 00:11:06,640 And so this morning we're going to look at the first of the woes, the fifth trumpet this 168 00:11:06,640 --> 00:11:11,800 morning and the onset, what it shows us of rampant demonic activity. 169 00:11:11,800 --> 00:11:15,000 So read with me in Revelation 9 verse 1. 170 00:11:15,000 --> 00:11:20,200 It says the fifth angel blew his trumpet and I saw a star that had fallen from heaven to 171 00:11:20,200 --> 00:11:21,680 earth. 172 00:11:21,680 --> 00:11:26,880 The key for the shaft to the abyss was given to him. 173 00:11:26,880 --> 00:11:31,760 Now that word star there is the same word that was used in the previous chapters when 174 00:11:31,760 --> 00:11:34,040 it says a star fell from heaven. 175 00:11:34,040 --> 00:11:38,120 And if you remember that word in the Greek is where we get our English word asteroid 176 00:11:38,120 --> 00:11:39,120 from. 177 00:11:39,120 --> 00:11:43,240 The idea was that over the course of the first four judgments there were meteor showers or 178 00:11:43,240 --> 00:11:47,160 asteroids that fell upon the earth and struck the earth causing the judgments that we read 179 00:11:47,160 --> 00:11:48,160 about there. 180 00:11:48,160 --> 00:11:53,680 And this is the same exact word but there are clues that here the word star is being 181 00:11:53,680 --> 00:11:58,880 used metaphorically to refer to a person instead of an asteroid. 182 00:11:58,880 --> 00:12:02,400 Similar to the way we might use the word star to refer to a famous person, right? 183 00:12:02,400 --> 00:12:06,740 A pop star, a Hollywood star, a sports star, that kind of idea. 184 00:12:06,740 --> 00:12:11,920 And those clues are simply in what they say this star that had fallen from heaven to earth 185 00:12:11,920 --> 00:12:12,920 does. 186 00:12:12,920 --> 00:12:17,100 It says the key to the shaft of the abyss was given to him. 187 00:12:17,100 --> 00:12:22,400 So there's a personality, a personification associated with this star. 188 00:12:22,400 --> 00:12:26,760 In verse 2 it says he opened the shaft to the abyss. 189 00:12:26,760 --> 00:12:33,560 And so this star has an identity, an identity and a personality attached to it. 190 00:12:33,560 --> 00:12:41,200 Now when it says I saw a star that had fallen from heaven to earth, this also indicates 191 00:12:41,200 --> 00:12:45,660 a difference between the previous stars because the previous stars which were actually asteroids, 192 00:12:45,660 --> 00:12:47,360 it says John saw them fall. 193 00:12:47,360 --> 00:12:51,320 He saw them in the process of falling to the earth as he was observing these judgments 194 00:12:51,320 --> 00:12:52,320 from heaven. 195 00:12:52,320 --> 00:12:55,720 But this one he says it had fallen from heaven to earth. 196 00:12:55,720 --> 00:13:00,600 The idea there is that this Greek verb is in the present tense meaning that he saw a 197 00:13:00,600 --> 00:13:08,480 star or a he who had in the past fallen from heaven to the earth and now still exists in 198 00:13:08,480 --> 00:13:09,600 that fallen state. 199 00:13:09,600 --> 00:13:12,560 That's what that present tense means in the Greek. 200 00:13:12,560 --> 00:13:16,680 So it means that the star had fallen at some point in the past and now exists in a continued 201 00:13:16,680 --> 00:13:18,840 state of being fallen. 202 00:13:18,840 --> 00:13:22,960 And so that raises the questions, who is this star? 203 00:13:22,960 --> 00:13:25,680 Is it some famous Hollywood star? 204 00:13:25,680 --> 00:13:27,080 Is it someone we know? 205 00:13:27,080 --> 00:13:32,200 There's a few different ideas that people have but I believe it's likely Satan, the 206 00:13:32,200 --> 00:13:35,440 star who had lost his residence in heaven after his rebellion. 207 00:13:35,440 --> 00:13:40,960 And we read about that, him even being called a star back in Isaiah chapter 14 verse 12 208 00:13:40,960 --> 00:13:47,880 where it says this, shining morning star, how you have fallen from the heavens, you 209 00:13:47,880 --> 00:13:52,800 destroyer of nations, you have been cut down to the ground. 210 00:13:52,800 --> 00:13:58,720 And so biblically we know that right now today in our timeline and chronology of living 211 00:13:58,720 --> 00:14:01,600 that Satan doesn't live in heaven anymore. 212 00:14:01,600 --> 00:14:07,440 Heaven is no longer his residence but according to Job chapter 1 verse 6 we know that Satan 213 00:14:07,440 --> 00:14:12,760 still has access to heaven because in Job chapter 1 verse 6 we read this, one day the 214 00:14:12,760 --> 00:14:17,720 sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord and that's referring to the angels 215 00:14:17,720 --> 00:14:19,240 and it says what? 216 00:14:19,240 --> 00:14:22,400 And Satan also came with them. 217 00:14:22,400 --> 00:14:26,560 So even though he doesn't have an address in heaven anymore he can still visit and we 218 00:14:26,560 --> 00:14:31,300 know that he visits there in Job to say hey God, what about that Christian? 219 00:14:31,300 --> 00:14:33,400 Let me torment them, right? 220 00:14:33,400 --> 00:14:37,840 And so something that I hope he doesn't ask of me but you know sometimes I feel like he 221 00:14:37,840 --> 00:14:38,840 does. 222 00:14:38,840 --> 00:14:43,360 Now the idea here is up in Revelation chapter 12 when we get there what we're going to see 223 00:14:43,360 --> 00:14:50,720 in Revelation 12 is John gives a brief prophetic look back to the symbolic relationship between 224 00:14:50,720 --> 00:14:53,160 Israel and the devil. 225 00:14:53,160 --> 00:14:56,460 And when we get to Revelation chapter 12 what it's going to show us there is during this 226 00:14:56,460 --> 00:15:03,960 tribulation period right about this midpoint of the tribulation Satan is cast out of heaven 227 00:15:03,960 --> 00:15:07,240 permanently that there is an actual battle that takes place. 228 00:15:07,240 --> 00:15:11,480 Michael the archangel leads this battle and there is a war in heaven where the devil is 229 00:15:11,480 --> 00:15:14,640 permanently kicked out so he's no longer allowed to visit. 230 00:15:14,640 --> 00:15:19,480 Now him being kicked out of heaven and falling down to the earth and the fury because it 231 00:15:19,480 --> 00:15:23,640 tells us there in Revelation 12 that the devil is not happy about being kicked out of heaven 232 00:15:23,640 --> 00:15:28,880 and it literally tells us that he has great fury knowing his time is short. 233 00:15:28,880 --> 00:15:34,280 The fury that the devil has for being kicked out of heaven permanently is what we see unleashed 234 00:15:34,280 --> 00:15:38,640 here in the fifth trumpet and the sixth trumpet and so on and so forth. 235 00:15:38,640 --> 00:15:42,960 So the fifth and sixth trumpet record what I believe is the fury of the devil being kicked 236 00:15:42,960 --> 00:15:47,680 out of heaven and what it says here in God's allowing this judgment to happen and this 237 00:15:47,680 --> 00:15:52,640 battle taking place and the devil being kicked out of heaven it says he was given a key for 238 00:15:52,640 --> 00:15:56,520 the shaft to the abyss. 239 00:15:56,520 --> 00:15:57,520 Given by who? 240 00:15:57,520 --> 00:15:58,520 God. 241 00:15:58,520 --> 00:16:03,240 God gave him the key and we're going to answer why in a moment but what is the abyss? 242 00:16:03,240 --> 00:16:04,240 What is the abyss? 243 00:16:04,240 --> 00:16:09,240 If you have an older translation or I'll say traditional translation of the Bible it may 244 00:16:09,240 --> 00:16:14,320 say bottomless pit instead of abyss there but this place the bottomless pit the abyss 245 00:16:14,320 --> 00:16:21,640 was a place of incarceration for really really bad demons who did stuff requiring them being 246 00:16:21,640 --> 00:16:24,240 locked up for all time. 247 00:16:24,240 --> 00:16:28,640 The bottomless pit or the abyss is thought by some theologians to literally be at the 248 00:16:28,640 --> 00:16:35,000 center of the earth right because it's described as a pit of great heat and it's described 249 00:16:35,000 --> 00:16:42,720 to be an access by a shaft and so but I did a study on this abyss and the warfare and 250 00:16:42,720 --> 00:16:47,760 who I believe the spirits in prison are that are there in great detail when I studied when 251 00:16:47,760 --> 00:16:50,400 I taught through first Peter chapter 3. 252 00:16:50,400 --> 00:16:55,320 If you want to go dive into that in detail the title that study is the unseen war you 253 00:16:55,320 --> 00:16:59,080 could find it on our YouTube channel so I'm not going to belabor all of that for this 254 00:16:59,080 --> 00:17:04,200 morning but I will share this that this abyss this bottomless pit is referenced in first 255 00:17:04,200 --> 00:17:09,980 Peter 3 and it's called a prison because he references the spirits that are in prison. 256 00:17:09,980 --> 00:17:16,960 In Jude verse 6 it's referenced as a place of eternal chains in deep darkness. 257 00:17:16,960 --> 00:17:22,680 In second Peter chapter 2 verses 4 and 5 it's referred to as a place of chains of utter 258 00:17:22,680 --> 00:17:27,600 darkness and so it's a prison of some type a place of incarceration. 259 00:17:27,600 --> 00:17:33,440 Now it was a place that was feared even by the demons because in Luke chapter 8 verse 260 00:17:33,440 --> 00:17:38,480 28 we read the story that when Jesus was in the region of the Gatarenes there was a demon 261 00:17:38,480 --> 00:17:44,320 possessed man there that that that presented himself before Jesus and Jesus asked the possession 262 00:17:44,320 --> 00:17:47,920 you know what is your name and they said we are legion if you guys remember that story 263 00:17:47,920 --> 00:17:51,360 that he was possessed by a legion of demons. 264 00:17:51,360 --> 00:17:57,880 Now in Luke chapter 8 verse 31 it says this and they begged him Jesus not to banish them 265 00:17:57,880 --> 00:18:05,960 to the abyss the demons please don't send us to the abyss and the word abyss there 266 00:18:05,960 --> 00:18:11,280 is the same exact word we read here in Revelation chapter 9 but that just gives us some insight 267 00:18:11,280 --> 00:18:15,480 to this place this abyss you know the demons begged them they said instead please send 268 00:18:15,480 --> 00:18:19,560 us into the pigs just don't send us to the abyss send us into the pigs and Jesus did 269 00:18:19,560 --> 00:18:25,120 that and then the pigs ran off the cliff and so this idea is that this abyss was a place 270 00:18:25,120 --> 00:18:29,560 of incarceration for demons that other demons were afraid to go to it's where the really 271 00:18:29,560 --> 00:18:34,600 bad demons were and these demons in Luke 8 begged him said please send us anywhere but 272 00:18:34,600 --> 00:18:40,440 this place and so it was locked up tight by God again if you want to get into the details 273 00:18:40,440 --> 00:18:45,560 of who is there and why look up the study the unseen war that I did but the idea here 274 00:18:45,560 --> 00:18:50,680 is that this abyss this place of incarceration where some really really bad demons have been 275 00:18:50,680 --> 00:18:59,080 locked up for centuries and centuries Satan has given the key to open it up why why would 276 00:18:59,080 --> 00:19:04,720 God give Satan the key to let out the really bad demons well I believe it's because it's 277 00:19:04,720 --> 00:19:12,080 what mankind wants in mankind's rejection of God God we want nothing to do with you 278 00:19:12,080 --> 00:19:16,640 we want to pursue our own needs our own ends we want to do whatever we want we want no 279 00:19:16,640 --> 00:19:24,720 rules no restrictions just let us just go wild well the influence behind all of that 280 00:19:24,720 --> 00:19:31,960 the Bible tells us is our flesh and it's the devil and so in a way God's judgment upon 281 00:19:31,960 --> 00:19:37,080 the earth is you want that unrestrained unbridled just do whatever you want without restriction 282 00:19:37,080 --> 00:19:40,400 great well then I'm going to let the guy who's behind all of that let out the ones who's 283 00:19:40,400 --> 00:19:46,720 really going to push all of that in your lives and so Satan goes and unlocks this abyss 284 00:19:46,720 --> 00:19:51,920 now the rebellion of mankind what's behind all of this Revelation chapter 9 verses 20 285 00:19:51,920 --> 00:19:58,000 through 21 tells us it tells us very specifically what the rebellious sin of mankind is at this 286 00:19:58,000 --> 00:20:04,000 point in time what the heart of man is engaged in or pursuing during this time of tribulation 287 00:20:04,000 --> 00:20:08,840 when God says here you go let the demons out it says in Revelation 9 verse 20 they did 288 00:20:08,840 --> 00:20:14,680 not repent of the works of their hands to what stop worshipping demons and idols of 289 00:20:14,680 --> 00:20:24,120 gold silver bronze stone and wood which cannot see hear or walk we see it today we see it 290 00:20:24,120 --> 00:20:28,300 today with people going oh yeah we're part of the church of Satan and hey if there's 291 00:20:28,300 --> 00:20:32,280 Christian clubs on campuses the church of Satan should allow Christian or Satan clubs 292 00:20:32,280 --> 00:20:38,120 on campus and people that are openly and aggressively going no no we worship demons we worship Satan 293 00:20:38,120 --> 00:20:42,840 it's a thing today and it's only going to get worse because it's a symptom of man's 294 00:20:42,840 --> 00:20:49,040 rejection of God and so him given the key to Satan is like God saying this is what you 295 00:20:49,040 --> 00:20:55,360 want then I'm going to allow you to have it I think that's one of the scariest most horrific 296 00:20:55,360 --> 00:21:03,660 things for us sometimes is when God lets us have our way because we don't know what's 297 00:21:03,660 --> 00:21:10,560 best for us we just want what we think makes us happy or makes us feel good and I think 298 00:21:10,560 --> 00:21:16,200 the worst thing that can happen is when God says okay you want it so bad have it because 299 00:21:16,200 --> 00:21:24,240 then we experience all kinds of misery and just bad stuff but God says here you go Satan 300 00:21:24,240 --> 00:21:31,280 here's the key to the abyss imagine imagine if you will that every prison worldwide holding 301 00:21:31,280 --> 00:21:40,800 the worst criminals that mankind has locked up the worst of the worst all at the same time 302 00:21:40,800 --> 00:21:47,320 doors open they're all set free and go do whatever you want can you imagine that happening 303 00:21:47,320 --> 00:21:51,120 the havoc that would take place worldwide in every society well this is what's going 304 00:21:51,120 --> 00:21:57,720 to take place on a demonic scale because these criminals are not people these criminals are 305 00:21:57,720 --> 00:22:03,840 a horde of demons unleashed to bring torment on mankind but still in his mercy they're 306 00:22:03,840 --> 00:22:08,600 only allowed to torment mankind as far as God will allow look at verse 2 so he opened 307 00:22:08,600 --> 00:22:13,560 the shaft to the abyss and smoke came up out of the shaft like smoke from a great furnace 308 00:22:13,560 --> 00:22:18,960 so that the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke from the shaft now again this 309 00:22:18,960 --> 00:22:24,480 smoke here we read it's darkening the sun and this is likely what Joel prophesied would 310 00:22:24,480 --> 00:22:30,200 happen during the tribulation period in Joel chapter 2 verse 30 it says I will display 311 00:22:30,200 --> 00:22:36,080 wonders in the heavens and on the earth blood fire and columns of smoke and then verse 31 312 00:22:36,080 --> 00:22:41,020 it says the sun will be turned to darkness and if you've been with us through a study 313 00:22:41,020 --> 00:22:46,120 of revelation so far this isn't the first time that the light has been dimmed the sun 314 00:22:46,120 --> 00:22:51,120 has been darkened the moon has been darkened there's numerous instances through this judgment 315 00:22:51,120 --> 00:22:56,000 upon the earth of God snuffing out the light during tribulation and I just think that's 316 00:22:56,000 --> 00:23:01,560 just a picture of what is spiritually taking place in the heart of man that the heart of 317 00:23:01,560 --> 00:23:07,240 man consistently says we want darkness instead of the light and God's going okay but you're 318 00:23:07,240 --> 00:23:12,000 not going to like it no give it to me I want dark don't tell me what to do God I don't 319 00:23:12,000 --> 00:23:17,440 want to follow you I just want darkness and sin and we see this happening again here as 320 00:23:17,440 --> 00:23:24,960 the smoke is darkening the light verse 3 then the locusts came out of the smoke onto the 321 00:23:24,960 --> 00:23:30,240 earth and power was given to them like the power that scorpions have on the earth they 322 00:23:30,240 --> 00:23:34,280 were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree but only those 323 00:23:34,280 --> 00:23:40,040 who do not have God seal on their foreheads they were not permitted to kill them but were 324 00:23:40,040 --> 00:23:45,380 to torment them for five months their torment is like the torment caused by a scorpion when 325 00:23:45,380 --> 00:23:50,920 it stings someone so when you're reading this or at least when I was reading this you know 326 00:23:50,920 --> 00:23:56,160 one of the questions that that is good to ask is are these real locusts right are they 327 00:23:56,160 --> 00:24:00,360 real like earth locusts we're familiar with locusts right and you've heard of the locust 328 00:24:00,360 --> 00:24:05,760 plague or locust swarms there are these little bugs that that can swarm in columns you know 329 00:24:05,760 --> 00:24:11,000 hundreds of of feet wide and tall and they just decimate areas is that what he's talking 330 00:24:11,000 --> 00:24:16,560 about here is that was what was locked up in the abyss is our locusts that bad that 331 00:24:16,560 --> 00:24:19,840 that God said we're gonna lock you up in a spiritual prison that even demons are afraid 332 00:24:19,840 --> 00:24:27,600 of or are they possessed mutated locusts as some think you know like their actual physical 333 00:24:27,600 --> 00:24:32,440 locusts that have demons inside them or is locusts being used here as a term just to 334 00:24:32,440 --> 00:24:40,280 describe a type of demon well we don't know for sure obviously right definitively but 335 00:24:40,280 --> 00:24:45,160 I'm pretty confident that they're not actual earth locusts that what is being described 336 00:24:45,160 --> 00:24:51,480 here is actually a type of demon or a demon that looks like a locust to John biblically 337 00:24:51,480 --> 00:24:57,200 if you study the Bible you'll see that locusts are seen often and used both literally as 338 00:24:57,200 --> 00:25:02,640 is real earth locust and also used figuratively literally obviously we read that John the 339 00:25:02,640 --> 00:25:08,160 Baptist in the New Testament he ate them for food right we read in Exodus that there was 340 00:25:08,160 --> 00:25:13,320 an actual overrunning of Egypt during the eighth plague of locusts actual locusts but 341 00:25:13,320 --> 00:25:18,200 then figuratively they're often used throughout the Old Testament to describe any great horde 342 00:25:18,200 --> 00:25:24,320 an army or anything that that is that is acting like locusts that's swarming through an area 343 00:25:24,320 --> 00:25:30,360 and destroying everything and so the idea is that any any group of something swarming 344 00:25:30,360 --> 00:25:35,800 beyond count decimating everything they touch and so I believe here it's likely a figurative 345 00:25:35,800 --> 00:25:40,480 description for these demons that John is seeing coming out of the abyss and I believe 346 00:25:40,480 --> 00:25:45,920 there's a number of reasons for that one they're specifically given power like scorpions okay 347 00:25:45,920 --> 00:25:50,400 locusts of earth they don't they don't have any power like scorpions right one they're 348 00:25:50,400 --> 00:25:55,120 told what they can and can't do and they listen all right so there's some type of sentience 349 00:25:55,120 --> 00:26:00,600 there they're able to tell who has God seal and who doesn't have God seal as they go out 350 00:26:00,600 --> 00:26:05,960 to to torment people and then earth locusts typically devour vegetation and these ones 351 00:26:05,960 --> 00:26:10,160 specifically don't and then on top of that you have this really interesting description 352 00:26:10,160 --> 00:26:14,080 of these things in verses seven through eleven so jump down to verse seven with me as we 353 00:26:14,080 --> 00:26:18,720 look at these locusts these demons that are let out of the abyss the appearance of the 354 00:26:18,720 --> 00:26:24,920 locusts was like horses prepared for battle something like golden crowns was on their 355 00:26:24,920 --> 00:26:31,760 heads their faces were like human faces they had hair like women's hair their teeth were 356 00:26:31,760 --> 00:26:37,800 like lion's teeth they had chests like iron breastplates the sound of their wings was 357 00:26:37,800 --> 00:26:43,120 like the sound of many chariots with horses rushing into battle they had tails with stingers 358 00:26:43,120 --> 00:26:51,120 like scorpions so that with their tails they had the power to harm people for five months 359 00:26:51,120 --> 00:26:58,440 did you notice the word like there over and over and over again right it's called a similitude 360 00:26:58,440 --> 00:27:04,420 it's John using the best words he can think of to describe what he's seeing he's trying 361 00:27:04,420 --> 00:27:09,960 to give the best approximate representation of this thing this demonic creature that he 362 00:27:09,960 --> 00:27:14,200 sees coming out of the abyss and he's using things that he's familiar with to describe 363 00:27:14,200 --> 00:27:18,900 it things that his readers might be familiar with now before we jump into the specific 364 00:27:18,900 --> 00:27:22,880 description itself you know I just want to point out that you know often times when we're 365 00:27:22,880 --> 00:27:29,840 reading stuff like this that could be really interesting and weird and we have to resist 366 00:27:29,840 --> 00:27:38,600 the urge to over symbolize and over spiritualize stuff like this I just think it's unwise to 367 00:27:38,600 --> 00:27:44,040 read something like this and instantaneously think of you know some overly spiritualized 368 00:27:44,040 --> 00:27:50,480 thing now there are some commentators that read this and go oh what he's describing is 369 00:27:50,480 --> 00:27:56,720 a patchy attack helicopters in modern-day earth now I don't necessarily have a problem 370 00:27:56,720 --> 00:28:00,760 with that because if you were John the Apostle and God was showing you in a patchy attack 371 00:28:00,760 --> 00:28:05,560 helicopter what would you describe it as because nothing like that existed in his world so 372 00:28:05,560 --> 00:28:11,000 so there's a possibility of that but as I've mentioned before good Bible study is you read 373 00:28:11,000 --> 00:28:16,320 it and you take it at its literal reading before you start to symbolize things and overly 374 00:28:16,320 --> 00:28:21,240 spiritualize things and so but the encouragement is just because you read something and it's 375 00:28:21,240 --> 00:28:27,400 fantastic or it's incredible or it's unbelievable doesn't automatically mean it isn't exactly 376 00:28:27,400 --> 00:28:32,200 what it says it is okay sometimes it is but but again just just take that as an encouragement 377 00:28:32,200 --> 00:28:37,080 there some read this description of these locusts and they go oh this is just a metaphor 378 00:28:37,080 --> 00:28:42,520 for what the condition of a sinful life is like right this is a metaphor for the sinful 379 00:28:42,520 --> 00:28:48,320 life rather than this being a real escalator eschatological event a real prophetic event 380 00:28:48,320 --> 00:28:53,520 in the future but like I said again good biblical interpretation always begins with a literal 381 00:28:53,520 --> 00:28:56,880 reading and then you recognize figures of speech and grammatical sense and all that 382 00:28:56,880 --> 00:29:01,560 kind of stuff so point being is I believe this account is an account of realities that 383 00:29:01,560 --> 00:29:08,320 John is given that John is actually seeing something and he's doing his best to describe 384 00:29:08,320 --> 00:29:13,600 it so it's it's it's like a horse ready for battle and it has a face like that of a man 385 00:29:13,600 --> 00:29:18,760 and and it sounds like this right he's doing his best to describe what he's looking at 386 00:29:18,760 --> 00:29:23,520 you know the same way that I don't know if we saw a dragonfly under a microscope and 387 00:29:23,520 --> 00:29:27,920 someone said describe it we would go well it looks like right and we would start to 388 00:29:27,920 --> 00:29:33,480 use things we're familiar with so let's look at the description he says they're like horses 389 00:29:33,480 --> 00:29:37,900 prepared for battle and the sound of their wings are like the sound of many chariots 390 00:29:37,900 --> 00:29:44,360 with horses rushing into battle now if you think of horses prepared for battle they they're 391 00:29:44,360 --> 00:29:49,120 anxious they're ready they're snorting they're stomping they're they're they're they're armored 392 00:29:49,120 --> 00:29:54,120 up he says the sound of many chariots of horses rushing in battle just that overwhelming sound 393 00:29:54,120 --> 00:29:58,680 of movement you know you've probably seen it in the movies maybe but the idea here is 394 00:29:58,680 --> 00:30:04,160 that there's this power there's this anticipation that he is picking out here now Joel the prophet 395 00:30:04,160 --> 00:30:09,320 use similar terminology to describe locust plagues of his day he actually saw real locust 396 00:30:09,320 --> 00:30:14,080 plagues and actually saw armies but we know that Joel also prophesied about the tribulation 397 00:30:14,080 --> 00:30:18,940 period and he also used these sounds of horses in battle and the sounds like chariots to 398 00:30:18,940 --> 00:30:23,600 describe prophetically what I believe Joel was seeing as this demonic host in the future 399 00:30:23,600 --> 00:30:29,560 and so this idea is that this there's this overwhelming thunderous host of anticipatory 400 00:30:29,560 --> 00:30:35,520 anxious power right then he goes something like golden crowns on their heads this could 401 00:30:35,520 --> 00:30:41,800 be just some weird formation or or description but something that that was around their head 402 00:30:41,800 --> 00:30:46,560 with points and it was gold but the idea then is the word he uses for crown there is not 403 00:30:46,560 --> 00:30:51,160 the crown of authority that a king would wear it's that word referring to the wreath of 404 00:30:51,160 --> 00:30:57,360 victory the kind of wreath that an Olympian was given when they won and so again the picture 405 00:30:57,360 --> 00:31:04,200 here is that they will be victorious in their task it says they have a face like human faces 406 00:31:04,200 --> 00:31:09,880 that's just creepy to me right can you imagine that some demonic locust coming up to you 407 00:31:09,880 --> 00:31:16,540 and like hey you know like whoa step up bro but yeah the idea is is a face like human 408 00:31:16,540 --> 00:31:22,320 face so so the idea is two eyes and a nose and a mouth and probably expressive to some 409 00:31:22,320 --> 00:31:28,560 degree but a nerving teeth like or hair like a woman's hair culturally in the day women 410 00:31:28,560 --> 00:31:33,840 had long flowing hair and so the picture here is that on its head it had some type of long 411 00:31:33,840 --> 00:31:39,800 flowing mane of some kind teeth like lion's teeth well if you think of lion's teeth what 412 00:31:39,800 --> 00:31:46,520 do you think of sharp fangs right tearing fangs devouring fangs a chest like an iron 413 00:31:46,520 --> 00:31:52,400 breastplate sturdy solid hard to crack and then stingers like a scorpion's tail and 414 00:31:52,400 --> 00:31:57,760 then tells us that the torment from the stinger is like the torment caused by a scorpion when 415 00:31:57,760 --> 00:32:03,580 it stings someone and so the idea is that these demons have the power to hurt to bring 416 00:32:03,580 --> 00:32:09,580 pain to cause great pain and suffering now that word for stinger is the same word used 417 00:32:09,580 --> 00:32:16,840 in first Corinthians 1555 metaphorically when Paul said where death is your sting where 418 00:32:16,840 --> 00:32:21,860 is your ability to cause pain and suffering and so the stinger that these things have 419 00:32:21,860 --> 00:32:26,000 gives them the ability to cause pain and suffering and and I don't know if any of you here have 420 00:32:26,000 --> 00:32:30,480 ever been stung by a scorpion I hope you haven't because what I read about it is it's a pretty 421 00:32:30,480 --> 00:32:35,780 miserable experience that there's basically two types of scorpion stings one is not so 422 00:32:35,780 --> 00:32:41,880 bad but hurts but one is is it causes the the victim to writhe on the ground and foam 423 00:32:41,880 --> 00:32:47,340 at the mouth and grind their teeth in agony it's extreme excruciating pain and that's 424 00:32:47,340 --> 00:32:52,040 the idea that we're seeing here that these demons have the power to do and remember these 425 00:32:52,040 --> 00:32:57,160 demons have been locked up in this abyss for a very long time and so they're eager to cause 426 00:32:57,160 --> 00:33:04,640 as much pain and havoc as possible and then verse 11 it says they had as their king the 427 00:33:04,640 --> 00:33:10,840 angel of the abyss his name in Hebrew is Abaddon or Abaddon and in Greek he has the name of 428 00:33:10,840 --> 00:33:16,280 Polyon now this is another reason why I don't think these are natural locusts or some natural 429 00:33:16,280 --> 00:33:21,540 locust plague because natural locusts have no king they just go by instinct but on top 430 00:33:21,540 --> 00:33:27,000 of that Proverbs chapter 30 verse 27 specifically says locusts have no king yet all of them 431 00:33:27,000 --> 00:33:32,360 march in ranks right so but these demonic creatures they do have a king and it's the 432 00:33:32,360 --> 00:33:39,680 king as their king is the angel of the abyss now when it says angel of the abyss there's 433 00:33:39,680 --> 00:33:44,880 some different you know ideas of who this is but that word of there is is that word 434 00:33:44,880 --> 00:33:50,420 that means from okay so the angel from the abyss and so some people go oh this angel 435 00:33:50,420 --> 00:33:54,520 from the abyss it's Satan he's the king of the demons but but Satan's on the outside 436 00:33:54,520 --> 00:33:59,900 of the abyss unlocking the door so the angel from the abyss the angel inside the abyss 437 00:33:59,900 --> 00:34:05,400 is likely somebody else that isn't Satan but some other demon of rank and authority and 438 00:34:05,400 --> 00:34:09,200 we know that's possible because the Bible speaks of that that there's principalities 439 00:34:09,200 --> 00:34:12,880 and powers and so there's demons of different rank and I don't know this one might have 440 00:34:12,880 --> 00:34:16,120 been the highest ranking demon in Satan's army that had been locked up this whole time 441 00:34:16,120 --> 00:34:22,600 we don't know but his name is Abaddon and a Polyon which both mean destruction or destructor 442 00:34:22,600 --> 00:34:27,760 which speaks to the nature and purpose of this demon and the army that he leads in Satan's 443 00:34:27,760 --> 00:34:35,000 army but the overall idea of all of this is that these demons are a real visible swarming 444 00:34:35,000 --> 00:34:40,540 plague upon the earth and that word plague is exactly what they are called in verse eighteen 445 00:34:40,540 --> 00:34:45,640 and twenty of Revelation chapter nine that they're a plague and the idea of plague is 446 00:34:45,640 --> 00:34:50,240 something that is widespread something that spreads everywhere into everyone and these 447 00:34:50,240 --> 00:34:57,360 demons are a plague just like that now some read this and they go wait a second it said 448 00:34:57,360 --> 00:35:03,080 that these demons were were told not to harm the grass and you might say I thought all 449 00:35:03,080 --> 00:35:07,840 the grass was burned up in the first trumpet blast go back to it and you'll read that all 450 00:35:07,840 --> 00:35:14,560 the grass was burned up well yeah time has passed okay if these judgments are chronological 451 00:35:14,560 --> 00:35:18,240 which I believe they are time has passed as judgments being progressive and escalating 452 00:35:18,240 --> 00:35:21,800 one after the other simply means that the grass was burned up during the first trumpet 453 00:35:21,800 --> 00:35:25,460 blast but it doesn't say it was permanently destroyed so some of the grass at least has 454 00:35:25,460 --> 00:35:29,620 grown back at this point but they were told as these locust type demons don't destroy 455 00:35:29,620 --> 00:35:34,900 the creation we're not doing that anymore we're going after the people and so it tells 456 00:35:34,900 --> 00:35:39,260 us in verse four if you go back there that they can only harm those who do not have God's 457 00:35:39,260 --> 00:35:44,640 seal on their foreheads now again with the seals and the trumpets and the bold judgments 458 00:35:44,640 --> 00:35:51,120 being looked at as progressive judgments we saw between the sixth and seventh seal that 459 00:35:51,120 --> 00:35:55,560 there was a break there where the hundred and forty four thousand Jewish evangelists were specifically 460 00:35:55,560 --> 00:36:01,140 sealed on their foreheads with God's seal we see that these were sealed and then in 461 00:36:01,140 --> 00:36:05,640 revelation 14 we see that they are protected and saved all the way through tribulation 462 00:36:05,640 --> 00:36:10,040 and the judgments of tribulation so naturally it would say that the ones who are sealed 463 00:36:10,040 --> 00:36:14,440 those hundred forty four thousand evangelists are protected from the sting of these demons 464 00:36:14,440 --> 00:36:19,760 the torment that these demons bring however in revelation twenty two verse four it also 465 00:36:19,760 --> 00:36:24,440 tells us that the great multitude of all of those who are saved through tribulation also 466 00:36:24,440 --> 00:36:29,400 have the name of Christ on their foreheads and the name of Christ is specifically referenced 467 00:36:29,400 --> 00:36:34,280 as the seal of the hundred forty four thousand in revelation fourteen so it could be referring 468 00:36:34,280 --> 00:36:38,680 to that all of the saved people on the earth during that time both the hundred forty four 469 00:36:38,680 --> 00:36:42,200 thousand evangelists and everybody who gives their life to Christ during this time are 470 00:36:42,200 --> 00:36:48,520 protected from these demons so that these demons are allowed to torment people for five 471 00:36:48,520 --> 00:36:56,280 months now the language there for five months is literal it's not a metaphorical reference 472 00:36:56,280 --> 00:37:01,680 it's a literal five months and it's interesting because the first time God judged the entire 473 00:37:01,680 --> 00:37:08,040 world during the flood guess how long the water prevailed over the earth for five months 474 00:37:08,040 --> 00:37:13,640 right so there's no reason to see this five months as being symbolic or metaphorical it's 475 00:37:13,640 --> 00:37:19,520 an actual five months of time possibly the first five months after the midpoint of tribulation 476 00:37:19,520 --> 00:37:26,200 but the point being is it's a terrible terrible time and all this supernatural activity will 477 00:37:26,200 --> 00:37:30,020 just unnerve the inhabitants of the earth it will just mess people up because we see 478 00:37:30,020 --> 00:37:34,960 in verse six and I know I'm jumping around here but follow me verse six it says in those 479 00:37:34,960 --> 00:37:43,560 days people will seek death and will not find it they will long to die but death will flee 480 00:37:43,560 --> 00:37:54,200 from them that's a scary verse that's a scary verse things will be so bad it says there 481 00:37:54,200 --> 00:38:01,200 that people on the earth will see no future they will see no hope and they will want to 482 00:38:01,200 --> 00:38:08,320 end it all people in that time due to the torment the judgments being unleashed on the 483 00:38:08,320 --> 00:38:17,920 earth will see death as a blessing just just just let me die but what does it say there 484 00:38:17,920 --> 00:38:23,120 death will flee from them they will long to die but death will flee from them they will 485 00:38:23,120 --> 00:38:32,640 want to die but death will be inaccessible even that will be taken away from them now 486 00:38:32,640 --> 00:38:38,320 when it says they will long to die it means that they would have an intense desire to 487 00:38:38,320 --> 00:38:44,960 do so or the other idea is to lust after it so in the same way that they have lusted after 488 00:38:44,960 --> 00:38:50,000 their own pleasures and lusted after their own way and their own will and lusted after 489 00:38:50,000 --> 00:38:53,920 all the sins and debaucheries and everything that God has said don't do that and they said 490 00:38:53,920 --> 00:38:59,600 no forget you God we're going to do it anyways the judgments now being allowed to pour out 491 00:38:59,600 --> 00:39:04,240 of them create a situation so bad where they start to lust after just death just let me 492 00:39:04,240 --> 00:39:12,200 go let me escape from these judgments and the idea is this continual desire to find 493 00:39:12,200 --> 00:39:18,480 death specifically over these five months some read this and what they say is during 494 00:39:18,480 --> 00:39:25,480 this time where these these these locust type demons this this horde of horrific angels 495 00:39:25,480 --> 00:39:30,880 are unleashed on the earth and causing this pain this torment like being stung by a scorpion 496 00:39:30,880 --> 00:39:38,440 people will try to commit suicide to end it and they won't be able to now they won't 497 00:39:38,440 --> 00:39:42,560 be able to is interpreted a couple different ways some think that people are going to try 498 00:39:42,560 --> 00:39:50,120 and commit suicide and even do something that should otherwise take their life but instead 499 00:39:50,120 --> 00:39:55,460 they will continue to live despite the injuries but with the pain i don't know how that is 500 00:39:55,460 --> 00:40:00,740 medically possible but we're dealing in the supernatural now and i've heard people talk 501 00:40:00,740 --> 00:40:06,320 about yeah someone will jump off a building and they won't die and they'll put a gun 502 00:40:06,320 --> 00:40:12,280 to their mouth and they won't die but they'll live with all the pain and the torment others 503 00:40:12,280 --> 00:40:16,840 interpret this is is what's going to happen during this period with these demons stinging 504 00:40:16,840 --> 00:40:20,360 people is that the demons and the torment they're going to drive people to want to kill 505 00:40:20,360 --> 00:40:25,000 themselves but the demons are going to keep preventing people from doing it so in the 506 00:40:25,000 --> 00:40:28,600 moment where someone says okay i'm just going to pull the trigger the demon stings them 507 00:40:28,600 --> 00:40:31,880 again and they're riding on the ground in pain and they're like i just want to do it 508 00:40:31,880 --> 00:40:35,680 and right before they do whatever it is that they're going to try and kill themselves through 509 00:40:35,680 --> 00:40:39,240 the torment the the demons keep stinging them and stinging them and stinging them and just 510 00:40:39,240 --> 00:40:43,880 preventing them from the relief that they're seeking in death we don't know exactly what 511 00:40:43,880 --> 00:40:48,920 this means here but what it says is they will seek death and they won't find it they will 512 00:40:48,920 --> 00:40:55,640 long to die but death will flee from them terrible time terrible time and then verse 513 00:40:55,640 --> 00:41:01,040 twelve tells us the first woe has passed but there are still two more woes to come after 514 00:41:01,040 --> 00:41:07,220 this you mean it's going to get worse it's going to get worse than that yes it is yes 515 00:41:07,220 --> 00:41:16,600 it is the sounding of the fifth trumpet will unleash hell on earth and i believe what it's 516 00:41:16,600 --> 00:41:22,320 doing is bringing people a foretaste of what eternal eternal damnation is going to be like 517 00:41:22,320 --> 00:41:26,280 you want to reject god you want to live for yourself you want to live for your own will 518 00:41:26,280 --> 00:41:31,320 your own way well god has been telling you that that there's going to be judgment for 519 00:41:31,320 --> 00:41:36,920 that there's going to be judgment for that and that judgment is forever in hell and people 520 00:41:36,920 --> 00:41:43,080 are like whatever we don't believe it it's not real i'm going to do whatever i want and 521 00:41:43,080 --> 00:41:47,640 as people are pursuing their own will in their own way we see our world getting more and 522 00:41:47,640 --> 00:41:55,160 more debauched we see our world getting more and more perverse people want to celebrate 523 00:41:55,160 --> 00:42:03,240 yay slavery exists no more while they ignore the the pandemic of sex trafficking people 524 00:42:03,240 --> 00:42:07,400 want to celebrate the victory we could do whatever we want and we've come to a place 525 00:42:07,400 --> 00:42:13,020 of being able to express ourselves sexually and and in all these ways and and ignore the 526 00:42:13,020 --> 00:42:18,380 fact that people are going yeah and so we want to do things with kids and all this disgusting 527 00:42:18,380 --> 00:42:25,120 stuff and our world is just getting darker and darker and darker and and the church has 528 00:42:25,120 --> 00:42:29,800 been in the world this whole time we're in the world this whole time saying god is going 529 00:42:29,800 --> 00:42:38,400 to judge sin but he has offered salvation to you if you would call out to him for it 530 00:42:38,400 --> 00:42:43,040 and sadly some are going to deny that all the way to this point in the tribulation and 531 00:42:43,040 --> 00:42:51,960 if the misery of those five months is so terrible imagine what hell forever will be like that's 532 00:42:51,960 --> 00:42:58,440 what's taking place here and yet many will still refuse to repent still refuse to repent 533 00:42:58,440 --> 00:43:05,760 why well john chapter 3 verse 19 said this this is the judgment the light has come into 534 00:43:05,760 --> 00:43:14,200 the world and people love darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil 535 00:43:14,200 --> 00:43:21,440 mankind wants to live in its sin wants to live contrary to god no matter what and one 536 00:43:21,440 --> 00:43:25,400 of the ways they try and make it easier for themselves to do so is saying the devil's 537 00:43:25,400 --> 00:43:35,400 not real demons aren't real god's not real and the warning we have for them is yes he 538 00:43:35,400 --> 00:43:44,580 is yes they are selfishness greed sexual perversions homosexuality adultery lying stealing on and 539 00:43:44,580 --> 00:43:49,640 on and on and on mankind wants to live its own way according to its own will according 540 00:43:49,640 --> 00:43:57,040 to its own wants and some in our world today even try and create a god of their own imagination 541 00:43:57,040 --> 00:44:02,840 and go no god isn't that way he's this way and if it's contrary to the word of god that 542 00:44:02,840 --> 00:44:09,360 god doesn't exist you have made him up because the word of god is very clear on who god is 543 00:44:09,360 --> 00:44:15,140 and what his will is and what his desire is the holy bible it's the revelation of who 544 00:44:15,140 --> 00:44:23,000 god is and how we are to live according to that and it's about his will his way not ours 545 00:44:23,000 --> 00:44:28,480 and if we disagree with him and his will in his way we're the ones that are wrong not 546 00:44:28,480 --> 00:44:35,480 him because he is god almighty creator of the universe i think god does everything he 547 00:44:35,480 --> 00:44:41,000 can to bring people to the light to bring people to salvation at the end of revelation 548 00:44:41,000 --> 00:44:48,800 chapter eight he sent a creature out to the world shouting whoa whoa whoa to the world 549 00:44:48,800 --> 00:44:54,520 and i believe he does that out of mercy to give people the opportunity to repent to believe 550 00:44:54,520 --> 00:44:59,240 in god to turn their lives over to him to live his will his way because it's the right 551 00:44:59,240 --> 00:45:08,160 way it's the best way but if you choose your will and your way without christ the end will 552 00:45:08,160 --> 00:45:18,960 be suffering it'll be torment it'll be anguish and this might be why the bible gives 600 553 00:45:18,960 --> 00:45:26,200 or so warnings about hell this might be why jesus spoke more about hell than anybody else 554 00:45:26,200 --> 00:45:31,680 in scripture this might be why paul said in second corinthians 5 11 therefore since we 555 00:45:31,680 --> 00:45:40,760 know the fear of the lord we try to persuade people heaven and hell are real god is real 556 00:45:40,760 --> 00:45:49,200 so is the devil angels are real so are demons the devil is a deceiver and a liar and he 557 00:45:49,200 --> 00:45:55,720 wants nothing more to convince you that what god says is sin isn't really sin he wants 558 00:45:55,720 --> 00:46:01,460 nothing more to convince you to keep living in it because well after all there's no consequences 559 00:46:01,460 --> 00:46:08,280 that's what the devil wants so that the end for you will be destruction and torment but 560 00:46:08,280 --> 00:46:17,040 there are at the time of his grace and his long suffering consequences to come when all 561 00:46:17,040 --> 00:46:23,640 of that runs out when his patience comes to an end and when it does his judgment will 562 00:46:23,640 --> 00:46:31,880 pour out on this world if you don't know jesus christ is your lord and savior today you need 563 00:46:31,880 --> 00:46:42,040 to you need to people say no the end isn't coming it's coming i read an article the other 564 00:46:42,040 --> 00:46:47,200 day the world economic forum one of the directors or the leader of the world economic forum 565 00:46:47,200 --> 00:46:52,880 said you know what in a matter of years ai is going to rewrite a bible that is universal 566 00:46:52,880 --> 00:47:00,920 for the whole world sounds like one world religion doesn't it coming from the world 567 00:47:00,920 --> 00:47:06,760 economic forum oh one world economy maybe the end is coming quickly and if you don't 568 00:47:06,760 --> 00:47:11,600 know jesus christ is your lord and savior today is an opportunity for you to know him 569 00:47:11,600 --> 00:47:23,560 before judgment falls let's pray father god we're grateful that we have your word even 570 00:47:23,560 --> 00:47:32,480 these difficult passages lord we're grateful god for the warnings you give us in your word 571 00:47:32,480 --> 00:47:37,920 god those of us that have heard your warnings and been drawn to you and put our faith in 572 00:47:37,920 --> 00:47:43,560 you as our god and received the forgiveness of our sins and the salvation that you grant 573 00:47:43,560 --> 00:47:53,960 to us god we're so grateful that we received that but lord there's still work to do and 574 00:47:53,960 --> 00:48:00,640 you're calling all of us who have received salvation who have seen the light to go out 575 00:48:00,640 --> 00:48:09,080 and share that with the dark world because judgment is coming and lord i pray god that 576 00:48:09,080 --> 00:48:13,800 we would take that call seriously and i know many of us do god and i'm so grateful for 577 00:48:13,800 --> 00:48:21,540 that lord that we would be people who live in the light and share the light teach the 578 00:48:21,540 --> 00:48:29,280 light preach the light god that people would know the love of god the love you want to 579 00:48:29,280 --> 00:48:38,160 offer them in salvation and lord we know it's tough and we know it's difficult and we know 580 00:48:38,160 --> 00:48:43,640 it's hard and lord we know the world doesn't want to hear it because before we were saved 581 00:48:43,640 --> 00:48:52,840 we didn't want to hear it but god someone someway somehow got the message to us lord 582 00:48:52,840 --> 00:48:59,600 may we be vessels for someone else to bring them the message of the gospel lord we know 583 00:48:59,600 --> 00:49:03,800 there's torment and suffering in the world today but it is nothing like what is coming 584 00:49:03,800 --> 00:49:11,960 and if you're in this room today while we're praying heads bowed and eyes closed and the 585 00:49:11,960 --> 00:49:15,600 warning of what is to come is speaking to your heart god is speaking to your heart about 586 00:49:15,600 --> 00:49:22,160 your need for him about your need for salvation god is speaking to you about how you've been 587 00:49:22,160 --> 00:49:26,040 living your life choosing to reject god and do everything about your own self and your 588 00:49:26,040 --> 00:49:32,600 own pleasure and god is speaking to you today you realize that that is wrong that is sin 589 00:49:32,600 --> 00:49:38,680 and without christ judgment is going to fall upon me the spirit of god has spoken that 590 00:49:38,680 --> 00:49:41,520 to you this morning you're in this room i just want you to raise your hand right now 591 00:49:41,520 --> 00:49:46,740 where you're seated and say i want to be forgiven i want to be saved god bless you anybody else 592 00:49:46,740 --> 00:49:53,520 god bless you too god is speaking to your heart he loves you so much he wants to deliver 593 00:49:53,520 --> 00:49:59,000 you from your sin deliver you from the power of sin enable you to live a life that glorifies 594 00:49:59,000 --> 00:50:06,880 god that is good and right he can do that he wants to do that but he'll only do it if 595 00:50:06,880 --> 00:50:11,260 you invite him in anybody else you want to receive christ this morning just raise your 596 00:50:11,260 --> 00:50:16,520 hand where i could see it if you're online obviously i can't see you online but let us 597 00:50:16,520 --> 00:50:23,520 know in the chat there if you want to receive jesus all right i see you too those of you 598 00:50:23,520 --> 00:50:26,480 that raised your hand here in the room those of you online that want to receive christ 599 00:50:26,480 --> 00:50:31,040 i want you to just pray with me right now this is a prayer to just confess your sin 600 00:50:31,040 --> 00:50:35,800 to god to confess your faith in who he is and what he did for you and to invite him 601 00:50:35,800 --> 00:50:42,920 into your life the bible tells us god god's word tells us that that as you come to him 602 00:50:42,920 --> 00:50:52,640 in faith he comes into your life truly and so pray this prayer with me say lord god i 603 00:50:52,640 --> 00:51:07,740 believe in you i believe you are god i believe that i have lived contrary to your way i believe 604 00:51:07,740 --> 00:51:18,080 that what you say is sin is sin and i believe that i have committed sin god i ask you to 605 00:51:18,080 --> 00:51:28,400 forgive me i believe that you came to this earth that you lived on this earth that you 606 00:51:28,400 --> 00:51:39,120 died on the cross that you rose again from the dead dying for my sin paying the penalty 607 00:51:39,120 --> 00:51:50,280 for my sin but granting me new life i believe thank you for loving me so much that you would 608 00:51:50,280 --> 00:51:58,960 do that for me thank you for loving me so much that you would speak into my heart that 609 00:51:58,960 --> 00:52:06,880 you would warn me of judgment to come that you would offer to me forgiveness and salvation 610 00:52:06,880 --> 00:52:15,520 teach me how to live for you teach me how to be who you want me to be and help me learn 611 00:52:15,520 --> 00:52:27,600 how to warn others of the judgment to come i love you thank you in jesus name amen well 612 00:52:27,600 --> 00:52:35,840 god bless you if you prayed that prayer this morning whether you raised your hand or didn't 613 00:52:35,840 --> 00:52:39,960 um we we have these little packets we want to give you it's a gift from us to you it's 614 00:52:39,960 --> 00:52:45,320 called a new believers pack um but it's just something to help you establish this just 615 00:52:45,320 --> 00:52:50,120 the habits of this relationship to get into a habit of reading god's word and prayer and 616 00:52:50,120 --> 00:52:54,520 worship because this is all about a relationship with god it's a relationship you have with 617 00:52:54,520 --> 00:52:59,360 your creator now it's a relationship that has changed your life it will continue to 618 00:52:59,360 --> 00:53:04,980 change your life it is a relationship that is just more important than anything in this 619 00:53:04,980 --> 00:53:09,880 whole earth and you're going to be blessed and so either come forward after service or 620 00:53:09,880 --> 00:53:13,620 go out the back and just ask for a new believers pack and we'd love to give that to you if 621 00:53:13,620 --> 00:53:17,120 you're online and you receive the lord this morning just let us know in chat we'll mail 622 00:53:17,120 --> 00:53:21,400 you out one of these new believers packets because we just want to walk with you this 623 00:53:21,400 --> 00:53:25,520 isn't about joining a religion it's not about joining a church even it's about joining the 624 00:53:25,520 --> 00:53:31,560 family of god and that is what matters that is what changes everything and so guys i i'm 625 00:53:31,560 --> 00:53:36,520 just it's a little tough studying through revelation i'm not going to be uh shy about 626 00:53:36,520 --> 00:53:40,600 it this week because i've been a little bummed all week and i couldn't figure out why i was 627 00:53:40,600 --> 00:53:43,960 like kind of like man i'm a little depressed what's going on you know and then and then 628 00:53:43,960 --> 00:53:48,000 last night i was reflecting on the study and thinking about what's going to happen i was 629 00:53:48,000 --> 00:53:54,600 like i think it's bumming me out but then god spoke to me and he goes you think it bums 630 00:53:54,600 --> 00:54:02,520 you out and i just realized wow there's so many people that don't know him yet i gotta 631 00:54:02,520 --> 00:54:06,900 get some tracks i gotta go i gotta go tell people so that they would have the opportunity 632 00:54:06,900 --> 00:54:11,280 to be saved before judgment falls and so but we're going to keep studying through this 633 00:54:11,280 --> 00:54:16,800 book as tough as it is because god wants us to know about all of it for a purpose and 634 00:54:16,800 --> 00:54:20,440 that purpose is that he would be glorified in our lives that we would see him as king 635 00:54:20,440 --> 00:54:25,520 of all king of glory king of creation king of our lives and that we would be motivated 636 00:54:25,520 --> 00:54:30,400 to be subjects of his people of his to go out and tell the world about him amen amen 637 00:54:30,400 --> 00:54:37,400 god bless you guys