Month: January 2020

7.m. Behold, the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with wrath and fierce anger

Isaiah 13:9   Behold, the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with wrath and fierce anger, to make the land a desolation and to destroy its sinners from it. For the stars of the heavens and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be dark at its rising, and the moon will not shed its light. I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will put an end to the pomp of the arrogant, and lay low the pompous pride of the ruthless. I will make people more rare than fine gold, and mankind than the gold of Ophir. Therefore I will make the heavens tremble, and the earth will be shaken out of its place, at the wrath of the Lord of hosts in the day of his fierce anger. And like a hunted gazelle, or like sheep with none to gather them, each will turn to his own people, and each will flee to his own land. Whoever is found will be thrust through, and whoever is caught will fall by the sword.

Isaiah gives a clear prophecy about what we have read so far in Revelation as recorded by John.  “the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with wrath and fierce anger,”  It may be hard for us to understand and see Jesus cruel, with wrath and fierce anger.  Living in and during the time of His great mercy, grace, and love, and where God’s wrath has been held back against sinners in hope that they will come to the knowledge, understanding, and wisdom of Jesus Christ.  This knowledge and understanding begins to find root in their heart when they receive the wisdom of their sin and God’s Holiness, their need for redemption and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and their need for forgiveness and the mercy, grace, and love revealed to their heart, mind, and soul by the Holy Spirit through belief and trust in Jesus Christ.  This knowledge and understanding of forgiveness flood their heart, mind, and soul with a “Knowing” peace, rest, hope, and joy.  The fact that God has withheld His wrath and anger and judgment on them seems to get lost in this understanding for when we are in receipt of His grace, mercy, and love we become new creatures, born again, and the old sinful self is changed and continues to change as we grow more and more in knowledge of Him who was, who is, and who is to come.  Yes, we get lost in His grace, mercy, and love.  How could we not?  We were lost and without hope and now we are found and have eternal life promised to us.  We forget the wrath, anger, and judgment coming on those who reject His grace, mercy, and love because the love we have personally experienced overwhelms our heart, mind, and soul.   Be assured, He is coming again, not as a lamb but as a judge of sinners.  A judge of those who have rejected His sacrifice.  A judge of those who sealed their heart against the need for forgiveness.  A judge of those who deny the need of Jesus Christ.  A judge of those who practices evil.  A judge of those who despises God.  A judge of those who harden their heart against His offer of redemption.  A judge of those who have intentionally chose to live in darkness and apart from honoring, serving, following, trusting, and obeying Him.  A judge of Sinners.  We must always keep this in mind, for this is exactly what we deserved prior to God’s Word of salvation through Christ breaking through into our hearts.

7.l. And a great sign appeared in heaven:

Revelation 12:1   And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days.

Who is this woman identified in verse 1?  The woman is the nation of Israel.  Genesis 37: 9 “Then he dreamed another dream and told it to his brothers and said, “Behold, I have dreamed another dream. Behold, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”  Joseph had this dream.  Clearly there is a reference here that has to be taken seriously.  There are a few other thoughts out there claiming the “Woman” represents the “Church or the Virgin Mary.  The Great Red Dragon is none other than Satan Wanting to devour the child that was to come out of Israel.  God has granted to Satan great power of activity on earth.  Jesus said that Satan was a murderer from the beginning. John 8:44 – “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”  The Dragon description emphasizes his intense cruelty.  There is much to come in future chapters that give a more clear understanding of 7 heads and 10 horns.  Just know that these give us understanding to the antichrist, the nations that become his tool against Christ, and the indwelling and rule of Satan over the antichrist.

I read a comment on this chapter by Theodore Epp which seems to be worth sharing.  “Only a small portion of chapter 12 fits into the sequence of events during the Tribulation.  The chapter is really an inset providing necessary information about the past, present and future events concerning Christ, Israel, and Satan.  One cannot understand the entire Book of the Revelation unless he understands the 12th chapter.  The truth revealed in Revelation 12 reaches backward to Abraham and forward to the end of the Tribulation.  The chapter needs to be where it is in the book so the reader might understand the future unfolding events of the Tribulation.”

Know this: Satan is the father of all lies, is a roaring lion seeking those whom he can destroy, and is the great deceiver.  If we think about how he is able to lead many down paths of self-centered, speed-satisfying, and self-reliant lives how much more so when the church (people who have chosen to give all their heart, mind, soul, and strength – and believed in, trusted, followed, and obeyed Jesus Christ) is raptured out of earth and is no longer present with the Holy Spirit)  The time is coming and is now here when people will no longer give thought to the need of salvation, repentance, and forgiveness.  They will see no need because they have been deceived into thinking God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit are nothing more than a fairy tale and only the weak need something like this in their life.  There awaits a shocking reality to these people upon their death when they enter eternity (forever) in a place of torment awaiting the final judgment of God where they are cast into the Lake of Fire where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth forever and ever.  Now is the Day of Salvation.

7.k. The nations raged, but your wrath came

Revelation 11:15   Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.” And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying,  “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was, for you have taken your great power and begun to reign. The nations raged, but your wrath came, and the time for the dead to be judged, and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints, and those who fear your name, both small and great, and for destroying the destroyers of the earth.” Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.

We see the 7th trumpet is blown.  This is at the time just following the death and resurrection of the two witnesses.  People had no more been celebrating the death of these two when the seventh trumpet is sounded.  People were foolishly thinking that by killing the two witnesses they could destroy God’s Word against their sin.  They think they could escape punishment by killing those who tell them of the coming judgment/punishment.

We are shown what is taking place in heaven when the 7th trumpet is blown.  It is as if those in heaven before the throne are aware of the significance of this 7th trumpet.  They seem to know that the kingdom of God on earth is imminent. “for you have taken your great power and begun to reign” – “the nations raged but your wrath came” – “time for the dead to be judged” – “for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints, and those who fear you name” – “for destroying the destroyers of the earth”.  This is or seems to be, a summary of what is to come with the sounding of this 7th trumpet.  There is the worship of God knowing the final stages of the tribulation period has been put into motion.  There are many things and judgments to take place in these last three and one-half years of the tribulation period before the end actually comes.  God’s plans and purposes are so certain that the hosts of heaven are essentially saying “it is here”.  Christ will reign forever and ever.

We will see in the coming chapters that man will still reject and fight Christ.  All they have seen of His great power being displayed both by wonders and signs and judgment will be rejected and they will harden their hearts more if that is possible.  Harden hearts and rejection of Christ and salvation are signs of and the manifestation of sin in mankind.  Denying the need for forgiveness and rejecting the great sacrifice Jesus Christ paid on the cross will be at an all-time high.  Right now, in our time, it is a passive rejection, where people know of the need and but deny the need for themselves.  How tragic it will be for their soul.  Just because we live in a time of prosperity and presence of the Holy Spirit on earth does not for one second deny the need for salvation.  Far too many miss this personal need in their life.  Far too many passively go about their lives rejecting the Son of God, Jesus Christ, and think because there is still time in the future to “get right” with God, or that they are good enough.  They deny their whole heart, mind, and soul commitment and surrender to Jesus Christ.  So, what we see is that during the time of great blessing through the presence of the Holy Spirit, at time of grace, mercy, and love, and during the time of great judgment, wrath, and anger, people reject salvation, forgiveness, redemption, and will suffer the full wrath of God for this rejection.  When you look deep into your heart is it filled with a desire to humbly serve, honor, worship, follow, trust, and obey Jesus Christ, if not, make an intentional choice to surrender to Him.

7.i. These are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.”

Revelation 11:4  These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire.

Zechariah 4:11-14     Then I said to him, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?”  And a second time I answered and said to him, “What are these two branches of the olive trees, which are beside the two golden pipes from which the golden oil is poured out?”  He said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.”  Then he said, “These are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.”

The two witnesses for God have been given great power in their testimony to those who live in and have overtaken Jerusalem with abominations, (horror, disgrace, obscenity, evil, crime, hatred, hostility, and contempt)  During this 3 1/2 years they will perform many signs and wonders as often as they desire to change the hearts of the Israelites and to cause judgment on those who would try to harm them.  The Holy Spirit is gone, Christians are gone, and the world is in chaos.  People have turned to their most basic sinful selfish desires.  There is no want to serve God, know God, or repent from this evil.  These two witnesses, like Moses when he performed signs and wonders before pharaoh are given the power to do that which can only be done at the hand of and authority of God.  We know the outcome of this, hardening of the heart, retaliation, denial, and rejection of the message/witness of these two sent by God.  Think of all that has transpired on earth already; the rapture of Christians, wars, death, earthquakes, sought, famine, disease, high costs of living, the mark of the beast, vegetation destroyed, etc….  In all of this people still will not acknowledge God’s judgment, wrath, and anger.  In all of this, they still reject Him with all of their soul.

Jump back to our time now.  We have it just the opposite.  We live in the time of the presence of the Holy Spirit on earth and within those who believe and trust in Jesus Christ with all of their heart, mind, and soul.  We live in a time of grace, peace, mercy, and love.  We live in a time of God restraining His wrath and anger and judgment.  And yet, there are fewer and fewer people seeing the need for forgiveness, salvation, redemption, and Jesus Christ.  It seems as though He is rejected in both prosperity and hardship.  We have been given these words of God so that by them our hearts might see our sinful nature, hope found in and through Jesus Christ, and what is in store for those who reject such a great salvation.

7.h. Every charge must be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.

Revelation 11:1  Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months. And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”

Deuteronomy 17:6     On the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses the one who is to die shall be put to death; a person shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness.

Deuteronomy 19:15    “A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established.

Matthew 18:16    But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.

2 Corinthians 13:1    This is the third time I am coming to you. Every charge must be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.

These two witnesses of God will proclaim messages of God on Jesus Christ and pending judgment.  These messengers will speak the truth during a very difficult time on earth.  We have already read of death, famine, pestilence, wars, earthquakes, and many other judgments from the hand of God on those who have rejected His offer of redemption through Jesus Christ.  Can you imagine what it must be like to have at least 1/2 of the world’s population die and then have all of these acts of Judgment on top of that?  What hope of survival is there for these people that are left behind.  We must take note that these two witnesses are specifically in Jerusalem, the Holy City, which seems to have been taken over by the worship of false idols and the antichrist.  They speak with the authority of God to those who remain behind.  They speak to the Israelites with a message of deliverance.  But like now, there are those who listen and repent and those who do not.  It is clear that those who do repent will be persecuted for their belief and will die because of it.   Those remaining will see the works of God through these two messengers and acts of power given to them from God.

How would we accept a message of redemption and/or judgment in a doomsday scenario? Would we accept it knowing that acceptance meant sure death or would we reject it and hope there was another way to survive?  Would we look for survival and not give a thought about eternity?  Would we just harden ourselves against the message and fight for our life any way possible?  The truth is we would choose the very same thing we choose during a time of prosperity, grace, peace, and love.  We choose to believe and seek redemption or we choose to deny the consequences/judgment of rejecting it.  The outcome is still promised either way.  With redemption comes eternal life.  With the rejection of Jesus Christ comes eternal damnation.  We intentionally choose our destiny by either believing and serving, honoring, trusting, following and obeying Jesus Christ or by rejecting this offer of grace-filled and abounding mercy through Jesus Christ.

7.g. Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD,’ whether they hear or refuse to hear.”

Revelation 1:8   Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me again, saying, “Go, take the scroll that is open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.” So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll. And he said to me, “Take and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.” And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it. It was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter. And I was told, “You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and languages and kings.”

Ezekiel 2:8 – 3:1  “But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Be not rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you.” And when I looked, behold, a hand was stretched out to me, and behold, a scroll of a book was in it. And he spread it before me. And it had writing on the front and on the back, and there were written on it words of lamentation and mourning and woe. And he said to me, “Son of man, eat whatever you find here. Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” So I opened my mouth, and he gave me this scroll to eat.And he said to me, “Son of man, feed your belly with this scroll that I give you and fill your stomach with it.” Then I ate it, and it was in my mouth as sweet as honey. And he said to me, “Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with my words to them. For you are not sent to a people of foreign speech and a hard language, but to the house of Israel— not to many peoples of foreign speech and a hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, if I sent you to such, they would listen to you. But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to me: because all the house of Israel have a hard forehead and a stubborn heart. Behold, I have made your face as hard as their faces, and your forehead as hard as their foreheads. Like emery harder than flint have I made your forehead. Fear them not, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house.”  Moreover, he said to me, “Son of man, all my words that I shall speak to you receive in your heart, and hear with your ears.  And go to the exiles, to your people, and speak to them and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD,’ whether they hear or refuse to hear.”  Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me the voice of a great earthquake: “Blessed be the glory of the LORD from its place!”  It was the sound of the wings of the living creatures as they touched one another, and the sound of the wheels beside them, and the sound of a great earthquake. The Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness in the heat of my spirit, the hand of the LORD being strong upon me.

John, like Ezekiel, was told to consume the message of God.  This message was sweet to the taste but bitter to the stomach.  When you think about it there is something sweet and bitter with God’s Word.  Grace, mercy, and love – sweet,  Wrath, anger, judgment – bitter.  Do you ever wonder if today there is enough being taught and preached about the two of these?  We here so much of the grace, mercy, and love without a full understanding of the need to preach the whole Gospel which also speaks of wrath, anger, and judgment.  The Gospel that promises me redemption, forgiveness, salvation, life, hope, peace, rest, satisfaction and eternity in heaven also promises wrath, anger, judgment, unrest, confusion, anxiousness, fear, turmoil, dissatisfaction, discontentment, anguish, disappointment, regret, unhappiness, frustration, chaos, and eternity in Hell.  How many have trusted in a shallow gospel of prosperity, health, and heaven with a single understanding of the benefits of coming to Christ?  How is it they can know the need of forgiveness without knowing of sin and its consequences?  How can they know the depth of the love of Jesus Christ if they do not know of the depth of His wrath, anger, and judgment against those who reject Him?  Preaching and teaching and believing in a watered-down gospel does no one any good.  The need to be saved can only be understood when we know what we are being saved from. Understanding and becoming aware that we deserve hell but have been given a choice of redemption through Jesus Christ is the beginning and all of the promises and blessings after this deepen our faith commitment post being saved (born again).  The sweet and blessed redemption through the Love of Jesus Christ and the bitter consequences of the rejection of this Love must be proclaimed.

7.f. No more delay

Revelation 10:1  Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, with a rainbow over his head, and his face was like the sun, and his legs like pillars of fire. He had a little scroll open in his hand. And he set his right foot on the sea, and his left foot on the land, and called out with a loud voice, like a lion roaring. When he called out, the seven thunders sounded. And when the seven thunders had sounded, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and do not write it down.” And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven and swore by him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and what is in it, the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it, that there would be no more delay, but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.

We see an interlude in here.  It is not as though there is a gap in time between the judgments of God, but rather an explaining of something, kind of like how we would use parenthesis.  When we read in verse 6 that there should be no more delay, we have to wonder if what is about to transpire has to do with what the martyred had said, “How long, O Lord….until You judge and avenge our blood….?  At that time, the Lord’s answer was that they should wait a little while longer.  But now He is saying that the wait is over.  Judgment is about to be completed.  There will be no more delay in the fulfillment of the seventh trumpet.  John was not allowed to write down what he saw but what ever it was the mystery of God would be fulfilled. No more delay.  Those in heaven and on earth will see the mystery of God will be fulfilled.  I am not sure what this mystery will reveal.  Will it be a fuller understanding of His grace, mercy, and love, or will it be more understanding of the righteousness of His judgment, wrath, and anger on those who have rejected His grace, mercy and love?  Do you ever think about those who resist His grace, mercy and love?  They resist with harden hearts of stone, deaf ears, and turned backs.  I wonder what I may be resisting in my life.  Am I resisting giving all my soul, heart, and mind and strength?  Am I resisting by not actively listening to what the Holy Spirit is whispering into my mind through the Word of God?  Am I resisting an act of kindness, a kind word, or a word of encouragement to someone God has place in my life?  Am I resisting seeking His guidance?  Am I resisting time in His word?  Am I resisting being a humble servant?  Am I resisting trusting in and cling to Him.  Am I resisting obedience?  We all do well to search our heart and mind for the resistance toward living fully and totally for God that is there and actively pursue eliminating it from our life.

7.e. You will not know what hour I will come upon you.

Revelation 9:12   The first woe has passed; behold, two woes are still to come. Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God, saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.” So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, were released to kill a third of mankind. The number of mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand; I heard their number. And this is how I saw the horses in my vision and those who rode them: they wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire and of sulfur, and the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads, and fire and smoke and sulfur came out of their mouths. By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed, by the fire and smoke and sulfur coming out of their mouths. For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails, for their tails are like serpents with heads, and by means of them they wound. The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

Make no mistake about the timing of God.  He has set a time for His wrath, anger, and judgment on those who do not and did not repent (But of this be assured, that if the master of the house had known the hour at which the robber was coming, he would have kept awake) and (Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.).  It is not as though He has not given promises of blessings and warnings of judgments.  Yet the heart of stone and unrepentant heart of many will experience the wrath of God in ways that unleash a flood of torment on their soul and physical bodies. We have already read of 1/4th of the earth’s population dying previously and now we read of another 1/3 dying.  This equals a total of 1/2 of the world’s population (3 to 4 billion) people dead.  No one with half a brain would want to experience the wrath and anger of God and yet they still reject His witnesses He sealed to proclaim salvation, redemption, and eternal life.  Can you imagine seeing an army of 200 million coming at you with intent to kill and torment you?  What chance would you have to withstand this force?  Remember this, an army of 200 million is nothing but an ant compared to the power, might, and strength of Almighty God.  If you understand and realize that you could not withstand an army of 200 million then how much more so standing up against God and rejecting Him.  Luke 17:28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building,  but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all—  so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. 

Repent, believe, and cling too, rely on, and trust in Jesus Christ.  Live to humbly serve, honor, glorify, worship, follow, and obey Him.  The only thing that is keeping you from this right now is your heart choice to live for self rather than living for Him, thinking you do not need His redemption, thinking you are good enough, thinking you are not good enough, and thinking there will be time to do this later.  “For he says, “In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”

7.d. And in those days people will seek death and will not find it.

Revelation 9:1   And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft. Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth. They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree, but only those people who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. They were allowed to torment them for five months, but not to kill them, and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings someone. And in those days people will seek death and will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them. In appearance the locusts were like horses prepared for battle: on their heads were what looked like crowns of gold; their faces were like human faces, their hair like women’s hair, and their teeth like lions’ teeth; they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the noise of their wings was like the noise of many chariots with horses rushing into battle. They have tails and stings like scorpions, and their power to hurt people for five months is in their tails. They have as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek he is called Apollyon.

Being sealed by God is a promise.  He knows those who are His. During the church age (the time from the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ until the rapture) those who believe (rely on, cling too, and trust in Jesus Christ) are sealed with the Holy Spirit until the day of redemption.  God still displays grace during the tribulation period. His wrath and anger unleashed on unbelieving and non-repenting people in ever-increasing measure, and yet in this, we see there are those with a mark (either visible or not) who are spared this torment.  This torment is unbearable but God does not allow it to kill.  The torment is so great that men will seek death but God does not allow it.  We see that even in severe torment there are those who do not and will not repent.  Their heart is hard as stone to the things of God.  They have chosen this path and are living the consequences of that choice.

God gives us promises of His grace, mercy, and love.  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”  God gives this precious promise of eternal life, redemption, and forgiveness.  This offer (promise) comes with peace, rest, joy, hope, love, and the indwelling Holy Spirit to lead us on paths that glorify and honor Jesus Christ.  The love of God comes first.  It does not come as an ultimatum.  It comes as a promise, an offer, blessed salvation.  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me”.  God’s love pursues us. “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hears my voice, and open the door, I will come into him”.  God’s offer of love, grace, and mercy is an offer and a promise of eternal life.  Rejection of His grace, mercy, and love ends in unfulfilled lives on earth, torment for the soul, eternal torment upon death.  This 5th trumpet is a promise too for all who have rejected His grace, mercy, and love in and through Jesus Christ. The torment during the time of this 5th trumpet sound is unbearable but will be nothing like the eternal torment received at the final judgment where all of those who have rejected His love promise will be cast into the lake of fire for eternity.