December 20 - Revelation 6-10
There are several ways to interpret the book of Revelation, but it apparently describes a time in history when there will be great troubles. Jesus referred to such a time in Matthew 24, where He said that if the days are not cut short, all of the living creatures will die. I believe this is what we are reading in this part of the book of Revelation. Therefore, we might ask why God would do these things. The answer is found in Revelation 6:17. It is the time of God's anger or wrath. God will pour out His anger against the sinful rebellion of mankind. It will be a terrible time, because the sin will have become so bad that God can no longer act in mercy.
I pray that we have learned this lesson, and we will heed the message of Revelation at this point. God hates sin. He must always punish sin, even though sometimes He is merciful, so He does not punish us as much as He could. However, His mercy does have limits. There is a time when He acts in fury against those who shun His love. It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of God when He is angry. We should turn from sin, and live a life of faith that is consecrated to Him. That is the only way to miss the wrath of God.
Take time to consider the plagues God will send on the earth. There will still be some people who will be saved during this time, but most people will turn from God in disdain. He will kill many people and destroy much of the vegetation and animals in the process of showing His displeasure. It will not be a good time to be alive. Many believers will me killed for their faith, but God will comfort them before His throne in heaven. (7:13-17) Everyone will be longing for these days to come to an end. The tragedy is that those who follow Satan will find their end in the lake of fire, because they would not repent and turn to Jesus Christ. All believers need to take the situation seriously. We need to do what we can to see others come to Christ, before it is eternally too late. What is the Lord leading you to do? What do you learn from this passage? It is not something that appears to be far in the future. The time of great tribulation could be very soon.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Revelation 11-15.
I pray that we have learned this lesson, and we will heed the message of Revelation at this point. God hates sin. He must always punish sin, even though sometimes He is merciful, so He does not punish us as much as He could. However, His mercy does have limits. There is a time when He acts in fury against those who shun His love. It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of God when He is angry. We should turn from sin, and live a life of faith that is consecrated to Him. That is the only way to miss the wrath of God.
Take time to consider the plagues God will send on the earth. There will still be some people who will be saved during this time, but most people will turn from God in disdain. He will kill many people and destroy much of the vegetation and animals in the process of showing His displeasure. It will not be a good time to be alive. Many believers will me killed for their faith, but God will comfort them before His throne in heaven. (7:13-17) Everyone will be longing for these days to come to an end. The tragedy is that those who follow Satan will find their end in the lake of fire, because they would not repent and turn to Jesus Christ. All believers need to take the situation seriously. We need to do what we can to see others come to Christ, before it is eternally too late. What is the Lord leading you to do? What do you learn from this passage? It is not something that appears to be far in the future. The time of great tribulation could be very soon.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Revelation 11-15.