Mary Fairchild
The following is based on the phonetic writing of the expository teaching tapes of Pastor Jim Mooberry.
The seven final judgments upon the earth prior to the return of Jesus Christ are found in chapters fifteen and sixteen. At the conclusion of these we will be at the end of the great tribulation. Then we will see the glorious return of Christ has portrayed in chapter nineteen.
The purpose of this period of time called the tribulation, this seven years where God begins to pour our his judgment on this earth, is not for the purifying of the church, but to give Satan his last opportunity. The Scriptures tell us that God is going to remove His church before this period of time starts. Christians will be taken out of the earth. Then He is going to send Satan into the earth and remove him from heaven. He will no longer have any access to heaven, he will have to stay completely confined to this earthly realm. Then he will begin to reign as he has never had the freedom to reign before. At that time God will begin to judge him and those in his kingdom. But for the Christian, our expectation is not these bowls of wrath, or this judgment, our expectation is stated in Titus 2:13, “Looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.” We are not looking forward to this judgment, we are looking forward to Christ coming for us. Don’t ever forget that.
We need to study prophecy so we can to learn of the sovereignty of God. God is sovereign. He is on His throne. He has never left it. He has everything under control. As you look in prophecy you will see that that must be true because He has already told us what is going to happen ahead of time. He will guarantee that it happens because “He is sovereign.” If you understand the sovereignty of God, the Christian life is going to be a lot better. No matter what happens you are going to remember that God is sovereign, it’s part of his plan with me.
Secondly, we study prophecy so we have a proper worldview to orientate us to the world and how we should serve. We know the end and how this book called history is going to end. The third thing is 1 John 3:3 says those who have their hopes fixed on Christ purify themselves as He is pure. The fourth reason is to motivate witness.
These days we are talking about are very near. It could be any day now that the Lord could come for His church. If that is true then the people you talk to every day, the great majority of those people are going to stay here and go the period of time we are talking about. We should be motivated to warn them of the coming storm and point them to Him. That He is the safe haven.
The chronology revolves around a series of three periods of seven judgments. There is the concept of seven within the seventh. The seventh trumpet judgments are contained within the seventh seal. And the seven bowls are contained within the seven trumpets. The seventh recapitulates the seven. Those seven go around and retrace the same ground as the seventh trumpet but in more detail. This is very common in the Bible. In the first two chapters of the whole Bible, in Genesis 1 and 2. In Genesis 1 we have the account of the creation of the earth. The Holy Spirit focuses on those six days of creation and the seventh day of rest and that chapter has this whole account. Chapter 2 focuses in on the creation of man and the Holy Spirit traces that particular day of creation in more detail. This is the idea of recapitulating, or retracing something in a passage of Scripture. Also, in chapter 1 of Genesis, He uses “Elohein” which means the almighty one. That’s appropriate as we are talking about the world. In chapter 2 He uses the name “Jehovah” which means the “covenant God,” the “faithful God.” That is appropriate when speaking about man and creation of man and God’s faithfulness to man.
Liberal critics of our day will twist the Scriptures to try to negate what God has said. The critics have said that since chapters 1 and 2 disagree in some details (actually they are just different), and because the writers in each chapter use different names for God they are two different authors. There is the “J” author who uses “Jehovah” and there is the “E” author who uses “Elohein.” They say actually Genesis is just a compilation of all kinds of myths and folk lore by different authors. And really there is no one account of creation and the obvious conclusion is that this isn’t really the inspired Word of God at all. They go on to say the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible are also similar in nature. They say that there is a “P” author that says things that are priestly. The “D” author speaks of things concerning the law, Deuteronomy. So JEPD, four different main authors have compiled all of this. Then they go on to Isaiah and claim there are two authors in Isaiah too and besides that Isaiah was written after the fact not before the fact and it just continues to build. All because they twist a very simple explanation for the way the Scriptures are written. So you need to understand the Holy Spirit is recapitulating and adding more detail.
The announcement of the last judgment in Rev. 15:1, John says he sees another sign. There are three signs that John sees in the book of Revelation. This is the third. Chapter 12:1, the first is the sign of a woman in heaven clothed with the sun and with the stars in her crown. This is symbolic of Israel. The second is the vision of the dragon. The dragon represents Satan and his kingdom and his antichrist. The third are these seven angels which will present God in judgement. Those are the three preeminent figures in this book. Israel, Satan, and God and the conflict. Israel, the tribulation period itself is fulfillment of prophecy to Israel. Jeremiah said it was coming and it would be called the day of Jacob’s trouble. It is a judgment on Israel and on the rest of the world for rejecting Christ as their Savior. Chapters 6-19, Israel is in view. In
chapter 4 of the book of Revelation, up to that point in chapters 1-3 the scene is “earthly” and the churches are mentioned in detail. But beginning in chapter 4:1 the scene shifts to heaven. From that point on the churches are never mentioned again until the very end of the book. The reason is because they are not on the earth. We have been taken to heaven. Chapters 4 and 5 the scene is heaven. Then chapter 6 following the scene again, it’s the earth through the eyes of heaven. From that point on John sees everything from the vantage point of heaven. He represents the church that is in heaven. So the focus of these chapters is Israel.
The second sign is Satan, the present ruler of the world. In these chapters we see the reign and the ruin of the kingdom of Satan. Satan has been removed from heaven, sent to the earth, and this is his final stand. The third is God, the Lord Jesus, the righteous judge, the covenant keeping God as He begins to judge this kingdom. And He will replace it with His own kingdom as He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
The finished wrath of God verse 1. These seven plagues are the last because upon this the wrath of God is finished. This is the conclusion of all of these judgments. The word “finished” in Greek is the same word that is used in John chapter 19:30 that came from the Lord’s mouth before He died on the cross. It means “to bring to an end,” or “to complete.” In this case, the wrath of God is going to be completed and accomplished. In John 19:30 when Jesus was hanging on the Cross and He was just about ready to dismiss His spirit and die, before He did He said, “He said it is finished.” It is done. He accomplished your salvation; the salvation of every person who would ever live. When He said it is finished, the Greeks had
perfect tense in their verbs, it means that it was completed at a point in time and the results continue on. Jesus Christ died historically 1900 years ago and the results of His death abide with us today. You can still come to know God today through Jesus Christ and that death. Some people think you have to go to church, you have to change your whole lifestyle, they think you have to be baptized… a lot of things. All of those things are fine in themselves, but they don’t do it. They don’t take care of your sin problem, your sin debt. Christ took care of it and there is nothing left to be done but for you to accept Him as your Savior. God, in chapter 15 of Revelation says with these judgments my wrath its finished.
As John is looking, he begins to see a great crowd of people standing on the throne of God. Verses 2-4, the anthem of the martyrs. Three things are said about these people as we try to understand who they are. The first thing that is said about them is that they are victors. They are victors over the beast, his image, and his number. In chapter 13, there is coming this world ruler, who is the beast, the antichrist, and he is Satan’s right hand man. As he comes he is going to establish a kingdom on earth that is absolutely like a vice. It controls everybody and everything that’s done. The way he is going to do it is through an economic system but it is also associated with worship of him. Chapters 13- he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which was given him to perform in the beast, his false prophet is performing these signs, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life. It is a false resurrection. There was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast might speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He causes all, the small and the great and the rich and the poor and the free man and the slave to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead. And he provides that no one should be able to buy or sell except the one who has the mark; either the name of the beast or the number of the name.
What is their victory? It is that they refuse to bow to this man. They refuse to take the number of his name. They refuse to join the rest of the world in worship of this beast and they are martyred. I Corinthians 15 Paul is speaking of the resurrection when he says “Oh death where is your victory, oh death where is your sting.”
Anyone who is a Christian is a victor and a conqueror. God says that if you are in Christ you are a victor. It is not the world’s idea of victory. Our victory that was purchased by Christ on the cross, that is applied to us when we accept Him as our Savior by faith, our victory is over our Adamic plight. It is the victory over who we are as natural human beings. We have been born as children of Adam. As such we are sinners, we are dead spiritually, we have no life of God in us at all when we are born. We are separated from God we have a sentence of physical death in us and we will all die one day if the Lord tarries. We are all members of a rebellious fallen race. We have all of this by birthright because we are children of Adam. Christ gives us an escape away from that, victory out of that.
1 John 5:4, “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith.” Spiritually we are born again. There’s a new birth that occurs and you become a new creature. You are now a son of God. You have a new citizenship. Philippians 3:21 says that our citizenship is in heaven from which we wait for a Savior who is going to come and transform us and have a body like His in His glory. Physically, the sentence of death is going to be overturned because we will be resurrected. If Christ comes today it will be through the rapture, if we go to the grave before He comes it will be resurrection from the grave. But we will not be defeated by death.
For the Christian this life is just a temporary, necessary passage to the new life. We already have it but not in its total fullness yet because we need to have our resurrected bodies and in the presence of God we will be with Him throughout all eternity. This life is just the foyer of eternity. There is something that stretches out before us for all the ages and how you live that life in eternity is determined now in this foyer that we live in. Not only is this life transitory but we need to understand we need to walk worthy. Paul reminds us in Romans 6 not to let sin reign in your mortal body that you give into lust. That’s the battle. Everyday we face temptation and one of the temptations is to not fight it and just go with the flow. Through the power of the Spirit as we consider the Scriptures and how they say that we don’t have to listen to sin any longer, we’re to live a life that’s worthy of Christ.
In chapter 4:6 we saw that same sea of glass like fine crystal and here fire is included in it which is speaking of judgment. If the earthly temple in Israel, the earthly tabernacle, is a shadow of the reality that is in heaven, it was a copy, it was to teach us something about God and His redemption—then this is probably referring to the bronze laver. This big wash basin was the first thing you saw as you stepped into the temple, then the building, then the building itself proper. Those who would bring an offering would have to wash their hands and cleanse themselves before they could come to offer at the altar. It represented God’s holiness and the barrier between uncleanness and God. This sea of glass is a representation of God’s separateness. Everything that is below is separated from He who is above because of His holiness. They are standing on it. They have been brought through it to their inheritance. They are found worthy on the side of God. They were found worthy because they have the righteousness of Christ. That has been imputed to their account. There will come the day when temptation is gone and we will be holy like He is.
The third thing it says is that they are holding harps. These are human beings who have been brought through the passageway to heaven and they stand before God and harps are instruments of praise. In spite of the mistreatment that they have suffered and the mistreatment at the hands of the ungodly, and their cruel deaths, they are all standing there and there is no evidence of defeat and no evidence of bitterness. There’s no bitterness, just worship and praise for they know that it was God’s plan for them. The Song of Moses (vs. 3-4) was a song that Moses wrote commemorating Israel’s deliverance from pharaoh’s army in Egypt. After all of the plagues that God had sent on Egypt pharaoh finally let Israel go. But then he changed his mind and came after them with his army. Right up next to the Red Sea with mountains on either side, Israel was in quite a predicament. While in this cul-de-sac pharaoh’s army approached intent on massacring them. At that moment God told Moses to put his staff on the water and when he did the sea divided and they were able to go across on dry land. As pharaoh’s army continues after them there is a mixture of fear and anxiety but in the next moment the sea walls collapse and the sea wall had covered their enemy. God separates you from Egypt forever. In one moment it happens. Their response was just a welling up of joy and rejoicing. Moses broke forth in a song praising God because everything they feared was gone in a second because of God’s power. These people realized that they are forever delivered from the grasp of suffering and death and they will never face it again. Once you leave this earth you will never face death and tears and suffering again. The Song of Moses is also the Song of the Lamb because He is the one who has delivered them. “Great and are thy deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Who shall not fear and glorify thy name, O Lord?” They knew the sovereignty of God. “For thou alone art holy. All the nations shall come and worship thee, for thy judgments have been revealed.”
Although we don’t suffer tribulation suffering like these did, yet everyday we experience unfairness, insensitivity, mistreatment by others some friends and family or even Christians who should know better, and there is a temptation there to become bitter instead of giving it to the Lord. God warns us about bitterness. In Hebrews 12:15 He warns us that it can pollute everything around us. Ephesians 4:32 is the antedate, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.” Forgive others. It takes humility. Bitterness is a pride problem.
Last we see the appearance of seven angels, for as John is watching all this that is going on his attention drawn away from them to a breathtaking sight. It is the sight of the temple of God opening and he is able to look into the holy of holies in verses 5-8. The temple, the tabernacle (in the desert was the first form), the temple was the permanent structure built in Jerusalem. They were both the same in the dimensions of the inner temple. It was a place that was surrounded by a linen fence. There was one door you came through and you saw the bronze laver there. You saw the altar where the sacrifice was given. And then you saw this little house and inside this house there were two rooms. The first one was called the holy place and in that room there were three pieces of furniture. There was a bread table, which symbolized that Jesus was the bread of life and the priests ate bread from that table in their service. There was a candlestick which symbolized that Jesus was the light of the world; the spiritual light that enlightens us. Then there was the little altar of incense where incense was offered symbolizing the prayers of the saints to God. The other room was separated by a veil called the Holy of Holies. This was the place where God was. The Ark of the Covenant was there and God’s presence was there. No one went in there except once a year the high priest did to offer the blood of the sacrifice to the nation. In all of these rituals and all of this symbolism of the tabernacle was designed to portray things that that would have their fulfillment in Jesus Christ in heaven. Christ is the fulfillment of those things.
That’s what the writer of Hebrews says in chapter nine verse eleven, “But when Christ appeared a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the Holy Place, taking not the blood of goats and calves but His own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. For if the sprinkling of defiled persons with the blood of goats and bulls and with the ashes of a heifer sanctifies for the purification of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify your conscience from dead works to serve the living God.” He fulfilled the sacrifice that was pictured in the tabernacle. So now all men have access to God. The Holy of Holies (referred to as temple on the book of Revelation), having been opened, occurred on earth nineteen hundred years ago. In Matthew 27:50-51 speaking about the death of our Lord, just as He died, just as He finished the work of redemption, something happened in the temple in Jerusalem; “Jesus cried out with a loud voice again and yielded up His Spirit. And behold the veil of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom..”
That veil was what separated the tomb from the Holy of Holies. The Hebrew scribe said that it was a hand breadth thick of woven fabric. That tuff fabric was torn in two to signify that it was God who had done it. It signified that upon the completion of Christ’s death the way to God was open. Presence of God is open now through Jesus Christ. But the Jews sewed it back up because they didn’t understand. They rejected their Savior.
The apostle John sees this and looks inside and he sees seven angels coming out; seven strong, glorious angels. In verses six and seven we see this. They were dressed in priestly garments so they are in the service of God, clean and white, they are holy. Those who execute God’s justice are righteous and holy. They are given authorization by one of the living creatures that stands closest to God. There are four of them, as we saw in the fourth chapter. One of the four living creatures gave to the angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives for ever, and ever. These seven bowls, as the angels pour them out, represent the final events of the tribulation. They are events that are caused and initiated by angelic instruments. There will be things that will happen in the earth that will be judgment upon the earth that will have an angelic source because they have been commissioned by God to pour out His wrath. Then, a strange thing happens, the temple is closed for a season. Access to the Holy of Holies is barred a short season while judgment is executed. It is represented by smoke, the glory of God, because He is represented as the burning fire of the wrath of God. This awesome power, this glory of God causes everyone in heaven to just stand and reverentially watch as He sends His wrath upon the kingdom of Satan.
There are two truths that we all need to understand about God, the wrath of God and the grace of God. Today is a day of grace in God’s plan. God is still withholding His full wrath today. He does this so that men and women might come to know Christ and be saved. 2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness.” Peter is saying that there is a reason that the Lord has not returned for two thousand years. “But the Lord is patient toward you not wishing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance.” A change of mind, a change of heart….this is a day of grace. The Gospel is held out to people; the pardon of God is held out to people today. God is allowing Satan to continue so that people might come to Him and receive the pardon. But there will be a day when the Church will be removed and the day of wrath has come; the tribulation period. If you are not a Christian the day of wrath begins at the moment of your death. It is sealed at that time.
Revelation 20:11, “I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it; from his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Also another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, by what they had done.”
If you are not one of Christ’s you will be one of those who are called the dead standing before the throne of God. In verse fifteen it says, “…and if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” When you receive Christ as your Savior you are written in the book of life.
WORKS CITED
- Revelation and Church History
- Church Age
- “THE BEGINNING OF THE END,” Revelation 15:1-8, #JMREV28, The Faithful Word. Pastor Jim Mooberry.
- Old Testament Study
- Receiving Jesus
- Heartland Baptist, Bellevue, Nebraska
- Broken Bow Berean Church, Broken Bow, Nebraska