Covenant Presbyterian Church
God's Positioning System (GPS)
Sunday morning Foundations Classes
Angels/Demons & the End Times -- Lesson #17
(press or click on a slide to enlarge it)
scroll down for earlier lessons in descending order
You can click on earlier lesson by date to the right "Blog Archive".
(Lessons are posted once a week on Friday afternoon
The seven Bowls—Rev 16:1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, "Go, pour out the seven bowls of God's wrath on the earth."
I thought this was going to be our last lesson, but there’s so much to this topic that it continued to grow as I delved further into it. The topic warrants a study of the entire Book of Revelation, but not here. So, once again this lesson became much too large and had to be divided into yet another lesson, which I think will be the last one. Our study began with angels back in June, which took us to fallen angels (a.k.a. demons) and then the Rapture and Tribulation. I hope you found this study as interesting as I did.
Rather than abandon our Sunday school lessons due to the COVID-19 shutdown, I started this blog in March with the topic of “Who Are We, Where Are We Going?” (about the New Heaven and New Earth—still available via the Blog Archive in upper right corner). The study of angels seemed like a natural follow on, since that’s who we will be sharing eternity with. There are so many sermons on the Rapture and Tribulation I decided to add a few to our lessons, which I spent hours listening to. Regardless of what view is the correct one—i.e. pretribulation Rapture or not—God is in charge and as such it will be the best option. The next study, be it on the blog or in Heritage Lounge, is still TBD. Again, those interested in resuming meeting in Heritage Lounge, I really need to know, if you haven’t already done so. Even a “no” would be appreciated, so I can plan. Thanks.
One thing is certain, God’s justice will prevail, and a sinful, rebellious and evil world will feel the full weight of His holy wrath. In doing so, He will ultimately clear the way for a New Heaven and a New Earth, totally free of sin and corruption for all eternity; but first comes the judgments:
Rev 6:16 They called to the mountains and the rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?"
Is Israel relevant to the Tribulation? The fact that there even is an Israel, demonstrates that God has not abandoned His people, Israel. The early church believed that the church became the new Israel, a belief that evolved when Israel was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD, believed to be punishment for rejecting their Messiah. The rebirth of Israel in 1948 and their very existence and survival in a hostile Middle East demonstrates that they are relevant, and that God is immutable (He doesn’t change His mind). His promises to Israel are trustworthy and true.
Isa 43:1-3 But now, this is what the LORD says — he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. 3 For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior….
The pretribulation Rapture would be the threshold of the Tribulation, and a signal to the world itself, opening the door for the Antichrist to take center stage. Imagine the confusion and chaos if every Christian suddenly disappeared including policemen and firemen? The people would be crying for the government, in every nation, to do something. The Tribulation most likely may begin with a series of events, including a steady increase in civil unrest and riots, much like what we’re seeing now, but increasing in scope and intensity.
The Antichrist, most likely, will be a well-known person who promises to deal with the unrest as well as propose a Middle East peace plan. He will assume political power at first, and then full authoritarian power and control, a 3 ½ year effort before the Great Tribulation and God’s wrath being poured out. If we are not raptured, how will the Church respond? How will individual Christians react to persecution? Is it part of God’s plan, or will God’s wrath be poured out on a 100% sinful world, when He takes His people in the Rapture? (1 Thess. 4:17). Either way, God’s will is always the best choice for His people.
This chart was previously shown in lesson #15, illustrating the Tribulation Judgments, beginning with the seven Seals opened by Jesus, that we had looked at; the first six Seals are in Revelation 6; the 7th Seal in Rev. 8. The first four Seals reveal the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and their catastrophic events of judgement on the world—including war, famine and catastrophic natural disasters, which we looked at in lesson #15. Next are the seven Trumpets in Rev. 8, 9 & 11. Each Trumpet announces yet another catastrophic event—a great earthquake, large heavenly bodies falling from the sky, and darkness descending across the world. Much too much to cover here. We will take a brief look at the seven Bowls that appear in Rev. 16, shown on the next two slides.
Revelation Chapter 15 is preparation for the Bowl Judgments, beginning with a sign of seven angels in heaven, each angel holding one of the seven plagues, represented by a Bowl. In Chapter 16 they pour out the seven Bowls of wrath on the earth. The last plague in the chapter is described as a great hail—not just great—but “exceedingly great”. For those so inclined, it may be a good time to pause and read Chapter 16. Again the question pops up, “Why would God subject His church—as the Body of Christ—to all of this?” I’m sure some have a rationale as to why, but, from my perspective, I haven’t seen a viable one when compared with the reasons why He would spare His people from the wrath described. We don’t have a sin debt to make restitution for, since Christ paid it in full on the cross.
This chart identifies the seven Bowls of wrath poured out in chapter 16 and associated Bible verses. If in fact the pretribulation Rapture is the biblically correct view, all I can say is “Thank you Jesus!” If it isn’t and Christians do go through the Tribulation, oh my… Which raises the question, will God shield His people in some way? Personally, I still can’t conceive of God subjecting His people to His wrath intended for an unrepentant and rebellious world. I think John MacArthur’s 20-minute sermon on the “pre-tribulation rapture” in lesson #14, makes a strong case that Christians will be raptured and not go through the Tribulation.
The Antichrist is crafty having Satan’s authority and ability to deceive people as Satan deceived Judas Iscariot, and others down through history. Hitler’s sway over the German people with promises of peace that ultimately gave him authority and power, which then led to death camps and a world war, is a 20th century example of just how persuasive Satan is through people. 1 John 2:18 tells us there will be many antichrists, all of whom are empowered by Satan. But, where does Satan get his authority and power over the world? …next slide.
God allowed Satan to have authority over a fallen world, and rule over a sinful world system, and according to Matt. 4:9, it was his to give, as he told Jesus in v.9, which Satan delegates to the Antichrist, and others such as Adolf Hitler as a 20th century example.
In Daniel’s 70th week prophecy, each week equals 7 years. The “many” in Dan. 9:27 includes Israel’s enemies, the Middle East Muslim nations, who think of the Jews as pigs. Will the Antichrist have a hard sell to convince them to sign his peace accord with Israel. Apparently not. It illustrates how persuasive Satan can be and is, even today.
Adolf Hitler promised peace and a restored prestige to the post-war German people, who were suffering the consequences from the aftermath of WWI. He used his persuasive power to gain total control of the German nation, and the murder of 6 million Jews, plus millions of others considered inferior races, and tens of millions more in a war that swept across Europe. If we don’t learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it, which is exactly what will happen with the Antichrist’s rise to power….and then comes persecution and destruction for all who disagree. What about the Church during the Tribulation?
Church leadership did not oppose Hitler’s rise to power, and even remained silent as Jews were rounded up, and even during the Holocaust. What about the mainline churches who are in the Tribulation? What about the Vatican? Will they pay homage to the Antichrist or oppose him?
In the same way, Vladimir Lenin made similar promises to the Russian people of “peace, land and bread”, which resulted in the Communist revolution of 1917. Satan’s lies are tailored to the people’s expectations and demands. 1 John 2:18 Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour.
Again, we can learn a lot from history. The rise of an antichrist or “The Antichrist” is one of them.
The Antichrist deceives, offering a plan for peace, accompanied by false promises, just as Hitler did in achieving power over the German people and nation. The Antichrist will be every bit as persuasive as Hitler. Once his authority and power is firmly in place, then he will reveal his true self, desecrating the temple and professing himself to be God, and Israel will pay the price, even worse than what the Romans inflicted on them in 70 AD, but a remnant will be saved. We see an example of this rise to power with Hitler, beginning with promises of prosperity to a war-torn Germany struggling through a depression; when through the political process, he gained absolute authority and power over the nation.
The existing world-system will be destroyed under the full weight of God’s righteous wrath, with the Millennial reign of Christ being ushered in, bringing a time of peace and perfect justice for all, a time when all lives matter.
An important lesson to ponder: No created being, neither angels nor mankind, can live a perfectly holy life on their own merits and by their own efforts, without God’s grace sustaining them. This is why we must be born again by the Holy Spirit, or sin could creep in yet again in the New Heaven and New Earth, just as it had in heaven with Lucifer, and the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. God dealt with it once and for all; Jesus paid the full price for our redemption securing for us an eternal relationship with Him (John 3:5).
Maybe the Antichrist would have come already if God’s people weren’t praying. 2 Chron 7:14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
There will be judgment for sin, which is an affront to God’s holiness; a judgment predicated on God’s holiness and reflecting His perfect justice against sin and a sinful world system.
Think of perfect justice within a context we can understand and appreciate. No one can deny that perfect justice in court here on earth is essential, but sadly not always perfect. Perfect justice at the Great White Throne Judgement will reveal God’s holy perfect-standards and just-punishments. If it wasn’t for God’s grace we all would stand in judgement, but Jesus paid our sin debt in full on the cross. He suffered God’s wrath, so we didn’t have to. God’s nature cannot allow His holiness to be contaminated by sin, any sin. He cannot wink at or ignore sin, any sin.
How do we know people won’t repent when facing judgement? Satan, who once was Lucifer, an “angel of light” and called “the morning star” (Isaiah 14:12), and all the angels that followed him, were unrepentant and cast out of heaven, where their goal is to destroy humanity with them. Satan’s hatred and resentment continues to rage against God. As we are told in Rev. 20:10, he continued to rebel against God, and was cast into hell (the lake of fire) for ever and ever.
Rev. 9:20-21 lays it out for us. Even after suffering the plagues, mankind did not repent nor stop sinning. Again, history provides clear illustrations of this truth. Charles Manson never repented of his evil, nor did his followers. Adolf Hitler didn’t repent, he commanded that his followers destroy what was left of Germany as a punishment for the German people, and his final act wasn’t sorrow, but suicide. He could have stopped the war and saved many lives, but he chose not to.
How can we reconcile God’s love and His wrath? Is Jesus the love side of God—who paid the price for our sins; and the Father the wrath side of God—who demands atonement? Absolutely not. God is a Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, of one essence, yet three distinct Persons. God’s nature is perfect holiness, perfect love and mercy, and perfect justice. God could not ignore sin nor allow it into heaven to exist alongside of Him. If He did, Satan and his fallen angels would still be in heaven, creating havoc and wreaking chaos. There would be no end to sin, ever. Only Jesus, being divine and holy, could pay the full price of atonement for our sins. No created being would be worthy or capable of doing it. God’s perfect justice could not ignore sin, any sin, which would be contrary to His holy nature, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, which demonstrates both God’s mercy and His justice applied in a perfect way.
We cannot split the nature of God into convenient compartments and ignore the ones we’re uncomfortable with. Jesus died both out of love and mercy, but also on behalf of pure unadulterated, perfect holiness and absolute perfect justice. Unrepentant sin cannot be ignored or condoned.
If God didn’t elect some, no one could or would be saved. (continued on next slide)
God is sovereign and no one warrants His mercy, nor is He unjust in not giving it to everyone, yet He gives it freely to some (mercy) which isn’t unfair to the others who don’t deserve it in the first place (justice). Yet God pours out abundant blessings on an undeserving world, who do not appreciate it in the first place, nor are they thankful, and more often than not, abuse it. So, why are we saved? God’s unmerited grace and mercy. ... next slide
Again, why does God save some and not everybody? God is perfectly just and perfectly merciful in saving some and not others (Rom. 9:21-23; Heb. 5:16; Eph. 2:4-5; James 2:13). The young girl seems to think it’s a joke. Will she ever change her mind? Hopefully so. But even evil people were young at one time. They didn’t all of a sudden become evil when they got older. God will judge everyone perfectly and without malaise.
Rev. 9:20-21 lays it out for us. Even after suffering the plagues described in Revelation, mankind did not repent nor stop sinning. Again, history provides clear illustrations of this truth. Charles Manson never repented of his evil, nor did his followers. Adolf Hitler didn’t repent, he commanded that his followers destroy what was left of Germany as a punishment for the German people for failing him in not winning the war. His final act wasn’t sorrow, but suicide. He could have stopped the war and saved countless lives, but he chose not to. There are no repentant sinners in hell nor unrepentant sinners in heaven.
This says it all. Jesus paid the price. All those referred to in Rev. 9:20-21 had heard the Gospel which is broadcast daily, but rejected it, one way or another. I believe we can be certain that God allowed them to hear the truth, but nevertheless they did not accept it, or just flat-out rejected it. The same can be said of the Pharisees and Sanhedrin who plotted to have Jesus crucified. I find it hard to believe God would submit His Church—the Body of Christ—to the wrath poured out in Revelation.
John MacArthur is Sr. Pastor of Grace Community Church, Sun Valley, CA. Andy Woods is Sr. Pastor of Sugar Land Bible Church, Sugar Land, TX. Both pastors offer their perspective on the Rapture and Tribulation. Both profess a pretribulation rapture.
John MacArthur’s 56-minute sermon is titled “The Future Tribulation” based on Mark 13:14-23.
The pretribulation Rapture, 1-hour message by Dr. Andrew Woods, walks us through the key Greek worlds and combination of words, in different Bible verses and how it applies in regard to interpreting the Rapture and Tribulation. He also provides an explanation of how the same Greek words are used is a similar comparison with John Piper’s message as a misinterpretation of the Greek. I think it would be very hard to refute his explanation.
America is at a crossroad and the people will decide in November what direction they want the nation to go: Remain a Constitutional Republic or become a Democratic-Socialist state in both policies and direction. If Christians don’t care, who will?
Who wants to get back to Heritage Lounge? Let me know. We won’t resume meeting until everyone is comfortable doing so.
END OF LESSON #17
