The Cry of The Martyrs (The 5th Seal) | Revelation 6:9-11 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh

Please, let's turn together in the Book of Revelation chapter six. As we endeavor to explore three verses beginning in verse nine of that chapter. Revelation six starting in verse nine. When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had born. They cried out with a loud voice, oh sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?

Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who are to be killed as they themselves had been. Father, your word tells us through the apostle Peter that though you do not see him, you love him. And though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory. Lord, we believe that that is our inheritance. And we pray that you would use the means of grace today to fill our hearts with that joy, and to know that glory in a tangible, undeniable way.

We rest in your promise, and we believe that will be our portion. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Well, hopefully, we remember that we are still exploring this series within a series of the breaking of the seven seals of a heavenly scroll that reveals and explains the initial judgments that will be unleashed by Christ upon the earth at the beginning of the tribulation period. That we've been looking at here mirror the sequence of events that Christ taught when he was giving his disciples a thorough understanding of the events of the last days in Matthew 24.

In fact, the first four seals that we've already covered are mentioned by the Lord Jesus in Matthew 24 verse one down to verse eight. It should be no surprise then that the fifth seal, the seal that we just read about, will follow as the next episode in the closing moments of human history. So after the Lord warns about false Christs, wars and rumors of wars, famines and earthquakes, allow me to remind you what he said in Matthew twenty four nine to 10. Jesus says, then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another.

What is Christ referring to here? Global persecution against followers of Jesus Christ. One that will escalate during the tribulation like never before. And the hostility against believers at that time will be so intense that in verse 10, we learn that many will fall away in response to it. Many nominal Christians, many empty professors, many who enjoy the benefits of cultural Christianity, Many who on the surface look like they actually loved Christ.

When the tribulation comes, Jesus predicted that many of those will indeed fall away. In fact, it will be some of those who will turn Christians in to the persecutors. They will hate one another and betray one another. This is something startling to consider. However, there is a difference between what Jesus taught in Matthew 24 and what John saw in Revelation chapter six.

You see, what Jesus explained in Matthew 24 was from an earthly vantage point. Whereas John saw this from heaven. And the heavenly perspective is so crucial to understand because it reveals the true meaning of this seal judgment. What is its purpose? You see, there are many who have made the mistake of believing that when this fifth seal on the scroll is broken, it will set into motion this international wave of persecution.

But that interpretation doesn't hold up for one main reason. These seals that will be broken speak of Christ's judgment being released. And so if you think that that fifth seal means that Christ is gonna be judging his own people, you have to search a little bit deeper and understand that's not how he works. Instead, what John sees and explains is that the breaking of the fifth seal is directly connected to the prayers of these martyrs. And it will be the prayers who plead with God here to carry out his vengeance and justly deal with those responsible for their cruel deaths that's in view.

In other words, it's the prayers of the saints who have been slaughtered that will play a major part in the beginning of the tribulation and the events that will follow. And so if anybody were to ask us, what is the fifth seal in Revelation six all about? Our answer should be that it reveals how the Lord Jesus is ready to act on behalf of his followers who have been killed for his name's sake. Here's another way to think about it. In Matthew, the Lord Jesus tells us what will happen to Christians in the tribulation.

And in Revelation six, we learn what Christ will do for Christians in the tribulation. That's essentially the summary. But we're not gonna settle for an overview today, are we? No. No.

No. No. I want us to consider at least three elements of the fifth seal. Though it is predictive, though it is a prophecy of what will to come, it also has benefit for us today. And these three observations are neatly divided in these three verses.

One observation per verse. Did you notice how in verse nine, John saw an assembly, an assembly, A particular group of people found in a different realm given a very unique description. There is an assembly that we have to consider. But from this assembly, we learn in verse 10 that there is an appeal made. An urgent request made unto God that is worth meditating on.

And finally, we come to the final verse there of our reading, And we'll learn about encouraging assurance. Assurance that God gives to this assembly who make this appeal. Let's look in our Bibles now in verse nine again. What do we read? When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had born.

That's the first thing that caught John's attention. He noticed this group of souls who are under an altar in heaven. And there are two questions that we have to answer here. Number one, who are these souls? We don't have to guess.

The very same verse tells us. They are the souls of those who were slain because they stood for the truth. Because they were not ashamed of their allegiance to the Lord Jesus Christ and his gospel, they were murdered. But does John see here the innumerable saints of all ages? Is he looking at those who have been persecuted unto death from the beginning of time?

Some would say, yes. I'm convinced that it's not the case. I'm convinced that what John is looking at here are the group of Christians who will be killed during the tribulation. Here's a hint. Look at verse 10 and carefully observe what they cry out to God for as they ask him to avenge their blood.

They request that the Lord would bring justice to those who dwell on the earth. Implying what? That their persecutors and murderers are still alive at the time of the breaking of the seal. And if we're looking at the initial judgments of the tribulation period, then the conclusion is obvious. And it becomes even more clear in Revelation 13, where we discover that the Antichrist is the mastermind behind this global campaign to target and hunt down Christians.

Those who refuse to take his mark. Those who refuse to worship him or anybody else. What's especially curious though is that these souls are seen under an altar. Under the altar in heaven? What are they doing there?

That's a very unusual place for disembodied spirits to be. Well, John, by the spirit, is assuming that you and I know our Old Testament well. And there should already be a connection between the concept of something being slain and an altar. Right? There should be.

But not just an altar, the base of the altar. They are under this altar. And there's something that comes to mind from Leviticus four verse seven. Listen to these instructions for some of the sacrifices in the Levitical system. Levitical Leviticus four seven is your reference that you wanna remember.

It says here, and the priest shall put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense before the Lord that is in the tent of meeting, and all the rest of the blood of the bull he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering that is at the entrance of the tent of meeting. So this was a common practice with many of the animal sacrifices that some of the blood would be placed on the horns of the altar, that brazen altar that the first thing you would see when you entered into the temple courts. But with the rest of the blood, it would be poured out at the base of that instrument of worship. And Jesus Christ borrows that imagery, and he applies it to these believers who willingly laid down their lives. Because in his sight, that was an act of worship that he will choose to remember for all eternity.

This shouldn't be so foreign to us. Even the Apostle Paul does something similar when he speaks about his impending death. Do you remember? When he wrote to his spiritual son Timothy in his final letter, he says the following in second Timothy four six, for I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. But Paul is more specific.

Why out of all the offerings that you could have offered under the old covenant, does he speak about his departure and likens it to the drink offering? Can I tell you why? He is so spirit led. Brilliant. So again, I understand that many people's attempts to read through the Bible ends at Leviticus.

I get it. But you can't enjoy revelation. You can't even translate Paul's words without that book. Without numbers. Without Deuteronomy.

Let me show you an example why. Paul is so precise because according to numbers fifteen ten, drink offerings were to be a half hen of wine. Now half in in today's measurements would be closely equivalent to three quarters of a gallon. And when you look there in numbers 15, you'll realize that this drink offering often accompanied an animal sacrifice. And it was to be poured out in a sense upon that animal sacrifice, almost as a final act of worship once everything out has been laid out.

And Paul even uses this in another place. I mean, look at this later. Talk about it at the picnic. Where he says in Philippians two seventeen that he is willing to even be a drink offering upon the sacrifice of the Philippians. So Paul even elaborates in that place to speak about how that drink offering was to be given.

It was one of the last things that you would do once everything else has been prepared. You would take out a half hint of wine and pour it out upon that sacrifice. And it's as though Paul is saying to Timothy, Timothy, just as the drink offering was poured out last, after everything else was done, I'm ready to follow in that example. As my life has been a living sacrifice, consecrated unto God day and night. My willingness to die for the gospel will be my final act of worship to him.

Here I am now, and I smell my execution. But I want to let you know, Timothy, that I'm consecrating this final moment as a drink offering. My death will be a drink offering. And it's thrilling as this is. I'm not sure how these insights resonate with American.

Because you know this very well that we live with an unusual level of peace and measure of tranquility in comparison to the rest of the world. But I will say this, should persecution arise suddenly, and persecution has a tendency of arriving unannounced. Read the bible carefully. Very rarely are people warmed up to it. It tends to crash on the scene.

Should that happen in our lifetime, remember these truths. When you go back to Revelation six verse nine, did you notice that John says that he saw souls? The souls of those who had been slain. That comforts me for many reasons. One, because even though these precious saints were killed, as Jesus says, don't fear those who can kill the body, but what?

Cannot destroy the soul. What can a murderer really do? Okay. Yeah. He kills you.

To what end? To usher you into a greater reality. I saw the souls of those who have been slain. The souls, the soul, untouched, safe, set apart. I don't know about you.

Let me just say this as a side note. This is just another verse that dispels the notion of soul sleep. If you don't know, the belief of soul sleep is that when a person dies, when a Christian dies, when a believer in Christ dies, apparently, their soul becomes unconscious and dormant, and remains in that state until the resurrection or final judgment. There are millions of people who believe this. But that certainly doesn't match the description we find here, does it?

They were slain for the word of God, and their souls were in heaven, totally conscious, speaking, aware, in community. That should infuse in you a fresh confidence and greater level of bliss even in the face of death no matter its cause. Why? Because the moment you and I die, we will enter into a reality of such glory that it will compare won't be able to compare to anything that you've experienced with this earthly frame. And I understand that this is a unique vision with a specific message, but I want to take the opportunity to say this to those who have lost believing loved ones, who have left you behind in your pilgrimage, if they trusted in Christ, they're home.

They're not waiting to be home. They are home right now As we speak, as we're here hearing about the word of God, as we're here speaking about Christ, they're in his presence, unfiltered, face to face. Like these souls that we find here, look at verse 11. The Lord addresses them, and he tells them something interesting. We'll explore it in a few moments.

He tells them to rest a little longer. Implying what? That they are in a place of heavenly calm. They are enjoying complete security. They are swimming an endless refreshment.

That's where the souls of those who belong to Christ are at this moment. And I'm sure these brief details to the original readers of John's writing would have really appreciated what he was saying here. As they themselves are being persecuted in their own churches, their own families, some of their own leaders being killed, John in this one vision says, these souls, they're safe. They're savoring glory. And that is our future as well.

This is the assembly that John sees. But the encouragement only continues as you look at verse 10 and recognize the appeal that they make. You can almost say that this is the first recorded prayer in the book of Revelation. Look at verse 10 once more. They cried out with a loud voice, O sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?

It's fascinating that one of the first prayers that we find in this book is not one of people, the saints, praying for their enemies, but praying against them. They're not asking here for pardon, they're asking here for judgment. And I understand how that can be challenging to us at face value because we remember the the teachings of Jesus who told us to do what? Pray for your enemies. Over and over, he said in so many different contexts.

And what about the first Christian martyr, Stephen, who while he was being stoned said, Lord, do not hold this sin against them. So what we find here in this in this verse of chapter six, are are we looking at a group of believers who in the heat of frustration disobeyed Christ? Are we looking at Christians who are less sanctified than Stephen and other martyrs throughout the ages? Absolutely not. If we wanna figure out this apparent dilemma, context, context, context.

And the one thing that we need to establish is when was this prayer made? I'm not sure if you remember, but a few weeks ago, I made the following comment when we were discussing the four horsemen of the apocalypse. Common grace will become less common when the tribulation begins and progresses. Common grace will become less common as the tribulation starts and as it advances. This is time for judgment.

That's what's happening here. And I believe that will be reflected in part in how prayers are made and answered during this period. In other words, we all know that one day, God will bring an end to this period of grace the world has known for two millennia. And there is an appointed time where he will pour out his active wrath instead. And prayers for his judgment will be entirely acceptable then.

So this is not an example of everyday prayer. This supplication can't be categorized as such for the simple reason that it's not being offered within a typical period of time. Christ is unleashing his judgment. So it makes sense then that his people in tune with his spirit, in tune with his mind are asking for the same. Lord, bring judgment.

If you think that's challenging, wait till we get to the end of Revelation where the people in heaven are actually singing and rejoicing in God's judgment. Not a lot of worship songs about that. But it says something about how our minds will be transformed in that place. That's for another time. So if this is not the best example for typical prayer day by day, though you can make a sense about the you can make a case about the imprecatory Psalms and the book of Psalms, let's just stick with this context.

What can we learn from it then? Well, I think there's something very important to learn from it. And it is this, you and I must be willing to accept that the God that we worship is not one of only great grace, but of judgment. God is a God of justice. God is a God of wrath.

God is holy. And he will not tolerate iniquity. He will deal with it with ferocious righteousness. A to take you to a book. The book right before the Book of Revelation.

It's a little epistle called Jude. To see a couple of verses with me. Now, this will be especially helpful if you hold the ESV translation in your hands. But if you don't, I'll explain how this can still benefit you. Look at verse five.

There are no chapters. Jude five, and notice what is said here. Jude says, now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus who saved a people out of the land of Egypt afterward destroyed those who did not believe. So the same Jesus who delivered the people out of Egypt is the same one who destroyed many of them in the wilderness. Now, if you have any other word for word translation like the New King James, the King James, the NASB, or any other really popular English translation, you'll notice that where Jesus is named here is rendered as what?

Lord. Lord. So it would read now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that the Lord who saved the people out of the land of Egypt afterward destroyed those who did not believe. So is the ESV including something that's not in the original text? Are they forcing Christ to try to promote a preexistent Christ?

An eternal Christ. No. That's not what's happening at all. The main reason why the ESV went with this translation is because of manuscript evidence. And some of the earliest and most reputable Greek manuscripts of Jude five actually say Jesus instead of Lord.

And I can name those different manuscripts. This is widely available if you wanna look into it. It's fascinating. And so the, the minds behind this translation saw what was available, especially as we advance in archeology and discover these greater things, that some of the earliest manuscripts, some of the most reputable ones have the name Jesus there. And so they decided to use this manuscript variant for their English translation.

Now for those who might even just struggle with the idea that Christ was somehow present during the Exodus, it's not such a foreign concept in the Bible. We're gonna come back to Jude, but let's just go on a little bit of a rabbit trail here. Do you remember what Paul said to the Corinthians in first Corinthians ten four? When he spoke about the rock that followed the Israelites in the wilderness, and he said that it was a spiritual rock. And he says this, that rock was who?

Christ. Christ. And that's something for us to consider because the apostles and the teachers who laid down the foundation of the doctrine of the church understood that Jesus Christ was present with Israel from the moment they were delivered throughout their journey. And so it's not so confusing then, I hope, that when Jude says here that Jesus was the one who saved them out of the land, that land Egypt, and destroyed some of them, that it's in alignment with the rest of the New Testament. But let's just say that you don't have the ESV and you you really enjoy your King James, your New King James, or any other translation.

Does this still apply to Christ? Can it? And I wanna make the case that even if you have Lord there in Jude five, that this strongly suggests that the spirit of God had Jesus in view here within the Godhead. Here's just one example. And I'm just gonna give you one because if if we if we go beyond this, we'll be in Jude for the rest of the service.

Look at the verse immediately before Jude five. Look at verse four. For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only master and Lord Jesus Christ. Again, it might be rendered a little differently if you have those other translations, but what a staggering claim that Jude makes about Christ. And I believe that this is more accurate to the Greek.

Our only our only our only master and Lord Jesus Christ. Now Now again, those other translations, it will say what? Lord Jesus Christ. Right? It will say Lord Christ.

This is something to expound on at another time. Our only master and Lord, Jesus Christ. But notice here the context. The last reference to Lord is Jesus Christ. And immediately following that, he talks about the Lord saving a people out of Egypt and destroying them.

So contextually, if you honor the flow of thought, even though you don't have the ESV, even though it's not Jesus in your translation, who is supposed to come to mind when Jude speaks about Lord in verse five? The Lord of verse four. Jesus Christ. And more can be said about that. But here's the point that I wanna make.

When Korah, Dathan, Abiram, and their followers were swallowed up by the earth, That was Christ. When the Israelites complained to Moses and Aaron following that incident, and fiery serpents were released to strike the heels of those stubborn Israelites. That was Christ. When the Moabite woman came into the camp and seduced the men, and so many of them engaged with them sexually and worshiped their gods, so a plague was unleashed and twenty four thousand of them died. That was Christ.

I think you get the point. When we understand Jesus's role in the exodus, we limit him to what? He's the greater Passover lamb. He's the one who faithfully brought them out. It's his blood that we apply in our lives as we hide from the destroyer.

Don't limit Christ there. Jesus Christ is also the one who destroyed those who approached the promised land and did not believe that God can bring them through. Is that your Jesus? That's the Bible Jesus. That's the complete Jesus.

Not just the Jesus who saves, who delivers us from bondage, but destroys those who refuse to be free and trust him to bring him into the promised land. Jesus is the one who's saved and the one who destroys. That's the balanced view. And Revelation is helping us be balanced. Don't forget that as we're going through these seals, that the one who's breaking them is the Lamb of God.

The Lamb of God who was slain, standing in victory is the same one who's pouring out judgment on the earth. I'm afraid many professing Christians will not even be able to recognize Christ when he returns. But stick your face in the bible and let the bible inform your vision and your understanding of who he is. Not culture. Not popular preachers.

The word. So this is the appeal that they make. Oh, sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth? And we come to the final point now of this message. The assurance that is given in verse 11.

Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who are to be killed as they themselves had been. The response of the sovereign Lord who represents the father in this vision is so comforting and wonderful, if you think about it. Because he does two initial things. He gives them two things. The first first thing that he offers them is a white robe.

And what does that represent? We may not know how that works with disembodied spirits, robes, spiritual beings. That may not be clear, but the message is. Do you remember what Jesus promised one of the churches in the letters? If they would be faithful until the end?

Look what he said to the church in Sardis back in Revelation three verse five. The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my father and before his angels. So this white garment primarily speaks about reward for faithfulness. You finished the race.

You crossed the line. You kept the faith. Here's your graduation robe. So, they were clothed with dignity. They were clothed with glory.

They were clothed with God's pleasure. But beyond that, we realize that He also provides a word, not just a robe. They were told to rest a little longer, meaning it was not a matter of if the Lord was gonna judge those earth dwellers, but when. He would do it, but at an appointed time. And he could not vindicate his people at the very moment they asked for it.

For what reason? Why the delay? Because there were still more to be killed in the tribulation. This is amazing. God has a number in mind of how many were to be slain before he says enough is enough.

Time to judge. He has a number in mind. And I don't wanna get ahead of myself here, but this one verse alone is so rich with application. Just verse 11. To begin, I don't know about you.

I was tremendously helped by being reminded of one of the ways God answers our prayers. Sometimes yes, other times no, and the one that we struggle with the most, wait. Wait. How long, oh Lord? Just rest a little longer.

And again, I understand this is a unique vision with a precise message, but here's here's a wonderful way of reading your Bible. Draw out the principle. What's the principle? The more I study my bible, the more I am convinced of this one truth concerning the character of God. You ready?

He's never in a rush. You and I are. He's not ever when he makes and molds his men and woman, he takes his time. Sometimes he sticks them in the wilderness for a few years. He's patient with the process.

And here's what's so striking. When we come to the final script of human history, he's not in a rush either. How long, oh Lord? Just wait a little longer. We're the antsy ones.

We're the ones who try to push his hand. We're the one who try to convince him to go ahead because maybe he's busy, he doesn't understand what's really happening. And at the same time, not only do I learn something about the Lord, I learn something about how we can wait well. What does he say? Rest a little longer.

Rest while you wait. Relax. And if you need any motivation, no matter what you're trusting God to intervene for, be fixated on the reality of how He is sovereign over every detail. It's even here. I mentioned it already before.

The sovereign Lord here understands that there is a particular number. When his saints are going to die and how they're going to die. He's fully aware of this. He's supervising that element of their existence. And so if God here is clearly in charge about the way you and I exit this world, is he not equally careful about the moments and the milestones of your brief existence?

He is. So, Lord, how long? I've been here for a while. Remember verse 11. I think what he says to them applies to us.

Rest. Rest in my sovereignty. Rest in my knowledge. Rest in my wisdom. Rest.

But more than that, I mentioned brief existence. I said this earlier and I'll say it in closing. Notice here in verse 11 how God refers to the heavenly dwelling place as also a place of rest. And that description comes up more than once in the book of Revelation. And this blissful reality not only gives us hope for tomorrow, but it also must transform how we function and operate until then.

I want you to go to another place where the Lord talks about the the saints in the tribulation who will be slain. Look here at Revelation 14 verse 12. Again, we're looking at Revelation chronologically. So at this point, some time has passed, and yet even in chapter 14, there are still more Christians who will die for the gospel As this world is governed by this Antichrist system, notice what the Lord says in Revelation 14. Scroll down to verse 12.

Here is a call for the endurance of the saints. Those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus. And I heard a voice from heaven saying, write this, blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. Blessed indeed, says the Spirit. Oh, I guess the Spirit talks.

He's not an impersonal force. He's not just an energy. He's not just power. He talks. Blessed indeed, says the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them.

Here is yet another description that the world to come will be a place of rest. Maybe you've met these Christians. I've met they're they're especially prevalent in America. Christians who spend all their energy and all their resources trying to make this world as close to heaven as possible. Nothing else is a priority to them.

My comfort, my luxury, I want to do as much as I can, build as much as I can, spend as much as I can, invest as much as I can, forgetting that this is not your permanent home. And the you can't deny this, the Lord delights in us enjoying things on this earth. There is no doubt. They're expressions of his grace and goodness. Your focus and mine, brother and sister, our priority is not to plant ourselves in this world.

There is a place of rest that awaits. And until then, Christ and his work is our goal. His kingdom is what we advance. His purpose is what we push. His plan and his person is what we endeavor to know more and more, and it's the greatest joy of all.

Look what the spirit says. He says that those who die in the Lord will rest from their labors. You know what the Greek word for labors is? Taking a beating. Now you can limit this to how the tribulation saints will finally rest from all the harassment and the difficulties of trying to cling to their trust in God and the truth of the gospel while everything around them is against them.

Sure. You can say that. But you can also understand it as the exhausting work and faithful service rendered to the Lord at that time. Their deeds will follow them. Now is the time to serve him with everything that is in you.

And one of the motivations to do that with such devotion and sacrifice is that our deeds, whatever we do here, will follow us and will be remembered and rewarded by our God. And here's what came to my mind this morning coming getting ready to come to church today. Whenever I get called home, I don't want crumbs to follow me because I got so wrapped up and I got bamboozled by the American dream. I don't want crumbs of good works to follow me. Now notice, the good works follow.

I'm not saved by good works. They follow us. We go marching into that place with our confidence in the finished work of Jesus Christ. At the same time, though I am covered in his blood, though I am clothed in his righteousness, if it says here that my deeds follow me, I wanna come with something of worth. I don't know about you, but that's what we learn here.

Blessed are those who die in the Lord. And the spirit says indeed because rest is their promise. Anything that you know of pain, of disturbance, of difficulty in your faith for Christ is temporary. It's temporary. Ten seconds into eternity, and all those things that seem to last for an eternity will disappear.

All of those scars, all those challenges, all those things that made days feel like weeks and weeks feel like months, all of that will dissolve the moment you step foot into that golden shore. Before I get ahead of myself and say more, let me just end it here, actually. I'm fully aware that if we as we've been looking at this fifth seal, this assembly, this appeal, and this glorious assurance, that some in this very room right now do not know the Jesus that I speak of. It's very possible. The book of Revelation is a fascinating book.

It can draw in curious amount of people from different backgrounds and different intents. But let me end it with this thought. The Lord says, blessed are those who die in the Lord. Every single one of us has an invisible expiration date on our lives. We don't know what it is, but it's certain.

We will all die. Church should tell people that all the time, by the way. Because we have this invincibility complex. We think that we're immortal. No.

You're gonna die. The preacher's gonna die. We're all gonna die. But here's what I want to tell you. We can all die differently.

Not the way we die, but spiritually how we die. Here we learn that you can die in the Lord. That sounds good. The spirit says it's actually a blessing. What's the alternative?

Let me tell you what Jesus said in John eight twenty four. I told you that you would die in your sins. For unless you believe that I am he, you will die in your sins. Those are your only two options, friend. You'll either die in the Lord or die in your sins.

One promises glory, the other one promises condemnation. So here's the question. How do I transfer from dying in my sins to dying in the Lord? Well, Jesus said it. You must believe that he is who he says he is.

That's the way. And I wanna present to you the Jesus of the Bible. You heard a little bit about him. He is holy, and he is love. He is God who took on flesh, and he came to this world for a purpose, to make a payment for your sins.

Everything that you have done, every wicked deed, every carnal thought, every rebellious decision that you've made was accounted for. Jesus in his massive mega love, instead of destroying us, and he had every right to do so, instead extended an olive branch. And he chose to pave a way for us to be reconciled though we were enemies. Not just indifferent, enemies. Well, I'm not an enemy of Christ.

The bible says you are if you don't have him as Lord. And even though we were hostile against him, even though we hated his righteousness, even though we chose to be our own gods and his great affection for us, reaches out and says, I will do whatever it takes for you to be redeemed and reconciled unto me. And that's what he did on that cross. And now we are living in a period of grace. What you just heard in this past fifty minutes speaks about a future time where that door of the grace of God being extended to humanity for centuries upon centuries, we're still in it, will come to a close.

And it'll be much more difficult during this time to accept Christ with the cost for doing so, being so severe. But while we're in this period, you have an opportunity to bend your knee, to receive his forgiveness, and to live for why you were created. He wants to forgive you of every degree of offense and wrong, and more than that, not just empty those things out, but fill you with his glory, his joy, his purity, and his purpose. You're saying, this sounds too good to be true. It must require something of me.

Well, this is what gospel means. Good news. Good news. I come to you with good news today. You can be redeemed.

You can be transformed, and you can know the God who made you. What do I do? You acknowledge who he says he is. I am the way. I am the truth.

I am the life. No one can come to the father except through me. You acknowledge that. If you say you're the only savior and you say that I'm a sinner, then I humble myself, I'm not here to argue with you, I surrender. And in that moment, if you do so in sincerity, something supernatural will take place.

You're not gonna get some kind of certificate. You're not gonna just get welcomed into some kind of a nonprofit organization. No. No. No.

The breath of God, the life of God will fill you, and you'll walk out of here lighter. And you'll walk out of here knowing I'm saved. I'm saved. I have nothing to fear. I belong to him.

Do you have that assurance? You can have it today. Today can mark the day where you have heaven as your home, and you can know the abundant life until then. This is the good news. Well, we thank you for the service.

We thank you how you've spoken to us in these three passages, these three verses. And we thank you for the glorious gospel. Lord, help us take advantage of the freedoms we have in this nation. Lord, these saints were willing to be slain for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. Stimulate the heart in that direction by your spirit.

We just ask for it. So Lord, for the believer, enlarge our hearts that we may run-in the way of your commitments. Quicken us that we may call upon you. And Lord, for the person here who doesn't have the assurance that they are saved. And and convict the deepest parts of who they are, and hear your voice and your voice alone until they realize the sweetness of it, the joy of it, and give themselves to it.

Lord, we love you and we worship you. Even as we explore this fifth seal, we do not fear. For our future is a hopeful one. And even if our bodies are killed, we should fear you instead. And we choose to give you our awe this afternoon.

In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen. Let's stand together church, and let's rejoice in our redeemer.