The Seven Bowls of God's Wrath (Part 1) | Revelation 16:1-9 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (4/19/26)

Good afternoon, Maranatha Bible Church. Welcome to this Lord's Day service. It is so good to be with you all here this afternoon as we exalt our Lord Jesus Christ. I hope you came expecting great things from the Lord today and that he truly changes your hearts, conforms our hearts more into the image of Christ throughout this service. As always, I'd like to invite you to turn with me into God's word, Philippians chapter two, a familiar passage.

Now, some people call a portion of this passage the Christ hymn because it is a song exalting and rejoicing in everything that Jesus Christ is and everything that he has done. So as I read today, may may our hearts turn towards him. May the affections of our souls rise to him today. Philippians chapter two starting at verse one. So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests but also to the interest of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name.

So that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God, the father. Let's pray. Father, we come before you today. Lord, we rejoice in you. We hope in you.

Our faith is in you alone. Father, have your way in the service today. Have your way in our minds. May our minds rise to to focus on you. Remove all distraction that would seek to turn our attention from you.

Help our hearts today. Illuminate our hearts by the power of your spirit to understand. And not only understand, but to savor what we encounter in your word today. And father, make Jesus Christ be exalted in everything. Yes, Lord.

One day, every knee will bow and every tongue confess. But Lord, right now, today in this service, we do so joyfully. We do so with awe and reverence and gladness today. Father, may you be praised. May you be glorified today.

And may your people, all of us, be filled with joy. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen. Church, will you please stand and sing for joy to the Lord?

God sent his son, and they called him Jesus. He came to love, heal and forgive. He read and die. To buy my And then one day, I'll cross that river. I know.

And life is a worth of living just because he lives. Because he lives. I can face

With an understanding that you are the living God, you are alive. And because you are alive, life is worth the living. You're the author of life. You're the giver of eternal life. You promise to walk with us day by day to never leave us nor forsake us.

We pray, Lord, that the reality of your power, your wisdom, your love for each of us will be realized afresh this afternoon. Renew our faith, Lord. Restore us in our trust in you. Convince our wandering hearts that there is no better place to be than to live for Christ. We ask these things in Jesus' name.

Amen. Well, before you see to turn to somebody and welcome them to this service this afternoon. Well, a special welcome to each of you to Maranatha Bible Church. We're so glad that you're here. Welcome to our members who come here and call this place home.

Welcome to our visitors. We pray that this place would feel like for you. And we are so excited to worship the Lord because again, as we just prayed and sung, he's the living God. He's doing real, real, real, real testimonies, and he is authoring real stories for people who are choosing to live for him. And so, stories for people who are choosing to live for him.

And so at this time, we continue to worship in our giving. But before we actually do that, I I wanna let you know with great excitement that we have the official closing date for our new building. And it's earlier than we had thought it would be. We will be officially closing on that building on April 27. Isn't that wonderful?

Yes. So that's pretty much next week, can't wait for for this to move forward. A couple of notes with that, to just make. One, as exciting as that is, refrain from driving there and entering into the building after April 27 as much as you would love to see it and we would love for you to see it. There are still tenants there.

There are still ministries that are there and we don't wanna spook them. We don't wanna, you know, meddle with anything or interfere. So we will we will let you know when the appropriate time is for us to go. And if you are somebody who really wants to see this building in advance, one way you can do that is by signing up to help in preparation for our grand opening. And so what we've been doing since last week is announcing that if you do want to help in practical ways, just before we have our first service, painting and organizing and cleaning, there's a sign up sheet in the back.

We already have over 65 people who said, I will be there any day, any time, which is awesome. And there should be a a sheet back there if you have not yet included your name and your information. But if there is anything there, if there's no room left on on that registry, you can always send us an email. Just let us know that you're ready to help. That way, we can put you into the right team and get you a notification at advance of what days, we will be opening those doors for us to help.

And lastly, this puts into perspective, in terms of our giving. So thankful for all the giving that has been offered from those in this church, from our extended family, our online community who've also been contributing to this cause. And we have, again, eight days. We have a week really to fund this before the actual closing and to put a bigger dent to that loan. So we opened this up at 1,300,000.

What that was our need if we want to go into this without a need for any kind of, loan, and we've brought that down to 750,000. And between now and next week, anything is possible with God. So be praying about this and and really ask the Lord, Lord, is there something that you want me to give financially for this? Because this is an investment. Again, it's not going to any person.

It's not going to even a ministry. It's going towards the kingdom of God. This is something that will live beyond us by the grace of God. This is something that will host the preaching of God's word and bring in more people to hear how Jesus Christ died for people's sins and desires to save them. So be prayerful about that.

We're expecting great testimonies in the next few days, and we will keep you updated about how things will move forward with our transition there. Another exciting thing, most of you know, I hope that we support the Voice of the Martyrs. And the Voice of the Martyrs just sent us a very helpful tool. It's their 2026 Global Prayer Guide. And it's very, very well done.

We've been given at least 50 of them. And what this is really is, kind of just a list of different countries where believers are being persecuted, and also items of needs that we can be praying for. And so, we just suggest that this would be, received one per family. And, you would take this as a way of praying with your family for our brothers and sisters beyond these four walls. So you can find us at the sound booth in the back.

And we, continually support this ministry because they're doing a great work alleviating the suffering and the needs of our brothers and sisters who are living for Christ. Lastly, some of you have been wondering about our yearly family conference that is set in terms of the dates. Michigan, August '30. And the registration for that will open up on June 1. But you prepare by just marking that off, taking those days off work, organizing your family outing with that weekend in mind.

So we're excited for that. Be praying for how the Lord will use that always because every year, he does use that. One more thing. We love our precious babies here. We're we're having baby dedications almost every other week.

If your baby is a little agitated or frustrated during the service, there is a designated room across the hall from here for children, just for moms. And you can go there and meet the needs of your precious baby and not feel like, you have to worry about what other people are feeling as the baby maybe needs some attention. So that's directly to my right across the hall from here, and I wanna offer one more truth from God's word before we continue to sing. I was reading a parable earlier this week, the parable of the laborers in the vineyard. It's a parable of how God gives the same reward to different laborers who have come at different times to his service.

And there are some who came at the third hour, some at the sixth hour, some in the ninth hour, and even some in the eleventh hour. And the parable ends with those who were summoned earlier by the landowner complaining. They're complaining because those who came later were paid the same wages as those who had worked longer. And I want you to hear what they said and how the landowner responds. And the landowner is a representative of God himself.

It says here in Matthew 20 verse 12 saying, these last worked only one hour and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat. But he replied to one of them, friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you.

Now listen to these amazing words in verse 15. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? This is God speaking and this parable is about salvation. But there's a principle here. The agitation of these laborers who felt like they they deserve more, they deserve greater wages is sobered by the realization of who really is in charge.

The landowner says, am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Did you forget that I own this vineyard? Did you not remember that I am the one who determines who gets what? And I read this early this week and I put things into a fresh perspective. A lot of the times why we are frustrated, maybe even jealous, envious of others, of how God works in and through our brothers and sisters, or our law in life is because we forget this truth.

God is the one who makes a final decision. God is the one who determines. God is the one in his perfect wisdom and perfect goodness that delegates and dispenses what he believes others should receive and what others should not receive. Now that may not mean much to us unless you understand the character of God. But when you understand his love and his perfect discernment and his mind concerning all things, how he thinks beyond today, how he thinks beyond our impulses and our desires and our wishes, then this is one of the most comforting truths that you can rest in.

Lord, you can do whatever you want with my life. And when I see what you do in other people's lives, I will rejoice in it because you are a good God. And I wanna use this verse to help us in this service to reorient our thinking about our own lives. And to remember, if you're a Christian, you and I, we are not the masters of our own faith. We are not the lords of our own futures.

God is. God is. And he can organize and orchestrate your life far greater than what you can conjure up. Even if you had access to all the resources of this world, you would not be able to put together the abundant life that only God himself can grant. And so let's humble ourselves today.

I'm I'm actually calling us to humble ourselves today and to remind ourselves and to even proclaim and exclaim in the presence of God, you can do whatever you want. And as you do it, help me worship you, trust you, and declare your goodness always. Lord, we come before you in this service. And maybe our hearts are flustered and maybe our hearts are agitated and maybe our hearts think that daring thought that you are unfair. Forgive us for such a grievous thing.

Help us remember that you can do whatever you want with what belongs to you. And And if we've given our hearts to you, our souls to you, then may we rest in the truth that you will do exactly what you think is necessary for our good and your glory. Put us to rest, Lord. Put us at ease as we depend on you and as we trust you. Lord, we stand together now in this moment to sing of your glory, your sovereignty, knowing that you are a good God.

In Jesus' name we pray. Amen and amen. Let's stand and worship him, shall we?

Your majesty.

Yes, Lord. I rejoiced when they said to me, let us go to the house of the Lord. And as for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones in whom is all my delight. Lord, we give you glory and praise and honor for your people today, god. We rejoice, lord, in the gathering of the saints, not in an end of itself, but, lord, what you have done.

You have taken a people captive by sin, lord, and having every reason to hate one another. And God, by the blood of your son, you have created a redeemed people, Lord, and a family. God, we rejoice, give you all glory, thanks, and honor. Lord, we ask this morning that you would anoint our pastor and, Lord, you would fill him with your spirit and sanctify your people this morning. Exhort, Lord, encourage, even rebuke.

God, we submit ourselves to you, and we ask, Lord, that you would make us all more like your son, Lord. Fill us with your spirit this day and sanctify us, God. We love you. We need you. We praise you in Jesus' name.

Amen.

It's a pleasure to be with you here, today. In as I was preparing this message, I was reminded that we often forget that when the Lord Jesus lived on the earth and ministered through his incomparable preaching and teaching, he did more than just explain what he would accomplish through his death and resurrection. He did more than just teach us how to worship the father and treat one another including our enemies. He did more than give us insight into the spiritual realm and the eternal world. He also predicted the future.

And specifically, he told us in wonderful detail what the world will undergo in the period just before his return. Moreover, people often overlook that what Christ preached and prophesied about the end of the world is expanded and given to us in further detail in the very last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation, which means that the recorded words of Jesus in the gospels regarding that era known as the tribulation period is is just a summary of what would later be fleshed out through the apostle John in the final account of Holy Writ. And before we look at this study and these incredibly precise prophecies in the book of Revelation, I want us to be reminded about a certain comment that Jesus Christ himself made about that era that is quite sobering. So usually at this point, I would invite you to the book of Revelation, but let's take a peek in the book of Matthew in chapter 24 looking at verse 21. Matthew 24 beginning in verse 21.

Jesus Christ says here, for then there will be great tribulation such as not been from the beginning of the world until now. No, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be cut short. Now what does Christ mean when he says those days, if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved.

It's it's quite simple though perhaps for some difficult to accept. If the Lord did not in his permission to unleash all these calamities and catastrophes, which are manifestations of his wrath and holy justice, if he did not determine an end to them, if they went on indefinitely, no one would be able to survive. It would be absolute and complete annihilation. And this speaks to the severity of God's wrath toward those in that final generation. At the same time, it also reveals to us that God's judgment will not be executed arbitrarily.

It will not be uncontrolled. It will be calculated. It will be orderly and it will end at a determined point. And we are going to be reminded of this as we look at the fascinating visions that amplify what Christ taught in this very chapter in Matthew as we look to Revelation chapter 16. So now let's turn to our main text and read from verse one down to verse nine.

As many of you know, what we find here is the final sequence of the Lord's judgment before he revamps and transform this very world through the reign of the promised physical son of God and his kingdom. And this final sequence is known as the seven bowls of God's wrath. And we've already examined the seven seals, we already studied the seven trumpets, but after this last series, there is no further judgment of this magnitude to come. What you and I are about to enter is the last of the last of God's wrath in the tribulation period. This is it.

This is a significant turning point in our study of the end times. And we will not rush through this chapter because there is much that it has to offer. And one way of organizing these seven bowls of God's wrath in our understanding is by realizing that they are organized in three main parts. The first four bowls are designated to affect the natural world. The fifth and the sixth bowl will be directed towards the political realm of that time.

Namely the kingdom of the Antichrist and the rulers of all nations. And finally, the seventh bowl is the apex of all judgments. This is going to be poured out symbolically as we're going to read in the the next few weeks and it is going to be the final cleansing agent that will wipe the world clean before Christ ushers in the fullness of his kingdom on the earth. And for the sake of time today, we will consider the first four bowls this afternoon and see what God will do in creation as he is wrapping things up. The very closing moments of human history are before us in this prophecy, and it should sober us and it should remind us of the great majesty of our God among other things that we will see today.

So let's look at it. The first four bowls beginning in verse one. Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels, go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God. So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth and harmful and painful sores came upon the people who bore the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea and it became like the blood of a corpse and every living thing died that was in the sea.

The third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water and it became blood. And I heard the angel in charge of the waters say, just are you, oh holy one, who is and who was. For you brought these judgments for they have shed the blood of saints and prophets and you have given them blood to drink. It is what they deserve. And I heard the altar saying, yes, Lord God the Almighty, true and just are your judgments.

The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun and it was allowed to scorch people with fire. It was scorched by the fierce heat and they cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues. They did not repent and give him glory. Father, we choose to give you glory today. We choose to repent because we know that in repentance, we find life.

We find forgiveness. We find mercy. We pray, Lord, that as we look at these verses, you would captivate us. Make these truths real to us. Oh Lord, we're fully aware that even looking at these horrifying prophecies, we can allow our minds to wander.

Instead, we pray that every word that will be shared would arrest us as we realize the reality of who you are and rejoice in it. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Let's look at these bowls one by one, shall we? We look at the first one in verses one to two and we notice that this bowl, when it is poured out, will be poured out on the earth. Remember the first four bowls deal with creation, deal with the natural order.

And this first angel without hesitation responds to the voice from the temple in heaven which is God speaking and he lets out what seems to be a plague that harms the body. It says here in verse two that the angel, the first angel went out and poured out his bowl on the earth and harmful and painful sores came upon the people. The people. Now what are these sores? There's a lot of speculation, but most likely we're talking about cancerous tumors.

We're talking about severe agitation to the flesh. We're talking about something that will be of great magnitude in terms of the pain and the distress and the discomfort. But we have to be very careful. God is not again arbitrarily just letting loose this act. It is aimed at a particular group.

And that group here in verse two are those who bore the mark of the beast and worship its image. Now this is quite interesting. We find here that the mark of the beast is something that people will wear, will brand themselves with in this period of human history as a way of pledging their allegiance to somebody who will one day rule the world and claim himself to be God. And in doing so, they are actually trying to preserve their own survival. Remember, the Antichrist is going to coerce the masses to give their devotion to him.

And so in order to spare themselves from economic distress and to ultimately escape the death penalty, many people will bow their knee to the antichrist. And what's so startling is that whatever provision or promise the Antichrist makes for these people who think that this is the best choice that I have in this time of uncertainty and calamity, this is the best option. Well, ultimately, he will fail to protect them and provide for them in the greatest time of need when God's wrath shows up. There are a couple of very important truths that we can draw from this. The first is that most people even today, not just then but now, make decisions without accounting for judgment day.

They don't factor in that final day of accountability. So they plan and they purchase and they pursue and they invest thinking that whatever I do in this life is all to my existence. And that's what people will do then. But if you know the Bible then you are aware that over over again in the scriptures, we are reminded that, yes, a majority of people will in fact live to profit in this age alone while forfeiting everything else in the life to come. And we have to avoid that temptation.

In Proverbs 11 verse four, the Holy Spirit says, riches do not profit in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death. Riches can offer a lot in this world, but God shows us in this single verse, and we find it throughout the pages of the word of God, that riches can offer you nothing when it comes to the most important thing about you. What will happen to your soul? And that's what we find here. A clear example of those who accepted the mark and who may have counted themselves among the winners.

Those Christians rejecting the mark of the beast because of their allegiance to Jesus. Is Jesus helping you now to survive? Does Jesus put food on your dinner table for your family? Antichrist does. We're the answers in your Christian faith with all the disasters around us.

Antichrist seems to provide some help but whatever winning they think that they are enjoying is but for a brief time. In fact, those who rejected the mark, namely Christians and suffered because of it, end up escaping something far more costly. Many people make decisions without taking into account judgment day. Secondly, we also find here that this first bowl illustrates the painful outcome of false worship. The results of placing your adoration, your devotion towards something or someone else apart from God.

There is irony in this plague. Think about it. You had this group, the masses, the nations, marking themselves on their right hand or their forehead in order to pledge their loyalty to this man. And when God pours out this first of the last of judgments, he inflicts their bodies. And when you look at this more carefully, you have to understand that this disease that breaks out did not just come for the afternoon.

We get the impression from the context that it was lasting. Didn't just disappear after a few minutes. Look at Revelation 16 verse 10 to get confirmation of that. It says here the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast and its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People nod their tongues in anguish and curse the God of heaven for their pain and sores.

So by the fifth bowl, the sores are still there. They did not repent of their deeds. Brothers and sisters, please lean in and hear this. This is just one of the many examples in the bible that there is a kind of worship we offer that brings us lasting peace. And there is a kind of worship that we can engage in that invites lasting pain.

You know what's the difference? You know what makes the difference? The object of your worship. If you and I give our affection and our submission and our love toward anything above God, it may provide immediate relief. It may give you a sense of pleasure.

It may offer you the identity and the wholeness that you've been looking for your whole life. But whatever it may offer, I tell you based on the authority of God's word, it will always be followed by sorrow. Because the blessings of worship can only be realized when they are directed towards the one who alone deserves the worship. That's God. You know many people are familiar with Psalm 16 verse 11.

You have made known to me the paths of life. At your right hand are pleasures forevermore. In your presence there is fullness of joy. We love that. It shows the endless pleasure that God gives us in his presence, the uninterrupted joy that is found in him, and yet many people fail to understand that David also said something about place placing your sorrow in something apart from God or placing your substance and your satisfaction in something apart from God.

In verse four of that same Psalm, he says, the sorrows of those who run after another God shall multiply. That's often not quoted. You chase anything else more than God. You adore anything else more than God. You serve anything else more than God.

What's guaranteed is the multiplication of sorrow. That is just a part of God's order of things. It is established in his law because you and I were created to love him supremely. So we all have the choice. Finding the fullness of joy and the the joy of of his presence and his bliss and his fellowship that will never be taken from us, that will never run dry, or to chase after anything else that tries to persuade you and sorrow will be met certainly.

That's what we will see at the end of times. People will pursue the Antichrist thinking that he is their answer and in the end, they are met with sores and much sorrow. Let's look at the second bowl in verse three. The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea and it became like the blood of a corpse and every living thing died that was in the sea. So again, the first four bowls deal with nature.

Now we go from something being poured on the earth and that speaks namely about those who inhabit the earth to now a second angel pouring out his bowl into the sea. And all we have to mark from the second bowl is the fact that every living thing died that was in the sea. Now why is that significant? I'll tell you one reason. Yes, it illustrates just how devastating this blow will be on the economy of this generation, but it also is another confirmation of the way the book of Revelation should be interpreted.

There are alternative views of how we should unpack this set of prophecies and one way that you and I can ground ourselves in the proper way is by understanding that Revelation is generally chronological. And so this is one other proof text for that truth. So we see that the sea is being harmed here but this is not the first time the sea was affected by God. This is the bold judgments but let's rewind to the trumpet judgments. Come with me to Revelation eight verse eight.

And I'll tell you in a second why all of this is important. Revelation eight verse eight. It says here, the second angel blew his trumpet. These are judgments that happened sometime before this this bowl judgment. The second angel blew his trumpet and something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea and a third of the sea became blood.

A third of the living creatures was in the sea that died and a third of the ships were destroyed. It's clear, isn't it? There's an escalation taking place here and there are some who propose otherwise and it really confuses the simplicity of the unfolding of these prophecies. All I'm saying is take this text, tuck it away in your heart if you're ever challenged by a viewer or perspective of this book that calls you to abandon the simple timeline of it. Because understanding how this all flows has greater implications of how we view the end times than we might think.

So things are getting worse. Things are getting more intense. Things are leading up to the culmination of the age. Okay. But is there any practical insight with the second bowl?

Absolutely. You ready for this? It's simple. God's patience has virtually run out. Time is up.

The reason why he only affected a third of the sea and a third of virtually most of the natural world in the trumpet judgments is because he still gave them a chance. He didn't complete obliterate it. He still dispensed mercy, but they they keep rejecting it. And so now you come to this moment and you realize he's actually removing everything. Enough is enough.

Human history is coming to a close and the world is being prepared as it is being cleansed for the son of God to renew it and to cover it with his glory in a way that humanity has never experienced. How does that impact you and I? Here's how it does. This future reality reminds us of just how fragile our world is. Just how flimsy you and I are.

Have you ever just gone about your day and thought to yourself, who's holding all of this together? Well in Genesis, you and I learned that with a word, God spoke everything into existence. And in Revelation, we learned that with a word, he can bring an end to absolutely everything. With a word. And today according to Hebrews, all of our systems are in order.

We get to go fishing. We get to have food. We get to have clear skies. We get to have rain. The sun is placed exactly where it needs to be positioned not to destroy us because God upholds it with the power of his word.

And there's a time coming with with that same word he'll say, destroy it and it will be destroyed and nobody can stop it. Be humbled today. I'm humbled. I'm borrowing my next breath from him. My heart is beating because of his mercy and so is yours.

All these politicians and all these people in power thinking that they can actually determine things. You are at the mercy of almighty God. You can't even tie your shoe without God's permission. And so God is humbling these sinners but it doesn't mean that the saints can't be humbled. We must be humbled and we must remember you're God.

We come to the third bowl in verses four to seven. This is something very unique in comparison to the other bowls. It says here in verse four, the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water and it became blood. Very similar to what happened with the sea, but then there's this interruption. An angel is about to speak.

And the reason for that is because we go from the sea to different bodies of water being contaminated namely rivers and springs of water. So what what kind of practical implications does this have? People can't have drinking water anymore. That's a problem for obvious reasons. The basic necessity for survival is now removed from the world.

And the reader is perhaps looking at this, maybe you're thinking this and you're wrestling now because you're trying to reconcile this God who claims to be a God of love and compassion and we haven't even get past the third bowl and he's already removed water from people's lips. He's cut off their refreshment, their replenishment, their fuel. We know that there are some parts of the world now where people don't have access to clean water. Imagine the entire world being stripped of that gift. Nowhere to go.

No supply. No nation that is a safe haven. No matter where you look, the news breaks out, there is nothing for us to drink. Imagine the carnage. Imagine the added frustration of those who are already trying to deal with their sores and businesses that have been run to the ground because the sea is now poisoned.

And now before you can even blink, there is nothing for me to put to these dry calloused lips. Who is this God? And we're ready to sit on the judgment seat and analyze him and accuse him and an angel speaks to his defense. The Holy Spirit knows how we're thinking and he knows potentially what we're dealing with in our own hearts. So notice what happens.

At this point, there's an answer. Verse five, and I heard the angel in charge of the water say, just are you a holy one who is and who was for you brought these judgments. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets and you have given them blood to drink. It is what they deserve. Simply put, God is not doing this out of cruelty.

He's not being unpredictable. He doesn't have sudden mood changes and he just felt like doing this because he's sadistic. The first thing you and I encounter at this point that we're trying to make sense of how these events and how these acts reflect his heart of mercy and grace is that he's also just. He's holy. And to affirm God's righteousness in these acts, the angel brings to our attention something that we probably have forgotten, that those who are facing such suffering deserve it.

They have massacred Christians across the world in a way that the church has never seen. The greatest slaughter of believers will take place during the tribulation period. It will be spearheaded by this Antichrist fellow and it will be performed by those who are his followers. They will hunt down Christians. They will rip apart families.

They will wreak havoc on a scale again that is unprecedented. Verse six, for they have shed the blood of saints and prophets. So what does God determine? You shed innocent blood, here's blood to drink. You killed innocent people, you're guilty and I will let you drink blood because you poured it out.

It is what they deserve. Listen, you and I don't want what we deserve because what would be our due is absolutely terrifying. But thanks be to God, as I speak today, the same one who offers this blood to drink gives us something that we don't deserve. You know this very well, don't you? It's not blood that poisons us but heals us.

It's not blood that causes us to die but makes us alive. It's not blood poured out in judgment, it's blood poured out for the forgiveness of our sins. This imagery here of blood being offered to drink takes us back to that night when Jesus Christ was betrayed and he looked at his own who would indeed forsake him. And he says in Matthew twenty six twenty seven, after taking the cup, giving it thanks, he gave it to them saying drink it drink it all of you for this is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for the forgiveness of many. And tragically, there will be a generation as revealed in Revelation 16 who have rejected the blood of this covenant offered by the saints and the prophets who will be preaching and witnessing at this time and will instead be forced to drink the blood of God's wrath.

And verse seven says, and I heard the altar saying the altar is personified. This should bring us back to chapter six when the martyrs in heaven cry out to God for vengeance. And they said, Lord, when? When will you vindicate us? And the Lord assured them in a short time, that time is here.

Delayed prayer doesn't mean denied prayer. These saints wanted God to defend them and deal with their enemies, and God came at the right time. God always comes at the right time. And though this is a very sobering prayer request, take that for any prayer request. He never forgets your cry.

He never forgets the unfairness, the persecution, the injustice that's been committed against you. He loves you. He cherishes you more than you can imagine. You shed blood? Okay.

Here's blood to drink. But we come now to the fourth bowl. We saw the first angel pouring out on the earth. We saw the second one pouring into the sea. The third one pouring into the rivers and springs of water.

And now we come to the fourth angel in verse eight and we read, the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun and it was allowed. Notice that phrase, it was allowed. Again, we're going back to the authority of God here. It was allowed. You know the sun needs permission from God to shine.

The sun needs permission from God to radiate a certain level of heat and to remain a certain size. The sun needs God's permission and it was allowed to scorch people with fire. So we come here, we realize that God seems to be cornering the world. This judgment is becoming comprehensive. The earth, the sea, the springs of now the sun.

And the description of the sun's deadly rise and temperature reminds us of Isaiah's prophecy about the end times. You don't have to turn that, but maybe mark this in your margins. In Isaiah 26 verse 24 verse six, Isaiah 24 verse six says, therefore a curse devours the earth and its inhabitants suffer for their guilt. Therefore, the inhabitants of earth are scorched and few men are left. And combining what we've seen thus far in these bold judgments, we can sense just how tormenting this unparalleled heat wave will be.

There's no water to drink now. There's no sea to cool off in. They're already being agitated by whatever is breaking out on their skin. And this rapid sequence of unexplainable events impacting the entire planet will cause even these worshipers of the Antichrist to acknowledge this has to be God. This is not this is not happenstance.

This is not random. This is being orchestrated by God. This is supernatural and don't get too excited. Because although they will recognize God as the power behind these plagues, they will they will fail to admit the reason for them. Look at verse nine.

They were scorched by the fierce heat. The atmosphere itself will be like an oven. And they cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues. They did not repent and give him glory. So instead of reflecting and maybe thinking, all of this is the fruit of our rebellion, our wickedness, this widespread destruction is because of us.

They choose instead to blame God and point the finger to the heavens and blaspheme his name. Can we just like sit back and try to digest this? At the same time, the fact that a lack of repentance is being highlighted here on a positive note shows us that God was hoping for it. That even though he is taking everything absolutely away from them, he's longing for them to realize the foolishness of their sin, their mistrust in a man who claimed to be God and to surrender to the true God, and they refused. So after all the preaching of the saints during the tribulation, the mighty miracles performed by prophets, the supernatural messages of angelic beings, God tries with a final attempt by enforcing pain and amplifying it to jolt this generation from their sinful craze and instead of being humbled, they harden their hearts.

I know this might be hard for our sanctified minds to imagine and comprehend, but there are many people now, not just that now, who love to sin. They love to sin, like more than you think. They love to injure people and murder. They enjoy raping women. They take delight in kidnapping young girls and trafficking them.

They take no issue in abusing their bodies with drugs and drunkenness and sexual immorality. They prioritize themselves above everybody including God and they think they're in their right for that. There are people in the masses who are enthralled and who can't imagine living outside of pitch darkness. And they absolutely loathe the idea that there would be a God who would call them to repent of such things and would choose rather a brutal torturous death than to submit to him. I know I know it's hard for us to imagine.

A lot of us in here come to this church three times a week and this is our world and that's great. It should be. We are followers of Christ. This is our home. But Revelation gives us insight into just how depraved and warped sinners are.

And you and I would be no better apart from the grace of God. They love it. They love it so that when a God of purity and holiness comes and steps into their world and shows them the true way, they hate him for it. I remember when I first got saved, I was so excited. I mean, I I I realized I'm forgiven.

I realized I'm not gonna be condemned and I was, like many of you who were first safe, hungry. I wanted to know as much as I can. I tried witnessing to people and they would give me pushback and objections. I'm like, listen, I don't have the answers but I'll get back to you. You have my word on it.

So I would watch debates and teachings and I remember this still, obviously, still marked marked me. I remember reading a comment, I think it was a discussion between atheists and Christians on a panel and I was looking at what people were saying on the YouTube and one of the comments said this, it it actually like took my breath away but then I come to the Bible and I realized, no it's true. One person said a very simple thing but it was so weighty. He wrote the following, I rather go to hell than be in heaven with your God. I wanna tell you something.

There are more people who believe that and want that than you think. I know. Our sanctified minds can't think about it. No way. Yes way.

Most of the world in the end will curse God as he is judging them. They don't even plead for mercy. They don't ask for just some reprieve with whatever energy they have left. They wanna blaspheme him. If you were here last week, you remember that in chapter 15, we made the case how John was mirroring the events of the Exodus in his description of the last days.

And he did so in part to communicate how in the same way God delivered Israel from the tyranny of Egypt bringing them into the promised land by using plagues and judging the wicked, their oppressors, he will also usher in the church from this world into his everlasting kingdom by judging the wicked. But the the parallels didn't end at the end of chapter 15. They go on. In fact, maybe you've you've picked up on this that some of the plagues that we've already looked at in these bold judgments are similar to the plagues in Egypt. Right?

Boils and rivers turning into blood. And the comparisons continue and they go deeper than even that. I want to argue that in chapter 16, the stubbornness of the evildoers and those who oppressed and and came against the true people of God is reflective of the stubbornness of the Egyptians while they were trying to adapt to the plagues that were being poured out on them. And I wanna give you just one example of that and this is where we're gonna end. If you would, come with me to Exodus seven and look at the first plague with me beginning in verse 20.

Not just similar plagues, but similar stubbornness. Exodus seven verse 20. Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded. In the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, he lifted up the staff and struck the water in the Nile. And all the water in the Nile turned into blood.

Why did the Nile turn into blood? This was the first thing that was done to get Pharaoh's attention, to let God's people go. Do you know why? Because earlier in Exodus, Pharaoh made a decree. Any Hebrew boy that is born to the Israelites, throw them into the Nile.

You get the picture? You shed blood, here's blood to drink. Did we just see that in Revelation? You shed blood, here's blood to drink. Same God.

Same God. His justice isn't waver. But what I want to draw your attention to is how the Egyptians responded to this judgment. This might actually make you chuckle a little bit. Look at verse 24.

And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile. What a picture. Can you envision it? So their main supply and source of water is contaminated. And what's the response of those who depended on it?

Who realized that this was a miracle? They dug along the sides to say, okay, if we can't go to the Nile, let's go to something else. What would be the sane thing to do? Okay. There's a message behind this.

Maybe God's trying to get our attention. Clearly, he is demonstrating our guilt and what we've done against Israel and their children, but instead what you find here is that they pivot. It's a resilience but it's a scary one. Instead of being humbled, they're willing to endure the consequence of their sin. Instead of looking up and saying, okay God, we we hear you loud and clear and we we understand the error of our ways.

What do you ask of us? They look down and they try to find a way to have their own way. And then you read through Exodus and you read through the Old Testament and you read through the New Testament and then you come to the last book of all and you realize in God's final plagues that human nature has not changed. And it could be even today that as we come to a close in this message that you find yourself enduring things and instead of going to the fountain of life, you are digging holes trying to find your own water. It will not satisfy.

It will not bring the answers that you were looking for. You worship something or someone else including yourself more than God, sorrows are promised to multiply. But all those unnecessary sorrows can come to a halt once and for all if you come to Christ. Unfortunately, and I've said this in Revelation before, please give me permission to say it again. Some people can only understand the language of pain before they wake up and realize who Christ is, their need for a savior.

I don't want you to be that person. I don't. God doesn't want to. Notice that he's already done so much. This is the last this is the last resort here.

By touching everything, it was after so many other attempts to get to get them to see his greatness and his glory. And so my genuine desire for for the person here today who maybe stumbled into this place out of curiosity or maybe you feel like you've found success in evading things and tiptoeing around the truth and sustaining your kind of way of life and what you wanna do and the sins you wanna keep while still, you know, giving respect to God and the church. You can't maintain that for long. Just give up. Just surrender.

Take this cue and realize this is more than just prophecy. This is this is a realization afresh of who God is today, and I choose to hear him loud and clear. We ask, Lord, that you would help us hear you loud and clear. And Lord, as heavy as a message as this was, you intended to be heavy. So, Lord, we have done our best to not try to lighten this message.

Lord, as we continue in Revelation, we have listened to a lot about judgment, but at the same time, you have provided rays of hope in it and through it. We've seen your kindness. We've seen your patience. And so, Lord, even now as we try to absorb all of the things that were explained from these prophecies, help us land in your mercy. Lord, for the sinner who doesn't know you hearing this message, may today be the day where they become a child of God.

For the children of God here who are pained by these things, and rightfully so, may they so rejoice in knowing that they are not destined for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep, we might live with him. Thank you that we get to live with you. We can know only everlasting joy in you. Glory be to your name, oh God. We now stand and we choose to be like this angel.

And in the midst of facing and trying to comprehend judgment, we can say just are you, oh Lord. Holy are you, oh Lord. You as the judge of the all of all the earth will in fact do right. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Let's stand church. I can understand how some can hear a message like that and wonder, okay, what do I do with this information? Allow me to help from the psalmist who says in Psalm 33 verse eight, let all the earth fear the Lord. Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. Why?

Verse nine, for he spoke, and it came to be. He commanded, and it stood firm. Verse 10. The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing. He frustrates the plans of the peoples.

The counsel of the Lord stands forever. The plans of his heart to all generations, including what we read in Revelation. That's gonna happen. Verse 12. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage.

You can leave here with two things, hopefully with a greater awe of who God is. As you step outside there and that sun kisses your skin, realize that God is the one who's allowing the sun to do what it's doing. As you look on the news and you see how these guys can't figure out what to do with that canal and that strait and that nation and these laws and the economy, God can actually render it all to nothing if he decides to do so. And lastly, verse 12, blessed is the nation. And that can be true for an actual nation, but that's especially true for the people of God.

You and I should leave here with our shoulders raised up, rolled back, chin up, not boasting in ourselves, but realization that this God who has this kind of power is for me. He's not against me. He will never turn against me because I'm clothed in the righteousness of Christ. I'm adopted into his faith. This God that we just studied in Revelation 16, he's my father and you don't wanna mess with him.

We wanna honor you, Lord. May our lips be only used to honor you, glorify you, worship you, and never be ashamed to testify of you. For the person here who does not have the assurance that you are their father, May the love of Christ be impressed on their hearts. May they be melted, not in fear, but because of your love. And may they run into your arms and receive your forgiveness forever.

Be with our fellowship, Lord. Be with us in this next seven days as we hope to raise the funds for a brand new building where your word will continue to be heralded. We pray that you would do that miracle, Lord. You are in charge of all things including what we need. You will take care of us.

We have no fear. Prepare us for this transition, oh God. Bless Church of Our Savior. Bless this neighborhood. May we leave a lasting impression in this area before we move on.

And Lord, may we be unified more than ever. May we serve one another. May we keep our eyes on you realizing that this life is about living for you. We trust that you will go before us. You've been faithful.

In Jesus' name we pray. Amen and amen. Brothers and sisters, there's food downstairs. Fellowship with us. Talk about the message.

And whatever else you talk about, let it be in light of who God is. The Lord be with you. We'll see you next week.