You have led in your steadfast love the people whom you have redeemed; you have guided them by your strength to your holy abode. Exodus 15:13
Revelation 15 The Wrath of God and the Seven Plagues
Yesterday, we read about the harvest in which The Lord reaps first the redeemed and then the grapes. The grape harvest is the carrying out of God’s wrath on the ones who rejected Him as they are thrown into the unquenchable fire. Verse 1 reads,
“Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished.”
God’s wrath is the procurement of the blood payment for sin from the lost. Paying will not be easy. They gave up easy when they rebuffed Christ’s sacrifice and chose instead to save themselves. The recompense for sin is death. We either pay through God’s deep love expressed as Jesus Christ on the cross or we pay through God’s great wrath expressed as Jesus Christ as Lord God of hosts. But when the harvest is finished, so too will God’s wrath be complete. There will be no wrath left to dispense, He will have emptied it on the children of wrath.
Imagine the scene as the redeemed from the Tribulation await the harvest and celebrate the greatness of God. Verses 2-4 describe it.
“And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. 3 And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
“Great and amazing are your deeds,
O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
O King of the nations!
4 Who will not fear, O Lord,
and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations will come
and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”
Why do they sing the song of Moses? Moses, God’s servant acted as The Lord’s agent, His vehicle for the deliverance of Israel from their enemy, Pharaoh. Now Jesus the Lamb has delivered the people of New Jerusalem from the enemy, Satan. In the days of Moses God sent the plagues and conquered Pharaoh with Moses as servant. When Moses led Israel out of Egypt, they stood on the shores of the Red Sea and watched as God swallowed up Pharaoh’s army and Moses sang to the Lord (Exodus 15:1-21). On the day of the harvest, we as servants of the Most High conquer the enemy with Christ. The witnesses who wait by the sea of glass and sing the song, they conquered the beast and its image. Remember Jesus calls us more than conquerors. We can overcome anything the enemy throws at us, because we will (and already have) conquered him through the blood of Jesus Christ. 1 John 5:18-21 says,
“We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.
19 We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.
20 And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. 21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols.”
We are at war with the enemy, but not for ourselves. He can’t touch us (1 John 5:18). We have already won. 1 John 5:1-5 says it this way,
“Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. 4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”
We are at war with Satan for those in his power, the whole world (1 John 5:19). We have to tell them how much God loves them and what He did because of that love. John 3:16-18 reads,
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”
The Gospel that can save them from the grape harvest begins with that simple yet profound truth, God loves them so much that He gave His only born Son. He gave Jesus up so that He could adopt us and give us eternal life with Him. If you want to know more about how to be saved read it here.
The seals, the trumpets, and the harvest have all revealed to the world the great works of our God and who Jesus Christ is. When these events happen it will be too late for them to believe by faith that Jesus raised from the dead and confess that He is Lord. But now, it is not too late. Now there is still some time, but that time is growing short. But when God pours His wrath out and the condemned are required to pay for their sins they will no longer have the choice to willingly confess that Jesus is the Christ and be saved. Verses 5-8 read,
“After this I looked, and the sanctuary of the tent of witness in heaven was opened, 6 and out of the sanctuary came the seven angels with the seven plagues, clothed in pure, bright linen, with golden sashes around their chests.7 And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever, 8 and the sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.”
God is just as much the God of wrath as He is the God of love. They are one and the same. His wrath is His glory just the same as His love is His glory. His love for us must be expressed. Justice prevails. What kind of love allows evil to prevail? What kind of love lets the enemy steal, kill, and destroy without carrying out the Judge’s sentence. When the perpetrator of a crime goes unpunished we cry injustice. Well God is Just, those who have chosen condemnation will be punished and those who chose salvation will be rewarded.
So His wrath will be poured out on those judged and condemned and then we will be able to enter His sanctuary. Then there will be no more reason for His wrath and it will be finished. Then there will be eternal love, eternal joy and jubilation.
Yesterday, we read about the harvest in which The Lord reaps first the redeemed and then the grapes. The grape harvest is the carrying out of God’s wrath on the ones who rejected Him as they are thrown into the unquenchable fire. Verse 1 reads,
“Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished.”
God’s wrath is the procurement of the blood payment for sin from the lost. Paying will not be easy. They gave up easy when they rebuffed Christ’s sacrifice and chose instead to save themselves. The recompense for sin is death. We either pay through God’s deep love expressed as Jesus Christ on the cross or we pay through God’s great wrath expressed as Jesus Christ as Lord God of hosts. But when the harvest is finished, so too will God’s wrath be complete. There will be no wrath left to dispense, He will have emptied it on the children of wrath.
Imagine the scene as the redeemed from the Tribulation await the harvest and celebrate the greatness of God. Verses 2-4 describe it.
“And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. 3 And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
“Great and amazing are your deeds,
O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
O King of the nations!
4 Who will not fear, O Lord,
and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations will come
and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”
Why do they sing the song of Moses? Moses, God’s servant acted as The Lord’s agent, His vehicle for the deliverance of Israel from their enemy, Pharaoh. Now Jesus the Lamb has delivered the people of New Jerusalem from the enemy, Satan. In the days of Moses God sent the plagues and conquered Pharaoh with Moses as servant. When Moses led Israel out of Egypt, they stood on the shores of the Red Sea and watched as God swallowed up Pharaoh’s army and Moses sang to the Lord (Exodus 15:1-21). On the day of the harvest, we as servants of the Most High conquer the enemy with Christ. The witnesses who wait by the sea of glass and sing the song, they conquered the beast and its image. Remember Jesus calls us more than conquerors. We can overcome anything the enemy throws at us, because we will (and already have) conquered him through the blood of Jesus Christ. 1 John 5:18-21 says,
“We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.
19 We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.
20 And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. 21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols.”
We are at war with the enemy, but not for ourselves. He can’t touch us (1 John 5:18). We have already won. 1 John 5:1-5 says it this way,
“Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. 4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”
We are at war with Satan for those in his power, the whole world (1 John 5:19). We have to tell them how much God loves them and what He did because of that love. John 3:16-18 reads,
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”
The Gospel that can save them from the grape harvest begins with that simple yet profound truth, God loves them so much that He gave His only born Son. He gave Jesus up so that He could adopt us and give us eternal life with Him. If you want to know more about how to be saved read it here.
The seals, the trumpets, and the harvest have all revealed to the world the great works of our God and who Jesus Christ is. When these events happen it will be too late for them to believe by faith that Jesus raised from the dead and confess that He is Lord. But now, it is not too late. Now there is still some time, but that time is growing short. But when God pours His wrath out and the condemned are required to pay for their sins they will no longer have the choice to willingly confess that Jesus is the Christ and be saved. Verses 5-8 read,
“After this I looked, and the sanctuary of the tent of witness in heaven was opened, 6 and out of the sanctuary came the seven angels with the seven plagues, clothed in pure, bright linen, with golden sashes around their chests.7 And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever, 8 and the sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.”
God is just as much the God of wrath as He is the God of love. They are one and the same. His wrath is His glory just the same as His love is His glory. His love for us must be expressed. Justice prevails. What kind of love allows evil to prevail? What kind of love lets the enemy steal, kill, and destroy without carrying out the Judge’s sentence. When the perpetrator of a crime goes unpunished we cry injustice. Well God is Just, those who have chosen condemnation will be punished and those who chose salvation will be rewarded.
So His wrath will be poured out on those judged and condemned and then we will be able to enter His sanctuary. Then there will be no more reason for His wrath and it will be finished. Then there will be eternal love, eternal joy and jubilation.
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