This transcript was generated by whisper.ai.

We're in the middle of a look together at Revelation chapter 9, an admittedly
difficult chapter scripture to look at, but also a chapter that's filled with
reality, with the truth about good and evil, and a God who is offering to us His
grace in the midst of a world where we have to face genuine evil. We've looked
at the fifth trumpet where mankind has to face suffering for five months, and
now today we look at the sixth trumpet, where a third of mankind faces death.
Verses 13 to 15 of Revelation chapter 9, "The sixth angel sounded his trumpet,
and heard a voice coming from the horns of the golden altar that is before God.

It said to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, 'Release the four angels who are
bound at the great river Euphrates, and the four angels who have been kept ready
for this very hour and day and month and year were released to kill a third of
mankind. '" I want to begin by sharing with you the sounding of this trumpet.
Before the sounding of this trumpet, John hears a voice described as coming from
the four horns of the golden altar that's before God.

Remember in chapter 8 verse 3 last week, this altar is the scene of the offering
of incense with the prayers of the saints. This is very important to understand.
This voice coming from the altar, its final mention is here, right here in the
book of Revelation.

We've seen it mentioned four times already, and the inference here is that this
judgment that's coming is in part an answer to the prayers of the persecuted
saints on earth. It's God's response in preparation for their deliverance, the
giving of their inheritance. So in answer to the prayers of those who had
suffered so much, God's judgment is going to come upon this earth.

God has been holding it back. Why? So that more people can come to know him, so
that more can follow him.

They're held back at the Euphrates River. This Euphrates River, there are some
very interesting geographical possibilities today of what God's going to do in
this. But I also want to remind you of what it meant in that day, because
everyone who read this would have understood it in the day of John.

This Euphrates River stood at the edge of Jewish influence and of the Roman
Empire. The Jews would have understood that that was the line, the Euphrates,
beyond which all the heathen nations lived. The Romans would have feared the
great armies of the Parthians who came from the region beyond the Euphrates.

As we look at the book of Revelation, it's important to understand that anybody
who first read this would have thought, that's the edge. That's right on the
edge of disaster. That's the boundary beyond which, if I look past there, that's
where evil is going to come upon me.

All of us who live in maybe a bubble where we feel like we're protected from
evil, we have this sense that maybe that bubble could be broken at some time,
and here it is broken. There's a barrier, and that barrier is going to be
allowed to be broken. And all these enemies who have been frightening, those
people of that day and those people of every generation, they're going to pour
in.

And again, in these verses, God waits until just the right moment. Notice it's
the right day, the right month, the right year, the right even hour. God is in
charge.

Angels are allowed to kill here, and they sound like demons to us. I believe
that the demons were allowed to punish, but God is going to ask these angels to
carry out his judgment as messengers of God. In the Old Testament, we see that
angels are often called upon by God to carry about judgment upon evil in this
world.

Now, even as I talk about this, I understand this is deeply bothersome to many
of us. We think, how could God do this? Doesn't he value human life?

Yes, he does. But remember, God sees human life more clearly than I do, more
clearly than you do. God knows that our human life is eternal, either with him
or separate from him.

Based on the character of God and what God teaches us about his plan for
salvation, our salvation in the Scriptures, and the way that God expresses
judgment, there are some powerful truths in what's happening here about the way
that God sees and works in this world. Let me remind you of three truths. Truth
number one, God at times judges with death those who have hardened their hearts
against him.

We see that throughout the Bible. He judges those who have chosen not to choose
him. Why would he allow them to continue to do evil when he has graciously given
them full opportunity to choose him?

They've said no, and not only that, they've chosen to do evil against others
instead. I believe that this third who were killed fall into that group. Why we
ask, would God kill people?

God knows that we're all going to die one day, and that the moments of our life
on this earth, they're but a breath. Now we don't see it that way. We see this
life as the be all and end all, but God sees us that way.

He sees from the perspective of eternity. So it should not surprise us that God
would judge with death those who are doing any evil that would prevent his plan
of salvation from unfolding, who have already decided they're not going to
choose that plan for themselves. And that in fact, he sometimes would judge with
death in a way that causes others to look to him for salvation.

I've been to a lot of funerals, and I can tell you that there are many there at
funerals who would never think of their eternity. They'd never think of the love
of God in Jesus Christ as they go through their life, as they work out their
plan, as they accomplish what they've fashioned for themselves. They would never
think about the love of God.

They'd never think about eternity. But in the face of the death of their friend,
their heart is stilled. They begin to see things that they've never seen.

That's why God is judging here, I believe, so that the world can see things
they've never seen. Now, there's a second truth you need to remember, and that
is the truth that God is extremely patient with those whose hearts have not yet
decided. He gives full opportunity to choose him.

Although in his sovereignty, God knows in advance what we will choose, when we
will choose. In his love, he gives us full opportunity to complete that choice.
I believe that the two-thirds who are left, not yet believers, they fall into
that group.

God is still giving two-thirds an opportunity to choose him, a full opportunity
to choose him, a few will. We're going to find out as we go through this
chapter, sadly most won't. God at times judges with death those who've hardened
their hearts against him, because he sees that there's more to our lives than
just life on this world.

God is extremely patient with those whose hearts have not yet decided, giving
full opportunity to choose him. The third truth to remember is that God seals
and protects those who are his. Whether it's the children of Israel in the Old
Testament, or the disciples of Jesus in the New Testament, or believers here in
the book of Revelation, God protects his children.

He protects us for his purposes. And so here, he does not allow harm. He
protects us for his promises.

And so although we will face death, physical death, we are protected for that
day when we will meet with Christ, and who will in eternity enjoy who he is. As
you read through this chapter, just suppose with me that you're a parent, some
of you are who are listening to this, and your children are reading the book of
Revelation, they picked it up. What do you tell your children about this?

Although as we've gone through this book, I've said that the church will be
raptured most likely during this time. It's easy to think in the back of your
mind, well, what if Tom is wrong about that, and some of these other teachers
are right about that, and Christians are going to go through this time of
tribulation? And as you think about that, it's easy to begin to worry about
those that you love.

As you teach your children about this, teach them two things. Teach them number
one, even when we're not in control, God is always in control. I can trust him.

I can trust him in my daily life today, and I can trust him in the midst of
these events in the book of Revelation. We're not there yet, but when we get
there, everyone who is there will see we can trust him. And then teach your
children the second thing.

No matter what happens, God seals and protects those who are his. So you teach
your children, in fact, you even teach yourself, not to depend on timetables,
not to depend on what we've figured out about the book of Revelation. You teach
and you remember that there is no circumstance that we will face where we cannot
depend on God's love to give us hope and to carry us through.

Thank you, our Father. Thank you that hope means hope, that there is no
circumstance that can steal our hope from us, that hope is looking forward to
eternity. And Lord, although we don't understand some of the way that your plan
unfolds at the end of time, we do trust.

We do trust that it's for your good purposes. We do trust so that more can come
to know Christ. We do trust that it's so that evil can once and for all be done
away with.

We trust you. We pray this in Jesus' name, amen. Join us tomorrow as we end our
look at this chapter.

We're going to see the story of what's happening in human hearts as these events
unfold.