A World of Despair

I find it difficult to discuss the judgment of God because it isn't a very savory subject, nor is it an idealistic theme I can really get into. I would much rather present one hundred messages on the love of God than one on the wrath of God, for God is love (1 John 4:8). How thankful I am that I've experienced the love of God and that God's love is being extended to every one of you.

But, it is also true that if you rebel against God and want nothing to do with Him, then you will experience that other side of God's nature - His judgment.

The Bible declares,

For we know him who hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord... It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:30-31).

In Revelation 16 we read of some of these "fearful" things. I'd like to skip over them if I could, because it's a tough scene that's coming. Thank God I don't have to be around to see it. Would to God that no one was around. Would to God that the whole world accepted Christ and the whole Tribulation was unnecessary. That would be so great!

"O God, we've been such fools! We've messed things up so bad, Lord! We give up! It's a mess! Take it, Lord!" If man would realize how foolish and stupid he's been, and how he's allowed greed to destroy him, and would just turn it all over to the Lord - then we would not have to experience Revelation 16.

You don't have to experience Revelation 16. Don't build a case against God because He tells you that He'll do these things.

You don't have to be around when He does them. Many people fault God because of what He said He would do to the sinner. Well, you don't have to be a sinner.

You don't have to experience God's judgment. God doesn't want you to. In fact, He so loved you that He made arrangements for you to miss all these things. In order that He might have many sons, you and me included, He gave His only begotten Son that, if we believe, we wouldn't perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16). It cost Him an awful lot to spare you. It cost Him His only Son.

God didn't send His Son into the world to condemn the world "but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world," but you rejected the light (John 3:17-19).

You may have all kinds of arguments for being the way you are. "I didn't have a chance! My father beat me when I was a child." You may have all kinds of phony excuses to offer God for the things that you've done, but you have no excuse for rejecting God's light in Jesus Christ. God has declared that the reason you will not come to the light is that you love darkness rather than light, because your deeds are evil. You may offer many excuses, but God knows the real reason.

You say, "There are so many churches! I don't know what church to believe." God didn't tell you to believe in any church. God said to believe in His Son.

"There are so many hypocrites!" God didn't tell you to believe in the hypocrites. He told you to believe in His Son.

For those of you who love the darkness, who rebel against God, who just close the door to God's love, and want nothing to do with God - unfortunately, God will honor your request. He'll withdraw Himself completely from you.

The absence of God's love is hell. If God would ever withdraw His love completely from this earth, it would be hell on earth. And that's exactly what it's going to be! That's what we read about in Revelation. With God's love having been withdrawn, the forces of hell - these diabolic forces that are now restrained because of the power of the Spirit of God working in the church - will be unleashed.

Revelation 16 depicts a world without God, a world without hope, a world of despair.

REVELATION 16:1-4

In Revelation 15 the temple of God in heaven was filled with smoke. No one was allowed to enter in until the seven vials were completely poured out upon the earth.

In Revelation 16 John said,

I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth (Rev. 16:1).

The voice out of the temple is perhaps even the voice of God commanding the seven angels to go their way and pour out these vials of wrath upon the earth.

The first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image (Rev. 16:2).

This takes us back to the Antichrist. He is the man of sin who will soon be coming on the world scene bringing tremendous solutions for the world problems, bringing nations together in peaceful co-existence, establishing a new monetary system, and creating signs and wonders. All the world will wonder after this man and say, "There's no one like him, He's really sharp. He's really got the answers!" He will create this new monetary system. No one will be able to buy or sell except he has the mark and the number of this man either on his wrist or on his forehead (Rev. 13:17).

Already we're conditioned to buy with numbers. Credit cards are getting more and more popular every day. Money is almost becoming a thing of the past.

Upon those who took his mark and worshipped the image in the temple there will come a noisome and grievous sore (literally, a running sore like a boil or an open ulcer). It's interesting that some of the side effects from the atomic blast on Hiroshima were radiation bums like running ulcers which could not heal. More people died as the result of the radiation after effects than by the initial atomic blast. Whether or not radioactivity will cause the sores I don't know.

The second angel poured out his vial upon the sea [probably the Mediterranean Sea]; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living thing died in the sea (Rev. 16:3).

The sea becomes polluted by some method. It becomes like the blood of a dead man and destroys all life within it.

The third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood (Rev. 16:4).

REVELATION 16:5-7

And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and was, and shall be, because thou hast judged thus. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy. And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments (Rev. 16:5-7).

"But Why Does God ?"

When God begins to judge, every transgression and disobedience will receive a just recompense of reward. The Antichrist and his followers have killed the saints and blasphemed God. They beheaded everyone who refused to take the mark of the beast. They destroyed and killed the two prophets that God sent. They shed so much innocent blood that now the Lord gives them blood to drink. He changes the fresh water supplies into blood. Men turn on a spigot in their houses to get a drink and bloody water pours out.

The angels said, "That serves them right. They've shed the blood of the innocent and You've given them blood to drink. That's very fitting to their crimes." Even the voice from out of the altar in heaven says, "True and righteous are thy judgments, O God." God will not judge any man unfairly. No man will be able to point a finger at God and say, "You weren't fair."

You don't have to stand before the judgment seat of God if Jesus is your Saviour. If He's not, you won't have a chance. You may con a lot of people, you may live by your wits, and you may be able to talk yourself out of just about any situation, but you'll not be able to talk your way out of this. You may plead, "I didn't have a chance! Here's what really happened." You may go on with a long spiel, but God knows your heart. He knows your very motive. He could play back the whole scene on a screen and show you your motivations. The Bible says that everything is open and revealed before Him with whom we have to deal (Luke 12:2). There'll be no conning God. Holy and righteous are His judgments.

What about that man who has never heard about Jesus Christ? When we see God's disposition in these cases, we'll say, "Right on! True and righteous, Lord, are Thy judgments." Never fear - God will be righteous and fair when He judges.

Satan is constantly challenging the justice of God. He would have you believe that God isn't fair. This was his accusation of God to Adam and Eve in the Garden. "God doesn't want you to eat of that tree. He knows that if you eat of it you'll be as wise as He is. He's just trying to protect Himself. He's really not fair" (Genesis 3:4-5).

Constantly, we hear people challenging the fairness or the justice of God. "How can a loving God...?" "Why would a God of love...?"

God is absolutely just. Even when these judgments are being poured out there will be the confirmation of the righteousness of God's judgment. And what God does will be absolutely fair. Remember that.

REVELATION 16:8-11

The fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory (Rev. 16:8-9).

Turning on the Heat

Actually, it's extremely interesting that scientists are now crying grave warnings concerning the ozone blanket around the earth. Ozone is a very unstable gas, and the chlorofluoromethanes in aerosol cans rise into the atmosphere and upset this ozone blanket. The supersonic transport planes are also destroying the ozone layer above the earth.

This layer of ozone gas around the earth protects us from harmful rays. Without the ozone protection the ultraviolet rays of the sun would not be filtered out. Some scientists estimate that in about eight years this ozone blanket will be depleted to the extent that stepping outdoors will be dangerous. Any exposure to the sun would cause extreme burns and "scorch men."

An atomic warhead exploded in the atmosphere does more damage to the ozone gas than everything else combined. If atomic weapons are used during the Great Tribulation, they'll have their own detrimental effect on this ozone layer. This plague could also be caused by a nova or supernova condition. This is a stellar phenomenon in which a star suddenly seems to explode; e. g., a star may increase from fifteenth magnitude to negative three magnitude in two or three nights. It expands and grows brighter, and then dims out. In fact, some stars actually disappear.

It is very possible that our own star, the sun, will go into a nova or supernova condition when the fourth angel pours out his vial. I've been in the desert when it was 125 degrees, and that was hot. If our sun suddenly increased in intensity, it would get much hotter than that. The devastating heat would scorch men and parch the earth.

The fifth angel poured out his vial upon the throne of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness [as though the sun did have a nova condition and darkness followed this brilliant display]; and they gnawed their tongues for pain (Rev. 16:10).

Their pain could be from the first vial with the boils that break out all over men or due to the tremendous sunburn blisters all over their bodies. But, as the result of these things, the people's hearts are hardened and, instead of repenting, they "blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds" (Rev. 16:11).

The strange stupidity of man! When the judgments begin to come, rather than repenting, men are blaspheming God and blaming Him for their calamities.

Why is it that man always wants to blame God for his calamities? We do the stupid things. We defy the rules and the laws of God. Then we want to blame God for the suffering that our actions entail. Here, men curse God because of their pains and sores.

REVELATION 16:12

The sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared (Rev. 16:12).

The great River Euphrates runs about eighteen hundred miles long. It is three to twelve miles wide with an average depth of thirty feet. The Euphrates is a natural barrier between the Eastern and the Western empires. The same Russian engineers who worked on the Aswan Dam in Egypt have built a great dam in Syria across the River Euphrates. The nations down river on the Euphrates are quite upset that the river can be dammed up. It is extremely interesting that Revelation talks about the River Euphrates being stopped up to prepare the way for the kings of the east. We see how this could become a reality today.

The Aswan Dam is also described in Scripture. Isaiah said that they shall dam up the great river in Egypt. Then he describes all the ecological catastrophes that would result as the Nile River is dammed up (Isaiah 19:5-10).

Just as Isaiah predicted, it has happened. The fishing industry along the coast has been wiped out. The salt water intrusion has destroyed more farmland than was gained by this Aswan project. Vast, unexpected ecological problems have been created. These are all described in Isaiah. If the Egyptians had only read Isaiah they never would have built the dam. It's interesting how far the prophecies of God are actually ahead of these modern developments.

REVELATION 16:13-17

I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon [Satan], and out of the mouth of the beast [Antichrist], and out of the mouth of the false prophet [the one leading the world to worship the Antichrist](Rev. 16:13).

I don't know why, but it seems that a person's spirit leaves his body through the mouth. The Hebrew word for spirit is "ruach," which also means "breath." God breathed into Adam and he became a living soul. Many who have had experiences of dying and being brought back to life remember in their death a consciousness of the spirit leaving through the mouth. When Jesus cast out demons, many times great cries were let out.

The unclean spirits look like frogs and come forth out of the mouth of Satan, the mouth of the Antichrist, and the mouth of the false prophet.

For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty (Rev. 16:14).

The kings of the earth will be driven by demon powers into this great Battle of Armageddon.

Hitler came very close to conquering the world. Only a few quirks kept him from completing his conquest, for the Nazis were very close to possessing the atomic bomb. Had Hitler been able to develop a nuclear weapon before we did, the whole situation would have been different. You'd be living under the control of a madman.

Hitler was guided by men who were masters in the occult. These masters who controlled Hitler moved to South America after the fall of the Third Reich. Many are still living today in the Andes in Peru. These men, the masterminds behind the Third Reich, were themselves controlled by Satan.

This helps us to understand the Bible reference to these three unclean spirits who go forth and enter into the kings to draw them into battle. Men will be controlled by evil spirits even as Hitler was controlled by evil spirits. We see the result of one powerful man being under their control. We can only wonder what it will be like when three kings of the earth are demon-possessed and gather their armies together into this final conflict of Armageddon.

A Warning

At this point Jesus gives a warning. "Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame" (Rev. 16:15).

Jesus gives the warning in the midst of this great scene that He is coming again. He warns that He's coming quickly and as a thief. Those who are watching and those who are keeping their garments, so to speak, will not have to be here on the earth when this Tribulation is taking place.

Jesus told the church, "Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh" (Matthew 25:13). Jesus said, "Pray always, that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man" (Luke 21:36).

As Jesus is telling you these things that will be happening, again He warns you. "Watch and be ready for I'm coming as a thief." He said, "If the goodman of the house had known in what watch [hour] the thief would come, he would have watched" (Matthew 24:43). What I say unto one I say unto all. Watch!

"And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon" (Rev. 16:16). This is in the Plain of Esdraelon and the Valley of Jezreel, the valley just below the ancient city of Megiddo.

The seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is finished (Rev. 16:17).

This same phrase was cried once before. When Jesus was hanging on the cross He cried with a loud voice, "It is finished" and then He died (John 19:30).

Jesus was talking about your salvation. It is a finished work. It was accomplished through His death upon the cross. The cry of Christ - "It is finished" - was a triumphant cry, not a cry of defeat. Jesus said, "No man takes my life from Me. I give My life" (John 10:18). He gave His life as a ransom for your sins. He has finished the work of redemption.

We find God crying the same phrase from the throne in heaven when the seventh vial is poured out. "It is finished." This is the final vial, the final outpouring of God's wrath upon the Christ rejecting world. "It is finished," the cry of Christ from the cross, brings victory and joy and salvation to our lives; and the second "It is finished" will proclaim the end of the wrath and judgment of God upon the earth.

REVELATION 16:18-21

There were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great (Rev. 16:18).

God said, "Once again I'm going to shake the earth until everything that can be shaken shall be shaken, until only that which cannot be shaken shall be left" (Hebrews 12:26-27). One more tremendous earthquake.

However, this earthquake shall shake the entire world - an earthquake of greater intensity than man has ever experienced upon the earth.

This great earthquake interests me because many earthquakes are localized. In California we're very familiar with earthquakes, and we're familiar with each of the local faults. But here's an earthquake that is going to hit the entire earth. It will shake the mountains and the islands, and there will be no place of safety or refuge at this time.

And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent [about one hundred pounds]: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great (Rev. 16:19-21).

When I was a child, the iceman used to sell blocks of ice for home iceboxes. The ice came in fifty and one hundred pound blocks. Can you imagine hailstones that huge falling?

We have had severe storms in Arizona and Texas. Hailstones the size of baseballs have ripped off roofs and leveled trees. These can do tremendous damage. But try to envision the damage inflicted by hailstones weighing a talent, between sixty and one hundred pounds.

These cataclysms of nature will, no doubt, bring great changes to our climate. The Bible says that the deserts will blossom like a rose, and there will be streams in the deserts and pools in the dry places (Isaiah 35:1,6-7).

The curse will be removed. Botanists say that a thorn is an undeveloped leaf. A cactus could be extremely beautiful if every thorn became a leaf. God will restore the earth as He intended it to be when He first created man and placed him upon it. Jesus will establish His glorious kingdom on a rejuvenated garden-like earth.

I look forward to the day when we shall share together in God's kingdom. How beautiful that is going to be!