In Revelation in 40, we’ve now arrived at the great climax of the conflict between good and evil.  There will be no more interludes or pauses as there were with the seals (1-6 and then 7) or the trumpets (1-6 and then 7).  Once God gets started with bowls of wrath, He isn’t going to stop until all is accomplished.  God will bring this age to a close.

We have a bit of context as chapter 15 opens with a sign and a song.   Revelation 15:1 I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues– last, because with them God’s wrath is completed.

Vindication, at long last, for the saints who persevered to the end. 

Revelation 15:2 And I saw what looked like a sea of glass glowing with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and its image and over the number of its name. They held harps given them by God 3 and sang the song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb: “Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the nations. 4 Who will not fear you, Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

As part of a commissioning ceremony, it is natural that those who are about to be vindicated would worship the One who would vindicate them and issue justice so long overdue.

Revelation 15:5 After this I looked, and I saw in heaven the temple– that is, the tabernacle of the covenant law– and it was opened.  6 Out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues. They were dressed in clean, shining linen and wore golden sashes around their chests. 7 Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls filled with the wrath of God, who lives for ever and ever. 8 And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed.

Thought for today:

Why does true justice from the hand of God inspire worship?
How does vindication at the end of a long wait make the gratitude greater?
Why could no one enter the temple until the plagues were completed?

===

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

Let’s recap for a moment in our study of “Revelation in 40”.  Seven churches received warnings and encouragement for the Last Days.  They were instructed to overcome.  And there were those who did so, overcoming “by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.” (Revelation 12:11)

Revelation 14:13 Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.” 14 I looked, and there before me was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one like a son of man with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand.

Uh-oh.  A sharp sickle.
First, the one like a “son of man” takes a whack.

Revelation 14:15 Then another angel came out of the temple and called in a loud voice to him who was sitting on the cloud, “Take your sickle and reap, because the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” 16 So he who was seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.

This, however, doesn’t seem so bad.
More like a reaping of a fine harvest at the end of the age.

But then an angel does it. And this harvest is ripe but not good.
That’s because they’re grapes destined for the great winepress of God’s wrath.

Revelation 14:17 “Another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. 18 Still another angel, who had charge of the fire, came from the altar and called in a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, “Take your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the earth’s vine, because its grapes are ripe.” 19 The angel swung his sickle on the earth, gathered its grapes and threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. 20 They were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed out of the press, rising as high as the horses’ bridles for a distance of 1,600 stadia.”

Thoughts for today:

This horrific and graphic picture of the scale of a harvest for wrath says a lot about the Last Days.  The distance of 1,600 stadia is approximately 180 miles.  Just to help us visualize it, that’s about the distance from Chicago to Indianapolis.  The height of a horse’s bridle is around 4-6 feet.  The amount of blood is astronomical…more than the population on the earth, I’d imagine.

When we’re told in Scripture about the narrow gate (Matthew 7:13-14) and how “not many” will enter, how many of us think that just about everyone we know will be going to heaven and the idea of any being left out is casually ignored? Do you think of destruction on this scale?

At this point in Revelation when the earth is harvested, it appears only to reflect those living at the end of the age, either to glory with Christ or to the winepress of God’s wrath. What about all humanity who ever lived?  Does one’s death insulate a person from the wrath of God? 

Those who are already dead don’t have anything they could do about it prior to the harvest.  What about you?  As long as you have breath in your body and Jesus has not returned, you still have a choice.  That Eternal Choice.

===

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

Psalm 27:1 Of David. The LORD is my light and my salvation– whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life– of whom shall I be afraid?  2 When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. 3 Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.

4 One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.  5 For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock. 6 Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the LORD.

7 Hear my voice when I call, LORD; be merciful to me and answer me. 8 My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, LORD, I will seek. 9 Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, God my Savior. 10 Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me.

11 Teach me your way, LORD; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors. 12 Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, spouting malicious accusations. 13 I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. 14 Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.

===
This year’s Lent Devotional Series “Revelation in 40” resumes tomorrow after today’s Sabbath rest to meditate and worship, thanking God for His mercy and protection.

Some choices you can walk back pretty easily. 
You buy.  You regret.  You return.  Simple enough.

Not so the eternal choice which comes with an expiration date
and a point of no return.

Revelation 14:1 Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.  2 And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps.  3 And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.  4 These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they remained virgins. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among mankind and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb.  5 No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.

Theologians all agree that those purchased by the Lamb are exemplary and sing a new song of the redeemed.  On this next verse, there is far less agreement.

Revelation 14:6 Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth– to every nation, tribe, language and people.  7 He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.”

What is this eternal Gospel that doesn’t specifically name Jesus? 
Is the angel preaching it to the unredeemed as one last chance? 
Or is the eternal Gospel not actual salvation offered but only as evidence for judgment? 

The arguments delve into the pixelated view which defeats the purpose.

We are not at that point of no return…yet. 
Maybe it’s in Scripture as a warning that God’s gracious offer expires. 
For some, it’s warning for their death before Christ’s return
and others who will die to face Judgment.

Maybe the answer of salvation or Judgment is “yes,” holding them both in tension.  If there was one last chance for those who have no intention of taking God up on it…wouldn’t that just be added evidence for Judgment Day?  I think it’s fair to say that the Gospel cuts both ways and its function, in this instance, is determined by each person’s response.  It leads to eternal life were any to have accepted it, or its rejection leads to eternal damnation.

Perhaps it’s like Romans 12:19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 On the contrary: ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.’ 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

The big picture is the Gospel has been offered to all,
no indication follows that anyone loved God and was saved.
Rather the nations (so blindly engaged in idolatry and so drunk on sensual pleasures) were discovering what they truly loved was now somehow fallen. 

The party’s over.  There is no after-party,
and the hangover is one helluva doozy.

Revelation 14:8 A second angel followed and said, “‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great,’ which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries.”

Thoughts for today:

What is Babylon the Great?  Big picture: the allure of rejecting God to pursue a godless life.

How is Babylon the Great fallen?  What Babylon is or was or represents is speculation, therefore how it’s fallen is a mystery.  Remember this is still in the future.  Big picture: The identity is a mystery.  Her outcome is not.  She falls and fails.

The Eternal Gospel (the New Covenant cup of Christ) … or … “Babylon’s wine of adulteries” which comes with “wine of God’s fury”—is the choice really that hard?  It’s not like Indiana Jones and the Holy Grail where it’s a movie and guess-and-check, but here in Revelation, the Eternal Choice is clearly offered.

As much as people might prefer the idea that, at Judgment, one just ceases to exist (i.e., annihilationism), this passage offers no chance for that.

Revelation 14:9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, 10 they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.” 12 This calls for patient endurance on the part of the people of God who keep his commands and remain faithful to Jesus.

Worshiping the beast and its image, receiving the “mark of its name,” by choice or by force leading to capitulation, does not lead to a happy ending.  Don’t do it.

Patient.  Endurance.  Overcoming!  You’ve been warned.  Please, friends, choose like saints.

===

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

That whole alliance of evil—the dragon, the first beast, and the second beast—are all about a twisted mimicry and mockery.  Of those actions, none has attracted more attention through the ages than “the mark of the beast.”

The false prophet (second beast) isn’t satisfied with simply tricking people to worship the antichrist, it now engages in downright intimidation on those who refuse to follow the crowd.

Revelation 13:16 It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, 17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.

All people. 
Great and small.  Rich and poor.  Free and slave. 
Don’t miss the universality of that
in all the curiosity about what is the mark of the beast. 

There are some who think that their political power will protect them.  It won’t.  There are some who think their money will insulate them from it.  It won’t.  There are those who believe their freedom will be enough to prevent it.  But if COVID has taught us one thing, it’s that plenty of free people will follow the crowd with very little consideration to the long-term dangers.  They fail to see that one step beyond the precipice leads only one way: down.

Christians in our age fear the thought
that they cannot buy or sell unless the receive the mark. 
Their attempts to protect themselves lead them to specialize in acquiring
gold and food storage and ammo. 

I hate to break it to them
but when the End Time to beat all end times is upon us,
Christians can’t outlast it in their own strength,
with their own planning, or with their own stockpiles. 
There is no surviving this storm by having a secret stash.

What Christians truly need to survive is the seal of the Holy Spirit guaranteeing our inheritance.  Ephesians 1:13 “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession– to the praise of his glory.”

This is where the mark of the beast is no joke–it’s a mark mockery of that God-given seal.  A mark is a seal of ownership either to the beast (bearing the mark of the beast) …or for those that refused it (empowered by the Holy Spirit’s seal, committing that they belong to God). There’s evil … there’s good … and there’s no place in between. No fence-sitting. No neutrality like Switzerland. You will have a mark. Which will it be?

Thoughts for today:

Revelation 13:18 This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. That number is 666.

Thinking about mimicry and mockery, in what way does the number of a man (666) display an evil trinity with 6 being one short of holy perfection? 

There’s mockery of the deliverance from slavery.  Exodus 13:3 “Then Moses said to the people, “Commemorate this day, the day you came out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery, because the LORD brought you out of it with a mighty hand….9 This observance will be for you like a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that this law of the LORD is to be on your lips. For the LORD brought you out of Egypt with his mighty hand.”

And a mockery of God and His Word. (See Deuteronomy 6, especially verse 13 “Fear the LORD your God, serve him only.) 

===

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

Again, as our series on Revelation continues, we do not study evil to entertain ourselves as some sort of macabre obsession like binge-watching zombie movies.  We study what is good and when Scripture leads us to protectively recognize evil when we see it, we do well to pay attention.

Revelation 13:11 “Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon.”

Satan mimics, trying to craft “a close” even if it’s “no cigar.”  Two horns like a lamb (like the Lamb?) but it spoke like Satan (not like God).  Definitely not that close.  This twisted mimicry continues:

Revelation 13:12 “It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed.

Time out:  Kind of like Jesus exercised authority on behalf of God, to bring people back to worship God, and Jesus’ crucifixion fatality was “healed” by His resurrection, and He still bears the “stigmata”—the wounds of crucifixion.  Let’s continue:

Revelation 13:13 And it performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of the people. 14 Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.”

This beast is sometimes called the false prophet.  Like a prophet, he exercises power on behalf of someone else.  He performs great signs, fire from heaven even, just like Elijah called upon God to do.  Just as prophets of Baal could deceive people with their idolatry for a while, this false prophet mimics signs, and points to the false god to worship.  Part of how he accomplishes his task is through intimidation: he forces them to worship or be killed.

Thoughts for today:

Do you value your life?  Is losing your earthly life worth it to hold onto your faith and eternal life? 

Or if someone (or some government) forced you to worship the antichrist, would you have the resolve to refuse?

I’ve been thinking a lot about COVID and the pressures it placed upon average people.  Mandate this, mandate that.  Closures of businesses, little mom and pop shops.  Closures of churches and definitely no singing.  Driving everyone to using credit and debit, the so-called cashless society.  Every place I went asking for exact change if using cash because of a national coin shortage.  How people treated each other who didn’t want to comply with gym closures or still today in corners of the nation and world, demanding wearing masks everywhere, even after the pandemic is behind us.  The pressures people put on other people, demanding to know one’s vaccination status or you can’t go to a concert, go out to eat, buy food, and some championing the idea of not receiving medical treatment if you didn’t comply with the government edict.

The point is:
if you think it can’t happen here, IT ALREADY HAS as a trial run. 
Time for each of us to search our hearts, our consciences,
and know for certain where our allegiances reside.

===

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

Our adversary, Satan, appears as a dragon and he’s got a couple of sidekicks, the first of which is the “beast coming out of the sea. “It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name… The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority.”  (Revelation 13:1-2)

Right now might be a good time to say that as much as we don’t want to fill our brains with studying evil, if Scripture itself leads us there, God has a purpose of preparation in letting us know what to look out for.

Revelation 13:3 “One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed.”

Our adversary cannot do creative endeavors, only mimic. 
Here he’s mimicking the “stigmata”–the wounds of Christ.

Revelation 13:3b “The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast. 4 People worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can wage war against it?”

People will blindly follow
worldly powers proclaimed by echo chambers of cheerleaders. 
For the Christian, it calls for discernment.

Revelation 13:5 “The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven.”

As Lord Acton famously said,
“Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

World powers and political leaders too often
have no place for a higher power than themselves. 
No place for God.

Revelation 13:7 “It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.”

It was given power—straight from the pit of hell—power to wage war against God’s people (and everything/everyone seeking good). It’s a spiritual battle.  A holy war with good guys (who follow Christ as His witnesses) and some very bad guys who persecute and kill them. 

It will not be a beautiful middle ground world where everyone is the same
…a world in which tolerance is a virtue. 
No. Tolerance is a weapon of deceit
used to level the playing field between good and evil. 
It’s a world of power and submission,
right vs. wrong, good and evil,
and victory and defeat.

Thoughts for today:

Are we ever asked to “tolerate” anything clearly good or holy?  What types of things are we pressured to tolerate?

If it was good, would there be any need to tolerate it or be commanded to?  Wouldn’t people embrace it naturally?

Revelation 13:8 All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast– all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.  9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.”

What group do you think are the “inhabitants of the earth”?

Regarding God’s people, read Revelation 13:10 “If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity they will go. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword they will be killed.” This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of God’s people.” 

When everything hits the fan, there will be a great divide some being inhabitants of the earth who worship the beast and God’s people on the other side.  Knowing this is how Scripture describes the end, are you preparing your heart for this patient endurance and faithfulness in case it happens in your lifetime?

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

Remember Woe, woe, woe?  Three of them.  So far, we’ve seen woe number two ending with resurrection of the two witnesses who preached with fire and power who had been killed by the beast. Resurrection, terror among the inhabitants of the earth, and the second woe passed.  But it doesn’t end there. Now we’re on to trumpet number 7 and the bowls of judgment and things get even more intense.

Revelation 11:15 “The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever.”

Do you find it interesting that there’s worship just before Judgment?

“We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. 18 The nations were angry, and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your people who revere your name, both great and small– and for destroying those who destroy the earth.” 19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.”

God’s temple is open, and He sends an earthquake and a hailstorm upon the earth, but our adversary, Satan, isn’t going to go down without a fight.  Satan doesn’t care how many people die in the process, or how many he takes to hell with him—in fact the more the merrier.  As far as the devil is concerned, robbing God of any of His Image-bearers is considered a satanic win.  Even though he knows he’s defeated, it’s still war.

If Satan and the unbelieving world weren’t angry enough at the first 6 six trumpet plagues, or at the resurrection of two of God’s best and brightest who had pronounced the plagues, Revelation 12:13-17 tells us,

“When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth…[he] was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring– those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.”

Satan’s rage compels him and his followers to bring war against God’s people.  Looking for a peaceful ending and the world becoming a beautiful place?  Give up those thoughts.  It’s not going to be pretty. 

But God always gives us hope. 
All because of the resurrection. 
It was a game changer, the tipping point in the spiritual war,
and the final blow in God’s holy arsenal
ensuring His total victory.  

Thoughts for today:

Read Revelation 12.  If you’d like to read the devotional that I wrote on that in 2019 and speaks still today (and including today’s supplemental graphic), you can find it at The Dragon, the Woman, and Rage.

What is it about resurrection that enrages Satan so much?  How did human death make Satan feel like his victory was complete?  How did the Cross give him the delusion that he’d defeated God?  How did the resurrection change all that?

Revelation 12:4 The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born.  5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.” And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne.”  Who is that Child?

How do we overcome?  Revelation 12:10 “Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: ‘Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. 11 They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. 12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.’”

Things will not improve, ascending to a glorious perfection by man’s efforts at negotiation.  Satan is mad.  And he’s not going down alone.

===

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

All seemed lost. 

Resuming our study of Revelation in 40, let’s pick up where we were before our Sabbath. The faithful witness of two of God’s best and brightest ended in a seeming triumph of evil as they were left for dead in the public square of sin.  Among the infidels, there was gloating, a gift exchange, and celebrating all around! And all that scoffing “Where was God? Where is your God now?”

Don’t worry.  He’s just getting started.

Revelation 11:11 “But after the three and a half days the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them.  2 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked on.”

Resurrection beats death. 
Every time. 
There’s nothing, absolutely nothing,
that anyone in the world can do to stop it.

Revelation 11:13 At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

Hey infidels, be afraid.  Fear this.  Their terror is, in a sense, backdoor glory to God.  Their terror acknowledged God’s power. They couldn’t help themselves but acknowledge that resurrection vindicated the two witnesses and everyone else who gazed in a gleeful gaper’s delay, spiked the football, and scoffed up a storm was in deep trouble. 

God wasn’t absent,
He was just biding His time
to prove a greater victory,
and to the infidels, theirs was a demise proved certain.

Revelation 11:14 The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon. 15 The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever.”  16 And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God,  17 saying: “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. 18 The nations were angry, and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your people who revere your name, both great and small– and for destroying those who destroy the earth.”

The true victory celebration is in heaven. 
Resurrection triumphs over death.
It all started with Jesus’ resurrection!
Our hero is none other than God Himself.

Thoughts for today:

Revelation 11:19 “Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.” Why the ark of the covenant?

Think about all the various pride parades in today’s public square.  How do you think God feels about all that?

The victory of heaven is both past and future.  What secured it in the past? What secures it for the future?

How is the resurrection key?

===

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

“Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.” Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.  He went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne.  And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people.  And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation.  You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5:5-10)

This year’s Lent Devotional Series “Revelation in 40” resumes tomorrow after today’s Sabbath rest to meditate and worship as they are presently doing in heaven.