REVELATION 6 THE TRIBULATION BEGINS2010 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Revelation 6 The Tribulation Begins

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2010.

So we're here in Revelation chapter 6 this morning, kind of heading into a new section once again of the book of Revelation. If you consider the outline of the book of Revelation that we've been going back to, Jesus outlines the book for us in chapter 1 verse 19, where he tells John, first of all, to write down the things which he had seen, that is the things that had already taken place, which he had seen.

which was the vision of Jesus that is recorded in chapter 1 of the book of Revelation. Then Jesus tells John to write down the things which are. And that's the second section of the book of Revelation, chapters 2 and 3, where Jesus writes seven letters to seven different churches, dealing with not only the church, but the church age, the entire existence of the church. And then Revelation,

Jesus tells John to write down the things which will take place after the church age. And that's what we're looking at now, the things that are taking place after the church is out of the picture, the yet future events that are going to happen. And that began in chapter 4 as John was caught up into heaven as a picture, as an example of the church that will be caught up or raptured to meet the Lord.

And he's been in heaven in chapters 4 and 5, but now as we go forward in chapter 6 and all the way through about chapter 18 or 19, we're going to be looking at what's happening on earth as the church is in heaven. And so John's going to be looking at and describing for us the events as they unfold during the tribulation period.

You know, as we study these things, some of the things that we'll be talking about and looking at are not very pleasant things because really the tribulation period is a period of judgment. It's seven years of judgment as God is pouring out His wrath upon the earth.

And so some of these things are not very exciting things for us to think about or to consider. And yet I would remind you that at the very beginning of this book, in Revelation chapter 1, verse 1, it tells us that this is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to Jesus to give to John to deliver to us that we would know the things that must shortly take place.

And so this is something that God wants us to know. He devoted a good portion of this book and His word to these coming judgments that He will bring upon the earth because He wants us to know what is going to be

happening here upon the earth. It helps us in several different ways. It helps us to live purely and be ready to meet Jesus, to be looking for his return. It also helps us to have a burden for those around us because as we understand what's going to be happening, you will understand, you will agree, these are things that you would want nobody to go through.

And so it gives us a burden, an urgency to share with others so that they do not go through this time of wrath and trouble upon the earth. These are things that are yet future, but they will be happening at any moment or very soon.

You remember the list we've been talking about as we've been going through the book of Revelation. The things which must shortly take place. It begins in chapter 4 with the rapture of the church as the church is caught up to be with the Lord in the air. And then as the church is out of the way, as the church is out of this world...

then the earth will continue to go on into seven years of tribulation, judgment, wrath, destruction. We'll begin to see it today here in chapter 6, but then it will continue and extend on into worse and worse things as we go forward in the book of Revelation.

It does come to an end though and it ends with the return of Jesus Christ in Revelation chapter 19. He comes back and puts an end to the battle of Armageddon that is taking place. He establishes his kingdom for a thousand years and he rules and reigns on the earth for that thousand year period.

At the end of the thousand years, there's one final rebellion that Satan will lead against the Lord. Of course, he will not succeed. And instead, it will usher in Judgment Day. And so that will be the great white throne judgment that we'll get to in Revelation chapter 20.

And there at the great white throne judgment, Satan and his demons will be cast into the lake of fire, which is a place of permanent judgment. And then in addition to that, Revelation 20.15 tells us that whoever is not written in the book of life of all humanity will be cast into the lake of fire at that point as well. It's the final judgment for all who have rejected God and have not had relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

Then as we go forward in the things which must shortly take place after the final judgment of the great white throne, there will be the new Jerusalem, a new heavens and a new earth and the rest of eternity that stretches before us that has more in store for us than we can even begin to imagine.

And so those are the things that we're going to be talking about, but we're going to devote a good portion of our time, chapters 6 through 19, dealing with the tribulation and the judgments that will be going on. There's lots of judgments that we'll be talking about over the coming weeks, and they're kind of divided into three groups of seven. You have the seven seals, which we'll be talking about six of those today. Then you have the seven trumpets,

Then you have the seven bowls or vials of judgment. And each one of them has a corresponding judgment or a corresponding event that goes along with it. In between all of these sets of judgments, there's some parenthetical thoughts and we'll get into that in the coming weeks. But for the most part, we're talking about all of the things that will be going on during the tribulation period.

Now as we studied chapter 5 last week, we were introduced to this scroll. It's the scroll that was in the right hand of the Father as He sat upon the throne. And the Lamb was the only one worthy to take the scroll and to loose its seals.

And what we find here in chapter 6 now is the opening of these seals. Each one is being broken and as each seal is broken, there's an event that's taking place upon the earth corresponding with the judgment and the wrath of God. And so what we find happening here is Jesus opens the seals, things begin to happen upon the earth. And that's the beginning here of the tribulation period.

And so the first seal is opened in verses 1 and 2, and the result is the Antichrist comes forth to conquer. Look at verse 1. He says,

And so here is the first seal is opened. As Jesus pops open that first seal of the scroll, there is a loud voice that tells John, hey, come and see what's happening. Again, these are things God wants us to pay attention to.

And John sees, he beholds a white horse. This is the beginning of the tribulation period. He sees this rider on this white horse. He has a bow and he has a crown and he's going forth in order to conquer.

Now a few weeks ago as we looked at the overview of God's prophetic timeline, we learned in Daniel chapter 9 verse 27 that the tribulation period begins with the signing of a covenant or with a treaty that is made between the Antichrist and the nation of Israel.

Other nations may be involved as well, but we know it's specifically involving the Antichrist and the nation of Israel. And that is the beginning of the tribulation period. And so it's very understandable that it makes perfect sense for the first seal to be broken to be the coming of the Antichrist. And so he comes on the scene and now is going to rise to power and begin to attempt to rule the world.

He's riding on a white horse. And a white horse is something that speaks of conquering. When a king would come back from battle, if he was victorious, he would ride into town. There'd be a great celebration as he was riding in on a white horse. It was symbolic and represented of the conquering and the victory that was accomplished. And so he's riding on a white horse and he's going forth in order to conquer.

But the scripture points out that he has a bow...

but no mention of arrows. And so it's interesting because it's probably referring to, it makes sense as we look at some other scriptures, that he's going forth to conquer, but it's not with military might that he is conquering. Instead, he's conquering really with political power, with deception and things like that. He's given a crown, which is a victor's crown. And so again, he's going forth to conquer.

In Daniel chapter 11, there's a lot of details there that we won't get into, but the prophet Daniel is given some vision about some things that are going to happen during the Alexander the Great's reign and some of the things that are going to take place immediately following his reign. That's past. But also he's given vision farther into the future of the things that will take place during the tribulation time. And

And in Daniel chapter 11 verse 21, in reference to this coming world leader, he says that there will arise a vile person to whom they will not give the honor of royalty, but he shall come in peaceably and seize the kingdom by intrigue.

The Antichrist is going to come in, he's going to gain power, not by some military victories, he's going to come in peaceably and he's going to seize control by intrigue. The idea of intrigue, it means to plot craftily or underhandedly. And so he's going to sneak in by plotting, by deceit, by craftiness, and he's going to gain power at the beginning of the tribulation period.

Paul, the apostle, also tells us in 2 Thessalonians 2 that the Antichrist, when he comes, he will come in accordance with the working of Satan, with power, with signs, with lying wonders, and with unrighteous deception.

And so he's going to come in and deceive the world. He's going to demonstrate supernatural power. There's going to be signs and lying wonders. He's going to be faking the world out, showing and declaring to the world that he is the answer that they're looking for. If you can imagine, the world is in chaos at this point. The rapture has taken place.

All of the Christians worldwide instantly are gone. They're up in heaven with Jesus. All kinds of panic, all kinds of things are going to result here on the earth. And he's going to come on the scene as, I have the answer. I'm the Savior. I'm the one that you need. He will have signs and lying wonders and he will deceive those who are perishing. He will deceive the world as a result.

And so he's going to rise to power, not again with military might and conquering, but with intrigue, with deception, with lying signs and wonders. Well, he comes on the scene peaceably, but soon after, there's war. That's the second seal as we look at verses 3 and 4.

It says, when he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, come and see. Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth. And that people should kill one another. And there was given to him a great sword. So the first rider, the Antichrist, he comes out with a bow. Here, the second rider, he comes out with a big sword. He is...

represented of war. He comes forth and he's given power to take peace from the earth as he rides a fiery red horse. And so there will be a short season of peace as the Antichrist takes the reins of power. But soon after...

We don't know the time frame. That's not given to us here. But at some point, the next thing that happens is there's war. And in Daniel chapter 11, as it's describing the events of the tribulation period, there is this great battle that takes place between the northern king and the southern king.

And so there's these battles that will be going on as this war breaks out. Now it doesn't say specifically if it's just one big, you know, World War III type of thing, or if it's a lot of little wars that go on, but whatever the case is, there's going to be no peace on the earth. Now as we look at these things, as we talk about the tribulation period, we understand that the tribulation is broken up into two parts.

Because right in the middle of the tribulation period, the Antichrist is going to do the unthinkable. He's going to break the covenant that he made to begin the tribulation period. He's going to go into the midst of the temple and set up an image of himself. He's going to proclaim himself as God and demand the world to worship him.

That is the divider of the tribulation period. And so there's the three and a half years that lead up to that and then the three and a half years after that, that will be going on. And as we look at that division, we often refer to that first three and a half years, we often refer to it as the good years.

Now, when we say that, when we describe it as the good years, I think it's important to remember it's only the good years in comparison to the last three and a half years. It's the better half of the tribulation in that not as much is happening.

But they are not good years by any stretch of the imagination. It is going to be worse than it is now anywhere in the world. So whatever condition you want to put yourself in and go to any part of the world, it's going to be worse than that during the tribulation period as we will see.

It's going to be horrible and it will just continue to get worse as the time progresses. And so the very next thing is the Antichrist comes on the scene. There's going to be war. Peace will be taken from the earth. Well, the third seal now is broken. Jesus pops open the third seal and the result now is famine in verse 5 and 6.

It says,

And so now as the third seal is opened, again, the next living creature, the third living creature said, come and see. Hey, pay attention to this. And John looks and he beholds a black horse that comes out.

And the rider on the black horse has a pair of scales in his hands. You can picture the balances that are used to weigh things and to measure out things. And it's speaking of, it's symbolic of famine that will come upon the earth. There's going to be a great worldwide famine as a result of this third seal being opened.

And in order to describe the extent of this famine, John hears a voice from the midst of the four living creatures. And the voice says, a quart of wheat for a denarius and three quarts of barley for a denarius.

There's going to be a severe famine that goes on so that the food and the supplies are rationed. There's great scarcity and everything is going to be measured out in detail and it's going to be very expensive. The denarius of that time was what a common, regular, average Joe person would make for working a full day.

And so the idea here is he says a quart of wheat for a denarius and three quarts of barley for a denarius. It's saying that for a full day's wage, you will be able to obtain a quart of wheat or three quarts of barley. And so the common worker would basically be doing everything all day long, working really hard, doing everything they could just in order to be able to eat for that day.

You think a loaf of bread is expensive now. If you do the math, $10 an hour, let's just say that's common, you know, everyday normal wages.

Eight hours a day, that's $80 loaf of bread. That's the idea of what's going to be happening here. That's the severity and the extent. You think times are hard now in the recession that we're experiencing. This is nothing compared to what is going to be happening during the tribulation period. It's going to be boiled down to just the bare necessities of

Now what's interesting here is the voice as it pronounces this, you know,

Now, oil and wine, those are luxury items. And so what's suggested here is that there's still luxuries for the wealthy. The rich, you know, they still are doing okay. The oil and the wine, those aren't harmed. They're still able to enjoy their luxuries. But the rest of the people will basically be just doing everything that they can in order to survive.

And so this third seal is going to be severe. It's going to be desperate as there is this worldwide famine. Now there's famines all over the world, even right now as we are here this morning. There's famines that are going on and people are in this type of situation. But the difference here is this is going to be worldwide. This is going to be the condition all across the globe. The fourth seal now is opened and the result is death. Look at verse 7.

Then when he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, Come and see. And so I looked, and behold, a pale horse, and the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth. Here now the fourth seal is opened as Jesus is opening this scroll.

And out comes a pale horse or a greenish, kind of pale green horse. And as this horse comes out, there's a rider who is named. The other riders aren't named, but this one is named. This rider's name is Death. And along with Death comes Hades. There's going to be massive death at this point here in the tribulation period.

It brings up a good question, that is, what happens to people who die during the tribulation period? Well, there's a difference between those who are believers in the tribulation period and die, and those who are unbelievers. And so, as he says that death is coming as a rider on this horse, and then Hades is following with him, it gives us some insight into what is going to be happening.

In Luke chapter 16, Jesus gives us the account of something that happens in Hades. And we get to learn about Hades from this account.

Hades was a place of judgment, but it was a place really of reservation for the final judgment that will take place at the great white throne. And Jesus tells and gives the account of a rich man who is unrighteous and a poor man named Lazarus who was righteous. And Jesus gives the account and tells how they both died.

And the rich man, when he dies, he went to Hades, this place of torment, this place of judgment, where he was waiting for the final judgment at the great white throne. But as he is there in judgment and suffering greatly, he sees across this great chasm this poor man, Lazarus, who had been a beggar at his gate.

And Lazarus was not in a place of torment or suffering. He was in a place of comfort known as Abraham's bosom. And he was there being comforted until the time that Jesus would die upon the cross and then resurrect. And at that time, all of those who were righteous who had died were set free from that place of comfort and they were taken with the Lord into heaven.

And so now all that's left of Hades is that place of judgment, which is a temporary place until the final judgment at the great white throne. And so as death now rides out on this pale horse and Hades is following along, the idea and the understanding here is that people are dying and they're going to this place of temporary judgment until the final judgment.

until the great white throne, until the final judgment that will take place in Revelation chapter 20. That's for the unrighteous dead. The righteous dead, we'll talk about in the very next seal, in seal number five. But let's consider this judgment that takes place here for a moment. He looks, he sees this rider come out, his

His name is Death. Hades is coming with him. And John says, or really God is giving the vision, that the power was given to Death and Hades over one-fourth of the earth to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth. And so there's going to be all kinds of death at this time. A fourth of the earth.

If that's hard for you to think about or imagine, just start thinking down your block. Your next door neighbors, how many are there in that house? And then the neighbors right there next, so maybe one per household, all the way down your block, all around your neighborhood. One out of every four people just gone, dead, during this time of the tribulation period. It's a massive number as you begin to think about it. There's...

some numbers here on the screen for you. The world population as of yesterday morning, 6.8 billion people. Of course, that's an estimation. You know, they didn't say everybody hold up your hand and we counted the hands. But you get the idea. It's a big number. It's about 6.8 billion people in the world. Now, let's assume 32% of the world claim to be Christians. And

Let's assume that their claims are valid. We know from Revelation chapter 2 and 3, everyone who goes to church and everyone who says they are a Christian, really they are not. There's a lot of people who are deceived and they think that they're fine, but really they don't have relationship with God. But let's just assume the 32% who claim to be Christian really are. And that's about 2.1 billion people. And so the rapture happens,

Those people are gone. Those who are right with God, those who are like the Church of Philadelphia of Revelation chapter 3, they're gone. They're out of the picture. And so heading into the tribulation then, what you have is a population of about 4.6 billion people if the rapture were to happen today and these numbers are accurate. Of course, we're just estimating. This isn't prophecy, okay? But so 4.6 billion. Now you take...

the fourth seal, and understand that one-fourth of the earth was going to be killed during this time, and you take a fourth of 4.6 billion and you come up with 1.1 billion people that will die as a result of this fourth seal that is being opened. The remainder of the population then will be 3.5 billion people that will be left on the earth to endure the tribulation period.

Now, they also will die and there's going to be some severe things that go on. But in this particular seal, in this particular time frame, whatever it might be, it's not a very long period of time because the whole thing is seven years and there's still a lot of things yet to happen. And so there's, within a short span of time, 1.1 billion people will be killed from various ways and different things, wars and famines and such, etc.

It's a lot of people. Now to give you a little bit of a scope on what type of magnitude this is, because people die from wars and famines and everything already. So over the past 2,000 years, I just kind of threw together some rough numbers from some high estimations. None of these can be exact. But for the past 2,000 years, if you add up the death toll, the highest estimation of the death tolls,

for all the major wars over the past 2,000 years, you come up with 381 million people who have died as a result of a major war. If you include the genocide, that is like the Holocaust, and there's been many types of genocides like that or attempted genocides, that comes up to 49 million over the past several thousand years. If you include major famines,

That have taken place around the world over the past 2,000 years or so. Then you get another 88 million. You add all that together and it comes to 518 million. That's over a time span of about 2,000 years.

Of course, a lot of people have died of old age and disease and that type of thing. But for these specific types of things, you're talking about 518 million over this long span of time. Now, here in the fourth seal, as the fourth seal is open, you're talking about double that in a very short time span. This is going to be horrendous.

The disease that will result, the things that will take place as a result, the emotional state of the people as a result. I mean, it's just going to be on every level, in every aspect, it's going to be horrendous. As this seal is opened and one-fourth of the earth is killed, is put to death in a short period of time. Amazing. Crazy to think about. But it's going to happen.

And that's not the end. Then we go on to the fifth seal. Verse 9, he says, When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. Here in the fifth seal, what we find is martyrs. And they're going to be comforted by the Lord. He opens the fifth seal and John sees the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God. And so,

In the fourth seal we see death, we see Hades, the unrighteous who die. They are taken to that place of temporary judgment until the final judgment day, the great white throne judgment. But those who are believers who die, they come here before the throne of God under the altar. And here John sees them. These are the ones who have been slain for the word of God and for their testimony which they held.

These are the martyrs who are coming forth out of the tribulation period. And so those who die in seal four, probably some of them are dying as a result of persecution. That is going to be a major thing that's going to be happening during the tribulation period.

And so it also answers another question, by the way. Many times people ask the question, will there be a chance for people to be saved during the tribulation period? And the answer is yes. We have here martyrs who have died for the word of God and for their testimony which they held. And so there will be an opportunity to follow God, to get right with God after the rapture happens. The church has gone out of the picture, but you can imagine...

There's going to be a great widespread awakening, we pray, we hope, those who we've been sharing with, those who we've been talking to about the tribulation and about the rapture and about the things that are to come, as they see that it just happened, there's going to be those who believe and there's going to be those who turn to God.

And as a result, they will be living in severe persecution. They will have an opportunity to be saved, but they will most likely have to die for that decision. They'll have the opportunity to receive God, but they will have to be committed and willing to be martyred in order to stay faithful to God.

Here we have these who are from the tribulation, who are there, they've been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held.

Now, some people, as they consider, oh, there's an opportunity to be saved after the rapture. Some people then consider and think and strategize, okay, so I can live right now how I want. I can party. I can have a good time. I don't really have to pay much attention to the things of God because after the rapture, well, then I'll just, I'll really get serious then. And then, then...

after I've kind of lived my life, you know, then I can follow the Lord and then, you know, it's only a short time. At the worst, it's seven years, you know. That way, I don't waste a lot of time, you know, right now living righteously. I can only just live those seven years and I know people are chuckling but that is the reality of how some people think. It is the truth and

And if that's you, if that's your mindset, if you're thinking, well, I'll just wait and then if the rapture happens, well, then I'll know and then I'll take it seriously. Then I'll really get right with God. Then I'll know these things are true. Listen, if you're trying to wait till after the rapture,

in order to get right with God or to get serious about God. Listen, you are in for a rude awakening. That is very unwise. Now, I use the word unwise. Mario says I should use the word stupid. I'm trying to be, you know, not so vulgar. But it's unwise to think that after the rapture, you will then turn and follow God. There's a couple of reasons why that's unwise. Number one,

it's going to be a terrible time to be alive. As we read these things, we're just getting started here. We're just scratching the surface. This is going to be insanely horrible beyond your worst nightmares in order for you to live during the tribulation period. You do not want to be here during this time. Another reason why it's unwise is it's often been said, if you can't live for God now, why do you think that you'll be able to die for Him later?

If it's so hard for you to live for God right now, you will probably not have what it takes in order to be faithful until death. The third reason why this is unwise, to try to wait till after the rapture to get things right with God, is 2 Thessalonians tells us that when the Antichrist comes, it will be with great deception.

not only will it be with great deception, but specifically, it says that it will be a great deception for those who have refused the truth, those who have rejected the truth.

And so if you say, yeah, I know the truth, but I don't really want to walk that way right now. I don't want to focus on the Lord right now. I'm not going to live my life in obedience to God. I'm not going to really be serious about my commitment. You're refusing the truth. And that deception, that great delusion that will come upon the world is specifically the

to those who have refused or rejected the truth. And so it's unwise, it's foolish, it's ridiculous to think that after the rapture,

You can get right with God and in between now and then, you'll just live however you want because you don't want to live during that time. It's going to be terrible. If you can't live for God now, it's doubtful you'll be able to die for him later. And thirdly, there's going to be a great deception and you're going to be vulnerable to that deception if you try to wait until then to start living for God. People who received Jesus during the tribulation,

have basically two avenues, two options. Either they're going to die for their faith because of the great persecution that's going on. And so right now, you think a little bit of persecution is your buddies give you a hard time or they don't invite you to the parties or whatever. That's not persecution. The persecution that's going on here is going to be death. Death.

People are going to put you to death. They're going to be furious as they're miserable because of what's happening in the tribulation period. They're going to blame the followers of God and they're going to be put to death. And so that's one option. That's one avenue for those who receive Jesus during the tribulation. The second avenue, I don't know if it's better or worse.

Those who receive Jesus during the tribulation period, they will either be put to death for their faith or they will have to survive the entire seven years of tribulation. There will be some who survive and they will go into the millennium. We'll get to that. But to have to survive seven years of the worst things this world has ever seen, it's not even really imaginable. It's unthinkable. You do not want to be here during that time.

And so the point is, get right with God now. It's time to get ready. Here in the fifth seal though, John does see those, there will be those. All hope is not lost. If there are those who are left behind, they will have an opportunity to turn and get right with God. They'll be put to death and here John sees them.

And in verse 10, these martyrs cry out with a loud voice saying, And so these martyrs are asking God a question. God, how long? These people have wrongly, unjustly put us to death for believing in you and following you. When are you going to avenge them? When are you going to repay and bring judgment upon them? In verse 11,

It says, And so the answer is, hang in there, rest right now, relax a little bit, the number's not complete yet. The full number of those who will be put to death during the tribulation period, the righteous who die for their faith, is not complete yet.

And when that is complete, then vengeance will be done. Then justice will be done. Then Jesus is going to take care of those who have dealt wrongfully with his servants. And so here the martyrs are comforted, those who have died, but they were believers in the tribulation period. Well, then we move on to the sixth seal. And here in the sixth seal, as it's opened, there's catastrophic destruction.

Difficult to imagine events that take place. Beginning in verse 12 it says, Here we begin to see some even more devastating things happening. There's a great earthquake happening.

The sun becomes black like sackcloth, like black cloth. It becomes dark. The moon becomes like blood. It turns to a deep red color. Now as we look and seek to understand what is being talked about here, we need to understand that

Well, I like the way David Guzik puts it. He says it's best to regard these pictures as real, but poetic. John isn't using technically precise scientific language. He's simply describing what he saw.

And so it's not that the sun actually dies and has no more light at this point, or that the moon actually turns to blood, but what is happening here is probably atmospheric. That from the Earth's perspective, as they look at the sun, that the sun becomes black, that there's something blocking, that there's something covering.

as a result as well, the moon would be blood red as a result of the things that are going on in the atmosphere. And so, that's probably what's happening is there's some type of event, some type of catastrophe that has taken place, filled the atmosphere with smoke, with dust, with...

whatever kind of debris and that is what is happening. That's the result. Some have looked at these things and suggested, you know, this is probably a good description of what would happen if there was a nuclear exchange. That, you know, there was nuclear bombs going off, messing with the tectonic plates,

of the earth and causing those earthquakes, the clouds of dust from the flames and everything, the smoke would fill the atmosphere and could cause these types of things going on, the sun becoming black like sackcloth and the moon becoming like blood.

And so what John sees here is this great earthquake and then these events happening. If you could consider or think about, you remember back in April, there was that volcanic eruption there in Iceland and the ash cloud that went up and then covered much of Europe and disrupted all of the airlines and things like that. You know, something like that. Those types of events that could fill the atmosphere with all kinds of

smoke or debris or whatever that would bring this type of result. And so it's a real event. It's really happening. But he's also speaking poetically. Again, not a precise scientific language because the sun later on, we'll see in a couple of chapters, will be struck and will lose much of its light. But it's not yet. That happens a little bit later.

Well, then in verse 13, he says, and the stars of heaven fell to the earth as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind.

And so here, in addition to the earthquake and the effects of the atmosphere, the sun, the moon happening, here now also stars of heaven are falling to the earth. Again, understanding that he's probably seeing comets that are coming, that are hitting the earth.

as a fig tree drops its figs when it's shaken by a mighty wind. And so it's probably a multitude. It's not just, you know, one big one, but there's a lot of debris or a lot of something that's coming into the Earth's atmosphere and hitting the Earth. Now, thinking about a comet hitting the Earth...

You know, we had just a couple of weeks ago, it wasn't a near miss, but there was some objects, some large space objects that were near, that passed by the earth recently. And there are lots of things in space that, well, that could happen and that could come and cause us quite a bit of problems. You understand that.

Going back to your, you know, I think it's probably third grade or fourth grade, you know, the earth is not the biggest, you know, baddest planet of our solar system. We're tiny. There's a lot of things around us that are much bigger and the things that happen to those other planets and those other things really do affect us greatly and there can be, you know, a lot of problems.

The solar system, it's been described as being very fine-tuned and just a little bit of shift in certain directions and, well, chaos can result. And that kind of seems like what's happening here is the sixth seal is open, that there's all kinds of problems going on as the stars or comets are falling to the earth. Now, I did some just kind of fun playing with numbers. The University of Arizona...

put together a website so that you can plug in some figures and calculate what would be the result if a meteor was to hit the earth and you can play with the size. And so what I did was I chose a size of five miles in diameter. Not the biggest, not the smallest, but just, you know,

to pick a size, I just picked a size of five miles in diameter. It's big. I mean, that's pretty big. You wouldn't want that to land on your house. But if five miles in diameter, this comet was to break through the Earth's atmosphere and hit the Earth...

like the stars falling out of heaven as described here in verse 13, what would be the result? And so the next variable you had to put in was how far away are you from this event? How far do you want to be away from it? And so I chose 50 miles. I thought, you know, that'd be pretty safe to be 50 miles away from this comet hitting the earth. That wouldn't be too bad. And what we found out or what happened was

There's a crater, it's of course estimating what the impact would be, but its estimations come up with a crater the size of 96 miles across and one mile deep. That would be the result of this impact, the result of this comet that would hit the earth.

Now at 50 miles away, 4.03 seconds after the impact, there would be this fireball from the thermal radiation. And 50 miles away, it says your position is inside the fireball. So we would be consumed just completely by this really, really brilliant, bright, hot fireball that was a result of this comet hitting the planet.

But then there's seismic effects. And so if you didn't get burned up, somehow you know you survived that. Then in 16 seconds after impact, then you would feel an earthquake. You'd feel the seismic activity as a result of that impact. And it would register on the Richter scale approximately 10.2 times.

Now, that is greater than any earthquake that has ever been experienced or recorded on the face of the earth. They described some of the damage that that would cause. Masonry and frame structures, their foundations would just be completely destroyed. Those buildings would collapse. Wooden structures would be destroyed. Bridges would be destroyed. Dams, dikes, embarkments would be destroyed. There would be huge landslides.

Underground pipelines would be broken completely out of service. It would be just crazy, the seismic activity as a result of a comet hitting 50 miles away.

Well, that's not the end of it. Then there's the air blast. So if you survive the fireball, then you survive the 10.2 earthquake, then there's the blast of air that results from this comet hitting. And so 50 miles away, four minutes after the impact of this comet, there would be an air blast that would be estimated, the force would be equivalent to 10,400 PSI.

I don't know if that number registers or means anything to you, but 10,000... Okay, consider your car tires. They contain generally about 30 to 35 PSI. This is 10,400 PSI. This is a lot of pressure. It's equivalent to 15,400 miles per hour winds. That's what hits you four minutes after this comet impacts.

And so again, describing the damage, it says, "Any multi-story building will be laid flat." So whatever survived the earthquake now is laid flat by this blast of air. Wood-framed buildings completely collapse. Multi-story steel buildings will be just bent out of shape, twisted and all crazy. Bridges again, all those types of things. Here's a real shocking one. Even the glass is going to shatter. I bet you were surprised by that, right?

The final one is that cars and trucks are vehicles. How will they be impacted? It says they'll be moved, they'll be largely displaced and grossly distorted and require rebuilding. So immediately, transportation is done with. Immediately, buildings are just leveled. Immediately, there's these earthquakes that are going on. You get the picture here. Now, what he sees here in verse 13 is stars of heaven fell to the earth.

So various sizes, various impacts, but you get the idea of the devastation that would happen as these comets are hitting the earth. And it's very likely that going back to verse 12, that the things in the atmosphere are probably caused by the dust, the burning, the smoke, all of the things that are going on as a result of these comets that are hitting the earth. Verse 14 says,

And so going on in the sixth seal, still things get worse.

Things are happening in the sky. Things are happening in the atmosphere. Things are happening with the mountains and the islands. Every mountain is moved. Every island is moved out of its place. Things are happening like the world has never seen before. And can I take this moment to remind you, this is not the end. This is the sixth seal. Then there's the seventh seal. Then there's the seven trumpets. Then there's the seven vials. This is just the beginning.

Of the things that are going to be happening upon the earth. Again, this is not going to be a time that you want to be here. Or that anyone that you know would you want them to be here.

We see a hint of that in verse 15 and 16. It says, And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, you get the idea, right? That's everybody. There's nobody excluded here. Hit themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. And so all of humanity now, whoever survives now,

these things hitting the face of the earth and these massive earthquakes and these things that are going on. The famine may not have affected everybody, but this does. And they realize, they recognize where it's coming from. They say, hide us from the wrath of the Lamb. And so they're hiding in caves trying to avoid, trying to save themselves from the judgment of God. Knowing that it's the judgment of God.

Not willing to repent. And we'll see that even further as we go into the book of Revelation. The humanity knows the source, knows what's necessary, but refuses to repent. And so they're hiding in caves because of the wrath of God. And they say at the end of verse 17, For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand? Who is able to stand in the great day of the wrath of the Lord?

In chapter 7, next week, we'll answer that question. Because there are those who are able to stand. And so we'll get to that next week. That's my tease to make sure you come back next Sunday. We'll do chapter 7. But Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5 that God did not appoint us to wrath. And so as we look at this picture and begin to understand what is happening here and the wrath of God that is being poured out, for those who are believers in Jesus Christ...

Paul says, you are not appointed to wrath. God has not appointed us to wrath. He says, therefore comfort each other and edify one another just as you're doing. We are to look at these things to understand them and the result is to comfort one another because these are not the things that God has appointed us to. We're looking forward to the rapture of the church. Jesus in describing these same events, he said in Luke 21, 36, pray that you would be counted worthy to escape.

As we see these events, as we understand what's going to happen to this earth, our appropriate response is to pray that we would be counted worthy to escape. Pray that we would be taken out of this place. Pray that we would not be there to endure that. Again, the emphasis here or the application here for us is to be reminded of how necessary and important it is to be ready. We

We need to be ready for the Lord's return. We need to get ready right now. Now is not the time to mess around with sin. Now is not the time to be dabbling in compromise. Now is not the time to be goofing off in your relationship with the Lord. Now is the time to be serious and watchful in your prayers. To be serious about walking with God. Now is the time to get right with the Lord. And to not consider, to not play around with the things that are not of God.

Because these are the things that are going to happen. Whenever I study a portion like this, the passage that always comes to my mind, I'm sure you'll hear it a lot as we go through the book of Revelation, is 2 Peter 3.

And in 2 Peter chapter 3, Peter, very briefly, he talks about what's going to happen to the earth and what's going to happen to the world. And he says to us, therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God?

He says, look, understanding what's going to happen to the earth, how should we live? What kind of people should we be? He says, we look for the new heavens and the new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, he says, be diligent to be found by him in peace without spot and blameless and consider that the long suffering of our Lord is salvation. He says, understanding what's going to happen should result in two things for us.

Number one, it should result in us being diligent to be found by Him in peace. That is that we are walking in right relationship with God. That we're found without spot and blameless. That we are not living in rebellion or disobedience to God. And the second thing that it should result in for us, he says, consider that the long suffering of our Lord is salvation. He says, consider that it's not happening yet so that people have an opportunity to be saved.

So the second thing that should result in our hearts and in our lives is a burden and a passion for the world around us. Because if they don't know Jesus, this is what they are going to experience.

And if they die without Jesus, what they will experience is far worse even than what will happen during the tribulation. And so these things need to move us. These things need to put a burden and a passion in us to live righteously and to walk uprightly and to share the love of Jesus Christ with the world around us. Let's pray. God, as we consider these things and look at what you have declared is going to happen,

Lord, we do pray that we would be counted worthy to escape these things. Lord, we're looking for your return. And I pray, Lord, for any who are here that might be living in sin. Lord, those who are, even though they know your word, they're not practicing it. And Lord, they're not walking in right relationship with you. Lord, I pray that you would call them to repentance. Lord, that you would help them to overcome

Lord, that those desires of the flesh, of the sinful nature, Lord, that they would deny themselves and take up their cross and begin to follow you. Lord, I pray that you would purify and purge those who are living in sin. Lord, that they might not have to endure these things. Lord, that they may be counted worthy to escape. And Lord, I pray also that you would implant in us your love for the world around us.

Lord, that we would have a burden and a passion to reach out and to share with them the truth and the gospel message, Lord, that they might be delivered as well. Not just from the tribulation, but Lord, delivered from eternity away from you, eternal judgment that's due for everyone who rejects you. God, give us a burden and a passion for the lost that we would be able to share with them the love, the truth that you offer in Jesus Christ and that they would have the hope of eternity.

I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.