REFORMED CHURCH BELLVILLE: SUNDAY
SERMON 13 JUNE 2004 MORNING SERVICE
Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Beloved
grace and peace be to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus
Christ, through the mighty working of God the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Psalm of Praise: 9: 1+7+9
Confession of faith: Apostolic
Law
Psalm: 40:4
Prayer
Psalm: 49:6
Scripture: Revelation 16
Text: Revelation 16:17
“The
seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air and out of the
temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying: "It is done!"
The seventh bowl is poured out and the end starts.
- With it God's judgment entered its final phase.
- All the powers of hell and its property are
completely destroyed.
- With it the last preparations are made for the
Lord's coming.
In this sermon we deal with the following:
1. The condition of
the world prior to the pouring
out of the bowl.
2. Against whom is
this bowl directed?
3. Saved by Christ.
1. The condition of
the world prior to the pouring
out of the bowl
The political situation will be marked by deceit and
lies.
- It will also be marked by the arrogance of the
leaders. Remember what the Bible tells us of the beast and the dragon
and the false prophet.
- At the same time it describes the condition of the
"church" in the last days. It will no longer be a true church. Remember
what occurred when the sixth bowl was poured out.
- The false prophet made the church his own and the
so-called believers will worship the image of the beast.
- In the political and religious field the world will
then be in such a condition that the true believer will find it
impossible to live.
- It will be a condition in which the powers of
darkness will act as if they have absolute control over all creation.
These powers have no time for the true believers.
They are persecuted. The reason is obvious.
- We saw that with the pouring out of the bowls they
knew that it was God's wrath striking them.
- They know full well that it is the God of the true
believers who controls the situation.
- They hate this true God, for we read that they
continue to curse Him because of the plagues that struck them.
- Hence they persecute the believers who worship this
Eternal God. This is what Jesus foretold in Matthew 24:21 when He said
that in the last days the true believers would suffer great distress.
2. Against whom is
the seventh bowl directed?
The previous bowls struck the plants and the grass
and the sea and the rivers and the sun, but the air was not struck. Now
the air is struck.
- the last thing sustaining life
on earth is struck by God's wrath.
- Without air there is no life.
The seventh bowl ends everything.
- The apostle Paul writes in Ephesians 2:2 that "The
ruler of the kingdom of the air" causes people to be disobedient.
- He writes in chapter 6:12 that our struggle is
against "the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms".
- The Bible shows that the anti-christ's power is
situated in the air.
- The significance of the seventh bowl being poured
out in the air is that the kingdom of the anti-christ is being
destroyed. This ties in with the sixth bowl and its effects.
With this seventh bowl the Lord strikes at the centre of the evil
powers and destroys them in the heart of their existence. With it all
life on earth is terminated.
This explains why verse 17 ends with the words "It is done".
- History is terminated. God's disposition of the
world has run its course and is completed.
- Everything that was to happen is fulfilled. The
Lord has demonstrated His omnipotence in history.
- The moment has now come for God to show His glory
in His victory over the kingdom of the anti-christ.
All at once there are mighty signs in creation announcing God's
appearance:
- Voices are heard. This symbolizes the mystery
surrounding God's Majesty.
- There are flashes of lightning and rumblings – this
reminds us of Mount Sinai when the Commandments were given.
- Then comes a tremendous earthquake – the greatest
ever on earth.
- This earthquake too was predicted by the Lord Jesus.
- It is also a symbol of the destruction of the earth.
See the effect of the earthquake:
- There is a great city – probably the capital where
the headquarters of the evil powers is seated.
- This city is split into three parts – caused by the
force of the earthquake.
- The cities of the nations fall – everything is
destroyed by the force of the earthquake.
All creation is affected by the force of the last bowl.
- The islands flee – they disappear beneath the sea.
- The same goes for the mountains and the people
there.
- The earthquake cause buildings to bury people.
- It will be clear that this terrible occurrence is
God's punishment because of the ungodliness of the people on earth.
Some people survive – then comes the terrible hail.
- The hailstones weigh one talent – that is about
fifty kilograms.
- Such hail simply crushes every building, plant,
animal and human being.
This is all caused by the Hand of God. The description of the
hailstones falling from the sky explains it. It is all disposed by God
from above.
Most amazingly of all:
- The people curse God on account of the plague of
hail because the plague was so terrible. There is no repentance.
- They do acknowledge God as the Almighty and
disposer of all, but there is no repentance and no worship. Only a
hardening of heart and hatred of God.
3. Saved by Christ
When reading of the destruction caused by the
seventh bowl we must not forget what the Lord said at the beginning of
this book.
- In the first verses of the book Revelation the Lord
tells that He is to reveal to John what must soon take place.
- But He also shows that throughout all these
occurrences He keeps His church.
It is written in chapter 1 v 5-7 that He loves us and has freed us from
our sins by his blood:
"… and
from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn
from the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves
us and has freed us from our sins by His blood, and
has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve His God and Father –
to Him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen
Look, he is coming, with the clouds and every eye will see Him, even
those who pierced Him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn
because of Him. So shall it be! Amen"
"I am the Alpha and the Omega", says the Lord God, "who is and who was,
and who is to come, the Almighty." (Rev. 1:5-8 NIV)
- He has made us kings and priests for His God and
Father!
- See, He comes with the clouds and every eye shall
see Him, even those who tortured Him at the crucifixion!
The Lord calls Himself – I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning
and the end, says the Lord, who is and who was and who is to come, the
Almighty!
- With it the Lord declares that these terrible
judgments of the end of time are not directed at His church.
- They are directed at his enemies – the end result
is the glorification of the Lord and the sanctifying and glorification
of His church.
This is shown by the Word of the Lord that the people will curse the
Lord when the last bowl is poured out:
- It is not the church that will curse the Lord.
- The unbelievers are cursing – the supporters of the
anti-christ in the impotence of their own attempts at salvation when
God executes His Judgment.
The supremacy of Christ is certain:
- He arose as victor from the dead after having
entered death as General with unlimited power and defeating death.
- Now He defeats the power of the anti-christ.
- With the fall of the last bastions of the powers of
hell, He appears in Heaven as the Invincible and Eternal and Almighty.
The last moments of the earth's history are marked by earthquakes and
cities crumbling and hailstones crushing everything.
- Then God appears in majesty.
- In stark contrast to all the suffering caused by
the seventh bowl the New Jerusalem descends from Heaven in which the
Almighty God gathers His elect in glory.
Brothers and sisters, do not fear the last judgment. Also not the
powers of our time who try to lay their hands on everything with murder
and violence. Know that:
- The Lord rules.
- The last thing He does before everything is done is
to send an angel to pour out the seventh bowl in the air to destroy the
last vestiges of the power of hell.
- With it the Lord reveals to you the ease with which
He rules over everything and removes all opposition.
- So that we may live in eternal glory before His
throne.
Amen
Closing prayer
Closing Hymn 18-7 v 1+12
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God the Father and
the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Amen
Dr MJ du Plessis, Reformed Church
Bellville
13 June 2004
NIV