WE’RE CONTINUING OUR STUDY IN
THE BOOK OF REVELATION, AND IN THIS MESSAGE THE SEVENTH SEAL
IS OPENED. WHAT IS THE SILENCE IN HEAVEN? AND IS THERE HOPE
FOR THE CHURCH? BUT I’VE GOT SOME WONDERFUL NEWS FOR
YOU, IT’S FOUND IN FIRST THESSALONIANS CHAPTER ONE AND
VERSE 10 AND IT SAYS, “WERE TO WAIT FOR HIS SON FROM HEAVEN
WHOM HE RAISED FROM THE DEAD, EVEN JESUS, WHO DELIVERED US
FROM THE WRATH TO COME.” ISN’T THAT WONDERFUL! OR LISTEN TO
THIS, FIRST THESSALONIANS FIVE VERSES NINE THROUGH 11, “FOR
GOD HATH NOT APPOINTED US TO WRATH, BUT TO OBTAIN SALVATION
BY OUR LORD, JESUS CHRIST.” FOR OVER 50 YEARS PASTOR,
TEACHER AND AUTHOR ADRIAN ROGERS IMPACTED UNTOLD NUMBERS
OF LIVES AROUND THE WORLD BY PRESENTING PROFOUND TRUTH,
SIMPLY STATED; AND PRESENTED A CLEAR INVITATION TO FOLLOW
JESUS AT EVERY OPPORTUNITY. TODAY YOU’LL HEAR THAT TRUTH
AND THAT INVITATION AS WE CONTINUE OUR SERIES ON
BIBLICAL PROFPHECY, THE TRIUMPH OF THE LAMB. HAVE YOUR
BIBLES OPEN TO THE BOOK OF REVELATION AND JOIN US FOR
TODAY’S STUDY OR FOLLOW ALONG WITH PASTOR ROGERS’ OUTLINE,
NOTES OR A COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT OF TODAY’S MESSAGE, ALL
AVAILABLE AT LWF.ORG. NOW, LET’S JOIN ADRIAN ROGERS. TAKE YOUR BIBLES AND
TURN, IF YOU WOULD PLEASE, TO REVELATION CHAPTER EIGHT AS
WE WORK OUR WAY THROUGH THIS BOOK. NOW WE’RE GOING TO TRY
TODAY, AH, ACTUALLY, IF WE LISTEN WELL AND YOU LISTEN
IN A HURRY, HA, HA, HA, WE’RE GOING TO TRY TODAY TO DO TWO
CHAPTERS, CHAPTER EIGHT AND CHAPTER NINE. NOW THESE
CHAPTERS DEAL WITH THE GREAT TRIBULATION. I’VE TOLD YOU
BEFORE THERE’S COMING A TIME ON EARTH LIKE THE EARTH HAS
NEVER KNOWN BEFORE, A TIME OF HORROR, A TIME OF DEVASTATION,
A TIME OF DESTRUCTION, A TIME OF DEATH, A TIME OF DISMAY.
JESUS CHRIST SAID, “THERE WAS N, NEVER, EVER, EVER A TIME
LIKE THIS.” PUT IN YOUR MARGIN MATTHEW 24 VERSE 21. JESUS
SAID, “FOR THEN SHALL BE GREAT TRIBULATION, SUCH AS WAS NOT
SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE WORLD TO THIS TIME, NO, NOR
EVER SHALL BE.” “THERE’S NEVER BEEN A TIME LIKE IT IN ALL OF
HISTORY,” JESUS SAID, “THERE NEVER WILL BE ANOTHER TIME
LIKE IT.” THIS IS THE TIME OF WHAT JESUS CALLED THE GREAT
TRIBULATION. NOW IN STUDYING THE BOOK OF THE REVELATION,
WE FIND OUT THAT THERE IS A, A BOOK, A SCROLL; THAT IS A BOOK
THAT’S ROLLED UP, AND THAT SCROLL HAS SEVEN SEALS.
AND WE’VE BEEN STUDYING THE OPENING OF THESE SEVEN SEALS
BECAUSE AS THESE SEVEN SEALS ARE BROKEN, THE TRIBULATION
HORRORS UNFOLD IN FRONT OF US. AND WE’VE TALKED ABOUT
THE HORSES OF THE GREAT TRIBULATION: THE WHITE HORSE,
THE RED HORSE, THE BLACK HORSE, THE PALE HORSE. WE’VE
TALKED ABOUT THE MARTYRS WHO WERE BEHEADED FOR THE WITNESS
OF JESUS CHRIST. WE’VE TALKED ABOUT ECOLOGICAL DISASTERS
THAT ARE GOING TO COME UPON THE EARTH. AND NOW WE COME TO
A TIME, BETWEEN THE SEALS, OF SILENCE. AH, THERE IS A
SILENCE THAT, AH, DELINEATES THE LAST SEAL. LET’S LOOK AT
IT. AH, REVELATION CHAPTER EIGHT AND VERSE ONE, “AND
WHEN HE HAD OPENED THE SEVENTH SEAL, THERE WAS SILENCE IN
HEAVEN ABOUT THE SPACE OF A HALF AN HOUR.” NOW I
DON’T KNOW FOR CERTAIN, BUT I IMAGINE THIS IS THE LONGEST
SILENCE THERE’S EVER BEEN IN HEAVEN. HA, ONE MAN SAID THERE
WON’T BE ANY WOMEN IN HEAVEN BECAUSE THERE WAS SILENCE IN
HEAVEN FOR THE SPACE OF A HALF AN HOUR. [AUDIENCE LAUGHTER]
HA, THE LADY RETORTED, SAID, “NO, NO, NO, UH, YOU’RE WRONG;
WON’T BE ANY MEN IN HEAVEN BECAUSE YOU NEVER SAW AN ANGEL
WITH A BEARD.” AND SOMEBODY ELSE RETORTED, “WELL, THE MEN
GET THERE BY A CLOSE SHAVE. [AUDIENCE LAUGHER] SO, WHAT
IS THIS TALKING ABOUT ANYWAY, SILENCE IN HEAVEN? WHAT IT IS,
IS AN OMINOUS SILENCE. IT IS THE LULL BEFORE THE STORM.
HAVE YOU EVER BEEN IN THAT TIME WHEN PERHAPS A TORNADO
IS, UH, PROPHESIED AND THE WEATHERMAN SAYS, “AH, YOU’RE
LIVING IN A TIME OF DANGER. THIS IS, THERE’S A
TORNADO ALERT, A WARNING.” AND EVERYTHING GETS VERY STILL,
AND YOU SAY, “THERE COULDN’T BE A STORM COMING.” AND YET
THERE’S A COLD CLAMMINESS; EVERYTHING IS VERY STILL.
OR PERHAPS THE SILENCE IN A COURTROOM WHEN, AH, THE JURY
HAS BEEN OUT AND IT COMES BACK IN AND THE JURY IS BEING
SEATED. THE DEFENDANT IS THERE, THE JUDGE IS THERE,
AND THERE IS AN EERIE SILENCE WAITING. OR PERHAPS, AH, SOME
OTHER OMINOUS SILENCE THAT YOU CAN THINK ABOUT. THAT’S THE
SILENCE THAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT HERE, AH, IN REVELATION
CHAPTER, AH, EIGHT AND VERSE ONE, SILENCE IN HEAVEN. AND
THE NOTICE IN VERSE TWO, “AND I SAW THE SEVEN ANGELS WHICH
STOOD BEFORE GOD, AND TO THEM WERE GIVEN SEVEN TRUMPETS.”
NOW, A TRUMPET IS USED FOR MANY THINGS IN THE BIBLE:
FOR TO GATHER TOGETHER A CONVOCATION, TO ANNOUNCE
PERHAPS THE CORONATION OF A KING, BUT ALSO THE TRUMPET WAS
SOUNDED AS AN ALARM TO GATHER TO WAR, VERY MUCH LIKE A, A
SIREN TODAY, LIKE AN AIR-RAID, UH, SIREN OR LIKE, UH, THE
ALARM THAT GOES OFF BEFORE THE TORNADO THAT WE SPOKE ABOUT.
NOW BEFORE THESE SEVEN ANGELS SOUND THESE SEVEN TRUMPETS,
AND WE’RE GOING TO SEE THAT WE HAVE THE SEVEN TRUMPETS RIGHT
UP HERE. AH, ONE TRUMPET DEALS WITH HAIL AND FIRE AND BLOOD,
AND ANOTHER DEALS WITH A BURNING MOUNTAIN. ANOTHER
DEALS WITH A STAR NAMED WORMWOOD. ANOTHER, COSMIC
DARKEST, AH, AH, DARKNESS. ANOTHER, AND WE’LL ONLY
GET THIS FAR, AN INVASION OF HELLISH LOCUSTS. WELL, THESE
ANGELS ARE ABOUT TO BLOW THESE TRUMPETS, BUT, AGAIN, GOD
PUTS A PARENTHESES HERE AND WE LEARN A WONDERFUL LESSON ABOUT
PRAYER. LOOK IN VERSES THREE THROUGH SIX, “AND ANOTHER
ANGEL CAME,” NOW THERE’RE SEVEN ANGELS WITH SEVEN
TRUMPETS. THESE SEVEN TRUMPETS COME OUT OF THE SEVENTH SEAL.
SOUNDS KIND OF COMPLICATED, DOESN’T IT, BUT STAY WITH ME.
AND JUST BEFORE THESE SEVEN ANGELS BLOW THESE SEVEN
TRUMPETS OF JUDGMENT, ANOTHER ANGEL COMES. NOW LOOK IN VERSE
THREE, “AND ANOTHER ANGEL CAME AND STOOD AT THE ALTAR, HAVING
A GOLDEN CENSOR.” WHAT IS A CENSOR? THAT’S A RECEPTACLE TO
HOLD INCENSE. IT’S MADE OUT OF GOLD, A GOLDEN CENSOR. “AND
THERE WAS GIVEN UNTO HIM MUCH INCENSE, THAT HE SHOULD OFFER
IT WITH THE PRAYERS OF ALL SAINTS UPON THE GOLDEN ALTAR,”
NOW HE’S REFERRING TO THE TABERNACLE. IN THE TABERNACLE
WAS A GOLDEN ALTAR AND THEY BURNED INCENSE ON IT. ALL
RIGHT, NOW, “WHICH WAS BEFORE THE THRONE.” SO THAT TELLS
US THIS IS NOT THE TABERNACLE THAT’S ON EARTH, BUT IT’S A
TABERNACLE UP IN HEAVEN. THE ONE ON EARTH IS JUST A PATTERN
OF THE ONE IN HEAVEN. “AND THE SMOKE OF THE INCENSE, WHICH
CAME WITH THE PRAYERS OF THE SAINTS, ASCENDED UP BEFORE GOD
OUT OF THE ANGEL’S HAND. AND THE ANGEL TOOK THE CENSOR, AND
FILLED IT WITH THE FIRE OF THE ALTAR, AND CAST IT INTO THE
EARTH; AND THERE WERE VOICES, AND THUNDERINGS, AND
LIGHTNINGS, AND AN EARTHQUAKE. AND THE SEVEN ANGELS WHICH HAD
THE SEVEN TRUMPETS PREPARED THEMSELVES TO SOUND.” NOW THIS
IS PARENTHETICAL BEFORE THESE SEVEN TRUMPETS SOUND, BUT
THERE’S A GREAT LESSON HERE ABOUT PRAYER. INCENSE IN THE
BIBLE IS A TYPE, A PICTURE, AN ILLUSTRATION OF PRAYER. WHEN
YOU PRAY, YOUR PRAYERS GO UP TO HEAVEN LIKE SWEET INCENSE,
A FRAGRANCE IN THE NOSTRILS OF GOD. AND THAT’S WHAT IT
TYPIFIES THERE IN THE TABERNACLE IN THE OLD
TESTAMENT. AND THE PRIEST WOULD COME, AND HE WOULD
SPRINKLE THERE UPON THE ALTAR AND THE COALS OF THE ALTAR
THIS INCENSE, AND IT WOULD BURN AND GO UP BEFORE
GOD. THAT ILLUSTRATES, THAT TYPIFIES YOUR PRAYERS.
HAVE YOU EVER PRAYED WHEN YOU DIDN’T FEEL LIKE PRAYING? LIFT
YOUR HAND. MOST OF US HAVE. I MEAN, SOMETIMES WE HAVE TO
TAKE OURSELVES BY THE NAP OF THE NECK AND SAY, “IT’S TIME
TO PRAY.” I MEAN, WE DON’T WANT TO PRAY. SOMETIMES WE
FEEL LIKE, “WELL, IT, IT WOULDN’T EVEN BE GOOD IF I
PRAYED TODAY BECAUSE I DON’T FEEL LIKE IT.” FRIEND, YOUR
FEELINGS DON’T HAVE MUCH TO DO WITH IT. [AUDIENCE: THAT’S
RIGHT] PRAY WHEN YOU FEEL LIKE IT. PRAY WHEN YOU DON’T FEEL
LIKE IT. AND DON’T COME TO HIM, EVEN IF YOU DON’T FEEL
LIKE PRAYING, DON’T COME TO HIM WITH THE BRASS OF YOUR
EMOTIONS; COME WITH THE WORTH OF HIS INCENSE. HERE THE
PRIEST IS, IS MINGLING THE PRAYERS OF THE SAINTS WITH THE
INCENSE. WHAT IS THE INCENSE? THE INCENSE IS THE WORTH OF
THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. COME WITH BOTH HANDS FILLED WITH
THE INCENSE OF THE LORD JESUS, AND HIS, IT’S HIS PRESENCE
THAT MAKE YOUR PRAYERS POWERFUL, NOT HOW YOU FEEL
ABOUT IT. AND SO, HERE, AH, HERE’S A LESSON ON PRAYER.
JUST PRAY IN THE NAME OF JESUS. WHEN YOU PRAY IN THE
NAME OF JESUS, YOU’RE MINGLING YOUR PRAYER WITH THE INCENSE
OF JESUS’ WORTH, AND THAT’S A SWEET SMELL IN THE NOSTRILS OF
ALMIGHTY GOD. WHAT A WONDERFUL THING THAT IS. BUT NOTICE IN
THIS CHAPTER IN VERSE SIX IT SAYS THAT AFTER THE ANGEL
TAKES THE, THE, AH, PRAYERS OF THE SAINTS AND MINGLES THEM
WITH INCENSE, HE GOES NOW FROM THE ALTAR OF INCENSE, HE GOES
TO ANOTHER ALTAR OVER HERE AND THAT IS THE BRAZEN ALTAR OF
JUDGMENT. AND HE FILLS THIS CENSOR NOW WITH COALS FROM
THE ALTAR OF JUDGMENT. THAT TYPIFIES THE DEATH OF JESUS
CHRIST FOR OUR SINS. IS THIS TOO COMPLICATED? SAY NO. OKAY,
NOW LISTEN, LISTEN. HE FILLS THIS, THIS CENSOR THIS TIME
WITH COALS FROM THE FIRE OF JUDGMENT. OVER HERE IS THE
FIRE OF WORSHIP. THAT’S THE GOLDEN ALTAR. HERE’S THE
BRAZEN ALTAR. AND HE FILLS IT, THE, THE SAME, AH, CENSOR HE
FILLS IT NOW WITH COALS FROM THIS ALTAR. AND THEN HE TAKES
IT, THIS MIGHTY ANGEL, AND FLINGS IT TO THE EARTH. AND
THERE’RE VOICES SPEAKING, THERE’RE TRUMPETS SOUNDING,
THERE’RE EARTHQUAKES SHAKING, THERE’RE THUNDERS
REVERBERATING. HERE ON EARTH IS CALAMITY THAT’S ABOUT TO
BEGIN. NOW, TWO ALTARS: THE ALTAR OF INCENSE, THE ALTAR
OF JUDGMENT. THIS ALTAR OF JUDGMENT REPRESENTS THE DEATH
OF JESUS CHRIST FOR OUR SINS. EVERY OLD TESTAMENT ALTAR
SPOKE OF JESUS DYING ON THE CROSS. WELL, WHY WOULD THE
DEATH OF JESUS BRING JUDGMENT? LISTEN TO ME CAREFULLY. IF
YOU DO NOT GIVE YOUR HEART TO CHRIST, IF YOU DO NOT GET
SAVED, IF YOU DO NOT TURN FROM YOUR SIN AND RECEIVE JESUS
CHRIST, THE VERY SACRIFICE THAT IS MEANT TO BE A BLESSING
WILL BECOME A CURSE. THE GOSPEL IS A DOUBLE-EDGED
SWORD. IT IS A SABER OF LIFE UNTO LIFE OR DEATH UNTO DEATH.
IF THE DEATH OF JESUS CHRIST DOES NOT SAVE YOU, THE DEATH
OF JESUS CHRIST WILL CONDEMN YOU. [AUDIENCE: YOU’RE RIGHT]
NOW LISTEN. IT IS THE VERY BLOOD THAT WILL TESTIFY
AGAINST YOU. AND SO THIS, THIS ANGEL NOW; THESE PEOPLE HAVE
REFUSED JESUS. THEY’VE SPURRED HI, SPURNED HIM, THEY’VE
IGNORED HIM, THEY’VE HATED HIM, THEY’VE CASTIGATED
HIM, AND YET HE DIED FOR THEIR SINS. HE TAKES NOW THE COALS
FROM THAT ALTAR AND FLINGS IT TO THE EARTH. AND WHEN HE
DOES, WHEN HE DOES, DEAR FRIEND, THE HORRORS OF THE
GREAT TRIBULATION INTENSIFY. NOW THAT’S WHAT WE’RE GOING
TO LOOK AT NOW. WE’RE GOING TO LOOK AT THE SOUNDING OF THESE
TRUMPETS. WE’RE GOING TO LOOK AT THE SOUNDING OF THE FIRST
FOUR TRUMPETS IN, NOT IN MUCH DETAIL. AND THEN WE’RE GOING
TO COME TO THE OPENING OF THE FIFTH TRUMPET, WHICH IS
THE MOST DEVASTATING, OR THE SOUNDING OF THE FIFTH TRUMPET,
WHICH IS THE MOST DEVASTATING OF ALL. SO LET’S LOOK AT THEM
TOGETHER. ARE YOU READY? SAY YES. [AUDIENCE: YES] OKAY,
HUH, HA. FIRST OF ALL, THE FIRST TRUMPET SOUNDS AND THAT
IS JUDGMENT UPON THE LAND AND THE THINGS THAT GROW ON EARTH.
LOOK IF YOU WILL IN VERSE SEVEN, “THE FIRST ANGEL
SOUNDED, AND THERE FOLLOWED HAIL AND FIRE MINGLED WITH
BLOOD, AND THEY WERE CAST UPON THE EARTH; AND THE THIRD PART
OF TREES WAS BURNT UP, AND ALL GREEN GRASS WAS BURNT UP.” THE
FIRST TRUMPET IS WHAT? HAIL AND FIRE MINGLED WITH THE
BLOOD OF MAN AND BEAST. NOW WHAT IS THIS? WHAT CAUSED
THIS? COULD IT BE AN ATOMIC, AH, EXPLOSION? IT COULD BE.
ATOMIC DEVASTATION? PERHAPS A, AN ATOMIC CHAIN REACTION.
BUT IS THERE SYMBOLIC MEANING HERE? REMEMBER THAT THE BOOK
OF THE REVELATION IS FILLED WITH SYMBOLS. WHAT COULD THE
GRASS AND THE TREES STAND FOR? WELL, AH, THEY SYMBOLICALLY
SPEAK OF LEADERS AND PEOPLES. PUT THESE VERSES DOWN, ISAIAH
CHAPTER 40 VERSES SIX AND SEVEN, “THE VOICE SAID, ‘CRY.’
AND HE SAID, ‘WHAT SHALL I CRY?’ ALL FLESH IS GRASS, AND
ALL THE GOODLINESS THEREOF IS AS THE FLOWER OF THE FIELD.
THE GRASS WITHERETH, THE FLOWER FADETH, BECAUSE THE
SPIRIT OF THE LORD BLOWETH UPON IT; SURELY THE PEOPLE IS
GRASS.” NOW WHEN THE TRUMPET SOUNDS, AH, THERE’S A
DEVASTATION UPON THE GRASS. AH, THAT COULD SPEAK OF
HUMANITY, THE PEOPLES THAT ARE LIVING HERE UPON THIS EARTH.
NOW, THE SECOND TRUMPET SOUNDS AND, UH, JUDGMENT COMES UPON
THE OCEANS AND THE THINGS THAT LIVE IN THE SEA. LOOK IF YOU
WILL NOW IN VERSES EIGHT AND NINE, “AND THE SECOND ANGEL
SOUNDED, AND, AS IT WERE, A GREAT MOUNTAIN,” IT DOESN’T
SAY WAS A GREAT MOUNTAIN, BUT AS IT WERE A GREAT MOUNTAIN;
IT’S SYMBOLISM. “BURNING WITH FIRE WAS CAST INTO THE SEA;
AND THE THIRD PART OF THE SEA BECAME BLOOD. AND THE THIRD
PART OF THE CREATURES WHICH WERE IN THE SEA, AND HAD LIFE,
DIED; AND THE THIRD PART OF THE SHIPS WERE DESTROYED.”
NOW, LITERALLY, THIS COULD BE AN ERUPTING VOLCANO, A
BURNING, A MOUNTAIN BURNING WITH FIRE. THAT’S A VOLCANO.
AND, AH, IT, IT SPEWS ITSELF INTO THE SEA. THE, IT’S, IT’S
CAST INTO THE SEA. THE SEA HERE COULD SPEAK OF THE
MEDITERRANEAN. THIS IS THE SEA THAT THEY KNEW THERE IN BIBLE
TIMES. AND PERHAPS THAT’S WHAT IT MEANS, BUT I WONDER IF
THERE’S NOT A DEEPER, SYMBOLIC MEANING. IN, IN THE BIBLE A
MOUNTAIN SPEAKS OF KINGDOMS. FOR EXAMPLE, BABYLON IS SPOKEN
OF AS A MOUNTAIN. PUT THIS MAR, THIS IN YOUR MARGIN,
JEREMIAH 51 VERSE 25. GOD SAYS, “BEHOLD, I’M AGAINST
THEE, O DESTROYING MOUNTAIN.” NOW, TODAY, MODERN IRAQ
IS BABYLON. AND GOD CALLED BABYLON IN THAT DAY A
DESTROYING MOUNTAIN. THIS IS A MOUNTAIN HE’S SPEAKING OF
HERE THAT DESTROYS. AH, “‘I’M AGAINST THEE, O DESTROYING
MOUNTAIN,’ SAITH THE LORD, ‘WHICH DESTROYETH ALL THE
EARTH; AND I WILL STRETCH OUT MINE HAND UPON THEE, AND ROLL
THEE DOWN FROM THE ROCKS, AND WILL MAKE THEE A BURNT
MOUNTAIN.’” WELL, IT SOUNDS VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT WE
FIND HERE IN THE BOOK OF THE REVELATION, DOESN’T IT? AH,
NOW, AH, THIS, THIS, THIS MOUNTAIN IS CAST INTO THE
WATERS. WELL, WHAT DO THE WATERS STAND FOR? THE WATERS
STAND FOR A WICKED AND A RESTLESS PEOPLE. THE PROPHET
ISAIAH SAID IN ISAIAH CHAPTER 57 AND VERSE 20, “BUT THE
WICKED ARE LIKE THE TROUBLED SEA, WHEN IT CANNOT REST,
WHOSE WATERS CAST UP MIRE AND DIRT.” SO, A LITERAL VOLCANO
DURING THE GREAT TRIBULATION? I SEE NO REASON WHY
NOT. A DEEPER, SPIRITUAL SIGNIFICANCE: GOD IS
SAYING THIS WICKED, VIOLENT, BABYLONISH KINGDOM OF
ANTICHRIST IS GOING TO BRING GREAT TROUBLE TO THE
WICKED PEOPLE WHO ARE LIKE THE TROUBLED SEA WHEN IT CANNOT
REST. THE THIRD TRUMPET IS GOING TO SOUND. THE THIRD
TRUMPET SOUNDS, AND THERE’S GOING TO BE JUDGMENT UPON THE
RIVERS AND THE MEN WHO WALK ON EARTH. LOOK IF YOU WILL IN
VERSES 10 AND 11, “AND THE THIRD ANGEL SOUNDED, AND THERE
FELL A GREAT STAR FROM HEAVEN, BURNING AS IT WERE A LAMP, AND
IT FELL UPON THE THIRD PART OF THE RIVERS, AND UPON THE
FOUNTAINS OF WATER. AND THE NAME OF THE STAR IS CALLED
WORMWOOD; AND THE THIRD PART OF THE WATERS BECAME
WORMWOOD,” THAT MEANS BITTERNESS, NOXIOUS, POISON,
“AND MANY MEN DIED OF THE WATERS, BECAUSE THEY WERE MADE
BITTER.” A BURNING STAR LIKE A LAMP. IF AN ASTEROID HIT THE
EARTH, THAT’S WHAT THAT WOULD BE. WE SPOKE OF ASTEROIDS WHEN
WE TALKED OF CHAPTER SIX, AND I BELIEVE THERE WILL BE
LITERAL ASTEROIDS THAT WILL FALL TO THE EARTH, AND I
BELIEVE THEY WILL POISON THE ATMOSPHERE AND THE FRESH
WATERS, AND INDEED MANY, MANY WILL DIE. BUT I WANT TO
REMIND YOU THAT SATAN ALSO IS SYMBOLIZED AS A FALLEN STAR.
AND REMEMBER THAT THE WATERS SPEAK OF PEOPLE. SATAN POISONS
THE WATER OF LIFE, AND HE POISONS HUMAN LIFE AND
SOCIETY. “AND HE SAITH UNTO ME, ‘THE WATERS WHICH
THOU SAWEST, WHERE THE WHORE SITTETH, ARE PEOPLES, AND
MULTITUDES, AND NATIONS, AND TONGUES.’” SO HERE IS A,
HERE IS A FALLEN STAR THAT IS POISONING THE WATERS OF LIFE,
PEOPLE, NATIONS, MULTITUDES, AND SO FORTH. NOW, LET’S MOVE
ON TO THE FOURTH TRUMPET. THE FOURTH TRUMPET SOUNDS, AND HE,
NOW THERE’S JUDGMENT UPON THE SKIES AND THE VERY LIGHT THAT
SHINES FROM HEAVEN. REVELATION CHAPTER EIGHT BEGINNING IN
VERSE 12, “AND THE FOURTH ANGEL SOUNDED, AND THE THIRD
PART OF THE SUN WAS SMITTEN, AND THE THIRD PART OF THE
MOON, AND THE THIRD PART OF THE STARS, AS THE THIRD PART
OF THEM WAS DARKENED, AND THE DAY SHONE NOT FOR A THIRD PART
OF IT, AND THE NIGHT LIKEWISE. AND I BEHELD, AND HEARD AN
ANGEL FLY THROUGH THE MIDST OF HEAVEN, SAYING WITH A LOUD
VOICE, ‘WOE, WOE, WOE, UNTO THE INHABITANTS OF THE EARTH
BY REASON OF THE OTHER VOICES OF THE TRUMPET OF THE
THREE ANGELS, WHICH ARE YET TO SOUND.’” NOW IT INTENSIFIES.
NOW THE TRUMPETS SOUND TO AN ANGEL, SAYING, “WOE, WOE,
WOE.” NO WONDER JESUS SAID, “THERE’S NEVER BEEN A TIME
LIKE IT.” THE SUN, THE MOON, THE STARS ARE DARKENED, AS IF
SOMEBODY AT THE CONTROLS IN THIS AUDITORIUM WERE TO TURN
DOWN A RHEOSTAT AND IT WAS TO GET DARKENED IN THIS ROOM. NOW
WHAT WOULD CAUSE THAT? WELL, IF VOLCANOES ARE LITERAL AND
THROWN INTO THE SEA; IF THERE IS ATOMIC DEVASTATION; IF
THERE’S ATOMIC DUST IN THE ATMOSPHERE; IF THERE, AH, IS
SMOKE; IF THERE IS, AH, AH, DUST AND STORM CLOUDS; INDEED,
THE LIGHT OF THE SUN, THE MOON AND THE STARS WOULD BE DIMMED.
MEN HAVE HATED THE LIGHT, AND NOW THEY’LL HAVE THEIR
SHARE OF THE DARKNESS. BUT SYMBOLICALLY, THE SUN AND THE
MOON AND THE STARS SPEAK OF RULING AUTHORITIES. AND, AH,
THE PASTORS OF THE CHURCHES, FOR EXAMPLE, ARE SPOKEN OF IN
REVELATION, THE EARLY VERSES, AH, AS, AS STARS. WHAT DOES
HE MEAN BY THIS, WHEN THE SUN, THE MOON, AND THE STARS ARE
DARKENED? COULD IT MEAN THAT THE SOCIAL STRUCTURE OF
SOCIETY NOW IS COMING APART? THAT, AH, THE THINGS THAT, AH,
GOD ORDAINED TO GIVE GUIDANCE AND LIGHT ARE NOW OBLITERATED,
AND THE DEMON OF DARKNESS, SATAN HIMSELF, BECOMES, AH,
THE PRINCE OF THIS WORLD, AND HE PUTS HIS ANTICHRIST THERE
TO BRAINWASH THE MULTITUDES WHO WILL BE BRAINWASHED BY THE
BEAST? WELL, THE FOUR TRUMPETS HAVE SOUNDED. BUT WE HAVE JUST
GONE THROUGH THESE QUICKLY TO COME TO THE FIFTH TRUMPET. AND
NOW WE’RE GOING TO SLOW DOWN, BECAUSE OF ALL OF THE
TRIBULATION HORRORS, I DON’T BELIEVE THERE’S ANY WORSE THAN
WHAT WE’RE ABOUT TO SEE HERE. NO WONDER THE ANGEL IS
SAYING, “WOE, WOE, WOE” TO THE INHABITANTS OF THE EARTH.
CHAPTER NINE VERSES ONE AND TWO. THE FIFTH TRUMPET SOUNDS
AND THERE IS AN INVASION FROM THE BOTTOMLESS PIT, “AND THE
FIFTH ANGEL SOUNDED,” THIS IS VERSES ONE AND TWO, CHAPTER
NINE, “AND THE FIFTH ANGEL SOUNDED, AND I SAW A STAR FALL
FROM HEAVEN UNTO THE EARTH; AND TO HIM,” NOW THIS STAR IS
NOT A INANIMATE STAR; IT’S A LIVING STAR, IT’S AN
INDIVIDUAL, “TO HIM WAS GIVEN THE KEY OF THE BOTTOMLESS PIT.
AND HE OPENED THE BOTTOMLESS PIT, AND THERE AROSE A SMOKE
OUT OF THE PIT, AS THE SMOKE OF A GREAT FURNACE; AND THE
SUN AND THE AIR WERE DARKENED BY REASON OF THE SMOKE OF THE
PIT.” NOW WHAT IS THIS? WE’RE GOING TO SEE DEMONS ARE GOING
TO BRE, BE RELEASED UPON THE EARTH FROM A BOTTOMLESS PIT.
THE WORD THAT WE TRANSLATE HERE IN THE KING JAMES,
BOTTOMLESS PIT, IS THE GREEK WORD ABYSS. THERE IS GOING
TO COME OUT OF THE ABYSS, THE BOTTOMLESS PIT, AN INVASION OF
DEMONS UPON THE EARTH. THAT’S THE REASON I’VE CALLED THE
MESSAGE TODAY, “WHEN DEMONS HAVE DOMINION.” WHO ARE THESE
DEMONS? THESE ARE SPECIAL, ESPECIALLY WICKED, VILE,
HURTFUL, MALICIOUS, POWERFUL, DIABOLICAL DEMONS THAT HAVE
BEEN PUT INTO A BOTTOMLESS PIT. THEY ARE SO VICIOUS,
SO VILE, SO DESTRUCTIVE, SO HURTFUL, SO HARMFUL, SO
DEVIOUS THAT GOD IN MERCY PUT THEM IN A PIT AND LOCKED THEM
THERE, IN A PENITENTIARY IN CHAINS, NOT EVEN LIKE OTHER
DEMONS THAT STILL ROAM THE EARTH TODAY. A SPECIAL PLACE
WAS PREPARED TO HOLD THESE DEMONS. AN INTERESTING THING
OVER IN LUKE CHAPTER EIGHT, WHERE JESUS CAST THE DEMONS
OUT OF THAT DEMONIAC, THAT MAN WHOSE NAME, HE HAD SO MANY
DEMONS, HIS NAME WAS LEGION. AND WHEN JESUS CAST THE DEMONS
OUT OF THAT MAN, THEY BEGGED HIM, “DON’T SEND US TO THE
PIT. DON’T PUT US IN THE ABYSS.” LUKE EIGHT VERSES 30
AND 31, “AND JESUS ASKED HIM, SAYING, ‘WHAT IS THY NAME?’
AND HE SAID, ‘LEGION;’ BECAUSE MANY DEVILS WERE ENTERED INTO
HIM. AND THEY BESOUGHT HIM THAT HE WOULD NOT COMMAND THEM
TO GO OUT INTO THE DEEP.” IT’S THE SAME WORD, ABYSS. “OH,”
THEY SAID, “DON’T PUT US IN THE ABYSS.” I BELIEVE THIS IS
WHAT PETER WAS TALKING ABOUT IN SECOND PETER CHAPTER TWO
VERSE FOUR, “FOR IF GOD SPARED NOT THE ANGELS THAT SINNED,
BUT CAST THEM DOWN TO HELL, AND DELIVERED THEM INTO CHAINS
OF DARKNESS, TO BE RESERVED UNTO JUDGMENT.” THERE ARE
CERTAIN FALLEN ANGELS THAT ARE ENCHAINED. THEY’RE IN THE
PENITENTIARY. THEY ARE DOUBLY DANGEROUS FIENDS OF HELL,
AND THEY ARE PUT INTO THIS PENITENTIARY CALLED THE ABYSS
FOR EVIL SPIRITS. THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE FLIRTING WITH THE
OCCULT, THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE DABBLING WITH OUIJA BOARDS,
THOSE OF YOU WHO PLAY WITH THE, AH, HOROSCOPE, QUIT IT.
YOU’RE FOOLISH. AH, AH, DON’T LET ANY KIND OF CURIOSITY IN
ANYWAY BRING YOU IN TO THE OCCULT. NOW WHO IS THIS FALLEN
STAR? IT IS SATAN HIMSELF. HE FELL FROM HEAVEN, AND HE NOW,
DURING THE GREAT TRIBULATION, IS GIVEN PERMISSION BY
ALMIGHTY GOD TO OPEN THE DOOR OF THE BOTTOMLESS PIT. THESE
VILE, WICKED, EVIL, MALEVOLENT SPIRITS THAT ARE INCARCERATED
THERE ARE GOING TO BE SET FREE. CAN YOU IMAGINE, CAN
YOU IMAGE WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IN AMERICA IF ALL OF THE PRISON
DOORS IN AMERICA WERE FLUNG OPEN TODAY? EVERY RAPIST,
EVERY MURDERER, EVERY PERVERT, EVERY ARSONIST, EVERY MANIACAL
WH, HORRIBLE PERSON THAT EVER WALKED THE FACE OF THE EARTH
WERE SET LOOSE AND NO POLICE FORCE, NONE TO PROTECT YOU.
WOULD YOU WANT TO LIVE HERE IF THE PRISON DOORS WERE SWUNG
OPEN AND ALL OF THESE PEOPLE WERE NOW JUST LET LOOSE,
SWARMING OUT? THAT’S THE IDEA THAT YOU HAVE HERE, AH, IN THE
BOOK OF THE REVELATION. THEY ARE RELEASED UPON THE EARTH
FROM THE BOTTOMLESS PIT, FROM THE ABYSS. NOW SATAN IS THE
ONE WHO OPENS THE DOOR. I WANT YOU TO NOTICE ABOUT ELEVEN
THINGS ABOUT THESE SPIRITS, ALL RIGHT? SO YOU CAN LIST
THEM DOWN. NUMBER ONE: THEY ARE DEGENERATE SPIRITS. THEY
ARE THE VILEST OF THE VILE. I’VE ALREADY SPOKEN ABOUT
THAT. NUMBER TWO: THEY ARE DARKENING SPIRITS. LOOK IN
CHAPTER NINE AND VERSE TWO, “AND HE OPENED THE BOTTOMLESS
PIT, AND THERE AROSE OUT OF, THERE AROSE A SMOKE OUT OF THE
PIT, AS THE SMOKE OF A GREAT FURNACE; AND THE SUN AND THE
AIR WERE DARKENED BY REASON OF THE SMOKE OF THE PIT.”
DARKENING DEMONS. DARKENING SPIRITS. THERE IS A CHOKING
DEMON DARKNESS THAT WILL BLOT OUT THE LIGHT. SATAN IS THE
PRINCE OF DARKNESS. THERE WILL BE DURING THIS TRIBULATION
TIME A SMOKESCREEN OF DARKNESS. NUMBER THREE:
THEY ARE DEVOURING SPIRITS, DEVOURING SPIRITS. REVELATION
NINE VERSES THREE AND FOUR, “AND THERE CAME OUT OF THE
SMOKE LOCUSTS UPON THE EARTH, AND UNTO THEM WAS GIVEN POWER,
AS THE SCORPIONS OF THE EARTH HAVE POWER. AND IT WAS
COMMANDED THEM THAT THEY SHOULD NOT HURT THE GRASS OF
THE EARTH, NEITHER ANY GREEN THING, NEITHER ANY TREE, BUT
ONLY THOSE MEN WHICH HAVE NOT THE SEAL OF GOD IN THEIR
FOREHEADS.” REMEMBER, THERE WERE 144,000, AH, WE TALKED
ABOUT LAST WEEK THAT HAD THE SEAL OF GOD IN THEIR
FOREHEADS. NOW THESE DEMONS ARE DESCRIBED SYMBOLICALLY AS
LOCUSTS. IN THE EAST, AND IN THE MIDDLE EAST, SWARMS OF
LOCUSTS HAVE COME LIKE GREAT CLOUDS THAT BLOT OUT THE LIGHT
OF THE SUN IN THE DAYTIME AND THE MOON AT NIGHTTIME. THEY
DEVOUR EVERYTHING LIKE AN ARMY, EVERY GREEN THING, EVERY
BLADE OF GRASS, EVERY FLOWER OF THE FIELD, ALL OF THE
SEEDS, ALL OF THE GRAIN, SOMETIMES WOULD STRIP THE
BARK FROM THE TREES, AND THESE LOCUSTS JUST COME LIKE A
MIGHTY ARMY. BUT THESE PARTICULAR LOCUSTS DON’T FEED
UPON GREEN THINGS. THEY FEED UPON THE HEARTS AND THE SOULS
OF MEN. AND AS THEY DO, THEY INFLICT TORMENT LIKE A
SCORPION. THEY ARE DEVOURING SPIRITS. NUMBER FOUR: THEY
ARE DEBILITATING SPIRITS, DEBILITATING DEMONS. NOTICE
VERSES FIVE AND SIX, “AND TO THEM IT WAS GIVEN THAT THEY
SHOULD NOT KILL THEM,” THAT IS, THE HUMANS, “BUT THAT
THEY SHOULD BE TORMENTED FIVE MONTHS; AND THEIR TORMENT WAS
AS THE TORMENT OF A SCORPION, WHEN HE STRIKETH A MAN. AND
IN THOSE DAYS SHALL MEN SEEK DEATH, AND SHALL NOT FIND IT;
AND SHALL DESIRE TO DIE, AND DEATH WILL FLEE FROM THEM.”
THE STING OF A SCORPION IS SOMEWHAT INTOLERABLE. ONE DAY,
AS A BOY, I WAS HELPING MY DAD TO CLEAN THE YARD. HE SAID,
“SON, GO GET THAT PIECE OF CANVAS FROM THE PUMP HOUSE.
WE’LL WRA, WE’LL, WE’LL SWEEP THE LEAVES ON THAT PIECE
OF CANVAS, THE PIECE THAT’S ROLLED UP THERE IN THE PUMP
HOUSE.” I WENT AND GOT THE PIECE OF CANVAS AND I UNROLLED
IT, UNROLLED IT AND A SCORPION CAME OUT. AND HE BIT ME, STUNG
ME, FASTENED HIMSELF ON ME AND STUNG ME RIGHT ON THE TIP OF
THAT FINGER. WHEN I SAW THAT HIDEOUS THING ON MY FINGER I
REACHED OVER AND GRABBED HIM WITH THAT HAND, AND HE STUNG
ME ON THAT FINGER, [AUDIENCE LAUGHTER] THE TIP OF BOTH
FINGERS. I’M TELLING YOU, I FELT NAUSEOUS. I FELT WEAK.
IMMEDIATELY THE GLANDS UNDER MY ARM BEGAN TO SWELL. MY
KNEES WERE WEAKENED, AND THE PAIN BEGAN TO THROB. BUT IT
WENT AWAY. CAN YOU IMAGINE THAT LASTING FOR FIVE MONTHS?
FOR FIVE MONTHS? WANTING TO DIE; NOT ABLE TO DIE. THESE
ARE DEBILITATING, DEBILITATING DEMONS. AND THEY ARE DAUNTLESS
DEMONS, DAUNTLESS SPIRITS. LOOK IN VERSE SEVEN, “AND
THE SHAPES OF THE LOCUSTS WERE LIKE UNTO HORSES PREPARED
UNTO BATTLE,” SO THE LOCUST EVIDENTIALLY DOESN’T MEAN THAT
THEY’RE NECESSARILY SMALL, “AND ON THEIR HEADS WERE, AS
IT WERE, CROWNS OF GOLD; AND THEIR FACES WERE AS THE FACES
OF MEN.” LET’S JUST TAKE THE PHRASE RIGHT NOW THAT THEY,
THEY’RE DESCRIBED AS HORSES PREPARED FOR BATTLE. THINK OF
THESE MIGHTY STEEDS COVERED WITH ARMOR. THINK OF THEM
SNORTING. THINK OF THEM PAWING THE GROUND. THINK OF THEIR
RAPID PROGRESS. THINK OF THEIR IRRESISTIBILITY. THEY ARE
EAGER, LIKE HORSES, ON THEIR MISSION OF DOOM. DAUNTLESS.
WHAT CAN STOP THEM? CAN YOU IMAGINE YOU STANDING IN FRONT
OF A BATTLE HORSE TRYING TO STOP HIM? MONEY WON’T STOP
THEM. THE MILITARY CAN’T STOP, STOP THEM. WHAT, WHAT,
MEDICINE CAN’T STOP THEM. THEY ARE DAUNTLESS. NUMBER SIX:
THEY ARE DOMINEERING SPIRITS. AGAIN, LOOK IN VERSE SEVEN,
AND THE BIBLE SAYS, “AND ON THEIR HEADS WERE, AS IT WERE,
CROWNS LIKE GOLD.” SATAN HAS ALWAYS WANTED TO WEAR A CROWN.
NOW HELL HAS A HOLIDAY. THIS WORLD HAS SAID TO JESUS
CHRIST, “WE WILL NOT HAVE YOU TO RULE OVER US.” SO THEY’LL
HAVE SATAN AND HIS DEMONS TO RULE OVER THEM. SATAN HAS
ALWAYS WANTED A CROWN. DEMONS WILL DOMINATE. DEMONS
WILL HAVE DOMINION. NO HUMAN INGENUITY CAN STOP THEM.
NUMBER SEVEN: THEY ARE DECEPTIVE SPIRITS. NOTICE, AH,
IN THE LAST PART OF VERSE, AH, SEVEN, “AND THEIR FACES WERE
AS THE FACES OF MEN.” NOW WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? IN BIBLE
SYMBOLIC, AH, SYMBOLISM AND TYPOLOGY, THE HUMAN FACE
SPEAKS OF INTELLIGENCE; “FACES OF MEN.” THAT TELLS US THAT
SATAN IS CRAFTY. HE HAS A CUNNING PLAN. AH, HE’S SO
SUBTLE, JESUS SAID, THAT, “IF IT WERE POSSIBLE, HE WOULD
DECEIVE THE VERY ELECT.” WHEN ANTICHRIST COMES UPON THIS
EARTH, HE’LL BE ABLE TO MAKE YOU THINK THAT WHITE IS BLACK,
BLACK IS WHITE, UP IS DOWN, DOWN IS UP. HE WOULD MAKE YOU
GLADLY MURDER YOUR MOTHER AND BELIEVE THAT YOU WERE
DOING GOD SERVICE. DECEPTIVE SPIRITS. THEY ARE DEFILING
SPIRITS, NUMBER EIGHT. LOOK IF YOU WILL IN THE LAST, AH, IN
VERSE EIGHT, “AND THEY HAD THE HAIR OF WOMEN, AND THEIR TEETH
WERE AS THE TEETH OF LIONS.” NOW WHEN HE SPEAKS OF THE
HAIR OF WOMEN, I BELIEVE HE’S TALKING HERE ABOUT SEDUCTION
AND DEFILEMENT. GOD HAS GIVEN A WOMAN HER HAIR FOR HER GLORY
AND IT IS A BEAUTIFUL THING, BUT THESE DEMONS ARE GOING TO
USE THAT AS A TRAP. IN MANY WAYS, THESE DECEPTIVE DEMONS
WILL SEEM ALLURING. THE BIBLE SPEAKS OF SEDUCING SPIRITS.
BUT THEY HAVE HAIR LIKE WOMEN, FACES LIKE MEN, BUT THEY HAVE
TEETH LIKE LIONS TO RIP, TO SHRED, TO DEVOUR. “YOUR
ADVERSARY, THE DEVIL, GOETH ABOUT AS A ROARING LION,
SEEKING WHOM HE MAY DEVOUR.” HAIR LIKE WOMEN, BUT TEETH
LIKE LIONS. THESE EVIL SPIRITS ARE SO HIDEOUSLY BEAUTIFUL, SO
BRILLIANTLY DECEPTIVE. NUMBER NINE: THEY ARE DEFIANT
SPIRITS. LOOK IN VERSE NINE, “AND THEY HAD BREASTPLATES, AS
IT WERE BREASTPLATES OF IRON; AND THE SOUND OF THEIR WINGS
WAS AS THE SOUND OF CHARIOTS OF MANY HORSES GOING TO
BATTLE.” BREASTPLATES OF IRON, A HEART OF STEEL. THE GROANS,
THE CRIES, THE SHRIEKS OF THEIR VICTIMS WILL BE
MEANINGLESS TO THEM. THEY WILL NOT BE MOVED FROM THEIR COURSE
OF ACTION. AND HERE THEY WILL COME, WAVE AFTER WAVE
AFTER WAVE. YOU CAN HEAR THE CHARIOTS RUMBLE. THEY CANNOT
BE STOPPED. THEY CANNOT BE OUTRUN. THERE’S NO PLACE TO
HIDE. NUMBER TEN: THEY ARE DURABLE SPIRITS. LOOK IN VERSE
10, “AND THEY HAD TAILS LIKE UNTO SCORPIONS, AND THERE WERE
STINGS IN THEIR TAILS; AND THEIR POWER WAS TO HURT MEN
FIVE MONTHS.” FIVE MONTHS IS THE NORMAL LIFESPAN OF A
LOCUST. THAT IS, UNTIL THEIR DEED IS DONE THEY CANNOT BE
STOPPED, WILL NOT BE STOPPED. FIVE, WE’VE TOLD YOU ALSO, IS
THE NUMBER OF COMPLETENESS. FIVE FINGERS ON THIS HAND,
FIVE FINGERS ON THIS HAND. EITHER FIVE OR TEN IS
THE BIBLICAL SYMBOL OF COMPLETENESS. WHAT’S HE
SAYING? HE’S SAYING NOW THAT THERE’S NOTHING, NOTHING,
NOTHING BUT THE HAND OF ALMIGHTY GOD THAT WILL STOP
THESE DURABLE SPIRITS. THEY CANNOT BE DESTROYED. THERE’S
NO WEAPON AGAINST THEM. NUMBER ELEVEN, AND FINALLY: THE SUM
TOTAL IS THEY ARE DIABOLICAL SPIRITS. NOTICE REVELATION
CHAPTER NINE VERSES 11 AND 12, “AND THEY HAD A KING OVER
THEM, WHICH IS THE ANGEL OF THE BOTTOMLESS PIT,” THE ANGEL
OF THE BOTTOMLESS PIT. CAN YOU IMAGINE THAT? THAT’S THE DEVIL
HIMSELF, THE ANGEL OF THE BOTTOMLESS PIT, A KING, “WHOSE
NAME IN THE HEBREW TONGUE IS ABADDON, AND IN THE
GREEK TONGUE HATH HIS NAME APOLLYON.” BOTH ABADDON AND
APOLLYON MEAN DESTROYER. “ONE WOE IS PAST AND, BEHOLD, THERE
COME TWO MORE WOES,” AH, “TWO WOES MORE HEREAFTER.” NOW I
ASKED YOU A QUESTION: I SAID WHAT CAN, CAN YOU IMAGINE,
CAN YOU IMAGINE ALL OF THE PENITENTIARY DOORS SWUNG OPEN,
ALL OF THE ASYLUMS, ALL OF THE, AH, RESERVOIRS OF THE
WICKED FLUNG OPEN AND THESE PEOPLE COME OUT UPON THE
EARTH? I SAID CAN YOU IMAGINE THERE’D BE NO POLICEMAN TO
STOP THEM. BUT NOW IMAGINE ONE MORE THING: IMAGINE THAT BY
SOME MEANS ALL OF THEM ARE ORGANIZED, THAT ALL OF THEM
HAVE AN INTERNAL RADAR, AN INTERNAL GUIDANCE SYSTEM THAT
IS MOVING THEM, DRIVING THEM. THAT’S WHAT THE SCRIPTURES
SAYS. WHEN THE PIT IS OPENED, OUT THEY COME AND THERE IS A
MASTERMIND, ABADDON, APOLLYON IS HIS NAME. THEY ARE
DIABOLICAL SPIRITS; IT’S GOING TO BE POURED OUT UPON THIS
EARTH. NOW FRIEND, THE MESSAGE IS OVER, BUT I WANT TO TELL
YOU SOMETHING. I DON’T WANT TO BE HERE AND I DON’T WANT MY
CHILDREN NOR MY GRANDCHILDREN HERE DURING THAT TIME.
[AUDIENCE: AMEN] YOU SAY, “WELL, ADRIAN, I DON’T THINK
YOU’VE GOT IT ALL RIGHT.” WELL, YOU READ IT AND TELL ME
WHAT IT MEANS. BUT I’LL TELL YOU [SLAP] WHATEVER IT MEANS,
YOU DON’T NEED TO BE THERE, [AUDIENCE: AMEN] YOU DON’T
NEED TO BE THERE. THIS IS WHAT THE BIBLE CALLS THE GREAT DAY
OF GOD’S WRATH. “THE GREAT DAY OF HIS WRATH IS COME, AND WHO
IS ABLE TO STAND?” THAT’S WHAT WE READ IN REVELATION
CHAPTER SIX. BUT I’VE GOT SOME WONDERFUL NEWS FOR YOU. IT’S
FOUND IN FIRST THESSALONIANS CHAPTER ONE AND VERSE 10, AND
IT SAYS WE’RE, “TO WAIT FOR HIS SON FROM HEAVEN, WHOM HE
RAISED FROM THE DEAD, EVEN JESUS, WHO DELIVERED US FROM
THE WRATH TO COME.” [AUDIENCE: AMEN] ISN’T THAT WONDERFUL?
[AUDIENCE: AMEN] OR LISTEN TO THIS: FIRST THESSALONIANS FIVE
VERSES NINE THROUGH 11, “FOR GOD HATH NOT APPOINTED US TO
WRATH BUT TO OBTAIN SALVATION BY OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.” GOD
IS NOT GOING TO POUR OUT HIS WRATH UPON THE CHURCH.
THERE’RE SOME PEOPLE WHO HAVE THE IDEA THAT THE CHURCH IS
GOING TO GO THROUGH THE GREAT TRIBULATION. NO. GOD WILL
CHASTISE US, BUT HE’LL NEVER POUR HIS WRATH OUT UPON US.
“GOD HAS NOT APPOINTED US TO WRATH BUT TO OBTAIN
SALVATION.” YOU’RE HIS BRIDE. WHAT HUSBAND WOULD POUR OUT
HIS WRATH UPON HIS BRIDE JUST BEFORE THE MARRIAGE SUPPER?
NO. WE’RE THE BRIDE OF CHRIST. ONE OF THESE DAYS, ANOTHER
TRUMPET WILL SOUND AND THAT IS THE TRUMPET THAT CALLS US TO
MEET THE LORD JESUS CHRIST IN THE AIR. AND JUST AS THE LORD
TOOK LOT OUT OF SODOM BEFORE FIRE AND BRIMSTONE, JUST AS
THE LORD PUT NOAH IN THE ARK BEFORE THE FLOOD, HE’S GOING
TO CALL HIS BELOVED HOME. I WAS ON AN AIRPLANE A WHILE
BACK, AND THE STEWARDESS SAID SOMETHING LIKE THIS JUST
BEFORE THE PLANE TOOK OFF. SHE SAID, “THIS PLANE IS HEADED
FOR CINCINNATI, OHIO. IF CINCINNATI IS NOT IN YOUR
PLANS TODAY, I SUGGEST YOU DE-BOARD. [AUDIENCE LAUGHTER]
THIS PLANE IS HEADED FOR [SLAP] CINCINNATI.” I’M
TELLING YOU, PRECIOUS FRIEND, THIS WORLD IS HEADED FOR
HELL [AUDIENCE: AMEN] AND FOR JUDGMENT, AND IF YOU DON’T
INTEND TO GET THERE, MAY I SUGGEST YOU DE-BOARD. YOU GIVE
YOUR HEART TO JESUS CHRIST AND TRUST HIM. OH, GOD, HELP ME
TO SAY IT. HELP ME TO SAY IT, LORD. DON’T LET PEOPLE SIT
HERE AND LISTEN AND GO OUT UNMOVED AND UNSAVED.
THERE’S NO NEED FOR IT. JESUS SUFFERED, BLED, AND DIED FOR
YOU. HE OPENS HIS ARMS. HE INVITES YOU. HE SAYS, “COME TO
ME, AND I’LL GIVE YOU REST.” WOULD YOU PRAY? LORD JESUS,
I PRAY THAT MANY IN THIS BUILDING TODAY WILL SAY AN
EVERLASTING YES TO YOU SO THAT THEY MIGHT BE THE HUSBANDS,
THE MOTHERS, THE WIVES, THE BROTHERS, THE SISTERS, THE
SERVANTS THEY OUGHT TO BE. LORD, WE BELIEVE ANOTHER
TRUMPET IS ABOUT TO SOUND THAT WILL CALL YOUR BELOVED HOME.
AND, LORD, I PRAY THAT NO ONE IN THIS AUDITORIUM WILL BE
LEFT BEHIND. IN THE PRECIOUS NAME OF JESUS, AMEN. PRECIOUS FRIEND, I REMIND YOU
AGAIN THAT THE BIBLE SAYS THAT THE BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST
CLEANSES FROM ALL SIN. HUH, THAT IS A HALLELUJAH! EVERY
BLUR, EVERY BLEMISH, EVERY SPOT, EVERY STAIN CAN BE
WASHED WHITER THAN SNOW IN THE PRECIOUS BLOOD OF JESUS. WOULD
YOU LIKE TO HAVE YOUR SINS CLEANSED AND OBLITERATED BY
THE BLOOD? WOULD YOU? WOULD YOU PRAY A PRAYER LIKE THIS,
“LORD JESUS, THANK YOU FOR DYING FOR ME. THANK YOU FOR
THE POWER OF YOUR SHED BLOOD. I NOW TURN FROM MY SIN TO YOU;
COME INTO MY HEART, FORGIVE MY SIN, CLEANSE ME LORD JESUS.
SAVE ME, LORD JESUS.” PRAY IT, MEAN IT. AND IF YOU DO, WRITE
TO US AND LET US KNOW, WE WILL REJOICE AND WE’LL SEND YOU
SOME LITERATURE TO HELP YOU TO GET STARTED IN YOUR CHRISTIAN
LIFE. [MUSIC] WE HOPE THAT TODAY’S MESSAGE FROM
ADRIAN ROGERS HAS BEEN AN ENCOURAGEMENT TO YOU AS WE
CONTINUE OUR STUDY, “THE TRIUMPH OF THE LAMB.” YOU CAN
LISTEN TO THIS MESSAGE AGAIN, SHARE THIS MESSAGE WITH A
FRIEND OR DOWNLOAD THIS MESSAGE ALONG WITH PASTOR
ROGERS’ OUTLINE, NOTES OR A COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT ALL AT
LWF.ORG. DO YOU EVER FEEL LIKE GOD DOESN’T HEAR YOUR PRAYERS?
IF HE DOES, WHY HASN’T HE DONE SOMETHING ALREADY? DOESN’T HE
CARE? THAT’S VERY INTERESTING. YOU’RE SAYING, “GOD, WHY
HAVEN’T YOU ANSWERED OUR PRAYERS?” GOD SAID, “JUST
WAIT. JUST WAIT. IT’S NOT OVER YET. THERE’RE GONNA BE SOME
MORE MARTYRS.” NOW WHAT I WANT YOU TO UNDERSTAND IS THAT
PRAYER DELAYED IS NOT PRAYER DENIED. OKAY? WHAT I WANT US
TO SEE TODAY IN A WORLD GONE WILD IS THAT GOD HAS HIS OWN
SCHEDULE. AND REMEMBER, THAT IF YOU PRAYED IN FAITH AND
ASKED GOD TO DO SOMETHING, THAT PRAYER NEVER FELL TO THE
GROUND. THAT PRAYER IS STILL THERE IN HEAVEN. JOIN US AS WE
CONTINUE THIS POWERFUL SERIES FROM THE BOOK OF REVELATION,
“THE TRIUMPH OF THE LAMB.” THANKS FOR WATCHING TODAY.
WE’LL SEE YOU NEXT TIME. [MUSIC] [MUSIC] LOVE WORTH
FINDING IS A VIEWER SUPPORTED MINISTRY AND WE NEED THE HELP
OF FAITHFUL VIEWERS LIKE YOU AS WE PROCLAIM THE GOSPEL EACH
WEEK. SOME ARE WONDERING IF THESE ARE THE LAST DAYS. ONLY
GOD KNOWS. AS THANKS FOR YOUR FINANCIAL SUPPORT THIS MONTH,
WE’LL SEND YOU, “UNVEILING THE END TIMES IN OUR TIME.” THIS
BOOK WILL HELP YOU UNDERSTAND HOW TODAY’S HEADLINES FIT WITH
BIBLE PROPHECY. THANK YOU. AND MAY GOD RICHLY BLESS YOU.
