John MacArthur | The Day of Wrath is Coming

I want you to go on a long journey in a sense with me this morning scripturally speaking and I want to begin by reading a portion of the Old Testament turn to Psalm to sum to one of the popular realities in our current culture is fantasy futuristic speculative fantasy the Word of God talks about the future but it's not fantasy and it's not speculation I'm here this morning to tell you the future the future of the world as God has revealed it he is the creator and the consummate err of his creation in Psalm 2 you hear these words why are the nations in an uproar and the people's devising a vain thing the kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed saying let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us we're moving inexorably toward a global anti-god Antichrist anti Scripture anti church movement is gathering momentum all the time and the goal of it is to rip off but sinners see as binding cords of Christian influence he who sits in the heavens laughs the Lord scoffs at them then he will speak to them in his anger and terrify them in his fury saying but as for me I have installed my king upon Zion my holy mountain they just say your rebellion will not succeed it will be put down and I will establish my king on my holy mountain I will surely tell her the decree of the Lord he said to me this is the king you are my son today I have begotten you ask of me and I will surely give the nation's as your inheritance and the very ends of the earth is your possession the psalmist is saying there will be a final rebellion of the nations of the world but they will not succeed in rebelling against the Lord and His anointed they will be crushed the Lord will laugh at them and in his anger he will destroy them and establish his own King as king over all the earth over all nations and the ends of the earth he shall break them with a rod of iron he shall shatter them like earthenware in light of that now therefore o Kings show discernment take warning o judges of the earth worship the Lord with reverence and rejoice with trembling do homage to the son that he not become angry and you perish in the way for his wrath may soon be kindled a blessed are all who take refuge in him to anyone who knows the Old Testament this is a very familiar message the promise of final judgment on the world turning your Bible to Isaiah chapter 2 Isaiah chapter 2 there are so many sections of Isaiah that speak of that final judgment on the world in which all the ungodly are destroyed and Christ reigns as king we can't begin to cover all of them even in Isaiah but I want to give you some samplings Isaiah chapter 2 verse 12 for the Lord of hosts will have a day 19 times in the Old Testament there there's a statement about a day called the day of the Lord the Lord of Hosts will have a day and everyone who is proud and lofty against them and against everyone who is lifted up that he may be a base and it will be against all the Cedars of Lebanon that are lofty and lifted up these are metaphoric terms and all the Oaks of Bashan and all the lofty mountains against all the hills that are lifted up against every high tower against every fortified wall against all the ships of tarshish and against all the beautiful craft the pride of man will be humbled and the loftiness of men will be a base and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day but the idols will completely vanish men will go into caves of the rocks and into holes of the ground before the terror of the Lord and the splendor of His Majesty when he arises to make the earth tremble in that day men will cast away to the moles and the bats there are idols of silver and their idols of gold which they made for themselves to worship in order to go into the caverns of the rocks and the clefts of the cliffs before the terror of the Lord and the splendor of His Majesty when he arises to make the earth tremble stop regarding man whose breath is in his nostrils for why should he be esteemed men is nothing when compared to God and God's vengeance is coming God is patient God is merciful God is a God of salvation that God will not be mocked and his patience will not endure forever the day of wrath will come let's go to the very vision of that day in the nineteenth chapter of Revelation Revelation chapter 19 and I want to read verses 11 to 21 and that's going to be the focus of our time this morning and I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse and he who sat on it called faithful and true and in righteousness he judges and wages war his eyes are a flame of fire and on his head are many diadem's or crowns and he has a name written on him which no one knows except himself his clothed with a robe dipped in blood and his name is called the word of God in the armies which are in heaven clothed in fine linen white and clean were following him on white horses from his mouth comes a sharp sword so that with it he may strike down the nation's and he will rule them with a rod of iron and he treads the winepress of the fierce wrath of God the Almighty and on his robe and on his thigh he has a name written king of kings and Lord of lords then I saw one angel standing in the Sun and he cried out with a loud voice saying to all the birds which fly in Midheaven come assemble for the great supper of God so that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of commanders and the flesh of mighty men and the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them and all the flesh of all men both freemen and slaves and small and great and I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assemble to make war against him who sat on the horse and against his army and the Beast was seized and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worship His image these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of him who sat on the horse and all the birds were filled with their flesh it's a terrifying picture doesn't it strike you how starkly different that is than the first coming of Christ as a baby in a manger is one who comes to he'll show mercy and to save and the next time he comes it's so starkly different he comes to kill not to give life but to take it the first time he came I am come he said that you might have life the next time he comes he brings death physical death followed by eternal death this is really an awful story it tells of the greatest of world rulers being made food for vultures Birds Kings leaders strong confident become roadkill with no one to bury them their corpses are strewn everywhere along with everybody else and they're all reduced to the same carrion those who once were conquerors and leaders elevated are basically desecrated to the lowest possible level that a human could be taken in that to become nothing but food for birds in contrast to the world's conquerors the great Conqueror comes down rides on a bright horse flying on the wings of supernatural power along with all the saints and angels he comes with his sword to kill you roars out of Zion the Prophet says he utters his voice from Jerusalem and his voice is so powerful that the heavens and the earth shake the fury of his own incensed holiness will literally cause him to be smoking the Sun will disappear the mountains will melt the earth will split the hills will run from their places the waters will leave their channels the sea will roll back in some kind of howling fear the sky will split and fold in on itself like a collapsed tent it is the day for executing the world the world essentially in covenant with Satan the world that has persecuted those people who belong to God and hated God will have his vengeance fall on them in eternal fury but even Daniel saw this Daniel 7 11 I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and given to the burning fire Daniel even seized this beast this final Antichrist and even his cohort cast into the lake of fire by the way the lake of fire was prepared for the devil and his angels for demons but it will be the location of humans as well this is the evidence there's no annihilation they are thrown into a lake of fire which burns with brimstone the lake neither annihilates them nor purifies them how do we know that go to chapter 20 verse 7 a thousand years later Satan will be released from his prison he's been captive during the Millennial Kingdom come to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth to gather them together for the war the number of them is like the sand of the seashore one more war at the end of the kingdom they come up on the broad plain of the earth surround the camp of the saints the beloved city fire comes down from heaven and devours them and the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are also and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever that is not annihilation the lake of fire Isaiah says is a fire Isaiah 66 that will not be quenched in the new testament our Lord says it is an everlasting fire Matthew 25 prepared for the devil and his angels in mark 9 the fire will not be quenched Matthew 13 a furnace of fire where there is wailing and gnashing of teeth which is not anihilation in his conscious punishment Luke 3 the chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable everlasting fire tormented by fire revelation 14:10 John adds that in this vision this fiery Lake into which the beast and the false prophet are cast is identified with brimstone brimstone connecting it with the destruction of Sodom in our minds so the beast and the false prophet are the first to occupy the final lake of fire and the rest will follow verse 21 and the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of him who sat on the horse and all the birds were filled with their flesh literally the Lord speaks a word and all the ungodly drop dead everywhere on the planet we first saw that sword back in the vision of Christ in his return chapter 19 verse 15 from his mouth comes a sharp sword so that with it he may strike down the nation's the whole world of sinners will be killed our society has been given the illusion that Jesus is a benign soft-hearted compassionate teacher and he just wants to do for you whatever you'd like to do for yourself he's your genie no he's your judge he is your judge suddenly you'll all be over suddenly no more war millions of people have died through Wars the whole planet of ungodly people will be killed in one word the entire planet will be dead except those in Christ Zechariah the Prophet at the end of his prophecy chapter 14 says behold a day is coming for the Lord when the spoil taken from you will be divided among you I'll gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle again saying exactly the same thing Ezekiel said Isaiah said Joel said Jesus said all said book of Revelation shows I'll gather all the nations Psalm 2 against Jerusalem to battle the city will be captured the house is plundered the women ravished half the city exile but the rest of the people will not be cut off from the city for the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations as when he fights in a day of battle in that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives which is in the front of Jerusalem on the east the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley so that half the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south but when he does come back in this fiery judgment act he will come to the area of Jerusalem he will touch the Mount and split the Mount people will flee by that valley that has been created they will flee before the earthquake then the Lord my God will come and all the Holy Ones with him and that day there'll be no light luminaries will dwindle we know that the Sun goes out the moon goes dark the stars fall from heaven it'll be a unique day which is known to the Lord neither day nor night that will come about that at evening time there will be light and then that day Living Waters will flow out of Jerusalem half of them toward the eastern sea and the other half toward the western sea it'll be in summer as well as in winter and the Lord will be king over all the earth in that day the Lord will be the only one and his name the only one he's going to recreate the topography of Jerusalem so that there's going to be a river that flows into the desert and restores a measure of what God originally created in the Garden of Eden Daniel is very specific chapter 12 from the time verse 11 of the regular sacrifice being abolished and the abomination of desolation that happens halfway through the 7-year tribulation from that time on there will be 1290 days 1260 days is three and a half years so there's an extra thirty days and then the next verse he says how blessed is he who keeps waiting and attains to the thirteen hundred and thirty-five days what was Daniel saying he comes after three and a half years 1260 days there's an extra 35 days and an extra 45 days and what's that for that is the transition between the destruction of the earth and the establishment of Christ's glorious kingdom how specific is that 75 days to set up the kingdom to bring the Saints and establish their authority around the world and so here's the final comment on humanity into verse 21 all the birds were filled with their flesh that's where the whole human race is headed to be corpses torn apart by birds that's the truth don't get mad at them plead for them to come to Christ right you say this is too much this cannot be true I understand that that it's hard to hear and I also understand that most people completely reject it so let me take you conclusion to second Peter 3 second Peter 3 verse 3 and let me read you verses three and four knowing this first of all that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking following after their own lusts and saying where is the promise of his coming for ever since the father's fell asleep all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation the Assumption of Peter is that people will mock the notion of Christ's return they'll mock it and there's an argument from just sheer ridicule verse 3 mockers will come with their mocking that's the argument of ridicule and then there's the argument from immorality following after their own lusts they they don't want that to be a reality because it would cause them to be terrified enough to give up their lusts which they're unwilling to do so you have mockers arguing by the avenue of ridicule and by the love of their own immorality there's another argument that mockers can give on top of ridicule and immorality and that's uniformity all things continue just as there were from the beginning of creation nothing like that has ever happened no divine judgment has ever come we're never seen any divine judgment doesn't happen in our lifetime there's no god there's no judge there there's just uniformity just things just keep going down the same path that evolutionary chance creates as it goes so whether it's ridicule or the love of immorality or some kind of stupid argument from uniformity mockers have some avenues to choose encountering that believers also have some arguments there's an argument from scripture verses 1 & 2 this is now beloved the second letter I'm writing to you in which I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder that you should remember the words spoken beforehand by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken by your apostles you have heard from Ezekiel you have heard from Isaiah you have heard from the psalmist you have heard from Joel you have heard from Zephaniah you have heard from Zechariah and there would be many others that I could have shown you our argument is the scripture says this is coming the argument from Scripture there's also an argument from history verse 5 when they maintained this that things never change it escapes their notice that by the Word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water through which the world at that time was destroyed being flooded with water they forget that there was a massive global act of divine judgment that destroyed every human being on the planet with the exception of 8 people and then there's a third argument the argument from eternity don't let this one fact escape your notice the lover just because it seems like a long time to you that judgment hasn't come that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years like one day God doesn't have a clock we argue back from the authority of Scripture we argue back from the universal fret flood the proof of which is found in the fossils around the planet we argue from the eternal nature of God that God exists without regard to time and there's one other reality and that's the argument from grace verse 9 Lord is not slow about his promise as some count slowness don't think he's just slow in getting the plan together it's rather than he's patient toward you not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance what's he waiting for he's waiting for you to come to repentance but Burstein the day of the Lord will come like a thief in which the heavens will pass away with a roar the elements will be destroyed with intense heat the earth and its works will be burned up that actually happens at the end of the thousand-year Kingdom since all these things are to be destroyed in this way what sort of people ought you to be he's going to destroy all the ungodly and then he's going to destroy the universe what kind of people should you be in holy conduct and godliness not God less nests and you ought to be looking for and hasting the coming of the day of God because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning in the elements will melt with intense heat that's an atomic implosion that takes everything that exists out of existence according to the promise we're looking for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells so what kind of person should you be be diligent to be found in him be in Christ and thus be in peace with a satisfied soul be spotless blameless and down in verse 17 beloved be on your guard that you're not carried away by the air of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness here are the implications of this for us be in Christ at peace with God spotless and blameless on guard against terror so you don't fall from your spiritual stability and then finally in verse 18 multiply in the Grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ focus on Christ right to him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity amen

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Keywords: christ, jesus, jesus christ, God, bible, scripture, worship, hymns, prayers, bible study, bible devotionals, christian, christian growth, heart of worship channel, heart of worship, heart of worship YT channel, john macarthur, john macarthur sermon, grace community church, evangelicals, new testament, old testament, preaching, worshipping, worship hymns, expository preaching, john macarthur sermons, john macarthur revelation, sermon, God's wrath, judgement, Christ returns, return of christ

Id: PVZduUsKPy0

Length: 30min 16sec (1816 seconds)

Published: Sun Jul 12 2020