Looking for His glorious appearing! Titus 2:13

Revelation 15: 6-7
Feb 28th, 2010
Exploring RevelationArt Sadlier
Categories: Commentary;Prophecy;Book Study

"And the seven angels came out of the temple, having seven plagues, clothed in pure and white linen, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles." verse 6.

In verse 5 we glimpsed into heaven and came to realize that the Judgments that were to come would come directly from the hand of God. In verse 6 we see what comes out of heaven. As John looks into heaven he does not see a Jewish High Priest ministering but rather he sees seven angels.

"clothed in pure and white linen", this indicates that the judgments are to be poured out from the holines of God, these judgments are fully just and deserved. These judgments are not revengeful but are intended to vindicate the holiness of God. Today even many Christians do not fully recognize the holiness of God. Our lives often prove that we do not appreciate the holiness of God.  God said, "Be ye Holy for I am Holy.

These angels are coming out of heaven and are about to avenge the offended holiness of God. These servants of God are about to rid the earth of all that causes it to groan. For millenia God has allowed sin to continue but now the time has come to openly display His judgment on sinful men. God is now going to demonstrate that all who defy Him must suffer for their sins. God is now going to fulfill His covenant with Israel and bring in the Kingdom.

We realize that by the permissive will of God Satan has been allowed to demonstrate that he can rule the world in place of God. He has had 6,000 years to prove himself able to govern the world. Now, at this point he has utterly failed, the earth in ruins. The sea is polluted, the land is poisened, the trees are burned up and the air is polluted. The population of the world has been almost totally wiped out. The Lord said through Isaiah that Satan, "Made the world as a wilderness", Isaiah 14:17. 

This is the same Satan that boasted in Isaiah 14:14, "I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High."  Satan's sin was the rejection of the rule of God in his life, he determined to run his own life apart from God. He determined to be his own god. It is now revealed to be a total disaster. That is the undoing of every unregenerate man, the same result will ultimately follow, except for repentence and yielding to the Lordship of Christ.

"And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials (bowls) full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever."  verse 7.

This is the final step of preparation just prior to the pouring out of the final judgments upon the beast and his kingdom. Those who refuse to drink of the cup of the Lord's salvation, will drink of the 'cup of His wrath'. God is faithful in fulfilling His word, in this case the fulfillment is thousands of years in coming. The mills of God grind slowly but they grind exceeding fine.

Pslam 116:13, says "I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the nameof the Lord."

Psalm 75:8, says "For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup, and the wine is red; it is full of mixture; and he poureth out of the same: but the dregs thereof, all the wicked of the earth shall wring them out, and drink them." That is the cup of judgment upon sinners.

There is another cup in scripture!  "He went away the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done." Matthew 26:42.  Christ drank of the cup of God's wrath against your sin and mine!

The poet has written, "Death and the curse were in that cup, Oh! Lord. T'was full for thee, Thou hast drained it to the dregs, T'is empty now for me!"

Christ drank of the cup of God's wrath, so that you and I could drink of the cup salvation. Those who refuse must drink of the cup of God's wrath themselves. 

Revelation 16, reveals that these vials are poured out in rapid succession. God's wrath will be poured out suddenly, violently and in rapid fire succession.

This event that is about to take place is the answer to the prayers of the saints in Revelation 6:10. "And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth."

Matthew 1: Pt. 4
Feb 28th, 2010
Weekly Bible StudyArt Sadlier
Categories: Commentary;Inspirational;Book Study

We have been considering -  The King in Matthew  and  The King on His Throne

We  see  The King in His Humility.

Never has the world witnessed such humility as this king demonstrated. Born in a barn.

In Philippians 2:7-8, Paul gives an amazing account of the humility of the king. "But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men.  And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."

I want you to pause and see the king in his humility.  

See Him as He was on earth. See Him as the Scribes and Pharisees call Him the servant of Satan.  See Him as they arrest Him and pluck out His beard and as they beat Him.  See Him as they spit upon Him and accuse Him falsely and crucify Him. In all of that He remains silent and submissive. If that is what men are determined to do, He allows them to do it.

See Him today, He is still demonstrating humility today. Christ is still being presented to men today. Christ is still standing in humility allowing men to curse His name, to hate Him, to reject Him or just ignore Him and deny Him. Even in the church. Tozer said over fifty years ago, "The authority of Christ is waning in the church, He is Lord on our lips only". The Lord of Glory is humbled by very ones who claim to be His disciples.

We see The king in His Glory

There is another day soon to dawn, a day in which the humility of the King will give way to the Glory of thr King! We see that day dawn in Revelation 19:11-16,  "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called faithful and true, and in righteousness doth he judge and make war.  His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns;  and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.  And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.  And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.  And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God,  And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."

In Matthew 25:31-34 we have another glimpse of the King coming in His glory. "When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit on the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.  Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundations of the world:"

And in verse 41 we read, "Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:"

The humble King is also the Glorious King of Glory. Have you crowned Christ King of your life. If you came to that hour as an unbeliever, He would place you with the goats. Why not come to Christ now if you are unsaved? You may be saying, how do I come to Christ?

An old man testified that it took him 40 years to learn three simple things.

First that he couldn't save himself.  Second that God didn't expect him to do anything to save himself. Third that Christ had done it all.  The scripture makes it clear that there are two kinds of religion in the world, True Religion and False Religion. Something in my hand I bring is false religion. Nothing in my hand I bring is true religion.

Augustine said, "Lord save me from all my sins but not yet", There was no answer. Later he said, "save me from my sins except one," There was no answer. Finally he prayed, "Lord save me from all my sins and save me now", and God saved him instantly. I arrived at that place one day many years ago. I stepped off the throne of my life, I crowned Christ Lord and King of my life, I confessed my sins and repented of them, and Christ saved me. 

Your problem is not in your understanding but in your will. The door of salvation is open to you right now, will you come?