The Fifth Seal

 

 

 

"⁹ When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained; ¹⁰ and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” ¹¹ And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also."

Revelation 6:9-11

 

Good Morning my beloved,

 

We welcome you to worship in the name of the Lord. We're glad to have you here with us today, thank you for joining us. We are especially grateful for those of you who have been continuing to share the ministry website with all of your family and friends. Your faithfulness to share God's Word with others continues to bring about tremendous results. People are responding to God's Word! Praise God!

 

I want to let all of you know that we are thankful your prayers. Prayer is powerful tool, and a mighty weapon against the adversary. May He continue to use you and this ministry mightily to effect change in even more lives. All for His glory! 

 

Through the advancements of technology and the internet, God’s Word is being made available to more and more of the 7.8 billion people of the world’s population. It is reaching those who were never imagined possible before. For 300 years after Christ, the Roman Empire did all it could to destroy every copy of the New Testament. During the Reformation, many lost their lives in the fight to have the Holy Scriptures printed and accessible in the people’s common languages. Proving that you can deny God’s Word, but you can’t destroy it.

 

Today, the Bible is by far the world's best selling book of all time. At the end of 2020, the total of Bibles printed was 95 million. Yet, today, many of us take the availability of the Bible for granted. We live day after day, believing that it will always be there when we want it. We take for granted our access to God's Word. In fact, in North America, many Christians don’t even bother to pray, that is until they are in trouble.

 

The age of grace is coming to its end, and the day of vengeance rapidly approaching, when God's holiness, justice and righteousness will be vindicated. Just as the love and mercy of God was demonstrated toward us while we were yet sinners, we are to seek mercy and compassion for those who are under the judgment.

 

Let us pray

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Father, we thank You for Your Word. Lord, You have clearly spelled out in Your Word what is going to take place, yet, there are many who refuse to acknowledge it. Help us to use whatever time we have left on this earth, to compassionately and truthfully preach the message of the gospel, we ask that You would open the hearts and ears of the hearers, that they might become part of the blessed and not the cursed. You have given us the responsibility to warn the world, may we be diligent and faithful to that end, as we await Christ, Who will take us to the place prepared for us in glory.

In His name we pray.

Amen

 

Today's Message: The Fifth Seal

As we open our Bibles to Revelation chapter 6, we are going to come face to face with God’s vengeance.We are now in period called the time of Jacob’s trouble or the Great Tribulation, when God unleashes His judgment and His wrath on the earth like never before. The first four seals occur in the period of the first three-and-a-half years, the period of time which Jesus called "the beginning of the birth pangs" in Matthew 24. 

The fifth seal, then begins in the first part, continues through the midpoint, and is accelerated in the second part. It will then be followed by the vengeance. In II Thessalonians 2, the Apostle Paul noted there was coming a day of vengeance. As did the Apostle Peter in II Peter chapter 3. This will be a day when God will vindicate the Lord who has been mocked and abused. Though it is meant to be a time of  destruction of the ungodly, as believers we rejoice, because it does bring an end the reign of sin and to to iniquity, and ushers in everlasting righteousness. So, we do rejoice. 

 

I have been asked, "Why does God use this method to end the world?" God’s ways are not our ways, and far be it for me to question Him, since God was and is the beginning and the ending.There’s a sweetness in it because it destroys sin, and there’s a bitterness in it because it devastates the ungodly. 

 

While I cannot answer why God does what He does, I can assure you, that He will do it. And, since I  have been given the ministry of reconciliation, and I beg you be reconciled to God before this retribution falls. God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. While He is indeed longsuffering in His judgement, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. His judgement is sure! Yet, fallen men still have not seen the truth.

 

I now invite you to follow along with me as I read to you verses nine through eleven, as we begin to watch the events unfold of the fifth seal being opened. Revelation 6:9-11.

 

"When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained; and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also."

 

As we look at these three verses, you will remember,that t he seven-sealed scroll is the title deed to the earth. And,with each seal that is opened, there is a force working. With the first seal, the force was peace. With the second seal, the force was war. The third seal, the force inundating the earth was famine.And, with the fourth seal, was the force was pestilence resulting in widespread death, that will kill one-fourth of all humanity. With this fifth seal, there is another force, as you might have imagined. 

 

However, it is one that is rarely ever discussed. And, that force is vengeance. The force is the prayer for vengeance. The vengeance doesn’t come in the fifth seal, but the prayer does. I believe that these have to be powerful prayers, because they’re being offered by the saints, who have been martyred and are already in heaven. And, they’re prayers for vengeance. They are crying out for justice against those who killed them and that judgment falls in the sixth seal. Because of their strong testimony and sacrifice for Him, martyrs hold a very special place before God.

 

As the Lamb breaks open the fifth seal, John sees the souls of those who have been martyred for Christ. They are under the altar of God. These are the people who were willing to be sacrificed in the most horrendous of ways rather than deny the Lord Jesus Christ. These martyrs are from the resulting persecution that has been taking place. Keep in mind, all of this fits perfectly the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 24. The false peace, and war, and rumors of war, the famine, the pestilences and the persecution. Then, in verse 9, He said "Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you." So, we can see how that parallels in Revelation chapter 6. By the way, you can read the same thing in Mark chapter 13 and Luke chapter 21.

 

As a footnote, because Jesus tells us, "This is only the beginning of the birth pangs." We know that the real pain will come later. If that’s the only beginning, you may be wondering what the rest will be like. If you will stick with our study, and you're going to find out! Here’s where it all starts.

 

Remember, Jesus said "You’ll be hated by all nations on account of My name." So, persecution will be official. I believe there will be government led and religiously inspired persecution all over the world. Religion will become a major persecutor of the true believers. This widespread persecution reflects worldwide hatred for God and Christ, and therefore His followers. And, it begins even before the Antichrist is revealed. Remember, up until he desecrates the temple in Jerusalem, he's the world "savior."

 

The Holy Spirit has been restraining sin. In fact, He's doing now, today. But during this period of time, the He let’s go and sin runs rampant. The wild passions of wild men will be let loose. There will be a time of wholesale slaughter. In other words, all hell is going to break loose. Now, as I said before, people will be saved, and they will attach themselves to the church, as they always have in crisis. However, they won’t be the true wheat; they’ll be tares, and they will fall away once the persecution begins. True, genuine Christians always persevere through any kind of trail, that includes persecution and martyrdom. This will be a worldwide all out effort to annihilate every believer of Christ from the face of the earth. So, the fifth seal deals with the slaughter of Christians that starts with persecution in the first half. And, after the midpoint, it become a worldwide massacre until the end.

 

Verse 9, "When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained."

 

Christ is unrolling the scroll, and every time He unrolls it another seal breaks open, and another sequence of judgment action is made visible. John then sees underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain. We know that these are martyrs, because they have been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained." The lives of the martyrs, their blood, has been sacrificed and poured out for God. These martyrs have offered their lives up for God. 

 

I believe that there is a  lesson in this for all believers. God has a very special place for those who are faithful until death, a place that is close and dear to His heart and throne. This alone should encourage us to be faithful in our commitment and service to Him every minute of every day. However, the world is going to react against the Word of God and slaughter believers. We need to be prepared to share the gospel with as many as we can, bringing people to Christ prior to this happening. Because the world will be required to give their first loyalty to the government. The world and its government will demand that believers give their first allegiance to the state and that they keep quiet about the righteousness proclaimed in Scripture. As believers in Jesus Christ, we can only give our loyalty to Him.

 

In verse 10, "and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?"

 

This continues to remind us that God is Sovereign over all the universe. Therefore, they address Him as Lord, holy and true. Because God is true to His Word, holy and Sovereign, their cry is a cry for vindication of the Word of God and it is a cry for vengeance. The Greek word "krázō" is an onomatopoetic term for a raven's piercing cry. It's a very strong word. How long O Lord, You who are true; you have to be faithful to Your promise. You who are separate from evil; You who are faithful to Your word. How long before You act against evil and keep Your word? They know that both attributes demand that God act in vengeance. By the way, there are prayers for personal revenge. But their holy desire is for the end of iniquity, sin and the ultimate destruction of Satan.

 

So, we can say the force here is a prayer for vengeance. I know many so called Christians, who assume that prayer doesn’t have much effect. But here we see that prayer is really the force influencing the wrath of God in the day of the Lord.Allow me to tell you, never underestimate the power of prayer! Prayer moves God. It is their intercession that activates the tortures to come in the sixth and seventh seals, which include the trumpet and bowl judgments. 

 

Verse 11, " And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also."

 

Notice, that there are two things: a gift from God, a white robe and a word from God, a promise. First God acted, and then He spoke. A white robe is a sign of purity; it’s a sign of righteousness. The Greek term is "leukos," meaning a brilliant, dazzling white. It's a robe of dignity and honor. The Greek word used is "stolē," which means a long, flowing robe worn by the elite. Their souls are pure and righteous. And more of them are accumulating under the altar as more of them are being killed. God comforts them and assures them it’s coming; just rest awhile longer.

In Closing..

As we look around the world, we can see it is headed in this direction.Yet, our joy and anticipation is mingled with tears of sorrow. Though we long for the destruction of sin, we also long for the salvation of the unregenerate, the ungodly. 

 

The challenge for all of us today, is the waiting, that's where we are now. But we must not be afraid while we wait, because the world is not too enlightened. Therefore, we must be willing to witness for Christ, even if it means that we must die for Him and His cause of eternal salvation. There's still time for us to share the Good News with those who are yet lost. Only saving message of the gospel and Christ alone can keep them from this. 

 

The end is rapidly approaching, we must not be ashamed to witness and testify about our Lord Jesus Christ, that even one more might be saved.

May it be so..
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;

the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen

 

 

Copyright © 2019-2021 All Rights Reserved