Revelation 16 (2011)

Transcription

1 Revelatin 16 (2011) The Great Tribulatin is entering its climatic cnclusin SLIDE 16-1 And alng with it cmes the end f Tribulatin verall, the Age f the Gentiles and the waiting fr ur Lrd s return The Great Tribulatin is defined as a time f great persecutin fr the Jew and the believer SLIDE 16-2 Only the unbeliever will experience relative calm during mst f the secnd half f Tribulatin Believers are dying left and right and will see nly a very few survivrs remaining t the end f Tribulatin Scripture makes this utcme very clear SLIDE 16-3 Last week we examined the first five bwl judgments We nted they were systematically prducing Hell n earth Life n earth is becming nt nly unbearable, but literally unlivable This was a detail that tld us these judgments must cme near the very end f the seven years As mve past the first five judgments and int the sixth judgment this week, we have t keep in mind the verlapping nature f the narrative fund in chapters SLIDE 16-4 Last week I prvided a radmap we ll use thrughut the next three chapters r s t make sense f all that is happening in these chapters In the first five judgments, we were studying nt nly chapter 16, but we were als learning abut the backdrp t chapter 18 Cllectively, I call these first five judgment the plagues, since they resembled the plagues f Egypt These plagues als cnnect us t the first part f the sng f Mses sung in chapter 15 The first part was taken frm Exdus and tld f hw Gd judged Israel s enemies thrugh the plagues 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

2 Revelatin 16 2 Here we see that histry repeating itself, just as the singing saints tld us Lking ahead t tnight, we nw mve t the sixth bwl judgment and int a new tpic: the war f Armageddn SLIDE 16-5 Even just the wrd Armageddn can prmpt a myriad f precnceived ntins and wide-eyed speculatin Many Christians are familiar with the term, thugh unfamiliar with its exact meaning And many have a vague awareness that there is a war f Armageddn assciated with the end f the wrld r with the Lrd s return In reality, few Christians have a clear understand f what the Bible teaching cncerning this war and hw it fits int the plan f Gd in the end times Tnight we ll begin ur study f this Tribulatin-ending war And like mst wars, the actual event is far mre cmplex than we prbably assumed In fact, many have cme t calling it the battle f Armageddn, suggesting that it is a single military engagement In reality, it is a series f events lasting days and even weeks and taking place in a variety f lcatins As usual, Revelatin will give us the brad utline f the events and supply sme details But crucial aspects f the stry lie utside Revelatin, particularly in the OT prphets Descriptins f the war are sprinkled thrughut chapters As we mentined last week, these chapters bring numerus tpics tgether and address several significant lse ends f Scripture In particular, we ll see Gd judging and eliminating the enemy s mst pwerful deceptin: Babyln Let s begin where we left ff in Revelatin 16, at the puring ut f the sixth bwl judgment 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

3 Revelatin 16 3 Rev. 16:12 The sixth angel pured ut his bwl n the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, s that the way wuld be prepared fr the kings frm the east. Rev. 16:13 And I saw cming ut f the muth f the dragn and ut f the muth f the beast and ut f the muth f the false prphet, three unclean spirits like frgs; Rev. 16:14 fr they are spirits f demns, perfrming signs, which g ut t the kings f the whle wrld, t gather them tgether fr the war f the great day f Gd, the Almighty. Rev. 16:15 ( Behld, I am cming like a thief. Blessed is the ne wh stays awake and keeps his clthes, s that he will nt walk abut naked and men will nt see his shame. ) Rev. 16:16 And they gathered them tgether t the place which in Hebrew is called Harmagedn. As the sixth angel purs ut his bwl, we re tld that the great river, the Euphrates, is dried up SLIDE 16-6 The Euphrates is the majr river f Mesptamia in present-day Iraq It runs thrugh the ancient city f Babyln We knw frm the earlier bwl judgments that all the rivers f the Earth have been turned t bld S the state f the river has already changed But bld itself is mstly water, s it s still accurate when Revelatin 16 describes the river as drying up as a result f this bwl Naturally, we ask hw is the drying up f a river (given that it has already turned t bld) cnsidered a judgment? In v.12 we re tld the reasn: it makes a way pssible fr the kings f the east The kings is a reference t the antichrist and the seven kings wh serve him in this day We knw frm Daniel that Tribulatin begins with nly ten kings in pwer, which ten becme nly seven when the Antichrist rises t pwer S these are the same kings described here S the river dries up t prepare a way fr the seven kings f the earth 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

4 Revelatin 16 4 When v.12 says prepare a way, it speaks f making travel r mvement pssible fr the kings Obviusly, the Lrd is the ne carrying ut these judgments and preparing the way S we must cnclude that Gd wants this mvement t take place Then in vs we begin t see what fllws as a result The dragn, beast and false prphet send unclean spirits as messengers t the kings f the earth An unclean spirit is a demn They are described as being like frgs The descriptin f frgs is t remind us nce again f the plagues in Egypt This mment f wrld judgment is a greater fulfillment f the wrk Gd did in freeing Israel ut f Egypt The demns are sent by the dragn, beast and false prphet These three persns frm the False Trinity, which we discussed a few weeks ag At the heart f the False Trinity is Satan himself, cunterfeiting the true Trinity Therefre, the surce fr these demns is Satan himself SLIDE 16-7 The effect f the demns is t call the seven kings f the earth t gather their frces in preparatin fr a great war against Gd The gathering place fr these frces is a place called by the Hebrew name Har-Megidd The wrd har in Hebrew is hill r muntain And Megidd is the name f a prminent city in nrthern Israel in the Jezreel Valley Therefre, the hill f Megidd is Har-Megidd in Hebrew This is the lcatin where these kings will gather their armies in preparatin fr this great war SLIDE Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

5 Revelatin 16 5 Why des Gd bring this judgment? And the war we re abut t study gets its name frm this city The name has becme Armageddn tday Specifically, why des Gd prepare a way fr the kings Why des that then prmpt Satan t call the kings f the Earth t gather in Har-Megidd? And what is this war abut? First, remember the incredible destructin brught t earth by the first five bwl judgments Life n earth is nw virtually unlivable Thse wh have taken the mark f the beast see that their time is shrt Thy knw that Gd is behind these judgments They have heard the angels declare that they will face certain judgment fr taking the mark They are desperately lking fr a rescue Secndly, Satan knws his time is shrt He is als feeling pressure t stp the return f Christ and prevent his wn destructin S bth Satan and the wrld are in the same bat, bth searching fr a way t blck Christ s return and their wn judgment And the key t blcking Christ s return is t destry the Jewish peple nce and fr all in a war that requires all the pwer Satan can muster Tnight we ll study why destrying the Jews is the key t Satan s victry But first we need t understand the military mvements that take place in this war, beginning with the crssing f the Euphrates We re ging t study the five stages f this war as it unflds ver the next several chapters 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

6 Revelatin 16 6 Beginning with a clser lk at the first stage, the mvement f the antichrist s frces t Har-Megidd SLIDE 16-9 After the river dries up and the demns are sent t the kings, the wrld respnds with a massing f frces in Har-Megidd The wrld answers the antichrist s call because they have a shared fear ver the return f Christ and the judgment they face And the antichrist and the false prphet and Satan their gd prmise they can stp the judgment if the wrld will fllw them int battle As the war begins, the antichrist s frces are centered in Babyln T this pint in Revelatin, we haven t heard where the antichrist will center his kingdm, but we have clues Fr example, the drying f the Euphrates river is a clue as t his lcatin The river was an bstacle t his mvement westward int Jerusalem We ll als see later Scripture in Revelatin and in the OT t cnfirm that Babyln is his headquarters Meanwhile, the Jewish peple are living in tw places There is the remnant safe in Btzrah The tried t destry the remnant but failed Secndly, there are the rthdx Jews living in Jerusalem wh have refused the mark f the beast They remain in the city t be as clse t the temple as pssible And they are still resisting the antichrist The armies mve frm Babyln westward until they mass near Har-Megidd Irnically, the War f Armageddn desn t actually take place near Har- Megidd 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

7 Revelatin 16 7 The armies merely use this area as a staging lcatin in preparatin fr the battle The actual battle takes place in tw ther places Har-Megidd is lcated in strategically valuable piece f land in Israel in the Jezreel Valley The Jezreel Valley is a wide pen area perfect fr amassing a large army Much like the Allies amassed frces in suthern England in the mnths befre the Nrmandy Invasin This will be a place that the antichrist awaits the seven kings frces t jin him in preparatin fr the battle The actual battles will take place in Jerusalem and at Btzrah The twn f Har-Megidd lies in the Jezreel Valley SLIDE The valley extends suthward tward Jerusalem allwing the frces t mve easily int place arund the city And it als affrds an easy crssing f the Jrdan sutheast int the regin f Btzrah This war f the wrld against Israel during the time f Tribulatin is an event described extensively in the OT prphets SLIDE Fr example, Jel describes it this way: Jel 3:9 Prclaim this amng the natins: Prepare a war; ruse the mighty men! Let all the sldiers draw near, let them cme up! Jel 3:10 Beat yur plwshares int swrds And yur pruning hks int spears; ı Let the weak say, I am a mighty man. Jel 3:11 Hasten and cme, all yu surrunding natins, And gather yurselves there. Bring dwn, O LORD, Yur mighty nes. Jel 3:12 Let the natins be arused And cme up t the valley f Jehshaphat, Fr there I will sit t judge All the surrunding natins Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

8 Revelatin 16 8 Jel 3:13 Put in the sickle, fr the harvest is ripe. Cme, tread, fr the wine press is full; The vats verflw, fr their wickedness is great. Jel 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley f decisin! Fr the day f the LORD is near in the valley f decisin. Ntice Jel describes a prclamatin that ges ut t the natins that they might engage in a war And ntice in v.11 that the prphet declares that it is the Lrd wh brings the mighty nes f the wrld t jin this battle The wrd mighty is being used sarcastically, since these men think they are mighty enugh t defeat the Lrd In reality, Jel says in v.13 they are amassing t be tread dwn in the wine press Ntice als where they meet They cme up t the Valley f Jehshaphat, which is a name f the valley utside Jerusalem The Psalms als fretell f this cming battle against Gd Psa. 2:1 Why are the natins in an uprar And the peples devising a vain thing? Psa. 2:2 The kings f the earth take their stand And the rulers take cunsel tgether Against the LORD and against His Aninted, saying, Psa. 2:3 Let us tear their fetters apart ı And cast away their crds frm us! Psa. 2:4 He wh sits in the heavens laughs, The Lrd scffs at them. Psa. 2:5 Then He will speak t them in His anger And terrify them in His fury, saying, Psa. 2:6 But as fr Me, I have installed My King ı Upn Zin, My hly muntain. Bth Jel and the Psalmist ech the same feeling f arrgance amng the kings and natins f the earth thinking they can defeat Gd 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

9 Revelatin 16 9 If we ever had any dubt f the depravity f fallen man and the crrupting pwer f pride in the heart, we need nly lk at this example Men left t their wn becme cnvinced they can cntend with Gd in battle T end tnight, we need t answer the questin f why the enemy believes that attacking the Jews is the key t his survival in these last mments f Tribulatin First, the Lrd has prmised that there will always be a remnant f Israel The Lrd will never allw faith in Israel t be extinguished r fr the peple f Israel t cease t exist Rm. 11:1 I say then, Gd has nt rejected His peple, has He? May it never be! Fr I t am an Israelite, a descendant f Abraham, f the tribe f Benjamin. Rm. 11:2 Gd has nt rejected His peple whm He freknew. Or d yu nt knw what the Scripture says in the passage abut Elijah, hw he pleads with Gd against Israel? Rm. 11:3 Lrd, THEY HAVE KILLED YOUR PROPHETS, THEY HAVE TORN DOWN YOUR ALTARS, AND I ALONE AM LEFT, AND THEY ARE SEEKING MY LIFE. Rm. 11:4 But what is the divine respnse t him? I HAVE KEPT fr Myself SEVEN THOUSAND MEN WHO HAVE NOT BOWED THE KNEE TO BAAL. Rm. 11:5 In the same way then, there has als cme t be at the present time a remnant accrding t Gd s gracius chice. Secndly, Gd has prmised that ne day Israel wn t cnsists merely f a believing remnant One day all Israel will believe and thus be saved Rm. 11:25 Fr I d nt want yu, brethren, t be uninfrmed f this mystery s that yu will nt be wise in yur wn estimatin that a partial hardening has happened t Israel until the fullness f the Gentiles has cme in; Rm. 11:26 and s all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, ı THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION, ı HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB. Rm. 11:27 THIS IS MY COVENANT WITH THEM, ı WHEN I TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS. Why des Gd insist that His peple never cease? 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

10 Revelatin Simply because He made prmises t Abraham cncerning his descendants, and Gd will keep thse prmises And yet we remember that when the Messiah arrived fr His peple at His first cming, Gd caused Israel t reject the Messiah The rejectin was the result f the terms f the Old Cvenant SLIDE Since Israel failed under that cvenant, it required Gd bring judgment t the natin, including the judgment f Tribulatin That judgment perid then left pprtunity fr Gd t bring the Gspel t the Gentile natins f the wrld But ultimately, Gd will return t Israel as He prmised That s why Paul says in Rm 11:25 that this return t Israel cmes nly after the fullness f the Gentiles has cme in This returning f Israel t Gd and Gd s saving f all Israel is the key mment Satan wants t stp, because stpping the salvatin f Israel is the key t his survival T understand why, we need t g back t the Gspels, t a key mment in Israel s histry Matt. 12:22 Then a demn-pssessed man wh was blind and mute was brught t Jesus, and He healed him, s that the mute man spke and saw. Matt. 12:23 All the crwds were amazed, and were saying, This man cannt be the Sn f David, can he? Thrugh chapter 12 f Matthew s gspel, Jesus has been teaching pening declaring Himself t be the prmised Messiah and calling upn Israel t accept Him Crwds are fllwing Him and listening t His teaching Jesus has been prving Himself with signs and wnders and many individuals within Israel are believing But the leadership f Israel rejects His claims Then cmes this pivtal mment in Jesus ministry 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

11 Revelatin Jesus casts ut a demn frm a mute and blind man s that nt nly is he freed frm the demn, but the man is als healed f blindness and deafness The crwd reacts in an interesting way They are nt nly amazed by the miracle, but they ask this cannt be the Sn f David, can it? Essentially, they are asking the Pharisees present in the crwd if this man is their Messiah, the Sn f David? What caused the crwd t ask this questin? Clearly, they saw smething that caused them t cnsider that Jesus was the prmised Messiah The answer is fund in a traditinal Jewish teaching cncerning the appearance f the Messiah This teaching is nt fund in Scripture, except indirectly The traditin said that nly the Messiah wuld have the ability t remve a demn frm a mute persn The Jewish natin was nt unfamiliar with exrcisms Demns were recgnized t be real and present in sme peple And Gd had given Israel revelatin cncerning hw t remve these demns Jesus Himself acknwledges this in v.27 when He references the sns f Israel casting ur demns The way Gd had prvided fr casting ut demns invlved a specific prcess Again, the prcess is spelled ut in Scripture, but it can be seen indirectly frm varius passages The prcess began with learning the name f the demn in the persn s bdy With the name f the demn, the exrcist culd call upn the demn by name and cast it ur 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

12 Revelatin The name f the demn was determined by speaking with the demn, wh spke using the vice f the persn they ccupied If the name f the demn culd nt be learned, then there was n way t remve the demn Therefre, a traditin arse within the Jewish natin that nly the Messiah wuld have the pwer t cast ut demns frm a mute persn Since the persn was mute, there wuld be n way t learn the name f the demn, and therefre it culdn t be cast ut We see evidence f this truth in anther place in Scripture Mark 9:17 And ne f the crwd answered Him, Teacher, I brught Yu my sn, pssessed with a spirit which makes him mute; Mark 9:18 and whenever it seizes him, it slams him t the grund and he fams at the muth, and grinds his teeth and stiffens ut. I tld Yur disciples t cast it ut, and they culd nt d it. Mark 9:19 And He answered them and said, O unbelieving generatin, hw lng shall I be with yu? Hw lng shall I put up with yu? Bring him t Me! Mark 9:25 When Jesus saw that a crwd was rapidly gathering, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying t it, Yu deaf and mute spirit, I cmmand yu, cme ut f him and d nt enter him again. Mark 9:26 After crying ut and thrwing him int terrible cnvulsins, it came ut; and the by became s much like a crpse that mst f them said, He is dead! Mark 9:27 But Jesus tk him by the hand and raised him; and he gt up. Mark 9:28 When He came int the huse, His disciples began questining Him privately, Why culd we nt drive it ut? Mark 9:29 And He said t them, This kind cannt cme ut by anything but prayer. Ntice that the disciples first tried t remve the mute spirit themselves but culdn t d it When Jesus hears abut this, he calls them part f an unbelieving generatin What He meant was that they were nt believing in Him as Messiah 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

13 Revelatin If they had understd Him t be Messiah, they wuld have realized that nly Messiah can remve such a demn as they had been taught Then Jesus prceeds t remve the spirit withut learning its name Later the disciples ask Jesus hw cme they culdn t cast ut this demn Jesus respnded that this kind cannt be cast ut except by prayer In ther wrds, men cannt remve mute demns, nly Gd can remve mute demns This gives evidence that the Jewish traditin was rted in truth revealed by Gd utside Scripture But it s cnfirmed here in Scripture S back in Matthew, Jesus has shwn Himself cnclusively t be the Messiah And the crwd gets it, r s they think they d They ask their leadership t cnfirm that this man is their Messiah In respnse, the leadership refute the miracle Matt. 12:24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, This man casts ut demns nly by Beelzebul the ruler f the demns. Matt. 12:25 And knwing their thughts Jesus said t them, Any kingdm divided against itself is laid waste; and any city r huse divided against itself will nt stand. Matt. 12:26 If Satan casts ut Satan, he is divided against himself; hw then will his kingdm stand? Matt. 12:27 If I by Beelzebul cast ut demns, by whm d yur sns cast them ut? Fr this reasn they will be yur judges. Matt. 12:28 But if I cast ut demns by the Spirit f Gd, then the kingdm f Gd has cme upn yu. Since the Pharisees knew that Jesus miracle was smething n man had the pwer t accmplish, they had t identify a supernatural cause 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

14 Revelatin Since they were nt willing t declare Jesus t be Gd, that left them with nly ne ther chice They declare him t be Satan Jesus refutes their lgic by pinting ut that Satan wuldn t g arund casting ut his wn frces S their explanatin is patently ridiculus That wuld leave nly ne pssibility: Jesus was Gd Still, the Pharisees and the crwd rejected His claim And in this mment, they cmmitted the unpardnable sin Jesus next wrds t them are: Matt. 12:31 Therefre I say t yu, any sin and blasphemy shall be frgiven peple, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall nt be frgiven. Matt. 12:32 Whever speaks a wrd against the Sn f Man, it shall be frgiven him; but whever speaks against the Hly Spirit, it shall nt be frgiven him, either in this age r in the age t cme. Much has been speculated cncerning these wrds, but in their prper cntext they can mean nly ne thing Jesus declares that this generatin f Israel has rejected their Messiah and has lst their chance t receive Him as King There will be n frgiveness ffered t this generatin fr their sin in rejecting Christ Specifically, the peple f Israel had rejected the wrk f the Hly Spirit as He demnstrated Jesus authrity thrugh these unique miracles And when the leadership witnessed ne f the miracles f the Hly Spirit perfrmed thrugh Jesus and credited Satan, they cmmitted this unfrgivable sin The unpardnable sin applied t this generatin f Israel nly It is nt a sin that can be repeated tday The reasn it was unpardnable fr that generatin alne cmes frm the unique witness Israel received in that day 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

15 Revelatin They received the testimny f Jesus in the flesh by the pwer f the Hly Spirit And they rejected this testimny They rejected the persnal testimny f the Lrd Himself, s they will nt be given a secnd chance t believe at a later time thrugh the testimny f a lesser messenger (like an apstle) T allw them t reject Jesus testimny yet accept a lesser s testimny wuld dishnr Christ, Wh must be abve all things This was exactly as Gd planned, as we discussed earlier when we learned the reasns fr the Tribulatin Gd left Israel in their sin at the time f Jesus first cming as judgment fr their sins under the Old Cvenant Gd culd then justly cndemned this generatin while ffering the Gspel t the Gentiles We see that frmal rejectin declared in Luke s Gspel, which cmes in the same mment described in Matthew: Luke 13:34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prphets and stnes thse sent t her! Hw ften I wanted t gather yur children tgether, just as a hen gathers her brd under her wings, and yu wuld nt have it! Luke 13:35 Behld, yur huse is left t yu deslate; and I say t yu, yu will nt see Me until the time cmes when yu say, BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD! Shrtly after declaring that this generatin f Israel had cmmitted the unpardnable sin, Jesus says He wished it culd have been anther way But they wuld nt have Him This was as Gd prmised, accrding t His cvenant by Mses Nw the natin wuld suffer scattering and thusands f years f persecutin and weakness until the day the Lrd returns His favr t Israel Jesus gives the cnditin upn which Israel will receive that favr in the future 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

16 Revelatin Specifically, Israel will nt see the return f their Lrd until the natin says Blessed is He Wh cmes int eh Name f the Lrd. This statement is a shrt phrase taken frm Psalm 118 The is a Messianic psalm that Jews are said t sing upn the arrival f their Messiah int Jerusalem In fact, when Jesus did enter Jerusalem shrtly befre His crucifixin, Jews lined the rad and began t sing this very psalm, as they were taught t d Jesus says the natin f Israel must call upn Him in this way befre He will return t them and rule ver them as their King And this call must be unanimus All Israel must declare Jesus t be Messiah Until all Israel believes, the Lrd will nt return This is why the age f judgment ver Israel will cntinue until the Lrd returns Because it will be the saving f all Israel and their call fr Jesus that actually causes the Lrd t return SLIDE S nw we can return t Revelatin and see why Satan sees destrying the Jews as the key t his survival If Satan were successful in killing all the Jews, then the natin f Israel wuld literally cease t exist Satan has lng desired t accmplish this very task That was ne f the messages we studied in Revelatin 12 And if the natin f Israel ceased t exist, then there wuld be n ne t call upn Jesus t return as Messiah Since Jesus Himself said that He wuld nt return until Israel calls fr Him, then withut Israel, there can be n Secnd Cming Finally, if Jesus never returns t Earth, then the mment f Satan s judgment will never happen This judgment is the prmised crushing f Satan s head by the Messiah that was prmised all the way back in Genesis 3: Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

17 Revelatin S in the sixth bwl judgment, the Lrd prmpts the first stage f the battle f Armageddn SLIDE The Euphrates river dries up, allwing Satan t rganize a wrldwide invasin f Israel The antichrist s invasin is a prelude fr an eventual attack against all Jews in Israel and Btzrah The intent is t destry Israel And the hpe is that if Israel is wiped ur f existence, then Christ s return will becme impssible If yu are a believer living n earth during this time, Satan s plan might sund plausible And that pssibility might cause the believer t wrry S the Lrd gives encuragement even in the midst f His revelatin cncerning the sixth Revelatin Rev. 16:15 ( Behld, I am cming like a thief. Blessed is the ne wh stays awake and keeps his clthes, s that he will nt walk abut naked and men will nt see his shame. ) SLIDE Jesus reassures the believer that He will return The enemy s scheming is nt ging t succeed in the end And the believer shuld remain ready fr that mment Next week, we mve t the next stage f the war Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.