Sermon Tone Analysis

March 20, 2012

By: John Barnett

Read, print or listen to this resource on our website www.DiscoverTheBook.org

*THE BOOK*

The Book of the Revelation of Jesus gives God's record of all of history from the founding of Christ's Church through the ages until the end of the earth and the ushering in of Heaven.

• The 1st three chapter deal with the church age.

• The 4th and 5th take us heavenward by means of Christ's promised coming and taking His Bride home (the Rapture).

• Then in chapters 6-19 we find the wrath of God upon sin and sinners, with chapters 6-9 show the six seals and the first six trumpets.

*THE CHAPTER*

Now in chapter 10 we have the preparations for the second half of the Tribulation by means of the 7th trumpet.

Here we see the King of Kings place His feet on land and sea.

Jesus is the conqueror, He has taken back His earth, He is planting His feet as Owner and taking possession of what is rightly His.

This is Jesus the Redeemer who took the Title Deed to the Universe from the Majesty on High in chapter 5.

He is the One who loosed each seal and now He prepares for the final assault upon hard-hearted earthlings who refuse to bow to Him.

With a roar like a lion He expresses His POWER and with the sounding of thunder He declares the coming judgment.

*THE MYSTERY*

In the New Testament, a mystery is not something eerie or inscrutable, but rather “a truth that was hidden by God in times past and is now revealed to those who are in His family.”

A mystery is a “sacred secret” that is unknown to unbelievers, but understood and treasured by the people of God.

• The mystery of the kingdom (see Matt. 13:11) Jesus presented here was the truth that the good news was rejected by the majority.

This had not been revealed in the Old Testament.

• the mystery of Israel’s unbelief and rejection of the Messiah (Rom.

11:25);

• the mystery of the rapture (1 Cor.

15:51–52).

• the mystery of the unity of believers (Eph.

3:3–6);

• the mystery of the church as Christ’s bride (Eph.

5:24–32);

• the mystery of the indwelling Christ, “the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations; but has now been manifested to His saints, to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Col.

1:26–27).

• The mystery of God in flesh, the incarnation of the Son of God, a truth not fully revealed in the Old Testament (Col.

2:2–3);

• the mystery of iniquity (2 Thess.

2:7);

• the mystery of Babylon—the terrible, vile, economic and religious system of the end times (Rev.

17);

• The mystery age will be completed when Christ returns in glory (Rev.

10:7).

This is the mystery of all of human history.

Why has God permitted evil?

The answer comes in Revelation 10 as the Lord makes a vow that this mystery will be finished.

There will be no more delay.

As Revelation 10 opens, we stare at the mystery of Jesus.

It is on the backdrop of an earth which lies in an ecological desolation; the land and sea are ravaged.

The benumbed survivors have hastily buried billions of corpses in mass graves.

The horrible roar of demon locusts is silent for who knows how much longer.

Those horrific mounted calvary from Hell seem to have ceased their murderous campaign.

The sun is getting brighter from the strange darkening that caused such weather disasters, the smoke of the grass and forest fires has started to settle and some specks of light green anticipate grass should again soon be poking up from the scorched earth.

The bittered waters of the earth are getting clear again and no stellar debris have fallen to earth lately.

It is half time and the midpoint of the Tribulation has come.

And the mystery is, what has been the effect of all this unleashed wrath of God on the Cosmos?

Has the cosmic rebellion ceased?

Has Satan bowed his knee and confessed that Jesus is Lord?

Have the decimated populace of earth seen “the Light which lighteth every” one born into the world?

No.

• When God flooded the earth and killed everyone but Noah’s family, did all the generations that followed believe and follow the Lord ?

• When Moses destroyed the Egyptians in the most public and visible spectacle of divine proportions, did Egypt have a national revival?

Did they turn in faith and repentance to the Lord ?

• When Jesus did wonderful miracles and signs that no one could even question, did everyone turn in faith and repentance to Him as the Lord ?

Did the nation of Israel trust, obey and follow Him as Messiah?

• When the Apostles went out across the world with supernatural power, healing the sick, raising the dead and speaking with the unquestionable authority of God did all the nations they visited turn in faith and repentance to the Lord ?

• Is it any wonder that the descendents of the Flood, the families of the empire of Egypt, the children of Jesus day and the generations born to those who saw and heard the apostles are any less hard hearted?

They see wonders, hear marvelous things, experience the incontrovertible hand of God and turn from it.

Oh the mystery of the human will, so blinded by willful sin!

It may surprise you to know that in the entire span of time from Creation until now, God has never reigned on earth.

Yes, He is the sovereign King over all of the universe, over both heaven and earth.

He has ruled, overruled, and intervened on earth.

He governs all human events, yet He does so for now in a way that appears remote and incomplete.

He has never used His absolute power to bring about an end to demonic evil, human rebellion, and global injustice and suffering.

He does not receive the worship and honor that is His due as the sovereign King.

He has authority that He chooses for now not to exercise.

God is sovereign and He rules over the universe, but He does not reign on earth.

When He finally establishes His reign, all sin and all suffering will cease.

That is our eternal hope for which we pray whenever we repeat the words, “Thy Kingdom come, they will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

The mystery is why does God continue to wait.

Why does He warn, offer and watch for a few more sinners to repent?

That’s it.

The MYSTERY OF JESUS is His amazing love for even those who never seem to stop rejecting Him.

He waits, and now is the time for the 7th trumpet to sound.

*THE VISION OF THE SON OF GOD:*

*FOCUS ON JESUS*

v. 1-5

After the opening of the six seals of Revelation 6 the 7th seal initiated the 7 trumpets of Revelation 8-9.

Now in Revelation 10 John sees what lies ahead with the 7th trumpet.

This trumpet holds the longest of the messages of doom.

Do you remember what happened to set off this chain of terror?

It was the opening of the scroll (5:7) by the Lamb who was worthy.

And what was it that made Him worthy to be the Heir of the Universe (Hebrews 1:2)?

He was the Lamb slain for sin.

He was now wrestling the Dominion of all things back from the thief, the liar and the murderer Satan.

Jesus is in process of judging all that the usurper to the Throne has caused in the cosmic rebellion.

So at this midpoint in the vision John receives of the drama of redemption, we are reintroduced to the hero, our Lord Jesus.

John paints a beautiful picture by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit of Jesus as the Almighty Redeemer and Absolute Victor.

Thus Revelation 10 is a snapshot capturing all of the work of Christ and the grandeur of God's plan of redemption.

JESUS REFLECTING GOD'S IMAGE (10:1) Jesus was often seen in the Old Testament as a pre-incarnate angel of the Lord.

When He appeared in these instances it was as a special and mighty angelic messenger from God.

In these instances He would accept and receive worship which no angel would ever accept other than the usurper himself, Satan.

The 4 descriptions of this mighty angel corresponds at each point with previous descriptions of Jesus.

• THE CLOUD: In Revelation 1:7 Jesus comes with the clouds.

This mighty angel comes clothed with the clouds.

Jesus was clothed in a cloud just like this the last time the apostle John saw Him ascend into heaven in Acts 1:9.

And John heard the angels who spoke with the apostles that "in like manner” Jesus would return (Acts 1:11).

In the Old Testament Israel was led by a pillar of fire and a cloud (Ex.

13:21), they saw the cloud when God's glory appeared (Ex.

16:10), when the Tabernacle was commissioned by God (Ex.

40:38), over the Mercy Seat (Lev.

16:2).

Paul tells us that it was Christ in that cloud who led, watered and fed them (I Cor.

10:1-4).

Just as the Shekinah or glory cloud hovered over the Holy of Holies when God's presence was there, so the star or glory cloud stood over the manger when God was incarnated.

The Cloud is always associated with Deity.