Sermon Tone Analysis

In suffering, you have two places to go- closer to the Lord, or further from the Lord.

Paul in Phil.

3.

Here in Revelation 8, 9, and 11, we’re going to see some stark parallels to the Exodus plagues in Egypt.

And we’re covering a huge portion of Scripture today, but I’m not going to read it all.

I want to get to the point of what is being communicated in the Trumpets.

And I want to ask the question: “In the midst of a mess, is there hope for me?” because the Christian life is messy, amen?

Things don’t always go well.

Sometimes, people sin against us, or we sin against other people.

Being a Christian doesn’t mean perfect marriages and happy kids, and healthy bodies.

Sometimes it’s a struggle.

Sometimes marriages fail, children wander from the faith and sometimes, they die, crops fail, homes flood, friends leave, money runs out, people take advantage of us, and sometimes, the Christian life can feel like such drudgery, and so we ask the question: “In the midst of a mess, is there hope for me?” That’s the question that I want to answer from this section of God’s Holy Word.

But I want to start with verse 6, and then we’ll summarize the trumpets:

So these angels blow the trumpets (seven of them if you’re paying attention):

1st Trumpet (Rev.

8:7): hail and fire mixed with blood 1/3 of the earth burned.

This echoes Exodus 9:24-25

2nd Trumpet (Rev.

8:8-9): Mountain of fire thrown into the sea.

1/3 of sea turns to blood.

1/3 of living creatures die.

1/3 of ships destroyed.

Mountains are a symbol for kingdoms.

3rd Trumpet (Rev.

8:10-11): star falls, and turns 1/3 of fresh water bitter and kills many people who drink it.

And you see the Exodus in the plague as well:

4th Trumpet (Rev.

8:12): 1/3 of sun, moon, stars go dark.

1/3 of day and night are dark.

Do you hear the Exodus echoing here?

Then we get this verse:

It’s not bad enough already?!? Which brings me back to our question: “In the midst of a mess, is there hope for me?” Keep thinking about that question as we finish the trumpets out.

5th Trumpet (Rev.

9:1-12): Locusts that torture, but not kill only those who don’t belong to God (like many of the Exodus plagues)

That God doesn’t allow these creatures to kill people is significant.

And it makes me ask the question again: “In the midst of a mess, is there hope for me?”

6th Trumpet (Rev.

9:13-19): four angels and their armies kill 1/3 of the people on earth.

Notice death has been introduced.

This is still a parallel to the Exodus plagues.

And what does the death of the firstborn plague in Egypt lead to?

Judgement at the Red Sea.

What does this death lead to here?

Judgement at the end.

I’m not going to go into the details of these symbols, but I want to reiterate my question:

“In the midst of a mess, is there hope for me?”

Because notice the point of these trumpets:

The answer to our question: “In the midst of a mess, is there hope for me?” is a resounding “YES!”

Because in times of trouble, you have two places to go- only two- toward Jesus, or away from him.

And the WHOLE POINT of the trumpets is that Jesus wants people to move closer to him.

If you’re struggling or you’re in the midst of a mess- in your marriage, in your relationships, at your job- draw near to Jesus, and he will draw near to you.

In the midst of a mess, you need to preach the Gospel.

That we are not good, that Jesus died on the cross for our sins to save us from Satan, sin, death, Hell, and the wrath of God.

And when others are in the midst of a mess, we need to preach the Gospel.

That they are not good, that Jesus died on the cross for their sins to save them from Satan, sin, death, Hell, and the wrath of God.

We can serve people all day long, but if we never open our mouths and preach the Gospel (GOOD NEWS!), we will never change their lives.

There are good deeds that we should do.

There is good advice that we should give.

But there is a Gospel that God’s people MUST proclaim!

There are good deeds that we should do.

There is good advice that we should give.

But there is a Gospel that God’s people MUST proclaim!

Because the whole point of the trumpets is to get people to draw near to God.

These judgements are acts of mercy.

The people that are going to hell want to be there.

The same sun that melts the wax hardens the clay.

Same action can produce different reactions in people.

He's calling people back to repentance, and these people refuse.

"Suffering is God’s 'megaphone' to rouse us.”

C.S. Lewis

(9/11)

You may be suffering physically, but if you do not repent, eternally, it will be much worse.

IS AND WAS.

What's missing?

This is the beginning of his forever reign.

This section is the answer to the question, “what does hope look like if I draw near to Jesus in times of struggle?”

Jesus returns, becomes the Exodus for his people to set us free from this world, to set us completely free from sin.

To set us completely free from pain and suffering.

The early Christians had a saying in Latin: post tenebras, lux.

“After darkness, light.”

And here, we see the brightest light we can imaging when the presence of God dwells with his people as we see here the ark being revealed.

And that’s what Christianity is.

That Jesus is our only hope.

And when we draw near him with our lives, there is nothing that can be lost that is worth more than what we gain in Christ, like Paul says in Philippians 3: