The Fiery Furnace

Posted on by korgrocker

“You will capture all your enemies. Your strong right hand will seize all who hate you. You will throw them in a flaming furnace when you appear. The Lord will consume them in his anger; fire will devour them.
Psalm 21:8-9 NLT

‭‭Apocalyptic language from David. He set out a terrible end for God’s enemies, graphically describing their end in life, “devoured by fire”. There is no escape for the God-haters in this world, because God has a “strong right hand” that will “seize all who hate” Him. Notice too that there will be a “flaming furnace” ready and waiting, and it is there that God’s enemies will be consumed. But who are these “enemies”? The thing about God is that He is not a physical, natural, Being, who walks around Planet Earth in Person today. For many people it would be a relief if He did, because it would bring encouragement for His people, and provide a focus for all those who decided that they didn’t like His goodness and holiness. But then we pause, because God did walk around this earth two thousand years ago. His Son, Jesus, the second member of the Trinity, came to this earth, and God’s enemies soon came out of the woodwork with accusations and aggressive antipathy, a triple-A package of hate. But how could anyone, no matter how bad they are, ever resent and even hate the Man who brought love and forgiveness to a world steeped in sin. However, a mob stirred up by the Jews’ religious leaders ultimately engineered His death on a Roman cross, thinking that they were bringing religious stability to a fractious region in the Middle East, but instead bringing God’s plan for the salvation of mankind to a momentous and complete conclusion. Why was Jesus so contentious, and how did He become such a figure of hate? Because those people who were quite happy living a life of sin became very uncomfortable when faced with the sinless Man Jesus. A Man who pointed out to them their hypocrisy, their devil-inspired ways, their hatred of the God that Jesus represented. As Jesus once pointed out, their God was the devil and he called him the god of this world. And so, Jesus died as he predicted and as the Old testament prophets foretold, lifted up above the earth nailed to a cross.

Jesus said to the Pharisees and the other religious leaders, “For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44). God’s enemies emerge as those who love evil, and hate good. There is no middle ground, however, because human beings are natural sinners and by default are God’s enemies. After all how can a perfectly pure and holy God ever allow evil of any kind into His presence. Intuitively, people know that but it doesn’t stop them changing their ways. The pull and attraction of sin is too strong for most. It is only by the acknowledgement, confession, and repentance from sin that forgiveness and righteousness can result. And then, at this point, people cease to be God’s enemies. 

There will come a day when God’s enemies will be dealt with. Thankfully, the eternal flaming furnace has not yet been lit. Its first inhabitants will be the devil and his minions, but they will be followed by God’s enemies. We can read the account in Revelation 19 and 20. Grim reading, but even then God’s enemies have rationalised that such an event will never happen. After all, many claim, how can a God of love even treat a person in that way, human thinking that underpins the doctrine of Universalism. But the Bible is clear, that although God is indeed a God of love, full of mercy and compassion, He is also a God of holiness and righteousness. So how can sinners steeped in evil ever appear in His presence? 

But enough of the negatives of how God will deal with His enemies. We start with Romans 3:23-26, “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus”. These are forever words, simple but eternally effective, and difficult to present in any other way. We move on to Romans 10:9-10, “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved“. ‭‭The process of acknowledgement and repentance from sins and believing in God, will transform an enemy of God into His friend. At a stroke. But a decision made to believe in Jesus will insure that we will never have to be thrown into that fiery furnace. Ever.

Dear Father God. The thought of the flaming furnace is surely enough to convince all of Your enemies of their sin. Please help us to share Your love and justice with those around us, in a way that helps them realise that You are the only way to eternal life. Amen.

Just Judgements

Posted on by korgrocker

“And I heard the angel who had authority over all water saying, “You are just, O Holy One, who is and who always was, because you have sent these judgments. Since they shed the blood of your holy people and your prophets, you have given them blood to drink. It is their just reward.” And I heard a voice from the altar, saying, “Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty, your judgments are true and just.””
Revelation‬ ‭16:5-7‬ ‭NLT

There was an angel who was in charge of all the water on Planet Earth. John didn’t see him in his vision, but he heard what he had to say. Although this angel didn’t have to give a reason for why all the water on the earth became blood, he gave an explanation anyway.

Firstly, God was at last dispensing judgement on mankind to all those who had killed His holy people. And not just Christians – there were many in Old Testament times, who were counted as His people. Jesus said, on one occasion when speaking to religious leaders, in Matthew 23:35-36, “As a result, you will be held responsible for the murder of all godly people of all time—from the murder of righteous Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you killed in the Temple between the sanctuary and the altar. I tell you the truth, this judgment will fall on this very generation.” God’s warning of judgement for killing His people has been made very clear, and every generation, whether they believe it or not, will never have an excuse. They will never be able to stand before God and claim ignorance. Isn’t it strange the lengths mankind has gone to in the protection of lives in this world? A mega industry has grown up developing alarm systems to supply advance warning of peril in this present life, but no attention has been paid to the life to come. Most people will protest that they have never killed anyone, particularly God’s people, claiming therefore that they will not have to face judgement. However, sadly, most people have been, or will be, guilty by association with the persecutors and murderers, those engaged in wicked and murderous acts against God’s holy people, because that is the default position for those who reject God’s invitation of grace through His Son, Jesus Christ. We pilgrims must never neglect promoting the afterlife alarm system however. It already exists. We call it the Holy Bible.

Secondly, the judgement was proportionate. Because of their evil deeds in shedding the blood of God’s people, they will be made to drink that blood. In the UK, the judgement for the crime of murder is a prison sentence, the miscreant incarcerated for a few years in a prison. But for most murderers, there will come a day when they will be released back into the community. The victim’s family, instead, has to endure a lifetime of loss, an imbalance that will be adjusted one day – those who are unrepentant, the rejectors of God’s grace, will find out how when they stand before God on the Day of Judgement. The angel continued by saying that, for those still alive in these last days, being made to drink blood was “their just reward”. This will be the reward for those who have supported the beast in his attempts to eliminate God’s people. In these grim and devastating last days of Planet Earth, the ultimate “reward” for the devil and his followers (remember that this is the default position) is not looking good. Their prison sentence, handed down by the Righteous Judge, will be eternal life, without parole, in a place where they would sooner not be.

The Apostle John, in his vision, heard a voice from the altar saying, “Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty, your judgments are true and just”.  Earlier in the Book of Revelation, we read, “When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of all who had been martyred for the word of God and for being faithful in their testimony. They shouted to the Lord and said, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you judge the people who belong to this world and avenge our blood for what they have done to us?”” (Revelation 6:9-10). In the next verse they were told, “….to rest a little longer until the full number of their brothers and sisters —their fellow servants of Jesus who were to be martyred—had joined them“. So here, with the third plague, we learn two things – firstly, that there were no more martyrs expected from Planet Earth, and, secondly, they were having to wait no longer for God’s judgement to be handed down. And the martyrs were satisfied with the outcome, saying that it was “true and just”. 

We pilgrims are an enlightened body of believers. God in His grace and mercy, has shared with us what is going to happen one day. Perhaps quite soon. Are we ready?

Dear Lord. Once again we thank You for this glimpse of the End Times. Life on earth will always be difficult for Your people, but our patience and faith in a future in Your presence will one day be rewarded. We are so grateful. Amen.

The First Seal

Posted on by korgrocker

“As I watched, the Lamb broke the first of the seven seals on the scroll. Then I heard one of the four living beings say with a voice like thunder, “Come!” I looked up and saw a white horse standing there. Its rider carried a bow, and a crown was placed on his head. He rode out to win many battles and gain the victory.”
‭‭Revelation‬ ‭6:1-2‬ ‭NLT

After the tremendous worship experience in Heaven, John’s focus now returns to the scroll. It has seven seals and each was broken in turn, revealing the writing on the scroll. So the scroll seemed to be structured in seven sections, each sealed so that the previous seal had to be broken before the next section could be read. But what was written on this scroll? And why was each broken seal followed by an act of apparent judgement?

Revelation 6 sees the start of the time of what is called the Tribulation, where God’s judgements are carried out on a world of unbelieving, sinful and rebellious people. We have to bear in mind that our Heavenly Father is not just a God of love, but He is also a God of righteousness. One day the period of grace in which we are now living will come to an end. One day sin will have to be judged. So with the sound of the worship still reverberating through the universe, Jesus opens the first seal.

John was perhaps startled by one of the living beings thundering out the word “Come!”. And John saw a white horse with a rider who had a crown on his head and who carried a bow. And we’re told he went out and won many battles. We don’t know for sure who the rider was, or what he represented. The crown would imply someone of authority, the white horse would indicate peace; perhaps the rider was a devious person, promoting peace when carrying an instrument of war, in the shape of a bow. The false prophets Jeremiah wrote about in Jeremiah 8 come to mind, and we read in verse 11, “…They give assurances of peace when there is no peace“. Some have suggested the crowned rider was the Antichrist (see the prophecies in the book of Daniel), but whoever the rider was who rode out on the white horse, he created mayhem, fighting and winning battles on earth.

With the conflicts of the twentieth and now the twenty-first centuries, we could ask the question if the first seal has already been broken. Certainly, some evil leaders have emerged on the world stage, and to one or two, even divine qualities have been assigned. But when the first seal is broken, I don’t think we will have any doubts. We will know.

When the first seal is broken it will be a difficult time for the pilgrims still alive, but for us pilgrims today, still living in this time of grace, we can only look on with some trepidation, and pray. We pray for our families, for our communities and for ourselves. And we pray for mercy from our God of love and righteousness. Ever since Jesus ascended from this earth, there has been an expectation that He will return again “soon”, ushering in the end times. We don’t know when that will be, but we do know that it could be at any time. So we mustn’t waste the moment, and instead not miss an opportunity to extend God’s grace to a lost world around us with our messages of hope.

Dear Father God. We thank You for this period of grace in which we live. Please help us not to hold back when we have the opportunity to reach others with the Good News that Jesus saves.