Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 9:13-21.

 

“¹³ Then the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, ¹⁴ one saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.”  ¹⁵ And the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were released, so that they would kill a third of mankind.  ¹⁶ The number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred million;  I heard the number of them.  ¹⁷ And this is how I saw in the vision the horses and those who sat on them:  the riders had breastplates the color of fire and of hyacinth and of brimstone;  and the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions;  and out of their mouths proceed fire and smoke and brimstone.  ¹⁸ A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues, by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which proceeded out of their mouths.  ¹⁹ For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails;  for their tails are like serpents and have heads, and with them they do harm.        

 

²⁰ The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk;  ²¹ and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their immorality nor of their thefts.”  Revelation 9:13-21.

                                             

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Despite all these punishments showing the power of God and his fierce wrath toward wickedness, “the rest of mankind” did not repent of their wickedness.  Verses 20 and 21.  This is another example of man’s “Total Depravity”, the “T” of “TULIP, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

                                                                                                                                                                                

We are reminded of the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus.

                                                                

“¹⁹ “Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day.  ²⁰ And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores, ²¹ and longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man’s table;  besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores.  ²² Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom;  and the rich man also died and was buried.  ²³ In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and *saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom.  ²⁴ And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’  ²⁵ But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things;  but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony.  ²⁶ And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.’  ²⁷ And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father’s house— ²⁸ for I have five brothers—in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’  ²⁹ But Abraham *said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets;  let them hear them.’  ³⁰ But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’  ³¹ But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”  Luke 16:19-31.

                                                                                                                                   

Repentance is not just a matter of common sense and “free will”.  Man is dead in sin, hostile to God, and enslaved to sin and Satan which is this “Total Depravity”.  Man will not repent unless repentance is granted to him by God.

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 9:1-11. 

 

“Then the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from heaven which had fallen to the earth;  and the key of the bottomless pit was given to him.  He opened the bottomless pit, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace;  and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit.  Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power.  They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.  And they were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment for five months;  and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings a man.  And in those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will long to die, and death flees from them. 

 

The appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle;  and on their heads appeared to be crowns like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men.  They had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions.  They had breastplates like breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle.  They have tails like scorpions, and stings;  and in their tails is their power to hurt men for five months.  They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon.”  Revelation 9:1-11.

 

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We continue to read about God’s reign and wrath through the Seven Trumpets.  The events described today following the sounding of the fifth trumpet are more terrifying that what we read yesterday.

 

 

But, today, we have the assurance:  “They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads”.  Verse 4.

 

 

                                             

“But My righteous one shall live by faith;  And if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him.”  Hebrews 10:38

 

“But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul.”  Hebrews 10:39

                                       

Reformed Doctrine best helps us believe that God protects us.  “Preservation of the Saints” is the “P” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

                                           

Reformed Doctrine teaches that God provides all that we need for salvation.

Reformed Doctrine teaches us about the benefits of belonging to the Lord.  We are His people, His sheep.  God is our Good Shepherd and will protect us.

As one example, consider Question and Answer 26 of the Heidelberg Catechism.

Question 26.  What believest thou when thou sayest, “I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth”?

Answer.  That the eternal Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (who of nothing made heaven and earth, with all that is in them;  who likewise upholds and governs the same by his eternal counsel and providence) is for the sake of Christ his Son, my God and my Father; on whom I rely so entirely, that I have no doubt, but he will provide me with all things necessary for soul and body:  and further, that he will make whatever evils he sends upon me, in this valley of tears turn out to my advantage;  for he is able to do it, being Almighty God, and willing, being a faithful Father.

Reformed Doctrine trains our senses to pick out such verses as Verse 4 in today’s Scripture and to remember other verses and Reformed creeds which teach us about God’s protection.

But, with other doctrine, there is no such assurances.  Other doctrine falsely teach that Christians can fall from grace and that man’s free-will is the only thing that cause Christians to persevere in their faith.  Such believers of this false doctrine may shrink back wondering if they will be so tormented by the events in today’s Scripture.

Reformed Doctrine assures us that “without the will of my heavenly Father, not a hair can fall from my head”.

Consider Question and Answer 1 of the Heidelberg Catechism.

Question 1.  What is thy only comfort in life and death?

Answer.  That I with body and soul, both in life and death,  am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Savior Jesus Christ;  who, with his precious blood, hath fully satisfied for all my sins, and delivered me from all the power of the devil;  and so preserves me that without the will of my heavenly Father, not a hair can fall from my head;  yea, that all things must be subservient to my salvation, and therefore, by his Holy Spirit, he also assures me of eternal life, and makes me sincerely willing and ready, henceforth, to live unto him. 

In conclusion, Reformed Doctrine certainly does teach us that we may die and we may suffer.  But, we will not experience God’s wrath.  Let us generally remember that the events of the Seven Trumpets are a display of God’s wrath.  Let us specifically pay close attention to Verse 4:  “They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads”.  Let us not shrink back.

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 8:6-13.

“⁶ And the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound them.⁷ The first sounded, and there came hail and fire, mixed with blood, and they were thrown to the earth;  and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.

⁸ The second angel sounded, and something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea; and a third of the sea became blood, ⁹ and a third of the creatures which were in the sea and had life, died; and a third of the ships were destroyed.

¹⁰ The third angel sounded, and a great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of waters.  ¹¹ The name of the star is called Wormwood;  and a third of the waters became wormwood, and many men died from the waters, because they were made bitter.

¹² The fourth angel sounded, and a third of the sun and a third of the moon and a third of the stars were struck, so that a third of them would be darkened and the day would not shine for a third of it, and the night in the same way.

¹³ Then I looked, and I heard an eagle flying in midheaven, saying with a loud voice, “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!”  Revelation 8:6-13.

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Today, we start reading Scripture which describe the events following the seven angels sounding the seven trumpets.  It is difficult to understand the meaning, and for that reason, today’s devotion will leap ahead to the summary after the seventh angel sounded the seventh trumpet to help us understand the purpose and the accomplishment.

“Then the seventh angel sounded;  and there were loud voices in heaven, saying,

“The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ;  and He will reign forever and ever.”  And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying,

“We give You thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who are and who were, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign.  And the nations were enraged, and Your wrath came, and the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to reward Your bond-servants the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth.”  Revelation 11:15-18.

God reigns forever and ever.  Today’s Scripture describes God’s wrath as a part of that reign.  

“¹⁰ Now therefore, O kings, show discernment;
Take warning, O judges of the earth.
¹¹ Worship the Lord with reverence
And rejoice with trembling.
¹² Do homage to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way,
For His wrath may soon be kindled.
How blessed are all who take refuge in Him!”  Psalm 2:10-12.

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 8:1-5.

 

“When the Lamb broke the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.  And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them.

                                          

Another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer;  and much incense was given to him, so that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar which was before the throne.  And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up before God out of the angel’s hand.  Then the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar, and threw it to the earth;  and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.”  Revelation 8:1-5. 

                                  

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Today’s Scripture shows that the prayers of the saints were deemed worthy to be mixed with incense and to be presented before God.  Today’s Scripture encourages us thereby to pray.

                                                                          

We have seen many times that Israel was commanded to make “an offering by fire of a soothing aroma to the Lord”.  Here is a link to these Scriptures – Click here: BibleGateway.com – Keyword Search: soothing

Question 116.  Why is prayer necessary for christians?

Answer.  Because it is the chief part of thankfulness which God requires of us:  and also, because God will give his grace and Holy Spirit to those only, who with sincere desires continually ask them of him, and are thankful for them.

Question 117.  What are the requisites of that prayer, which is acceptable to God, and which he will hear?

Answer.  First, that we from the heart pray to the one true God only, who hath manifested himself in his word, for all things, he hath commanded us to ask of him;  secondly, that we rightly and thoroughly know our need and misery, that so we may deeply humble ourselves in the presence of his divine majesty;  thirdly, that we be fully persuaded that he, notwithstanding that we are unworthy of it, will, for the sake of Christ our Lord, certainly hear our prayer, as he has promised us in his word.

Question 118.  What hath God commanded us to ask of him?

Answer.  All things necessary for soul and body;  which Christ our Lord has comprised in that prayer he himself has taught us.

Question 119.  What are the words of that prayer?

Answer.  Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.  Thy kingdom come.  Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread.  And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.  For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever.  Amen.

Question 120.  Why hath Christ commanded us to address God thus:  “Our Father”?

Answer.  That immediately, in the very beginning of our prayer, he might excite in us a childlike reverence for, and confidence in God, which are the foundation of our prayer: namely, that God is become our Father in Christ, and will much less deny us what we ask of him in true faith, than our parents will refuse us earthly things.

Question 121.  Why is it here added, “Which art in heaven”?

Answer.  Lest we should form any earthly conceptions of God’s heavenly majesty, and that we may expect from his almighty power all things necessary for soul and body.

Question 122.  Which is the first petition?

Answer.  “Hallowed be thy name”;  that is, grant us, first, rightly to know thee, and to sanctify, glorify and praise thee, in all thy works, in which thy power, wisdom, goodness, justice, mercy and truth, are clearly displayed;  and further also, that we may so order and direct our whole lives, our thoughts, words and actions, that thy name may never be blasphemed, but rather honored and praised on our account.

Question 123.  Which is the second petition?

Answer.  “Thy kingdom come”;  that is, rule us so by thy word and Spirit, that we may submit ourselves more and more to thee;  preserve and increase thy church;  destroy the works of the devil, and all violence which would exalt itself against thee;  and also, all wicked counsels devised against thy holy word;  till the full perfection of thy kingdom take place, wherein thou shalt be all in all.

Question 124.  Which is the third petition?

Answer.  “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”;  that is, grant that we and all men may renounce our own will, and without murmuring obey thy will, which is only good;  that so every one may attend to, and  perform the duties of his station and calling, as willingly and faithfully as the angels do in heaven.

Question 125.  Which is the fourth petition?

Answer.  “Give us this day our daily bread”;  that is, be pleased to provide us with all things necessary for the body, that we may thereby acknowledge thee to be the only fountain of all good, and that neither our care nor industry, nor even thy gifts, can profit us without thy blessing;  and therefore that we may withdraw our trust from all creatures, and place it alone in thee.

Question 126.  What is the fifth petition?

Answer.  “And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors”; that is, be pleased for the sake of Christ’s blood, not to impute to us poor sinners, our transgressions, nor that depravity, which always cleaves to us; even as we feel this evidence of thy grace in us, that it is our firm resolution from the heart to forgive our neighbor.

Question 127.  Which is the sixth petition?

Answer.  “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil”; that is, since we are so weak in ourselves, that we cannot stand a moment;  and besides this, since our mortal enemies, the devil, the world, and our own flesh, cease not to assault us, do thou therefore preserve and strength us by the power of the Holy Spirit, that we may not be overcome in this spiritual warfare, but constantly and strenuously may resist our foes, till at last we obtain a complete victory.

Question 128.  How dost thou conclude thy prayer?

Answer.  “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever”;  that is, all these we ask of thee, because thou, being our King and almighty, art willing and able to give us all good;  and all this we pray for, that thereby not we, but thy holy name, may be glorified for ever.

Question 129.  What doth the word “Amen” signify?

Answer.  “Amen” signifies, it shall truly and certainly be:  for my prayer is more assuredly heard of God, than I feel in my heart that I desire these things of him.

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 7:13-17.

 

“Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “These who are clothed in the white robes, who are they, and where have they come from?”  I said to him, “My lord, you know.”  And he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.  For this reason, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His temple;  and He who sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them.  They will hunger no longer, nor thirst anymore;  nor will the sun beat down on them, nor any heat;  for the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the water of life;  and God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”  Revelation 7:13-17.

 

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God “not only” saves us from our sins and from the eternal punishment of hell that we deserve;  God also provides us with eternal blessings in heaven. 

 

Yesterday, we considered that “Salvation belongs to the Lord” and that the Lord provides all that we need for salvation.

 

Today, we considers that the Lord provides glorious blessings in heaven as well.  “They will hunger no longer, nor thirst anymore;  nor will the sun beat down on them, nor any heat;  for the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the water of life;  and God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”  Verses 16 and 17. 

 

“… Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard,
And which have not entered the heart of man,
All that God has prepared for those who love Him.”  1 Corinthians 2:9.

 

But, we have difficulty believing that God will provide these things to us.  Our natural tendency is to believe that God will treat us as we treat others.  We may be good to others for a little while or for as long as they are good to us.  Likewise, we believe that God will only be good to us as long as we perfectly perform for Him.  In summary, we tend to only lightly consider these heavenly things, because we think that they are too good to be true.

 

 

Reformed Doctrine destroys that thinking.  Reformed Doctrine teaches us that God did not save us, because we were good enough.  Reformed Doctrine helps us to believe likewise that God does not provide blessings in heaven, because we are good enough or will be good enough. 

 

Reformed Doctrine helps us to understand that like “Salvation belongs to the Lord”, we belong to the Lord.  God chose us.  We are His people, His sheep.  God saves us and provides blessings in heaven, because we are His people, we belong to Him.

 

Our only comfort in life and death is that we “belong” to our faithful Savior Jesus Christ Who saved us from our sins, preserves us, and assures us of all these heavenly things that He will provide us.  See Question and Answer 1 of the Heidelberg Catechism.          

 

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 7:8-12. 

                                                                                                                                                     “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands;  and they cry out with a loud voice, saying,

                                                 

“Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”  And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying,

“Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever.  Amen.”  Revelation 7:8-12.

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“Salvation belongs to the Lord;  Your blessing be upon Your people!  Selah.”  Psalm 3:8

Some teach that man should get some credit for salvation.  They teach that man supplies the “free-will”, the condition that motivates God to elect themselves, the inherent goodness which God loves, the good works or maybe just their choice of Christ, and the perseverance of faith until the end.

But, those are not among this great multitude who “cry out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” 

This great multitude does not regard man as deserving any such praise. They “fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever.  Amen.”

Reformed Doctrine teaches “Salvation belongs to the Lord”.  Reformed Doctrine teaches “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation which clearly shows that “Salvation belongs to the Lord”.

Reformed Doctrine first humbles man by teaching the “Total Depravity” of man.  Man is dead in sin and cannot contribute anything to his own salvation.  Man’s only chance for salvation is that God will provide all that is needed for salvation.

Reformed Doctrine then teaches that God provides everything needed for salvation from “Unconditional Election” through “Limited Atonement” through “Irresistible Grace” through “Preservation of the Saints”.

In conclusion, Isaiah Chapter 59 is a good summary of man’s wickedness and God’s salvation.

“¹ Behold, the Lord’s hand is not so short
That it cannot save;
Nor is His ear so dull
That it cannot hear.
² But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God,
And your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.
³ For your hands are defiled with blood
And your fingers with iniquity;
Your lips have spoken falsehood,
Your tongue mutters wickedness.
⁴ No one sues righteously and no one pleads honestly.
They trust in confusion and speak lies;
They conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity.
⁵ They hatch adders’ eggs and weave the spider’s web;
He who eats of their eggs dies,
And from that which is crushed a snake breaks forth.
⁶ Their webs will not become clothing,
Nor will they cover themselves with their works;
Their works are works of iniquity,
And an act of violence is in their hands.
⁷ Their feet run to evil,
And they hasten to shed innocent blood;
Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity,
Devastation and destruction are in their highways.
⁸ They do not know the way of peace,
And there is no justice in their tracks;
They have made their paths crooked,
Whoever treads on them does not know peace.

“⁹ Therefore justice is far from us,
And righteousness does not overtake us;
We hope for light, but behold, darkness,
For brightness, but we walk in gloom.
¹⁰ We grope along the wall like blind men,
We grope like those who have no eyes;
We stumble at midday as in the twilight,
Among those who are vigorous we are like dead men.
¹¹ All of us growl like bears,
And moan sadly like doves;
We hope for justice, but there is none,
For salvation, but it is far from us.
¹² For our transgressions are multiplied before You,
And our sins testify against us;
For our transgressions are with us,
And we know our iniquities:
¹³ Transgressing and denying the Lord,
And turning away from our God,
Speaking oppression and revolt,
Conceiving in and uttering from the heart lying words.
¹⁴ Justice is turned back,
And righteousness stands far away;
For truth has stumbled in the street,
And uprightness cannot enter.
¹⁵ Yes, truth is lacking;
And he who turns aside from evil makes himself a prey.
Now the Lord saw,
And it was displeasing in His sight that there was no justice.
¹⁶ And He saw that there was no man,
And was astonished that there was no one to intercede;
Then His own arm brought salvation to Him,
And His righteousness upheld Him.
¹⁷ He put on righteousness like a breastplate,
And a helmet of salvation on His head;
And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing
And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle.
¹⁸ According to their deeds, so He will repay,
Wrath to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies;
To the coastlands He will make recompense.
¹⁹ So they will fear the name of the Lord from the west
And His glory from the rising of the sun,
For He will come like a rushing stream
Which the wind of the Lord drives.
²⁰ “A Redeemer will come to Zion,
And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,” declares the Lord.

²¹ “As for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the Lord: “My Spirit which is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,” says the Lord, “from now and forever.”  Isaiah Chapter 59.

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 7:4-8.

“And I heard the number of those who were sealed, one hundred and forty-four thousand sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel:

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 7:1-3.

 

“After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind would blow on the earth or on the sea or on any tree.  And I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God;  and he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees until we have sealed the bond-servants of our God on their foreheads.”  Revelation 7:1-3.

 

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Heidelberg Catechism assures me that “all things must be subservient to my salvation”.  Question and Answer 1.

 

Even in Ezekiel’s vision of slaughter, in which it appeared to Ezekiel that God was destroying the whole remnant of Israel, Ezekiel was saved.  There too a saving mark was put on the foreheads of those who were spared.  See Ezekiel Chapter 9.

 

In Jesus’ parable of wheat and tares, although God very much desired to burn the wicked represented by the tares, God was careful to not hurt the righteous represented by the wheat.  “Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field.  But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went away.  But when the wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the tares became evident also.  The slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field?  How then does it have tares?’  And he said to them, ‘An enemy has done this!’ The slaves *said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’  But he *said, ‘No; for while you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them.  Allow both to grow together until the harvest;  and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up;  but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”  Matthew 13:24-30. 

 

 

God “preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;”  2 Peter 2:5.  

 

God “rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men” when He “condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes”.  2 Peter 2:6-7.

 

God “knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment,”  2 Peter 2:9.

 

“Come, my people, enter into your rooms And close your doors behind you;  Hide for a little while Until indignation runs its course.”  Isaiah 26:20

 

Psalm 91 provides a comforting conclusion.

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 6:12-17.

                                                           

“¹² I looked when He broke the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake;  and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood;  ¹³ and the stars of the sky fell to the earth, as a fig tree casts its unripe figs when shaken by a great wind.  ¹⁴ The sky was split apart like a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.  ¹⁵ Then the kings of the earth and the great men and the commanders and the rich and the strong and every slave and free man hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains;  ¹⁶ and they *said to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb;  ¹⁷ for the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?””  Revelation 6:12-17.

                           

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“¹⁰ Enter the rock and hide in the dust
From the terror of the Lord and from the splendor of His majesty.
¹¹ The proud look of man will be abased
And the loftiness of man will be humbled,
And the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.

A Day of Reckoning Coming

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 6:9-11.

 

“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.

 

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Yesterday, we considered:  “But, we need to remember that those seals need to be broken to open the book of life.  …  Random “helter-skelter” did not break out in the breaking of the seals.  These are no “Pandora’s boxes”.  God is still sovereign and in perfect total control.”

 

Yet, there is a big difference between the death of the ungodly and the death of the godly.  We may have thought regarding the deaths that occurred in the breaking of the second, third, and fourth seals that those were “just” the deaths of the ungodly.  But, we are confronted with the deaths of the godly (the martyrs) in the breaking of this fifth seal. 

 

We may wonder like the martyrs:  “How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” 

 

But, God is still sovereign and in perfect total control as is evident by His calm response:  “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.”