Tue_10_12_21_7th Seal

This is Truth Matters Daily Devotion with Dr. Cheryl Davis. Truth Matters is a ministry of the Truth Project whose mission is to empower men and women in the Christian faith to teach biblical truth in the culture and the marketplace of ideas using the Bible as a sacred trust of truth in sharing the message of Jesus. Learn more about the ministry of the Truth Project at www.projecttruthmatters.com. What really happens when an angel sounds his trumpet?

Here's Dr. Davis to explain that and more. Hi, I'm Dr. Cheryl Davis and thank you for listening to Truth Matters, Revelation Chapter 8. Let's go back to verse 1. When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about an hour. Verse 1, I like to call the silent pause. Really, what is about to be unveiled is so serious that it is preceded by a period of silence in heaven. This is a foreshadowing of the solemn revelation that is about to be made.

And half an hour seems like a short time to us, but unless it is a life and death announcement, it can seem like forever. In verse 2, I like to call this the silent preparation. And I saw the seven angels who stand before God. To them were given seven trumpets. Seven angels were given seven trumpets to announce the coming judgments upon the earth. In the Bible, trumpets are used in various ways, and I'd like to take a second here just to recall some other points in the Bible where they're used. One purpose of trumpets is calling people to worship, and we see that in Numbers Chapter 10 and 1 Chronicles Chapter 16.

The second place is trumpets were sounded to prepare people for war. We also see that in Numbers Chapter 10, Judges Chapter 3, and Nehemiah Chapter 4. Let's move on to verse 3, and I'd like to call this section the saints' prayers. These are probably the prayers offered by the saints in Revelation Chapter 6, 9 through 10, and I'm just going to go back and read that for us. And this is in the fifth seal, the cry of the martyrs, which we're going to reference this a lot in the study of Revelation. They are prayers for God, really, to take action upon the unrighteous ones upon the earth. The ones offering them are the martyrs who were killed for their allegiance to Jesus.

And you'll see this constant reference to justice. You know, really, the martyrs are crying out for justice. And I've said this before, and I'll say it again, those that experience deep sacrifice for Christ, and in this case is their life, they're going to demand deep justice or great justice. It appears that the martyr's prayers are being answered as the judgments are being poured out. The fire represented the judgment of God upon sin on the earth, and we see that in verse 5. Then the angel took the sensor, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it to the earth. And there were noises, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake. But moving on, we see that the trumpet sound, the trumpet judgment sound just before the second coming of Christ in our revelations. 1115 indicates that with the sounding of the seventh trumpet comes the announcement that the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and his Christ. If you'd like to send a letter, the address is Project Truth Matters Post Office Box 159, St. Paul's, North Carolina, 28384. You can hear Truth Matters weekdays on this radio station at 8 20 a.m. and 5 20 p.m. for the full length teaching program on Saturday afternoon at 12 30. Until next time, let's all work together to teach of biblical truth, to assist, equip, edify, and encourage one another and bring the gospel to the world because truth matters.