Truth Matters 12 28 21: Prelude to the Seven Bowl Judgments

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. Today it's the beginning of Revelation chapter 15, the prelude to the seven bold judgments.

And here's your host. Hello, I'm Dr. Cheryl Davis and you've been listening to Truth Matters as we continue to go through the book of Revelation. Last time we were together we completed chapter 14 and the vision of the Lamb and the 144,000 with a number of visions after that. We are still in the prelude prior to chapter 16, so today we'll get started in chapter 15.

Chapter 15, like I said, is an introduction to the seven bold judgments. That occur in chapter 16, but we'll begin chapter 15 and read verses 1 through 8. Just and true are your ways, O King of the saints. Who shall not fear you, O Lord, and glorify your name?

For you alone are holy, for all nations shall come and worship before you, for your judgments have been manifested. After these things I looked, and behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened, and out of the temple came the seven angels having the seven plagues, clothed in pure, bright linen, and having their chests girded with golden bands. Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls, full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever.

The temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one was able to enter the temple till the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed. So let's get into verse 1. This is the sign in heaven. Then I saw another sign in heaven, as John describes this, great and marvelous, seven angels having the seven last plagues, for in them the wrath of God is complete.

These are the last events, as I said before, that will take place before Christ comes back in chapter 19. But why is God judging? When you think about this, why do we need seven more bold judgments? Why is God judging? Why is his wrath being poured out? It is because the earth has failed to respond to his gospel of grace, and really that is the source of his judgment for even history, is that we have failed to respond to his gospel of grace.

If you look in verse 2, we see the sea of glass. It's those who have victory over the beast, the victory over his image, victory over his mark, and the victory over the number of his name. Who are these people? They are the saints who became Christians during the tribulation, and who were unwilling to bow down to the antichrist. Their victory was their resistance to the temptation to worship the beast in order to live.

They refused to take the mark of the beast. They were slain for faithfulness to Jesus, and that landed them in heaven. We also see them playing harps. These saints have harps to play before God. There are three groups of people who play in God's symphony.

Raptured saints, who are in chapter 5, verse 8, the 144,000, which we saw in Revelation, chapter 14, verse 2, and now we see the martyred saints in chapter 15, who sing before God. You've been listening to Truth Matters with Dr. Cheryl Davis. Truth Matters is a ministry of The Truth Project, a North Carolina-based ministry dedicated to teaching biblical truth and sound theology to those inside and outside of the church. If you'd like to listen to these messages on demand, go to ProjectTruthMatters.com and click on the podcast link. Dr. Davis is also available to speak to your ministry group or church function. She can be reached by email at CherylDavis at ProjectTruthMatters.com. Or 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. with a full-length teaching program on Saturday afternoon at 12.30. Until next time, let's all work together to teach a biblical truth, to assist, equip, edify, and encourage one another, and bring the gospel to the world, because truth matters. .