Slides for this study

So we have finished chapter 6. And we have gone through six seals.

• We saw the timeline.
• When the sixth seal was opened there was an earthquake, then the sun went black, the moon turned to blood and the stars of heaven fell to the earth.
• Right after that there was the second coming and the day of God’s wrath.
• At the end of chapter 6 it ended with a question.
• Revelation 6:17
  For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
• This chapter is in answer to that question.

 

Revelation 7:1
And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.

Then it says “after these things”, this is not referring to a new vision that is separate to chapter six and the sixth seal.

• It is certainly part of the sixth seal because we saw at the beginning of chapter 8 the opening of the seventh seal which we have already seen is the second coming.
• The events that are described here must be after the earthquake, sun, moon and stars. However, it must be before the heaven departing as a scroll which is still future to us because that’s the second coming.
• So what we are about to look at in this chapter is wedged in between verses 13 and 14 of Revelation 6.
• Meaning, this chapter is really important for us who are living today in our time.

“four angels”

• This is most likely referring to literal angels that are holding the four winds.
• It is definitely not referring to four messengers or four pastors – which is what the word angel means.

“four corners of the earth”

• An expression the four quarters of the earth, or the four points of the compass.
• The four is meaning the whole world.

“four winds of the earth”

• What does winds represent?
• Proverbs 1:27
  When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.
  • Wind represents desolation and destruction.
• This must represent all the strife that will exist on the earth just before the second coming.
• Jeremiah 25:31-33
  31 A noise will come to the ends of the earth— For the LORD has a controversy with the nations; He will plead His case with all flesh. He will give those who are wicked to the sword,’ says the LORD.” 32 Thus says the LORD of hosts: “Behold, disaster shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the farthest parts of the earth. 33 And at that day the slain of the LORD shall be from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth. They shall not be lamented, or gathered, or buried; they shall become refuse on the ground.
• This is the destruction that shall come on the whole world at the end of time that comes from the Lord.
• It will come just before the great of the Lord.
• This is no doubt the wrath of the God, the seven last plagues.
• There will be desolation and destruction before that as well, namely the mark of the beast. But that doesn’t come from the Lord, that comes from the devil.
• Zephaniah 1:14-15
  14 The great day of the LORD is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. 15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness.
• The day of the Lord is a day of destruction, a day of wrath!
• There will be nothing like it.
• Daniel 12:1 describes it as a time of trouble such as the world has never seen before.
• Coming back to Proverbs where we looked at verse 27 at the beginning to define that whirlwind. Let’s read that next verse right after it.
• Proverbs 1:28
  Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:
  • God will not answer. What does that mean?
  • It means that probation has closed.
  • He has finished interceding for everyone already.
  • Isaiah 55:6
    Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.
  • We have to seek God today while we still have the time. He will not always be there.
• Isaiah 59:16-17
  16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. 17 For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke.
  • There will come a time when there will be no more intercessor.
  • And the day of the Lord for the wicked is a day of vengeance. But the righteous, it is a day of salvation.
• Why will there be those that are lost?
  • Proverbs 1:29
    For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD.
  • That’s a pretty strong language. They hated knowledge.
  • How did they hate knowledge? They didn’t choose the fear of the Lord.
  • There is worldly knowledge and there is a type of knowledge and wisdom that God wants to give us.
  • Proverbs 1:7
    The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
  • True knowledge comes from the fear of the Lord.
  • Every day we are choosing which sort of wisdom and knowledge is important to us. By our actions, we are showing to the whole universe what is our priorities.
• Job 21:30
  That the wicked is reserved to the day of destruction? they shall be brought forth to the day of wrath.
• The day of destruction is a day of wrath.

God will finally answer the prayers of all those saints that were crying out from under the altar back in the fifth seal.

• Revelation 6:9-10
  9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: 10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
• God is saying that now is that time that I will judge and avenge.
• He will do that right at the end at the close of probation, just before the second coming.

However, the angels in Revelation 7 are holding it back for now. They are not allowing it to blow on the earth. There is still time before that. But for what purpose?

 

Revelation 7:2-3
2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, 3 Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.

God wants to seal His servants with His seal, the seal of God.

What we see first is another angel is ascending from the east.

• What do we understand about the east.
• Matthew 24:27
  For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
  • Jesus will come for the second time from the east.
• But this angel has the seal of God. So in Matthew the coming of Jesus is preceded by the seal of God.
• God’s glory also comes from the east.
  • Ezekiel 43:2
    And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east: and his voice was like a noise of many waters: and the earth shined with his glory.
• This is linked with what we see in Revelation 18.
  • Revelation 18:1
    And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
• The glory of God is His character.
• So the seal of God is associated with God’s character in some way.

So then what is the seal of God?

• Isaiah 8:16
  Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.
  • It is connected with God’s law.
• Romans 4:11
  And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised…
  • A sign = a seal.
• What is the sign of God?
  • Ezekiel 20:12, 20
    12 Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them. 20 And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the Lord your God.
  • It is the Sabbath.
  • The Sabbath is a sign that God is the One that sanctifies us.
  • The Sabbath is a sign of who our God is.
  • Exodus 31:17
    It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.
  • It is a sign of who the Creator is.
• The distinguishing mark of those that will be able to stand at the end of time is that they will be Sabbath keepers.

Notice that the seal of God is actually called the seal of the LIVING God.

• What kind of God is a living God?
• Acts 14:15
  And saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein:
  • The living God is a Creator God.
• And we know that the Sabbath is directly linked with creation.
• The gospel message that is to be preached to the whole world focuses on that as well.
• Revelation 14:6-7
  6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, 7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
  • There is a call to come and worship the Creator.
  • It is pointing us back to the seal of God, the Sabbath.

What else is connected to the seal of God?

• Ephesians 4:30
  And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
  • We are sealed by the Holy Spirit.
• Ephesians 1:13
  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise.
• This is why we need to pray for the Holy Spirit.
• Those that are able to stand at the end of time are Sabbath keepers. They are praying saints. They have been praying for the Holy Spirit.
• And when we pray for God’s Spirit, He will lead us to the Sabbath truth, and through His Spirit He will give us the strength and the desire to keep the Sabbath!

Coming back to Revelation 7:3

• The earth and the sea and the trees are not to be harmed until God’s seal is placed on the servants of God.
• Remember we studied the servants of God earlier in Revelation?
• Revelation 1:1
  The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John.
• The Revelation is given to the servants of God. And John is a servant of God as well.
• But it is the servants of God that will be able to stand at the end of time.
• What is one clear characteristic of the servants of God?
  • Romans 6:22
    But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.
  • They are made free from sin.
• Sin is the transgression of the law in 1 John 3:4.
• They are commandment keepers. And we have seen commandment keepers in the book of Revelation already.
• However, furthermore, they are Sabbath keepers!

Where did the seal of God go?

• It went in their foreheads.
• Hebrews 10:16
  This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them.
  • The new covenant experience is really the sealing experience.
  • Where is the heart and mind? It is right up here in our foreheads.
• Psalms 119:11
  Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
  • If we are not sinning against God, then we are made free from sin – we are servants of God!
• This is in direct competition with the mark of the beast.
• Revelation 13:16
  And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.
• We will study into this in the future.
• But note, that this seal is not a tattoo. It is not a microchip. It is not something that can be seen except by the eyes of God and His heavenly host.
  • Just as God knew who was His when the plagues fell on Egypt, He will know whose is His at the end of time.

Only as we receive the seal of God, then can we stand in the day of God’s wrath.

• But there is a preparation that needs to be done today.
• Those who are uniting with the world, they are receiving the worldly mold and preparing to receive the mark of the beast.
  • Remember the Laodicean church. They are rich and increased with all these worldly goods. They don’t feel a need for anything. They don’t feel a need for the Holy Spirit, for the presence of God in their lives.
  • If the mind is concentrated and filled with other things, then truth is shut out and there is no place in our foreheads for the seal of living God.
• The Holy Spirit will only come on those that are praying for it.
  • Only if we feel our need. If we are distrustful of self. If we are humbling ourselves before God and purifying our souls by obeying the truth, then will God’s Spirit come upon us.
• And we need the Spirit of God to have victory over sin.
• And moreover, we need the Holy Spirit to seal God’s words in our hearts and mind so that we can have victory as well.
• This is called the work of conversion. How God can turn a sinner into a saint.
  • It is a change in our hearts and minds, our thoughts and feelings, our characters.
• Don’t think of character just as love, joy, peace – all the fruits of the Spirit.
• Remember, where we see the ultimate morality is in the law of God.
• And in the heart of His law is found the Sabbath commandment.
• Think about this:
  • When our minds are filled with worldly things, we will not want to keep the Sabbath.
  • Maybe we are thinking of our studies on Sabbath.
  • We think of our work on Sabbath.
  • We think of our sports – soccer, footy, cricket, basketball – all these things on Sabbath.
  • We think of our pleasures of a worldly mold, on Sabbath.
• It comes in direct competition with the Sabbath. A day to remember God, to focus on Him, to meditate on Him.
• How important is the seal of God.
• And how important is the Sabbath today as well.
• It is the word of God that magnifies the Sabbath.
• It is a point that has been especially attacked by the devil.
• He hates the Sabbath because it is a reminder to come and worship the true Creator God every week.
• The devil can do a lot of things, but there is one thing he cannot do and that is create.

 

Testimonies for the Church, Volume 5, 216.2
Now is the time to prepare. The seal of God will never be placed upon the forehead of an impure man or woman. It will never be placed upon the forehead of the ambitious, world-loving man or woman. It will never be placed upon the forehead of men or women of false tongues or deceitful hearts. All who receive the seal must be without spot before God.

 

When will God’s servants be sealed?

• It will be before the 4 winds of strife and destruction are let go and allowed to blow on the earth.
• It takes place before the wrath of God is loosed on the earth.
• This means it has to take place before the second coming.
• Of course that is logical. Before the second coming God needs to know who is His and who is not.
  • Who will be saved and who will be lost.
• So looking at our timeline, it has to take place during the time of the sixth seal. Remember, we are still in the seals.

It is still a future time for us – the sealing.

• However, what is very much present is how we are preparing to be sealed.
• We need the seal of God to be saved, to be kept through the time of trouble, the wrath of God.
• However, it is the Holy Spirit that seals us.
• And we need the Holy Spirit to be able to preach the gospel to the whole world.
• Acts 1:8
  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
• This is what happened in the book of Acts.
• In Acts 2, the Holy Spirit came down on the disciples.
  • Acts 2:4
    And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
• Then Peter gets up to preach, and what happens?
• Acts 2:41
  Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.
  • 3,000 would be baptized that day.
  • They were being powerful witnesses.
• At the end of Acts 2:
  • Acts 2:47
    … And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.
  • Daily people were being saved.
• God wants us to be His witnesses today.

However, we won’t receive the Holy Spirit unless we are praying and asking and seeking for it. Unless it is our priority. Just like how the disciples spent 10 days in the upper room praying, confessing their sins, making it right between each other.

• Luke 11:13
  If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?
• However, there is one more condition to receiving the Holy Spirit.
• Acts 5:32
  And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.
• God cannot, and will not, give us His Spirit if we are living in disobedience.
• As we seek to apply what we learn from scripture into our lives, God imparts the Holy Spirit to give us the strength to live for Him.
• And today, where does that begin? With the Sabbath.