Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Not Destined for Wrath

There's a group of people who call themselves "pre-wrath" who teach that everyone will go through roughly 60% or more of the tribulation. They teach that the seals listed in Rev 6 are not "wrath" or at least not the "wrath of God." The teach that even though our Lord himself is the only one worthy of opening the seals, somehow the seals are the "wrath of man" or the "wrath of satan" both of which are complete fabrications found nowhere in the bible.

What you can find in the bible is what the wrath of God is, and who its not for. God's wrath is not for the church, we know and understand that. So let's look at the opening salvo of the tribulation starting in Rev 6:

And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see. 2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
3 And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see. 4 And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.
5 And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. 6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.
7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. 8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.
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? 11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

The pre-wrath teacher tells you that God's wrath does'nt start until the sixth seal is broken, yet I see absolutely nothing in Rev 6 that would indicate that somehow a transition took place from seal 1-seal 6. We use the bible to interpret the bible right? Not so called "scholars" or inventors by the name of "rosenthal" but the bible to interpret the bible. With that in mind, what does the bible say about what God's wrath is?

Ezekiel 6 :11 “Thus says the Lord GOD, ‘Clap your hand, stamp your foot and say, “Alas, because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel, which will fall by sword, famine and plague! 12 “He who is far off will die by the plague, and he who is near will fall by the sword, and he who remains and is besieged will die by the famine. Thus will I spend My wrath on them. 13 “Then you will know that I am the LORD, when their slain are among their idols around their altars, on every high hill, on all the tops of the mountains, under every green tree and under every leafy oak—the places where they offered soothing aroma to all their idols. 14 “So throughout all their habitations I will stretch out My hand against them and make the land more desolate and waste than the wilderness toward Diblah; thus they will know that I am the LORD.”’”

Could the Lord be any more clear here? sword=wrath, famine=wrath, death=wrath
Gosh, what were those seals in Rev 6 again?

Seal 2-a great red horse given a what? A GREAT sword.....that my friends is called wrath^^see Ezekiel for details

Seal 3-famine...that my friends, is called wrath..see Ezekiel for details

Seal 4-all of the above plus death from beasts and more general death from death-that my friends, is called wrath..see Ezekiel for details

Ezekiel 5 Thus shall mine anger be accomplished, and I will cause my fury to rest upon them, and I will be comforted: and they shall know that I the LORD have spoken it in my zeal, when I have accomplished my fury in them. 14 Moreover I will make thee waste, and a reproach among the nations that are round about thee, in the sight of all that pass by. 15 So it shall be a reproach and a taunt, an instruction and an astonishment unto the nations that are round about thee, when I shall execute judgments in thee in anger and in fury and in furious rebukes. I the LORD have spoken it. 16 When I shall send upon them the evil arrows of famine, which shall be for their destruction, and which I will send to destroy you: and I will increase the famine upon you, and will break your staff of bread: 17 So will I send upon you famine and evil beasts, and they shall bereave thee: and pestilence and blood shall pass through thee; and I will bring the sword upon thee. I the LORD have spoken it.

Famine has nothing to do with the wrath of man or Satan, the Lord our God sends it as judgement and wrath...read it for yourself. Seal 4, death from beasts? Yea, once again, read Ezekiel, use the bible to interpret the bible, death from beasts is God's wrath. Please notice these are specific judgements spoken against the people of Israel. Nowhere and I mean nowhere in the bible do you hear these judgements EVER spoken against the church, ever. So once again, we're back to the fact that Rev 5 shows rewarded, redeemed men in heaven and Rev 6......all of it, from seal 1 onward is wrath, and the church is not destined for wrath.

Satan comes to kill steal and destroy. If they can steal your hope from you, they will.

grace and peace