Living Faithfully in the Pause Between Christ's Comings

Revelation 10 drops John into a pause between the sixth trumpet and the seventh trumpet, between the second woe and the third woe. The pause is not empty space. The pause has purpose, and Revelation makes that plain for the church living between Jesus’ first coming and his promised return.

Jesus came, lived the perfect life, died for sins, rose from the dead, ascended to heaven, and left a promise: “I will come again.” The church age stands inside that promise. The church is not here for itself, even though believers need feeding and strengthening. The church exists for the sake of those who do not know Jesus, for people who still have not repented, for people who do not know that he is coming back.

John sees a mighty angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, with a rainbow over his head, a face like the sun, and legs like pillars of fire. The angel plants one foot on the sea and one foot on the land, showing that the word he carries is for the whole world. The seven thunders sound, and John is ready to write, but heaven says, “Seal it up.” God gives enough to strengthen faith, but not enough to satisfy every curiosity.

That sealed thunder teaches a hard lesson: God’s people must live with awe and without full understanding. Human beings keep crying, “I must know,” and God answers, in effect, “Get used to disappointment.” The faithful response is not bitterness, but the quiet, daily “okay, God” that keeps moving when the pause hurts, when the ankle is busted, when a loved one dies, when a gifted voice is taken away.

The angel then raises his right hand and swears by the Creator that “there would be no more delay.” The mystery of God will be fulfilled. The martyrs’ cry, “How long?” will not hang in the air forever. Evil, pain, and Satan’s cruel grip on human life have an appointed end.

The little scroll brings the final shape of the calling. John must take it and eat it. God’s Word is sweet as honey in the mouth and bitter in the stomach, because the truth gives joy and also brings hard obedience, hard repentance, and hard words spoken in love. Mature faith does not say it has arrived. Mature faith knows it will not make it until Jesus comes, and in the pause it keeps proclaiming, repenting, surrendering, and trusting the process of a sovereign and good God.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. God’s pause is not empty The pause between Christ’s ascension and return has purpose, not dead air. The church age is a merciful delay, giving space for repentance and witness before the final trumpet sounds. The church exists for the sake of those who do not yet belong, which means waiting is part of mission, not a break from it. [41:57]
• 2. Awe can live without answers The sealed seven thunders show that God does not owe full disclosure to human curiosity. Faith does not require knowing every reason before obedience can continue. The soul that can say, “Okay, God,” has not become shallow, but has learned to stand before mystery without demanding control. [51:33]
• 3. Justice has a sure ending The angel’s oath declares that there will be “no more delay,” and that the mystery of God will be fulfilled. The cry of the martyrs, the pain of Job, and the ache of every “How long?” are not ignored by heaven. God’s delay is not indifference, and God’s patience is not weakness. [56:02]
• 4. God’s Word must be digested The little scroll is not merely read, admired, or analyzed. John must eat it, because God’s Word has to become owned, embodied, and proclaimed. Its sweetness gives life, but its bitterness comes when truth exposes sin, costs relationships, and calls for repentance. [65:11]
• 5. Repentance marks spiritual maturity Mature Christians are not people who feel they have finally made it. Mature Christians are often more aware of sin because they know the mercy of God more deeply. God’s refining work is not a sign of failure, but a sign that he refuses to leave his people “meh.”
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [35:12] - Opening Revelation in Worship
• [37:45] - Living in a Pause
• [39:10] - Jesus’ Promise to Return
• [40:43] - Revelation’s Purpose for Faithfulness
• [44:44] - The Trumpets and the Pause
• [47:05] - A Mighty Angel Appears
• [50:22] - The Seven Thunders Sealed
• [51:33] - Awe Without Full Understanding
• [55:03] - No More Delay
• [58:35] - Destiny, Control, and Trust
• [60:25] - The Seventh Trumpet Promise
• [64:30] - Eating the Little Scroll
• [68:09] - Repentance and Maturity
• [69:51] - PAUSE: Practical Application

Bible Reading

Revelation 10:1-11
“Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, with a rainbow over his head, and his face was like the sun, and his legs like pillars of fire. He had a little scroll open in his hand. And he set his right foot on the sea, and his left foot on the land, and called out with a loud voice, like a lion roaring. When he called out, the seven thunders sounded. And when the seven thunders had sounded, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven saying, 'Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and do not write it down.' And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven and swore by him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and what is in it, the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it, that there would be no more delay, but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets. Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me again, saying, 'Go, take the scroll that is open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.' So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll. And he said to me, 'Take and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.' And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it. It was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter. And I was told, 'You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and languages and kings.'” [47:05] [54:59] [01:04:51]

John 14:1-3
“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.” [39:25]

Ezekiel 2:8-3:3
“But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Be not rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you. And when I looked, behold, a hand was stretched out to me, and behold, a scroll of a book was in it. And he spread it before me. And it had writing on the front and on the back, and there were written on it words of lamentation and mourning and woe. And he said to me, 'Son of man, eat whatever you find here. Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.' So I opened my mouth, and he gave me this scroll to eat. And he said to me, 'Son of man, feed your belly with this scroll that I give you and fill your stomach with it.' Then I ate it, and it was in my mouth as sweet as honey.” [01:06:06]

Revelation 6:9-10
“When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. They cried out with a loud voice, 'O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?'” [57:05]

Observation questions

1. In Revelation 10, what details are given about the mighty angel, and what do those details communicate about the scope and seriousness of his message? [49:17]
2. What happens when the seven thunders sound, and what is John specifically told not to do? [50:22]
3. In Revelation 10:5-7, what oath does the angel make, and what does he say will happen in the days of the seventh trumpet? [55:03]
4. When John eats the little scroll, what two different effects does it have on him, and what is he told to do afterward? [01:05:16]

Interpretation questions

1. Jesus says, “I will come again.” If the time between his first coming and second coming is a pause, what does that suggest this present age is for? [42:14]
2. The seven thunders are sealed up instead of explained. What does that reveal about the kind of knowledge God gives his people, and how should that shape the way they live with unanswered questions? [51:33]
3. The angel says there will be “no more delay,” and Revelation 6 records the cry, “How long?” How do those two passages help make sense of God’s patience without treating it as indifference? [56:02]
4. The little scroll is sweet in the mouth and bitter in the stomach. How does that picture help explain why receiving God’s Word can bring both joy and pain, especially when truth leads to repentance or hard conversations? [01:06:24]

Application questions

1. Many people are living through some kind of pause right now. What pause are you in at this moment, and where is it hardest for you to say, “Okay, God”? [54:30]
2. The church exists not only to feed believers, but for the sake of people who do not yet know Jesus. Who in your life might God be calling you to move toward with more prayer, more courage, or more intentional love? [42:49]
3. God does not answer every curiosity, and not everything is meant to be known right now. Where are you demanding clarity before you are willing to trust or obey? [52:24]
4. God’s justice is not absent, and the delay is not endless. When life feels unfair, what helps you keep one foot in gratitude and one foot in longing instead of drifting into cynicism? [58:18]
5. God’s Word must be taken in, digested, and lived out. What does that look like practically for you right now—where do you need more than quick Bible exposure and need deeper obedience? [01:04:30]
6. God’s Word is sweet, but it can also be bitter when it exposes sin or requires a costly conversation. Is there a truth you know you need to act on, confess, or speak in love? [01:06:35]
7. Mature faith is not feeling like everything has finally been mastered. Where is God showing you a fresh need for repentance, and how could that actually be a sign of his mercy toward you? [01:08:09]