God's Restraint: Judgment and Mercy in Revelation

You see, some people would say, oh, that's a judgy god. That's not the god we read in the bible. The god in the bible loves everybody, accepts everybody, is compassionate. Yes. He is. And it was his compassion and his love that said he would send more than one plague. You see, if he'd started with the plague of death at the end, he would have wiped out Egypt's male population, but he didn't do that. He started with a lesser plague and gave them an opportunity to change. [00:19:48] (37 seconds)  #MercyBeforeJudgment

You see, you can take comfort right now in this place that your prayers have not been forgotten, that your tears have not been unnoticed, that your hurt has not been ignored. You can take comfort in the fact that you are seen, that you are heard, that you are known, that the promise that Jesus gave us, he'll never leave us nor forsake us, wasn't just an empty, I'll put my arm around you there there. It was I will listen to every cry. [00:13:12] (43 seconds)  #GodHearsYou

This is astonishing when you look at the rest of the book of Revelation because up until this point, it's been an extremely loud place. There's been worship. There's been thunder. There's been voices, angels crying out, creatures declaring, holy, holy, holy. There's been a lot of noise, but then there's silence. The Greek word used here for silence is. It means a hush, a sacred stillness. Heaven went still. Heaven went silent. You could hear a pin drop. Why? Because something weighty was about to happen. This is the silence of awe. Heaven stands in awe of what it knows is about to come. [00:09:01] (69 seconds)  #SilenceOfAwe

Revelation tells us, God will right every wrong. God will deal with evil. God will cleanse his creation. But before that final day, he warns. He restrains. He gives space. That space is mercy. And here's the real question today. Are you sealed? Not can I decode every symbol, but have I repented? [00:56:10] (38 seconds)  #SealedByGrace

Very similar to what we see of Noah in the flood. Noah not taken out of the flood, but protected in the ark through it. Very similar to what we see of Daniel in the lion's den. Daniel not taken away from the lion's den, but protected in the lion's den. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego thrown into the fiery furnace. God could have taken them straight out, so they never got in there. But he didn't do that. He walked with them amongst the flames. He protected them in the furnace. [00:52:53] (38 seconds)  #ProtectedInTheFire

Look up before you look around. The abyss is not sovereign. Abaddon is not sovereign. The locusts are not sovereign. The trumpets are not chaos. The lamb is on the throne, and his judgment is measured. His mercy is evident. His patience is real. And one day, the warning will end. [00:57:31] (23 seconds)  #LambOnTheThrone

The judgments that follow are connected to the prayers of God's people. The prayers of the saints are a part of how god works out history. It's how he moves things on. You see, in this moment, god is answering the cry. How long? You see, judgment's not random. It is a response to evil. It is the righting of wrongs. [00:11:26] (37 seconds)  #PrayersBringJustice

Those that are sealed in chapter seven are protected in chapter nine. Judgment distinguishes. Mercy protects. Very similar to what we see in Israel and Egypt. Where the blood of the lamb marked the doorposts of the houses of the Israelites and the angel of death passed over. God did not take them out of that woe, that judgment, that wrath. He protected them in it. [00:52:19] (35 seconds)  #SealOfProtection