Worship The King
"And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, Saying, We give thee thanks, O LORD God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth." (Revelation 11:16-18 - King James Version)
The announcement that Jesus is about to take over the world and establish his kingdom results in the 24 elders worshiping God again. Heaven is a place of constant worship. They praise God because he is about to use His great power.
While heaven rejoices, the men of earth are angry. They do not want Christ to reign. They do not want to give up their sinful ways. They do not want to serve God.
The anger of man is set against the wrath of God. God is angry as well. He is acting upon that anger. Like He did in Noah's day, God is about to judge the earth. Only this time, he will not destroy all life.
The elders also refer to judgment. There are four aspects to God's final judgment. There is his wrath which is a judgment for the sin of man. After the battle of Armageddon, all who followed the Anti-Christ will be placed in hell. Then all the saved will be judged. After the thousand year reign of Jesus, there will be a final judgment. The words of the elders cover all these judgments.
The last part of verse eighteen deserves to be noticed. God will “destroy them which destroy the earth.” The earth is God's creation. Those who destroy it are indirectly attacking God through his creation.
Christians should be “green.” We should be among those who are concerned about the environment and do what we can to protect it. Of course, our motive is very different from many today who seek to protect the environment. We do it because it is part of God's creation.
The announcement that Jesus is about to take over the world and establish his kingdom results in the 24 elders worshiping God again. Heaven is a place of constant worship. They praise God because he is about to use His great power.
While heaven rejoices, the men of earth are angry. They do not want Christ to reign. They do not want to give up their sinful ways. They do not want to serve God.
The anger of man is set against the wrath of God. God is angry as well. He is acting upon that anger. Like He did in Noah's day, God is about to judge the earth. Only this time, he will not destroy all life.
The elders also refer to judgment. There are four aspects to God's final judgment. There is his wrath which is a judgment for the sin of man. After the battle of Armageddon, all who followed the Anti-Christ will be placed in hell. Then all the saved will be judged. After the thousand year reign of Jesus, there will be a final judgment. The words of the elders cover all these judgments.
The last part of verse eighteen deserves to be noticed. God will “destroy them which destroy the earth.” The earth is God's creation. Those who destroy it are indirectly attacking God through his creation.
Christians should be “green.” We should be among those who are concerned about the environment and do what we can to protect it. Of course, our motive is very different from many today who seek to protect the environment. We do it because it is part of God's creation.
posted by David Frank Wilson | 9:58 AM
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