The Bottomless Pit (Rev. 9:1-2)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR

06/20/2005

My Worship Time                  Focus:  The bottomless pit

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Revelations 9:1-2

            Message of the verse:  “1. Then the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from heaven which had fallen to the earth; and the key of the bottomless pit was given to him.

2.  He opened the bottomless pit, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit.”

            This is the beginning of the description of the fifth trumpet judgment which will take twelve verses to describe.  It is also the first “woe” judgment, named that because of how harsh the judgment is.

            Verse one talks about a star that had fallen to earth, and this is probably Satan, for he is described to have brightness from the name Lucifer which is one of his names.  Isaiah also compares him to the “morning star” in Isaiah 14:12-14, a portion which most Bible commentators refer to as speaking of Satan. 

            This “Star” has a key to the bottomless pit and this is a pit where some of the most awful demons are living unable to come out until it will be opened for them.  When Jesus cured the man who had the legion of demons in him, when they came out of the man they begged Jesus not to send them into the pit, and this is probably the pit that they were referring to.  This pit is not hell, for hell will be there final judgment place along with all those who have not accepted the forgiveness through Jesus Christ.  Jude also speaks of a place where awful demons reside in Jude 6.

            When the star opened this bit smoke came out of it and John describes it like smoke from a great furnace and this smoke made a lot of pollution, so much that it darkened were again darkened.  It could be said that these judgments will certainly not make the environments very happy with all of the pollution that they cause.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As I read this portion of Scripture I realize that in a sense all of the judgments are to not only judge those evil people that are on this earth, but they are also being use by God to wake up people so that they can understand that there is a God and that He loves them and has already provided judgment for their sins on the cross that Jesus Christ died on.  I can also be thankful that these awful demons are locked up so that they cannot be trying to defile any believers at this time as they will be doing during the time described here in Revelations 9: 1-12. 

The Word of God has reinforced the wonderful truth that God is in control of all things, even though at times it may not seem like it.

My Steps of Faith Today:  To pray with my wife about the things that are going on in our lives that are very big problems at this time. 

Memory verse for the week:  1Thes. 4:3-4

For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, your abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you know how to possess his own vessel with sanctification and honor,

Earth Dwellers (Rev. 8:13)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR

06/17/2005

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Earth dwellers

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Revelations 8:13

            Message of the verse:  “13 Then I looked, and I heard an eagle flying in midheaven, saying with a loud voice, ‘Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!’  (NAS95)  “13 As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in mid-air call out in a loud voice: ‘Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!’  (NIV)

            I want to point out that different translations of the Bible translate either angel or eagle in the first part of this verse.  It seems to me that most of the more modern translations use eagle while the KJV and the NKJV use angel.  It is possible that this is one of the four living beings that are described in Revelations 4:7 & 8, “and the fourth creature was like a flying eagle.”  (Revelations 4:7b)

            This messenger gives a message as he flies through the heavens where all can see him, and that message is that there is much more trouble coming to those who dwell upon the earth, and that is that the last three trumpet judgments will be called “woes” for they will surely be woeful to those who dwell upon the earth, and they are about to become a reality. 

            The phrase “those who dwell on the earth” seems to be speaking of the unsaved that make earth their home as opposed to believers who realize that earth is not their home, but heaven is their home and they are aliens on this planet doing the will of their God while they are here.  The phrase is found twelve times in the book of Revelations and also Philippians 3:18-21 speaks of the believer’s citizenship being in heaven.  Revelations 13:8 also speaks about this when it says, “All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.”  In 1John 2:15-17 John gives another reason to show that there is a big difference between those who dwell upon the earth and those who have their citizenship in heaven.  “15 Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.  17 The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.” 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I think that this portion of Scripture is a wonderful reminder that my citizenship is in heaven and that I am on this earth to accomplish the things that the Lord has for me to do which He will reveal to me through His Holy Spirit and through His Word along with certain circumstances and the preaching of His Word and also through Christian friends.  I am here as an ambassador of my Lord Jesus Christ and I am not to get caught up in the things of this world.  John give a good description of this in 1John 2:15-17 which can be seen above.  This can be accomplished through God’s love, His grace and mercy and staying in His Word each day along with prayer and the support of fellow believers. 

Trouble in the Heavens (Rev. 8:12)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR

06/16/2005

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Trouble in the heavens

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Revelations 8:12

            Message of the verse:  “12 The fourth angel sounded, and a third of the sun and a third of the moon and a third of the stars were struck, so that a third of them would be darkened and the day would not shine for a third of it, and the night in the same way.”

            The judgment spoken of in this verse can be explained in a couple of different ways in that God could cause the sun, moon, and stars to be blocked out from being seen for a third of the day and night.  There is another possibility and that is that because of the other judgments there has been a lot of pollution upon the earth and because of that the sun, moon, and stars would shine with less intensity by one-third.  The earth and its people will have been going through many terrible things by this time, yet this is not the end for in the next verse there are three “woes” that are announced and they are the three last trumpet judgments.

            This judgment will affect not only the light upon the earth, but it will also affect the food supply and the weather in great ways, and this will bring about many more hardships for those who live upon the earth.  This judgment may not last for the rest of the tribulation for in one of the other judgments it is said that the sun will intensify its heat.  (Rev. 6:18-19)

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  The spiritual aspect of this judgment would be the difference from light and darkness as spoken of in the Scriptures.  In the Gospel of John Jesus said that He was the light of the world and those who did not follow Him would be walking in darkness.  As a believer in Jesus Christ I am in the light, yet there is a part of me, the old nature, that still is in the darkness and wants me to live in that darkness, thus a battle goes on all of the time, and it is up to me to reckon that old nature dead, for it truly is dead.

The Word of God was convicting to my heart as I read it this morning.

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust the Lord to keep me in the light, and to also trust Him with our money troubles, and in my prayer life, especially praying with Sandy on a more regular basis.

Bitter Waters (Rev. 8:10-11)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR

06/15/2005

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Bitter Waters

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Revelations 8:10-11

            Message of the verse:  “10 The third angel sounded, and a great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of waters.  11 The name of the star is called Wormwood; and a third of the waters became wormwood, and many men died from the waters, because they were made bitter.”  (NASB 95)

            This third trumpet judgment is upon the fresh waters of the earth as one third of them become undrinkable because of the “wormwood.”  As the second trumpet judgment was on the ocean waters this one is on the fresh waters of the earth and so now the earth has one third of its oceans and one third of its fresh water polluted so much that they only produce death and many will die because of these judgments.  The word wormwood is used a number of times in the OT and it means bitter.  When Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt they came to a place where the water was bitter and he did a miracle so that the people could drink the water, but it is doubtful that this will happen now.  As far as how this judgment will take place, again it could be a star that will break up as it enters the earth’s atmosphere and land in the head waters of a third of the rivers or it could possibility be some dirty bombs that fall into these headwaters.  I lean more towards the star because God is the one doing the judgment and thought He can use the things that man has developed if you look back on how God destroyed Egypt He did it Himself.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Just as God is in control of all these judgments that He will bring upon the earth when His time is right He is also in control of the circumstances that surround my life, for He never wastes hardship and pain that He allows to come into a believer’s life.

The Word of God has been instructive to me as I read it this morning.

My Steps of Faith Today:  In spite of all of the major problems that I am going through I choose to still trust in the Lord.

God is Still in Control (Rev. 8:8-9)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR

06/14/2005

My Worship Time                  Focus:  God is still in control

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Revelations 8:8-9

            Message of the verse:  “8 Then the second angel blew his trumpet, and a great mountain of fire was thrown into the sea. And one-third of the water in the sea became blood.  9 And one-third of all things living in the sea died. And one-third of all the ships on the sea were destroyed.”

            This second trumpet judgment is another judgment that is on the earth, while the latter judgments have demons involved with them.  I have heard different things to help describe this judgment, such as the burning mountain that was thrown into the sea could be a missile with a cobalt bomb on it that would cause the sea to turn red from the cobalt such as seen in “red” tides.  It could also be a meteor that comes from outer space.  At any rate God is in charge of sending these judgments to His earth and this one will be very bad as it will cause a third of the sea to turn to blood, or at least red, and a third of all marine life to die and a third of all ships to be destroyed, and this will have a devastation effect upon those who live on planet earth.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Even the judgments that come from God are in a sense a part of His grace because God is trying to get the attention of those who live on planet earth to recognize Him for who He is that they may turn to Him in repentance and accept the Lord Jesus Christ’s work on the cross as payment for their sins.  In the same way God can send trouble into my life in order to guide me into a direction that He wants me to go in, and this trouble could be as a result of sin or like in Job’s case to show others that I continue tot trust the Lord in spite of troubles.

The Word of God has been a challenge to my heart this morning as I read and thought about it.

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to trust the Lord in spite of the troubles that I am going through with finances.