The Lamb Breaks the Seals, Part 2 (Rev. 6:1-8) :: By Donald Whitchard
Isaiah 11:4; Matthew 25:32; John 5:22; Acts 17:31; 2 Timothy 4:1; Revelation 6:1-8
Summary: The time for judgment upon the earth and its inhabitants has arrived. The Lord Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, takes the scroll from the hand of God and breaks the seals of God’s wrath, each one progressively worse than the other.
The dramatic moment has arrived as the seals that bind the book of God are about to be opened, one by one. What is written upon the scroll leaps off the page and acts out the events of the future for the apostle John and the heavenly host. They are not reading the scroll but instead are witnessing the events of the end time.
Verses 1-8 of Chapter 6 present the first four of six “seal judgments” to come upon the earth and those who dwell upon it at this time. Those who are living on the earth at this time have been “left behind,” having ignored, dismissed, or rejected Christ’s offer of salvation. The true followers of Jesus by this time have been “caught up” in the event known as the Rapture to meet the Lord in the air and are now with Him (John 14:1-3; 1 Corinthians 15:51-58; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Revelation 3:10).
What follows is a progressive flow of horror upon the earth that starts with the arrival of the rider on the white horse (6:1-2), the red horse of war (vv.3-4), the black horse of want (vv.5-6), and the pale horse of death (vv.7-8). These riders are symbolic of the flow of events that will occur once the Antichrist comes to power (Daniel 7; Matthew 24:15; Revelation 13).
This embodiment of unrestrained evil will come to power easily. Like the devil, the Antichrist will be a master of deception. Because of the sins and evil inherent within humanity (Isaiah 64:6), they will choose to travel the wide road of destruction and openly show their hatred for God and Christ. We see this hatred and unbelief spreading like unchecked cancer in our society each day (Romans 1:18-32, 3:10-18, 23).
This “man of sin” is going to appeal to the pride and arrogance of unredeemed individuals, having them believe that they can run this world without the aid or presence of any deity. They will buy into the lie that originated in Eden (Genesis 3:1) and rush headlong into taking the mark that will show their misplaced loyalty and, in doing so, condemn themselves to hell for eternity (2 Thessalonians 2:8-10; Revelation 14:9-11).
People do not receive the love of the truth about the Lord Jesus Christ. People could care less about their salvation; therefore, God is going to judge the world. He will not leave this cesspool of malevolence to fester on the earth much longer. The beginning of His judgment is to allow the Antichrist to come upon the scene.
God is going to allow people to be deceived because they have rejected the love of the truth. They have rejected and cursed Him and His glorious salvation revealed in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, God is going to send a strong deception upon the earth, the very deception for which humanity longs, a strong world ruler who seemingly can solve the world’s problems and bring a “utopia” to earth. Authorities are going to give their lives to him by signing meaningless treaties and agreements that will allow him to rule over their nations and lives (2 Thessalonians 2:11; Revelation 17:11).
Jesus told His disciples that false messiahs, wars, and rumors of wars, disasters, and persecutions are going to be the means by which the ultimate “false messiah” will come to power. We cannot say that we have not been warned (Matthew 24:5-11). No excuse or alibi of any kind will suffice when we stand before the Lord Jesus Christ to give an account of our lives (John 5:28-29; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Hebrews 9:27; Philippians 2:9-11). This applies to everyone, whether prince, pauper, or petulant.
The second seal is the thundering appearance of a red horse and its rider, who has the power to take peace from the earth so that men will kill each other. He is the rider of strife, violence, assault, division, abuse, anger, hate, uprising, murder, insurrection, war, and bloodshed. He is the rider who divides class against class, race against race, neighbor against neighbor, employee against employer, husband against wife, religion against religion, and nation against nation (Matthew 24:6-7; John 8:44; 2 Timothy 3:1-3; Revelation 13:7-8, 17:15-18). He is the rider who destroys every human relationship that he can.
The Antichrist will be the greatest mass murderer who will ever live, and he will use the weapons of war, famine, and scarcity to his advantage in his time of absolute rule over the world. Right now, organizations such as the World Economic Forum are devising ways of controlling food production and are openly advocating for the elimination of up to 90% of the world’s population, defining them as “useless eaters” of little to no value, fulfilling Proverbs 8:36: “All who hate Me love death.”
This population propaganda has been so effective that the idea of eliminating human life for the “sake of the planet” or other reason has a frightening appeal to most people today. America is guilty of sacrificing her children upon the altar of Moloch, murdering 65,000,000 unborn babies for excuses of “population control,” “inconvenience,” “climate change,” or other evil reasons. Our hands are covered in blood, and do not think for one moment that God is going to overlook this inexcusable barbarity (Proverbs 6:16).
It will be bad enough when the Antichrist takes control and unleashes these horrors upon the earth, but the most tragic thing is that a lot of people will dismiss it as so much sensationalism, declaring that “we’ve heard all this before” (2 Peter 3:1-9), and go back to ridiculing the Christians who are concerned enough to warn them about the wrath that is to come. You may know someone who has this attitude. it might be a family member, friend, co-worker, fellow classmate, or anyone with whom you come into contact. We cannot and must not let the world shame us or force us into silence or submission. The Gospel message cannot be hidden under a bushel. We have been given a commission by the Lord Jesus to proclaim the Gospel to everyone (Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8, 4:12).
Be strong and courageous in these last days. Let your light shine, and be in prayer for the lost that their eyes will be opened to their condition and that they will come to the Lord Jesus for salvation and true peace (John 14:6; Romans 10:9-10, 13). The hoofbeats of the riders are fast approaching, and I do not want you or anyone to witness their arrival. Come to Christ today and be delivered from what is to come.
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