The Second, Third, and Fourth Seals - Part 2 - Socialism: The End-Time Government

 Temple Baptist Church - 11-8-2020

Revelation 6:3-8

Introduction:

 

A.  The First Seal has been opened: the introduction of the “Man of Sin.”  “That Wicked” who was mentioned in 2 Thessalonians 2:8-9: 

 

“And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:  (9)  Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders …”   

 

B.  The “god of this world.”

 

2 Corinthians 4:4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

 

Matthew 4:8-9  Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;  (9)  And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

 

C.  Tonight, as we open the next seals, 2-4, I want to look at the end-time and conditions that set up the government of Antichrist.

 

D.  We live in the last of the last days, the end of the world as we have known it, the beginning of the end and the revelation of Jesus Christ.

 

E.  The end-time government will be Dictatorship and Socialism!

 

Socialism defined:  a theory or system of social organization that advocates the ownership and control of the means of production and distribution, capital, land, etc., by the community, usually through a centralized government.

 

F.  How will Socialism take over the world?  BY THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE!

 

Revelation 6:2  And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

 

G.  The First Seal: The Person of Socialism: The White Horse.

 

Revelation 6:1-2  And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.  (2)  And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

 

1.  Antichrist comes with the Removal of Righteousness.  The “salt of the earth” and the “light of the world” has been taken out, leaving world-wide unrighteousness.

 

Revelation 4:1-2  After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.  (2)  And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.

 

2.  Antichrist comes with Great Deception: “behold a white horse.”  He will be the “Great Pretender.”

 

Revelation 19:11-13  And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.  (12)  His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.  (13)  And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.

 

2 Thessalonians 2:3-4  Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;  (4)  Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

 

3.  Antichrist comes with Universal Acceptance.  “a crown was given unto him …”  He will come by “The Will of the People.”  He will have a “bow” but no arrows.  They will see him as he is and still accept his person.

 

John 5:43  I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.

 

4.  Antichrist comes with Divine Delusion.  “God will always give you what you want but it will always cost you what you’ve got.”

 

2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.  (11)  And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:  (12)  That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

 

H.  The Second Seal:  The Power of Socialism: The Red Horse.

 

Revelation 6:3-4  And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.  (4)  And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.

 

1.  Socialism is equated with Marxism and Communism.  When I think of the Red Horse, I think of the “Red Scare” of the late 1950’s and early 1960’s.  Back in those days, people thought that the “Reds” were coming.  People built “Bomb Shelters,” and some remain to this day.  I believe there is one on Trinity Church Road here in Laurens.  Remember when the walls came down in Communist countries.  The people were set free and later freely accepted the same system of government that had enslaved them.  America follows closely in their path.

 

2.  Socialism says “Peace, Peace” but has the power to rob its populace of peace: both inner peace, that is a solace to its people, and outward peace, to surround its people.  In America today, before the Rapture of the Church, we see killing-robbing-burning, etc. all around us with people’s hearts failing them with fear.  On Christmas Day of 1863, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote the poem “I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day” which was published as a song in 1865.  It is one of my favorites.  In the third verse of the song, he wrote these words:

 

And in despair I bowed my head:
“There is no peace on earth,” I said,
“For hate is strong, and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.”

 

3.  Socialism destroys the Sanctity of Life.  “They should kill one another …”  While animal life is prized, human life is not!  Save the puppies and kill the babies!  People killing each other like animals across our land.  Socialism is about the welfare of the whole instead of the welfare of the individuals.

 

J.  The Third Seal: The Product of Socialism: The Black Horse.

 

Revelation 6:5-6  And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand.  (6)  And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.

 

1.  Socialism brings with it the Death of Capitalism.  Capitalism is the power of the people to choose their own destiny while Socialism is the power of the government to choose destiny for the people. 

 

Capitalism defined:  an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state

 

1a.  Abraham Lincoln, in his “Gettysburg Address,” spoke these words about the intended course of our nation: “that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom[8]—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

 

2a.  Big People, Little Government; Big Government, Little People!

 

3a.  Freedom, a contraction of two words: free and dom.  “Free to choose one’s destiny.”  Socialism makes one’s choice and seals one’s doom.

 

2.  Socialism brings with it Poverty.  “a measure of wheat for a penny.”  A measure of wheat was what it took to sustain a man while a penny was a day’s wage.

 

Matthew 20:2  And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard.

 

3.  The bare necessity of life is one meal!  Socialism destroys the Constitutional right of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."  This well-known phrase is found in the United States Declaration of Independence. The phrase gives three examples of the "unalienable rights" which the Declaration says have been given to all humans by their creator, and which governments are created to protect.

 

4.  No socialistic nation on earth prospers!

 

K.  The Fourth Seal: The Purpose of Socialism: The Pale Horse. 

 

Revelation 6:7-8  And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.  (8)  And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.

 

1.  Socialism is progressive in nature and advances almost without notice in its beginning.

The past 3 weeks, we have looked at the revelation and revealing of the Antichrist.  The “god of this world” is a God hater from the beginning and has conditioned this present evil world for his revealing and acceptance.

 

2.  Socialism destroys the power of the people.  As the people gradually relinquish their power to the government, government takes over all aspects of their lives.  Someone once said, “Socialism is the most perfect form of human government until the other man’s money runs out.”  Government like to govern!  Two things that I ALWAYS vote against in public referendums: 1) to give the government more power 2) to give the government more money.  They abuse them both!

 

3.  Socialism destroys all who oppose it.  In our economy, the voices of the conservative people are constantly being silenced through censorship or threat of violence.  It will be amplified greatly during the Tribulation Period.  Death and then hell follow.  Capitalism is the right of personal choice while socialism is the removal of personal choice.  They eventually turn on and, in the Tribulation Period, kill those who would dare to stand against their policies.

I Am Thankful For MY Saviour!

Temple Baptist Church - 11-8-2020 

Jude 24-25

 

Introduction:

 

A.  We are approaching Thanksgiving and my thoughts are turning to the things that I am thankful for. 

 

1.  The greatest thing that I am thankful for is eternal life and the hope of heaven with Christ forever. 

 

2.  Jude 24-25 are two of the greatest verses in the bible concerning God’s eternal salvation and love.  I want to look at these two verses for a few minutes this morning.

 

B.  To set the backdrop for these verses, we need to get a quick overview of this little epistle.  In verses 1-3:

 

1.  Jude is writing to the saved and exhorting them to not only continue in the faith but to also earnestly contend for the faith once delivered. 

 

2.  It has been committed into our hands upon whom the ends of the world is come and, since it will not be delivered again, must be kept pure!

 

C.  In verses 4-19, Jude describes the spiritual apostasy or “falling away” that would come in the last perilous times and its possible affect upon God’s children.  Spiritually, we live in the days of Noah, Lot, and Laodicea at the same time.  Wickedness, both physical and spiritual, permeate our society.

 

D.  In verses 20-23, we find a spiritual contrast between the true believer and the apostate.  The contrast is stark!  We struggle with the flesh and strive to remain true to the One who gave himself for us.

 

E.  In verse 24, we find several things concerning who and what our Saviour is:

 

1.  His Attributes.  Exodus 34:6-8  And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,  (7)  Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.  (8)  And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped.

 

2.  His Salvation.  John 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

 

1a.  The salvation that comes only through Christ!  “Now unto him!”  IT IS ALL ABOUT HIM! 

 

2a.  We live in the days of self-righteousness when most professing “Christians” mix personal merit with faith for salvation: good works, baptism, church membership, etc. 

 

3a.  You can never be truly saved until you come to the end of self and place your faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation.  Any mixture of works or personal merit destroys the grace of God and, therefore, the salvation of God.

 

2.  His Mercy.  Lamentations 3:22-23  It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.  (23)  They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

 

1a.  The mercy of God in our sinfulness!  “Able to keep you from falling!”  In the Book of Lamentations, we see that it is of the mercies of God that we are consumed.  We stumble but God keeps! 

 

2a.  Salvation is not the grace of God and then the perseverance of the saints.  Salvation is the grace of God and the PRESERVATION of the saints!

 

3.  His Presentation.  Ephesians 5:25-27  Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;  (26)  That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,  (27)  That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

 

1a.  The grace of God in our presentation!  “And to present you faultless!” 

 

2a.  My friend, the word is “faultless,” not “forgiven!”  Forgiven means that we are guilty but the penalty is removed.  Faultless means completely free of offense. 

 

3a.  Heaven is all about the grace of God!  As mercy is not getting what we deserve, grace is getting what we do not deserve.

 

4.  His Glory.  1 John 3:2  Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

 

1a.  The Ultimate Realization of Who He is.  “Before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy!” 

 

2a.  I cannot describe what that moment will be like when we stand in His presence in our eternal state of purity and joy! 

 

3a.  I can only say, with the songwriter, “O that will be glory for me; glory for me; glory for me.  When by His grace I shall look on His face; that will be glory; be glory for me!”

 

Conclusion:  What will we do in that moment when we stand before Him in all our perfection and realize what has taken place?  I believe that the answer is actually found in both verses 24 and 25.  Both of these verses comprise what is called a doxology. 

 

a.  A doxology in the church is a liturgical expression of praise: praise that is both purposed and planned.  We come to church with the purpose of singing to and talking about the One who saved us by His marvelous grace.

 

b.  But, in the bible, it is rather a spontaneous response to the Person and Goodness of our great God!

 

1.  It is Unto Him: Our Doxology will be a recognition of what He has done!  “Now unto Him … To the only wise God our Saviour”  Psalms 100:3-4  Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.  (4)  Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.  (Now unto Him says it all!  We will praise and glorify the Lamb of God forever for what He has done!  I have never gotten over being saved and a child of God and eternity will be filled with His praises!)

 

2.  It is All About Him:  There will be a recognition of His infinite wisdom in dealing with us!  “To the wise God our Saviour!”  Ephesians 1:3-10  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:  (4)  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:  (5)  Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,  (6)  To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.  (7)  In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;  (8)  Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;  (9)  Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:  (10)  That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:  (These verses say it all!  His wisdom in reconciling eternally sinful man with a thrice holy God with the purpose of receiving us unto Himself!  Here, we find three couplets :)

 

a.  “Glory and Majesty” – The glory and majesty of His Person, works, and great salvation.  O, what a Saviour! 

 

There was none before Him, there is none like Him, and there will be none after Him!  Do you know Him?

 

b.  “Dominion and Power” – The kingdom of nature as well as the kingdom of heaven belong to Him!  With his dominion goes the power: He made it and He sustains it! 

 

In the Model Prayer, our Lord taught us to pray:   “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”  (Matthew 6:13) 

 

c.  “Now and Forever” – Our praise in heaven will be spontaneous because, in our life, we cannot imagine the thrill, the joy, and the thanksgiving that we will experience at that time. 

 

We will praise Him forever.  Now, our praise must be purposed!  As we are to “let our requests be known to God” with thanksgiving (that is to thank God in advance for how He answers our request), we are to praise the Lord for all He has done for us here and for what He has promised to do for us in eternity.

Bless The Lord, O My Soul - Blessing The One Who Blesses

Temple Baptist Church - 11-1-2020

Psalm 103:1-5

Introduction:

 

A.  As Thanksgiving approaches this year, I thought it good to reflect upon the goodness of God to His children.  Psalm 103 is one of the more notable Psalms dealing with thanksgiving.  It begins with the blessed blessing God.  Verse 1 is a reflection upon what the Lord has done for those who know Him.

 

B.  Across our country there is a spirit of ingratitude.  So many people think that the government or society owes them a living and what they receive is never enough.  Their only concern is for self!  This attitude breeds a lack of thankfulness. 

 

2 Timothy 3:1-5  This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.  (2)  For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,  (3)  Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,  (4)  Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;  (5)  Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

 

C.  As we approach everyday (not just Thanksgiving Day), as the children of God, let each of us remember to give thanks.  The Bible says much about thanksgiving:

    

Ephesians 5:20  Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in      the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; 

 

1 Thessalonians 5:18  In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.  

 

Philippians 4:6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

 

Psalms 100:4  Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

Psalms 95:1-3  O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to           the rock of our salvation.  Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.  For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.

 

Hebrews 13:15  By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.

 

D.  We need to thank God publicly.  We are here to do so this morning.  Psalms 35:18  I will give thee thanks in the great congregation: I will praise thee among much people.

 

E.   But, more importantly, we need to thank God privately.  Our personal devotion is who and what we are!  Psalms 119:62  At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgments.

 

F.  David is the author of the Psalm through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost as all Scripture is given by inspiration of God.  Holy men of old spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.  David’s life was characterized by ups and downs.  His life was full to good times and bad times.  His life was noted for its successes and failures.

 

G.  Some of things that can certainly be noted concerning David’s relationship with the Lord were:

 

1.  David loved the Lord!  The 23rd Psalm is a reflection of David’s love for and trust in the Lord.  “The Lord is my Shepherd!”

 

2.  David desired to live his best for the Lord!  He is the only man in the Bible described as a man after God’s own heart.

 

a)  Abraham was called the “Friend Of God”

 

b)  Moses was called the “Servant Of The Lord!”

 

c)  John The Baptist was called the “Greatest Prophet Born Of Woman!”

d)  David was called a “Man After Gods Own Heart!” 

 

H.  Here, we find the “blessed” blessing the One who blesses!  Through all of the trials and tribulations that David experienced in his life, he knew that he was blessed and thanked the Lord for it.  Several things stick out to me in the first two verses.

 

1.  I see a man’s Resolving to bless the LORD.  “Bless the LORD” is a command given to self.  Gratitude is not a natural thing in the flesh. 

 

a.  Sometimes we take the blessings of the LORD for granted. 

 

b.  Sometimes we believe that we deserve the blessings of the LORD. 

 

c.  Sometimes we credit fate or luck for the things that the LORD has provided for us.

 

2.  I see a man’s Beseeching to bless the LORD.  “O my soul” 

 

a.  When in the hard times of life, it is easy to fail to see the good things of life because we are shrouded with the evil things.  All of us have had or are having hard times and, though it is in the valleys that we grow, it is easy allow our disappointments, discouragements, etc. to take our eyes off of the LORD. 

 

b.  God was good to David in his youth.  David spent his youth in obscurity watching over his father’s sheep. 

 

b.  God was good to David in his manhood.  In his young manhood, he was anointed King of Israel but never got to sit on a throne.  In the meantime, he spent most of his time hiding from King Saul.  His life was one of battles and, yet, he knew that he was blessed of God. 

 

c.  God was good to David in his failures as well as his victories.

 

3.  I see a man’s Whole Heartedness to bless the LORD.  “all that is within me” 

 

a.  What a blessing it is to praise the LORD with all of our hearts for His goodness and mercy.  So many times we say thanks without actually being thankful.  A good example of this is blessing our food.  We go through the right ritual and say the right words but often pay little attention to the wonderful food that God has provided for us while multitudes are starving. 

 

b.  We mention being blessed of God but move through life in a thankless manner without taking time to look around and “smell the roses.”  In the midst of problems, we have so much to be thankful for.

 

4.  I see a man’s Remembrance of Who he is blessing.  “bless his holy name” 

 

a.  Our thanksgiving is to the Giver of life.  The Bible says that He has given us everything pertaining to life and godliness.  He is our Creator who loves us and thinks upon us. 

 

b.  We live in the greatest nation on earth; we eat more than we need; we share the comforts of good homes, the conveniences of transportation, and the ease of royalty.  I love to hear the song “God bless America!”

 

5.  I see a man’s Possibility of forgetting the LORD’s benefits.  “forget not all his benefits” 

 

a.  Being saved is so much more than just going to heaven.  It is a blessing filled life here on earth and then heaven.  It is easy in this rat-race world to get caught up in the busyness of things and not taking time to simply say, “Thank you, LORD, for your blessings upon one as underserving as me.” 

 

b.  We have good health in the midst of so much sickness and suffering around us.

 

c.  We have our church family!  What a blessing and privilege it is to come and just see our brothers and sisters in Christ.  To come out of the world for a few minutes and experience the peace that only God can give.

 

d.  We have the Holy Spirit living within; we have the Word of God in our hand; we have the church when we are down and out.  We are blessed!  Let us bless the LORD for He has certainly blessed us.