A Zombie Apocalypse
Many people avoid voting and politics because, at least in recent memory, every four years feels like the Zombie Apocalypse. “This is the last election of our lifetime.” “The world is going to end!” We chose to study Revelation this fall as reminder that, no matter what happens, Jesus is on his throne. No matter how bad things get, he is going to ride his horse back from heaven, conquering his enemies, bringing true justice to the world and ruling in righteous. One day … one day! His judgment will be just. This is the focus of Revelation 6:1-8:5 and that is where I invite you to join me today.
Speaking of the Zombie Apocalypse, I think people have a fascination with the end of the world. It’s the reason Revelation is a requested study. However, this is also prevalent in secular culture. Hollywood has made millions off “end of the world, dystopian movies.” When geo-politics gets chaotic, Hollywood studios cash in. Here are just a few examples: Terminator: Genisys, Mad Max: Fury Road, Deep Impact, Armageddon, The Hunger Games, and Divergent. Independence Day was a blockbuster in the 90’s … now Elon Musk says we are going to Mars, so it might be a reality! And Brad Pitt’s World War Z was the ultimate, recent zombie movie.
My point is that Christians and non-Christians alike want to know how the world ends. But here is the tension: we don’t know the day or the hour. We wish we did, but we do not. Therefore, we search for a map, a clue, a prophet. That is why, even non-Christians are intrigued by Revelation.
Revelation 1 set the stage, Revelation 2-3 spoke to the churches, Revelation 4-5 brought us into the presence of God for worship. Now, Revelation 6 begins the main event. The backbone of the book are these 21 judgments—the SEALS, the TRUMPETS, and the BOWLS.
The Stallions
Before we dive into the text, let me offer two principles to guide our discussion. First, an interpretative principal. Since Revelation was a letter written to real churches in the first century, there must best application for them, even in the later chapters. Dr. Craig Blomberg describes it this way:
“The most fundamental hermeneutical principle to follow in interpreting Revelation is to look for meanings that could have been intelligible to first century Christians in Asia Minor, not hidden meanings decipherable only by people centuries later who think they might be living in the days immediately prior to Christ’s return.”[1]
In other words, Revelation cannot mean for us what it did not mean for them. As we walk through, I believe we’ll see how this is possible. Second, an applicational principle. No matter what position you take on these interpretative issues, the main point of the judgments in Revelation 6-16 is this: God has a plan to save and to judge. I believe everyone can agree with that. Dr. Jim Hamilton says it this way: “God has a plan to save and judge. He will judge justly. He will save those who trust in Jesus. The gospel will go to the ends of the earth, and then the end will come.”[2]
Revelation 6:1-8:5 is the beginning of the end. It tells us that God will judge the wicked, vindicate the righteous, and make all things new. It offers hope in the midst of suffering, glimpses of salvation, and the power of our great God.
For interpretative purposes, your personal views on the rapture and the tribulation will define how you read Revelation 6-16. Still, no matter your view, we can all benefit from the symbolic nature of the stallions.
Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like thunder, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, a white horse! And its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out conquering, and to conquer. (Revelation 6:1-2, ESV)
The thunderous word: COME! What is the first thing we see? A white horse! This is the first of what’s been called in popular culture, “The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse.” Futurists are often try to pinpoint who these horseman might be. Now again, if you take Revelation 6 as a future event for us, these four horseman haven’t appeared yet. If you take Rev. 6 as occurring throughout history, you see these as cyclical events repeatedly occurring. Let’s look at the symbolic nature of the horses.
First, the white horse is the most debated. You may remember that in Revelation 19:11, when Jesus returns he is riding a white horse. So, the question has been asked—is this Jesus in Revelation 6:2? Or … is this a false Jesus, a fake Jesus, a pretender … an anti-Christ? Some, such as Doug Wilson, argue that this horse is symbolic for Gospel proclamation going forward after Christ’s resurrection. The church is preaching the Gospel throughout the world empowered by their savior. However, I think, more likely is that this horse does represent the Spirit of anti-Christ culminating in a final, end times figure (as per 2 Thess. 2:1-10).
Three more horses appear and seem to mirror Jesus predictions in Matthew 24:4-9. The red horse comes to steal peace and make war on the earth. The black horse had scales in his hand where he weighed out the food to be distributed. This horse deals with famine. This was often a consequence of war in the ancient world. The final horse is pale, a greenish color which conveys ill-health—sickness, disease, infection. He has a rider—Death … and Hades followed him. You may remember that Jesus has the keys over these two and one day will throw them in the lake of fire.
A graphic scene of martyrs under and altar, apocalyptic warnings of the end, and one final question follows the horses: “For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand? (Rev. 6:17)”
This question sets up chapter 7.
The Servants
Chapter seven opens with a majestic scene of four angels protecting God’s people. We read this:
After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow on earth or sea or against any tree. Then I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea, saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.” (Revelation 7:1-3, ESV)
This scene is a major shift. It moves from God’s judgment on the wicked at the end of chapter 6, to this protection of his people in chapter 7. The phrase, “after this,” seems to focus on what John saw next; it does not necessarily follow chronologically after those events. This chapter shows how God’s people are protected in the midst of these events. What do we see? Angels holding back the judgment. Why? Because the SERVANTS of God are SEALED, they are MARKED OUT as his own people. This is similar to Ephesians—the Holy Spirit seals us. It also a contrasts the Mark of the Beast later in Revelation.
After all the horror of Chapter 6, this chapter brings great comfort. God will protect his people. It does not mean we will not suffer but the suffering will not be beyond what we can bear. And if you know Jesus, if you are covered by the blood of the lamb … judgment and wrath will pass over you, like it did the Hebrew people at the Passover.
This is follow by the famous images of the 144,000 and the Great Multitude. People debate whether this is one group—representing the whole church—or two groups, the first being a regathered Israel. In either case, the end of chapter 7 outlines the glorious hope of the New Creation:
“Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Revelation 7:15-17, ESV)
No matter your view on the rest of the book, we all agree about the ending. And that should be out position toward others with different views of eschatology. We all agree on how it will end. God’s people will stand before his throne, with resurrected bodies, because of the blood of the lamb. He is our shelter. We will never be hungry or thirsty again. Jesus is our shepherd offering living water.
It will be so glorious … we will shed tears of joy and relief. Don’t miss that last verse. He will wipe way every tear from our eyes. Think for a moment about every tear you’ve shed in this life. Have you wept over your trials in your family? Have you wept over disappointment? Have you wept over losses? A health diagnosis? Chronic pain? Have you wept because a loved one rejected Jesus? Imagine our brothers and sisters around the world, like the story I shared earlier, who have suffered immense loss for their faith and flooded their beds with tears.
What does John tell us? No more tears. No more tears. What tears do you need wiped away?
The Silence Before The Storm
Revelation 6 is the birth pains leading to the end. There is one more seal. Finally, Jesus opens the seventh seal and we read this …
When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. (Revelation 8:1, ESV)
There was silence. Silence. Eerie silence. So silent you know something bad is about to happen. Have you ever had that experience? The prayers of the saints and one final, cataclysmic image follow this.
Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake. (Revelation 8:5, ESV)
The trumpets are about to blast. The storm is coming. The silence is over. God will save … and God will judge.
Throughout church history, many pastors and scholars have shied away from this book. Many have an issue with this middle section of judgments. Those are fair points. However, I would say that God must be just in punishing sin. He poured out his judgment and wrath on himself when he went to the cross—the cross which protects us to this day. This judgment will make all things right and lead us to the perfection of the new heavens and new earth at the end. What does Revelation 6:1-8:5 teach us? I’ll offer three brief application points:
First, pray for justice. The prayers of the saints offered in Revelation 6 are heard. You may feel like your prayers for justice have not been heard, that’s not true. They are heard and one day God will answer. In Revelation 8, God will answer. Paul tells us in Romans 12:19, “Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”’ God will make all things right. If you’ve been wronged, pray for God to end your suffering and trust he will.
Second, trust God in your suffering. We may hold different views about the final tribulation period, but all Christians will experience trials at some point. We all suffer as part of this creation groaning. What Revelation teaches us is that God sees our suffering, he is with us, and in the end he will do something about it.
Finally, always remain faithful. It may feel, right now, like you are surrounded by enemies on all sides. It may seem that your trials will never end. In those moments, look forward and be faithful. Don’t fall for the false promises of the antichrist, the fake rider, the pretender. He will seek to deceive you and lead you astray. In your moment of despair, lift your eyes, lift your heart and remember …
One day the REAL RIDER will appear. He will return with the armies of heaven and the resurrected saints from the ages. He will put an end to evil and throw the great beast into the abyss.
[1] Blomberg, Craig. From Pentecost to Patmos. (B & H Publishers: Nashville, 2006). 513-14.
[2] Hamilton, Jim. Revelation. (Crossway: Wheaton, IL, 2012). 174.
