So far we have discussed the opening of five of the seven seals. In the first seal, we see the rise of the Antichrist, and keep in mind at this point the Antichrist is just a man who is being motivated by Satan; but a time will come when the Antichrist will become Satan incarnate. In the second seal, we see global war and bloodshed. In the third seal, we see world wide famine. In the fourth seal, we see that a fourth of Earth’s population will die. In the fifth seal we saw the souls of those who have been put to death, because they have come to believe in Jesus and will bear witness that Jesus is the Christ. This morning my aim is to look at what happens when Jesus opens the sixth seal. And what I want you to understand is that as Jesus opens the sixth seal there will be earthly and cosmic disturbances like the world has never seen before.
As Jesus opens the sixth seal we see there will be an earthquake.
The first earthly disturbance we see is an earthquake. Verse 12 says, “When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake.” Let’s take a trip back to science class. An earthquake is caused by the earth’s crust suddenly moving along certain fault lines. There are 160 active fault lines in the world today. When the earth’s crust shifts, vibrations occur through the Earth causing the ground to shake. Hence the term earthquake.
Now normally, when an earthquake occurs it is usually felt regionally. For example, An earthquake with a magnitude of 4.0 can be felt in places as far away as 60 miles. An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.5 can be felt as far as 300 miles and cause damage up to 25 miles away. An earthquake with a magnitude of 9.0 can be felt 565 miles away and obviously do damage greater than 25 miles away from the epicenter. The point I am making is this: an earthquake that may happen in California will not be felt here in North Carolina; these two states are 2,648 miles apart. It would take an incredible earthquake for that to happen.
Why do I tell you all that? I tell you that because I want you to appreciate the grand scale of the earthquake we read about here in verse 12. The largest magnitude ever recorded for an earthquake is 9.5 on May 22, 1960 in Chile. It left 2 million people homeless, injured at least 3,000, and killed approximately 1,665 (National Geographic Survey). There are talks among geologists if an earthquake greater than that one in Chile could ever happen? Is it possible for a 10.0 magnitude earthquake? Is it possible for a 12.0 magnitude earthquake?
The answer to that question is yes. If you notice in verse 12, John calls this “the great earthquake”, which tells us this will be a very significant event. When the earthquake we read about in verse 12 happens it will not be regional. It will be global. This earthquake will be world wide and damage will be done throughout the planet. There are at least 160 active fault lines in the world right now, and I assume the greatest damage will be done around those. And I expect that many will be injured and even die as a result.
Now in addition to this earthquake, John witnesses disturbances to the sun and the moon.
Verse 12 says, “and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood.” So, we see that the sun is blackened like sackcloth. Sackcloth in the Bible is woven piece of black fabric, similar to our burlap today, that was made out of goat’s hair. And we see the moon will be turned to the color of red to give it the resemblance of blood. As a result, the sun and the moon will be darkened and fail to provide as much light as they do normally.
How will that happen? There is not much insight given here. It’s possible God may blacken the sun as he did when Jesus died on the cross at midday or when Egypt was judged and God sent the plague of darkness over the land. It could also be that this “great earthquake” will be so great in magnitude it causes a cloud of dust and debris so thick it will reduce how bright the sun and the moon shine, and change how the color of the sun and the moon appears.
For example, how many of you know there are times during the summer months we receive dust from the Sarah Desert in Africa? Whenever we receive dust from the Sarah Desert, the dust in the atmosphere changes the way the sun by day and the moon by night appears. So, it could be that the polluted atmosphere will give the sun a black-like color by day and the moon a blood-like color by night, thus diminishing their brightness. But the point is that with the opening of the sixth seal, not only will there be a great earthquake, there will be darkness as well.
Not only are the sun and the moon affected, but the stars are also.
John wrote in verse 13, “the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale.” So, as John is beholding the sixth seal being opened, he sees the stars falling from the sky to Earth like you would see figs falling off a tree when a strong wind blows. What does John mean by this? Many believe this can be understood as a great meteor shower that will fall and impact the Earth. And consider this: for that to happen, the meteor’s must be large enough they will not burn up upon entering Earth’s atmosphere, which means they will be significant in size.
If that is the case, then we should understand that this will be a great meteor shower falling to the Earth and making impact across the globe, and from that there will be great damage. People will be injured. People will die. And it will only make the dust in the atmosphere that much worse.
Not only will there be a great meteor shower, we also see that to John the sky seems as though it disappears.
In verse 14 we read, “The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up.” So, as John is looking up to the sky, to him it appears that the sky disappears from sight; that it goes away; it departs; it becomes not visible. What does this mean?
My best thought on this matter, in keeping within the context of this passage, is that because of the debris and dust in the atmosphere from the great earthquake, and from the meteor shower, which will cause the sun and the moon and the stars to shine less bright, the sky appears to John as though it does not exist any longer. So imagine dust and debris being so thick that when you look up you don’t see the sun by day or the moon and the stars by night.
Not only will the sky seem to disappear, we also see the displacement of mountains and islands.
In verse 14 we read, “and every mountain and island was removed from its place.” I don’t believe this verse is saying that mountains and islands will be removed, as in no longer existing; though that certainly could happen. I believe what this verse is telling us is that the mountains and islands will be moved from their usual position.
How will that happen? The “great earthquake”. This earthquake will be so great in magnitude it will completely change the topography of our planet. The mountain chains and the islands that exist today will not be the same. The shifting of the Earth’s crust will be so dramatic that the land as you know it today will no longer be. There will be mountains in places there are not and there will be islands in places there are not. And where there are mountains and islands today, there will not be when the sixth seal is opened and the “great earthquake” occurs.
When the earthquake occurs it’s only natural to understand that with it will come landslides and volcanoes and tsunamis. The earth’s crust will rise in places and it will lower in others. It is believed that volcanic eruptions will be so horrific as a result of this great earthquake that the volcanic ash that is produced will only worsen the reduction of light from the sun by day and the moon by night, which is why I think to John the sky seemed to him as though it vanished. I am under the impression the world has never seen the likes of an earthquake like what we read about here in verse 12.
Dr. Henry Morris, with the Institute of Creation Research, also suggests that the meteor shower that will take place will also aid in the displacement of mountains and islands. He believes the impact from the stars falling from the sky will be so great it will actually cause segments of land to actually slip off the mantle of the earth’s crust.
The events that take place with the opening of the sixth seal are so great, there is no escaping it or the consequences that follow.
Verses 15 – 17 say, “Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, ‘Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”
Everything that has taken place is a result of the wrath of Jesus, who is the Lamb, and every person on the planet will be affected by this. From kings to the slave, from the rich to the poor, and from the powerful to the weak. No one will escape this great earthquake or the events that follow. It will not matter how much money you have or what position you hold, if you are present during the Tribulation period and you live through the opening of the first five seals, this will be your destiny, and you will be fortunate if you escape with your life.
Now you may have noticed in verses 15-17 that those who are left after the Rapture to experience this event are wanting to hide. But it’s not the earthly and cosmic disturbances they are wanting to hide from. They are wanting to hide from Almighty God, who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, who is Jesus Christ.
Look again at verses 15 -17. It says they, “Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, ‘Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne (that’s God the Father), and from the wrath of the Lamb (Jesus Christ), for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”
In other words, there is something else terrible going on here in addition to the earthly and cosmic disturbances – the sight of God sitting on his throne. I have heard many claim to have been in the physical presence of God and describe it as peaceful, and I am certain it can be. But the truth is, being in God’s presence is also terrifying.
When the Israelites were in the presence of Almighty God at the base of Mt. Sinai in Exodus 20, they “were afraid and trembled”; they thought they were going to die. In Isaiah 6, when the prophet Isaiah, in a vision, “saw the Lord sitting upon a throne”, he was fearful he was going to die. In Ezekiel 1, when the prophet Ezekiel saw the glory of God, he was so terrified he said, “I fell on my face”. In Daniel 8, when the prophet Daniel received a vision and saw the angel Gabriel standing before him Daniel said, “I was frightened and fell on my face.” In Revelation 1:17, when John saw Jesus in all of his glory, he was so afraid he “fell at his feet as though dead”. If you ever find yourself in the presence of Almighty God, you will not be standing. You will fall on your knees afraid and frightened and trembling.
That’s what is happening here. As the earth is quaking and the sun is blackened and the moon is turned to the color of blood and the stars are falling from the sky and the mountains and islands are being removed, what is most terrifying is the sight of Almighty God as he sits on his throne. One commentator said, “At the sight of God sitting on the throne, all human beings, great and small, will be terrified, calling for the mountains to fall on them so that they will have to face the judgment of the Lamb.” Another commentator said, “those generals, emperors, or kings who previously showed no fear of God and arrogantly flaunted their unbelief will find that they were wrong and on that day will have to face God’s wrath.” Thus, we think the earthly and cosmic disturbances are bad, they are nothing compared to the sight of God sitting on His glorious throne.
As we close, there are a few things I want clarify about this passage:
1) The first point I want to clarify is that I know I have spoken to you all about these earthly and cosmic disturbances as though they are some natural occurrence, but what I want to clarify is that the judgment of the sixth seal is the first supernatural act of God in the Tribulation.
The first seal was the rise of the Antichrist as a man, who is not yet endowed with the powers of Satan; he is only motivated by Satan. With the second seal we see global war and bloodshed. The third seal was famine. In the fourth seal, a fourth of the planet died. The fifth seal those who had come to believe in Jesus and bear witness that he is the Christ, have been martyred. But none of that was the result of God pouring His wrath, that was the result of the rise of the Antichrist; again, who is still a mere man being motivated by the devil.
It’s in this seal that we see for this first time God pouring out His wrath supernaturally. I tell you this because I don’t want you to get the impression that the events we have read about today are just natural disasters. These events will be so horrific and so great and so tremendous and so supernatural, that there is only one excuse as to how these things could occur – God.
2) The second point I want to clarify is that God uses these disturbances in nature as His means to execute His first supernatural act of judgment.
God is omnipotent (all-powerful) and He is the Creator of the Universe, of planet Earth, and all that is in them. Being that God is omnipotent and the Creator of all things that exist, He can use His creation as He so pleases, as we see Him do throughout all of the Scriptures, from Genesis to Revelation.
In Genesis, God flooded the world and destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah by reigning fire and sulfur on them, because of wickedness. In Exodus, God turned the water of the Nile into blood, sent frogs, sent gnats, sent flies, caused livestock to die, sent boils, sent hail, sent locusts, sent a plague of darkness, and caused the firstborn of every Egyptian to die, to judge Egypt. In Amos, we read that God causes famines and pestilence (epidemic diseases) on the rebellious. And what we see with the opening of the sixth seal is God using His creation as a means to execute His judgment on all who refused to repent of their sins and believe in the gospel.
3) The third point I want to clarify is that if you know Jesus, you will not be present for God’s first supernatural act of the Tribulation.
If you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, who died, was buried, and who God raised from the dead for the forgiveness of your sins, and you genuinely believe that, you will not have to experience the wrath of the Lamb.
4) And lastly, I want to clarify that if you do not know Jesus, if the Rapture were to happen today, this is your destiny.
My plea to you all this morning is to repent and believe in the gospel. In verse 17 there is a statement that reads, “the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” Well, the answer to that question is this: no one who doesn’t believe in Jesus and know’s Jesus as their Lord and Savior. The Bible says in John 3:18, “whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God”, Jesus Christ. The opening of the sixth seal is the first supernatural act of God condemning those who refused to repent of their sins and believe in Jesus Christ, and that is nothing compared to an eternity in hell.
But this does not have to be your fate. Understand that God loves you, and the extent of His love was shown on an old rugged cross through the death of His only Son to save you from your sins and give you eternal life. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Romans 5:6 says, “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” Romans 5:8 says, “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:10 says, “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.”
So, how do we escape the wrath of the Lamb that is coming? How do we escape the condemnation that God is going to pouring out on this unbelieving world? The answer is Jesus Christ. Romans 8:1 says, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” In order to be saved, you must be willing to turn from your sins and turn to God by faith in Jesus Christ. You must call upon Jesus to save you. Romans 10:13 says, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Ask him to forgive you of your sins. There is no sin so great that God cannot forgive and the blood of Jesus cannot atone for. If you believe in your heart that Jesus died and that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved!