Wednesday, November 8: Revelation 9- How sad, people do not want to repent .

This section of Revelation is so difficult for me to read. To contemplate the horror of the wrath of God and the utter degradation of people given over to sin… ugh, my whole body cringes.

Is there a more vivid way to describe torturous pain than the words of verse 6? During those days people will seek death but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them.

Oh my…

The chapter continues as God releases warring angels to kill one-third of humankind (15). And, yet, with the wrath of God marching out, the surviving people will not bow to the Lordship of God. The grip of sin is so tenacious. The rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the work of their hands; they did not stop worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood—idols that cannot see or hear or walk. Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts (20-21)

My second ‘oh my’…

One of the most chilling aspects of these two verses is that if I removed the words worshiping idols, and (because my 21^st century culture doesn’t acknowledge demons except in horror films) the content of these verses are the content of the news virtually every day.

In recent days there has been a mass killing in Las Vegas (murder), not to mention the many single murders here and there. Hugh Hefner, king of the Playboy Empire, died with many comments lauding the man who was a kingpin in the rise of porn and sexual revolution of the late 20^th century. Ugh! And regarding idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood, has a human culture worshiped money more excessively than our present one?

How sad, people today do not want to repent… and it will be so right up to the end.

Lord, why did You grace me? How is it my heart and mind saw You and worshiped but so many do not. I don’t understand? GRACE… is all I can figure. With all my questions… I worship You still and even more vigorously for You alone are worthy of worship. You alone are Lord… Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit, I worship and adore You. Amen.