Revelation 6:15-17 – 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, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”
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One of the plots that people tend to love in movies or television shows is the plot where the loud-mouthed bully finally gets put in his place. Often the shows will feature a boy or group of boys who are picking on others. But, in the end, someone will finally stand up to the bullies, and things will be set right.
Perhaps one of the reasons that we like the bully plot is because it reflects very well the reality of God’s eternal story. We all have seen evidence of men, strong and weak, rich and poor, old and young, rulers and slaves, who stand up and boastfully dishonor and even challenge God. We have heard their condescending tones, as they ridicule anyone who would be so foolish as to believe in the supernatural or in a God. They look down their noses, declaring the religious to be the weak-minded who need an imaginary crutch to get through life.
But, as you read this passage in Revelation 6, recognize that there will come a day in which all the bullies and all the skeptics will be silenced. There is coming a day when Christ will return. There is coming a time when the wrath of God against the sin of humanity will be poured out on the world. The only people who will be spared at that time are those who have received Christ’s grace, because Christ took the wrath of God that all who are saved deserved. There is coming a time when the bold, brash, loud, and confident boasting of the atheist will be replaced with a whimpering wine, pleading with the rocks and the mountains to bury them alive to keep them from the sight of the Almighty as he begins to judge the world.
Does this sound like an unloving thing to write? I hope not. God takes no joy in the death of the wicked. Nor should any of us. This is not the bully plot in a high-school movie; this is real life and eternity. The silenced bullies in this plot will be eternally damned for their rejection of the Lord and his Son, Jesus Christ. Let us not find pleasure in this scene, but let it call us to action. We need to stand up to the bullies, the skeptics, the atheists and agnostics; and we need to call them to turn before it is too late. Jesus will return. Jesus will judge. If they do not repent now, they will be among the number of those who would rather be crushed by a mountain than to have to stare into the face of God.
It is loving to warn the lost of their danger before a holy, loving, and just God. God loves them, that is true. But, God is holy, and thus can not tolerate their sin. God is just, and thus must punish their sin rightly. But, thankfully, God is also gracious enough to have made a way for them to be forgiven if they will but believe in Christ. Let us become evangelists who call the world to repentance. Let us call them to the love of God so that they need not suffer the wrath of God. Let us never hide the truth of God’s wrath, because God is very clear about the fate of all who reject his offer of grace in Christ.
Dear Lord, I read this passage and am reminded that I need to be sharing the gospel with all the world. I pray that you will make me into an evangelist. Help me to warn people of the danger of your wrath. Help me to call people to the grace of your mercy. I pray that you will empower me to share the gospel boldly and fruitfully. I know that you are the only one who can make my evangelism successful, and so I ask that you will do so. Please use me to keep people from your wrath.
Pastor Travis Peterson 