The Final Say | Revelation 6:1–8 (ESV)

[0:00] Well, good morning, everyone. What an amazing celebration that was. To have four baptisms, it's going to show the hand of God is in this place. And we certainly just...

[0:11] It's a great reminder of how God works in each and every one of our lives. And that God works in some incredible ways. I'm reminded of just meeting all of these people and getting to know their own story.

[0:28] It's a great reminder for every single one of us here, whether you're here in person or you're watching online, that no matter who you are, no matter what it is you're going through, what you have been through or what you will go through, God extends an invitation for every single one of us, calling us to something greater.

[0:50] When you think about it, the world that we live in, there's so much hatred. There's so much division. There's so much anger and animosity towards one another.

[1:02] You turn on the news and when is the last time you've heard anything positive on it? Show of hands. It's getting harder, isn't it, right? And we think about the world that we live in and we think about how so many people are searching for meaning and purpose in their life.

[1:20] And they go to things of the world. They may go to money. They may pursue power. They may pursue knowledge. They may pursue all different things in the world. But when you really think about it, more often than not, when you search the things of this world, it does not satisfy the void or the emptiness that exists in us.

[1:43] And only God can really fulfill that void in our lives. It goes to show that Jesus Christ, being the way, the truth, and the life, provides a much better way for all of us.

[1:57] And so we're going to go into, we've been going through Revelation. I started this last year, going through the seven churches in Revelation. This is actually a 42-week sermon series through Revelation, which is a very ambitious thing, I've got to admit here.

[2:14] And in this, it has been rewarding. Thinking about the depth of Scripture, the connections, the context, and all sorts of things. How many of you have heard that Revelation is a scary book?

[2:27] Yeah? And let's be honest here. We live in a culture where most people neglect Revelation, right? And how divisive and how confusing it is, right?

[2:39] And then you go on to the news or you read the paper or you read an article and it's talking about things like the mark of the beast, right? Is it Social Security? Is it a barcode?

[2:51] What is it, right? And then you have things like the beast, right? Is it America? Is it Russia? What is it? And there's so much confusion.

[3:03] But here's the thing. There's a lot of mystery in Revelation. There's a lot of beautiful and wonderful connections that is found within the Old Testament as well as the parables of Christ.

[3:16] And so we've been going through it. We went through the seven churches in Revelation. And we went through Revelation 4, 5, and now we're at Revelation 6.

[3:27] This is part one, which is the first four seals found in Revelation 6, verses 1 through 8. And I've titled this sermon, The Final Say. It's important for us to realize that we live in this world where lots of people are saying different things, right?

[3:44] All different types of opinions, right? And when we think about God, which is higher than all of us, it is God that has the final say. That is the main idea.

[3:56] That is the main purpose and objective that we find in here. We have found within Revelation that God has the final say.

[4:07] In the world that we live in, there are four words we'll go into before we even open our Bibles. If you want to go ahead, it's in Revelation 6. Conquest, war, famine, and death.

[4:20] That's some light reading, isn't it? Right? Four very heavy things that we find in Revelation. Conquest, war, famine, and death.

[4:32] These kind of judgment type of language. It is God who controls all of heaven and all of earth. We think of these words, we don't think of the most positive of things, right?

[4:44] Many of you have heard those verses of wars and rumors of wars. But we think about it. The most powerful thing that we can take to heart, even before we open the text, is that God has the final say.

[4:57] It is God who sent his son, Jesus Christ, who is victorious over death. Amen? Right? That's important for us to recognize. We think of famine, war and conquest, the things of this world, the condition and darkness that exists within the world.

[5:14] It is God who is truly in control. Now, when we think of the world and the brokenness and the darkness that exists into it, we are...

[5:25] Anyone here perfect? Good. No one's raising their hand, right? It's just like that scene in Scripture, right? When Christ says, let he who is without sin cast the first stone and nobody throws a stone, right?

[5:35] It's important for us to recognize we are imperfect people. Nobody here... I'm not perfect. You're not perfect. Nobody here is perfect. But we worship a God who is perfect. And so we're living on this world that is broken.

[5:50] And here's the thing. God gives all of us a choice for that better life. A plan for salvation. A plan for purpose. A plan for transformation for all of us. And so as we've gone through in Revelation, Jesus Christ is the one who is worthy.

[6:04] We've sung those songs before. Some of you may have. Some of you may not have. Worthy is the lamb who was slain, taken straight from Revelation. Evil may think they have the final say.

[6:18] Very often in the lives in which we live in and even throughout Scripture, there's a question that comes up so often. Why do the wicked prosper? Why does it seem like evil has the final say?

[6:30] Why does it seem like all this darkness exists in the world? Right? You don't have to raise your hand, but I can tell you I've asked that question a number of times. Right?

[6:40] And perhaps you have asked that kind of question before. God is in control. We may think that God is absent. Many people, they cry out for justice.

[6:52] Many people pray to the Lord and they're wondering when God will answer. And it's important for us to recognize that God answers in his divine timing, which is essentially beyond our understanding.

[7:04] Just like God's love and God's forgiveness, God's care and mercy is beyond our own human understanding. How many of you have ever played Monopoly before?

[7:16] How many of you have won at Monopoly before? I'm sure everyone's going to raise their hand. Right? You like getting the boardwalk. Right? Right? You want to get those blue tiles. Right? So that you essentially win.

[7:28] Right? Well, that's very different than when you think of how would you be as a judge? We have human judges on this earth, don't we? Now, there's good judges and there's bad judges, much like there are people who are very good at playing Monopoly and those that aren't very good at playing Monopoly.

[7:47] Right? But to think for a moment that God's justice, love, care and mercy and compassion is beyond us. Quite frankly, I'm glad that God is the judge.

[7:58] I don't want to be the judge. How many of us can forgive very easily? You don't have to raise your hand. Right? But yet God forgives us.

[8:10] How many of us love with the kind of capacity that is... I mean, for a lot of us, when someone hurts us, do we continue to love? Are we quick to show forgiveness and mercy?

[8:22] But yet God does that? That God loves each and every one of us no matter what our status is? That's an incredible type of love.

[8:34] And I can tell you it's beyond even my capacity, beyond all of our capacities. Something for us to think about. And so, when we're going through this, there is a connection that is found within Zechariah.

[8:47] Notice we still haven't even gone through the text yet. This is building the scene here. Now, how many of you have heard of the Four Horsemen? Right?

[8:58] In Revelation, right? I got to tell you, even when I was looking up images on Google or using AI to generate something, oh my goodness, the type of apocalyptic, type of end of the world, kind of like the Grim Reaper type of images that come on are just wild.

[9:15] For some people who like metal music, it's the coolest thing ever. I get it, right? Let's be honest here, right? So, for some people, like, uh, no. And the others are like, yeah, that's awesome, man.

[9:27] What's going on there, right? And so, we have this scene that exists in Revelation that actually comes from Zechariah. And it's actually very remarkable.

[9:37] In there, I'll just read a little bit from there. Where again I lifted my eyes and saw, behold, there were four chariots that came out between two mountains. The first chariot had a red horse, a black horse, a white horse, and the fourth dappled horse.

[9:53] They're going out of the four winds of heaven after presenting themselves before the Lord of all the earth. I always think it's fascinating when you see something within the Old Testament that is speaking to something directly in the New Testament, especially when it goes into Revelation.

[10:09] It's the same colored horses. It's the same divine commission. It is the same God. And it's funny that Zechariah saw it at least 500 years before John saw it.

[10:22] That's kind of cool, right? And so, we've been going through Revelation 4, 5, and 6, going to what's happening here, right? Chapter 4, God is on the throne, right? God is in control, right?

[10:34] That's how we understand that part of Revelation. Chapter 5 was Christ alone is worthy to open the scroll. No one. There is a scene where everyone is weeping because no one was found worthy to open the scroll.

[10:49] And then the Lamb comes onto the scene. Who is the Lamb? That is Jesus Christ who is worthy. That's why you have that lyric, worthy is the Lamb who was slain. Worthy to what?

[11:00] To open the scroll, right? You got to keep going with that, right? And now in chapter 6, what's happening, church? Let's read it. He opens it, right? And the creatures say, come.

[11:11] So, let's now turn our Bibles over. Revelation 6, verses 1 through 8. If you, you can use a ESVP Bible. That's on page 1222.

[11:24] Or you can use your Bible of choice or a mobile device up to you. What I'd like for us to do is for us to read it together. Because here at Ontario Community Church, we utilize a method known as the OIA method.

[11:38] What does that mean? O stands for observe. We read the text. I is interpret. What are the underlying lessons from this? And A is the application. What do we do about it?

[11:50] So, it's important for us to keep all of this in mind. So, are we all there, church? All right. And church, let's read it together.

[12:00] Did you know that Revelation is the only book in the Bible where it says you'll receive a blessing from reading this book? Isn't that kind of cool? A little fun fact there. So, not just for the blessing, but for us to read it together for that sake, right?

[12:14] Let's read it together. Beginning verse 1. Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a loud voice.

[12:25] Let's say it together. Come. And I looked, and behold, what? A white horse and its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him. And he came out conquering and to conquer.

[12:37] When he opened the second seal, I heard a second living creature saying what? Come. Right? Okay. Okay. And out came another horse, bright red.

[12:49] Its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth so that people should slay one another, and he was given a great sword. Ooh. That's a heavier verse, isn't it? Right? Verse 5.

[13:00] When he opened the third seal, I heard the living creature say, come. And I looked, and behold, what color horse? A black horse. And its rider had a pair of scales in ten.

[13:12] Right? You think you've seen those in courts. Right? Pair of scales. Right? That's what's going on there. Verse 6. And I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, a quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not harm the oil and wine.

[13:32] That's kind of interesting there, right? Verse 7. When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say what? Come. And I looked, and behold, what kind of horse?

[13:43] A pale horse. And its rider was named what? Death. Have you ever named a horse Death before? No? I wouldn't want to name my horse that either, right? And Hades followed him.

[13:55] Well, that's, that's, there you go. And they were given authority over, how much? A fourth of the earth to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and wild beasts of the earth.

[14:08] My goodness. What in the world's going on here, right? We read that, and it's just something that's, it's a little heavier, right? Because we're talking about judgment here.

[14:21] It's important for us to recognize as we read this text. There are a lot of people on the earth, I mean, just think in biblical times and think of nowadays, where something bad has happened to them.

[14:33] Or something bad has happened to a people group, right? And people are crying out for justice, right? Well, in the sense here, it's not just the fulfillment of justice.

[14:44] It is judgment that is happening in here. So in verse one, right? Watching the lamb open one of the seven seals. So the lamb who took the scroll in chapter five, right?

[14:57] The one that is worthy, that's Christ, is now opening it, right? It's the continuation of the throne room scene. What is now sealed is being revealed, right?

[15:08] In verse two, when you're going in there, there you have the white horse, the wider, the rider had a bow, a bow and a crown was given to him. There's actually a lot of debate on who that is, right?

[15:20] Some say that it's Christ, others say that it's not. Some say it's an evil person. There's so much debate on who that is. The reality is we don't know.

[15:31] We can debate all day on that specific who that person is. But what's important though, is understanding the significance of what this rider is doing on a white horse.

[15:43] So as I said, some see it as Christ, some see it as the gospel, some see it as a counterfeit conqueror. So there's just, like I said, a lot of debate on that. And you notice that the four living creatures then, they were worshiping God and now they are calling for using the word come, right?

[16:03] They're now summoning the horsemen, right? It is the same creation that praises God is calling forth judgment. And so we read that. That's some pretty, like I said, some pretty heavy things on there.

[16:16] I'm going to go to the next one. Yeah, so the first four seals, right? The white horse is representing conquest. The red horse is representing war. And the black horse representing famine. And finally that, I guess the fourth horse is the pale horse, which is representing of death here.

[16:33] And so the bright red horse, the rider, if you notice in verses three and four, it's in verse four. Out came out another horse, bright red.

[16:45] The rider was permitted to take peace from the earth. Notice that language in there, right? That there is this sense of God giving permission for judgment to happen here.

[16:58] That's something that is very important for us to take note of, right? So that people could slay one another and he was given a great sword. It's for some of us, we've been raised in talking about sin and dwelling within sin.

[17:12] And there comes a point in time where you basically become a slave to sin. How many of you have heard that kind of language before? And so in that, for a wicked country or a wicked people or evildoers, there comes a point where they're doing so much wickedness that they become consumed by their own vices.

[17:33] I remember once I was reading a book that was talking about an alcoholic. That at first, it appears that this person was drinking from the bottle, right?

[17:46] Well, there comes a point in time when you're no longer drinking the bottle, but the bottle is drinking you. There comes a point in time when it's basically using you. And that's heavy.

[17:57] That's hard language. But we think about that same kind of thing from peace that is being removed from a people group. It's absolutely wild. So the rider does not cause war, but he is permitted to remove peace.

[18:12] And I certainly hope that doesn't happen to any of us, let alone that that happens in this area or let alone this country. So then we have the third seal, right? The black horse.

[18:23] The rider had a pair of scales, right? So the text is mentioning a quart of wheat for a denarius, the three quarts for barley for a denarius, and do not harm the oil and wine. Now, there's actually been debate on what the oil and wine represent.

[18:36] There's some that say that that's a representation of the remnant of Christians, of those that still believe in the Lord. There's also some that say that this is a representation that even in a famine, there's still hope, despite the abundance of food that happens.

[18:53] So there is some, again, we can argue on that. But in any sense, there is still the sense of there are some things that are there despite judgment.

[19:05] So then we have the fourth seal, right? The pale horse. The rider named Death and Hades followed him. They were given authority over a fourth of the earth to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth.

[19:21] I always thought that was very interesting, that type of language of wild beasts, right? There's so much unknown we see in the... I mean, do you guys know how much of the ocean has actually been explored?

[19:35] It's actually a very small percentage and it's actually very wild. We think of the earth that we live in and there's still parts of the earth we haven't even explored. Think of the Amazon rainforest, for example.

[19:47] I think it's what? Less than 1% has actually been explored. That's... I can't even fathom that, right? And you think of the depths of the ocean. Are there wild beasts?

[19:59] Well, there's got to be, right? I think there's something down there. I just don't know what, right? So in there, an authority over a fourth of the earth, right? And so we have these four representing death, sword, famine, pestilence, right?

[20:14] That language is actually tied into Ezekiel 21, which is another prophet, right? And I'll read this to you from Ezekiel 14. How much more when I send upon Jerusalem my four disastrous acts of judgment, which is sword, famine, pestilence, and wild beasts, the same kind of language that is being used over there.

[20:35] So my goodness, that's what we can observe. What does that... What can we learn from that, okay? There are some underlying lessons, right?

[20:46] And so the first thing, I put the prayers of the saints and the justice of God. For many of us, we pray to the Lord.

[20:58] Some of us pray every day. Some of us pray every once in a while. Some of us pray when we really need help, right? Oh, my tire went out. Lord, I don't want to die, right?

[21:09] Recently, my son, for the first time, he cut himself with a knife, and it was a pretty bad cut. He had to get three stitches. And I was praying because the amount of blood that was being...

[21:21] It was a terrible scene, right? But I was praying right there. You bet I was, right? Lord, I pray that he gets well and that he's not losing too much blood kind of thing, right? Now, that may not be your specific situation, but there are situations in which we pray those kind of prayers.

[21:37] But there's also times where we thank the Lord for what he has done for us. There's times where we're asking the Lord to comfort us whenever we're lonely. Now, there's also prayers of when someone has done us wrong.

[21:52] Times when we are turning to the Lord and saying, Lord, I need your help because this person did me wrong. You do not have to raise your hand on that, but I'm sure for many of us, if not all of us, we have been backstabbed or betrayed or hurt by people, right?

[22:09] And what's important, especially when someone does us wrong, is that especially in Revelation chapter 5, verse 8, we had this imagery of our prayers being put in a golden bowl as an offering of incense.

[22:25] And it's such a powerful and unusual way of looking at prayer, right? You think of the type of sacrifices, the Jewish system, right?

[22:37] An offering that is going before the Lord. And what's important for that, and I find very comforting, I hope you as well, is that the Lord hears your prayers. It's just the timing in which he will answer, right?

[22:52] How many of us, we can be honest here, when we pray, we want it answered now, yeah? I think everyone would pretty much raise their hand on that, right? And we have to think that so many things on the earth and in life, they take time.

[23:07] They absolutely take time, right? Don't you wish you could just snap your fingers and you got your four-year degree? Don't you wish you could snap your fingers and say, you know what, I'm ready for retirement. I just want to snap my fingers and it's a done deal.

[23:18] And we live in this world where we are told, hey, you can have everything instantly, right? Ever seen Netflix before? How quickly, I mean, it's just what, a few seconds and it's loading.

[23:30] You're constantly entertained. I mean, let's not even think about social media and all the algorithms and all the things that are going on in there. But that's not a concept of the deeper things, that some things just take time.

[23:44] And regardless of all the technological innovations and advancements that happened in society, there are some things we just have to wait for. Now, for many of us, we have children, right?

[23:57] You've taught the lesson, you got to wait, right? Son, you got to wait for dinner. You just had lunch. I don't know what you're doing, right? And for how many of us as adults, we still think that way, right?

[24:09] We could be honest here. And so, we cry out to God. The tears that we weep. The moments where we are crying out to the Lord, saying, I need your help and I need your comfort.

[24:24] And as we pray and we cry out, even when we cry out for justice, God's divine justice comes in his time. Much like when we think of God's final judgment.

[24:34] And the four living creatures, they're holding the bowls of prayer. They're the ones that are summoning the horsemen in chapter 6. So, these prayers are not lost.

[24:46] They're actually acted upon. There's a famous parable. Some of you may know it. It's called the Prayer of the Persistent Widow. How many of you have heard of that? Prayer of the, the parable of the persistent widow.

[24:58] The story goes, there's a widow who's going to a judge who's wicked, right? And constantly asking for justice. And when Jesus is telling his disciples about this, the judge gets so bothered by this woman that would not leave him alone.

[25:18] Saying, come on. I've already, I'm not going to give you any sort of justice. No. But she keeps going and keeps going until what happens. Justice is finally served.

[25:32] And at the end of that parable, Jesus ends up saying, look at how much justice a wicked judge will give through persistent prayer and effort.

[25:44] How much more will I give for the people that I love? Wow. Think about that. Because in the text, when it's talking about this wicked judge, neither feared God nor respected man.

[25:59] Oh, I don't want to, I don't want to be in front of that judge. Right. And I hope none of us do. Right. We think about that. But that's on a human level.

[26:11] Talk about a divine level that is far greater. Even if he was a righteous judge that feared God and respected man, God's level of justice and mercy would still be transcendent to what our human understanding is.

[26:26] I say all of this because God's justice and God's judgment is far beyond our understanding. And that's important for us to realize. In this, that leads us to the second thing.

[26:41] What was sealed is now revealed. This is a very difficult one. You know, there is so much to scripture. The more you read and the more you study, you find that you learn something new each and every time.

[26:58] And I found that to be one of the most rewarding things in my own walk with the Lord. Sometimes things I'm like, I've read this so many times and I didn't understand it like that. Or I didn't see this connection with Zachariah.

[27:09] Or I didn't see this connection with Daniel. Right. What do you mean Daniel and Revelation are so intertwined with one another? What do you mean by that? What do you mean that there's a wonderful underlying connections with the parables of Christ?

[27:24] It's just, it's part of our own spiritual growth when we think about it. And so things that are hidden are revealed in God's time.

[27:36] Now, I'm sure if we all raised our hand at one point or another, we find that we learn different things, especially when it comes to scripture in its own timing. And how wonderful is it for to continue to learn and to grow the different things of God.

[27:54] And so I bring that up because these horsemen, right, these four horsemen, you can kind of see the background image here. It's not anything new.

[28:05] Isn't that fascinating? That that's been shown within the Old Testament and it's shown within Revelation. Now, for some of us, we may think, oh, this is a brand new thing.

[28:17] This is something that's, no, it's been there. It just hasn't necessarily been revealed. And so it's just like how I mentioned, I love mentioning Daniel 12, 4, where Daniel is seeing all these visions and all these things that are going on.

[28:33] And he's asking God, what is going on? I don't understand all these images. And God's like, quiet. Can you imagine? You're seeing all these things and you want to, and you're, hey, hey, God, I want to understand what, what, what is this you're laying before me?

[28:46] He's like, don't worry about it. Don't worry about it. And he tells him, seal it up and seal it up in the seal until it's proper time. What? That'd be a very frustrating thing.

[28:58] I mean, I don't know, maybe for me personally, but maybe for you as well. So these are not isolated events. It's recurring realities. It's happened throughout history and it's something that will intensify before Christ's return.

[29:10] In fact, when Jesus mentions in Matthew 24 that you will hear of wars and rumors of wars, there'll be famines and there will be earthquakes, right? All of these are the beginning of, the text says, birth pains.

[29:24] What a weird language to have in there, right? Now, I mean, I don't think any of us remember when we were about to be born, but I don't think the language of earthquakes is in to describe that experience.

[29:38] But it's showing that God is creating a new thing, that through judgment, there's going to be new life, right? Much like when we talk about baptism, the former life, right?

[29:51] Or we talk about salvation, the old life. Gone. Having a new life in Christ, being a new creation. And being able to live not just on this earth, but to be in the presence of the Lord, to dwell with him forever in the new heaven and in the new earth.

[30:11] It's fascinating. And finally here, the third one is that God has the final say. That's important for us. It's important we find throughout all of Scripture.

[30:25] These questions of why do wicked people seem to do so well? Well, God's going to have the final say, right? I want you to think for a moment and really reflect on this, because this is where it will hit home for a lot of us.

[30:41] Many of us, I'm sure we can all raise our hand, but you don't have to, but think about this. We have all been wronged by someone in some capacity, right?

[30:54] Some of you are nodding your heads. Some of you are shaking your heads. I get it, right? And when we think about that, sometimes we ask ourselves, why did this person do this to me, right?

[31:09] Why did this happen? It shouldn't have never happened to begin with. That is the wickedness and the evils of humanity.

[31:20] But when you really think about it, God is going to have the final say in terms of judgment, judgment, but also in conviction. Here's the thing. For many of us, we may have had a past life.

[31:36] Where we lived a certain way and we were pursuing pleasures or wealth or fame or notoriety or the list goes on. You would logically think that all you need is all the money in the world, right?

[31:49] Isn't that what society tells us? You got to have all the money, right? So then why is it that those that are the wealthiest people in the world, there's a lot of people that are just miserable?

[32:01] Think about that. So it's not wealth. What about the famous actors? They've got it all together, right? They have everybody worshiping the ground that they stand on, right?

[32:11] But yet, no, right? They too are miserable. You hear about it. You know, it's like, oh yeah, I can buy a $10,000 steak, but life is so miserable.

[32:25] They're not being hipsters. They're not saying that to be cool. More often than not, they actually mean that. That all that fame and fortune is meaningless.

[32:36] Okay. Well, what about gambling? Maybe that's what it is. Maybe I can just go to Las Vegas and win a lot of money, right? Well, how many people lose everything in the process, right?

[32:50] So much so there's ad campaigns saying, don't gamble away this, because there's some things you should not gamble away. Maybe it's drugs.

[33:01] Maybe it's alcohol. You know how often people feel worse after the fact? It's that continued emptiness.

[33:12] Do you really think that going to the bottle is going to fix it? Do you really think that the next high that you have is going to fulfill you? I know this is very convicting, but it goes to show that the things of this earth are not going to fulfill us and give us purpose.

[33:29] Very often when we are lost and confused, we're looking in the wrong places, right? How many of you have gone as a kid Easter egg hunting before, right?

[33:44] Well, what happens when the kid goes the wrong way and you're like, the Easter eggs are over here, kid, right? Right? That's happened before. Or my favorite, years ago, my wife and I were at this one church and we used to hide Easter eggs in this one bush.

[34:00] Well, one time, there was this kid that found a golden egg. Well, it was last year's golden egg. It was disgusting. And I'm like, all right, you found a golden egg.

[34:12] We're going to get you a prize, man. Don't eat that, please. We'll figure something out, right? But in any sense, it's like searching in the wrong place. And it's so important for us to not seek the things of the world, but look in the right direction.

[34:29] To find meaning, purpose, transformation, and healing. To come to God is the greatest decision you can ever make in your life. So God has the final say.

[34:41] I want to go into the application here. I know we're a little over on time here. How should we live and how should we respond? When I read Revelation, I don't understand.

[34:52] And I do the best I can to read and study the text and find the connections. How many of us have read part of the Bible and didn't understand? You don't have to raise your hand. And I understand. Some of you are, some of you aren't.

[35:03] That's okay, right? The call for each and every one of us is to believe in the Lord. Just like how we had for baptism, it is to believe the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

[35:17] That sounds a little too simple, Pastor. That's because it is. That's it. That is your baseline. You got to believe in that. And here's the thing.

[35:27] As you believe in the Lord, be on a journey to understand the things of God. Be on a journey of being transformed. Transformation of the way that you think.

[35:39] How many of you have heard the word repentance before? Right? You got to turn from your sin, right? Many of us have heard that language before, which is absolutely accurate. But repentance is much more than that.

[35:51] It is defined as metanoia, which means the changing of your mind in how you think. So it's not just turning from sin. It is changing the very way that you see the world, the way that you think about Christ, the way you look at your spouse or your family.

[36:10] That is much more deeper and a lot more powerful than just turning from sin. A change of mind, a renewed spirit, a softened heart.

[36:22] I think I've mentioned here a couple times. It's in Ezekiel talking about having a heart of stone. Oh, Patrick, nobody has a heart of stone.

[36:34] Oh, yes, they do. It may not be a literal stone, but there are people that have got cold hearts, right? And the language talks about having a heart of stone, changing it to a heart of flesh.

[36:52] You can understand what that means. Not to be cold-hearted or hard-hearted, much like how the Pharaoh, how his heart became hardened, right?

[37:04] Very important for us. So trust in the Lord, even when you don't understand. The disciples in the Easter story, they believed even though they didn't understand. We don't have to understand all the complexities of God and his word.

[37:17] We have to believe in Jesus Christ. That is the baseline. That is the greatest decision that you can make in your life. You may see conquest in the world. You may hear about wars.

[37:28] There is a war that's going on. Let's be honest here. There's a lot that's going on, hearing about famine and death in the world, and we may not understand why it is happening. But we are called to trust in the Lamb who was slain, the one who is worthy to open the seals.

[37:45] Nothing is outside of his authority. For the person that is struggling right now, you may be struggling with grief or with loss, or maybe there's been an injustice. Maybe there's fear that's existing in you.

[37:58] And maybe you don't understand why. God provides a much better way. Comfort, restoration, and my favorite is stability.

[38:09] Let me tell you, how much has the world changed? Don't answer that. The world's changed a lot. I mean, you even think a couple years ago, before artificial intelligence, that wasn't even like, that was science fiction.

[38:23] That was, what is that? Space Odyssey movie, 2000, 2001, a Space Odyssey, right? Where he had Hal, right? That was AI. That wouldn't exist in the world that we live in.

[38:36] But now it's here. We think of all the cultural shifts and all the things that are happening, and it's like, it can be overwhelming, yeah? It can be absolutely overwhelming. But yet, despite all of the cultural changes and society doing its thing, we have a God who is constant, and he remains the same.

[38:57] That's why the text says that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. We do not need to fear the horseman.

[39:09] We need to trust in the lamb. The second thing is pray because your prayers matter. That image that I've talked about of the bulls and your prayers being incensed, go to show that every prayer that you pray matters.

[39:26] So how's your prayer life? Maybe it's time to start praying to the Lord. If you don't know what to pray, you can always do the Lord's Prayer. We do that every week. That's why we do it. It's the prayer that the Lord taught us.

[39:40] So every time you pray, you're asking God to hear your prayer, and your prayers are not wasted. I don't know about you. That is the most comforting thing. I think of times before I was a Christian when my mother would tell me, hey, I'm praying for you.

[39:54] I'm going to pray that you know the Lord. I was like, no, thank you, Mom. But now I thank her every single day for praying. So continue to be in prayer. If you haven't prayed, begin to pray to the Lord.

[40:09] And so pray for those that are oppressed. Pray for those that have been wronged. Pray for your city. Pray for those that are in famine. Pray for those that are in war.

[40:22] It's not a political statement. These are biblical statements. To be in prayer. Why is it in Scripture? It says to pray for those in authority so that you live a peaceful life.

[40:33] Why is it in there? That's such an odd verse in Scripture. But yet we're called to pray for those in authority. Even if you don't agree with them, which I know we can go on about politicians we agree and don't agree with.

[40:45] I get it. We're called to pray for them. Right? And so finally the third thing is live as people who know the ending. We find within all of Scripture that God rules and reigns.

[41:01] That He has the final say and that's the most important thing. You should know how this ends. The new heaven and the new earth. That revelation, right?

[41:13] The apocalypse is known as the, literally, the unveiling. The revealing kind of language. So it's revealing what, the fact that God wins and that He is victorious.

[41:29] We think of all of this. That the kingdom of the world is nothing compared to the kingdom of God. And so let us live with confidence of people who know the ending.

[41:39] Don't be afraid of those horsemen. The lamb has already conquered. We walk by faith and not by sight. In Luke 21, it says, when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your head because you know your redemption is drawing near.

[41:57] So we find that despite all the apocalyptic and scary language, you got to know Jesus and you got to know the lamb. Right? Those, the images of those horsemen is pretty scary, I admit.

[42:12] But I have confidence in the lamb who was slain. And so the lamb who is worthy to take the scroll has opened the first four seals. What was sealed in Daniel is now revealed in Revelation.

[42:25] The four creatures who worship God in the throne room are the same ones that are saying, come. Right? And every rider has permission. It goes to show that every judgment has its limit.

[42:39] And every prayer is held in a golden bowl before the throne of God. Let us remember that it is God that has the final say. Not the horsemen, not evil people, and not the condition of the earth.

[42:53] It is God who has the final say. Let us trust in Him. Let us pray to Him. And let us live as people who know the ending. Let us pray together.

[43:04] And Father, we thank You for the time and the opportunity for us to go over this very difficult, very heavy, but yet very powerful part in Scripture. We know there is a lot of mystery.

[43:17] And there is a lot that we don't know. But there are some things we do know. And that is You sent Your Son, Jesus Christ, being the way, the truth, and the life, providing salvation for all who believe. Just as it says in Scripture that whosoever believes shall not perish, but have eternal life.

[43:33] You call every single one of us, regardless of where we come from. What matters is making that decision in believing the death, burial, and resurrection.

[43:43] And from that decision, may we all grow to know You and to become more like You so that we live and love like Your Son, Jesus Christ. We thank You so much for this time, and I pray for everyone who is here in this place, friends, visitors, family, and those who are tuning in online.

[44:03] May you know that Jesus loves you and calls you for something greater than this, and that God has the final say. In all of this, we say in the name of Jesus Christ, the cornerstone of our faith, and we all say together, Amen?

[44:18] Amen.