The Great Day Of God's Wrath # 6

 The Great Day Of God's Wrath # 6

3. I shall now come, in the third place, to show you - WHO they are, who will not be able to stand in this great day.

First, such as are openly wicked and profane, will not be able to stand in this great day. "They will say to the mountains, 'Fall on us!' and to the hills, 'Cover us!'" (Luke 23:30). "There will be trouble and calamity for everyone who keeps on doing what is evil." (Romans 2:9).

Oh, you profane ones! You who now wallow in your sins, as the pig in the mire, and eat up sin, as they eat bread, and drink up iniquity like water; Oh! let me tell you, you will not be able to stand in the day of wrath, nor the day of judgment - but destruction will be your end, and everlasting misery your portion! Oh! that such would but consider these two places of Scripture, "Whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is their shame, who mind earthly things." (Philippians 3:19). "Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).

These men may now live with a high hand, and boast, "We have struck a bargain to  cheat death, and have made a deal to dodge hell. The coming destruction can never touch us, for we have built a strong refuge made of lies and deception!" Yet, "I will test you with the measuring line of justice and the plumb line of righteousness. Since your refuge is made of lies, a hailstorm will knock it down. Since it is made of deception, a flood will sweep it away. I will cancel the bargain you made to cheat death, and I will overturn your deal to dodge the grave. When the terrible enemy sweeps through, you will be trampled into the ground!" (Isaiah 28:15-18).

Secondly, such as are ignorant, will not be able to stand in this great day of God's wrath. "When the Lord Jesus appears from heaven, He will come with His mighty angels, in flaming fire, binging judgment on those who do not know God and on those who refuse to obey the Gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from His glorious power!" (2 Thess. 1:7-9). Oh, you who are ignorant of God and His Gospel - do you hear this? You are some of those who will not be able to stand in this great day - but say to the rocks, "Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb!"

Beloved, ignorance is one of those cursed sins that bars and bolts Christ out of the heart; it is that which shuts them out from having mercy and favor with the Lord. (Isaiah 27:11). "They are a foolish and stupid nation, for its people have turned away from God. Therefore, their Maker has no compassion on them, and their Creator shows them no favor."

Thirdly, such as have sided with antichrist against Christ, will not be able to stand in this great day. Such as have drunk of the whore's cup of fornication, shall drink of the cup of God's indignation, which is poured out without mixture! "A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: "If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of God's fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of His wrath! He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name!" (Revelation 14:9-11). Oh, beloved! all those who have been partakers with her in sinning - shall be partakers with her in suffering! Therefore, "come out of her my people, that you be not partakers of her sins, and that you receive not of her plagues!" (Revelation 18:4).

~William Dyer~

(continued with # 7)

The Great Day Of God's Wrath # 5

 The Great Day Of God's Wrath # 5

"Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe! Come, trample the grapes, for the winepress is full and the vats overflow - so great is their wickedness! Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision!" (Joel 3:13-14).

So in Revelation 14:15 the angels are appointed to reap down the earth. "Take the sickle and reap, because the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe!" Oh, let everyone who hears or reads these sayings, let them hear and fear, and tremble at them! for this will be a day of great destruction to the wicked and ungodly.

Sixthly, and lastly, this will be a GREAT day of wrath, as it is said in the words of my text. "For the great day of His wrath has come!" Who may abide the day of His coming? Who shall stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire. Oh, beloved! this is not the day of man's wrath. Men have had their day of reigning and raging, and despising God - but that is over and gone, and now God's day has come! This is the day of His wrath -and woe to the wicked, and woe to the whore of Babylon, for the hour of her judgment has come.

Oh, beloved! God's GREAT wrath will be very terrible to the wicked!

1. God's great wrath will tear them in pieces like a lion! "I will be like a lion to Israel, like a strong young lion to Judah. I will tear them to pieces! I will carry them off, and no one will be left to rescue them!" (Hosea 5:14). Consider this, all you who forget God, or I will tear you to pieces, with none to rescue you!" (Psalm 50:22).

2. God's great wrath will consume them like fire! "The Lord Almighty says - The day of judgment is coming, burning like a furnace. On that day the arrogant and the wicked will be burned up like straw. They will be consumed - roots, branches, and all." (Malahi 4:1). "I will pour out My wrath upon you and breathe out my fiery anger against you!" (Ezekiel 21:31).

3. God's great wrath will swallow up all His enemies! "You will capture all your enemies. Your strong right hand will seize all who hate You. You will throw them in a fiery furnace when You appear. In His wrath the Lord will swallow them up, and His fire will consume them!" (Psalm 21:8-9).

Oh! the wrath of the Almighty is that which tears like a lion, consumes like a fire, and swallows up like a dragon; and therefore it is called in the Scripture "the fierceness of His great wrath!" (2 Kings 23:26). "The fierceness of His anger, wrath, and indignation!" (Psalm 78:49).

"The fury of His wrath!" (Revelation 16:19).

Thus, beloved, I have shown you the nature and property of this great day, spoken of in my text:

1. A day of astonishment.

2. A day of terror.

3. A day of distress.

4. A day of contempt.

5. A day of destruction.

6. A day of wrath.

~William Dyer~

(continued with # 6)

The Great Day Of God's Wrath # 4

 The Great Day Of God's Wrath # 4

"The great day of the Lord is near - near and coming quickly. Listen! That day will be a day of wrath, a day of distress and anguish, a day of trouble and ruin, a blackness. I will bring distress on the people and they will walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the Lord. Their blood will be poured out like dust and their entrails like filth. Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to save them on the day of the Lord's wrath. In the fire of His jealousy the whole world will be consumed, for He will make a sudden end of all who live in the earth!" (Zephaniah 1:14-18).

Oh, the distress that ungodly men will be in, in that day, which will make them cry to the rocks and mountains to fall on them, and hide them from the face of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb! The God of heaven will bring distress upon all the ungodly, and their honor shall not deliver them, for their gold deliver them, nor their silver deliver them, nor the greatness of their multitudes deliver them - but distress will come upon them, as it did upon Saul, (1 Samuel 28:15), "I am in great distress!" See Luke 21:23, "And there shall be a great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people!" Can you hear this, and not tremble at it, oh you who are profane?

Fourthly, this day of God's wrath will be a day of great CONTEMPT to the ungodly. "The Lord Almighty has purposed it, to stain the pride of all glory, and to bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth!" (Isaiah 23:9).

Oh, the enemies of the Lord, and such as oppose His truth, will be then hissed at. Oh, do but see that place, (Jeremiah 11:37), "And Babylon shall become heaps, a dwelling-place for dragons, an astonishment, and a hissing!" The Lord will pour contempt upon all ungodly men, who have sided with the whore of Babylon, and drunk of her cup; they will not know where to go, nor where to hide their heads - but everyone will hiss at them, and have them in derision, saying, these are those who said, "it is in vain to serve the Lord; and walking mournfully before the Lord Almighty?" who counted saints to be sots, and godliness to the madness. Therefore will they be contemptible before the Lord, angels, and holy men. Oh, think of this, you who speak proudly and blasphemously against God and His people! Know assuredly, that God will speak to you in His wrath, and vex you in His sore displeasure, "The One enthroned in heaven laughs! The Lord scoffs at them!~ (Psalm 2:4).

Fifthly, this day of God's wrath will be a day of great DESTRUCTION. "The wicked are reserved to the day of destruction; they shall be brought forth to the day of wrath!" (Job 21:30). In this day the Lord will destroy both evil people, and evil things, men and their idols, men and their inventions. Every plant which is not of God's planting, shall be plucked up, human pride will be humbled, and human arrogance will be brought down. Only the Lord will be exalted on that day of judgement. Idols will completely disappear. When the Lord rises to shake the earth, His enemies will crawl into holes in the ground. They will hide in caves in the rocks from the terror of the Lord and the glory of His majesty. On that day of judgment they will abandon the gold an silver idols they made for themselves to worship. They will leave their gods to the rodents and bats - while they crawl away into caverns and hide among the jagged rocks in the cliffs. They will try to escape the terror of the Lord and the glory of His majesty as He rises to shake the earth!" (Isaiah 2:17-21).

All false ways, false worship and false doctrines, shall fall in that day! This will be a reaping day; God will empty the earth, as the prophet Isaiah speaks, "Look! The Lord is about to destroy the earth and make it a vast wasteland. He devastates the surface of the earth and scatters the people. Priests and people, servants and masters, maids and mistresses, buyers and sellers, lenders and borrowers, bankers and debtors - none will be spared! The earth will be completely emptied and looted. The Lord has spoken!" (Isaiah 24:1-3).

~William Dyer~

(continued with # 5)

The Great Day of God's Wrath # 3

 The Great Day of God's Wrath # 3

1. First of all, this day will be a day of ASTONISHMENT to the wicked and ungodly, as it is said, Deuteronomy 28:28, "The Lord shall smite them with madness and blindness, and astonishment of heart!" Oh, it will be with the wicked, as it was with Nebuchadnezzar, who was astonished to behold the works and wonders of God which the Lord wrought for the deliverance of those that put their trust in Him, "Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisors, "Weren't there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?" They replied, "Certainly, O King." He said, "Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods." (Daniel 3:24-25).

Oh, sinners! do but see here how this proud Nebuchadnezzar was astonished at the beholding of this sight! Here are three things which astonished this great king:

First, to see the fire, whose nature is to burn and consume, to have no power to seize upon the bodies of these men. Fire is one of the cruelest creatures; it is a merciless creature, and therefore the torments of hell are set forth by fire, "Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels!" (Matthew 25:41).

The second thing which astonished Nebuchadnezzar, was, to see the servants of the Lord walking in the fiery furnace, "Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire." These were cast in bound - but now they are loose; now, that the fire should have power on their bonds, and not on their bodies, oh, this caused astonishment in Nebuchadnezzar.

The third thing that astonished him, was, to see their number not decreased - but increased, "Did not we cast in three men bound into the fire? Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and the form of the fourth is like unto the Son of God." Now this astonished this great king. Now, as it was with Nebuchadnezzar here, so will it be with the wicked in this great day. Oh, you who now speak proudly, look highly, and walk contemptuously, it will astonish you to see God's judgments poured out upon you, and His wrath wax hot against you, until there is no remedy. Oh, do but see that text, "Babylon will be a heap of ruins, a haunt of jackals, an object of horrow and scorn!" (Jeremiah 51:37). Thus it will be with the ungodly at that day.

2. It will be a day of TERROR to those who know not God, and that obey not the gospel of Christ! The terror of God will be upon such, as it was upon those cities, (Genesis 35:5). "Then they set out, and the terror of God fell upon the cities all around them so that no one pursued them." Oh, you graceless people who now have no fear of God, nor tremble at His Word - He will make you then tremble, as He did Belshazzar, when he beheld the hand-writing on the wall, (Dan. 5:6). "His face turned pale and he was so frightened that his knees knocked together and his legs gave way!" Oh! you drunkards and swearers, you who despise reproof, and hate instruction, and scorn all God's counsel; know this, that the day of God's wrath will be a day of terror to you, which will make your hearts to sink within you, your countenance to change, your joints to be loosed, and your ears to tingle, when the terrors of the Almighty God set themselves in array against you! Therefore, says the apostle, "Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men." (2 Corinthians 5:11).

3. This day of God's wrath will be a day of DISTRESS to the wicked. "I in turn will laugh at your disaster; I will mock when calamity overtakes you - when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelms you!" (Proverbs 1:26-27).

~William Dyer~

(continued with # 4)

The Great Day Of God's Wrrath! # 2

 The Great Day Of God's Wrath # 2

The words of my text contain two things - a reason and a question.

1. The former part is the ground or reason of this outcry here made by the kings and great men of the earth, together with every bond man and every free man, "For the great day of His wrath has come!"

2. The latter part is a question proposed about standing at that day, "And who shall be able to stand?"

The point of doctrine, which I shall lay down from these words, is this:

DOCTRINE: That the greatest part of men and women will not be able to stand in the great day of God's wrath.

In handling of this point, I shall show you four things:

1. There are some days greater than others.

2. The nature and property of this great day.

3. Who they are that will not be able to stand in the day of God's wrath.

4. The use and application.

In the first place I shall show you, beloved - that there are some great days spoken of in the Scripture.

The first great day you have in Jeremiah 30:7, "How awful that day will be! None will be like it! It will be a time of trouble for Jacob, but he will be saved out of it."

The second great day you have in Hosea 1:11. "What a great day that will be - the day of Jezreel - when God will again plant His people in His land."

The third great day in have in Joel 2:31, "The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes."

The fourth great day you have in Mal. 4:5. "Behold I will send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord."

The fifth great day is this in my text, "For the great day of His wrath has come - and who shall be able to stand?" (Revelation 6:17).

The sixth great day you have in Revelation 16:14, "They are demonic spirits who work miracles and go out to all the rulers of the world to gather them for battle against the Lord on that great judgment day of God Almighty."

The seventh and last great day you have in the Epistle of Jude, verse 6, "And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home - these He has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great day."

Thus, beloved, you see, that there are some days which are greater than others, which the Scripture calls "great days," because of the greatness of the work which God does, and will do, in those days.

2. I shall now show you the nature and properties of this great day in my text. Oh, my brethren! this will be a very dreadful and terrible day to the wicked, who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness, and put far from them the evil day, which is now hastening upon them.

~William Dyer~

(continued with # 3)

The Great Day Of God's Wrath! # 1

 The Great Day Of God's Wrath! # 1

"For the great day of His wrath has come - and who shall be able to stand!" (Revelation 6:17).

Every man's thoughts run now like Nebuchadnezzar's - with a desire to know what shall come to pass hereafter, or what things the future will bring forth, "As you were lying there, O king, your mind turned to things to come, and the revealer of mysteries showed you what is going to happen." (Daniel 2:29).

There is nothing in the womb of time - but what was first in the womb of God. Now, this book of the Revelation shows us these three things:

1. The state and condition of the true church of God upon earth, under the power and reign of antichrist.

2. The rise, the reign, and the rage of antichrist in the world.

3. The quiet, blessed, and glorious state and condition of the true church here below, after the ruin and downfall of antichrist, "whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of His mouth and destroy by the splendor of His coming!" (2 Thessalonians 2:8).

This chapter out of which my text is taken (Revelation 6), shows us seven things:

1, You may see what God's dreadful judgments are, by which He cuts off and destroys the inhabitants of the earth, for their sin and wickedness; they are likened and compared to horses, as you may see from verse 4 to verse 8. Here you have:a white horse, war; a red horse, the sword; a black horse, the famine; a pale horse, the pestilence, or plague, which leads to death.

Horses are creatures which run to and fro - and so do God's judgments from house to house, from street to street, from city to city, from town to town, and from one place to another. "Show no mercy; have no pity!" (Ezekiel 9:5).

Horses are creatures which are very swift in their motion, they run many miles in a little time. Likewise, God's judgments are also very swift, they do much execution in a little time. "So the Lord sent a plague on Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell dead." (1 Chron. 21:14).

You may also see a proof of this, by what God has done to London, where more than a thousand died in one day.

2. You may see here where all the holy martyrs and witnesses of Jesus Christ are, who have been slain for the Word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus; they are under the altar, that is, under the glorious protection of Christ in heaven, "They are before the throne of God, serving Him day and night; and the Lamb leads them to the living fountain, and God wipes away all tears from their eyes." (Revelation 7:15, 17).

3. You may see also the cause for which these blessed saints were slain; it was "for the Word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ." (Chapter 6:9).

4. Here you may see that all the saints' precious blood, which has been spilt from time to time by the whore of Babylon, cries aloud, day and night, to God for vengeance upon Babylon. Chapter 6:10).

5. You have here the answer of God in relation to the saints' cry, "And it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow-servants also, and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled." (Chapter 6:11)

6. You may here see what dreadful and terrible things followed upon the opening the sixth seal, verse 12, 14. "And lo, there was a great earthquake. The sun became as dark as black cloth, and the moon became as red as blood. Then the stars of the sky fell to the earth like green figs falling from a tree shaken by a strong wind. The sky was rolled up like a scroll, and all of the mountains and islands were moved from their places." There are the visible judgments of God, which are come upon the anti-christian crew.

And, lastly, this chapter shows us what will be the state and condition of those men at that day, who are found enemies to God and His people, "Then everyone - the kings of the earth, the rulers, the generals, the wealthy, the powerful, and every slave and free person - all hid themselves in the caves and among the rockes, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of the One who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!" (Rev. 6:15-16).

Now this brings me to the words of my text, which shows us the reason of this great out-cry, "For the great day of His wrath has come- and who shall be able to stand?" (Revelation 6:17).

~William Dyer~

I Found Him Whom My Soul Loves! # 2

 I Found Him Whom My Soul Loves! # 2

It generates humility, deep and adoring humility. Humility, which makes us lovable, and fires us with love to all about us. Humility which fills us with profound admiration of the conduct and condescension of our Lord, and lays us in the dust at His feet. Humility, which inspires us with lofty expectations, of seeing more of His beauty, enjoying more of His presence, and of being ravished always with His love.

O the blessedness of find that loved One again, and once more enjoying His presence, and the assurance of His love!

Believer, when Jesus is not enjoyed by you - He is not far from you. He only stands behind the wall. "My lover is like a gazelle or a young stag. Look! There He stands behind our wall, gazing through the windows, peering through the lattice." (Song of Songs 2:9). He is just beyond the watchmen. We are not far from finding Him when we feel and lament His absence. He will soon turn again, and have compassion upon us. If therefore you are seeking Him, though discouraged for a time, press on, persevere - for you are sure to find Him. "Everyone who seeks - finds."

The lost sinner who have never enjoyed His presence, if he seeks - will find; and the backslider who has sinned away His presence - shall have it restored again. Seek, seek then, for none can seek His face in vain.

When Christ is found after long seeking, and after deep searching of heart, He is more precious, than as if found at once. We value that most - which costs us most. We enjoy that most - which is only gained by much labor and effort. Never does the sun appear so bright, as after the long, cold, dreary night. Never is health so prized, as after a long season of painful sickness. Never is water so sweet, as when the tongue fails for thirst. Just so, never is Jesus so precious, as after the long night of guilt, gloom, and desertion. Never is Jesus so precious, as after we have suffered from broken bones, a wounded spirit, and a troubled conscience. Never is Jesus so precious, as when the fire of God's wrath has seemed to dry up our vital moisture, and the firey law has almost brought us into the dust of death!

The trumpet of Jubilee, was not so sweet to the bankrupt Israelite; the act of emancipation, was never so delightful to the manacled slave; the proclamation of pardon, was never so precious to the doomed criminal, who expected to the executed in the morning; as is Jesus to the soul, when He manifests Himself once more, after a long dreary season of desertion.

Reader! Are you seeking Jesus? Whatever may be your case, circumstances, or discouragements, never give up until you have found Him. Find Him you will, you must - if you seek for Him with all your heart. And when you have found Him, do not fear to own it, or neglect to acknowledge it - but in the language of the delighted spouse, exclaim, "I have found Him whom my soul loves!"

~James Smith~

(The End)