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Revelation 16:8 - Do you know anyone who is "Cursing God and refusing to repent" - Day 165

Greetings fellow readers,

Just want to take a moment to encourage you to stick with the challenge.  You may have fallen behind the daily pace, but reading through the Bible is the goal, not necessarily in a calendar year.  When I first started doing this years ago, I never made it through in a year.  There was always something that disrupted the schedule.  As the habit developed, the distractions seem to have faded away as I realized the value of spending time with God in the Word.  We are almost half way through the plan already.  You can do this with the help of the Spirit.

Blessings,

Jeff

Looking at these two bowls, we can make some observations.

People respond in the same way - they curse God and they do not repent.

God is held responsible for the torment of the people.  (God had power of the plagues and the pain and sores came from Him presumably due to first bowl).

The sun becomes hotter and the kingdom of the beast becomes darker.

What do these observations mean?

People at this time do not see a link between their actions and their circumstances.  They seem to think their suffering is God's fault.  Refusal to repent shows that they feel they have nothing to be sorry about.  

The things that people rely on (the sun for warmth and the kingdom of the beast for light/direction), are turned against them.  They have placed their trust in things that might seem good, but these things are idols and ultimately evil.  A rational response to failure of a worldview that denies God is to abandon it and look for a worldview that worships God.  But people who claim to be enlightened plunge further into darkness.

If we think back to the plagues against Egypt, each one was related to one of the Egyptian gods.  It seems that God has always been in the business of showing people the foolishness of belief systems that reject Him.  I think the same thing is happening in Revelation.  The degree to which the demonstration is made is much more powerful, but the basic concept is the same.  

So I have to ask you a question.  If you are reading the Bible and think that it is just ethical teaching and you really don't need Jesus, how are you any different that the people who curse God and refuse to repent.?  The law came to show us the depth of our sin.  As Paul says, when the law came, sin came alive and I died.  He thought he was alive but he was really dead.  Will you turn to Christ this minute.  If so, please contact the church using the "Contact Us" tab on the website.  

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