THE SIXTH SEAL

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=80 BGCOLOR="#000000" TEXT="#F7F7FF" bgproperties="fixed" background="03c00500dvldtc.png"> <div> <B>Revelation</B><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#FFFFCC" FACE="Arial" ><B>     |     </B></FONT><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#00FF00" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Revelation"><U><B>home</B></U></A></FONT></div> <div> <A HREF="seven_seals.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="THE SEVEN SEALS"><U><B>THE SEVEN SEALS</B></U></A><B> / </B><A HREF="conquering_and_to_conquer_.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="THE FIRST SEAL"><U><B>THE FIRST SEAL</B></U></A><B> / </B><A HREF="peace_taken_from_the_earth__.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="THE SECOND SEAL"><U><B>THE SECOND SEAL</B></U></A><B> / </B><A HREF="runaway_inflation_.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="THE THIRD SEAL"><U><B>THE THIRD SEAL</B></U></A><B> / </B><A HREF="bloodshed__famine__pestilence_.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="THE FOURTH SEAL"><U><B>THE FOURTH SEAL</B></U></A><B> / </B><A HREF="martyrs.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="THE FIFTH SEAL"><U><B>THE FIFTH SEAL</B></U></A><B> / </B><A HREF="natural_disasters_.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="THE SIXTH SEAL"><U><B>THE SIXTH SEAL</B></U></A><B> / </B><A HREF="the_remnant.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="144,000 SEALED"><U><B>144,000 SEALED</B></U></A><B> / </B><A HREF="the_first_group.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="THE RAPTURE:"><U><B>THE RAPTURE:</B></U></A><B> / </B><A HREF="silence_in_heaven_.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="THE SEVENTH SEAL"><U><B>THE SEVENTH SEAL</B></U></A><B> / </B><A HREF="the_great_tribulation_begins_.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="ANGELS PREPARE TO SOUND"><U><B>ANGELS PREPARE TO SOUND</B></U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#000000" TEXT="#F7F7FF" background="03dd2c00dvldtc.png"> <div> <A HREF="martyrs.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="THE FIFTH SEAL"><U>Previous Page</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="the_remnant.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="144,000 SEALED"><U>Next Page</U></A></div> <div>   <P><CENTER><A href="http://www.christiansunite.com/hit/" target="_top"><IMG src="http://www.christiansunite.com/hit/count.cgi?account=bryant_family_2&code=site&count=1" border=0 width=96 height=40 alt="The Christian Counter"></A><BR><font size=1><A href="http://www.christiansunite.com/hit/" target="_top">The Christian Counter</font></A></CENTER><P>   </div> <bR> <div> <B>Revelation 6:12-17</B>, "And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;  And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.  And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.  And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;  And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:  For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?"</div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=400 BGCOLOR="#000000" TEXT="#F7F7FF"> <div> <B><U><IMG SRC="1fc243c0.jpg" border=0 width="292" height="60" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></B></div> <div> <B><U>THE SIXTH SEAL</U></B></div> <div> The sixth seal speaks of great natural disasters. There is a great earthquake and the sun turns black as sackcloth. The moon turns blood red and the stars of heaven fall to the earth. The heaven departs as a scroll and the islands are moved out of their places.</div> <bR> <div> Has this happened yet?  Let's break this down. Have we had great earthquakes? Yes we have. Has the sun grown black as sackcloth? Yes it has, during an eclipse. Has the moon turned to blood? Yes, during harvest season every year when there is a great amount of dust in the air. Have we had meteorites? Yes we have. Just look at the big crater in Arizona.</div> <bR> <div> There are also two somewhat enigmatic statements made concerning the sky and the mountains and islands.  The sky, John states, will be rolled up as a scroll and the mountains and islands will be moved from their places. These two events speak of natural disasters of a type never before seen by man. </div> <bR> <div> How can the sky be rolled up you might ask. Just look to the South Pole for your answer. Right now there is great concern about the ozone layer. Some scientists are saying that a large hole has formed in this protective canopy and is allowing much more solar radiation in then ever before. These scientists are also saying that the hole is getting larger. You might say that the edges of the hole are being rolled back, and if not stopped it may affect the entire ozone layer. If this can happen to the ozone layer, why could it not happen to other vital portions of our atmosphere?</div> <bR> <div> Another question might be asked as well. How can mountains and islands be moved from their places? In many cases islands are merely mountains which break the surface of the ocean. Look at the major island chains in the world. If you trace the island chains back you will see that they are merely extensions of mountain chains which we see above the surface of the ocean. Many of these mountain islands are volcanic in nature such as the Hawaiian Islands, the Philippines and Japan. Volcanos in the past have been responsible for actually destroying islands when the top of the mountain blows off.</div> <bR> <div> Does all this mean that the sixth seal has been opened? No, it does not! When the sixth seal is opened all of these things will happen simultaneously. One might ask, what could cause all of these things to happen all at once? This could only happen if the earth were to pass through an unusually dense area of cosmic dust and debris. The interstellar dust would cause the sun and the moon to be partially eclipsed. Debris in the cosmic cloud would fall to the earth as meteorites and the large number of meteorites would destabilize the great fault lines of the world unleashing enormous earthquakes by the dozens.</div> <bR> <div> This will be when the Kings of the earth, their noblemen, their military chiefs and everyone will hide themselves among the rocks of the mountains. At this time we will know that the great tribulation is almost upon us.</div> <bR> <div> As Christians it will be our job to tell the world the truth of these calamities, which will send people scurrying for safety among the caves. This truth is that they were prophesied centuries before and it has happened just as the scripture foretold. We will know that indeed time is short and that the age of grace will be over soon with the rapture of the Church.</div> <bR> <div> Whenever there is a change with the way God deals with humanity it is often punctuated by a great earthquake. There are many 'earthquakes' recorded in scripture but there are only five instances in the Bible when the word earthquake is modified by the word 'great'. In the Greek the word great is translated megas {meg'-as}. So in reality what we have are mega-earthquakes. </div> <bR> <div> In Mt. 28:2 when Jesus rose from the dead there was a mega-earthquake. In Acts 16:26 when Paul and Silas were released from prison there was a mega-earthquake. In Rev. 6:12 prior to the opening of the seventh seal indicating the beginning of the great tribulation there is a mega-earthquake. In Rev. 7:13 at the blowing of the seventh trumpet there is a mega-earthquake. Finally in Rev. 16:18 there will also be a mega-earthquake immediately prior to the Lord's return.</div> <bR> <div> When Jesus died and rose again it marked the end of the age of the law and the beginning of the age of grace. Consider the following verse from Jeremiah.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Jeremiah 31:31-34,</B> "Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more."</div> <bR> <div> The new covenant is signed in the blood of Christ and is ratified by God through His act of resurrecting Jesus from the dead. Jesus is the first of many brethren.</div> <bR> <div> As we see here at the end of the age of grace there is yet another mega-earthquake when the sixth seal is opened. This earthquake marks the end of the age of grace and the beginning of sorrows as mentioned in the following verse from Matthew.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Matthew 24:7-13</B>, "For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.  All these are the beginning of sorrows.  Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake.  And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.  And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.  And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.  But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved."</div> <bR> <div> The beginnings of sorrows are the first three and a half years of the great tribulation. During the seven trumpet warnings there will be famines, pestilences and earthquakes. There will be people that come to the Lord after the rapture of the Church and during the seven trumpet warnings. These are the Tribulation Saints. The 144,000 Jewish believers that are sealed with the Holy Spirit remain during the first three and a half years of the tribulation will lead them to the Lord. We go into this in more depth later.</div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>