Judgment Comes

Revelation 8:3-6 The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the angel’s hand. 5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake. 6 Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to sound them.
 
MANY in the church often express a disinterest in Old Testament Scripture. But see how a passage in Exodus points to today’s Revelation passage: Exodus 30:7 “Aaron must burn fragrant incense on the altar every morning when he tends the lamps. 8 He must burn incense again when he lights the lamps at twilight, so incense will burn regularly before the Lord for the generations to come.”
   The incense from Aaron, the High Priest, helps us see how God is constant to welcome his people to come to him in prayer and worship. Aaron’s incense is for the same reason as the angel’s incense in verse 3. The rising incense from the tabernacle’s altar would remind Israel that Heaven welcomes their prayers. And God would answer their faithful petitions.
   In a like manner, the angel of Revelation acts as a priest, taking the prayers of the church to the Father. The prayers could be specifically for the justice and peace prayed by the martyrs in Revelation 6:10 “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” This is a prayer for God’s justice to condemn the wicked.
   We should often pray for God’s justice against the great wrongs that swallow up life throughout the earth. After all, Jesus taught us to do so: your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. (Matthew 6:10) Justice is God’s will. He will not allow sin to endure forever. Yes, there is much injustice in the world, but God has removed many unjust leaders and causes throughout the centuries. One day he will remove all, so his will is done on earth for eternity.
   In verse 5 God begins to answer the saints’ prayers. God’s authority and power are again illustrated in the fire and earthquake as his creation groans in judgment. Exodus also records similar passages as God demonstrates his justice to Israel.
   As we continue in Revelation, God’s justice will be relentless against his broken creation. The seven angels prepare to blow their trumpets for three purposes: 1) to warn that judgment is certain, 2) to call the forces of good and evil to battle, and 3) to announce the return of the King, the Messiah. Our Almighty God will bring disorder onto his creation to ultimately establish his ordered justice.
 
Prayer: We pray, Father, for justice. Establish your truth in our homes, communities, states and nations. In Jesus’ name, amen.