Revelation 16:10-11

10          Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was plunged into darkness. His subjects ground their teeth in anguish,

11          and they cursed the God of heaven for their pains and sores. But they did not repent of their evil deeds and turn to God.

The judgment goes to the place of worship for followers of Satan. His followers were sent into darkness. His rule gets shadowed, hard to witness and follow, and a blind march. They will grind their teeth to dust in their anguish, in their frustration, in their stress. They cursed God for their pains and the sores (remember the 1^st bowl). Even after all this, they STILL did not repent of their evil deeds and turn to God. Let’s recap everything they’re experience so far:

• They are covered in horrible, dangerous, life-threatening sores.
• They watched the seas around them perish and turn into blood.
• They watched their own water supply turn to blood.
• They are burned by fire.

Now they are in darkness. They cannot see anything. They’re hurting. They’re burned. They’re wandering in darkness – and they STILL will not turn to God.

Being plunged into darkness is the Greek verb skotoó (sko-to’-o). This refers to being blinded. It’s often referred metaphorically, meaning either spiritual or moral blindness. It’s describes a state of spiritual or moral obscurity, being unbale to perceive or understand God’s divine truth due to a hardened heart. It’s a consequence of idolatry and rejection of God’s teaching, leading to a place where the lack of understanding is present. Imagine how closed-off you must be to following God in a divine relationship if you are willing to go through all these sufferings and still not repent.

I understand that some Christians can turn people away from a relationship with God, showing you a misrepresentation of what it means to be follower of Christ. Some Christians manipulate, some Christians abuse, some Christians judge, and no Christian is perfect. Some Pastors will misuse their power and control. Some leaders will misuse their relationships built with their community. What I want to say on behalf of all these hardships I mentioned: I am sorry. I am sorry that you had to experience someone who did not truly know what it meant to be a Christian. I want to encourage you to give God, the Church, and the Community – a second chance. God is a God of second chances. Take a new approach into understanding God’s word – unlearning the harmful teachings of the Bible that were forced on you at a younger age or an earlier experience. Join a new small group, a place where you can worship and study in a community. Find a worship night at a café or a church. Open YouTube or Spotify and find a series of sermons on a topic that you are wrestling with. It will be hard. It will be tearful. It will be fearful. It will be a life-changing experience with a loving God that created and cares for you in immense detail.

I mean, the followers of Satan that’s mentioned here in Revelation are so stressed that they are grinding their teeth down to the roots and chewing on their tongue like it is beef jerky. No one wants to experience this kind of stress. No likes to experience this, but yet they are still willing to endure this in following a false teacher. I know that following a world that encourages you to make a lot of money, get a lot of followers, own the best stuff, dress in the best designers, and sounds more alluring and enticing. It may be a fun journey to get there, and you don’t truly care who gets hurt along the way because you are keeping your eyes focused on you and what you want. I’m here to say – God wants you to focus on what you want, through his lenses though. God created you for the world with a plan in the purpose, and all throughout life we are searching for meaning, trying to figure our place, our calling, our career. When we struggle, we get caught up in other influences guiding us that we rarely stop and reflect if this is truly the best for me. When we take our concerns to go, and release our control of things, we find peace. We also find clarity. We’ll see different things that will stick out that we didn’t see before. We’ll learn something about ourselves that was hidden before. We will find our place in this world and then go deep into it, because we are unlocking what God created us to do. So again, I implore you, don’t suffer for the sake of the world. Rest, and find peace and guidance, in who God is truly. Not who people tell you God is, but in who God says he is.

Next part: The End is Poured Out – Part 6

Associated Scripture

Revelation 16:10       Exodus 10:21; Isaiah 8:22; Revelation 8:12, 9:2, 13:2

Revelation 16:11       Revelation 9:20-21