Series: The Radical Call of Jesus
Message: Radical Warning
Preacher: Japhet De Oliveira
Daily Walk: Japhet De Oliveira

Refresh: Open with prayer. Read or listen to Psalm 103:1–5.

Read: Revelation 8:2-11:18 (ESV). As you read the English Standard Version, note 1–3 insights or questions.

Reflect: If you only wrote down three insights or three questions, I know it is because they were probably each at least one page long. These chapters are considered among the most complex in the book of Revelation and  in the second testament. However, if we break the chapters down into smaller pieces, we can begin to at least grasp a small part of the radical call of Jesus over time and, in particular, hear the radical warning He has for those who are not yet sealed. Note: They are not sealed because there is still time left to be sealed. There is still time to decide. The warnings are radical . . . because there is still time for changes to be made. 

Let me summarize the Daily Walk for this week as I think it will help you process your thoughts and understand that the warning from Jesus, while heavy, is ultimately redemptive in nature. I also want to mention that when you think of a "trumpet," try not to always let your mind wander to Louis Armstrong or the Roman gladiators, but rather to the sanctuary, and in particular, to the ram’s horn called the shofar. It was and is a sacred instrument of special significance, as we will discover. 

Chapters 8–9. These chapters return us to the sanctuary, a familiar pattern in each of the seven cycles so far. The seven churches started with the seven lamp stands. The seven seals started with the throne room. The seven trumpets will start with the golden censer. You may remember how the seven seals were broken into sets of four and three—the four horsemen and and three seals. Well, the seven trumpets are broken down in a similar pattern, with four trumpets and three woes. These seven trumpets cover the same periods of time as the seven churches and the seven seals. 

Chapters 10–11. Just as the seals had an interlude between four and three, the same thing occurs with the trumpets between four and three. This interlude shows how the Church copes as it preaches the Gospel in a hostile world. The final trumpet is the Second Coming of Jesus. 

Recalibrate: ​​​When has a warning made you change? When has a warning made you stubborn?

Respond: Pray for humility.

Research: What is a shofar and what does it sound like? When are they typically used?