Dennis EdwardsIn our last Bible class I was asked if we would hear the sound of the trumpet, the last trumpet, the seventh trumpet at the moment of the Rapture. My immediate response was that I believed that the visions in Revelation are on a spiritual plane, therefore, I concluded that, no, we wouldn’t hear the sound of the trumpet. I was thinking “we” as the world’s population. However, the Bible says clearly in Proverbs 18:13, “He that answers a matter before he hears it, it is folly and shame unto him.” In other words, we should really think and study a matter rather than giving a quick answer.
In Ecclesiastes 5:1b-2 we read, “Be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil. Be not rash with your mouth, and let not your heart be hasty to utter anything before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let your words be few.” Proverb 29:11 states, “A fool utters all his mind: but a wise man keeps it in till afterwards,” and Proverbs 17:28 says, “Even a fool, when he holds his peace, is counted wise: and he that shuts his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.”
Instead of answering immediately, I should have postponed the answer for another class. I could have said, “That’s an interesting question. I will have to think about that before giving an answer. We will get back to that during another class.”
After talking to others, I realized I had to re-think what I said. I had to really search the Scriptures to see what clues the verses themselves give, not merely what my mind may have remembered them as saying. Here’s what the Lord showed me.
Let us read John 12:20-32. "Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the festival. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus."
Jesus totally seems to dismiss Andrew and Philip’s question. It seems at that moment He receives a revelation and then prophesies His death.
"Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
“Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.
"Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
“Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.
"Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine. Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”
The important point here is in verses 28-30. Jesus said, “Father glorify thy name.” Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, “I have both glorified it (speaking of God’s name), and will glorify it.” The Bible goes on to say, “The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it (the voice or sound), said that it thundered: others said, An angel spoke to him.” Then Jesus responded, “This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes.”
Since this is John’s Gospel, we assume that John heard the words which he recorded as being spoken from heaven. However, not everyone heard the words. Some thought it had thundered. Others heard something and thought an angel had spoken to Jesus. Therefore, we have three groups of people. One group of believers who are close followers of Jesus that hear and understand the words from heaven which are recorded in the text. Another group who didn’t understand the message, but heard something and believed an angel had spoken with Jesus. They believed something supernatural had taken place and heaven had communicated with Jesus. A third group believed it had thundered and there was no supernatural voice or sound from heaven.
We conclude from the text that the those following closely heard the voice and understood the message. Those who followed, but maybe not so closely, heard something, knew it was supernatural, but didn’t understand the exact message. The third group, maybe more skeptical, just heard a naturally explained noise- thunder. They didn’t see anything supernatural happening.
In the synoptic Gospels we have a record of a voice coming from heaven when Jesus is baptized in Matthew 3:17, Mark 1:11, and Luke 3:22. Generally they all say that a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Again in Mark 9:1-7, Matthew 17:1-9, Luke 9:28-36 we have accounts of the disciples on the Mount of Transfiguration of hearing a voice from heaven saying, “This is my beloved Son, hear ye Him.”
In 2 Peter 1:17 Peter remembers the words as, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Peter goes on to say in verse 18, “And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.” But the Apostle concludes that more important or more sure than that voice he heard, which was his subjective personal experience, more important or more sure than his telling us his personal testimony, are the words of prophecy found in God’s word. He goes on to say in verse 19, “Whereunto you do well that ye take heed, as unto a light in a dark place, until the day star arise in your hearts.” He’s encouraging us to get into God’s word until it illuminates our hearts and minds and we know whom we have believed and really believe on Him.
But the question is, are we going to hear the trumpet sound or not? First, we are going to look at some other places where Jesus spoke about hearing and not hearing. Let’s read Matthew 13: 10-17.
The disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?” He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’[Isaiah 6:9-10]
"But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it."
The disciples who were following closely got the parables opened unto them. But the unbelieving couldn’t hear or understand the parable.
In Jeremiah 5:21-31 we read: “ Hear this, you foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear: Should you not fear me?” declares the Lord. “Should you not tremble in my presence? I made the sand a boundary for the sea, an everlasting barrier it cannot cross. The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail; they may roar, but they cannot cross it. But these people have stubborn and rebellious hearts; they have turned aside and gone away. They do not say to themselves, ‘Let us fear the Lord our God, who gives autumn and spring rains in season, who assures us of the regular weeks of harvest.’
"Your wrongdoings have kept these away; your sins have deprived you of good. “Among my people are the wicked who lie in wait like men who snare birds and like those who set traps to catch people. Like cages full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; they have become rich and powerful and have grown fat and sleek. Their evil deeds have no limit; they do not seek justice. They do not promote the case of the fatherless; they do not defend the just cause of the poor.
"Should I not punish them for this?” declares the Lord. “Should I not avenge myself on such a nation as this? “A horrible and shocking thing has happened in the land: The prophets prophesy lies, the priests rule by their own authority, and my people love it this way. But what will you do in the end?”
The Lord says the people have ears, but they hear not. The Lord’s word in Jeremiah are a condemnation of the wicked who have stubborn and rebellious hearts, and who have oppressed the poor. The prophets or religious leaders prophesy falsely and the people love it so, because it tickles their ears. They have ears, but they don’t hear the Lord. They prefer to hear words that affirm their own desires, their own do as they please religion.
Apostle Paul admonished that the last days would have the same kind of false teachers and congregations. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 says, "For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths."
In Ezekiel 12: 2 we read, “Son of man, you dwell in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see, and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not: for they are a rebellious house.” This seems to infer that if we are rebellious to the Lord, we won’t hear His voice. We will have ears, but we won’t hear.
The point I am trying to make is that it seems that some people hear God’s voice and others don’t. Some people see God working and others don’t. Maybe the same will take place at the rapture. Let’s read 1 Thessalonians 4:16, “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.”
Maybe we will hear the sound of the trumpet. In Revelation 1:10, John says that while he was having the vision he heard “a great voice, as of a trumpet.” Some commentaries believe that that voice is referring to Jesus’ voice. Some say it is referring to the angel’s voice. In Revelation 3:20, Jesus says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” We have each heard His voice and opened our hearts to Him. He has come in and we have had daily fellowship with Him. However, not everyone has heard His voice for one reason or another.
Maybe at the rapture the true believers will hear the sound of the trumpet and the shout. Perhaps others will hear something and wonder if a supernatural event is taking place. A third less receptive group will deny the supernatural and claim a natural cause for whatever is happening. In Revelation either the angel or Jesus have a voice as of a trumpet. Maybe that trumpet and the voice are one in the same. Maybe the people of the world will hear as much as God lets them according to their receptivity to Him. Some that are coming closer may hear something and wonder if it is supernatural. Others, who are still rejecting God, will have a purely natural explanation for whatever they hear or do not hear.
Let’s read from Deuteronomy 5:22-33, where Moses is talking about receiving the ten commandments from God. "These are the commandments the Lord proclaimed in a loud voice to your whole assembly there on the mountain from out of the fire, the cloud and the deep darkness; and he added nothing more. Then he wrote them on two stone tablets and gave them to me.
"When you heard the voice out of the darkness, while the mountain was ablaze with fire, all the leaders of your tribes and your elders came to me. And you said, “The Lord our God has shown us his glory and his majesty, and we have heard his voice from the fire. Today we have seen that a person can live even if God speaks with them. But now, why should we die? This great fire will consume us, and we will die if we hear the voice of the Lord our God any longer. For what mortal has ever heard the voice of the living God speaking out of fire, as we have, and survived? Go near and listen to all that the Lord our God says. Then tell us whatever the Lord our God tells you. We will listen and obey.”
"The Lord heard you when you spoke to me, and the Lord said to me, “I have heard what this people said to you. Everything they said was good. Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear me and keep all my commands always, so that it might go well with them and their children forever!
“Go, tell them to return to their tents. But you stay here with me so that I may give you all the commands, decrees and laws you are to teach them to follow in the land I am giving them to possess.”
"So be careful to do what the Lord your God has commanded you; do not turn aside to the right or to the left. Walk in obedience to all that the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess."
The people were afraid of listening directly to the Lord and asked Moses to hear from the Lord for them. But today God wants each and every one of us to develop our own personal relationship with the Lord and to hear from the Lord through His words, through the voice of His word, and through hearing from Him in prayer and prophecy, through listening to Godly counsel, through interacting with others . He wants to speak to us with His still small voice.
Let us read from Matthew 7:21-29. True and False Disciples: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
The Wise and Foolish Builders: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
"When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law."
If we hear and obey God’s word we won’t be deceived. In James 1:22 we read, “Be ye doers of the word and not hearers only deceiving your own selves.” We need to let God’s word speak to us. Let the voice of the word speak to us. Let the Holy Spirit speak to us in prophecy. If we do that, we will speak with authority because we have been with Jesus. In Acts 5:13 Luke explains, "Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus."
God wants us to develop a close relationship with Him through His word and through our personal time with Him in prayer and listening to His voice. He wants us to lean on Him and listen to His voice directing us in all we do. God wants us to become all that He created us to be. He has a plan for each of us. In Jeremiah 29:11 he says, "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” In order to fulfill that plan we need to be willing and obedient. We need to follow Him closely. God knows the way. All we have to do is follow.
Jesus said in John 10:27-29, "My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.”
Let us not follow afar off like Apostle Peter did and end up denying the Lord three times. Let us have our lamps full of oil by walking in obedience to Jesus, for He gives the oil of His Spirit to them that obey Him. Then we will be ready. Then we will hear the sound of the trumpet and enter in to the glorious wedding feast of our Lord. Until then, let us follow closely so that He can make us into fishers of men.
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