Finisher

Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels who had seven plagues, which are the last, because in them the wrath of God is finished” (Revelation 15:1-3).

Chapters 12-14 of Revelation have set the stage for the final and decisive outpouring of God’s wrath on those who have set themselves up in opposition to Him.  The sides in the battle are clear.  We come to the final grouping of seven that is associated with God’s judgment.  First, there were the seven seals of the scroll (chs. 5-7).  The opening of the seventh seal brought forth seven angels with seven trumpets (chs. 8-11).  In each of the previous “sevens”, the judgment was limited (i.e. “a fourth” or “a third”).  Here in chapter 15, the seven angels with seven plagues bring the final, unrestrained wrath of God.  When the seven golden bowls are emptied, “...the wrath of God is finished.”

Perhaps you have experienced the frustration of a work situation where a fellow employee chronically left jobs unfinished or deadlines unmet.  Not only did it reflect badly upon them but it may have had ramifications for you, even when you had completed your own part of the project.  Or maybe someone close to you was great about making promises but not-so-great in following through on the commitments that were made.  It seems there are always more “starters” than “finishers.”

I’m so grateful to serve a God Who finishes what He starts.  His faithfulness to His promises is rooted in the fact that He is different than us.  “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent; has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” (Numbers 23:19).  The best example of God as a finisher is His commitment through Jesus Christ to redeem the world from the devastation of sin and death.  God kept His promise and, as Jesus said from the cross: “It is finished.” (John 19:30).  My God is a finisher!

God loves you!

Mike