Rev 11:16-17, And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying, "We give Thee thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who art and who wast, because Thou hast taken Thy great power and hast begun to reign. 
	We are in the midst of our looking at the reason that the Church is not to fear the end times. There are many influences and truths that surround us in Christ Jesus. As well, it is at the behest of the Church’s prayers that God is released to bring forth the judgment of His Righteousness and Holiness upon the earth. The Church, in Christ, joins her heart to His in the full desire that God be absolutely and fully and eternally glorified. There is a united revulsion against the wickedness of this age and a heart after God’s integrity and honor to be acknowledged by all of creation. There will be a welling up, within the Church, of the anguish and the horror at the mockery of this world power against the beauty and the splendor of God. And, it will be from that heart of love unto the Father, that the Church will call forth for God to end this world’s insanity and to establish the visible Lordship of Jesus Christ. 
	That time will be a time in which the Church will not fear the consequences of that prayer for Christ’s Righteousness to reign. The Church will put herself at the forward stretches of humanity with a heart that His reign fully be established, first and foremost in the Church, no matter what the cost in terms of this earth and its life. The Church will stand thusly because of the single fact that we are sealed by God, Himself. 
Lest we begin to think that we are some great model of propriety and honor unto ourselves, never forget that it is all because of our union with Jesus Christ that we even dare to call upon God. The Church, in those last days, will have no motivation of any self-righteousness or self-holiness. We will simply desire, with all our hearts, to see God, through Jesus Christ, rightfully and gloriously exalted in every heart on this earth. That will be our cry and our singleness of purpose. In that determination, we will face the worst of all the trials and tribulations of this age in its death-throes, but we will not be seduced or over-come. We will rest in the victory of Our Lord Jesus Christ. We will be sealed by God, Himself, unto eternal life in union with our dear and triumphant husband.
	This brings us to the point of this morning’s consideration. All the reasons for our lack of terror of the end days are not summed up within the concepts of what we believe to be true. Our courage is not focused on how well we will face the tribulation. It is not centered in our force of will to endure to the very end. It is set, concretely and absolutely and triumphantly in the fact that we are sealed by the very person of Jesus Christ, through His Holy Spirit. It is God’s Handiwork upon us that marks us out as His own, dear possession. All the armies of Heaven and hell will know that we are indwelled by God, Himself, through His Holy Spirit. 2 Cor 1:21+22 Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and anointed us is God, who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge. 
	This is no small thing in terms of the confidence that we have before the seemingly overwhelming powers of the enemy. The simple truth is that the enemy was unable to hold Christ in the grave, despite the complete exhaustion of all the forces set after that futile effort. So also there is nothing in all of creation that will prevail against the saints of God in our obedience and honor to His will. We are eternally sealed by God, and secure in that glorious provision of protection.  
The prophet Ezekiel saw this as recorded in Ezek 9:3-6. - As he was given a view of the end times, it is very evident that God’s protective seal is upon His own, chosen people. Then the glory of the God of Israel went up from the cherub on which it had been, to the threshold of the temple. And He called to the man clothed in linen at whose loins was the writing case. And the Lord said to him, "Go through the midst of the city, even through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations which are being committed in its midst." But to the others He said in my hearing, "Go through the city after him and strike; do not let your eye have pity, and do not spare. "Utterly slay old men, young men, maidens, little children, and women, but do not touch any man on whom is the mark; and you shall start from My sanctuary." So they started with the elders who were before the temple. 
	Notice that those whose hearts are attuned to God and mourn over the abominations are marked apart as belonging to God. They are sealed against the force of the retribution to come. No one else is spared, not even the maidens, little children, and women. Anyone who does not have the seal of God suffered the righteous judgment of God’s wrath. 
And please note where the judgment begins. It is not in the fleshpots and the slums and the obvious dens of iniquity, but in the very sanctuary of God. The appointed task starts with the elders before the temple. This is why we dare not place ourselves as having any sense of self-righteous indignation as to the wrath of God. We must first and truly put ourselves before the throne of God asking if there be anything in us, in me, which needs to be cleansed away before the final time of judgment proceeds from the throne of God. 
	This is part of the entire process of God’s provision for the final days of the plagues that will be called forth from Heaven. As we read in Rev 7:2+3, And I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God; and he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, saying, "Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the bond-servants of our God on their foreheads." 
The end of the days will not come until all those who are God’s are sealed with His Holy Spirit. The end will only be forthcoming when those who are called and chosen by God will be marked out and set apart unto Him. Not one will be lost of those who respond to God. There will be no missed or forgotten soul in the entire universe. 
There is a settled comfort in knowing that God so protects us, that we will not be overlooked or forgotten. This is also a comfort in the knowledge that our loved ones, those who will call upon Christ for their salvation, will do so. None of them will fail to find their salvation, if they are called by God. We can rest in that assurance on their behalf. 
Parents, this is a promise for your children as you raise them in the way of the Lord. Brothers and sisters, this is a comforting assurance for your parents and siblings. God will have His hand upon everyone whom He has marked as His own possession. That will hold true, even in their last gasp of breath. If they are God’s elect, they will be sealed by His Holy Spirit in their call to Jesus. They will be saved, even in their last conscious thought on this earth. 
	 Not only is this an assurance of the salvation that Jesus Christ has purchased for all those who will call upon Him, but they will be kept from the harm of judgment. As we read in Rev 9:4, the sealed will be protected from the stings of the instruments of God’s wrath upon humanity. And they were told that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. 
	Here again, we see that God will protect His own from the ravages that will be unleashed against humanity. There will be a special provision in place to keep His people, who are called by His name, from undergoing the severe consequences of the utter denial of God and His Sovereignty. 
	Later in our reading of this book of the Revelation, we will see that there are those who will be witness with Christ, bearing His name upon their foreheads. Rev 14:1 And I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads. We will not get into the exact aspect of what this passage presents this morning, but it is essential to recognize that Jesus will not be seen by Himself. He will be accompanied by those who have His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads. There will be those who accompany Christ as He rules this entire universe, those who bear the seal of His name upon their bodies in such prominence that it is visible to all.
	In Rev 22:3+4, we read, And there shall no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His bond-servants shall serve Him; and they shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. At the end of the curse, at the end of the judgment, those who are sealed with the name of Jesus will be in His direct presence, serving Him and celebrating all His goodness and power and victory. There will be a gloriousness surrounding them as they are fully identified with the Lamb, the risen Son of God. It will be such an intimate relationship of grace and honor and adoration because they will see the very face of God and live forevermore before Him and with Him.
	This will be the final manifestation of the eternal sealing of God’s own saints by His very name, His very Holy Spirit. And, lest we get too far ahead of ourselves, please realize that we are looking to the fact that we belong wholly to God and are the recipients of His covering and power of salvation right now, on this earth, at this moment.
So often, we seem to think that God is too great to be concerned about such as us. We are too engrossed with the minutiae of the moment to see God’s hand covering us even through the smallest detail of our life. We seem to forget that we are the possession of the Almighty Creator of Heaven and Earth, the Infinitely Great One, the Omniscient, Omnipresent, Omnipotent Sovereign Lord of all. There is nothing too great for Him. This we reckon with relative ease. But, in the reality of His so great power of love, there is also nothing too small for Him. He is covering us with His grace in every area of our lives. As we read in Job 36:7a, "He does not withdraw His eyes from the righteous… There is nothing that comes our way that does not come via His discerning gaze.
	No matter what we encounter on this earth, we can be satisfied that He is fully in charge and working for His glory in the every detail. In this truth, we must be very careful as to our dealings with Him and with others. We need to live our lives knowing that God not only sees our every action, but knows our every thought. We need to give ourselves completely to His plan and purpose in our salvation in Jesus Christ. Ps 34:13-15 Keep your tongue from evil, And your lips from speaking deceit. Depart from evil, and do good; Seek peace, and pursue it. The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, And His ears are open to their cry. 
	As we are told in Ps 37:23-28, The steps of a man are established by the Lord; And He delights in his way. When he falls, he shall not be hurled headlong; Because the Lord is the One who holds his hand. I have been young, and now I am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Or his descendants begging bread. All day long he is gracious and lends; And his descendants are a blessing. Depart from evil, and do good, So you will abide forever. For the Lord loves justice, And does not forsake His godly ones; They are preserved forever; But the descendants of the wicked will be cut off. 
	The prophet Isaiah encourages us to living a life that is fully honoring to the Righteousness and Holiness of the One Who has sealed us unto Himself. Isa 3:10. Say to the righteous that it will go well with them, For they will eat the fruit of their actions. Notice, this is a promise of the provision of God for the sake of His name in the lives of His people. There is a certain outcome that will sustain us as we eat of the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Our actions will manifest the relationship that we have with God through His Only Begotten Son.
	As Christ, Himself tells us in Matt 13:40-43, "Therefore just as the tares are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age. "The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. "Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear. 
	Those who are not sealed with the name of Jesus have very much to fear in the last days. There will be many plagues and pestilence which will sorely grieve and afflict those without the seal of God upon their heads. It will ultimately result in the final judgment and the weeping and the gnashing of teeth, a misery far worse than any of which we could possibly conceive. However, the redeemed of the Lord, those who bear the name of Jesus Christ upon their foreheads will shine forth in the victory of God’s redeeming love and grace. They will be basking in the shining glory of God, surrounded by the majesty of the Lord of all creation. Never let us lose sight of the confident assurance that is ours in Him. It is nothing of our earning or of our efforts, but solely resting on the triumphant laurels of His resurrection power in our salvation. Let us live today in the same truth of His victory that will encapsulate our entire eternity. To Him be the glory in His Church now and evermore. So be it! 
And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying, "We give Thee thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who art and who wast, because Thou hast taken Thy great power and hast begun to reign. Amen.

This morning’s benediction is Isa 6:1-3. …I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings; with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, "Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory." Amen.