Revelation 9:5 And they were not given authority to kill them, but to torment them for five months. Their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man.
6 In those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will desire to die, and death will flee from them.
The locust were given no power over death but were only allow to “torment”. This word torment is defined as:
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to test (metals) by the touchstone, which is a black siliceous stone used to test the purity of gold or silver by the color of the streak produced on it by rubbing it with either metal
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to question by applying torture
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to torture
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to vex with grievous pains (of body or mind), to torment
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to be harassed, distressed
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of those who at sea are struggling with a head wind
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The torment of the locusts is to try and test us as we move toward Spiritual maturity. The touchstone was used to test the purity of gold (Divine nature) and without sufficient testing how can one be certain of their Spiritual state? Adversity reveals the depth of maturity and until then you can only guess how mature one really is. A friend of mine works that the State Testing facility for highway road materials. They must put core samples through stress tests to verify their ability to withstand the stress of sustained heavy traffic. They compare the core against a standard that has been established by the Department of Transportation when accepting a bid by a contractor. This standard must be met in order for the contractor to fully satisfy the bid requirement and performance. The aspiring overcomer must almost meet quality criteria and be stress tested. How much pressure can you take? Those with the mind of Christ are not moved by what the world dishes out.
1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
15 But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one.
16 For “who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
The power of the locusts centers around fear of loss and fear of the unknown. These locusts want to consume everything of the earth which includes health, happiness, material wealth, and anything else the carnal mind can think of as being fulfilling even if only of a temporary basis. When Joshua was to confront the five kings of the Amorites, “the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not fear them, for I have delivered them into your hand; not a man of them shall stand before you.””
There is a time designated for the conquering of the enemies placed before as we ascend through the levels of Spiritual maturity. We must conquer anything that is not of the Mind of Christ and we can be assured that trials and testing will come our way. We must see the level of our maturity revealed by those events. This will prepare us for those robes of righteousness.
The Mind of Christ is the seal on the forehead and with this seal, we no longer fear but have the assurance of Our Heavenly Father’s Love being greater than anything man can do to us. We no longer fear the sting of death and no longer concern ourselves with the ways that lead to death and destruction but instead place our priority on responding to HIS Word. We now walk by faith, not by sight. Our hope is in the high calling of Love from Above.
The religious church would have us believe that GOD will wipe away 95% of all HIS creation because they just couldn’t get it together thus painting HIM as a mean, unrelenting taskmaster. They would extract “tithe” money by heaping fear and guilt on your head until you have submitted to their demands. “Your money for souls” might be their rallying cry but instead they simply wanted to build a bigger edifice to fit their ego. How many building programs did Jesus contribute to?
Perfect Love casteth out all fear! Hang your hat on 1 John 4:18. This is a passage from the same disciple called to write the book of Revelation. Do you see why John was called to write the first Gospel and the last Gospel (the book of Revelation)? Both are books of good news but you must be able to have eyes to see the Spiritual Truths of the second book. Only from the perspective of Love can you see the intent of the last book of the Bible. It’s message of Love has been hidden from those with a carnal mind for centuries until such a time as this. Only those who pursue a revelation of Love will this book’s mysteries be unlocked, opened, and revealed. There is a time of testing but during this testing we are empowered by HIS Love:
2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
Before you know it, the time of testing will be over and will be a distant memory!