1. There are certain important themes that run through the Bible. One of these great themes is the doctrine of repentance.
2. Way back in Genesis 4, we read that Cain killed his brother Abel. God confronted Cain about this horrible crime but Cain would not repent.
3. And so it is all throughout the Bible. The wicked sinners in the days of Noah would not repent.
4. The wicked homosexuals in Sodom and Gomorrah would not repent.
5. Pharaoh would not repent. Neither would King Ahab or Queen Jezebel.
6. And on and on throughout history we see God dealing with lost sinners and we see sinners turning their backs on God.
7. I am sure most of you are familiar with the story of Lazarus and the rich man. After arriving in hell, the rich man begged Abraham to send Lazarus to his father’s house so that he could testify to his five brothers (Luke 16:19-31).
8. The rich man said: "If one went unto them from the dead, they will repent" (Luke 16:30).
9. But Abraham said, "If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead" (16:31).
10. No matter how many warnings God gives to certain people, they simply refuse to repent. Abraham said a dead man can come back from heaven and preach to them but they still will not repent.
11. He said that if they will not obey the Bible ("Moses and the prophets"), they will not be persuaded though one rose from the dead.
12. We need to keep this in mind. Some people today are saying, "If we only had more spectacular signs and wonders and healings and miracles (etc.), more souls would be saved." But the Bible does not teach this at all.
13. And it will remain this way till the Lord returns. The problem is not that sinners need more evidence. There is plenty of evidence available to them. The problem is that sinners love their sin. They love their sin so much that they will not give it up.
14. Sinners have a choice: Jesus Christ or sin. Unfortunately most of them prefer their sin. They don’t want to give up their fornication and their adultery, or their drinking and dancing, etc.
15. This theme of repentance, and man’s refusal to repent runs right from Genesis through the book of Revelation (cf. 2:5,16,21; 3:3,19).
16. These seven churches were all in Asia Minor, which is modern day Turkey. They did not repent. And so our Lord removed their candlestick (2:5).
17. I was thinking about this. These churches would not repent and so God judged them. The churches closed down and then Islam took over. Today Turkey is a miserable place, which will not even allow Christian missionaries to work in their country. God sent them a huge earthquake months ago. The newspapers said thousands have died. People were calling out for "Allah," but Allah cannot help them. Only the Lord Jesus Christ can help them.
18. Our Lord said that one of the signs of the last days would be "earthquakes in divers places" (Matt.24:7).
19. The book of Revelation tells us that God is going to pick up this old world and shake it upside down and men still will not repent (Rev.16:8-11).
20. My message today is entitled, "Men’s Stubborn Refusal to Repent." Beloved, God is judging America but America is not turning back to God. Financial prosperity has blinded their eyes to their sin.
21. Today we will look at five specific sins mentioned in Rev.9:20,21. These sins characterize what the Bible calls the last days.

1. SINNERS REFUSE TO REPENT OF THEIR IDOLATRY

1. If we could get the biggest trash container available, and if we went house to house asking people to give us their idols, we would have that container filled very quickly.
2. And if we wanted to dispose of all the idols in Elmont (what a glorious thought!), we would not have the room around here for the containers. We could have a bonfire going all day and night!
3. Beloved, idolatry is nothing but devil-worship (Rev.9:20; cf. I Cor.10:19-22; Ex.20:4-6; Ps.106:34-41).
4. There has been a lot of attention given to the Ten Commandments lately. That’s good. Let us hope it encourages people to read and study and obey the second commandment: "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image" (Ex.20:4; Rev.21:8).
5. Idolatry appeals to the flesh:

• Man likes to make his own god. That’s one of the reasons man worships money. (By the way, some one who makes something else is greater than the thing that he has made.)
• Man likes to see his own god.
• Man feels "religious" around idols. Idols and incense and candles, etc. make people feel comfortable in their sin.
• But Rev.9:20 says that they "repented not" of their idolatry (cf. I Thess.1:9,10).

2. SINNERS REFUSE TO REPENT OF THEIR MURDERS (Rev.9:21).

1. There is no respect for human life today. Wicked sinners go out and savagely murder innocent people and some soft-headed judge puts them back on the street in a few years.
2. There have been many horrific murders lately (the Nazi who killed the postal worker and tried to kill those little children; Columbine H.S., the day-trader who killed his family and others).
3. People are shouting for gun-control. All the gun-control legislation in the world will not stop a wicked sinner who is determined to hurt people.
4. What we really need is repentance from sin and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. But we do not hear much today about that (cf. Acts 20:21).
5. What we also need is for the government to enforce capital punishment (Gen.9:6; Acts 25:11; Rom.13:14), and to keep hardened criminals behind bars.
6. Let’s be realistic today: A nation that murders a million and half babies a year is going to be severely judged by God.

3. SINNERS REFUSE TO REPENT OF THEIR SORCERIES (9:21).

1. Sorcery is the occultic practice of contacting devils from the spirit world (cf. Rev.21:8).
2. Today sorcery is becoming more and more acceptable here in America – tarot cards, palm-reading and other forms of fortune telling, psychics on TV, astrology, ouiji boards, seances, horoscopes, etc. It is all demonic.
3. The Greek word translated "sorcery" is pharmakia (pharmacy). Sorcerers use drugs in addition to their magic potions and various charms, amulets, and incantations. Drugs are a way of life for millions of Americans today. Amphetamines to get them going; tranquilizers to calm them down; cocaine, marijuana, prozac, etc. We even have doctors prescribing pills to little children to calm them down.
4. They do not need pills; they need a good proper spanking!

4. SINNERS REFUSE TO REPENT OF THEIR FORNICATION

1. Fornication is glorified on TV, by Hollywood, rock music, etc.
2. I heard a report on the radio that many school children are getting caught fornicating in janitor’s closets, in the playground, etc. and the #1 explanation now is, "What’s the big deal? The ex-president does it!"
3. Let’s not follow the ex-president or the TV or the immoral and wicked Hollywood and rock and roll crowd. Let’s go with the Bible (cf. I Cor.6:18; Heb.13:4; Rev.21:8).
4. We are hearing a lot about permissiveness and tolerance these days and look at the results – illegitimacy, abortion, STD’s, homosexuality, pornography, etc.

5. SINNERS REFUSE TO REPENT OF THEIR THIEVERY

1. Some times when I am out knocking on doors, I see several locks on the door, a German shepherd barking like crazy, an elaborate alarm system, bars on the windows, etc. How sad!
2. We have "car-jackings," looting and rioting, thieves robbing and killing gas station attendants and other clerks.
3. The eighth commandment is, "Thou shalt not steal" (Ex.20:15).
4. Our Lord said, "For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies" (Matt.15:19).
5. Some of you may have taken some thing that does not belong to you. You need to get that right. The Bible says, "Let him that stole steal no more" (Eph.4:28).

CONCLUSION:

1. A man stole a cassette recorder from a church. He went home and noticed that there was a tape inside ands so out of curiosity he started playing it.
2. Within the hour he returned the tape recorder and the tape. The preacher asked him about it and he said, "I started listening to your sermon on repentance."
3. Beloved, this world loves its sin. Drugs and demons, fornication and perversion, stealing and killing – this is all some people know.
4. For many people today, the dirtier the better. And unfortunately, it is going to get worse and worse (cf. Rev.6:12-17).