Yet To Come (Part 2)

Wow, what a journey it has been. Today we are wrapping up our 40,000 foot flyover of the New Testament, 27 books, 260 chapters, 7,957 verses. It’s been a whirlwind journey. Not only was it a 40,000 foot flyover, we were in the concord we went so fast. Clearly, we have not been able to give you a lot of detail but just overarching themes to the books we touched on and how they’re connected.

Knowing these themes can help you make connections and gain understanding, especially when verses may seem to be in conflict with one another. Again, and again we were reminded that God’s ways are not our ways, AND that when we look at Scripture and its meaning we often must take an eternal perspective.

So, today we’re looking at the latter half of John’s vision in the book we refer to as Revelation. So as we complete our journey, one last time I want to remind you as we fly at 40,000 feet over this book:

Don’t get frustrated by the pace.

Try and see the connections.

Enjoy your flight.

So with that, we’re off...

Symbolism In Revelation

As we look at the book of Revelation, we spoke of it last week that there is a lot of symbolism. These symbols often get twisted into all kinds of weird conclusions and so we want to be careful when making interpretations.

Scripture interprets Scripture. I’m going to say that again. Scripture interprets Scripture.

In the Revelation there is a Spiritual Battle between God and the Serpent, who is called Satan and the devil, and is the deceiver of the whole world.

The entire book is filled with symbolism. We should always remember that the images of the vision are symbolic and should not be pressed literally. In Revelation there are symbols of God and those of the adversary, and the symbols should always be interpreted in context and based on their established meanings in Scripture. Throughout John’s vision God’s truth is held in contrast to that which is counterfeited by satanic parody.

Quoting from our book by David Palmer:

God’s truth is depicted with the beauty of holiness and sacrificial love. Satanic counterfeits are exposed with the garishness of sin and violent exploitation. The devil has no creative power in Revelation. He only deceives, distorts, and degrades what God has made. God alone creates and renews humanity made in his image and likeness by the power of the gospel.

So as you read ask yourself, “Is this God’s creation or Satan’s counterfeit?”

In Revelation 12 we begin with God opposing the serpent or dragon. Rev 12:10

Revelation 12:10 ESV

And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God.

Despite what you might come across anywhere in the book of Revelation, it is important for us as Christians to recognize that Satan has already been defeated by Jesus. Satan then counterfeits the Son of Man in chapter 13 - we have a beast summoned from the sea with that should remind us of Daniel 7 where four beasts represented four kings and the progression of four kingdoms: Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome. Ultimately in Daniel, these kingdoms were destroyed by the Kingdom of God.

In Rev 13, the beast is an ominous composite of all four beasts. Most disturbing perhaps is that this beast receives it’s power and authority from the dragon. Which gives us a strong warning:

“Satan stands behind any human expression of power that degrades humanity and diverts our worship away from the Lord.” ~ David Palmer

Now remember we said that the images were counterfeits of the authentic Lord and Savior:

The beast has a mortal wound that has been healed in parody of the Lamb that was slain.

The beast compels worship through fear in contrast to the sacrificial love of Christ.

The beast seeks authority over every tribe, people, and nation in imitation of the universal dominion of the Son of Man.

And more...

Now as we said last week, when we read apocalyptic literature it always speaks of both the future AND the present. The description of the beast in Rev 13 reflects demands of the Roman imperial cult in the late first century. However, the real King conquers his enemies by dying for them on the cross. He lives forever by his resurrection and intercedes for them. He draws us freely to himself and promises eternal life for all who believe.

The Mark of the Beast

This title may stir something up in some of you. Hollywood has made a big thing of the Mark of the Beast, but what we need to recognize is that the Mark of the beast is another counterfeit. The mark of the beast is a counterfeit of the Mark of the Son. Granted, it is most often referred to as the “seal of the Son” but it is in fact a mark. The mark (or seal) of the Son of Man is by far the most important one in the book of Revelation. It is on all who bear the name of Jesus Christ and so they have nothing to fear. Why?

Because our Lord has them in his grip. As Paul wrote in Phil 3:12

Philippians 3:12 (NIV)

I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.

Though we may lose our grip momentarily, our Lord will never lose His grip on His children. All who bear the name of Jesus Christ have no reason to fear. They belong to the most powerful, loving sovereign of all.

The Bride and her Counterfeit

The bride of Christ are the people of God; and the prostitute of Babylon are the people of the serpent. The bride of Christ wears pure white garments symbolizing their cleanness. The prostitute wears purple and scarlet, gold, jewels, and pearls - all meant to symbolize value but a temporary one at that. Listen to these other contrasts:

The bride of Christ is betrothed to a single husband. (Rev 21:9)

The prostitute of Babylon commits adultery with nations. (Rev. 3:4-5, 7:13-14; 17:4).

The bride of Christ is undefiled.

the prostitute is drunk with the blood of the saints. (Rev. 14:4; 17:6).

The bride of Christ prepares for her wedding.

The prostitute rides upon a scarlet beast in drunken revelry. (Rev. 17:3; 19:7-9)

The bride bears the name of her faithful husband.

The prostitute carries the name of “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations (Rev. 17:5).

The contrast is powerful! Ultimately we realize that we are a reflection of that which we worship. You and I have been created in the image of the living God, who is Holy, Righteous, Pure, and faithful. Those who seek after Him will be like him.

1 John 3:2 (NIV)

Dear friends, we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

The New Jerusalem

The new Jerusalem is the city of God, it’s counterfeit is the city of Babylon the Great. Now I want to make a connection way back to the Old Testament where we saw the people of Babylon building the tower to get to God to show their greatness. Now we see Babylon as the symbol of everything about human selfishness and lifting up humanity over God, and as we learned the term Babylon is a veiled reference to Rome.

Babylon in Revelation is the counterfeit, just as a prostitute is a counterfeit of real love, Babylon is the prostitute city. In the historical moment of Revelation, this prostitute city seems to be the victor, as God’s people suffer under the Roman empire. We cannot forget the Temple was destroyed only 20 or so years prior to John’s vision being put to paper. Clearly the oppressive weight of Rome was being felt by the people of Jerusalem, and all those that were followers of Christ.

The New Jerusalem is the glorious city built by God himself, where God will dwell with his people. It is a beautiful city, a safe city, and hosts the flourishing human community.

Babylon perverts this ideal as the home of tyrannical rule, idols, darkness, violence, etc. It is a parody and counterfeit of the New Jerusalem.

The Tree of Life

Remember the tree of life at the center of the garden of Eden? The tree grows again within the New jerusalem, producing 12 kinds of fruit - remember 12 tribes? 12 apostles? 12 is an important number - it’s a restoration of God’s untainted plan, much like the creation narrative we became familiar with when we began this series. In the New Jerusalem with the Tree of Life growing at its center, Humanity bearing the image of God has communion with Him directly as designed. The curse of death for our sin and disobedience has been removed by the atoning death of the Lamb. Blessing flows out of this place of God’s presennce and the whole earth is renewed.

This is in contrast in Revelation with the Lake of Fire. The lake of fire is a place that burnse with judgment, it is associated with the covenant curse. It is likened to a second death. According to John, “All whose names are not written in the book of life share their conscious torment day and night forever in this place.”

Revelation 20:10 ESV

and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

Revelation 20:15 ESV

And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

John clearly shows that the eternal gospel is the only message of eternal forgiveness, redemption, healing, and eternal life.

As we close the book and the Bible we see

God’s Ultimate Victory

I think it was Pastor Tim Keller who put it this way, “God wins”, Year’s ago when in the midst of my ordination examination I used dthat phrase in answer to one of the questions on the floor or presbytery. Apparently it wasn’t received well, as some thought it was too flippant.

If, as I would say we do, we trust in the God who is sovereign over all of Creation, and that there is nothing that supercedes this God in power or authority, then of course we can be confident God wins.

Ultimately what we see in the book of Revelation is Christ Judges the counterfeit prostitute of Babylon and the city of man falls before the City of God; The Messiah has final victory over the beast, the serpent (taking us all the way back to the deceiver in Eden) and Death. And then, we see the New Creation of Heaven and Earth.

In this New Creation we find the New Jerusalem coming down as a bride for her husband. The image of the city is stunning:

The New Jerusalem has a beautiful wall with 12 gates. But in contrast with the cities of the time these gates have no doors for there is no danger, nothing to fear, the gates are never closed.

The vision is one that fulfills the entirety of what we have read in the Old and New Testaments. It is the culmination of God’s redemptive plan that has been laid out throughout the Bible, and it is Yet To Come. But it gives us all hope.

In closing, John quotes the Son of Man, our Lord Jesus several times:

“I am coming soon,” v. 7, 12, and 20. This threefold echo once again emphasizes the certainty of Jesus claim. Just as John’s original readers were to receive his vision, we too need ot hear the words and live in expectation of the return of Christ. We are to be faithful witnesses until the day of his appearing. He will bring the judgment upon the evil and generous reward for all who love him.

Revelation 22:13 ESV

I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”

echoes that God’s sovereign and redemptive plan will be accomplished. What is our response to be?

Jesus says, “I am coming soon!” and our response is to be? We are to come, come to Jesus.

Revelation 22:17 ESV

The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.

David Palmer writes:

The canon of Scripture is complete. There is no new revelation. There are no additional books. There are no future prophets who could ever draw our attention away from Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who was slain for us. He alone is risen from the dead. He lives and reigns now and forevermore. He declares with everlasting authority: “Surely I am coming soon” (Rev. 22:20). His faithful, expectant bride answers in reply: “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!”

John ends his vision with:

Revelation 22:21 ESV

The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.

And Da Jesus Book simply ends with “Dass it!”

That’s it. That’s the end. God wins. AMEN.