A Serious Warning Revelation 22:18-19

Revelation 22:18–19 “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.”

This passage contains a very serious warning, and, quite frankly, it raises many questions.

How can someone have his or her name taken from the Book of Life? Will God really add the plagues of Revelation to someone who adds to the prophecy’s contained within the Revelation? What is John saying?

John wrote this as well: John 3:16, John 20:30-31

John 3:16 ““For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

John 20:30–31 “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”

What we have is a dilemma. In one place, John writes that whoever believes in Jesus will have eternal life, but in another place, he writes that a person will have his name erased from the Book of Life if that person adds to or subtracts from God’s Word.

Is there a solution to be found? What is the connection? Well, dear friend, there is a solution.

You must understand that the Bible is to be studied systematically and holistically.

It is a dangerous thing to take any Scripture and make it a stand alone Scripture. What actually seems as a warning in Revelation 22:18-19 is really a guide to a true Christian. A true Christian is supposed to understand God’s Word to the point that he or she absolutely knows when someone is adding to or subtracting from it.

In understanding this, I think it is important for you to understand the chronological order in which the New Testament was written.

By the time John wrote the Gospel of John, the Revelation, and his three letters, the rest of the New Testament had already been written, so John literally could say that things which had been written were sufficient for a person to believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, for eternal life. Anyone adding to or subtracting from what had been written deserved what God would do to them.

I challenge you to systematically read and to systematically study the New Testament. As a personal Bible study, take the chart I gave you and begin studying and reading the New Testament by beginning in the Book of James. See what the Lord has to say. I think you will be amazed at what the Bible says.

Revelation 22:18-19 is considerably important to Christians. IN those verses, John gives a clear description of the false teachers that we are to be able to identify and to expose.

1. Adding to or subtracting from God’s Word is an indication a person has not truly been saved.

“Jimmy, that is a strong statement.” Yes, it is, and I can make that statement because of what is written in God’s Word. What does the Bible say about salvation? (Romans 8:38-39, John 10:28-30, John 3:36, 1 John 5:13)

Romans 8:38–39 “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

John 10:28–30 “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.””

John 3:36 “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”

1 John 5:13 “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.”

A person that truly places their faith in Jesus Christ is promised eternal life, and nothing can separate a true believer from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

If a person suffers the judgment of Revelation and has his or her name erased from the Book of Life, it means he or she was never saved in the first place because if he or she were saved, nothing could separate him or her from the love of God.

John is giving the true believer a signal. It is as if John is saying this:

“You know what is written. If anyone adds to or subtracts from what is written, that person was never a believer, and you need to be aware of their treachery.”

2. Adding to or subtracting from God’s Word is heresy.

John and the other New Testament writers were very concerned with heresy.

Heresy is an opinion, belief, or proclamation that is in contrast to confirmed biblical doctrine.

It is extremely important for you to know the doctrines of the New Testament. If you are born-again, you have the indwelling Holy Spirit. If you open the Bible, being led by the Holy Spirit, you will not be steered by heresy.

“Jimmy, can you give me some examples of heresy?” Well, certainly!

A. Good deeds contribute to salvation. (Heresy of Judaizers)

This heresy teaches that salvation is apart from Christ only.

I could have done good works from can to can’t, and I would have never been saved. Salvation comes from God. Paul addressed it 62 AD when he addressed the Ephesians.

Ephesians 2:8–9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

People today still believe that somehow they can contribute to their salvation. This is amazing.

According to a Lifeway poll, 36% of evangelicals that good deeds contribute to their salvation.

Do you know what that means? It means that those 36% have not truly trusted Jesus Christ for salvation. How can I know that? Because they are saying that to be saved, Jesus plus is required.

That is adding to God’s Word. John said these things have been written so that you know Jesus Christ as the Son of God and have eternal life.

Let me just say this. If faith in Jesus Christ alone does not save me, I am in heap big trouble.

Do you know how I am saved? (Romans 10:9-10)

Romans 10:9–10 “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

Paul must have left out the good deeds requirement. To be saved, I must believe with all my heart that Jesus Christ is Lord, that God raised Him from the dead. His death on Calvary and the blood He shed justifies me before God because I believe on Him.

Jesus plus baptism does not save. Jesus plus speaking in tongues does not save. Jesus plus healing the sick does not save. Jesus plus feeding the poor does not save. I am saved by faith in Jesus Christ. If good deeds could have contributed any to my salvation, Jesus would not have had to die, but good deeds could never do what His blood did. If baptism saves, why would Jesus have to die? Do you see what I am saying? My salvation, as I have see frequently lately, is totally dependent upon God and nothing I could ever do.

B. If Jesus is God, He was not human. (Heresy of Docetism/Gnosticism)

This heresy has been around since the early church. Gnostics and Docetists believe that Christ only appeared to be human. Their logic said that all physical matter was evil and all things spiritual were good. It was the gnostics, Anthony, that John was addressing when he wrote this. (1 John 4:1-4)

1 John 4:1–4 “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”

Do you want to know an absolute, absolute, absolute, truth?

Jesus Christ was man, and Jesus Christ was God. God lay aside His glory to come to earth in human flesh so that I could be save. He had had to be Man to redeem man, but He had to be God to do what He did. It is an absolute truth that you must believe, and if you do not believe that, you are subtracting from God’s Word and are not saved.

Gnosticism/Docetism is still around today. Today, however, it is Christ’s deity that is questioned more than His humanity.

I really do not know how many of you believe this story that I have shared many times. Joey Binkley, Joe Clendenin, and I heard a pastor in this association at that time at a deacon’s ordination say that Christ became the Son of God at His baptism when the Spirit descended like a dove. NO!!! NO!!!! NO!!!! NO!!!!

What he said is Gnosticism/Docetism 101. Jesus Christ is the Son of God who lay aside His glory to be made human flesh so that He could be the Son of Man. It really does not matter how many churches that guy pastored, he was doctrinally wrong, and many times, I have wondered about his eternal destination.

Maybe that stood out so much to Joey and me that day was that we had been exposed to doctrinal truth and not doctrinal error. Just because someone is a pastor and reads the Bible does not mean he is saved or that he is doctrinally correct.

There are so many heresies in the church, and those heresies absolutely confirm what Jesus said.

Matthew 7:13–14 ““Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”

Listen to this Lifeway poll, and this is absolutely incredible.

83% of evangelicals believe that a person obtains peace with God by first taking the initiative to seek God, and then God responds with grace. It is a lie from the pits of hell.

You will never seek God on your own. It is God who draws you to salvation, and not you that seeks God for salvation. You would never seek God as lost person unless God draws you.

C. The Prosperity Heresy (1 Corinthians 4:8-10)

1 Corinthians 4:8–10 “Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! Without us you have become kings! And would that you did reign, so that we might share the rule with you! For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, like men sentenced to death, because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we in disrepute.

Paul wrote 1 Corinthians in 55 AD, and even then, people were using the gospel for money’s sake.

Do you remember this?

Acts 8:17–20 “Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!”

Peter was not having any of Simon’s nonsense. Simon had seen Peter, Phillip, and some of the others healing people by laying of hands, and he wanted some of that action. He wanted to prostitute the gospel.

Peter also addressed the prosperity gospel in his second letter, and it is a stinging rebuke.(2 Peter 2:1-3)

2 Peter 2:1–3 “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”

If you read all of Second Peter 2, you will see that Peter links these prophets for profit to the fallen angels, the Antediluvian world that was judged by flood, and Sodom and Gomorrah. What do all those have in common? They were all judged. They were not redeemed. They were not saved.

I will not distinguish him by calling his name, but this is what one of those bound for hell jokers said recently:

“I believe that it is the plan of God our Father that no believer should ever be sick. It is not the will of God my Father that we should suffer with cancer and other dreadful diseases which bring pain and anguish. No! It is God’s will that we be healed.”

Well, what an idiot! Dear friend, I am going to be healed but not in this world. I will be healed in the age to come where there is no sorrow nor sighing where there is no pain nor heartache where there are no tears where there is eternal life. That is when I will be healed.

There is no crown without a cross, and we, in absence of the Rapture, will have crosses to bear. You usually do not keep getting healthier and healthier until you are so healthy that you die. That is not how it works. The prosperity gospel is a deadly heresy. It gets people to put faith in something that is an absolute lie that Peter, Paul, and John warned against.

John would say the prosperity pundits are adding to God’s Word, and we should avoid them.

God’s Word is complete. I have not even addressed the heresy of new revelation. What do I mean by new revelation? For example, people dating the Rapture.

Anyone that does that is adding to or subtracting from God’s Word.

3. Adding to or subtracting from God’s Word is done purposefully.

Adding to or subtracting from God’s Word is not done accidentally. It is done so with cruel intentions by inspiration from Satan. (2 Corinthians 11:13-15, 20)

2 Corinthians 11:13–15 “For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.”

2 Corinthians 11:20 “For you bear it if someone makes slaves of you, or devours you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in the face.”

These people who add to or subtract from God’s Word are being used by Satan to deceive the masses.

If John says that someone adding to or subtracting from God’s Word will be erased from the Book of Life, does that person belong to God or Satan?

Can I tell you what is at play? So many people are deceived by these ministers of Satan because what they say is attractive. If I am lost and living in despair and I hear some “PREACHER” say that God intends for me to be healthy, wealthy, and wise, I want some of what he is handing out, and the road to hell gets wider and wider.

I am telling you, dismiss me if you want, Satan is using these heretics. They are the ministers that Paul described in 2 Corinthians 11.

Can a person make an honest mistake interpreting Scripture? Yes! But that is why Bible study and a church that proclaims the truth of God is so important.

As an example, let’s use the Rapture. My view on the Rapture is that I believe it will happen before the Tribulation. I am a Pre-Tribulationists because that is how interpret the Bible. Some believe the Rapture will happen at the beginning of Great Tribulation which begins in the middle of the 7-year tribulation period. They are called Mid-Tribulationists. Some do not believe the Bible teaches the Rapture at all (I call them squirrels).

I could take the Bible and explain all three views and not add a single thing to or subtract a single things from God’s Word. It is a matter of interpretation.

It is a matter of theology. It is a matter of study and interpretation. As a matter of fact, those are some of the best Scriptural discussions in which to engage, and engage does not mean argue.

If I were to say that God has revealed to me that in order to be saved, you must believe in Jesus and accept a Pre-Tribulation Rapture, I have added to God’s Word. DO you understand what I am saying?

Conclusion: IN Revelation 22:18-19, John is urging us to be so grounded in the truth of God’s Word that we easily recognize those who are adding to or subtracting from it. I am telling you that you owe it to God to be scripturally responsible. You are supposed to know the truth.

Ignorance of God’s Word has eternal consequences. John closes the Revelation with two of the great verses of reassurance in the Bible. He tells us to be on guard. Know the truth so we point out those heretics, and then he writes this.

Revelation 22:20–21 “He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.”

It is as if John, who had seen how history ends, knows the dangers of the false teachers that were present in his age and in the age in which we live. He tells us to hang in there. Jesus says I am coming soon, and John prays the grace of Lord Jesus on us all as we deal with the heresies and blatant lies being spread by Satan’s ministers.