Revelation 14
Notes
Transcript
A Look at Heaven
A Look at Heaven
Good morning my friends!
I hope and pray you have enjoyed a good week!
Over the past week, the Lord has allowed us to get up, rise up and live in the day He has provided. And while there may have been challenges along the way, He was with you.
How wonderful that the Lord never leaves you, He never forsakes you. He will be with us until the end.
By His grace and mercy we stand in front of Him, Amen.
And as we keep looking toward the future, we know the Lord will descend and gather his people, we will enjoy the blessing of the Lord’s love, and grace as we are brought into His presence.
And sadly, His wrath will be poured out on those who have rejected him and turned aside from his call to repent and turn from sin.
So this morning we come to Revelation chapter 14.
It is here we get a look at blessings and cursings, reward and punishment in those days.
So lets look and we will consider this thought first..
1. The 144,000
The very first thing we see my friends is the 144,00 gathered into heaven.
And rightly so, Heaven my friends is the reward, the blessing of every born again believer, those who have been saved by His grace.
Both in the church and those whom he has called from the nation of Israel.
Lets look at the first 5 verses Rev 14:1-5
1 Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. 2 And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, 3 and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. 4 It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb, 5 and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless.
What does all this mean… Let me say this to start us off with.....
Please understand these events in Revelation are not always in chronological order, one after the other as time moves forward.
At times, John was allowed to see a glimpse of what is to come further out. Kind of like, fast forwarding to the end of the movie that you have recorded.
So what John is telling us about is a little jump forward, but don’t worry, we will get back to the events toward the end of the tribulation later.
Now remember the 144,000 that we talked about a few weeks ago, the people are, 12 thousand people from every tribe of God’s people, the children of Israel. So 12 tribes and 12,000 each = 144,000.
Remember, God had promised all through the end of the OT that a remnant of the children of Israel would be saved. These are the 144,000 of the Jews, and they bare the mark of God upon their lives.
They have been saved out of every nation and people. Not part of them, not almost of them, all of the them, all 144,000 that God set aside are there on Mount Zion.
Now this is a beautiful picture my friends. Consider this, if God can save all 144,000, of the remnant of his people and present them blameless in front of the His Father. Then know that the Lord can keep your mortal life and present you blameless in front of the father as well. Amen....
Now Mount Zion, lets consider it. what is it? Two thoughts that it is referred two in Scripture, the first is the great mountain of God. The place where God assembled the children of Israel after leading them out of the land of Egypt. Mount Zion in that case would be a picture of Mt Sinai. Where God established and ratified the covenant with Israel.
But there is another idea of Mt. Zion, and that is simply the city of God, the holy city, Jerusalem.
Now given the fact that we are looking forward to a special time in front of the Lord, I would say this is the holy city, Jerusalem. It is the city of God, where the Temple of the Lord would stand.
And as they are presented there, oh my friends all of heaven is rejoicing, singing a new song. A song that only these saints would know and learn. They are rejoicing for they are in the presence of the Lord their God.
And we learn something about these 144,000. John shares with us 3 characteristics of these people.
John says they are pure, they are obedient and they are of good service. But just what does this mean? Well, lets take a minute and reflect on what John is telling us..
A. They are pure, the are said to be virgins and they have not been with women . In that reference, they are men who have not engaged in sexual impurity. It is not that women are bad, it is the sexual immorality that takes place, sexual relationships that were outside of marriage, that was simply lustful , people using one another just to satisfy the lusts of the flesh.
Sexual immorality is something that is explicitly forbidden in the Scriptures. This sin breaks our fellowship with the Lord and separates us from Him.
They have lived correctly before the Lord, that was their commitment. The Lord was pleased with them.
Personal purity is one of the greatest needs of the church today.
Sadly, people are living in such a way that the church doesn’t look any different than the world. That is a terrible thing my friends, people live how they want to and say God’s is OK with it, Are you sure? The Scriptures say contrary to that...
B. They are Obedient… They follow the Lord where ever He goes, verse 4 A mark of a committed disciple is this, they will follow the Lord no matter the cost.
Do you know around this world, Christians pay a high price for following Jesus.
When those in Muslim countries come to faith in Christ, they are told the cost, how they are most likely going to be treated terribly for following Jesus, and you know what… no one ever turns away. They know they will be beaten, maybe killed, disowned by family etc.. They continue and follow the one who has redeemed them.
These have followed, and during the Tribulation it will be hard for those who are coming to faith in Christ. But were ever he leads they will go. There is that old hymn.. where ever he leads I’ll go..
Think of the Apostle Paul in Acts chapter 20, He testified that the Spirit of the Lord told him, Paul chains await you, if you continue toward Jerusalem. But he knew he must go and in obedience he went to teach and preach the Gospel more.
Like Paul, like so many others, a true follower will go where the Lord leads them and they will not care about the circumstances.
William Cary, Lottie Moon, and so many more...
They were obedient.
C. They are of Good Service… These people are the ones who have been purchased by God. The passage says they are redeemed. They were bought with a price, the blood of Jesus. The Lord purchased them just as he did us.
But these are called the first fruits… They had been the first gathered by God during the Tribulation period. Their service was the truth that they were honest, there was no lie in their mouths, they were blameless… without fault or error...
These 144,000 they are redeemed by the Lord, they are saved and protected, they are His, from His own people, Israel
How wonderful my friends to see the faithfulness of God’s people in all that they do, no matter the sacrifice.
Now moving forward, secondly today we see
2. Babylon Fell...
Babylon was indeed a great nation, It was said that those hanging gardens of that day were spectacular.
The construction of the city, the artwork and design were second to none. Over the gates of the city, the archways were overlaid with spectacular art work, two large lions, one on each side of the arch way of the Ishtar gate…Those Lions are on display in the museum in Berlin Germany.
it was the first of 4 great empires that God raised up to accomplish His will, punishing His people for sin, but even more so to fulfill the prophecy concerning the coming of His Messiah.
When Babylon fell, it was cursed that nothing would live there expect the wild animals, the jackals, the beasts of the field, etc… and so it remains today..desolate.
But Babylon refers to something else, it isn’t just a vast empire, but it also refers to the world system, a order that opposes God and the things of God.
Lets look at our text.... Verses 8-13 Rev 14:8-11
8 Another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality.”
9 And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.”
John says there that a second angel came and called out, Babylon the Great has fell, the one who made the nations drink from her wine..
This world order, this empire that is opposed to God and the people of God, the one who led people astray by their own lusts, it no longer stands.
This world is telling mankind to live life the way you want, do what you want, what feels good, what brings you happiness and pleasure..
And it sounds good, it sounds like it is good for us, but it is not..
It violates the law of God, What God says is good and right.. And the work of Satan, his teaching, every bit of it leads to death.
The world has drunk it in… and it has lead many people astray...
That world order, that system is opposed to God because its author is the father of lies.
But nonetheless it has been destroyed, it has fallen.
And with verses 9, John says that a third angel appears, and this one pronounces a “woe” on all those who have worshipped the beast and has received its mark.
You know it is interesting, those who worshipped the beast, who took his mark… while they were safe in the tribulation, while they had the means to live and they did ok, but....that only lasted for a season.
It is a good reference to sin, sin in the season might appear good, satisfying, wonderful but it will come to and end and every person will be left with nothing except the punishment of God as they see him.
The cup of God’s wrath is undiluted, it is the fury of God toward sin and disobedience, it does not change, sin will be, must be punished.
They will drink the cup of Gods wrath… and look at verses 10-11 agian Rev 14:10-11
10 he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.”
Those who receive this cup from the Lord will be tormented, with burning sulfur. The word tormented here is “ba/sa/ ni/ zo” and it describes an agonizing upheaval of suffering. It is the same word Jesus used in reference to the Rich man and Lazarus… The rich man lifted up his eyes in hell in torment..
Hell will be the most terrible place in all the world my friends, it was prepared the the disobedient angels but has been expanded for disobedient humanity.
This will happen forever and ever verse 11 says , they received their blessings here on ole planet earth, but judgment has now come upon them.
And what does this tell us, for us, we must endure patiently, the hardships we experience. Don’t give into the lies this world tells for personal delight which only lasts for a season.
Look around, we see it all the time, people chase after so many things and soon they are left empty in both body and mind.
Jesus told us in Matthew chapter 6, verse 20, to store up treasure in heaven , where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
Ask yourself in this life, while you still have time, what are you storing up? Are you storing up what will pass one day or that which is eternal.
Everything will pass away but the things of God are eternal....
Look at the promise of verses 12-13 Rev 14:12-13
12 Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.
13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”
John says he heard a blessing from the heavens. Endure faithfully.... Listen remember where John, is, he is in exile on the Isle of Patmos, isolated, punished, for preaching the gospel of the Lord Jesus.. And even there he is faithful.
Paul reminds us in 2 Cor 4:16
16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.
And what we do here, as one preacher said, will reverberates in the halls of heaven forever.
So we strive to live as Christ that we might be conformed into his image more and more each day.
The blessing that awaits all of this is heaven. As verse 13 reminds us Blessed are they who die in the Lord..
Who are the they, all those who have trusted in the Lord, their reward awaits them, as they pass through from this life to the next..
In heaven, truly we are blessed to be in the presence of our God.
One pastor said for those who are alive in the tribulation, it is better to suffer under the plight of the beast than to experience the wrath of God.
I think that is a true statement.
Let me ask you something, if you fully committed your life to the Lord, meaning we believe it all, and practice it all, what have you missed living for Jesus?
Not a thing...
Then live for Jesus, wishy, washy Christians are nothing more than a lukewarm mess, not really good for anything...
Now just one last thought this morning in this last section of the chapter.,
3. Picture of the Great Battle....
A war is coming, unlike one we have ever witnessed before....Armageddon,
Look at verses 14-20 Rev 14:14-17
14 Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand. 15 And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” 16 So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped.
17 Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle.
We can look at this we see the first of two judgments falling out on the earth…
The first judgment, the Scriptures tell us that John saw a white cloud and the Son of Man seated there with a crown upon his head and a sickle in his hand.
And and angel calls out for the Lord to extend his sickle and reap, for the time of reaping , the harvest as come. And the Lord swung his sickle across the earth and reaped...
The meaning is hard to understand, but if you look back to Daniel chapter 7, it seems to speak to the swift judgment God has on those who are lost, who have failed to receive Christ through the tribulation period
The earth was ripe for harvest, and at the right time, God was seen at work.
People have asked, why does God allow evil to run rampant in this world, why does he wait and delay judgement.,
2 Peter 3:9 tells us 2 Peter 3:9
9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
God is at work until the very last minute calling for all to come and repent before it is to late.
Now verse 17 tells us of the second judgment, look at verses 17-20 Rev 14:17-20
17 Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. 18 And another angel came out from the altar, the angel who has authority over the fire, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Put in your sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, for its grapes are ripe.” 19 So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. 20 And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as a horse’s bridle, for 1,600 stadia.
Now we are told that another angel came out of the temple of God with a sickle in his hand and another angel joined him from the altar, this one having the authority over fire.
The angel is called to extend his sickle into the grape clusters that are ripe and gather them.
The grapes here represent the people of this world who are now lost, unrepentant and dead in their trespasses and sin.
Understand, these are not just the lost, but these are the one who hate God, who seek to stop him and his plan...
This is a final picture of the Armageddon.
These who are lost, dead in their trespasses and sin, are gathered into the “winepress of the wrath of God”
All those who have opposed him, rejected him and sought to follow another way,
This takes place in the valley of Jezreel, outside of the city of God. the sickle is swung and there is so much death that the blood flows like grape juice being poured out.
So much death and destruction that the blood is said to be as deep as a horses bridle..
All of this, this look into the futures spells doom for the enemies of God.
All those who are not for him, who do not follow him, they are the enemies of God.
There are eternal implications here, the call to examine our soul,- does our soul belong to God or to another.
Are you the Lord’s,
Do you follow him fully, or do you follow your desires? You have to choose… Jesus said plainy no one can love two masters...
Do you love Jesus or another...
Do you need to get things right with God this morning, what need do you have..
Come and give it all to Jesus...