Holy, Holy, Holy.
Notes
Transcript
Introduction: If you were to describe God with one word, what would it be? Before responding let me say:
First, there is no single word that can describe God,
Second, all words cannot describe God, because He is indescribable.
But, the word most likely to describe God in the English language is HOLY!
What does Holy mean? It means separate, unique, it one’s own category.
I love how John Piper describes the holiness of God:
When we say that God is holy we mean that, along with the immeasurableness of his greatness, his character is unimpeachable. He cannot be charged with any wrong. He has an infinite love for what is infinitely valuable and an infinite hate for what opposes the infinitely valuable. His delight in praiseworthy things is unbounded, and his abhorrence of what is blameworthy is perfect. As Habakkuk 1:13 says: “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil, and you cannot tolerate wrong.”
All the evil in the world is an offense against the holiness of God and is preparing this world for a cataclysm of divine vindication. The zeal of God burns for the holiness of his great name.
Let me say that our best understanding of holiness falls terribly short of how awesome, holy, and righteous God is. Our text today deals with the consequences of rejecting God’s justice through Jesus Christ and facing the holy indignation of God on our own merit.
Bible Passage: Revelation 15:1–16:1
1 Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous: seven angels having the seven last plagues, for in them the wrath of God is complete. 2 And I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having harps of God. 3 They sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying: “Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the saints! 4 Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy. For all nations shall come and worship before You, For Your judgments have been manifested.” 5 After these things I looked, and behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened. 6 And out of the temple came the seven angels having the seven plagues, clothed in pure bright linen, and having their chests girded with golden bands. 7 Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever. 8 The temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power, and no one was able to enter the temple till the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed. 1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go and pour out the bowls of the wrath of God on the earth.”
Prelude to Wrath
Prelude to Wrath
In the first four verses of chapter 15 we notice the sign, sea, and song.
Sign — The sign of seven angels with seven bowls with the last of the plagues which will complete the wrath of God.
There is a shift in the degree here. Judgment which is designed to bring repentance has moved into wrath against the unrepentant world.
This is the final curtain call and the righteous indignation of God.
These seven angels have the seven last bowls of God divine retribution. The kingdom of evil is about to topple.
The Sea — The saints are standing at the sea that was tumultuous but now calm.
It is mingled with fire which is a sign of the presence of God with the saints and His judgment on the unrighteous.
These saints are playing harps and praising God.
They are here because they didn’t bow to the beast, worship the image of him, receive his mark or the number of his name.
The song — they are singing the song of Moses and the lamb.
Now, we can get very technical if we want with this song and where it comes from but let’s just think about it simply.
It is a song of deliverance and unity.
Moses delivered the Israelites from Egyptian bondage and Jesus delivers from the bondage of sin and death.
It is a song of unity in the fact that ultimately deliverance is through the lamb whether Jew or Gentile.
Here’s what we really need to see. Those in Christ are secure and at peace in the presence of God and the fire of God’s righteous indignation is burning. This song speaks of God’s true, just, and holy ways.
Stanza 1: “Just and True are Your ways.”
Stanza 2: “For You alone are holy.”
Stanza 3: “Your judgments [righteous ways] have been manifested.”
God is holy and just in what He does, and according to the angel in 16:6 “For it is their just due.” Those caught in God’s wrath will get what they deserve from a perfectly righteous and just creator.
To believe that anyone doesn’t deserve the wrath of God is to grossly misunderstand the holiness and sovereignty of God.
Pronouncement of Wrath
Pronouncement of Wrath
Verses 5-16:1 unfold an interesting scene. The picture is almost like 1 Kings 8:10-11 of the temple.
10 And it came to pass, when the priests came out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the Lord, 11 so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord.
The heavenly temple is filled with smoke which represents the glory of God. It indicates to us that God is glorified by His righteous indignation.
No one was able to come in or out until the wrath of God was complete. They are in awe of God’s glory.
Let me tie this together with OT and NT scriptures.
14 When you see this, your heart shall rejoice, And your bones shall flourish like grass; The hand of the Lord shall be known to His servants, And His indignation to His enemies. 15 For behold, the Lord will come with fire And with His chariots, like a whirlwind, To render His anger with fury, And His rebuke with flames of fire. 16 For by fire and by His sword The Lord will judge all flesh; And the slain of the Lord shall be many. 17 “Those who sanctify themselves and purify themselves, To go to the gardens After an idol in the midst, Eating swine’s flesh and the abomination and the mouse, Shall be consumed together,” says the Lord. 18 “For I know their works and their thoughts. It shall be that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and see My glory.
God’s glory shall be seen in his righteous indignation.
Romans 1:18 speaks of the righteousness and wrath of God in the Gospel.
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,
The Gospel reveals both the righteousness and the wrath of God. It is righteousness to those who receive it, but wrath to those who reject it. God will be glorified in either.
How? Not one sin will go unpunished. The world will be eradicated of sin and creation will be restored by the mighty hand of God.
The Appeasement for Wrath.
The Appeasement for Wrath.
The subjects of wrath on this day will be those who refused to embrace the grace and forgiveness available through the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Those who have embraced the Gospel will not face the fierce anger of the Lord because it has already been poured out on Christ. Totally satisfied on the cross.
Notice how Jesus prayed in Luke22:41-42
41 And He was withdrawn from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and prayed, 42 saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.”
This cup was non-other than the cup of wrath. Jesus prays in John 17 that the Father will be glorified in the crucifixion, that the price for His righteous indignation will be paid.
If I did not believe in the doctrine of the wrath of God, I would not understand the death of Christ upon the cross, it would be meaningless to me.
A Nation Under Wrath, 173
David Martyn Lloyd-Jones (Welsh Preacher and Writer)
I love what how John puts the love of God and His wrath together in 1 John 4:10
10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
Propitiation can mean cleansing but the best translation is appeasing. God’s great love allowed Jesus to bear the hot displeasure of God upon sin.
God does not love us because Christ died for us; Christ died for us because God loved us. If it is God’s wrath that needed to be propitiated, it is God’s love that did the propitiating.
John Robert Walmsley Stott (English Preacher)
This is why it is treason against one’s own soul to reject the Gospel message. Let’s Pray!
So, how do we apply the idea of God’s wrath to our lives?
So, how do we apply the idea of God’s wrath to our lives?
It should cause us to be more eager to share the Gospel if you are a Christian. If you have friends, family, co-workers or acquaintances who don’t know the Lord I would pray for them and share with them.
As we consider the hot displeasure that Jesus faced for our sin, we as Christians, should strive to live our lives to glorify God. Personal holiness out of thanksgiving.
If I were here today away from the Lord, opposed to Lord, or do not know the Lord. I would seek shelter in Jesus.