Will You Answer The Appeal?

Text

Revelation 22:12–18 NASB95

12 “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done. 13 “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” 14 Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city. 15 Outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the immoral persons and the murderers and the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying. 16 “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” 17 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 wishes take the water of life without cost. 18 I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book;

This letter is contextually to the churches (vs. 16). They are facing the pressures of persecution, the effects of societal injustices, the pains of the corrupt and immoral political regime. They are paying the cost for following Jesus and remaining faithful.

This message is a simple one: In the end God wins, so hold on.

Maybe this is someone’s message tonight who has been facing some kind of distress and difficulty in your life that is challenging the constance of your allegiance to God - Hold On!

Maybe it is a broken or breaking marriage that has cause many tearful and sleepless nights

Maybe it is a job/boss that causes you to question the sanity and advantage of doing things “the right way”

Maybe it is a child that has gone astray and you’re wondering if you did a good job, or God is still interested in them

Maybe it is there is trouble in your congregation that frustrating you to the point you want to walk out the door

Maybe it’s just you, trying to be you and you is not working out.

Regardless of what is plaguing, pressing, or persectuting you - Hold On!

If you are here tonight and you are facing a dilemma, a difficulty or danger and you are not saved - This is truly a disaster because you’re trying to survive without JESUS.

You are sailing in a storm and there is no Jesus for you to go wake up

Answer the appeal tonight! Come to Jesus!

Our Text

It is interesting to me, that after seeing all that the church is facing, Jesus sends an angel to testify some things. I would have expected the angel to do something, not tell me something.

But a testimony was important in a legal sense, to help those in court matter have a clear understanding of something so the best decision can be made. It inspired the correct decision.

I would have expected some mighty work or activity, something demonstrative for a time like this - but no! There are some things God first wants me to know!

Sometimes I can get fearful of what’s in front of me but the testimony of the Lord...reminds me of what He did or who He is and that gives me the courage and strength to march on and keep on believing.

“He who has ears let him hear what the Spirit has to say to the church”

What is the message?

What greater message can you hear besides Jesus?

#1 I am the root and the descendant of David

This is Messianic in its import. How is this meant to encourage, inspire, or even stir in me a desire to chase Jesus?

Only when I understand what this means I can appreciate the strength it gives

Revelation 5:5 “5 and one of the elders said to me, “Stop weeping; behold, the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals.””

The first implication of this descriptive term is that Jesus is a conqueror (overcomer)

John was looking everywhere to find someone worthy to open the book with the seven seals - when John couldn’t find anyone, the bible says, “I began to weep greatly” - but praise be to God, the weeping was only for a moment - The elders said, “stop your weeping” - we’ve found someone - who did you find? - The Lion from the tribe of Judah, The Root of David

So the angel is testifying of this and I’m starting to gain conviction, I’m starting to feel strong in my Spirit - because if Jesus is a conqueror, and I hook up with Jesus, I can be a conqueror too.

Romans 8:35–37 “35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 Just as it is written, “For Your sake we are being put to death all day long; We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.”

This descriptive term of the also intimates that Jesus is royalty - He is King!

Jeremiah 23:5 “5 “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely And do justice and righteousness in the land.”

This “Root and descendant of David” is not just a conqueror, He is King - Revelation 19:16 “16 And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.””

He is King above all kings, no king can be king of King Jesus did not have a say in the matter - for these christians I can see why this is what Jesus told the angel to tell them - they’ve seen some crazy kings in the Roman empire, some powerful kings, some conquering kings, it was a king that killed the apostle James, it was a king that killed John the Baptist, it was a king that was killing of saints - But here comes King Jesus - I need to bow down before Him

APPL. Many of us want the conquering of the king but not the commands of the king. We want the king to tell us what He is going to do, but we don’t want the King to tell us what to do. We want to be blessed, but we don’t want to bow to the King.

This testimony is convincing I’m ready to hand in my verdict about what to do with Jesus - What about you

This descriptive term of the also intimates that Jesus is priestly

Zechariah 6:12–13 “12 “Then say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Behold, a man whose name is Branch, for He will branch out from where He is; and He will build the temple of the Lord. 13 “Yes, it is He who will build the temple of the Lord, and He who will bear the honor and sit and rule on His throne. Thus, He will be a priest on His throne, and the counsel of peace will be between the two offices.” ’”

Isaiah entered as an expert witness and saif Isaiah 9:6–7 “6 For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. 7 There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this.”

Priests offered sacrifices that was offered to them - Jesus ministered the sacrifice and He was the sacrifice

The Hebrew writer enters as an expert witness. Hebrews 9:11–12 “11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; 12 and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.”

The angel is testifying that Jesus is the “root and the descendant of David” - Are you convicted?

#2 I am the Bright and Morning star

How is this testimony going to help th echurch hold on?

The Book of Revelation Christ Commends the Church of Thyatira for Its Christian Works of Witness, Condemns It for Its Permissive Spirit of Idolatrous Compromise, and Exhorts It to Overcome (2:18–29)

This idea is enhanced from the fact that the “morning star” (Venus) was a symbol of sovereignty in the ancient world and especially in Rome. Roman emperors claimed to be descended from the goddess Venus, Roman generals built temples dedicated to the star, and it was a sign carried on the standards of the Roman legions.152 If this is also part of the thought, then the allusion to Numbers has been called forth in order to emphasize that Christ is the true world sovereign in contrast to the claims of evil world empires like Rome.153

Isaiah 11:10 “10 Then in that day The nations will resort to the root of Jesse, Who will stand as a signal for the peoples; And His resting place will be glorious.”

Rome is not the satndard, nor the ruler of the world, nor arre hey sovereign - that belongs to Jesus

The morning star has a second connotation one of a bright light signaling or bringing and end to darkness

This is a theologically rich them that is seen frequently in Scripture - it is sufficiently and abundantly displayed an declared in Jesus

We can bring the ex[ert witness of John to support the tetimony of the angel

John 1:4–5 “4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. 5 The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.”

John 8:12 “12 Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.””

John 3:19 “19 “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.”

Sin puts you in darkness, but salvation is a movement from the darkness to the light

Ephesians 5:8 “8 for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light”

Colossians 1:13 “13 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,”

Acts 26:17–18 “17 rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you, 18 to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.’”

The angel, is declaring to us in the closing pages of the Bible - Jesus is the root of David, the conquering priest king, and the sovereign signal to all man, nation, tribe and tongue that He is King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Lion of the tribe of Judah, Ruler of all that is, who was, who is and who is to come.

This is the testimony - are you convicted about who Jesus is?

Revelation 22:17 “17 The Spirit and the bride say [the worker and the recepient of the work say:], “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.”

We see “water” as theme frequently connected to SALVATION

Isaiah 43:19 “19 “Behold, I will do something new, Now it will spring forth; Will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, Rivers in the desert.”

Isaiah 49:10 “10 “They will not hunger or thirst, Nor will the scorching heat or sun strike them down; For He who has compassion on them will lead them And will guide them to springs of water.”

Isaiah 12:3 “3 Therefore you will joyously draw water From the springs of salvation.”

John 4:13–14 “13 Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.””

Living waters have there origin in God - get out of those dead waters! Those waters will leave you thirsty again - Take of the living water

What we see in the water is provision, sustentance, refreshing, renewal, promise-keeper, SALVATION - and it’s all connected to JESUS

It comes as no surprise then, that when the eunuch heard Jesus. . . He saw water!