Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Rev. 15:3

Get Attention:

Illustration - things sometimes must get worse before they can get better; particularly when performing transformational processes.

For example - learning a new language, transferring sod, going through medical treatments for illness, etc.

Raise Need:

Bad News/Good News - the bad news is that this world has been dying of sin-cancer since the Fall, and things are going to continue to get really bad as humanity plunges further from God in sin; the good news however, is that it will one day be made better by our Great Physician, but not without the intervention of His program of purging.

Orient Theme:

John is introducing the seven last plagues of God which are to be administered during the Great Tribulation under the direct knowledge, will and direction of God Himself, through His holy angels, to the fulness of His glory.

Trust God's faithful administration of the consummation of His program to bring the world to purity, no matter how terrible it may seem temporarily.

It's only going to hurt for a short time, but His aim is complete healing from the cancer of sin that has plagued mankind.

Understand - the Victory of Faith results in the Songs of Revelation's Promise.

Share the Word; spread the faith; perhaps spare the lost.

State Purpose:

Why have you been hesitant to speak the Word?

Put aside your pride, unbelief and slothfulness and humbly trust the Lord to help you seek the lost out with the intent to speak the Word, and help them find or renew their faith in God's Word.

Main Thought:

Seeing the need to prepare for God's wrath and speaking the Word of the Gospel brings the soul to accountability before God's convicting Spirit, Whose goal is to bring the sinner to repentance and faith in God's only-begotten Son.

Prayerfully, compassionately but concernedly speak what God has revealed; the Spirit then brings conviction of our lost condition; and the lost soul who is willing can then receive salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ!

Fighting Fire with Fire - The Great Physician's Plagues on the Plague of Sin - Radiating the World's Cancer Fully & Finally.

Sub-Introduction:

Connecting Context:

This passage is very much filled with Old Testament imagery.

For example, the Tabernacle of Moses, the Mountain of Sinai, the Red Sea Crossing, the Smoke of Solomon's Temple, the Plagues of Egypt, and others, all bring bearing to the sense of imagery found here.

The form of this vision is moulded partly by the circumstances of the Seer, and partly by reminiscences of Old Testament history.

As to the former, it can scarcely be an accident that the Book of the Revelation abounds with allusions to the sea.

We are never far from the music of its waves, which broke around the rocky Patmos where it was written.

And the ‘sea of glass mingled with fire’ is but a photograph of what John must have seen on many a still morning, when the sunrise came blushing over the calm surface; or on many an evening when the wind dropped at sundown, and the sunset glow dyed the watery plain with a fading splendour.—Nor is the allusion to Old Testament history less obvious.

We cannot but recognise the reproduction, with modifications, of that scene when Moses and his ransomed people looked upon the ocean beneath which their oppressors lay, and lifted up their glad thanksgivings.

So here, by anticipation, in the solemn pause before the judgment goes forth, there are represented the spirits that have been made wise by conquest, as gathered on the bank of that steadfast ocean, lifting up as of old a hymn of triumphant thankfulness over destructive judgments, and blending the song of Moses and of the Lamb, in testimony of the unity of spirit which runs through all the manifestations of God’s character from the beginning to the end.

Ever His judgments are right; ever the purpose of His most terrible things is that men may know Him, and may love Him; and ever they who see deepest into the mysteries, and understand most truly the realities of the universe will have praise springing to their lips for all that God hath done.

[Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture: 1 John 5, 2 John, 3 John, Jude, and Revelation (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2009), 341–342.]

[Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture: 1 John 5, 2 John, 3 John, Jude, and Revelation (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2009), 341–342.]

Background/Intro Material:

is a continuation of chapter and its brief eight verses present a picture of the redeemed who have not worshipped the beast and have escaped the judgments of God:

...Here, then, we have a description of two groups: the unbelievers who meet the wrath of God and eternal judgment and the saints of God before His throne who acknowledge His justice and truth forever.

To which company do you belong?

You are either a saint or a sinner.

You are either saved or lost.

You are either on the way to heaven or on the way to eternal perdition.

You may still settle the question.

Settle it now.

Here, then, we have a description of two groups: the unbelievers who meet the wrath of God and eternal judgment and the saints of God before His throne who acknowledge His justice and truth forever.

To which company do you belong?

You are either a saint or a sinner.

You are either saved or lost.

You are either on the way to heaven or on the way to eternal perdition.

You may still settle the question.

Settle it now.

If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved ().

For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved ().

[M.

R. De Haan, Studies in Revelation (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1998), 197.]

I.

The Sign, the Sea & the Songs ().

A. The Sign in Heaven ():

State Point -

Here we consider both the nature of the sign, and the sign itself.

Anchor Point -

John states that this "sign" is "another" of the same kind of sign, hearkening back to chapter twelve.

This is the third great and wondrous sign.

The first was the Woman clothed with the sun, the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars upon her head (Israel, mother of Messiah); the second was the Great Red Dragon (that Old Serpent, the Devil himself); the third great and marvellous sign is that here of God's Seven Angels, who bear His final judgments on this old sinful world.

Validate Point -

That's the nature of the sign.

The sign itself is none other but the seven angels themselves, who have the seven eschatological plagues God.

A sign says to us, "Look out for what's coming."

These angels will come from the Temple of God in heaven, and will execute God's righteous judgment on a wicked and rebelliously sinful world of people.

Explain Point -

We're then told the explanation of these plagues in that in them the wrath of God will be completed, for in these plagues IT (the wrath of God) is "filled up" (completed).

B. The Sea of Glass ():

State Point -

Notice the way the sea looked as well as the people on the sea.

Anchor Point -

That God's wrath is to be poured out on sinners is noticed in the continued picture that the Revelator portrays - a precious and peculiar group of people, standing on what appears as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire before the presence of God.

These people are known to be those who paradoxically won as "conquerors out of the beast," etc., or those who had gotten victory over the Antichrist, who thought he had the victory over them.

Therein lies the paradox.

Here, John described it additionally as being “mingled with fire.”

The thought may be of the ominous portent of lightning visible through the sea of glass.

Such lightning is referred to in Here it may refer to the impending final judgment about to be poured out upon the earth.

In short, John saw what was the gathering storm of God’s final judgment just prior to it being unleashed against the earth.

This, no doubt, was part of the great and astonishing sign he saw.

[David H. Sorenson, Understanding the Bible, An Independent Baptist Commentary - Hebrews through Revelation, vol.

11, Understanding the Bible, An Independent Baptist Commentary (Northstar Ministries, 2007), 487.]

Validate Point -

Further, notice that to escape from the power of the beast it is needful to fight one’s way out.

The language of my text is remarkably significant.

This Apocalyptic writer does not mind about grammar or smoothness so long as he can express his ideas; and he uses a form of speech here that makes the hair of grammatical purists stand on end, because it vigorously expresses his thought.

He calls these triumphant choristers ‘conquerors out of the beast,’ which implies that victory over him is an escape from a dominion in which the conquerors, before their victory, were held.

They have fought their way, as it were, out of the land of bondage, and, like revolted slaves, have won their liberty, and marched forth triumphant.

The allusion to Israel’s exodus is probable.

‘Egypt was glad when they departed.’

So the bondsmen of this new Pharaoh recover freedom by conflict, and the fruit of their victory is entire escape from the tyrant.

That victory is possible.

The Apocalypse shows us that there are two opposing Powers—this said ‘beast’ on the one side, and ‘the Lamb’ on the other.

In the Seer’s vision these two divide the world between them.

[MacLaren, 343–344.]

Explain Point -

...the Revelation of St. John presents to us in visions the history of the Church moulded upon the history of her Lord whilst He tabernacled among men.

It is the invariable lesson of the New Testament that Christ and His people are one.

He is the Vine; they are the branches.