Revelation Sermon - 26

Revelation: Hallelujah!

Revelation 11:15-19

1. Introduction – Not sure how many of you are fans of classical music, but even if you’re not, you’ve probably heard of Handel’s Messiah.

a. It’s an oratorio about the birth, life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus. The whole thing is about 4 hours long.

i. The words of Messiah were written by Charles Jennens, and when Handel received the words Jennens wrote, he composed the music in just 24 days.

1. Amazing considering, he would have had to come up with melodies, 4-part harmonies, and orchestration – and then hand write the parts for the 4 soloists and the choir and orchestra music.

a. Famous songs from Messiah include For Unto Us a Child is Born, All We like Sheep have Gone Astray…

b. But the most famous song from Messiah comes at the end of part 2. If you’ve ever been to a performance of Messiah, the orchestra starts in with the first few notes, and the audience rises to the feet…

i. And the famous words of the Hallelujah Chorus begin to ring out. The Words of the Hallelujah Chorus…taken directly from Revelation 11:15.

c. It’s debatable about why audiences stand for this part, and only this part of the performance. History hasn’t detailed why, but what’s not debatable is how awesome this scene is that plays out every year.

i. When this oratorio is performed in a church by a church choir, or in a theatre by a community choir…

1. What’s for certain is as the audience rises and the choir sings…the words of the gospel are proclaimed.

a. For the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. The kingdom of this world, is being come, the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ…and he shall reign forever and ever.

i. I’m getting goose bumps just saying it.

d. This morning in our study of Revelation we are going to study the words that inspired that great chorus.

i. This morning we heard the 7th trumpet blown. And with this passage, we come to the end of the first half of the letter of Revelation.

1. The second half will repeat many themes of the first and expand on images already mentioned.

a. We’ll see in future weeks the cyclical style of Revelation on full display.

e. But this morning we’re going to focus on 11:15-19. The 7th trumpet breaks down nicely into 3 sections – we’ll explore them all.

i. Section 1 is Hallelujah!

1. Section 2 vv. 16-18 we’ll call the Elders’ Song.

a. And in section 3 we see the ark and the temple.

ii. This is truly an incredible and inspiring section of this letter.

2. Hallelujah! – The paragraph starts with the 7th trumpet being blown.

a. But this trumpet is different, because unlike the previous 6 trumpets, there isn’t a plague unleashed.

i. Instead, a choir starts singing. I imagine they used Handel’s tune!

b. However, even though we know these words, we must still study and analyze them so we truly understand what they say and mean.

i. First, I want you to notice that this choir sings in the past tense.

1. The kingdom of this world – has now become… This is a strange vision and strange language.

a. John is seeing a vision of the end of time; a vision of the fully realized kingdom of God – a vision of something that hasn’t happened yet.

ii. The voices are singing about a future event…but they are singing about it as if it has already happened.

c. What we have in this vision is another ending in the letter of Revelation.

i. Remember back when we studied chapters 5&7, it felt like we were at the end only to have the visions start again and we were given new details about the same visions?

1. Well here in 11:15, we are at the end of time.

a. And the voices that sing about the coming of God’s kingdom – they speak with the absolute certainty that this is going to transpire.

i. They sing about the future by using the past tense. So really, the speak as if it has already transpired.

1. Absolutely amazing to think about.

d. But also, I want to point out that in its original context, the Hallelujah Chorus is actually presented as a terror.

i. Remember back a few weeks ago when we studied 8:13, terror, terror, terror, when the last 3 angels blow their trumpets. That was stated after trumpets 1-4 were blown.

1. Trumpet 5 – the locusts, trumpet 6 – the cavalry. We spent a few weeks on the interlude.

a. But 11:15 tells us the 7th trumpet is blown and if we put it all together, we see that it is a terror.

ii. But how? How is the Hallelujah Chorus a terror? Last week I asked the question, “How can Christian witness be torment?” And the answer was ‘perspective.”

1. When confronted with the truth and Lordship of Jesus – all lies and idols are exposed and the truth of gospel pricks the conscience.

iii. So how is the Hallelujah Chorus a terror? Perspective. To someone who belongs to this world – it’s a terror to think that the kingdom of God has come to earth.

1. It’s wonderfully blessed news for Christians, but for those who reject God, the coming of God’s kingdom means time has run out for them and God will begin to pour out his judgment.

e. We’ve seen this throughout Revelation. When the values of this world come in contact with the values of God’s kingdom – war breaks out.

i. We can have absolute certainty that this will happen. And we can have absolute certainty that God’s kingdom will prevail

f. Jesus said to Pilate at this trial – my kingdom is not of this world.

i. But here in Revelation 11:15, those distinctions are gone.

1. Because this world – fallen and broken and sinful as it is…This world, which is longing for renewal and restoration…

a. The kingdom of this world that is ruled by egomaniacs…

i. It is this world which will one day become the kingdom of our Lord and his Christ.

g. It is a kingdom that has been coming to earth since the death and resurrection of Jesus.

i. A kingdom where God will dwell with his people from earth. A kingdom where God will overthrow all earthly powers, and God will reign forever and ever.

1. And quite honestly, when we hear that information and we explore the depths of this verse…the only appropriate response is – Hallelujah! Please stand.

3. The Elders’ Song – After the glorious highs of Hallelujah – we come to the second song of this section. The elders’ song.

a. And this song explains in detail how the kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ.

i. This song introduces, or really expands on, 2 themes that have been present throughout the whole letter.

1. The twin themes are judgment and reward.

b. I want to spend some time in v.18 – and what I want you to take note of is the repetition of the word time.

i. 3 times the word time is used in this verse – all revolving around the twin themes of judgment and reward. Look at how this word is used.

c. The time of your wrath has come. I put an emphasis on the word ‘your’ in that verse, because what 11:18 is alluding to is Psalm 2:2 – a verse that speaks about the nations wrath when they refuse to follow God’s ways.

i. But now, the elders sing, at the end of time, when the kingdom of this has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, the time will come for God to pour out his wrath and judge the nations.

d. But, when God’s kingdom comes in full power, it will also be a time of reward.

i. It will be a time of reward for all of God’s people – no matter what role they played, or how great or small their earthly social status was.

1. Reward for those who fear God’s name – whether a prophet or a teacher…whether great or small…it doesn’t matter.

e. And the last use of the word time in this verse refers to destroying those who caused destruction.

i. This is a common theme throughout the letter of Revelation. For lack of a better term, it’s just desserts.

1. For those who murder God’s people – they will be killed. For those who caused destruction, they will be destroyed.

a. For those who are faithful, God will reward their faithfulness.

i. There’s a beautiful symmetry to the letter.

f. And I want to point out some of that symmetry to you. We’ve been at this scene before. We’ve been at the end of time before.

i. In chapter 7, there was a numberless multitude gathered around God’s throne worshipping.

1. This time, in chapter 11, as we’ve journeyed to the end, we’ve been given more detail.

a. Not only are the faithful rewarded and worship around God’s throne, but the people who belong to the earth are judged.

g. And when we come to the end again in chapters 20-21, that scene will have even more details.

i. The new Jerusalem is described, the new earth is described. And in 20:15, we see how the wicked are destroyed – by being sent to the lake of fire.

1. I’ll remind you once again that Revelation is not written in linear or sequential order – as if it is a timeline of events to be on the lookout for.

a. It’s written in a loop to loop pattern – coming to a certain point and then going back and filling in the details.

h. It’s important for us to keep this structure and pattern in mind because we are about to double back and have more details filled in for us.

i. Remember that the events described for us in chapters 12-20 are not new events, but finer details of visions already described for us.

4. The Ark – And finally, in the vision of the 7th trumpet, we see the temple and the Ark of the Covenant.

a. Now again, remember that these are symbols. We are told later, when we come to the end again, that the new earth doesn’t have a temple.

i. So, what do these 2 symbols represent? God’s presence with his people.

1. In Revelation 21, the next time we come to the end, we have the glorious phrase – God’s home is now with his people. But that’s later – those are the more details of future visions.

b. Right here, in Revelation 11 – we are told that John saw the temple and the Ark of the covenant. A symbolic way of talking about God’s presence.

i. The Ark was made when Israel was in the wilderness on its way to the Promised Land.

1. In it were the stone tablets containing the 10 Commandments, a jar of manna, and Aaron’s budded rod.

a. It went before Israel as they traveled and ahead of them into war.

ii. Later, it resided in the Holy of Holies, as the place where God’s presence dwelt – representing God’s judgment and mercy.

1. Jewish tradition said that at the time of the Messiah, the literal ark would reappear.

a. But the original Ark was most likely destroyed when Babylon ransacked Jerusalem. Or Indiana Jones found it!

c. So, this is not a literal reappearance of the historical Ark of the Covenant, or the Temple.

i. But these symbols point to a reality beyond themselves – they point to what they’ve always represented…God’s presence among his people.

1. They point to God’s covenant faithfulness.

a. The Ark represents that God will be faithful to fulfill all the promises he has made – through his covenant with Abraham through to the new covenant in Jesus’s blood.

d. The coming of the Ark represents the fulfillment of all God’s promises to his people.

5. Conclusion – I’ve been looking forward to this week for quite some time.

a. I’ll be honest, I was really excited to preach this passage and I felt really inspired when researching and writing these past couple weeks.

i. What a glorious thought – the kingdom of this world has now become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ…and he shall reign forever and ever!

1. Does it get any better than that?!

b. And later, when describing the new earth, we’re told that there will be no more pain, tears, night or death.

i. All the hurt and darkness and sinfulness that is present in this world will be vanquished, when the glorious kingdom of God comes to earth.

1. And he will reign forever and ever! Hallelujah! Amen.