Revelation Sermon - 22

Revelation: Here Comes the Cavalry

Revelation 9:13-21

1. Introduction – If you were with us last week or caught up on the podcast, you’ll recall that we encountered a nasty swarm of locusts.

a. But not ordinary locusts…no no – these locusts were given unusual ability and commanded to NOT eat the earth’s vegetation, something locusts normally do.

i. Instead, they were commanded to torture, torment, but not kill the earth-dwellers.

1. And remember, earth-dwellers is a technical phrase in Revelation for those aren’t part of God’s people.

a. These locusts were demonic in nature – having come right form the pit of hell.

b. And if you can image…the horror of the vision gets even worse.

i. The locusts were allowed to injure but not kill, and now comes a demonic cavalry to wipe out 1/3 of the human race.

c. The images are striking, they are fear inducing, and this chapter in particular has been the victim of some very creative interpretation, and I think that the creative interpretation has actually hindered us from fully understanding the thrust of this passage.

i. So, here’s what we’re going to do this morning…

1. We are going to, as best we can, understand this section the way John’s original 1st century audience would have understood it.

a. We’re going to study some, not all, just some of the images used and what they represent.

i. Next, we’ll look at the theological purpose of this section.

1. What does vv.13-21 teach us? What does it teach us about God? About life on this earth? About God’s plan for history?

b. And finally, we’ll study the practical purposes of this chapter. We’ll find some takeaways that we can put into practice in our lives today.

2. The Images – So the first image I want us to explore is the Euphrates River. Is it referring to the literal river or is there something more to it?

a. If you know your Bible well, you’ll recall that the Euphrates River is mentioned early and often.

i. It’s first mentioned in Genesis 2 as a river that borders the Garden of Eden.

1. When God promised Abraham land, he said his ancestors would possess the land between the Nile and the Euphrates.

a. The Euphrates marked the boundary of the Israelite kingdom and separated her from her enemies.

ii. In Isaiah 8 – the invading Assyrian army is pictured as the Euphrates River in flood – sweeping over and wiping out Israel.

1. And in John’s day, the late 1st century, the Euphrates River was the eastern most border of the Roman Empire.

a. To east of the River was the uncivilized and much-fear Parthian Empire. And the Parthians just happened to be feared because of their massive and highly skilled cavalry.

b. So, John could be talking about a future invasion of the dreaded and feared Parthians from beyond the eastern banks of the River, but I believe there is more of a symbolic meaning here.

i. The Euphrates River became symbolic of the enemies of Israel and God.

1. In referencing the Euphrates, John understands it to be a spiritual place, rather than a geographical place, where Satan will bring his forces.

c. It is from this spiritual place where God’s enemies come from that this demonic cavalry is released.

i. Again, notice that they had to be given permission and authority to do what they do.

1. Satan and his minions are not independent agents.

a. The cavalry is released and John hears the number announced to him – 200 million strong.

i. That’s a big army! Some translations say “twice 10,000 x 10,000.”

2. Is this a literal number that we should be on the lookout for? Or is it symbolic?

d. Think of it this way. The Romans, the most efficient and most feared military system in history up to that point…

i. Rome, which had conquered most of the known world by the time Revelation was written…

1. The mighty and powerful Roman Empire had about 125,000 troops in its army. It also had an auxiliary army of about equal size. So about 300,000 soldiers – foot soldiers, chariot riders and the cavalry.

a. These numbers would have been well known in the 1st century because Rome liked to boast about its military might.

ii. But this number is 1000 times bigger than Rome’s army – a fact that would not have been lost on the 1st century audience.

1. A literal number…I don’t think so. The number, like the description we’ll look at soon, is meant to shock the audience.

a. The number was given to show the audience what kind of devastation evil can cause, when given the opportunity.

e. And now we come to the description of the horses. And notice that it is the horses, not the riders that cause all the death and chaos.

i. And again, notice John’s use of the word ‘like” he is making a comparison to help his audience better understand what he is seeing in this vision.

1. I think we do ourselves and the text a disservice if we analyze this vision down to its finest detail.

a. We run the risk of completely missing the point if we say, “Well, what John really saw was this, or that…” John really saw weapons of modern day warfare but didn’t know how to describe it.

i. He saw airplanes and fighter jets and helicopters and battleships.

ii. And not to be dismissive, but we actually know for certain that John didn’t see jets or Black Hawk helicopters, because he tells us what he sees.

1. Look at v.17. This is one of the few times John inserts himself into the narrative. It’s one of the few times John uses the phrase “In my vision I saw…” and then he goes on to describe the terrifying horses and riders he does see.

f. As we saw last week with the locusts, the point John is making is the demonic nature of this cavalry.

i. The description doesn’t symbolize tanks, cannons and battleships of modern warfare, but the demonic origins of this army.

1. John is piling up descriptive words here – not completely consisted with one another – not for the purpose of giving a logical picture…

a. John is bringing emphasis to the fact that evil will be unleashed on the world and cause destruction the likes of which history has never witnessed.

3. Theological Purpose – So hopefully I’ve made this clear, we are experiencing this vision, not analyzing it, and definitely not reading images of modern day warfare into it.

a. So, if we are experiencing it, what does it teach us? Well, like we’ve seen over the past couple of weeks, this act of judgment is also an act of mercy.

i. For the past few weeks I’ve been saying that these trumpet blasts are God’s warning signs of a greater judgment to come.

1. This trumpet is no different. Even though the judgment is ramping up, we can still see God’s mercy and we can still hear a call to repentance.

a. Think about it…a demonic cavalry of 200 million…and only a third of the earth’s population is affected???

i. Only God could do that. Only God could prevent it from becoming an even bigger disaster.

1. It’s mercy that there’s still time for the two thirds to repent.

b. But that brings us to out next teaching point…Because this section we are also shown the depravity of the human heart.

i. Maybe nowhere else will you get a clearer picture of the sinfulness of humanity.

1. Judgment is being point out. Torture, torment, and now death…God is making is holiness and his righteous wrath known.

a. One would think that seeing judgment like this would be enough to bring rebels to their knees.

ii. But not so. Because in the scene, we see that rebels responds to judgment with even greater rebellion.

1. One third punished, two thirds left…one would think the two thirds would cry out to God for mercy

a. But 9:20 is perhaps the saddest verse in the whole Bible…they did not repent.

iii. They did not turn from their wickedness, but instead went deeper and further down the path that leads to death and destruction.

1. Even though God is clearly acting, even though there is time for repentance, even though it is clear who rules the world and whose path one should follow…

a. The sinful nature of humanity, even when pushed to the brink, is still untouched and unmoved by God.

c. Which brings us to our third theological purpose, this one is maybe a little less obvious.

i. This section shows us the seductiveness of idolatry.

1. Even though sinful humanity is pushed to the brink, we’re told that they didn’t abandon their idols.

a. But definition, an idol is anyone or anything that is worshipped above God.

ii. Idolatry has always been and will always be the main tool in the devil’s arsenal.

1. Adam and Eve were lured into sin through the seductiveness of idolatry. Their worship focused on the creation rather than the Creator.

a. Israel was led astray multiple times by worshipping false gods – first the golden calf at Mount Sinai, then worshipping other false gods.

iii. An idol is anything that is placed ahead of God, and this passage shows us just how seductive idols can be.

1. Even when confronted by God, idols are still chosen. No repentance, just a turning to the very ones who are torturing and killing them.

d. The OT speaks a lot about the folly of idolatry. False gods are made of wood, half the log is carved into an idol, the other half of the log makes fire…what’s the difference between the two halves?

i. God’s of wood or stone or gold have ears but can’t hear, they have eyes but can’t see; feet but they can’t walk.

1. But that brings us to the great paradox of idolatry – on the one hand, an idol is a lifeless thing made of wood or stone or gold.

a. But on the other hand, behind those lifeless images are demonic forces.

i. Scripture often calls idolatry demon worship.

1. Because behind the lifeless idol is a force that is doing everything in its power to keep people away from God. And any worship that is not directed towards the one true God of the universe…

a. Is worship directed towards a false god and ultimately it is worship of demons themselves.

e. And the seductiveness of idolatry is this – on the surface it looks and feels innocent enough, but underneath the idol are demonic forces.

i. And even though in the end evil turns on itself, it’s worshippers still follow them. Their worshippers become just like the gods they worship... they have eyes but can’t see, ears but can’t hear the truth.

4. Practical Purposes – And for us today, we need to hear this warning about idolatry.

a. Idolatry may be even more subtle and more seductive in our day.

i. We don’t really have the problem of having funny little statues in our houses that we worship…if that’s all idolatry is, then it could be relatively easy to avoid.

1. An idol is anything we place ahead of God in our lives.

a. Those things may not be evil in and of themselves, but when they are given godlike status and prominence in our lives…then they have become an idol.

b. An idol can be anything…money, possessions, power, leisure, sex, success, sports. Most of those things aren’t bad in and of themselves…

i. But if they take the place of God in our lives…if we pursue any of those things over pursuing a relationship with God…then it has become an idol in our lives.

1. And if something has taken the place of God in our lives, it is NOT harmless and innocent – we need to wake up the demonic forces lurking beneath the surface.

c. The Bible calls idolatry demon worship…just led that sink in. Do you derive your pleasure from something other than God??? The apostle Paul says that when we worship false gods, when we have an idol in our lives, it is as if we are worshipping the devil himself.

i. Just let that sink it. Idolatry, pursuing pleasure other than the pleasure to be found in God…is not harmless and innocent, it’s serious.

1. Sure, money isn’t bad…but worshipping it is. Sure, sex isn’t bad within the confines of marriage – but worshipping it is.

a. Hear me on this…if you have an idol in your life, something that has attained godlike status – it’s only goal is to draw you away from your relationship with God.

d. Beneath the surface of that idol is power that is seeking to control, trying to claim your allegiance, trying to railroad your relationship with God.

i. Idols are lifeless, but they are not harmless.

1. If you are sitting there and discovering that you have an idol or idols in your life…

a. Through the power of God dethrone them. Stop worshipping them.

i. Give renewed priority to your relationship with God.

ii. If that means cutting up your credit cards, do it. If it means cancelling your PayPal account do it.

1. If it means trashing your computer so you can’t click around on the internet…do it.

a. If it means praying more, then pray more. If it means reading your Bible more than read more.

i. If it means making church a priority on Sundays, then do everything you can make sure that you are here.

e. Idols aren’t just funny little statutes, they can be anything that attains godlike status in your life.

i. Don’t put anyone or anything on the throne of your life except God. Derive your pleasure, your purpose and your calling from him.

f. And the call for us as Christians is to warn non-Christians of the dangers lurking beneath the surface of idolatry.

i. The allure of fame, fortune, and money has led many people to their graves.

1. And that’s because when they are given godlike status, those things become a tool of the devil to drive humanity further and further away from God.

g. We must show unbelievers the dangers of worshipping anyone other than the one true God of the universe.

i. Only God’s path leads to life; all other paths lead to death and destruction.

5. Conclusion – So what are we do? Even when faced with God’s judgment, we’re told that people will still refuse to repent. What then do we do?

a. The answer is found in the next couple of chapters…Interlude 2 answers the question we should all be asking after reading these trumpet judgments…what’s the church to do?

i. Over the next couple weeks, we are going to be studying 2 stories, two parables that answer this question.

1. For next week, read Revelation 10, ask these questions, and Lord willing, we’ll gather back here together next week and we’ll study this interesting little scene where John eats a scroll. It’s going to be so good!