Rev 17-18---- Down goes the challenger
Notes
Transcript
In over my head
In over my head
At times I feel more confident in this book than others making different statements and thoughts upon the verses
The majority of the time I am in over my head
I still am absolutely confident in summary of the book prior to our study and that is the church should persevere because the God wins.
That message is declared all throughout the book
As we sit here in Rev 17- the message is declared as well
I try to not say “The Bible says” something if I am not sure of it
Many times this week I felt in over my head
Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.
But this is still a blessing to read today
I think to how the early believers looked for a Messiah to come
How with Abraham it was counted to him as righteousness
Today we sit with full knowledge of the Messiah and that his return is absolutely certain
But yet there is still a great measure of faith we must have in that there are many things written in this book in very symbolic ways that we just dont have absolute certainty on
However, tonight we do have some glimmers of the light of truth and we will use that and hold to that to help us navigate the slightly vaguer areas tonight
Chapter 17 begins a new vision that will last until Rev 21:8
Vision One – The Kingdom Begun: Jesus Has Overcome (Revelation 1:9-3:22)
Vision Two — The Kingdom Comes: The Heavenly Perspective (Revelation 4-16)
Vision Three — The Kingdom Comes: The Earthly Perspective (Revelation 17-21:8)
Vision Four — The Kingdom Fully Realized in the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:9-22:7)
We might think of these four visions as four acts in a play or four movements in a piece of music. They each contribute to the full effect of the work but they also have a certain independence, that is, they are to be read in a self-contained way. They each tell their own story that contributes to the whole.
However, we should not read them as autonomous. Rather, they are intimately integrated with each other. For example, the first and fourth visions have many overlapping themes, shared language, and similar points. In the same way, the second and third visions are actually two perspectives on the same reality, that is, they overlap or the second tells the same story from a different perspective. The second vision views the drama “from above” while the third vision views it “from below.”
So, we might think of it this way:
Vision 1: Addresses the specific concerns of the seven churches and calls for their commitment to the kingdom of God in the hope of the New Heavens and New Earth.
Vision 2: God acts in justice against the kingdoms of the earth as the seven seals, trumpets and bowls of wrath are released.
Vision 3: The kingdoms of the earth are described in terms of their sins and destruction as the kingdom of God rejoices and reigns.
Vision 4: The new heaven and new earth are opened for those among the seven churches who have overcome and defeated the powers in their own lives and communities.
Chapter 17-18 are connected and if time permits we may get through both tonight
I do think it is helpful to see the contrast between the two kingdoms in Chap 17-21
The Beast and Harlot and the Lamb and his bride
They are depicted in contrast to each other
So we will fly at 30k feet to help me and Lord willing you tonight
Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.” And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.” And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.
When I saw her, I marveled greatly.
As the chapter opens up the angels who had the seven bowls is comes to John
Most view Chap 17-18 to not be chronological as many parts of this book is glimpes of the last days from differing angles
But we are introduced is a prostitute and the beast
The angel explains who the prostitute represents in verse 18 and the sea in vs 15
The woman represents the system or culture of the world today
The sea represents the nations that have fallen head first into her lies
For the 1st century church Rome controlled virtually all the known world and I think Jesus reveals this in this terms so the 1st century reader would have got it
Today we still have a culture and worldly system that the nations and people bow to
The beast(Satan) fuels and prances her around like she is the best thing ever but in her goblet is damnation and abomination
All who follow after the world are swooned, just like a drunkard under the influence of alcohol, and they become blinded and diluted and engulfed into the abominations
Beloved, lets stop here once again and thank God for eyes to see and ears to hear- because without Jesus, how lost we would be
The harlot under the guise of beauty- continues to indoctrinate the world in its filth and will bring great persecution on the church
We have seen this thus far in the book- he is retelling from different perspective or viewpoint
But the angel said to me, “Why do you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come. This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. These are of one mind, and they hand over their power and authority to the beast. They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”
In this time period we see two groups of people that I think are crucial
Those whose names are not in the Book of Life and those whose are
As we saw in chapter 13- Satan and his people( all who are not in the book)wages war on the church for a period of time but it has its numbered day
They will attempt to wage war on the Lamb but the Lamb conquers him
Vs 14- for He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords- And those with him are called, chosen and faithful
What blessing to be in this group- May we see here clearly once again that it is God who chose and called us and because of His work of grace and providence- we are called to faithful
And the angel said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages. And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the prostitute. They will make her desolate and naked, and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire, for God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. And the woman that you saw is the great city that has dominion over the kings of the earth.”
As the great deceiver Satans plot and scheme are found to be unraveling around him- there is no honor amongst thieves
He turns on them and seeks to destroy the very tool he used to bring about his chaos
The worldly systems fall and implode in on themselves and Satan leads the way
Why? Vs 17
Because that is what God has planned in is His providence
Satan is a dog on a leash- He has limits and those limits are set by God according to God providence
Gods providentially allows humanity and its course of events to bring about His plan
Satan may a devil but he is God’s devil and he can do no more and will no less than God allows in his providence
It all falls to pieces under wrath of God
Chapter 18 begins and all we hear is fallen is Babylon
This is symbolic of the world and all it evil
We once again heard of a an assembly of evil against Jesus but no mention of recorded war
Jesus has no match
But Chapter 18- begins with the idea that all the world has fallen into sin and self and rejected the Sovereign
Then I heard another voice from heaven saying,
“Come out of her, my people,
lest you take part in her sins,
lest you share in her plagues;
This is pivotal for our understanding of final deliverance
Come will seperate the wheat from the tares
The sheep from the goats
We cannot tell the genuineness of anyone heart in an absolute sense, but Jesus can and he will not make a mistake
We see Gods people taken out- but much later in the history than most people have said
And the kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her, will weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her burning. They will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say,
“Alas! Alas! You great city,
you mighty city, Babylon!
For in a single hour your judgment has come.”
All the pursuits of this world are fleeting
All the desires, pursuits and systems that the world has in motion will pass in an hour
The time reference is just symbolic- for it brevity
Whats an hour in light of a day, 1/24
hour in light of a week 1/168, a year 1/ 8736, 80 years- 1/ 698,880
hour among eternity its not even fathomable
But yet people pursue it like their life depends on it
The world bemoans its crumbling but not the heavens
Rejoice over her, O heaven,
and you saints and apostles and prophets,
for God has given judgment for you against her!”
The great questions of Rev 6:9-11 is answered
God brings his judgement because the world hated Him and us
And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints,
and of all who have been slain on earth.”
Every drop of blood and life killed because of Christ sake will be accounted for
For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.
“So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.
So what we find is- for the church to remain steadfast and persevere to the end because God wins
As we see from this viewpoint once again
Beast and the Whore
The Lamb and the bride
Those who are not in the lambs book fall for the beast
Those who are the chosen, called and faithful are with the Lamb
Beloved, I opened tonight with making the point of making much of the main point
What was imperative for 7 churches understood and what you and I need today
Only those who persevere in the Lamb will be with the spared and spared final judgement.
Will you? Will I? We shall see