An Echo from Beginning to End

Text: Revelation 22:6-21 (NKJV)

Primary Audience: Believers

CIT: Obey God’s word by preaching the gospel so that unbelievers might come to faith and avoid the horror of the final judgement.

Proposition: Obey God’s word by preaching the gospel so that unbelievers might come to faith and avoid the horror of the final judgement.

Purpose: To help the congregation understand that the call to share the gospel is a theme that runs through the Bible from beginning to end.

Title: An Echo from Beginning to End

Outline

1) 22:6-9 “Obey God’s Word and Worship Only Him”

2) 22:10-17 “Preach the Gospel and Pursue God’s Will so that Unbelievers Might Be Saved”

3) 22:18-21 “One Final Warning”

Read Revelation 22:6-21

Prayer

Introduction: How many of you have ever been in a giant cave or cavern? ---- I remember going to Luray Caverns in Virginia when I was a kid and one of the things I distinctly recall was when the tour guide stood at the cave entrance and yelled out, “Is anybody down there?” As soon as he did it there was a booming echo that reporting back, and for the next several seconds you could hear those words of the tour guide growing more faint with each reverberation until it finally died away into the inky blackness. ---- Just like the reverberating echo we heard in that cave, the Bible has an echo that runs all the way through it, from the first pages to the last. Now, there are places and times when that echo seems to grow faint, but it’s not long until it’s renewed, like adding fuel to a dying fire. You can find the initial sounding of this echo in Genesis 1:28 when God told Adam and Eve to, “28 … Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; …” (Gen. 1:28a, NKJV). By the end of the Old Testament (OT) you’re having to really stretch your ear to hear the echo because by that point in the biblical storyline it had grown quite faint. But then, in the New Testament (NT), along comes Jesus who embodies the good news and sounds the call by giving his followers what we know as the Great Commission. He told them, and he tells us, “19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen” (Mt. 28:19–20, NKJV). That, then, is the catalyst igniting the rest of the NT and human history. When you come to the last few verses of the last chapter of the very last book of the Bible you hear one final echo of this theme, and because it’s the last word Scripture has to say to us, I’d say it’s important that we listen. ---- In Rev. 22:6-21 we’re told that we need to be obeying God’s word by preaching the gospel so that unbelievers might come to faith and avoid the horror of the final judgement. Let’s look first at vv.6-9.

22:6-9 “Obey God’s Word and Worship Only Him”

-In these verses John tells us that we need to obey God’s word and worship only him. (Now, some of you are probably asking yourself, “What does that have to do with the Great Commission?” Just hang on and I’ll show you.)

-Did you notice what the angel told John concerning the words of God in v.6? “6 Then he said to me, “These words are faithful and true.” The point is that we can trust what we’re being told. Church, God’s word testifies to the truthfulness of itself, and one of those truths that we look so forward to is found in v.7 when John writes, “7 “Behold, I (that is Jesus) am coming quickly!’ …” Now, for those of us who are believers the return of Christ is going to be a glorious event, there’s going to be family reunions, and conversations we’ve longed to have, many of us for years upon years, but for those who are unbelievers Christ’s return is going to be horrifying, hence, what’s said in the second part of v.7, “7 … Blessed (μακάριος [makarios], the same word that’s used in the beatitudes) is he who keeps (the word keep can be translated as obeys) the words of the prophecy (the inspired utterance) of this book.” In other words, the person who heeds what this says and obeys God’s word will surely be fortunate and blessed when the Savior returns! That said, one of the main ways we obey what John says here is to worship God and him alone. On that note, look at what’s said in vv.8 and 9. Verse 8, “8 Now I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down (to what?) to worship before the feet of (who?) the angel who showed me these things.” Listen, it can be easy to worship the wrong thing, but at the end of the day we’re called, every last one of us, to worship God, and God alone! Church, the angel who was speaking to John even knows that much and it’s why in v.9 he tells John, “9 … “See that you do not do that. For I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. (Worship who?) Worship God.” And here’s where that echo, the one I spoke about earlier (the one dealing with the Great Commission), begins to get a little louder, and here’s why. When it comes to worship, one of the most important things you can do is live out the command God has given you, as a believer, to do, and what’s that? It’s what vv.10-17 are dealing with, preaching the gospel and pursuing God’s will so that unbelievers might be saved.

22:10-17 “Preach the Gospel and Pursue God’s Will so that Unbelievers Might Be Saved”

-Look at v.10, here John is told something amazing, “10 … “Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand.” Commentator Alan Johnson writes, [quote] “These verses stand in contrast to the command given to Daniel to seal up his book (8:26; 12:4, 9-12) and in contrast to Jewish apocalypses in general. John’s message cannot be concealed because the contents of the vision are needed immediately by the churches” [unquote].[1] What is the immediate need? It was to make sure that people in the churches were in a right relationship with Jesus Christ before it’s too late, and that message still rings just as true today! That may well be the logic behind the second mention of Jesus’ return in v.12, “12And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.” Notice the amazing blessing that follows in v.14, “14 Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.” But as always, there’s a contrast not far around the corner and you see it in v.15, “15 But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.” ---- Now, just like a few verses ago, how do we unequivocally know that what’s being said here is true? ---- It’s because of v.16, “16 ‘I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.” That word testify is a verb [μαρτυρέω (martyreō)] (it’s the same word for martyr) and it means to bear witness, referring to giving accurate information about which a person has direct knowledge.[2] With all of that said, I think v.17 is where you hear the echo of the Great Commission ring the loudest, “17 And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.” (Appeal) Have you come to Jesus, is he your Lord and Savior? Are you thirst for the water of life? If so, then why not drink deeply today! Let’s finish up by looking at vv.18-21.

22:18-21 “One Final Warning”

-In these last few verses, the reader or listener is given a stern warning.

Verses 18 and 19 read as follows, “18 For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If (that’s a conditional statement) anyone adds to these things (What things? What John has written along with the rest of God’s word.) (What will happen?), God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” Now, I know when I read that some of you are already asking the question, “Does that means it’s possible for me lose my salvation?” My answer is no because I don’t believe a true believer can ever lose his or her salvation by walking away from Christ, that’s why it’s called eternal life by the way. The point seems to be that any person who would do what’s written in vv.18 and 19 is proving themselves to be an unbeliever. ---- And finally, John ends in vv.20-22 writing, “20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.” Amen. (And this last part here is something we should all be saying loud and clear) Even so, come, Lord Jesus! 21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.” And so ends the greatest book that’s ever been, or ever will be written, the Bible. In its pages from Genesis 1 to Revelation 22 are contained the mind of God and the words that bring spiritually people back to life. In contains comfort for both the rich and the poor, the free and the oppressed. It is a book of miracles, the greatest of which is that God would lower himself and step down from his throne, becoming a man in order to live among his own creation in order that he might save us. ---- I have a note at the beginning of my Bible that I jotted down in Dr. Jim Shaddix’s preaching class at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary when I was taking one of his preaching classes, and it’s something I always try to remind myself of before I stand up to preach. ---- It goes like this, “When you preach the word always understand that the power of God is behind you, no matter how afraid you are or how small you may feel. However, it’s not you, the preacher, who brings about the change in people, but God working through what you say about the truthfulness of his good word. To that end, never, ever preach a sermon without pointing people to the foot of the cross because that’s that the only place they will ever find redemption.” In completing the book of Revelation, I would challenge you today with this, no matter how much we may disagree about what this book is saying, who the 144,000 are or who the beast is, or maybe when the millennium will happen, that echo you can hear in the background throughout the pages of Revelation is God calling you to get a little dirt on your knees when you kneel before the cross of Christ and ask him to be your Savior. Let’s pray.

[1] Alan Johnson: Revelation, 205.

[2] G. D. Taylor, “Testimony,” ed. Douglas Mangum et al., Lexham Theological Wordbook, Lexham Bible Reference Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014). [modified]