Revelation 14
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Thanks again for joining us as we journey through the Book of Revelation
It has been a great journey through sometimes complicated passages, which we tried to simplify and center them on themes rather than speculation.
Last week in Chapters 12 & 13, we took a look at the characters that come into play for the rest of the book.
We had the Pregnant woman - Representing the Church - Spiritual birth
The Red Dragon - Satan Himself - the deceiver, murderer, liar and accuser of the Brethren.
When Satan wants to bring up your past just remind him of his future -AMEN
The Male Child = Jesus
The Archangel Michael = Fights Satan and his demonic hosts and makes short work of them. If you though Desert Storms 100 hour ground war was a fast victory. The Heavenly host seem to beat that.
The Remnant = Those who have conquered by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.
Beast of the Sea = Anti Christ - He has kingdoms under his control - A political leader who is going to come across as the great deliverer. He will oppose what God stands for. He is depicted as being powerful, cruel, fierce and swift. He will deceive the Nations
The False Prophet = Beast of the Earth - a spiritual leader - He makes an image of the beast seem to come to life. We will implement of the mark of the beast. It will be a symbol of submission to the beast and his authority.
Without it you will not be able to buy food, travel or work
It will all be done under the disguise of something - Just like the Covid passport was under the guise of Health Care and Public Safety- It was actually a human tracker ( for supposed security and health care reasons)
Isn’t it also weird how Satan uses something familiar to what God does
Doesn't the First Beast and second beast remind you of the two witnesses. One political and one Spiritual.
Satan takes and twists - He tries to create a false image of something God is doing - Deceiver and Liar.
WORLD WIDE
Fear and Intimidation will be at an all time high.
The main theme that keeps running through the book is Worship
Question:
Because of all the deception, do you actually know who you worship?
Right now you are worshipping something or somebody - Don’t be deceived.
Question - How can people be so deceived
Answer
1. They either want nothing to do with God. They would rather serve creation and its devices rather than the creator. Pride and arrogance will be there downfall.
2. Or they have weak faith coupled with weak worship.
The call is to stay alert, Worship the Lord your God Jesus. Remembering that the devil is defeated and you have a reward waiting for you in Heaven. AMEN
This next Chapter really belongs with the last two but I didn’t want to keep you for another 1/2 hour so we are finishing this section today.
Today we look at Rev 14
Revelation 14 (ESV)
Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.
And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps,
and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.
It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb,
and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless.
Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people.
And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”
Another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality.”
And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand,
he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.
And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.”
Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.
And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”
Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand.
And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.”
So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped.
Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle.
And another angel came out from the altar, the angel who has authority over the fire, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Put in your sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, for its grapes are ripe.”
So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.
And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as a horse’s bridle, for 1,600 stadia.
So this is still the interlude -some would say introduction to the rest of the story. This vision is realized in Chapters 20 and 21
OK lets break these passages down a bit.
CH 14:1-5
Isn’t it amazing how Jesus is still depicted - In his victory he is still the Lamb. In the last chapter we saw the counterfeit lamb rise out of the earth - the dragon. Here we have the true lamb of God.
Again we see the 144,000 - ( we spoke about them earlier)
12 tribes of 12,000 Jews - Spiritually pure ( represented by the word virgins) - Perfectly devoted
There is always a remnant- ( How many of you remember Elijah)
In 1st Kings 19 Elijah is running from Jezebel and he was getting discourage. In verse three he said “ I have had enough Lord” ( have any of you ever felt that way? He goes on and on and feels sorry for himself and the Lord then speaks to Him in a still small voice. Then Elijah says he is the only one left, eveeryone else seems to have fallen away. The Lord speaks to him and says, “I have reserved seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed to Baal.”
Any of you ever felt all alone spiritually, wondering where is God in all this?
These 144,000 were the first fruits of the tribulation period
They give us a sense that the church has already been raptured.
“At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book.
And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.
Sounds like the Rapture to me
This remnant of Jews are in the middle of Jerusalem surrounded by Gods presence- Zion refers to the center of Worship- In other words Gods presence. That is where we want to be - Remember this is way more than a well planned out worship service or awesome worship time. It is more than a 1/2 hour experience
Wherever Jesus goes, they go - This reminds me of the disciples - when Jesus asked them to follow him - Like Matthew they stopped what they were doing and followed Him.
Today we are asked the same thing - Follow HIM- Stop what your doing and follow the savior -your deliverer.
Again a call to Worship - God loves those who are His
CH 14:6-7 - scene moves from 144,000 to multiple angels
Now we are going to see three angels dispatched from Heaven
The first declares - Christ has come - Christ has come
There is always a Harold. John the Baptist said the same thing- Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand.
To me this represents Gods abundant grace and mercy. He always lets you know what is going on.
This is the Last call
People are told to do three things
Fear God - Prov 1. the fear of God is the beginning of knowledge and fools despise wisdom and discipline
Give him glory - It is His anyways
Worship him. - There really is no other - In Spirit and in Truth
A theologian said- Natural religion- or Religion void of the Spirit is not sufficient to keep up the fear of god, nor secure your future. It is the power of the Gospel that keeps you. AMEN. Many fall away because they have knowledge without power. Like a lamp but no oil in it. ( Good for Nothing) It is about as effective as a flashlight with no batteries.
“And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul,
and to keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord, which I am commanding you today for your good?
Behold, to the Lord your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it.
Yet the Lord set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day.
Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn.
For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe.
He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing.
Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.
You shall fear the Lord your God. You shall serve him and hold fast to him, and by his name you shall swear.
He is your praise. He is your God, who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen.
Ch 14:8-11
2nd Angel
He declares Babylon has fallen !
Question is who is Babylon
Babylon is the embodiment of 1st Century Rome - the brutal oppressor of the Jews and the Christian church. Especially when John wrote this letter.
People have said it is America- the city being Los Angeles , or San Francisco or New York - It is much bigger than America
It is also the symbol for Satan Himself - His influence and following
It is the collapse of powerful countries - or the one world government order.
We will be talking about this more as we move on in Revelations
3rd Angel
Consequences of getting the mark of the beast
The futility and fatality of worshipping the devil.
Gods wrath poured out in full strength
Torment will be like burning
It lasts forever - Some say that does not represent God so eternal punishment will not happen. It is not a biblical statement it is just how some feel. ( be careful you cannot create doctrine on what you feel or what someone on the internet told you)
The lake of fire is the final place of torment - the beast and his worshippers all tormented.
where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.
CH 14:12-13
Main Point - Resembles 13:10
Saints are called to
Endurance
Faith
Righteousness - In other words it wont be easy but it is possible
What is the outcome of this endurance - You are eternally blessed.
To die in the Lord is to be in a place of rest. ( a place of peace) it also can be translated refreshed
Happy and fortunate are those in the Lord
It is the exact opposite of what those that are Marked with the symbol of the Beast will receive.
CH 14:14-20
Final Harvest
It entails two harvests
The reaping of the earth. - to be with Christ
Jesus was given authority to bring in the Harvest AMEN
For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son,
Another Angel reaps the vine (like a grape harvest)
to the winepress they go.
“I have trodden the wine trough alone, And from the peoples there was no man with Me. I also trod them in My anger And trampled them in My wrath; And their lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments, And I stained all My raiment.
Interesting - The clusters were reaped not the vine
They believe this eludes to the armies that come against God and His Church
Conclusion
We have the assurance of Victory
“And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the Lord Will be delivered; For on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem There will be those who escape, As the Lord has said, Even among the survivors whom the Lord calls.
b. God also cries out - It is not to late !
Today is the day of salvation