Worthy is the Lamb: We Interrupt for this Special Announcement

Worthy is the Lamb • Sermon • Submitted 6 years ago

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Those who will not accept the everlasting Gospel will experience the everlasting torment of God’s wrath. This text is a preview of the great and terrible Day of the Lord.

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Text: Revelation 14:6-20

Theme: Those who will not accept the everlasting Gospel will experience the everlasting torment of God’s wrath. This text is a preview of the great and terrible Day of the Lord.

Date: 10/07/2018 File name: Resurrection32.wpd ID Number:

Revelation 14:6-20 introduces us to the great and terrible Day of the Lord. The Day of the Lord is a phrase repeatedly used by the Jewish prophets of the Old Testament. Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Zephaniah, Zechariah, and Malachi all utter prophecies of the coming of that day, and what it will be like. They are all united in that it will not be a pleasant experience. Listen to some selected prophetic verses about the Day of the Lord.

“The great day of the LORD is near— near and coming quickly. Listen! The cry on the day of the LORD will be bitter, the shouting of the warrior there. 15 That day will be a day of wrath, a day of distress and anguish, a day of trouble and ruin, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness, 16 a day of trumpet and battle cry against the fortified cities and against the corner towers. 17 I will bring distress on the people and they will walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the LORD. Their blood will be poured out like dust and their entrails like filth. 18 Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to save them on the day of the LORD’s wrath. In the fire of his jealousy the whole world will be consumed, for he will make a sudden end of all who live in the earth.”” (Zephaniah 1:14–18, NIV84)

“Woe to you who long for the day of the LORD! Why do you long for the day of the LORD? That day will be darkness, not light. 19 It will be as though a man fled from a lion only to meet a bear, as though he entered his house and rested his hand on the wall only to have a snake bite him. 20 Will not the day of the LORD be darkness, not light— pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?”(Amos 5:18–20, NIV84)

“The LORD thunders at the head of his army; his forces are beyond number, and mighty are those who obey his command. The day of the LORD is great; it is dreadful. Who can endure it?” (Joel 2:11, NIV84)

“The word of the LORD came to me: 2 “Son of man, prophesy and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: “ ‘Wail and say, “Alas for that day!” 3 For the day is near, the day of the LORD is near— a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations.” (Ezekiel 30:1–3, NIV84)

“Wail, for the day of the LORD is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty. 7 Because of this, all hands will go limp, every man’s heart will melt. 8 Terror will seize them, pain and anguish will grip them; they will writhe like a woman in labor. They will look aghast at each other, their faces aflame. 9 See, the day of the LORD is coming —a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger— to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it.” ... 11 I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless. 12 I will make man scarcer than pure gold, more rare than the gold of Ophir. 13 Therefore I will make the heavens tremble; and the earth will shake from its place at the wrath of the LORD Almighty, in the day of his burning anger. 14 Like a hunted gazelle, like sheep without a shepherd, each will return to his own people, each will flee to his native land.” (Isaiah 13:6–14, NIV84)

Well don’t these passage fill your mind with happy thoughts?! NOT!

The promise of the Day of the Lord is also repeated in the New Testament. The Apostle Peter quotes the Prophet Joel in Acts 2 in his Day of Pentecost sermon, and the Apostles Peter and Paul both refer to that Day in their epistles. In Colossians 1:8 Paul refers to it as the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Old Testament verses are remarkably similar to the events described in this morning’s passage and the subsequent wrath of God that we witness being poured out upon the earth in the next several chapters. The Day of the Lord refers to a period of time in which God will actively and visibly intervene in history. God’s people have always believed that God does intervene in history — and quite regularly, often providentially. But the Day of the Lord will be a period when even the lost cannot deny God’s hand is at work.

The Day of the Lord refers to God’s climactic future judgment of the world in preparation for the consummation of His Kingdom. It is a time when all peoples will be called to account — who did they give their allegiance to: the god of this world and his antichrist, or the God of Creation who redeems through Jesus?

As graphic as this passage is, especially vv. 14-20, John’s goal in chapter 14 is to give believers comfort and assurance. Now, just before the outpouring of God’s final judgment and the coming of the end, John is assured that the kingdom is coming, that God is in control, that the righteous will be brought into their eternal salvation where they will sing a song of redemption in heaven (vv. 1-5) and that the godless wicked will fall under divine judgment to be tormented forever and ever (vv. 6-20).

As the chapter progresses, we see and hear a series of angels delivering God’s message to the inhabitants of Earth. Each angel has a special announcement.

I. THE 1ST ANGELIC ANNOUNCEMENT — The Everlasting Gospel (vv. 6–7)

“Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every nation, tribe, language and people. 7 He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.”” (Revelation 14:6–7, NIV84)

1. today, God uses people to share His redemption story

a. it is the Church that is called to go into all the world with God’s message of salvation by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone

2. but just before the end of the Great Tribulation, before God’s last period of judgment is poured out, angels will also proclaim the gospel

a. John calls it the everlasting Gospel meaning that it is a gospel that will not fail

b. it calls men to fear God and give glory to Him, not to the Beast and Satan

1) even in the closing days of tribulation, when denying the authority of the Antichrist and his False Prophet means certain death, the Gospel is still a saving gospel that will not fail to bring repentant sinners into God’s everlasting kingdom

3. it is a message that goes out to every nation, tribe, language and people

a. it is not yet too late; final judgment has not yet fallen; there is still time to turn in repentance and find the mercy of God

ILLUS. Jesus reminded his listeners that in every generation most men are content to live on this earth without any thought of God’s imminent judgment. Jesus used the illustration of the people in Noah’s day, who ate, drank, and married up to the day Noah entered the ark and the flood carried them away (Matt. 24:38–39).

4. this is God’s final call to a world deluded by Satan

II. THE 2ND ANGELIC ANNOUNCEMENT — The Fall of Babylon (v. 8)

“A second angel followed and said, “Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great, which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries.”” (Revelation 14:8, NIV84)

1. this event — the fall of Babylon — is described in detail in chapters 17 and 18

a. so why does John mention it’s doom here?

1) from the human perspective the future is always “iffy” — we never know for sure what it will bring

2) from the divine perspective the future is “in the can” — it’s fixed and it’s sure and destined to turn out exactly as God as decreed

2. to that end John assures believers that Babylon the Great is fallen well before the actual event ever happens — it’s “in the can”

ILLUS. In Revelation 6 we hear the voice of the martyrs crying out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” Chapter 14 tells us that God’s avenging wrath is near.

3. for his Jewish readers, in particular, the imagery of the City of Babylon and its empire crumbling would have inspired a deep reassurance of God’s providential rule over His creation and His people

4. Babylon was the great enemy of Israel in Old Testament times

a. in Old Testament times, Babylon was the commercial, religious and political capital of Babylonia, which was the dominant power in the Near East in the sixth century B.C.

b. in both Jewish and Christian thought Babylon came to exemplify sin and pride and immorality, and here in the Book of Revelation “Babylon” signifies a rebellious and unrepentant world in opposition to God

1) John writes that Babylon made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries

2) the meaning behind that language is that the nations of the world are intoxicated with their rejection of God and his revelation and have turned to the worship of virtually everything but Him

c. when the Antichrist comes to power he will rule from a city that will become the commercial, religious and political capital of the world

1) over the centuries some have thought these verse mean the ancient city of Babylon will be rebuilt

2) others have thought that John uses “Babylon” as “code” to refer to Rome

ILLUS. That is certainly a possibility since Peter used Babylon as a veiled reference to Rome in 1 Peter 5:13.

3) what do I think?

5. in Revelation Babylon stands for the final apostate world civilization organized in opposition to God and the exaltation of the Antichrist

a. that apostate civilization will have a capitol city that will become the commercial, religious and political center of the world from which the Antichrist will rule

1) but I also believe that limiting the reference to the cities of Babylon and Rome as the most typical representatives of depravity in John’s day puts restrictions on the message of Revelation

2) it could well be any of the great mega-metropolises of today’s world

6. the important message is that this apostate civilization is going to be crushed by the power of God

III. THE 3RD ANGELIC ANNOUNCEMENT — The Everlasting Judgment (vv. 9–13)

“A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, 10 he, too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name.” 12 This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God’s commandments and remain faithful to Jesus. 13 Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.”” (Revelation 14:9–13, NIV84)

1. just as there is an everlasting gospel to be believed there is an everlasting judgment to be avoided

a. the universal call to repentance is followed by a statement of the doom of those who refuse to repent

b. their fate is judgment and torment

2. in the seven vials of judgment that takes place in chapters 15-18 we have the pouring out of the wrath of God

a. it will be like “wine without mixture”; that is, it is undiluted there will be no grace or mercy mingled with His wrath

3. this angel warns the unrighteous that all who wear the mark of the Beast will suffer eternal torments without rest or relief

a. in this passage the wrath of God takes on frightening proportions

1) men who drink the cup of God’s wrath, will burn inwardly as it affects their souls day and night, and outwardly as they experience burning fire and smell the stench of sulfur forever

2) no wonder the author of Hebrews writes, It is frightening to fall into the hands of the living God (Heb. 10:31)

4. this angel also comforts the righteous, those who receive the mark of God, that blessed are the dead who die in the Lord — particularly from this moment on

a. there is a striking contrast in the destinies of the followers of the Beast and the followers of the Lamb

1) the believers will rest from their labors and be blessed

2) the unbelievers will have no rest and their torment will be 24-7 for eternity

b. certainly during the last 3½ years of the Great Tribulation it will take patient endurance on the part of the saints and to obey God's commandments and remain faithful to Jesus (vs. 12)

IV. THAT DAY Fighting of the Battle of Armageddon (vv. 14:14–20)

1. in vs. 14 that “special announcements” to the inhabitants of the world are finished

a. one last moment is given for sinners to repent of sin and turn to Christ

2. John sees Christ on a white cloud, coming with a sickle to reap the harvest of the earth

a. it is a picture of the aforementioned judgment come to fruition

b. when Jesus came in the flesh, He came as a Sower of the seed; but people — by and large — rejected the seed of the Word (Matt. 13:3–23)

1) instead, they received Satan’s lies

c. now Christ comes as a Reaper of the harvest, bringing judgment to the world

3. God knows just when to judge; He patiently waits for the seeds of iniquity to come to fruition

ILLUS. It is time for the harvesters to pull up the tares to be burned and store the wheat.

a. the description in these verses is of the Battle of Armageddon

“Come quickly, all you nations from every side, and assemble there. Bring down your warriors, O LORD! 12 “Let the nations be roused; let them advance into the Valley of Jehoshaphat, for there I will sit to judge all the nations on every side. 13 Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, trample the grapes, for the winepress is full and the vats overflow— so great is their wickedness!” 14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. 15 The sun and moon will be darkened, and the stars no longer shine. 16 The LORD will roar from Zion and thunder from Jerusalem; the earth and the sky will tremble. But the LORD will be a refuge for his people, a stronghold for the people of Israel.” (Joel 3:11–16, NIV84)

b. this will be the climatic battle in the history of the world (Revelation 16:12-16)

1) that men think they might actually defeat God is a monument to the depravity of man and the delusion of the Antichrist

V. LESSONS AND APPLICATION

A. God Will Establish His Kingdom on Earth in Spite of Satan’s Opposition

1. the day of the Lord is a day of God's vindication

a. in the battle between evil and God, it is God who is victorious

2. He is the ultimate power to whom is given the final word and against whom no force can stand

“The arrogance of man will be brought low and the pride of men humbled; the LORD alone will be exalted in that day,” (Isaiah 2:17, NIV84)

B. Those Who Reject the Gospel of the Grace of God Today Will Face Awful Judgment Tomorrow

1. it is better to die for Christ’s sake and have eternal glory than to live for the devil and suffer eternally

a. when the lost hear the gospel they can respond ardently or apathetically, obediently or defiantly

b. there is no middle ground

2. the message of the Day of the Lord is that evil be trounced and evildoers will in the end receive their due

a. there is justice after all

b. God will settle his accounts with all that is godless and anti-God, arrogant and pridefully hostile against the Almighty

C. The Nations of the World Are Today Taking the Path to Armageddon

1. this is happening whether they know it or not

2. history is providentially moving exactly to where God intends for it to go

a. Christians can rejoice in that

In view of the coming Day of the Lord the question the Apostle Peter asks is relevant: "What kind of people ought you to be?" (2 Peter 3:11)

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