1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:11,580 We're going to start in verse 21 this evening because that's about how far we made it last 2 00:00:11,580 --> 00:00:14,140 time. 3 00:00:14,140 --> 00:00:19,620 We're nearing the end here, so we'll have this message and then next week Lord willing 4 00:00:19,620 --> 00:00:26,200 will get to the section on the rider on a white horse and then we'll have the very 5 00:00:26,200 --> 00:00:31,000 fun one probably in two weeks which is all about the millennium and the thousand years 6 00:00:31,000 --> 00:00:34,900 and that's going to go over great because no one has any disagreements about that at 7 00:00:34,900 --> 00:00:36,680 all so it will be very, very straightforward. 8 00:00:36,680 --> 00:00:40,480 So if you're interested in just hearing a very straightforward, uncontroversial message 9 00:00:40,480 --> 00:00:43,680 make sure you're here in two weeks for that. 10 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:47,740 But last week we were looking at the fall of Babylon and the judgment that is coming 11 00:00:47,740 --> 00:00:52,920 upon Babylon and this week as we get into this section we see the finality of that 12 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:58,520 judgment and the interesting thing is when Babylon does ultimately fall you see that 13 00:00:58,520 --> 00:01:04,520 there's rejoicing over it, that heaven is rejoicing over it, that the elders in heaven 14 00:01:04,520 --> 00:01:09,040 are rejoicing, that the angels are rejoicing, that God's redeemed are rejoicing, that even 15 00:01:09,040 --> 00:01:10,760 the four living creatures are rejoicing. 16 00:01:10,760 --> 00:01:16,640 So you have this great destruction and this great judgment and the response is the people 17 00:01:16,640 --> 00:01:20,120 of God rejoicing because of the triumph of the Lamb. 18 00:01:20,120 --> 00:01:24,600 Now I want to start in verse 21 so if you have your Bibles the Bible says, then a mighty 19 00:01:24,600 --> 00:01:31,280 angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea saying, so will 20 00:01:31,280 --> 00:01:37,040 Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence and will be found no more and the 21 00:01:37,040 --> 00:01:43,320 sound of harpists and musicians of flute players and trumpeters will be heard in you no more 22 00:01:43,320 --> 00:01:47,840 and a craftsman of any craft will be found in you no more and the sound of the mill will 23 00:01:47,840 --> 00:01:52,880 be heard in you no more and the light of a lamp will shine in you no more and the voice 24 00:01:52,880 --> 00:01:58,960 of bridegroom and bride will be heard in you no more for your merchants were the great 25 00:01:58,960 --> 00:02:05,320 ones of the earth and all nations were deceived by your sorcery and in her was found the blood 26 00:02:05,320 --> 00:02:10,600 of prophets and saints and of all who have been slain on earth. 27 00:02:10,600 --> 00:02:14,000 Now here's something I want you to notice when you're reading these first few verses 28 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:21,680 in verse 21 especially it's interesting to notice how the judgment that comes upon Babylon 29 00:02:21,680 --> 00:02:27,080 at the end is very similar to God's judgment of the Egyptians. 30 00:02:27,080 --> 00:02:31,840 So if you keep in mind when God was leading the people of Israel out of Egypt he parted 31 00:02:31,840 --> 00:02:36,960 the Red Sea, come on guys this is Sunday school right? 32 00:02:36,960 --> 00:02:41,120 Red Sea, he parted the Red Sea and so they start walking through but the Bible says that 33 00:02:41,120 --> 00:02:43,800 the Egyptians pursued them right? 34 00:02:43,800 --> 00:02:48,880 And so once the Israelites made it through to the other side what happened? 35 00:02:48,880 --> 00:02:56,280 Yeah, waters closed back up and God swallowed up the Egyptians with the sea in judgment 36 00:02:56,280 --> 00:03:01,160 and what makes this even more interesting is if you look back I think it's in Exodus 37 00:03:01,160 --> 00:03:08,680 chapter 7 when Moses and Aaron go before Pharaoh Aaron throws down his staff and it becomes 38 00:03:08,680 --> 00:03:14,440 a snake, a serpent and then Pharaoh's magicians are able to do the same thing right? 39 00:03:14,440 --> 00:03:21,240 They have their staffs, they throw them down, they become snakes but then the staff of Aaron 40 00:03:21,240 --> 00:03:24,520 that became a snake what did it do to the other two? 41 00:03:24,520 --> 00:03:25,680 It swallowed it up. 42 00:03:25,680 --> 00:03:30,760 The same Hebrew word that's used for swallowed up there is used for the Red Sea in Gulf and 43 00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:36,000 the Egyptians and the reason that's important is because the Pharaoh was associated with 44 00:03:36,000 --> 00:03:37,000 the serpent. 45 00:03:37,000 --> 00:03:41,600 Pharaoh's used to wear a diadem that had a serpent and so you see that God's serpent 46 00:03:41,600 --> 00:03:48,040 is swallowing up in victory the serpents that the Egyptians were able to make and then 47 00:03:48,040 --> 00:03:54,880 at the end of the Egyptians God swallows them up, swallows the snake of Egypt up with the 48 00:03:54,880 --> 00:03:59,720 waters of his judgment and then you get here to Babylon and what happens? 49 00:03:59,720 --> 00:04:04,080 God swallows up the serpent once again with great waters. 50 00:04:04,080 --> 00:04:09,960 It says that Babylon will be like this millstone that's thrown into the sea and this will be 51 00:04:09,960 --> 00:04:14,760 its fall, it's engulfed in the judgment of God and if you notice the picture here is 52 00:04:14,760 --> 00:04:19,360 pretty bleak especially I think the worst part is in verse 23. 53 00:04:19,360 --> 00:04:27,200 If you look back at verse 23 it says, and the light of a lamp will shine in you no more 54 00:04:27,200 --> 00:04:31,640 and the voice of bridegroom and bride will be heard in you no more. 55 00:04:31,640 --> 00:04:37,800 Now the light of the lamp of God I think is saying will no longer shine on this world 56 00:04:37,800 --> 00:04:43,400 when the final judgment comes and I believe that this is referring to the light of Christ 57 00:04:43,400 --> 00:04:48,600 and the reason I think that is because the Bible says just two, three chapters later 58 00:04:48,600 --> 00:04:55,600 in Revelation 21 and the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it for the glory 59 00:04:55,600 --> 00:04:57,480 of God gives it light. 60 00:04:57,480 --> 00:05:05,600 And its lamp is the lamp and by its light will the nations walk and the kings of earth 61 00:05:05,600 --> 00:05:07,920 will bring their glory into it. 62 00:05:07,920 --> 00:05:13,120 So later Jesus is literally described as a lamp and so I think what these verses, what 63 00:05:13,120 --> 00:05:19,680 they're saying is that when the end comes the light of Christ is going to be removed 64 00:05:19,680 --> 00:05:25,360 from this world and they will be left to the darkness of their sin and rebellion and then 65 00:05:25,360 --> 00:05:31,360 it only gets worse from there because it literally says that the voice of the bridegroom and 66 00:05:31,360 --> 00:05:35,040 the bride will be heard no more. 67 00:05:35,040 --> 00:05:37,400 So what do we think that means? 68 00:05:37,400 --> 00:05:40,640 The voice of the bride and the bridegroom will be heard no more this time. 69 00:05:40,640 --> 00:05:48,880 What is that telling us? 70 00:05:48,880 --> 00:05:58,720 So what does it mean that their voice is heard no more? 71 00:05:58,720 --> 00:05:59,720 God doesn't speak to them? 72 00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:05,400 Yeah, I think what it's saying is that the time for grace and the time for repentance 73 00:06:05,400 --> 00:06:07,160 is over. 74 00:06:07,160 --> 00:06:12,640 That we have this short time and when the end comes it will be too late to repent. 75 00:06:12,640 --> 00:06:17,520 There will be no voice going out to proclaim the good news or to warn at that point because 76 00:06:17,520 --> 00:06:19,520 the judgment has come. 77 00:06:19,520 --> 00:06:23,360 And Jesus kind of gave us a picture of this too when he told the story of the rich man 78 00:06:23,360 --> 00:06:24,360 in Lazarus. 79 00:06:24,360 --> 00:06:25,360 Y'all remember that one? 80 00:06:25,360 --> 00:06:26,360 Yeah? 81 00:06:26,360 --> 00:06:32,160 So he says once the rich man dies he realizes his sin and he realizes what's happening to 82 00:06:32,160 --> 00:06:37,080 him and it's horrible but he finds no opportunity for repentance, does he? 83 00:06:37,080 --> 00:06:42,600 And then he hates it so much that he says well let me just go back and let me tell my friends 84 00:06:42,600 --> 00:06:46,160 and my family so that they don't have to suffer the same thing. 85 00:06:46,160 --> 00:06:49,480 And Jesus says well they already have the word of God. 86 00:06:49,480 --> 00:06:50,880 They already have the words of Moses. 87 00:06:50,880 --> 00:06:54,440 If they're not going to listen to Moses they're not going to listen to me either. 88 00:06:54,440 --> 00:06:59,320 And the whole point that Jesus is saying there is that hey once you die or once the judgment 89 00:06:59,320 --> 00:07:01,200 comes that's it. 90 00:07:01,200 --> 00:07:08,280 There is no opportunity to repent after this and it reminds us as we read this that there 91 00:07:08,280 --> 00:07:12,120 is an urgent need for repentance. 92 00:07:12,120 --> 00:07:17,920 We need to make sure that we take the opportunity to repent because our time here on earth is 93 00:07:17,920 --> 00:07:20,920 very very short. 94 00:07:20,920 --> 00:07:25,760 And nobody in this room and nobody in the rest of the world knows how much time we have 95 00:07:25,760 --> 00:07:27,120 left. 96 00:07:27,120 --> 00:07:30,880 God may give us another 50 years, praise be to God. 97 00:07:30,880 --> 00:07:33,620 But God might only give us another five years. 98 00:07:33,620 --> 00:07:36,000 God might only give us another five months. 99 00:07:36,000 --> 00:07:40,560 I mean you could be like this little boy that we have been praying for where his life was 100 00:07:40,560 --> 00:07:43,840 fine and his parents thought his whole life was ahead of him and now the doctors are 101 00:07:43,840 --> 00:07:46,120 saying he could go at any second. 102 00:07:46,120 --> 00:07:51,080 So we don't know how much time we have left but the Bible is saying there is coming a 103 00:07:51,080 --> 00:07:57,680 time when grace is cut off and all that's left is judgment and so you need to repent 104 00:07:57,680 --> 00:08:00,560 while you have the chance to repent. 105 00:08:00,560 --> 00:08:06,360 And this also tells us as Christians that we need to urge people to repent while they 106 00:08:06,360 --> 00:08:07,920 still have time. 107 00:08:07,920 --> 00:08:10,000 The church cannot be lax on this. 108 00:08:10,000 --> 00:08:16,160 I know that we live in a world today where people want to say you're okay, I'm okay, 109 00:08:16,160 --> 00:08:17,240 we're okay. 110 00:08:17,240 --> 00:08:20,680 You believe what you want to believe, I believe what I want to believe, we all just can do 111 00:08:20,680 --> 00:08:22,640 or believe whatever we want. 112 00:08:22,640 --> 00:08:27,000 And we live in a world where we don't want to call people out on their sin, right? 113 00:08:27,000 --> 00:08:28,840 Because we don't want to offend anyone. 114 00:08:28,840 --> 00:08:30,480 We don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. 115 00:08:30,480 --> 00:08:34,640 We don't want to have people not like us. 116 00:08:34,640 --> 00:08:41,520 But it's not loving to not warn people about judgment that's coming for their sin. 117 00:08:41,520 --> 00:08:46,640 In fact, not only is it not loving, I would say it's just downright hateful. 118 00:08:46,640 --> 00:08:52,080 Because if you knew that what someone was doing and the way that they were living was 119 00:08:52,080 --> 00:09:00,080 going to lead to eternal damnation, how much do you have to hate someone not to tell them? 120 00:09:00,080 --> 00:09:05,040 How much do you have to despise someone not to warn them of something that you know for 121 00:09:05,040 --> 00:09:07,280 certain is going to happen? 122 00:09:07,280 --> 00:09:11,800 And so the Bible is telling us here, you need to make sure that you repent, but as a Christian 123 00:09:11,800 --> 00:09:15,120 you need to make sure you're calling other people to repentance too. 124 00:09:15,120 --> 00:09:19,360 Because you are an ambassador for Christ here on earth, and if you don't tell them, no one 125 00:09:19,360 --> 00:09:20,920 else is going to tell them. 126 00:09:20,920 --> 00:09:24,640 And there is coming a day when it's going to be too late. 127 00:09:24,640 --> 00:09:29,720 And notice here, it says not only is the lamp of Christ removed, but it says that the voice 128 00:09:29,720 --> 00:09:34,320 of the bridegroom and the bride will be heard no more. 129 00:09:34,320 --> 00:09:37,320 And frankly, this is just terrifying. 130 00:09:37,320 --> 00:09:40,840 I think every child of a parent can relate to this. 131 00:09:40,840 --> 00:09:44,320 I think every married person can relate to this. 132 00:09:44,320 --> 00:09:47,720 Sometimes silence is more terrifying than shouting. 133 00:09:47,720 --> 00:09:48,720 Yeah? 134 00:09:48,720 --> 00:09:49,840 You've been there before? 135 00:09:49,840 --> 00:09:51,720 I know that I have. 136 00:09:51,720 --> 00:09:54,760 I remember one particular incident for me. 137 00:09:54,760 --> 00:09:57,320 I got in trouble one time in high school. 138 00:09:57,320 --> 00:10:00,080 Sorry, I said that wrong. 139 00:10:00,080 --> 00:10:03,560 That made it sound like I only got in trouble one time in high school. 140 00:10:03,560 --> 00:10:09,680 So one of the times I got in trouble in high school was in English class, and I had this 141 00:10:09,680 --> 00:10:13,120 professor or teacher, we had to do a senior project. 142 00:10:13,120 --> 00:10:20,320 And I did great on the verbal oral aspect of it, always kind of been gifted at communicating 143 00:10:20,320 --> 00:10:21,840 in that kind of way. 144 00:10:21,840 --> 00:10:22,840 And so I did great on that. 145 00:10:22,840 --> 00:10:24,360 I got 100%. 146 00:10:24,360 --> 00:10:29,160 And on the written aspect of it, I got a 50, and I was not okay with that. 147 00:10:29,160 --> 00:10:32,360 And so my English teacher at the beginning of class gave us this assignment. 148 00:10:32,360 --> 00:10:33,560 She gave us one sheet of paper. 149 00:10:33,560 --> 00:10:37,920 She said, I want you to fill up this entire sheet of paper with just your thoughts. 150 00:10:37,920 --> 00:10:39,720 This is a free writing assignment. 151 00:10:39,720 --> 00:10:44,000 So you tell me whatever you want to tell me, how you think the project went, how you think 152 00:10:44,000 --> 00:10:46,960 I did as the teacher and with the grading and all that kind of stuff. 153 00:10:46,960 --> 00:10:48,600 And I said, you got it. 154 00:10:48,600 --> 00:10:50,880 So I told her exactly how I felt. 155 00:10:50,880 --> 00:10:55,040 And I was like, how do I get 100 on the oral part, but on the stuff it's based on, I get 156 00:10:55,040 --> 00:10:56,040 a 50. 157 00:10:56,040 --> 00:10:57,040 Something's not mesh in here. 158 00:10:57,040 --> 00:10:58,760 You know, I think you've got it out for me. 159 00:10:58,760 --> 00:11:00,160 You've always had it out for me. 160 00:11:00,160 --> 00:11:02,400 And so I just, I mean, a full page of this, right? 161 00:11:02,400 --> 00:11:06,600 Just unsaved degenerate Alex at his finest. 162 00:11:06,600 --> 00:11:07,600 So I did this. 163 00:11:07,600 --> 00:11:08,600 And I turned it in. 164 00:11:08,600 --> 00:11:12,640 I'm like, next time you won't tell us to do a free writing assignment. 165 00:11:12,640 --> 00:11:17,720 And that was wrong because later that day I got a call to come to the principal's office. 166 00:11:17,720 --> 00:11:21,120 And I walk into the principal's office and there are multiple principals there. 167 00:11:21,120 --> 00:11:23,840 And there's my teacher and she's got my assignment. 168 00:11:23,840 --> 00:11:29,000 And I noticed that she's laminated it too at this point. 169 00:11:29,000 --> 00:11:32,560 So she wanted to save it because it was such good writing. 170 00:11:32,560 --> 00:11:34,120 And so she laminated it. 171 00:11:34,120 --> 00:11:39,440 And I'm looking and one of the people that was in there was my band director, Patrick 172 00:11:39,440 --> 00:11:40,440 Menari. 173 00:11:40,440 --> 00:11:42,960 You might be wondering, well, why was your band director there? 174 00:11:42,960 --> 00:11:44,940 Because he was kind of my advocate. 175 00:11:44,940 --> 00:11:50,400 He was a guy who was like a father figure to me and really invested in me. 176 00:11:50,400 --> 00:11:51,400 And he's still like that today. 177 00:11:51,400 --> 00:11:54,840 I still talk to him and keep in touch with him after all these years. 178 00:11:54,840 --> 00:11:57,440 And so he was always advocating for me at school. 179 00:11:57,440 --> 00:11:58,440 And so I see him there. 180 00:11:58,440 --> 00:12:01,520 And when I see him there, I'm like, this is really bad. 181 00:12:01,520 --> 00:12:06,520 And I look at him and he just looks at me and shakes his head disappointed. 182 00:12:06,520 --> 00:12:09,360 And he doesn't say anything. 183 00:12:09,360 --> 00:12:12,240 And I was like, Patrick, why are you here? 184 00:12:12,240 --> 00:12:13,240 And he didn't say anything. 185 00:12:13,240 --> 00:12:15,960 And I was like, are you going to do something? 186 00:12:15,960 --> 00:12:17,640 Are you going to help me here? 187 00:12:17,640 --> 00:12:19,400 And he doesn't say anything. 188 00:12:19,400 --> 00:12:22,840 And I even said at one point, it's like, Patrick, say something. 189 00:12:22,840 --> 00:12:25,400 And he just looked down and remained silent. 190 00:12:25,400 --> 00:12:30,840 And in that silence, I knew I was in big, big trouble. 191 00:12:30,840 --> 00:12:35,880 And that is kind of the picture that is being painted here in Revelation. 192 00:12:35,880 --> 00:12:41,120 When it says that the voice of the bride and the bridegroom has been removed, it's leaving 193 00:12:41,120 --> 00:12:43,360 the world to silence. 194 00:12:43,360 --> 00:12:49,320 And in that silence, they realize just how bad their situation is and how bad this judgment 195 00:12:49,320 --> 00:12:50,560 is. 196 00:12:50,560 --> 00:12:55,360 Because God has placed His people here in the world to be lights in the world and to 197 00:12:55,360 --> 00:13:00,240 be ambassadors for Christ and to call people to repent and to proclaim the good news. 198 00:13:00,240 --> 00:13:05,640 And if you ask our world, one of the things they want, they want Christians to be silent. 199 00:13:05,640 --> 00:13:06,640 Do they not? 200 00:13:06,640 --> 00:13:09,840 They want us to keep our mouths shut and just go away. 201 00:13:09,840 --> 00:13:12,000 They think it would make them happy. 202 00:13:12,000 --> 00:13:15,840 They think the world would be a better place without Christians, but they don't realize 203 00:13:15,840 --> 00:13:23,560 just how dark and bleak this world would be without the light of Christ and His bride. 204 00:13:23,560 --> 00:13:26,560 They think it would be a better place, but it would not. 205 00:13:26,560 --> 00:13:28,820 I can show you an example of this. 206 00:13:28,820 --> 00:13:32,240 You can take North Korea, for instance, right? 207 00:13:32,240 --> 00:13:37,680 Picture North Korea is a very localized glimpse of this future judgment that's coming upon 208 00:13:37,680 --> 00:13:44,240 the world when the bride and the bridegroom, their voice is removed. 209 00:13:44,240 --> 00:13:48,240 Because in North Korea, they have essentially eliminated the light of Christ and the voice 210 00:13:48,240 --> 00:13:50,160 of Christians. 211 00:13:50,160 --> 00:13:53,080 Christianity is illegal in North Korea. 212 00:13:53,080 --> 00:13:55,520 It is illegal to own a Bible. 213 00:13:55,520 --> 00:14:00,800 In fact, there have been many cases in which North Korean soldiers have killed Christians 214 00:14:00,800 --> 00:14:06,640 and they have received the North Korean Medal of Honor for killing Christians. 215 00:14:06,640 --> 00:14:11,160 If a Christian is practicing their faith, owning a Bible, or attending an underground 216 00:14:11,160 --> 00:14:18,280 secret church, he can be imprisoned or most likely publicly executed in that country. 217 00:14:18,280 --> 00:14:21,880 And so they have tried to eliminate Christianity entirely. 218 00:14:21,880 --> 00:14:24,380 And what has it done for their country? 219 00:14:24,380 --> 00:14:27,200 Has it turned them into a better country? 220 00:14:27,200 --> 00:14:32,160 Have they begun to prosper because of this getting rid of Christianity? 221 00:14:32,160 --> 00:14:34,100 No, not at all. 222 00:14:34,100 --> 00:14:38,040 You look at North Korea and the people are oppressed, they're starved, they're controlled, 223 00:14:38,040 --> 00:14:39,320 they're manipulated. 224 00:14:39,320 --> 00:14:45,560 There is no freedom, there's no ethic or morality which only comes out of Christianity. 225 00:14:45,560 --> 00:14:48,040 There's no human dignity or charity. 226 00:14:48,040 --> 00:14:51,120 And so the world thinks it'd be in their best interest to just get rid of the church and 227 00:14:51,120 --> 00:14:54,560 get rid of all the Christians, but you look at North Korea and you go, this is what the 228 00:14:54,560 --> 00:14:58,040 whole world would look like if we got rid of Christians. 229 00:14:58,040 --> 00:15:00,880 We got rid of the light of Christ and the voice of Christ in the world. 230 00:15:00,880 --> 00:15:03,400 That's exactly what our world would look like. 231 00:15:03,400 --> 00:15:09,720 The really interesting thing is that the nations that do the best in the world historically 232 00:15:09,720 --> 00:15:14,800 and are the most prosperous historically are the nations that have had a strong Christian 233 00:15:14,800 --> 00:15:16,400 influence. 234 00:15:16,400 --> 00:15:22,800 These are the nations that have strong economic policies, strong political development and 235 00:15:22,800 --> 00:15:23,800 cultural development. 236 00:15:23,800 --> 00:15:29,040 I mean, you look at an example, some European nations that have had a strong Christian influence 237 00:15:29,040 --> 00:15:35,760 have helped develop modern democratic institutions, legal systems and human rights principles. 238 00:15:35,760 --> 00:15:37,840 And it's interesting, you can do studies on this. 239 00:15:37,840 --> 00:15:43,080 The countries that were most influenced by the Protestant Reformation were the countries 240 00:15:43,080 --> 00:15:49,160 that saw the greatest strides in literacy and work ethic which led to a prosperous economy. 241 00:15:49,160 --> 00:15:54,440 In fact, if you look at the countries with the most Christian influence throughout history, 242 00:15:54,440 --> 00:16:01,720 you'll find that these countries were leaders in scientific, economic and political advancements. 243 00:16:01,720 --> 00:16:06,120 And so all of that is to say, despite what the world is telling us and despite what the 244 00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:10,880 world thinks they want, Christianity is good for the world. 245 00:16:10,880 --> 00:16:16,400 It is actually the best thing for the world because in Christianity we see the kingdom 246 00:16:16,400 --> 00:16:21,480 of God and we see the light of Christ going out into the world and we hear the voice of 247 00:16:21,480 --> 00:16:23,200 the bridegroom. 248 00:16:23,200 --> 00:16:26,720 And when you remove that, you're left with a world of darkness. 249 00:16:26,720 --> 00:16:33,080 And so for all of those reasons, you see the unbelievers in the world, they look to Christians 250 00:16:33,080 --> 00:16:35,680 and they benefit from Christians being in the world. 251 00:16:35,680 --> 00:16:38,900 Because as long as we're here, we can call them to repentance. 252 00:16:38,900 --> 00:16:42,600 As long as we're here, we can proclaim the good news of Jesus. 253 00:16:42,600 --> 00:16:46,480 As long as we're here, we can warn them of the judgment that is to come and we can tell 254 00:16:46,480 --> 00:16:50,520 them to turn in faith to Jesus. 255 00:16:50,520 --> 00:16:55,960 So when the world goes dark, it goes silent and God brings this judgment upon the world 256 00:16:55,960 --> 00:17:01,880 and then they finally get the thing that they always thought they wanted, which is a world 257 00:17:01,880 --> 00:17:02,960 without Christians. 258 00:17:02,960 --> 00:17:08,280 And at that point, they are going to realize just how bad that world is and it will be 259 00:17:08,280 --> 00:17:09,880 too late. 260 00:17:09,880 --> 00:17:14,120 And in this judgment, you see that God is repaying Babylon for her sins. 261 00:17:14,120 --> 00:17:20,560 And you see there in verse 24, it says, and in her was found the blood of prophets and 262 00:17:20,560 --> 00:17:23,920 saints and of all who had been slain on earth. 263 00:17:23,920 --> 00:17:27,160 It's interesting, this is a fulfillment of what we read about in the opening of the 264 00:17:27,160 --> 00:17:28,400 fifth seal. 265 00:17:28,400 --> 00:17:34,840 So if you look back to Revelation chapter 6, verses 9-11, it says, when he opened the fifth 266 00:17:34,840 --> 00:17:40,880 seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and 267 00:17:40,880 --> 00:17:42,920 for the witness they had borne. 268 00:17:42,920 --> 00:17:49,760 They cried out with a loud voice, O sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will 269 00:17:49,760 --> 00:17:54,240 judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth? 270 00:17:54,240 --> 00:17:59,240 And they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer until the number 271 00:17:59,240 --> 00:18:01,760 of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete. 272 00:18:01,760 --> 00:18:05,480 They were to be killed as they themselves have been. 273 00:18:05,480 --> 00:18:09,960 And so you look at this chapter, Revelation chapter 6, and you see that the martyrs and 274 00:18:09,960 --> 00:18:14,080 the saints who have been slain for their witness, they're crying out for God to avenge them. 275 00:18:14,080 --> 00:18:17,560 How long, O Lord, until you avenge our blood? 276 00:18:17,560 --> 00:18:23,560 And then you see here in Revelation 18-24, the fulfillment, the time for vindication 277 00:18:23,560 --> 00:18:26,000 and judgment has come. 278 00:18:26,000 --> 00:18:30,000 And then we read about how the great multitude in heaven respond to this. 279 00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:36,520 If you look at Revelation 19, verses 1-5, it says, after this I heard what seemed to 280 00:18:36,520 --> 00:18:43,240 be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven crying out, hallelujah, salvation and 281 00:18:43,240 --> 00:18:50,440 glory and power belong to our God, for his judgments are true and just, for he has judged 282 00:18:50,440 --> 00:18:55,480 the great prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality and has avenged on her 283 00:18:55,480 --> 00:18:57,800 the blood of his servants. 284 00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:02,920 Once more they cried out, hallelujah, the smoke from her goes up forever and ever, and 285 00:19:02,920 --> 00:19:07,120 the 24 elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated 286 00:19:07,120 --> 00:19:10,440 on the throne saying, amen, hallelujah. 287 00:19:10,440 --> 00:19:15,880 And from the throne came a voice saying, praise our God, O you, his servants, you who 288 00:19:15,880 --> 00:19:18,440 fear him, small and great. 289 00:19:18,440 --> 00:19:19,760 So what's the repeated word here? 290 00:19:19,760 --> 00:19:23,240 It's repeated three times. 291 00:19:23,240 --> 00:19:26,200 But I notice it, hallelujah, yeah, right? 292 00:19:26,200 --> 00:19:31,360 So you see three times, hallelujah, you hear it from the multitude twice, you hear it once 293 00:19:31,360 --> 00:19:37,200 from the 24 elders and the four living creatures, all of creation, the host of heaven, all of 294 00:19:37,200 --> 00:19:43,440 God's people are shouting hallelujah because they have witnessed God's vindication of 295 00:19:43,440 --> 00:19:49,960 his people and God's judgment upon the wicked and they are praising God for the glory that 296 00:19:49,960 --> 00:19:56,120 he has displayed in both salvation and judgment. 297 00:19:56,120 --> 00:20:00,280 So notice they praise him for the salvation that he's brought about for them. 298 00:20:00,280 --> 00:20:07,360 And the fact that they are praising God alone is a clear indication that salvation is entirely 299 00:20:07,360 --> 00:20:08,520 of the Lord. 300 00:20:08,520 --> 00:20:14,240 I mean, why else would he alone deserve all the praise and all the glory unless he alone 301 00:20:14,240 --> 00:20:17,640 is responsible for salvation? 302 00:20:17,640 --> 00:20:22,920 Notice here you do not see this multitude saying hallelujah, praise God for salvation 303 00:20:22,920 --> 00:20:27,000 and man for being so wise as to figure it out. 304 00:20:27,000 --> 00:20:32,960 Or praise God for salvation and man for being good enough to achieve it or striving hard 305 00:20:32,960 --> 00:20:37,240 enough to earn it or being discerning enough to choose it. 306 00:20:37,240 --> 00:20:44,920 The reason that only the Lord is mentioned is because salvation is of the Lord entirely 307 00:20:44,920 --> 00:20:47,360 of God from start to finish. 308 00:20:47,360 --> 00:20:52,640 And so he alone is deserving of our praise and our glory. 309 00:20:52,640 --> 00:20:54,960 And it's easy to praise God for salvation. 310 00:20:54,960 --> 00:20:55,960 Amen. 311 00:20:55,960 --> 00:20:57,800 Amen. 312 00:20:57,800 --> 00:21:01,320 Should we praise God for his wrath and judgment? 313 00:21:01,320 --> 00:21:05,040 Yeah, and that's where it gets hard, right? 314 00:21:05,040 --> 00:21:08,680 It's very easy to praise the Lord for salvation. 315 00:21:08,680 --> 00:21:17,200 But the Bible would teach us that anything God does is deserving of praise and worship 316 00:21:17,200 --> 00:21:22,040 because God is good all the time and he does nothing wrong. 317 00:21:22,040 --> 00:21:29,360 And his judgments here are just and true and even in judgment God displays his glory. 318 00:21:29,360 --> 00:21:31,040 And so listen to me. 319 00:21:31,040 --> 00:21:38,320 God deserves glory even for his wrath and for his judgment upon sinners. 320 00:21:38,320 --> 00:21:45,000 Anytime God displays his glory, he deserves praise and worship from his people. 321 00:21:45,000 --> 00:21:50,920 In fact, the Bible tells us that one day every knee will bow. 322 00:21:50,920 --> 00:21:57,880 And every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God, which means the 323 00:21:57,880 --> 00:22:04,360 most staunch atheist on earth right now who hates God and denies God's existence. 324 00:22:04,360 --> 00:22:09,600 And I'm already thinking of so many in my head right now who make their entire living 325 00:22:09,600 --> 00:22:15,920 bashing God and economically prospering because of their hatred for God and writing books 326 00:22:15,920 --> 00:22:17,120 against God. 327 00:22:17,120 --> 00:22:22,200 One day those same people are going to be on their knees confessing that Jesus Christ 328 00:22:22,200 --> 00:22:25,040 is Lord to the glory of God. 329 00:22:25,040 --> 00:22:31,280 Because when they see Jesus for who he is, the only thing they will be able to do is 330 00:22:31,280 --> 00:22:34,200 give him the glory he deserves. 331 00:22:34,200 --> 00:22:40,840 In fact, on that day of judgment, even the most hardened atheist when God sentences 332 00:22:40,840 --> 00:22:48,520 him to an eternity in hell will have no other response than to say, this is right. 333 00:22:48,520 --> 00:22:54,880 I deserve this because God's judgments are just and true. 334 00:22:54,880 --> 00:22:59,360 And notice that this punishment is not just a singular one time punishment. 335 00:22:59,360 --> 00:23:03,760 The Bible says here that the smoke goes up forever and ever. 336 00:23:03,760 --> 00:23:10,760 And this once again confirms to us that hell is a real place and it is a place of eternity 337 00:23:10,760 --> 00:23:13,720 eternal torment. 338 00:23:13,720 --> 00:23:16,960 And we have to say that because we've talked about this in here before, but there's a growing 339 00:23:16,960 --> 00:23:19,680 belief in our day of annihilation. 340 00:23:19,680 --> 00:23:22,320 And many of you have heard of that. 341 00:23:22,320 --> 00:23:29,480 Many of you might not have, but annihilation is basically the belief that hell is not eternal. 342 00:23:29,480 --> 00:23:34,040 God will put people in hell for a set amount of time depending on their sins. 343 00:23:34,040 --> 00:23:40,280 And then after they have suffered for the appropriate amount of time, God will annihilate 344 00:23:40,280 --> 00:23:44,280 their souls and they will cease to exist. 345 00:23:44,280 --> 00:23:50,400 Now the problem with this is if this were true, why would the smoke go up forever and 346 00:23:50,400 --> 00:23:52,240 ever? 347 00:23:52,240 --> 00:23:53,720 If there's smoke, there's fire. 348 00:23:53,720 --> 00:23:56,400 And if there's fire, there's something kindling that fire. 349 00:23:56,400 --> 00:23:57,720 Is there not? 350 00:23:57,720 --> 00:24:02,720 So the reason the smoke goes up forever and ever is because the fires of hell are eternal 351 00:24:02,720 --> 00:24:04,280 and last forever. 352 00:24:04,280 --> 00:24:10,240 And there is no way to just be in hell for a certain number of years and pay off a penalty 353 00:24:10,240 --> 00:24:13,360 that deserves eternity. 354 00:24:13,360 --> 00:24:15,480 We've said it many times in here before. 355 00:24:15,480 --> 00:24:19,000 God is infinitely holy. 356 00:24:19,000 --> 00:24:23,920 And the Bible tells us that every sin is an offense against him, which means every sin 357 00:24:23,920 --> 00:24:28,920 is infinitely offensive against an infinitely holy God. 358 00:24:28,920 --> 00:24:35,360 And the only right punishment for an infinitely offensive offense is an eternal punishment. 359 00:24:35,360 --> 00:24:38,360 That's the only way you can pay it all. 360 00:24:38,360 --> 00:24:44,360 And so this is saying that this is a reality and that God's glory is revealed in both salvation 361 00:24:44,360 --> 00:24:45,560 and judgment. 362 00:24:45,560 --> 00:24:52,600 And yet God calls his people to praise his name in both of these acts. 363 00:24:52,600 --> 00:24:57,200 And the beauty of this is that it all culminates in this marriage feast. 364 00:24:57,200 --> 00:25:00,280 You see this in verses six through 10. 365 00:25:00,280 --> 00:25:05,520 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters, 366 00:25:05,520 --> 00:25:11,440 like the sound of mighty pearls of thunder crying out, hallelujah, for the Lord our God, 367 00:25:11,440 --> 00:25:13,480 the almighty reigns. 368 00:25:13,480 --> 00:25:20,120 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory for the marriage of the lamb has come 369 00:25:20,120 --> 00:25:23,480 and his bride has made herself ready. 370 00:25:23,480 --> 00:25:27,880 It was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure. 371 00:25:27,880 --> 00:25:31,560 For the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints and the angels said to me, 372 00:25:31,560 --> 00:25:39,960 write this, blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the lamb. 373 00:25:39,960 --> 00:25:43,320 And he said to me, these are the true words of God. 374 00:25:43,320 --> 00:25:47,240 Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, you must not do that. 375 00:25:47,240 --> 00:25:52,760 I'm a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. 376 00:25:52,760 --> 00:25:54,920 Worship God. 377 00:25:54,920 --> 00:25:58,520 The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. 378 00:25:58,520 --> 00:26:03,280 So isn't it interesting that the Bible begins with what? 379 00:26:03,280 --> 00:26:05,640 A marriage, right? 380 00:26:05,640 --> 00:26:06,640 Isn't it beautiful? 381 00:26:06,640 --> 00:26:10,640 The Bible begins with a marriage in the garden and it's actually really beautiful in Hebrew 382 00:26:10,640 --> 00:26:15,840 because the way it's written is after God had created Eve, the way it's written is that 383 00:26:15,840 --> 00:26:21,720 he walked her to Adam, much like a father walks his daughter down the aisle to give her away 384 00:26:21,720 --> 00:26:23,120 in marriage. 385 00:26:23,120 --> 00:26:28,480 And so the man and the woman are united in this marriage and they have this perfect harmony 386 00:26:28,480 --> 00:26:34,560 with God, this perfect unity with God and communion with God. 387 00:26:34,560 --> 00:26:36,640 And then that's interrupted because of sin. 388 00:26:36,640 --> 00:26:44,240 And so then the whole Bible is this story of God going on a rescue mission to rescue 389 00:26:44,240 --> 00:26:47,880 and redeem his people back to himself. 390 00:26:47,880 --> 00:26:53,880 And it in the Bible ends with a marriage begins with a marriage, it ends with a marriage. 391 00:26:53,880 --> 00:26:59,040 And here you see the marriage of the Lamb and His bride. 392 00:26:59,040 --> 00:27:03,760 And they're celebrating this marriage with a marriage feast and you have these beautiful 393 00:27:03,760 --> 00:27:06,720 words that are just so treasured. 394 00:27:06,720 --> 00:27:13,120 Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb. 395 00:27:13,120 --> 00:27:14,120 Isn't that beautiful? 396 00:27:14,120 --> 00:27:18,080 Because it reminds us yet again that this is a work of God. 397 00:27:18,080 --> 00:27:23,720 Not blessed are those who attend a church every Sunday or who served as deacons or 398 00:27:23,720 --> 00:27:29,520 taught Sunday school or always wore a suit to church and had a tie. 399 00:27:29,520 --> 00:27:36,200 Blessed are those who are invited by God to this marriage supper. 400 00:27:36,200 --> 00:27:40,840 And so then we look at this passage and we can make three conclusions very quickly is 401 00:27:40,840 --> 00:27:46,640 that we can be sure that there is coming a day when God will vindicate the righteous 402 00:27:46,640 --> 00:27:50,060 and bring about a righteous judgment on the wicked. 403 00:27:50,060 --> 00:27:53,960 So if you look around the world today and you hate the evil in the world and you see 404 00:27:53,960 --> 00:28:00,200 the wickedness in the world and you desire it to be gone, your hope and your assurance 405 00:28:00,200 --> 00:28:04,200 here as a Christian is one day God will rid this world of evil. 406 00:28:04,200 --> 00:28:09,760 He will rid this world of wickedness and He will restore it to the way it should be. 407 00:28:09,760 --> 00:28:15,880 And also given that certainty we must make sure that we are warning everyone of the judgment 408 00:28:15,880 --> 00:28:21,440 that is coming and telling them to repent of their sins because when the final day does 409 00:28:21,440 --> 00:28:26,280 come there will be no opportunity for repentance after that. 410 00:28:26,280 --> 00:28:29,400 And so we need to be urgent in this cause as Christians. 411 00:28:29,400 --> 00:28:34,000 We need to make sure that we're taking evangelism seriously and sharing the good news of the 412 00:28:34,000 --> 00:28:37,480 gospel with everyone we come in contact with. 413 00:28:37,480 --> 00:28:43,000 And then we are to praise God for his glory displayed in both salvation and judgment. 414 00:28:43,000 --> 00:28:48,760 And most of all as Christians we look forward to that day when we get to celebrate the marriage 415 00:28:48,760 --> 00:28:52,480 supper of the Lamb and how sweet that day will be. 416 00:28:52,480 --> 00:28:57,280 When after all of the sufferings of this life and all the trials of this life and all the 417 00:28:57,280 --> 00:29:05,360 hardships we get to glory and we see our Savior face to face and we get to celebrate that feast 418 00:29:05,360 --> 00:29:12,880 with him and remain in perfect unity and harmony with him for all of eternity. 419 00:29:12,880 --> 00:29:17,080 It is coming today and it will happen and we look forward to it. 420 00:29:17,080 --> 00:29:45,120 Alright Gene, you give us our word of wisdom this week.