Babylon judged, Christ reigns 1000 years and the great white throne judgement
John shows us the end of this age and the beginning of the Millennial age on earth.
Revelation 18: The Fall of Babylon
1 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was made bright with his glory.
2 And he called out with a mighty voice, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a dwelling place for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast.
3 For all nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living."
4 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;
5 for her sins are heaped high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.
6 Pay her back as she herself has paid back others, and repay her double for her deeds; mix a double portion for her in the cup she mixed.
7 As she glorified herself and lived in luxury, so give her a like measure of torment and mourning, since in her heart she says, 'I sit as a queen, I am no widow, and mourning I shall never see.'
8 For this reason her plagues will come in a single day, death and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for mighty is the Lord God who has judged her."
9 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.
10 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."
11 And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo anymore,
12 cargo of gold, silver, jewels, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, scarlet cloth, all kinds of scented wood, all kinds of articles of ivory, all kinds of articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble,
13 cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human souls.
14 "The fruit for which your soul longed has gone from you, and all your delicacies and your splendours are lost to you, never to be found again!"
15 The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud,
16 "Alas, alas, for the great city that was clothed in fine linen, in purple and scarlet, adorned with gold, with jewels, and with pearls!
17 For in a single hour all this wealth has been laid waste." And all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off
18 and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning, "What city was like the great city?"
19 And they threw dust on their heads as they wept and mourned, crying out, "Alas, alas, for the great city where all who had ships at sea grew rich by her wealth! For in a single hour she has been laid waste.
20 Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given judgment for you against her!"
21 Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, "So will Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence, and will be found no more;
22 and the sound of harpists and musicians, of flute players and trumpeters, will be heard in you no more, and a craftsman of any craft will be found in you no more, and the sound of the mill will be heard in you no more,
23 and the light of a lamp will shine in you no more, and the voice of bridegroom and bride will be heard in you no more, for your merchants were the great ones of the earth, and all nations were deceived by your sorcery.
24 And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all who have been slain on earth."
Revelation 19: Rejoicing in Heaven
1 After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out, "Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
2 for his judgments are true and just; for he has judged the great prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality, and has avenged on her the blood of his servants."
3 Once more they cried out, "Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up forever and ever."
4 And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated on the throne, saying, "Amen. Hallelujah!"
5 And from the throne came a voice saying, "Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, small and great."
The Marriage Supper of the Lamb
6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.
7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready;
8 it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure"---for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.
9 And the angel said to me, "Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb." And he said to me, "These are the true words of God."
10 Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, "You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God." For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
The Rider on a White Horse
11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.
12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself.
13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God.
14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses.
15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.
16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.
17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, "Come, gather for the great supper of God,
18 to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great."
19 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army.
20 And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.
21 And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.
Revelation 20: The Thousand Years
1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain.
2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,
3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.
4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection.
6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.
The Defeat of Satan
7 And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison
8 and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea.
9 And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them,
10 and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Judgment Before the Great White Throne
11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them.
12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.
13 And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done.
14 Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.
15 And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Things to think about…
1. Revelation 18 displays the general judgement of Babylon but also gives a general warning before the end comes in Rev 18:4&5 saying “Come out of her my people…”. I believe the church has been taken out during the tribulation and there will finally be judgement on the rest of the world where there is no grace to repent. But here we see the call for the Lord’s people to come out. Judgement will be swift, Rev 18:8&10. This final evil global system will develop very quickly and the Lord’s people are called to watch and listen “he who has ears, let him hear”.
2. Look at all the things that are listed as being traded in this end times economic environment, Rev 18:12-16. Remember this is a first century description. Who knows what John saw but the fact that trading is able to cease within an hour suggests something very quick. We know that a global stock market crash would cause a result where “no one buys their cargo anymore”, Rev 18:11. Ultimately the Lord’s hand of judgement is behind this “crash” rather than economic forces alone. The significant stock market crashes have been in 1929 that led to the Great Depression, the 1987 crash and more recently in 2008 that led to the global financial crises. The one at the end of the age is part of God’s judgement on greed and godlessness.
3. The saints, apostles and prophets in heaven are called to rejoice, Rev 18:20, I believe this is possible because at this point there are no longer any saints on the earth. I believe it is a literal city – perhaps Rome, certainly the blood of martyrs was shed in this city, but the city represents all who will be slain on the earth at this time Rev 18:24.
4. Revelation 19:1-10 is another view from heaven of the time where the Lamb is getting ready to return and His bride has made herself ready, Rev 19:7. We are called to be prepared and prepare ourselves. While the Lord makes us clean we are called ‘to be holy as He is holy’. This is heaven’s view and description of the church the bride of Christ “it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure"---for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints”, vs 8. While we are not saved by works there should be evidence of grace through faithful works of service. This is our fine linen.
5. John is overwhelmed and bows down to an angel for the second time, Rev 19:10. I think we would all be in danger of doing the same if we had seen such a vision.
6. If you want a glorified view of Christ and a true image of the God and Saviour we worship take a look at Rev 19:11-21. Christ had an earthly ministry where he came as gentle as a lamb and was led as a lamb to the slaughter. That is not the case here. He is the avenging God who slays “with the sword of His mouth”, Rev 19:21.
7. Rev 20 is one of those chapters in scripture that has caused much discussion and disagreement among commentators. Some believe we are in the Millennium now, this is called the Amillennial position. Others believe we are approaching the Millennium and will see a glorious age for 1000 years and then Jesus we come back, this is the Post Millennial view. Then there are those that believe Jesus will return and rule and reign on earth in Jerusalem and this will be for a period of 1000 years. This is the Premillennial view. I subscribe to this Premillennial view. I believe it best satisfies the rest of scripture, and the prophecies found both in the Old and New Testaments. Jesus will set up His kingdom as the Christ in Jerusalem in fulfillment of Ezekiel 47, 48. He will rule and reign from there for 1000 years and all the nations will come, bow down and bring Him glory so their nations will be blessed.
8. Regardless of the Millennial position one holds too, the end result is the same – the Great White Throne Judgement – Rev 20:11-15. Let’s preach the gospel and pray that many will be found written in the book of life, vs 12 and be part of the first resurrection, vss 5, 6. Eternal punishment is a horrible truth, but a truth nonetheless. It is a great shame on the church that this doctrine and the reality of sin is not preached the way we see it in the Word of God. Pray especially this time of year that salvation in Christ is the only thing that is exalted.
Vision statement for CBC
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
Prayer Points
1. Pray for pledges for finances for the youth and young adults pastor role. $38, 600 has come in so far. Next week final week of collection.
2. Carols service 18th December – Family fun Day afternoon/evening 3pm-7pm.
3. Christmas Day Service 25th Dec – on a Sunday this year – service will start at 9:00am.
4. Pray for the leadership of our country.
5. Pray for the people of Iran and Ukraine.
6. The right choice for a full time Youth and Young Adults Pastor to start Jan 2023 and the finances to support them.
7. More young families and youth into the church.
8. Ministry leaders within the church.
9. Our One for Israel ministry.
10. Pray for other building projects – café roof, the repair of the house roof.
11. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to remain and increase.
Praise Points
1. Thankyou to those who have supported the church and youth and young adults role - $38, 600 raised thus far.
2. Wouk being done in the house and café. Thankyou especially to Rob Brand and James Smith.
3. New folk becoming members of CBC
4. Worship on Sunday – thankyou worship team. Thankyou for those who welcomed at the door.
5. All those who faithfully serve in ministries, Worship, Sound/Technical/Kids Church/ Cell Groups/Admin - Bulletins/Finances/Property/Welcoming/Spiritual Leadership/Cafe
6. Joy, peace and grace we see at CBC. Thankyou Lord
Announcements
1. Pledges being taken until 11Dec to assess level of support for Youth Ministry Leader.
2. Family fun day/Carols night 3-7pm 18th Dec – Book it in. Invite people flyers
3. Christmas Day service – 9am Dec 25th.
4. Remember to check your duty rosters.
5. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
6. Tune in again this week on our youtube page. Subscribe to the CBC channel Chuwar Baptist YouTube channel.
Catechism questions for December...
Q. 3. Why did God make you and all things? A. For his own glory.
