John shows us more of what is to come on the earth for those who reject the gospel of Jesus Christ. In this case the gospel is proclaimed by angels.
Revelation 14: The Lamb and the 144,000
1 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.
2 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,
3 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.
4 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,
5 and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless.
The Messages of the Three Angels
6 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.
7 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."
8 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."
9 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,
10 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 sulphur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.
11 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."
12 Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.
13 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 labours, for their deeds follow them!"
The Harvest of the Earth
14 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.
15 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."
16 So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped.
17 Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle.
18 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."
19 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.
20 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.
Revelation 15: The Seven Angels with Seven Plagues
1 Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished.
2 And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire---and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands.
3 And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, "Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations!
4 Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed."
5 After this I looked, and the sanctuary of the tent of witness in heaven was opened,
6 and out of the sanctuary came the seven angels with the seven plagues, clothed in pure, bright linen, with golden sashes around their chests.
7 And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever,
8 and the sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.
Things to think about…
1. There is no reason to think that the 144 000 in Rev 14:1-5 are not the same ones referred to in Rev 7:1-8 who were redeemed from the twelve tribes of Israel. Only here it also describes them as virgins and the first-fruits that follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These men want to emulate Christ in everything. They sing a new song, vs 3 like Moses wrote and sang a song of redemption, Dt 32:1-43, this is also a song of redemption. They are also referred to as blameless. Elders are to have this characteristic 1Tim 3:1. A very challenging thought for me. But we are all called to follow Christ and be blameless in our walk.
2. It seems the church is about to be taken out of the picture from Rev 14:6 onwards, this seems to happen at vs 14 with the harvest. Angels here are proclaiming the gospel, Rev 14:6ff and there is judgement on the earth for those who have received the mark of the beast and who worship the beast and its image, Rev 14:7-11. Christians it seems will however go through this time of tribulation, vs 12. Some will get converted during this period of tribulation – they are called ‘blessed’, vs 13 and now may rest. The church in every generation has known persecution. Certainly the 20th C to the present has seen the most intense persecution against Christians. I see in our generation a need for such persecution. Our Lord is returning for a spotless bride, at the moment she has amnesia and does not know who she is. It seems holiness is an option and that grace covers a godless lifestyle. Not true when one continues to sin against knowledge. All those who live godly will suffer persecution, 2Tim 3:12, but sadly the church in the west knows very little of this, although it seems the tide is turning in that regard.
3. The harvest will come. I believe Rev 14:14-16 is a picture of the rapture. Jesus says that the angels are the harvesters and here very powerful angels are given the authority to harvest the earth, Mt 13:39. The context in Rev 17-20 however is judgement, just as Jesus alluded to in Matt 24:36-51; Luke 17:28-37.
4. We know this will be a horrible time in Israel and especially Jerusalem. Judgement on the city, referred to as Zion, Rev 14:1 John tells us “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”, vs 20. This judgement on the Jewish nation is greater than anything we have seen or heard about in the past including the Holocaust of WW2. Jesus said, “there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, and never will be”, Mark 13:19. Many will turn to Christ, but many will be lost. Horrific!
5. Rev 15 completes the wrath of God to come upon the earth – 7 angels with 7 plagues. These are about to be poured out upon the earth in the form of seven bowls in Rev 16. As I have said earlier I believe these visions of judgement are all linked within the book of Revelation and are in many ways running concurrently with the other passages outlining the seals and trumpets. Although the judgments of the seven bowls in Rev 16 seem to form a separate final pouring out of God’s wrath where the church has been removed.
6. This scene sets up the future picture of the Millennial kingdom, “All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed”, Rev 15:4. Rev 15:5 says “tent of witness in heaven was opened”. The tent of meeting in the wilderness was where Moses would meet with the Lord and speak with Him as it were face to face. Just as people could not enter or see the face of Moses for a period because of the glory that shine from his encounter with the Lord, so too here it says “no one could enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished”, vs 8. Just as Mt Sinai was a place of judgement with the presence of the Lord so here we see a purging of the earth with the final judgment of God before He returns with his saints.
7. When reading all of these pictures of judgement we need to remind ourselves that the NT God is the same as the OT God. Our God is the same yesterday, today and forever. He does not change. Jesus is certainly a Person of grace, love, and mercy, but we must never think that this divorces Him from being the God of wrath and judgement against sin and Satan. This NT picture of the final judgement of Christ is an important part of our message that we need to take into this world as those who desire to share the glory of Christ with others in the next.
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. Health of Ross Goltz. Operation on his voice box this Wednesday.
8. More young families and youth into the church.
9. Ministry leaders within the church.
10. Our One for Israel ministry.
11. Pray for other building projects – café roof, the repair of the house roof.
12. 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. New folk becoming members of CBC
3. Worship on Sunday – thankyou worship team. Thankyou for those who welcomed at the door.
4. All those who faithfully serve in ministries, Worship, Sound/Technical/Kids Church/ Cell Groups/Admin - Bulletins/Finances/Property/Welcoming/Spiritual Leadership/Cafe
5. 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.
