Worship the Creator, Nor the Creation

in
 

REVELATION 19:6-10

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 ENDING OF ONE CITY AND THE ARRIVAL OF THE OTHER

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.

These verses move us from the fall of Babylon to the arrival of the New Jerusalem.

I find it so interesting that John tries to worship his angelic guide, much to the angel’s horror! Why shouldn’t angels be worshipped in their majesty and glory? Because angels—no matter how majestic and glorious—are created things, and it’s wrong to worship any- thing except the Creator.

To worship the Creation rather than the Creator is idolatry, and it is the way of death.

Don’t miss the opportunity to praise and thank the Lord today for all his blessings.

 

Hallelujah!

in
 

REVELATION 19:1-5

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!” And from the throne came a voice saying,
“Praise our God, all you his servants,
you who fear him, small and great.”

 
 

Today in our reading of Revelation we finally get to the point toward which the entire book has been proceeding, where what John has seen in heaven (chapters 4-5) comes to earth: the Second Coming of Jesus.

 

Looks Can Be Deceiving

in
 

REVELATION 18:21-24

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.”

 
 

Note the contrast between all the marks of wealth and luxury, on the one hand, with the martyrdom of the prophets and saints on the other.

In this world, it often looks like the people of God have lost.

Don’t be deceived—death isn’t the end for God’s faithful ones.

Keep going.

God's Judgment of Evil Systems

in
 

REVELATION 18:9-20

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, frankin cense, 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 splendors
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?”
19And 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!”

 
 

Again—and this point is very uncomfortable for affluent American Christians like me—note how one of the marks of the evil empire is its great wealth, wealth that was derived from exploitative economic practices. It’s like the Capital in The Hunger Games—its citizens live in luxury that was only possible because other people were in poverty.

One of the messages of Revelation is that God’s Judgment will ultimately bring down such evil systems.

And the message to me today is to remember that wealth is fleeting and true joy comes from knowing God.

 

The Lure of Luxury

in
 

REVELATION 18:4-8

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.”

 
 

In Chapter 3, Jesus warns the church in Sardis not to be self-satisfied or corrupted by wealth. Here we see that one of the ways that the woman (i.e., Rome) maintained power was through the corrupting influence of luxury and wealth.

Remember the warning of Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel: “where your treasure is, there your heart will be.” [Matthew 6:21]

In what way do you and I need to repent from loving luxury and wealth more than God today?

 

From What Do You Need to Repent Today?

in
 

REVELATION 18:1-3

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.”

 
 

In Revelation 18, John sees the fall of the system that is opposed to God:

• 18:1-3, An angel pronounces judgment on Babylon;
• 18:4-20, A voice from heaven predicts the fall of Babylon;
• 18:21-24, An angel pronounces judgment on Babylon a second time;
• 19:1-8, Voices in heaven praise God for the fall of Babylon.

In the plot of Revelation, we are now within the final judgments, when all evil is being brought to account. At this point in the vision, it’s too late to repent and turn.

The good news is that it’s not too late for us and our world—the final judgment that John sees has not yet happened here.

FROM WHAT DO YOU NEED TO REPENT TODAY?

 

How to Use Your Decoder Ring

in
 

REVELATION 17:6b-18

When I saw her, I marveled greatly. 7 But the angel said to me, “Why do you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. 8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come. 9 This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven moun- tains on which the woman is seated; 10 they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. 11 As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. 12 And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. 13 These are of one mind, and they hand over their power and authority to the beast. 14 They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”

15 And the angel said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages. 16 And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the prostitute. They will make her desolate and naked, and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire, 17 for God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. 18 And the woman that you saw is the great city that has dominion over the kings of the earth.”

 
 

The angel is here explaining the vision to John, so that he understands clearly that the woman is Roman culture and commerce, riding on the back of Roman military power. The references to mountains and heads and horns are all images relating to Roman political history.

The point is that the woman is evil and persecutes the Church of Jesus, but that Jesus will win in the end, and evil will turn against itself.

Once again: don’t be afraid. Keep going.

P.S. Is this chapter about the historical city of Rome at the time of John’s vision, or is “Rome” a symbol for all governments and empires who are opposed to the Kingdom of God, both at the time John was writing and in the future?

Yes.

P.P.S. Note that the city is never called “Rome” in Revelation, but rather is referred to as “Babylon.” In other words, although John is speaking to Christians under the Roman Empire in the 1st century, he is using the image of an ancient enemy of Israel to explain what Rome is like. All the more reason to understand Revelation to be both speaking to John’s 1st century audience and to God’s people of all times and places.

 

The Whore's Allure

in
 

REVELATION 17:1-6a

Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, 2 with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.” 3 And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. 5 And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.” 6 And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.

 
 

Richard Bauckham has a helpful summary of what John is telling us in Revelation chapters 17-18:

“The book of Revelation uses two major, complementary images of the evil power of Rome. One is the sea-monster (‘the beast’), introduced in chapter 13. It represents imperial power, the Roman Emperors as a political institution, and in particular their military might, on which the Roman empire was founded. The other image is of the great city Babylon, first named in 14:8, and then portrayed as a woman, ‘the great harlot,’ in chapter 17. Babylon is the city of Rome (built on the seven hills: 17:9) and in particular the city of Rome as a corrupting influence on the peoples of the empire. Chapter 17 brings the two images together: the harlot is enthroned on the seven heads of the beast (17:3, 9-10). In other words, Roman civilization, as a corrupting influence, rides on the back of Roman military power. The city of Rome grew great through military conquest, which brought wealth and power to the city, and its economic and cultural influence spread through the world in the wake of the imperial armies. John never forgets that Rome’s power is founded on war and conquest, but he also recognizes that it cannot be reduced to this. As well as the irresistible military might of the beast, there are the deceptive wiles of the great harlot.”

—Richard Bauckham, The Climax of Prophecy

 

In Revelation 17-18, John uses a startling image to describe Rome—as a prostitute. In John’s vision, Roman economic power and wealth have the seductive allure of a prostitute, but he wants his people to know that Roman prosperity comes on the back of Roman conquest and war. This language is striking:

1b “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, 2 with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.” 3 And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. 5 And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth's abominations.” 6 And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. [Revelation 17:1-6.]

The woman rides on the beast, because Roman wealth comes from Roman conquest.

An important insight that John sees is that wealth and materialism can make you drunk—she holds a cup that looks good on the outside, but on the inside is the vilest filth.

Our global economic system can be like that, can’t it? Think of the ways that some of our economic practices enrich the people at the top but exploit the ones at the bottom.

It is important that we don’t allow wealth and the pursuit of wealth to corrupt us and pull us away from faithfulness to the gospel.

 

Babylon Brought Down

in
 

REVELATION 16:17-21

17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, “It is done!” 18 And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake. 19 The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered Babylon the great, to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath. 20 And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found. 21 And great hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, fell from heaven on people; and they cursed God for the plague of the hail, because the plague was so severe.

 
 

The Final Judgment has arrived. And Babylon, which has appeared invincible, is finally brought down.

Don’t be deceived today—God wins. And anything and everything opposed to his Kingdom will fall.

 

The 7 Bowls

in
 

I’m teaching 6 Bible studies on Revelation in Q1 of 2023, and this week is #5! Our topic: Why I Do Not Believe “The Rapture” Is a Biblical Doctrine.

Yeah baby. You know you’re curious. 6:30 PM TOMORROW (3/1), with dinner beforehand. Families, bring your kids! (As always, livestream available.)

 
 
 

REVELATION 16:1-7

1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”
2 So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and harmful and painful sores came upon the people who bore the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.
3 The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became like the blood of a corpse, and every living thing died that was in the sea.
4 The third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water, and they became blood. 5 And I heard the angel in charge of the waters say,
”Just are you, O Holy One, who is and who was,
for you brought these judgments.
6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink.
It is what they deserve!”
7 And I heard the altar saying,
“Yes, Lord God the Almighty,
true and just are your judgments!”

 
 

There are 3 sets of 7 judgments in Revelation, and each one is a further ex- planation of the one before, though they are each about the same thing: the judgments from God that precede the Second Coming. Each way of talking about the 7 judgments is meant to show a different aspect of God’s judgment.

Today, we read of the beginning of the final series of 7 judgments: the 7 bowls.

Each of these bowls pours out a plague on the earth, just like the plagues of Egypt so many centuries before.

In the previous two series of 7 judgments (the seals and the trumpets) there has been a pause between #6 and #7 in which John tells us about the church.

Here, there is no pause, but just a message from Jesus: “Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed!”

The reason there is no pause is because it’s now time for the end to come. The church has been testifying to the truth, and at this point it’s too late to repent. Look at what happens at the 7th bowl:

“they cursed God for the plague of the hail, because the plague was so severe.”

If these plagues—coupled with the church’s message—won’t cause people to repent, then nothing will.

 

Diversity Is the Means, Not the End in Itself

in
 

I’m teaching 6 Bible studies on Revelation in Q1 of 2023, and this week is #5! Our topic: Why I Do Not Believe “The Rapture” Is a Biblical Doctrine.

Yeah baby. You know you’re curious. 6:30 PM Wednesday (3/1), with dinner beforehand. Families, bring your kids! (As always, livestream available.)

 
 
 

REVELATION 15:1-8

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.

 
 

What is God’s plan for history? How will the Kingdom come?

God gave John his vision so that the Church would know the answer to that question.

The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus defeated evil and launched the Church. The Holy Spirit came to incorporate people of all nations into the Church, and not just the Jews.

As we read through the New Testament, we see the Church made up of believers from—in the language of Revelation—every nation, tribe, people, and language.

That alone is of utmost importance.
But Revelation tells us something electrifying:

Namely that the multi-ethnic church is not the goal—it is the means to the end.

In Revelation 15, John compares the victory of God at the end of history to the victory of God over the Egyptians in the days of the Exodus; in other words, John sees a new and greater Exodus.

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.”

The new song the people sing is not just the song of Moses (as in Exodus) but also the song of the Lamb, because it is the death of the Lamb (i.e. the death of Jesus) that has won the victory. And what has that victory achieved?

“That all nations will come and worship” the Lord.

Revelation reveals that the reason the Lord created a multi-ethnic church was so that the multi-ethnic church would evangelize the multi-ethnic world.

 

A CHURCH FROM ALL NATIONS FOR ALL NATIONS

Richard Bauckham, as usual, puts it perfectly:
“In 15:2-4 the martyrs celebrate the victory God has won through their death and vindication, not by praising him for their own deliverance, but by celebrating its effect on the nations, in bringing them to worship God. This gives a fresh significance to the earlier use of new exodus imagery with reference to the Lamb’s victory, in which by his death he ransomed a people from all the nations to be a kingdom and priests for God (5:9-10). We now see that this redemption of a special people from all the peoples is not an end in itself, but has a further purpose: to bring all the peoples to acknowledge and worship God. The immediate effect of the Lamb’s own victory was that his bloody sacrifice redeemed a people for God. But the intended ultimate effect is that this people’s participation in his sacrifice, through martyrdom, wins all the peoples for God. This is how God’s universal kingdom comes and the concluding verse of the song of Moses [in Exodus] is fulfilled: ‘The Lord will reign forever and ever’ (Exodus 15:18).”

— Richard Bauckham, The Climax of Prophecy

 

OTHER QUICK POINTS ON REVELATION 15

  • John portrays the conversion of the nations in several different ways: in 11:3-13 it’s the result of the testimony of the two witnesses; in chapter 14 it is through the image of the harvest; here, it’s the image of a new exodus.

  • The sea of glass is mixed with fire as a sign of heavenly judgment.

  • The seven bowls are the final judgment and there is no more delay from this point on because the church has been created and God’s purposes have been realized.

  • In v. 5, heaven is opened so that God’s glory can be seen in the midst of the final judgment.

  • In v. 8, we see that God’s glory in heaven is manifested as wrath on earth, and vice versa.

 

Choose Your Own Adventure

in
 

REVELATION 14:14-20

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.

 
 

Today, we read about the effect the church’s/martyrs’ testimony will have on the nations. There are two possible outcomes to the church’s/ martyrs’ testimony. The first is a positive outcome:

1. The nations will repent and be gathered into the kingdom in a great harvest (14:14-16).

The second possible outcome is negative:

2. The nations will refuse to repent, and will be judged along with the beast in the winepress of the wrath of God (14:17-20).

Which will it be? John doesn't tell us—he just describes the two possibilities.

 

Quick Recap of What We've Read So Far

in
 

REVELATION 14:6-13

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 sulfur 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 labors, for their deeds follow them!”

 
 

To recap:

  • Judgments alone do not produce repentance (see Revelation 9:20-21).

  • Jesus creates the church to tell the truth—to bear witness—to the unbelieving nations, and the church’s testimony and truth-telling even unto death actually leads people to repent and give glory to God (see the Parable of the Two Witnesses in Revelation 11:3-13)!

  • The church faces great opposition and persecution from evil (see Revelation chapters 12 and 13)—the battle between the church and evil is THE struggle in history.

 

The Spotless Ones

in
 

REVELATION 14:1-5

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.

 
 

God’s people—the church—are portrayed in John’s vision like a Messianic army. Note the detail about how they refrain from sex—just like David’s army in the Old Testament, they are a holy army. They have spiritual power and are facing off against the beast and his lies.

Here, they are gathered on Mount Zion—the traditional center of God’s power and presence in the Old Testament—as they make their stand against the beast.

They fight by their commitment to the truth; just like the sacrificial lambs in the Old Testament, they are “blameless” (literally, “spotless”).

 

The Mark of the Beast, 666, etc.

in
 

REVELATION 13:11-18

11 Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. 12 It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. 13 It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, 14 and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. 16 Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, 17 so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. 18 This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.

 
 

WHY THE MONSTERS ARE IMPORTANT

The Church—the people of God—has an important role to play in God’s plan to bring the Kingdom from heaven to earth, but the Church will be fighting evil every step of the way.

In his vision, John has spiritual insight into the nature of the evil that the church will be fighting. By knowing these details, we know the nature of the fight and what it means to “conquer".

Some key insights:
• Anything other than God that demands worship or complete allegiance is evil and must be resisted, even to the point of death.

• Evil is cunning and often appears at first just slightly different from Christ, hence the term (found not in Revelation itself, but in the letters of John in the Bible) “antichrist.” The beast, for example, seems to come back from the dead, seems invincible, seems the source of peace. All these things are lies and twistings of the truth.

• Deceit and death are the two weapons of the monsters in Revelation: they lie and they kill. Christians defeat the beast by living by the truth even to the point of death, thereby showing the beast is not actually all-powerful.

MONSTER GLOSSARY

• The dragon/serpent is the source of evil itself, i.e. the devil or Satan;

• The beast (from the sea) is the Roman Empire;

• The second beast (on the land) is the Roman imperial cult, i.e., the system of worshipping the Roman emperor through temples and ceremonies in cities across the empire;

• 666 is a numerical code for Nero Caesar.

THE MARK OF THE BEAST

In Deuteronomy 6, the Lord tells his people the importance of remembering his law and their identity:

6:1 These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan
to possess, 2 so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life. 3 Hear, Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you.

4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

“Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.” In other words, God wants his people to be committed to remembering his instructions.

The mark of the beast is the opposite of this—it’s the sign that you are committed to the beast. Without the mark, you can’t even engage in commerce. In the Roman Empire, unless you were willing to worship through the imperial cult (the second beast), you were often shut out of a city’s commerce. One of the ways the beast exercises control is to make it harder for God’s people to make money unless they publicly renounce their identity as the people of God.

THE NUMBER 666

The Jews practiced something called gematria, whereby a person’s name had a numerical value, based on the numerical value assigned to each letter. 666 is the number you get when you spell out NERO CAESAR in Hebrew letters.

After Nero killed himself in AD 68, there were rumors that he wasn’t really dead but would come back stronger than before. John is playing with these legends to get us to understand the evil that is often at work behind earthly forms of power.

WHO OR WHAT IS THE BEAST TODAY?

The power of John’s images is that they help us see reality from a spiritual perspective. We no longer have to fight against the Roman Empire or Nero Caesar, but the beast is still on the prowl. Any rivals that claim complete control and power are the beast. The Soviet Union was the beast; the Chinese Communist Party is the beast. The mark of the beast? To take a contemporary example, think of the social-credit system that is being developed in China, or the so-called “surveillance capitalism” that is already here.

How do we defeat the beast in our time? In the same way as in John’s vision: by our commitment to the truth about the world and about Jesus, even to the point of death.

Will a final greater beast come before the end? Seems likely. But, we should not be afraid—we know it will be defeated!

 

Who Is The Beast?

in
 

REVELATION 13:1-10

And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. 2 And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. 4 And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”

5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 7 Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, 8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain. 9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear:

10 If anyone is to be taken captive,
to captivity he goes;
if anyone is to be slain with the sword,
with the sword must he be slain.
Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.

 
 

Today we read Revelation 13:1-10 and look at “the beast” in detail. As with everything else in this sophisticated book, some of what I’ll point out below only really makes sense when you read the whole thing through more than once.

WHO IS THE BEAST?
13:1 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. 2 And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. 4 And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”

The beast comes from the sea, the source of chaos and evil in the Jewish imagination.

Allow me to point out the obvious, but by seeing the beast’s origin from the sea, John knows that it is evil, despite its lies.

The strange description of the beast alludes to and is a combination of the four beasts described by the Old Testament prophet Daniel in his vision (Daniel 7).

THE MORTAL WOUND OF THE BEAST=
THE YEAR OF 4 EMPERORS

We’ll see later in this chapter (the famous 666) that the beast represents the Roman Empire, specifically the Emperor Nero. This historical detail is behind the mention of the mortal wound in v. 3

One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast.

This is a reference to what happened in AD 69, the so-called Year of the Four Emperors. After Nero committed suicide in AD 68, there was civil war in the empire and revolt on its borders. For many people, it seemed that the power of Rome was at its end. But, Vespasian (the 4th of the emperors in AD 69) became emperor, consolidated power, and started a new dynasty. Rome seemed stronger than ever.

It looked as if the empire had a “mortal wound” when Nero killed himself, but it actually kept going.

People always worship power, and here is no exception—Rome seemed invincible.

THE BEAST’S PERSECUTION OF THE CHURCH

5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 7 Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, 8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain. 9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear:
10 If anyone is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes;
if anyone is to be slain with the sword, with the sword must he be slain.
Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.

Catch the breadcrumb John left for us?

Remember that whenever you see the time marker “42 months” or “1,260 days” or “a time, times, and half a time,” those are little bread crumbs that John has left for us to tell us he is talking about the same period each time, i.e., the period of the Church’s opposition and persecution.

So, John sees how the beast is persecuting the Church and demanding allegiance, and he tells the Church: be courageous, and don’t give in.

 

Michael Fights the Dragon

in
 

REVELATION 12:7-17

Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world— he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!”

13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. 15 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. 16 But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. 17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea.

 
 

The point of John’s vision is to baptize your imagination so you can learn to see clearly the events of history and your life from God’s perspective.

So, the wild imagery is meant to wake you up!

John sees the devil defeated in heaven and thrown down to earth. In other words, Jesus has already won the victory, and what remains is its working out here below. In the meantime, the devil is persecuting the church but it’s too late and ineffective anyway, because the church is protected by God.

Remember what Jesus promised to Peter?
“I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it!”

Regardless of how things look, friends, be confident: Jesus has already won, and evil will not last.

 

Who is the Dragon?

in
 

REVELATION 12:1-6

And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. 2 She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. 3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. 4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. 5 She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, 6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days.

 
 

SOME BACKGROUND

Here are a few key points:

• The time descriptors of “1,260 days” or “42 months” or “a time, times, and half a time” are all key apocalyptic numbers which refer to the same time period: the period of the Church’s persecution and opposition.

• Therefore, any time those terms appear you should understand that John is describing some aspect of the Church’s persecution as it patiently endures until The Second Coming.

• The message of Revelation (as shown in the parable of the two witnesses—Revelation 11:3-13) is that, though it will appear from an earthly perspective that the Church is defeated by the enemies of God, in the heavenly/spiritual perspective the Church is actually conquering through its faithful witness, even to the point of death.

 

THE WOMAN AND THE DRAGON

What was it that led the Wise Men to Bethlehem? Matthew tells us that it was a star (Matthew 2), but he doesn’t give us any other info about exactly what it was that the Wise Men saw. Whatever it was, it was a significant enough movement in the constellations that the pagan magi were able to understand it signified a Jewish king was being born.

In John’s vision, this movement in the constellations is brought alive. Not only is the woman supposed to make us think of Mary, the Mother of Christ, but also Eve from Genesis 3:

14 The Lord God said to the serpent,
“Because you have done this,
cursed are you above all livestock
and above all beasts of the field;
on your belly you shall go,
and dust you shall eat
all the days of your life.
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel.”

Fortunately, we don’t have to wonder who the dragon is, because in the next passage John tells us that he is “that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world” (Revelation 12:9).

The dragon tries to kill the child, but he is rescued by God—it is a symbol of the resurrection of Jesus.

And the woman becomes the church, protected by God for 1,260 days—the key apocalyptic number.

 

The 7th Trumpet

in
 

BIBLE STUDY TONIGHT (2/15) | 6:30 PM | SANCTUARY LIVESTREAM: asburytulsa.online.church

 

REVELATION 11:15-19

15 Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying,
“The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”
16 And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying,
“We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was, for you have taken your great power and begun to reign.
18 The nations raged,
but your wrath came,
and the time for the dead to be judged,
and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints,
and those who fear your name,
both small and great,
and for destroying the destroyers of the earth.”
19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.

 
 

THE SEVENTH TRUMPET

Just a quick word on the sounding of the seventh trumpet (Revelation 11:15-19). Remember, Revelation revisits the same events over and over, using different imagery to expand on a previous point. The seventh trumpet is The End—the last judgment. We’ve just read about the church fulfilling its purpose and seen the nations repent; now, heaven is coming to earth.

In later chapters we’ll get more details about the last judgment and what happens to those who refuse to repent, but here we just get the simple declaration:

“The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.” [Revelation 11:15.]

Amen.