Intro: I am firmly convinced that
the greatest REVIVAL in World history is about to take place !!!!
A) And I believe that the
greatest Revival in world History that is close to coming about – will happen after
the Church has been taken up in Rapture
B) What is the RAPTURE ? 1 Thes. 4 The Lord is coming from Heaven – the Trumpet of God will sound – caught up to meet Him air
1)
He
will take us to Heaven to the place that He has been preparing for us / We will
be w/ Him celebrating our heavenly honeymoon 7 yrs
A) But those who will be left on the earth / those who were not caught up because they didn’t have a personal relationship w/ J.C.
1)
They did not place their faith in Jesus Christ –
will go through a 7 yr. HELLISH NIGHMARE known as the TRIBULATION
A) The Tribulation is the focal point of Rev. chapters 6-19 – that gives the details of God’s wrath being poured out on a Christ rejecting World
1)
A period that Jesus said that if those days had not been shortened no
ONE would survive
But even in that time where God’s wrath is being poured out
– there is still going to be mercy People will have the opportunity to get
saved
A)
And they will in
Masses – starting right after the RAPTURE !!!!
B) Everyone that we have shared w/ who has not believed – whom we have warned about this time that is coming
1) They think we are crazy or they think / they have plenty of time – when the Rapture happens – saved
A) Raid – book stores – Rev. tape series / Left behind books / the End times movies etc. - People are going to get saved in Masses
1)
They will say : He was / She was RIGHT !!! I should have listened
It is
going to be a great time of Revival / a great time of Salvation –
A)
In fact God will go
to great lengths during this time to give people the opportunity to get saved
!!!!!
B)
Not only will there be our Witness after we are gone / but
God is going to raise up a Special forces team – 144,000
Jewish EVANGELSIT
1) Then there will be these 2 guys – 2 WITNESSES who are going to Preach in Jerusalem / until they are Killed / bodies street / party 3 days
C) But after 3 days / God is going to raise them up / all the World will see via Satellite T.V. – these guys brought back to life – ascend to Heaven
1) That will cause some to Believe –
A) But God doesn’t
stop at 144,000 or 2 Witnesses / His desire is so great to see people get saved
& turn to Him-
1) He then does something He has never done before : He sends a special Angel to fly through the air Preaching the Gospel /
A)
The 144,000 are the ground troops / but –towards the end
of the Trib. He sends in the AIRFORCE !!! This Angel w/ His special message
1) That is where we begin in our Study today v. 6 Ch.14
6 Then
I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting
gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth; to every nation, tribe,
tongue, and people;
7
saying with a loud voice, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the
hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the
sea and springs of water."
Yesterday – Denise & I took our kids to the Matinee of
Toy Story 2 –
Rarely go to the Movies – Always the Previews : Coming
Attractions
A) Ch.14 – the end of the Parenthetical section that began in Ch.10 – is a
Preview of Coming Attractions / Seen in form of Visions & Pronouncements
B) Begins w/ a
Preview of Christ Ultimate Victory – Jesus on Mt. Zion w/ the 144,000 ( Last
time )
1)
Preview of God’s
last Plan to see people saved v.6,7 this Flying Angel
A) Preview
of the Collapse of the AntiChrist Political & Religious System Known as Babylon v.8
1) V.9-11 Preview of what Happens to those who take the mark of the beast – who Deify the AntiChrist
A) Then in v.12,13 We have a Preview of what Happens to those who Don’t take the mark of the Beast who Defy the AntiChrist
B) And Finally
v.14-20 a Preview of the Battle of Armageddon !!! Last Battle the war to
end all wars
We begin w/ God’s last Plan to Save as He sends this Angel flying
through the air Preaching the EVERLASTING GOSPEL
A) Here we have a good description of the Nature of the Gospel
: It is Eternal in its Significance & Universal in its Scope
B)
It is Eternal in
its Significance – It is the EVERLASTING
GOSPEL it last forever
B) There is ONLY ONE "everlasting Gospel"..... "everlasting Good News".
It is the only message of good news given to the world
C) It is the only message that brings salvation to mankind
Because it is "the Good News concerning Jesus Christ"
1)
and God's Word declares that there is only "one Name
given under
heaven whereby
man might be saved".
D) It is the only message that brings hope to mankind
Because it offers a "living hope" through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
So it is Eternal in its Significance / but it is also
Universal in it’s scope it is to be preached to
every nation, tribe, tongue, and people;
A) God so
loved the World that he gave His Only begotten son that Whosoever would believe
not perish but have Everlasting life
B) This message has a Universal appeal – available to all who would
believe doesn’t matter
what nation / tongue or people
Now in
Matt.24:14 "And
this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to
all the nations, and then the end will come.
A) And there are those who will say – the Rapture Cannot happen until we
get the gospel out to the whole world Every nation/ tribe/ tongue & people
B) But it is important to understand that Jesus said the gospel would be preached to everyone / everyplace then the End would come / not Rapt.
C)
He was talking about the 2nd coming – not the
Rapture : And one of the ways that the Lord is going to do this – With this
Angel
1) This Angel will fly
through the air – Proclaiming this message to the People in the Remotest parts
of the Earth – that no one even Knows about
D) Now this is Also good evidence that Pretrib rapture : Why is God doing what He has never done before in using Angels to spread Gospel ?
1)
ANSWER IS : The
Church is Gone !!!!!!!!
A)
So it is a
Everlasting Gospel / Universal in it’s Scope :
I also think it is worth noting what this message involves : Good
Description
1st
it involves CONVICTION : FEAR GOD
A) Proverbs 9: 10
"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge
of the Holy One is understanding.
B) At this time in the world’s History there is going to be so
much fear on the earth that all values will be distorted / & all
perspectives Destroyed
1) The Gospel puts Priorities Straight: FEAR GOD !!!
A) It is a Word of Conviction that smites the Conscience & Awakens the Soul !!! Paul hard to Kick against the GOADS
1) Fear is speaking of a Deep Rev. & respect / So 1st it Involves Conviction : WHO ARE YOU LORD ? NEW REV. / Passion
A) Maybe you are here this morning & you have been kicking against the Goads – that Conviction on Your heart
1) Leave here today saying Who are you Lord ? New Rev. Passion – To Know Him & to Make Him Known !!!!
2nd
It involves CONVERSION : The
Angel declares Fear
God & Give Him glory for the hour of his Judgement is come
A) One of the marks of an Unregenerate man / a person who hasn’t committed their life to Christ – they refuse to give God Glory
B) They Glory in everything Else / But One true mark of a Person that Has Been BORN AGAIN IS that they GIVE GLORY TO GOD !!!
C) They
GIVE GLORY to God : Acknowledge that He is Supreme
1)Webster defines
GLORY as: Magnificence, Excellence, Greatness, Majestic beauty and Splendor/
D) Acknowledging that it is
all about Him!!!!!
3RD
aspect of Gospel it involves : Consecration worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea
and springs of water."
A) This is The next practical step after Conviction / that leads to Conversion –where we give God the Reigns in our Lives – is Consecration
B) A Desire to Worship Him & a desire to see our lives poured out as a offering to Him !!! ( Worship = Give Him all our Affection )
Well
after this Angel comes 2nd Preview another w/ a Different Message
8 And
another angel followed, saying, "Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great
city, because she has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her
fornication."
Now this is the first mention of Babylon in the Book of Rev.
but it will not be the Last .
A) Babylon in Rev. speaks of the Political & Religious system that the AntiChrist is going to set up
B) It is called Babylon because it traces its roots back to Nimrod & the Tower of Babel !!! We will talk more about this in Ch. 17 & 18
1) Ch. 17 we will see the fall of Religious Babylon & in Ch. 18 we will
see the Fall of Commercial Babylon
A) But here we are given a quick Preview a Summary Statement – the Kingdom of the AntiChrist is Coming Down !!!!
Moving on to v.9 We see our 3rd Preview – Warning
about what is going to happen to those who take the Mark of the beast !!! Read
v. 9-11
A) Now in Ch.13 we saw how the Anti-Christ is going to exert total economic control over the World
1) No one will be able to Buy
or sell w/out the mark of the beast
imprinted upon the back of their hand or
their foreheads
B)
But
we see here in the words of Warning
given by this 3rd Angel to
take that mark is a FATAL CHOICE :
1)
Those who do shall experience the Wrath of God being
poured out in Full Strength & they will be tormented forever & Ever
C) Look at this Description : He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of
the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.11 "And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, - On & On – Not
a Quick thing
We learn 3 things from this about
Hell / 1st it is for Real – it is amazing how many people believe in
Heaven / but not hell
A) 2nd Hell is FOREVER / 3RD HELL IS GOING TO BE HORRIBLE
He shall be tormented with
fire and brimstone & there will be no rest day or night
B)Described
in other places in the Bible as a place of Weeping &
Gnashing of teeth / place of Outer
Darkness
1)
Put it all together
place that is totally dark / yet miserably hot / tormenting hot / doesn’t Stop
– No rest day or night
C)
Can’t see any one but you can hear / their Cries – the weeping the Gnashing to
TEETH
1)
No wonder the writer of
Hebrews Declared that It is a fearful thing to fall
into the hands of the living God.
D) So hell is this REAL place of torment / that goes on forever / that will be the Destiny of all those who refuse to receive Christ
1)
Not believing in it won't make it one degree colder
in hell / One
minute
shorter
Now this is something we don’t hear that much about today – Lack of emphasis on Preaching & Warning about Hell
A) We live in the age where more & more Churches approach is to Not
Mention Sin / not mention Hell – because we don’t want to offend anyone
B) But note that is not God’s heart – He sends this special Angel – to proclaim this special message & Plead w/ People not to take the mark
1) Why ? Because He doesn’t want to see them end up in Hell !!!
C) I will tell you this right Now
– I would rather offend people by talking
about Hell & the fact that people
are going to end up there if they
don’t receive Christ
A)
Than Preach 100 messages that
make People feel good & have
people walk out of here week after week
thinking they are alright w/ God
1) Thinking that they are on their way to Heaven – when in reality they are really on their way to Hell
A) Because they are not right w/ God because they really don’t have a relationship w/ Christ
1) I would rather make someone so upset & take the risk of offending them / if it means they will think about the Condition of their heart
A) My prayer is that their Conscience would plague them all Week Long until they get saved !!!!
1) Guys we
must TALK ABOUT HELL !!!!!
In fact did You know that Jesus spoke more about Hell than
anyone else in the Entire Bible / Spoke more of Hell than / Heaven Why?
A)
He Knows what a
Horrible place that it is going to be & He doesn’t want anyone to end up
there
B) In fact Jesus even declared that Hell was not made for Man / but for the Devil & His Angels .
1) It wasn’t made for Man but men will end up there By their own free Choice by refusing to receive God’s gift of Salvation in Christ
A) Jesus
says today : I
don’t want anyone to go to hell but if You end up there it will be over my Dead
Body
1) You will have
ignore what I did for you on Calvary in Dying for Your sins : THE
CHOICE IS UP TO YOU !!!!
B) That my friends is another reason why we need to be about the work of Evangelism – Jesus is into Evangelism
1) Came to seek & to save the lost !!!! What if they won’t listen ?
E) CONSIDER ISAIAH
ISA. 20
The Assyrians were making their way toward Israel !!!
A)
The Assyrians were
cruel & Brutal people – who would take the people that they captured &
strip them naked
B) Put fish hooks in their mouths & lead them for miles & miles across the Hot desert in their bare feet – w/ fish hooks in their mouths
1) They were on their way to Israel but the People of Israel were not taking it seriously
A) They
were saying we
are not really going to be wiped out by the Assyrians -
1) You Know what God told the people of Isaiah the Prophet to do ?
God said the people are not listening to you Isaiah &
the Stakes are high So here is what I want you to do
A) Take your sandals off of your feet & your clothes off of your back / I want you to walk around naked for 3 yrs ( Continuous or off & on)
B) Now listen ISAIAH wasn’t some weirdo – He was a very Educated / Eloquent Prophet of God . He was related to the King
1) Passionate & Poetic / a Brilliant man – Yet God told him to do this why ?
A) The People’s hearts had become so Callous / their hearts had grown so cold & so hard – that they were not heeding the message
1)
So the Lord said to Isaiah We need
to do something Drastic/ Isaiah take off your cloth’s
A) The Brutality & Cruelty that is going to come upon my People by the Assyrians is so great –
1)
that we have to do something to get their Attention – ISAIAH
BEAR YOUR BACK SIDE !!!!!
Now some of you are probably wondering – what are you
suggesting by this ? Suggesting that we go around naked – No !!!!
A)
But guys we are
living in the LAST DAYS we are living
in crucial times / the Lord’s coming is near even at the door
B) And we have friends & relatives / co workers that are going to HELL
1) And a Lot of them like Israel don’t believe that – they don’t believe that it is really going to happen – So what do we do ?
A) The Stakes are too High to just say What ever – or to give up
1)
We need to continue to share w/ the people the naked truth /
if You don’t accept Christ You are going
to end up in Hell
A) We
need to bare not
our bodies but our hearts & our souls by telling people I care about you
enough to share the naked truth w/ you
1)
There is a real place called Heaven & a real place
called hell – The Only way to get to Heaven is to receive Christ !!!!
But they might laugh at me ? What do you think
they did to Isaiah
A)
Listen that person
that you sit next to at work / person that you live by if they are not a
believer – they are going to Hell !!!!
B) And you have been placed in their lives / next to them in that place to be a witness & to give a testimony / to share the NAKED TRUTH w/ them
1)
Because God desires that None should perish but that all should come to
repentance
A) But He refuses to Violate Peoples free will – so He desires to use people like us to get the gospel out !! Preach the truth !!!!
1)
And during the Trib. He is going to send this Angel
– bearing this word of Warning – don’t’ take the Mark !!!!
But The Proclamation is in 2 Parts – Those who take the mark
which signifies worshipping of the Anti-Christ & His System
Will be
Eternally Judged & tormented
But in contrast to the Doom for those who Deify the Beast is
the Destiny of those who Defy the Beast : those who refuse the mark
1) And receive Christ during
the Tribulation time – who will ultimately have to die for their faith / this
word of Comfort is given
12 Here is the
patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the
faith of Jesus.
13 Then I heard a
voice from heaven saying to me, "Write: 'Blessed are the dead who die in
the Lord from now on.' " "Yes," says the Spirit, "that they
may rest from their labors, and their works follow them."
their
heads Most of the rest of those who Defy the Beast will lose their lives
1)
But
it is death instantly transferred into Blessing !!!!!
QUOTE PHILLIPS “I’ll make you
suffer screams the beast / You’ll make us Saints reply the overcomers / I’ll
persecute you to the Grave Roars the Beast / You’ll Promote us to Glory reply
the Over comers / I’ll Blast You snarls the Beast / You’ll Bless us reply the
over comers”
Now this is another
good Proof text for the Pretrib Rapture :
A) See there are those who say- We are going to go through part of the
trib. But we will be raptured before it gets really Heavy : Prewrath view
B)
But
if the Rapture happened here – the message would be Different – Not Blessed are
you who die in the Lord –
1)
But
blessed are you who hang in there because the rapture is coming !!
A)
So
this third Angel gives this Heavy word to those who Deify the Beast & a
Word of Comfort to those who Defy the beast
So Preview God’s Gospel Airforce / Fall of Babylon / the Horror
that awaits those who take the mark of the Beast / Blessing for those who don’t
Now Beginning in v.14 Final Preview Armageddon v.14-20
A)
This
refers to the battle that will take place when the Anti-Christ will gather the
forces of the world to do battle against Jesus Christ
B)
This
will be his one last attempt to stop
the establishment of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ on the earth.
1) We will study this in detail in Ch. 19 – when the AntiChrist will gather all his remaining followers / all his armies to Israel
Joel Prophesied of this day 3:12-16
12
"Let the nations be wakened, and come up to the Valley of
Jehoshaphat; For there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations.
13 Put
in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, go down; For the winepress is
full, The vats overflow; For their wickedness is great."
14
Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the
LORD is near in the valley of decision.
15 The
sun and moon will grow dark, And the stars will diminish their brightness.
16 The
LORD also will roar from Zion, And utter His voice from Jerusalem; The heavens
and earth will shake; But the LORD will be a shelter for His people, And the
strength of the children of Israel.
A) They
will be gathered in the Valley of Meggido but The Lord will crush them like grapes!!
1) The blood will be flowing even to the horses bridle 4 feet high for one thousand six hundred furlongs. Which = 180 miles
A) Run from the valley of Meggido – all the way to Jerusalem & down to Edom according to Isa. 63 – to a place called Bozrah
1) 180 miles from Meggido
63:1 Who is this who
comes from Edom, With dyed garments from Bozrah, This One who is glorious in
His apparel, Traveling in the greatness of His strength?; "I who speak in
righteousness, mighty to save." Why is Your apparel red, And Your garments
like one who treads in the winepress?
Also
told in Rev.19:15 Jesus is going to come & tread the wine press
He Himself treads the winepress of the
fierceness & wrath of Almighty God.
A) This is not going to be a pretty sight – the Final & complete annihilation of the AntiChrist & all of his Followers
1) Our minds can not conceive of this even taking place / Can't conceive of such carnage and the utter horror of such a spectacle
B) Can't conceive of the heart of man becoming so hardened and deceived
1) that it would rebel against God to the extent of trying to stop the establishing of God's Kingdom
Listen
the Bible speaks of 2 types of HARVEST
A)
There is this
Harvest of Judgement that is going to take place in the last days / at the end
times – Battle of Armageddon
B) And there is a Harvest of souls which is taking place right now – as people every day – all over the world are getting saved / Joining family
1) But the same thing that was true in Jesus day – Concerning this Harvest is TRUE TODAY - Harvest is ripe the Laborers are Few
A) The Fields are ripe for Harvest – but there are not enough people Harvesting the Grain :
1) Translate: there are not enough Christians sharing their Faith !!!!
A) Not enough people like Isaiah who will go to Drastic Measures to get the Word out
1) Not enough people who will run the risk of being ridiculed & rejected to bare their souls & bare their hearts to share the naked truth
A) Not enough Christians w/ the attitude of Paul – who viewed himself as a Debtor to all men because of what Christ did for him
Not enough Christians w/ the Conviction of Paul who really believe that the Gospel is the Power of God unto Salvation for …. Believes ( not ashamed)
You know Statistics show that most Christians rarely share
their faith & most have never led a person to Christ
Richard law – If I believed what
you said is true I would crawl on my hands & Knees over broken Glass
–across the whole city of London to Share it
Chaplain was Convicted : Far too Casual in his efforts to share the gospel
A) Guys WE need to get our eyes off ourselves / our pain/ our needs / our comfort / Because there is a World around us that is going to Hell!!!
1) We need to Run the Risk of Offending / Run the Risk of being Rejected & Share the NAKED TRUTH - Truth that can set men free
D) Thinking : Why Study Rev. ? Sure Blessing / Neat & Interesting but reason – think for most of us - God wants to Stir us up !!! Share
See this Book
reminds me that the Stakes are High That I need to be more like Isa. Share the
NAKED TRUTH
Make this real Practical –
A) Make a list put 5 people’s name on it you know who don’t know Christ
1) 1st Start to Pray for them – Pray that God would give you opportunities to share w/ them / lead other Christians into their Lives
A) Pray that God would lift the Blinders / from their Eyes
ARRANGE A MEETING : Lunch / Dinner / Breakfast – Share w/
them all that the Lord has done in Your life ----- ( Make time )
A)
See if they seem
interested - Ask them are You ready to meet God / Ask if you can share what the Bible says about being a Christian
B) If they are away : Write them a Letter
1)
But Share the whole truth / Heaven & a Hell – Tell them I love
You so much I have to be honest – if you don’t receive Christ – going to Hell