Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction:

Tonight we reach the end of a year of studying the Book of hope that you have been blessed as we have journeyed through this book together.

I hope that you have learned some things along the way.

Perhaps there are some things that you have discovered that are not as you once thought and maybe you have had some other truths affirmed for you that you held dear.

If there is anything that you take away from the Book of Revelation, remember that the heart of the message of Revelation is to remain faithful because God has not forgotten you, and He is in control of everything that is happening in heaven, on earth, and even in Hell.

Also remember that in the end, God wins.

In fact, God has already won.

He never was losing.

He never was out of control.

The final blow was dealt at the cross as Jesus paid for our sin and secured our ransom with His death.

He assured us of the victory with His resurrection.

As we close out our study in Revelation, there are some final words that we want to look at the the Apostle John shares with us from the vision.

We are taken back to the purpose of the Book of Revelation that was first revealed in chapter 1 where the whole vision began.

says,

With these words, let’s turn to our text for tonight and look at verses 6-21 of chapter 22.

Read Text.

Pray.

I remember as a little boy when I was first starting to study the Bible hearing a peculiar thing that someone once told me.

They told me that God did not intend for us to know everything about the Book of Revelation and so we should not try to figure it out.

I wish that I could remember who told me this, because it is absolutely contrary to the very reason that is given for the Book in the first place.

The first thing that we need to see tonight is:

1. God wants you to know what is going to happen (v.6, 10)

Did you catch that?

God wants to calm us and reassure us by showing us what is going to happen.

This is just like God.

You see, God is omniscient.

That is a fancy way of saying that God knows everything.

God stands outside of time.

Time is a creation of God’s.

It began when He created the things by which we mark time like the sun, moon, stars, and light.

God is timeless or eternal.

It is important to understand this, because when God tells us about what is going to happen in the future, we might be tempted to ask the question, “How can you know what will happen if it hasn’t happened yet?”

We might also be tempted to think that it might be possible to change the future if we know what is going to happen by changing a decision that we make.

That would be vain becaue God knows every decision we would possibly make and every decision we will make, even if we know that He knows that we know that He knows!

Whooosh!

I may have just lost a few, so let me slow the train down and let you back on.

The point is that God knows the future and sees it just like we see the past and are right now experiencing the present.

And, God has chosen to reveal to us the future and let us know what is going to happen before it happens for a reason.

Let me give you an example.

I don’t like scary movies or suspense very much.

I don’t know why, but I just want everyone to get along.

I don’t like to feel stress when I am watching a television show or movie.

When I have favorite characters, I want them to fall in love an live a happy life.

I don’t like to see them fight, even though they are made up T.V. characters.

When the music starts to get really somber and tense, I know that something is about to happen.

I can sometimes predict it based on patterns, but other times, I am completely in the dark.

I start to get sweaty palms and my heart rate goes up.

My eyes get wide and I can hear things I couldn’t before.

It’s just like when you hear a noise outside your house at night and you don’t know what it is.

But....if I have cheated and looked ahead on my phone to know what is going to happen in advance, I can watch the scene unfold without being too worried.

If I know what is outside, I don’t worry so much about that bump I heard in the night.

I still might become alert and I still might be a little tense, but if I know how it all works out, I can prepare myself.

The point is that God knows the future and sees it just like we see the past and are right now experiencing the present.

And, God has chosen to reveal to us the future and let us know what is going to happen before it happens for a reason.

That is the reason that God tells us what is going to happen in the future.

He wants to settle our nerves.

He wants to warn us of the terrible things that are coming so that we are not caught off guard, but He wants to reassure us that He has control of the situation.

Remember back in chapters 1-3 that Christ is the one who stood among the lampstands and who held the stars, or pastors, in His hand.

He was the one that was sovereign over the churches.

Jesus is still sovereign over them during chapters 6-20.

He is sovereign over believers who are left on the earth during the tribulation.

He is sovereign over believers who are in heaven.

He is sovereign over the forces of evil, giving permission within limits and ultimately using their evil against themselves and for His glory among the nations.

God is in control!

It doesn’t mean that we are not frightened or that we don’t feel the reality of the emotions that flood us when we go through trying times, but we can be comforted and get through the difficult times ahead, because God is in control and we know how it will end.

So what does God want us to know particularly?

a. Jesus is going to return soon (v.7, 10, 12, 20)

The first thing He wants us to know is that Jesus is going to come soon!

When I say that, some of you may wonder what the word “soon” means if after 2,000 years have passed and He still has not come.

For you it may be like when your wife says that she will be dressed soon and ready to leave and you still have 30 more minutes before she comes out of her dressing room.

Or when your husband tells you he’s going to watch a few more minutes of T.V. before coming to bed.

The issue of the immancy of the return of Christ, or the any-time possibility of Christ’s return, has been a tough issue for many people to deal with.

Some have chosen to believe that Christianity is a hoax because Christ has not come back yet.

I can’t pretend to be able to give an explanation that will satisfy everyone, but I can say that I am glad He waited in returning for me to be born!

You might think that selfish until you agree that you are glad you were born too!

In fact the Bible tells us why God is patient in ,

Can you believe that?

Even in Peter’s day, when 2 Peter was written, which is believed to be around 65-68 AD, some 30 years since Christ’s crucifixion, people were getting ancy.

And Peter tells us that God is not in a hurry like we are and He doesn’t view time like we do since He is eternal; but that God is waiting in His sovereignty until every person who will believe has been saved to return.

Then he turns around and says in ,

Just like that he drops a firebomp on us.

Jesus is waiting until the right time to come back, but when that time comes, He is going to come back unexpetedly and without warning and will bring Judgment in His wake.

Hold on to that judgment idea for a moment, but let’s make a possible definition for the word soon in light of what we have seen.

In , Jesus says “And behold I am coming soon...”

And again in verse 10 he says, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near.”

And in verse 12 he says, “Behold, I am coming soon...”

And finally in verse 20 He says, “Surely I am coming soon...”

What does “soon” mean in light of all of this?

It means that when the fulness of times comes, whenever that may be, Jesus will come quickly and without warning and we had better be ready!

“Be ready for what?”, you say.

b.

Judgment is coming (v.11, 12-13, 15)

When Jesus returns, it is not going to be a joyous occaision for everyone.

He is going to bring with Him judgment as well as blessing.

Do you remember when you were in school and the teacher stepped out of the room for a minute?

What happened when that took place?

At first, everyone may have kept doing what they were supposed to be working on.

They feared that the teacher may have only stepped into the hallway for a second and could return at any second.

If you were caught standing up or talking, you might loose recess or have detention or more work assigned to you.

The worst scenario would be to be sent to the office to be punished (at least back when they readily paddled you at school!).