Revelation Sermon - 39
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Revelation: The Seven Bowls Part 3
Revelation 16:17-21
1. Introduction –Over the course of the past 38 sermons on this incredible letter – if I have taught you anything at all about it…
a. Hopefully I’ve taught you that the book of Revelation is written cyclically. It is not written in linear, sequential or chronological order. Don’t ask ‘what happens next?’ Instead ask the question, “What did John see next?”
1. It is written in an escalating pattern – eventually bringing us to the return of Jesus and the establishment of the new heaven and new earth.
b. And I’ve said all that before, but with 3 series of 7 that we’re closing out today, I want to add one caveat.
i. We’ve looked at the seals, trumpets and finishing the bowls today…
1. And want I want to point out to you that I haven’t yet is that the 6th in each series brings us to cusp of Jesus’ return, while the 7th in each series brings us to the end of history.,
a. Last week we looked at the 6th bowl – persecution ramping up and pressure against Christ’s increasing…
i. But this week we come to the 7th bowl and we see once again God pouring out his righteous wrath on those who freely and willfully reject him.
c. Now, we’re 16 chapters into this book – we started the first Sunday in January – it is now nearing the end of November…
i. We started this study with a glorious picture of Jesus – an unveiling, a pulling back of the curtain… a revelation of Jesus, by Jesus about Jesus.
1. We started with a beautiful picture of Jesus standing in the middle of his church. Interspersed throughout this letter are glorious pictures of God’s people around his throne.
a. But for the last few months – it seems like every week we’re talking about judgment.
i. Has John lost his focus? Has the gospel centered focus of this letter disappeared?
1. Have the visions of Revelation simply deteriorated into visions of an angry God punishing people?
d. Well, I hope you’ve also seen over the past few months that judgment and salvation are intrinsically tied together.
i. Back in chapter 1, John a vision of Jesus – and he wrote that coming out of Jesus’ mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. Well, the book of Revelation has been describing the two edges of that sword.
1. On the one edge, we have salvation. Given to those who repent, those who overcome – and we’ve seen the glorious reward awaiting those overcomers.
a. But on the other edge of that same sword is judgment.
i. The words of Jesus go out, and they are either accepted or rejected. And we’ve seen the terrible reality awaiting those who do reject Jesus in this lifetime.
ii. One or the other – there is no middle ground. Revelation honestly assess for us the eternal reality of those who accept Jesus’ words and those who reject them.
1. So, the themes of salvation and judgment are intertwined with each other. The gospel of Jesus is the best good news anyone could ear – and if it is accepted – eternal bliss in God’s presence.
a. But at the same time, it is also terrible news for those who choose to reject it – eternal torment in hell.
i. John hasn’t lost his focus – he is presenting both sides of Jesus’ words.
2. The Seventh Bowl – Now, upon first reading, Bowl 7 doesn’t seem to have a lot of sermon material in it.
a. But as I was reading and studying this week, I read one commentator who broke this bowl down into 4 specific parts.
i. Remember with the pouring out of the 7th bowl we come to the end of history, and with the end of history comes the end of a lot of other things too.
1. Here’s what we’re going to look at this morning. In the seventh bowl we come to the end of history as we know it…
a. But we also come to the end of creation as we know; we come to the end of worldly systems as we know it…
i. We come to the end of sin, and we also come to the end of gospel opportunity.
b. So the 7th bowl is poured out into the air – the air in ancient times was thought to be the domain of Satan – the realm of demonic activity – so the 7th bowl is a direct assault on the kingdom of the prince of the air.
i. And what happens when the bowl is poured out is… God shows up. All the elements of a theophany and are there. Lightning, thunder, hail, and an earthquake.
1. And what we see is an end of creation as we know it. Now what does this mean?
c. Does it mean that at the end of time this terrestrial ball is going to blow up and God is going to make a new one?
i. No, I don’t believe so. If he was going to do that, why didn’t he do it after sin first entered the world?
1. The creation God made was good – he pronounced it good – very good…but creation itself was also affected by humanity’s sin.
a. We’re told that in Genesis – thorns grew up and Adam had to work in order to farm the land.
i. Paul writes that creation is longing and groaning to be restored – why??? Because it too is affected by sin.
1. But creation itself is still good…nothing can make not good. But, if God’s eternally dwelling place is on earth with his people – then a creation affected by sin is not a suitable place for God to live…so creation as we know must be undone.
d. This bowl represents creation being redeemed – being shaken and purged of its corruption – so as to be renewed and gloried in the new age after Jesus return.
i. Look at the description – every island disappears, every mountain levelled.
1. Symbols of permanence – islands and mountains are swept away in this purging of sin.
e. What does this mean for us today? Think of the words Paul wrote to the Corinthians… He pointed out that the present world is passing away. Therefore, Christians should live here with an aim for the new world that is coming.
i. Now, that’s not advocating apathy, indifference and inaction while we are still alive.
1. We shouldn’t reject the affairs of this world – Paul’s point is that we should avoid being preoccupied with the things of this world. Because ultimately, they will all pass away.
a. All that we do here and now should serve the then and there of the eternal kingdom of God.
3. Worldly System – So the end of history will bring a renewed and restored creation – purged from the curse of sin…
a. But John’s vision of the 7th bowl also depicts for us the end of worldly systems.
i. John describes for us an earthquake unlike any other. If you’ll recall from earlier in our study, we talked about earthquakes a lot. The land was prone to them in the 1st century.
1. But John says when the world ends – cities will fall.
b. And maybe John is referring to one literal city, or many cities, but more likely he is speaking about what that city represents.
i. The Great City in John’s day was Rome – it represented luxury, greed, opulence, and persecution of God’s people. It represented everything that was opposed to God on earth.
c. It is not merely one city or one nation that falls apart, but the entire corrupt worldly system that is in service to Satan and in opposition to Jesus.
i. The system is anything that trumpets human achievement over God. The worldly system is those who put their trust in man instead of in God.
d. But let’s be real here, doesn’t it seem like the worldly system is succeeding? The rich get richer, the powerful get even more powerful – the persecuted get persecuted even more.
i. Doesn’t it seem that way?
1. Well, the psalm writher Asaph felt the same way. In his beautiful Psalm – 73, he admits to being envious of the ungodly because of their lifestyle, their power and their wealth.
a. Even in Asaph’s day, it seemed like the worldly system was succeeding.
e. But half way through that Psalm, he has his perspective changed. And it is changed when he enters the house of the Lord…and he once again remembers the goodness of God towards his people.
i. He remembers the judgement of God towards the ungodly.
1. What we must realize from this point about the end of the worldly system is that any antichristian empire or ideal will be destroyed.
a. No remote island or mountain height will be able to hide it.
f. We should not be intimidated or envious of the world around us. We should not be seduced by the pull of sinful pleasure.
i. Also, when we realize that corruption of our world – when we realize the destruction that will come upon it…we must not dream earthly dreams of earthly glory, earthly wealth and earthly security.
1. We must be looking beyond what is in front of us to the glory that awaits us.
4. The End of Sin – so the pouring out of the 7th bowl brings with it the end of creation as we know it, the end of the corrupt worldly system…
a. It also brings with it the end of sin. There’s an interesting phrase used in this section – God remembered all of Babylon’s sins…remembered??? Does that mean God forgot something?
i. Have you ever that thought that? That God forgets to punish sin? Sometimes it seems that way when we look around our world.
1. Well here’s the reality of what is happening.
b. In his divine forbearance and patience – God provides humanity with a long opportunity to repent.
i. Paul writes that God patiently passed over former sins – not fully punishing them immediately – so that we might come to a place of repentance.
1. What this does is eliminate the charge that God is hasty in punishing.
a. God gives humanity time to repent of their sins, and when his patience runs out, he punishes.
c. Humanly speaking, this looks like forgetting, and when judgment finally does come it looks like a sudden remembering. So, the “Remembered” in this verse doesn’t imply God forgot, but that God is now punishing sin.
i. And what we see at the end of the age is an absolute demolition of anything sinful.
1. And again, we see the punishment fits the crime.
a. Babylon, the world system it represents – will be destroyed. And just like it caused destruction, it will then face destruction.
d. This reminds us to be diligent in pursuing the ways of God. Peter says we must be diligent to be found without blemish or spot at Jesus’ return.
5. Gospel Opportunity – And finally, this passage presents to us the end of gospel opportunity.
a. They refused to repent – that has been a common refrain throughout the book.
i. Do you realize that that means? The opportunity to repent was offered.
1. But look carefully at verse 21 – what’s missing??? The phrase “They refused to repent.”
a. What does that mean? It means it’s too late.
b. I want to draw a connection for you, one that I’m sure john intends for us to draw.
i. Did v.17 sound familiar to you – a loud voice form the throne saying…What??? It is finished!”
1. Sound familiar? It should sound like the cry of Jesus from the cross as he hung there dying.
c. At the cross, Jesus cried out “It is finished!” What was finished at the cross?
i. At the cross, everything that needed to be done in order for unholy sinners to enter into a relationship with a holy God.
1. What was finished? Everything that needs to be done about sin – everything that needs to be done about the sin of those who respond to Jesus’ call to follow.
ii. At the cross, God’s burning zeal for truth, coupled with his perfect hatred of evil come together to save sinners.
1. From the cross, Jesus cried out “It is finished” – as he initially established God’s kingdom here on earth…
a. And at the end of time – the cry again goes out as God’s kingdom is brought to its full realization.
d. But in between these two ‘it is finished’ cries – is time. Time to come to Jesus, time to repent of our sins… time to throw ourselves on the mercy and grace of God.
i. Our eternity will be defined by one of these two it is finished cries.
1. These two cries represent God’s two ways of dealing with sin. The two sides of Jesus’ double-edged sword – salvation or judgment.
e. The first way of dealing with sin is defined by Jesus’ cry from to cross. Your sins can be fully and finally dealt with at the cross of Jesus.
i. If you have put your faith in Jesus’ saving death – then be assured of your forgiveness, be assured that there is no condemnation you should fear…
1. Be assured of your eternal place in God’s presence.
a. If you haven’t placed your faith in Jesus, would you do so today? He is the way, the truth and the life – he is the only way to bridge the gap between you and God.
f. Either our sins are dealt with at the cross of Jesus where he paid it all for our sins.
i. Or we will have to deal with the eternal weight of our own sin.
1. God’s second way of dealing with sin is judgment for those who reject the offer of salvation – and it is defined by the second “it is finished” cry.
a. The time of God’s patience is over.
g. Two “it is finished” cries – one beginning the age of gospel ministry and gospel opportunity – one ending it.
i. Two “it is finished” cries – one opening the door to salvation in Jesus’ name – one cry closing that opportunity.
1. Either Jesus drank the cup of God’s wrath for you on the cross as he cried out “It is finished”…
a. Or you will be made to drink it yourself at the next “It is finished” cry.
h. And once again, this scene of judgment reminds us of the urgency of evangelism.
i. We are in this window between the 2 it is finished cries.
1. We live in an age where we can freely present the gospel to others.
a. This is an essential need – because time is running out.
i. The 7th bowl reminds us of the urgency of our message. We don’t know when this will happen. We don’t know when the window of gospel opportunity will close. We can’t control it.
i. But what we can control is what we’re going to do with the time we have.
1. Because the return of Jesus isn’t a matter for debate – we shouldn’t waste our time talking about the when, where, how – wasted breath.
a. Instead the return of Jesus is a call to action for his people. The world will end – sinners will be judged.
i. But, there’s a way to escape that judgment – there’s a path to avoid God’s wrath.
j. We have that message – and we’re told, not to keep it a secret and keep it to ourselves, but we’re told to take the message with us everywhere we go…
i. And we are tasked to share the message of salvation with anyone and everyone who will listen to us.