Saturday, March 10, 2007
Revelation 14:1-5 ~ Jeff Ludington
Revelation 14:1-5
Intro:
· Revelation in 7 Sections
o 7 Letters to 7 Churches
o 7 Seals on a Scroll
o 7 Trumpet Blasts
o 7 Bowls of Wrath
· This is the beginning of the 7 Bowls of Wrath
· All that is left after this section:
o The Great Babylon: Chapters 18-19
o The Millennium, New Heaven, New Earth: Chapters 20-22
Read 5 verses: Revelation 14:1-5
Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads. And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.
We always go big around here:
· Worship is normally rockin’
· Tonight, I think it is appropriate to reel it back a bit
· Just Tim on the Harp tonight!!!
So, tonight, a new song!!!!
Why a NEW SONG???
· Last Chapter we just left being persecuted
· Tonight we see the Lamb again
o We remember the reason it is worth it to fight
o We remember the reason to stay the course
Vs. 1
Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion,
· Here is Jesus - called by His most common name in Revelation
The Lamb:
· The most common name/title given to Jesus in Revelation is “Lamb”
· 31 times in the Book of Revelation - Jesus is called the Lamb
We took at look at this the first time we saw it:
Revelation 5:6
Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders.
· This is the first occurrence in Revelation
· A “Lamb, looking as if it has been slain”
· Standing in the center of the Throne of God
· Circled around the Lamb
o The 4 Living Creatures
§ Is the representation of the Gospels
§ OR : the images of the 4 Gospels
§ Matthew, Mark, Luke, John
o The 24 Elders
§ A representation of the Church
§ Possibly 12 Tribes
§ Added to 12 Apostles
§ Resulting in a full idea of the Church over time
The Lamb: a very special title to John:
· John, the author of Revelation, reveals this in his telling of the Gospel
o John writes a Gospel, 3 letters named John, and Revelation
o In his telling of the Gospel – story of Jesus
o He quotes another man named John
John the Baptist:
· The John we are reading is the Apostle, Disciple, Beloved
· John the Baptist was Jesus’ cousin
· He is quoted by the Apostle as saying:
John 1:29, 34
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! - I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God."
· So, the author of Revelation, who also wrote this Gospel, tells us who the Lamb is
· He also tells us why it is important to him
· “He takes away the sin of the world”
This is especially important to us at this time of year
· This is the Easter story
· This is what we celebrate
1 Corinthians 5:7
For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.
· In this verse, Paul ties us to the celebration of Passover
If you are a Christian today, and you celebrate Easter, but don’t understand Passover, I would encourage you to study it!
· Passover – is the Jewish celebration of deliverance from Egypt
o When the Egyptians had taken Israel as slaves
o God went to set them free
o God punished Egypt by killing the firstborn of each household
· Only those who had blood from a lamb on their doorposts were spared
o Moses had told each of the people of God to kill a lamb
o And to mark the doorposts and beam with the blood of the lamb
o Those who obeyed … were spared
This was to serve as a memorial to Israel to remind them about deliverance:
· But, even more so, it foreshadowed Jesus’ coming to die
Jesus came to be our deliverance!
· And to do that, He had to die
· His blood had to be shed for us
· This was to release us from the sin that enslaves us
Just like the Egyptians who persecuted the people of God were punished; so too will those who persecute the church in this era.
· We just saw in chapter 13 how the enemy of the church will persecute those who are in the church
· We saw the Beast of chapter 13 pursue the church
o He tormented the church
o He killed those in the church
· Chapter 14 now gives us the reason to keep the faith
The reason: Deliverance!
· Just like Israel used Passover to remember their deliverance from Egypt
· Just like the church uses Easter to remember the deliverance from Sin
· The persecuted church needs to be reminded that they too will be delivered
So, immediately following the greatest persecution on Earth, God reminds us that He is faithful, and He will deliver us.
If you are struggling in your life today, you need to hear this reminder!
· There is a reason to persevere
Vs. 1
Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads.
Remember last week when Gary mentioned how people who work with money learn how to spot the counterfeit?
· They work with the real thing until they know it
· Then, the counterfeit is obvious
Here we see the genuine article:
· The 144,000 are marked with the Father’s Name
Why 144,000?
· This book gives us a lot of symbolism
· We have 24 Elders – a representation of the church in Heaven
o Maybe it is 12 from the Tribes of Israel
o Maybe 12 from the Apostles
o Multiplied, exponentially throughout history
· This is the fullness of the church in Heaven!
o It is a number to be seen as a large, completed number
o Not to be seen as a absolute number
If you add up those who came to faith in the bible: there was more than 144,000 followers of Christ by the time this was written.
· This is to show us a large, complete, symbolic number
Vs. 2
And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.
· We hear sounds, we see harps, and a song is sung
· A NEW SONG is sung
· We have seen Angels sing
· And the church has sung with the angels
· But, they sang an old song
Why a new song?
Why could only the redeemed learn the song?
· I see a common thread
· I see something that only these three have in common
What do these three things have in common?
· The four living creatures – representing the 4 Gospels of Christ
· The 24 Elders – an image of the fullness of the church (old and new)
· The 144,000 redeemed from the Earth
What do these three have that the angels in Heaven don’t have?
They have experienced grace!
· And they are able to sing about it!
Have you ever met someone who had been through similar things as you have?
· Maybe you felt that could relate to you in a special way
· Only they could understand what you have dealt with
· Only they could know what you have experienced
They sing a song of worship that only they can sing:
· Angels can’t sing about God’s forgiveness
o They have never experienced it
· Only someone who has experienced it can
· The 4 Living Creatures were messengers of grace and forgiveness
· The Elders are representative of the forgiven church
· The 144,000 are “those who have been redeemed from the Earth”
And they sing about their grace and forgiveness!!!
We will close on this thought, but first, one more side note:
Vs. 4-5
These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.
· It is interesting what is mentioned about those who follow the Lamb
· If you are a Christ-follower today, do you do these things?
Do you defile yourselves sexually?
· expand
Do you lie?
· expand
If we proclaim to be forgiven, and we recognize the cost of our forgiveness, we have a cause to sing a new song!
SHARE GOSPEL – include worship songs!
Intro:
· Revelation in 7 Sections
o 7 Letters to 7 Churches
o 7 Seals on a Scroll
o 7 Trumpet Blasts
o 7 Bowls of Wrath
· This is the beginning of the 7 Bowls of Wrath
· All that is left after this section:
o The Great Babylon: Chapters 18-19
o The Millennium, New Heaven, New Earth: Chapters 20-22
Read 5 verses: Revelation 14:1-5
Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads. And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.
We always go big around here:
· Worship is normally rockin’
· Tonight, I think it is appropriate to reel it back a bit
· Just Tim on the Harp tonight!!!
So, tonight, a new song!!!!
Why a NEW SONG???
· Last Chapter we just left being persecuted
· Tonight we see the Lamb again
o We remember the reason it is worth it to fight
o We remember the reason to stay the course
Vs. 1
Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion,
· Here is Jesus - called by His most common name in Revelation
The Lamb:
· The most common name/title given to Jesus in Revelation is “Lamb”
· 31 times in the Book of Revelation - Jesus is called the Lamb
We took at look at this the first time we saw it:
Revelation 5:6
Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders.
· This is the first occurrence in Revelation
· A “Lamb, looking as if it has been slain”
· Standing in the center of the Throne of God
· Circled around the Lamb
o The 4 Living Creatures
§ Is the representation of the Gospels
§ OR : the images of the 4 Gospels
§ Matthew, Mark, Luke, John
o The 24 Elders
§ A representation of the Church
§ Possibly 12 Tribes
§ Added to 12 Apostles
§ Resulting in a full idea of the Church over time
The Lamb: a very special title to John:
· John, the author of Revelation, reveals this in his telling of the Gospel
o John writes a Gospel, 3 letters named John, and Revelation
o In his telling of the Gospel – story of Jesus
o He quotes another man named John
John the Baptist:
· The John we are reading is the Apostle, Disciple, Beloved
· John the Baptist was Jesus’ cousin
· He is quoted by the Apostle as saying:
John 1:29, 34
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! - I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God."
· So, the author of Revelation, who also wrote this Gospel, tells us who the Lamb is
· He also tells us why it is important to him
· “He takes away the sin of the world”
This is especially important to us at this time of year
· This is the Easter story
· This is what we celebrate
1 Corinthians 5:7
For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.
· In this verse, Paul ties us to the celebration of Passover
If you are a Christian today, and you celebrate Easter, but don’t understand Passover, I would encourage you to study it!
· Passover – is the Jewish celebration of deliverance from Egypt
o When the Egyptians had taken Israel as slaves
o God went to set them free
o God punished Egypt by killing the firstborn of each household
· Only those who had blood from a lamb on their doorposts were spared
o Moses had told each of the people of God to kill a lamb
o And to mark the doorposts and beam with the blood of the lamb
o Those who obeyed … were spared
This was to serve as a memorial to Israel to remind them about deliverance:
· But, even more so, it foreshadowed Jesus’ coming to die
Jesus came to be our deliverance!
· And to do that, He had to die
· His blood had to be shed for us
· This was to release us from the sin that enslaves us
Just like the Egyptians who persecuted the people of God were punished; so too will those who persecute the church in this era.
· We just saw in chapter 13 how the enemy of the church will persecute those who are in the church
· We saw the Beast of chapter 13 pursue the church
o He tormented the church
o He killed those in the church
· Chapter 14 now gives us the reason to keep the faith
The reason: Deliverance!
· Just like Israel used Passover to remember their deliverance from Egypt
· Just like the church uses Easter to remember the deliverance from Sin
· The persecuted church needs to be reminded that they too will be delivered
So, immediately following the greatest persecution on Earth, God reminds us that He is faithful, and He will deliver us.
If you are struggling in your life today, you need to hear this reminder!
· There is a reason to persevere
Vs. 1
Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads.
Remember last week when Gary mentioned how people who work with money learn how to spot the counterfeit?
· They work with the real thing until they know it
· Then, the counterfeit is obvious
Here we see the genuine article:
· The 144,000 are marked with the Father’s Name
Why 144,000?
· This book gives us a lot of symbolism
· We have 24 Elders – a representation of the church in Heaven
o Maybe it is 12 from the Tribes of Israel
o Maybe 12 from the Apostles
o Multiplied, exponentially throughout history
· This is the fullness of the church in Heaven!
o It is a number to be seen as a large, completed number
o Not to be seen as a absolute number
If you add up those who came to faith in the bible: there was more than 144,000 followers of Christ by the time this was written.
· This is to show us a large, complete, symbolic number
Vs. 2
And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.
· We hear sounds, we see harps, and a song is sung
· A NEW SONG is sung
· We have seen Angels sing
· And the church has sung with the angels
· But, they sang an old song
Why a new song?
Why could only the redeemed learn the song?
· I see a common thread
· I see something that only these three have in common
What do these three things have in common?
· The four living creatures – representing the 4 Gospels of Christ
· The 24 Elders – an image of the fullness of the church (old and new)
· The 144,000 redeemed from the Earth
What do these three have that the angels in Heaven don’t have?
They have experienced grace!
· And they are able to sing about it!
Have you ever met someone who had been through similar things as you have?
· Maybe you felt that could relate to you in a special way
· Only they could understand what you have dealt with
· Only they could know what you have experienced
They sing a song of worship that only they can sing:
· Angels can’t sing about God’s forgiveness
o They have never experienced it
· Only someone who has experienced it can
· The 4 Living Creatures were messengers of grace and forgiveness
· The Elders are representative of the forgiven church
· The 144,000 are “those who have been redeemed from the Earth”
And they sing about their grace and forgiveness!!!
We will close on this thought, but first, one more side note:
Vs. 4-5
These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.
· It is interesting what is mentioned about those who follow the Lamb
· If you are a Christ-follower today, do you do these things?
Do you defile yourselves sexually?
· expand
Do you lie?
· expand
If we proclaim to be forgiven, and we recognize the cost of our forgiveness, we have a cause to sing a new song!
SHARE GOSPEL – include worship songs!
