The Intolerable Failure of Ephesus
Revelation 2:1-7
May 29, 2016

Well, in reading that passage you certainly are familiar with it.
We’ve covered it a couple of times on Sundays, at least once on Wednesday nights and I’m pretty sure you’ve probably covered it in Sunday School.
I know for a fact I’ve preached the church at Ephesus at least 3 times.

It is the church at Ephesus.
The church we have routinely referred to as “The Backslidden Church”

So obviously we’re not discussing this church
Because you aren’t familiar with it.
Rather, we are discussing it because it is so relevant!

Philippians 3:1 “Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you.”

2 Peter 1:12-15 “Therefore, I will always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them, and have been established in the truth which is present with you. I consider it right, as long as I am in this earthly dwelling, to stir you up by way of reminder, knowing that the laying aside of my earthly dwelling is imminent, as also our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. And I will also be diligent that at any time after my departure you will be able to call these things to mind.”

The apostles definitely knew that
It was actually the most familiar truths that got is in the most trouble.
They actually become so routine and second nature
That we actually begin to forget them all together.

This passage falls into that category.

To help us set the stage for the importance of understanding the truth we learn from this church, I want to remind you of a statement Jesus made:

John 15:1-8 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned. “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.”

It is very tempting just to turn over there and
Spend the entire hour this morning looking at that passage.

But if you’re willing to skim the mountain tops of that passage with me this morning you will notice the unmistakable point.
WITHOUT JESUS IT WON’T WORK
The analogy of Him being the vine and us being the branches
Cannot be misunderstood.

Branches that aren’t plugged into the tree do not produce fruit.
• They still look like branches
• They may even have leaves for a while
• They may be useful for other things (sawn into lumber)

But without being connected to the tree
They will never produce fruit again.

Jesus is highlighting a very important spiritual reality in that passage.
Churches can organize around human ingenuity and human resources
And human wisdom and human cooperation
And accomplish very many great things.

(False religion teaches us that)
Islam, Mormonism, Buddhism, etc; have all accomplished great things simply through the power of human ingenuity.

And the church is no different.
People who work together can build great buildings
And fund massive ministries, and produce tremendous results.

BUT APART FROM JESUS YOU CANNOT PRODUCE FRUIT
(that is you cannot accomplish spiritual work)

• You cannot lead sinners to salvation
• You cannot make genuine disciples
• You cannot see true redemption from sin occur

These matters are only accomplished through the power of God.
Failure to be tapped into that power
Produces a spiritually impotent church.

Tonight we study a church that was confused about that.
• We study a church that I could have easily been a member of.
• We study a church that forgot the main point of the whole thing.

And their failure was absolutely intolerable.
So dangerous in fact that
They were about to be removed as a church altogether.

Many of you are familiar, but let’s take a refresher course.

#1 THE CHURCH
Revelation 2:1a
“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:”
This letter was written to “the angel of the church in Ephesus”

“angel” translates ANGELLOS
It means “a messenger”
It can also be “a guardian” or “a representative”

I tell you that so you’ll realize that
This was a message to the church’s pastor,
Not necessarily a celestial being.

And the church was “the church in Ephesus”

EPHESUS was a port city, home to the temple Artemis,
• Which was such a secure place that it became home of a world bank,
• And a prominent hang out for criminals on the run.
• It also had many priestesses who were little more than prostitutes.

So a cross section of Ephesus shows us
It was a port city with a bombardment of sailors
And other atrocities associated with a port city.

• It was a capital of idolatry as people flocked there to worship a false god.
• It was a criminal hang out.
• It was a hot bed of prostitution.
• And it was a center of economic importance.

Where it not for the immorality, adultery, greed, idolatry, and love of sin,
Ephesus might have been a nice town to raise a family in.
But as it was, Ephesus was a rough place.
Think “SIN CITY”

Settled in the heart of this city was the church at Ephesus.
The “church in Ephesus” had a deep pedigree.

• Paul’s friends Aquila and Priscilla founded it.
• Apollos was a pastor
• Onesiphorus was a pastor
• Timothy was a pastor
• The Apostle John was a pastor
• And Paul was a frequent visitor and speaker.

This church had been equipped with the truth of the gospel,
And that set the stage for what looked to be a great show down.
The church armed with the truth verses the city armed with sin.

#2 THEIR LORD
Revelation 2:1b
“The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this:”
You recognize this intro as relating directly to the vision in chapter 1.

Revelation 1:20 “As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.”

And since we now know that the angels were the pastors of the churches,
This verse could read like this.

“The One who holds the seven pastors in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven churches, says this:”

Christ here is seen as the One who holds the messengers,
As the One who holds the leaders.
In short, He is the One who is guiding those who guide the church.

The writer of Hebrews said:
Hebrews 13:17a “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account.”

James said:
James 3:1 “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.”

The Lord holds the leaders of His church to strict standards.
They guide the church so He guides them.

THE IMPLICATION THEN IS THAT JESUS IS YOUR GUIDE

We just studied this recently in our “It’s All About Jesus” study.
Colossians 1:18a “He is also head of the body, the church…”

He is the ultimate authority and the supreme guide.

WE ALSO FIND that He is the “One who walks among the seven golden lampstands”

You remember this as is His presence.
He dwells with His church.

So if you put the two together we find out that Jesus introduces Himself as “The One who is with you to guide you”

He is what a pilot is to an airplane
Without Him here
The church would have no direction, no guidance, no clue.

So if we can reiterate what Jesus said in John 15:
HE IS IRREPLACEABLE

Colossians 1:17 “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”
Could you imagine the church without the presence of Jesus?
• He is our Provider
• He is our Protection
• He is our Power
• He is our Peace
• He is our Purpose

They hymn writer seemed to know:
“Without Him, I could do nothing, without Him, I’d surely fail; without Him I would be drifting like a ship without a sail. Without Him, I could be dying, without Him, I’d be enslaved; without Him, life would be hopeless, but with Jesus, thank God, I’m saved.”

If you take Jesus out of the church, we’d absolutely fall apart.
• How could we get along without His peace to unify us?
• How could we please the Father without His righteousness to clothe us?
• How could we reach the lost without His power to help us?
• How could we comfort the hurting without His compassion to drive us?
• How could we face adversity without His hope to strengthen us?
• How could we discern error without His truth to guide us?
• How could we resist temptation without His Spirit to help us?
• How could we grow without His model to direct us?

I mean, the reality is that if you take Jesus out of the church,
The church sinks.

It is a good thing that He is here and promises to never leave,
Because if He did, it would all be over.

The Church, Their Lord
#3 THEIR SUCCESS
Revelation 2:2-3, 6

It is important that you first recognize all that this church did well.
It is important that you see that
We are not talking about a bunch of thugs here at Ephesus.

“I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false; and you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary.”

Jesus talked about their “deeds” and their “toil” and their “perseverance”

These are people who work and work hard and keep working.
They have given themselves to the back breaking labor of the ministry,
And they don’t quit just because it is hard.

These are warriors
They know how to push on.
And we even see in what area.
“you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false”

(6) “Yet this you do have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.”

No one really knows who the Nicolaitans were or what they they did.
All that really matters is that we do know that the Lord hated their deeds.
Whatever they did, God hated it.

And so we find here that
Whether it was false apostles or false doctrine or false deeds,
The Ephesians discerned it, hated it, confronted it, and judged it.

And I don’t have to tell you that
THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT CHURCHES DO MUCH OF TODAY.
I can’t think of a time where more false teachers get more television time or Facebook shares than today in America.

And yet if you speak out against any of them,
People instantly rebuke you for being divisive.

Coupled with that there are very few churches
That want to deal with sin anymore.

Did Jesus stutter when He said:
Matthew 18:15-17 “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. “But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that BY THE MOUTH OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES EVERY FACT MAY BE CONFIRMED. “If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.”

Was Paul joking when he said:
1 Corinthians 5:11-13 “But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler — not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? But those who are outside, God judges. REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG YOURSELVES.”

Or when he said:
2 Thessalonians 3:14 “If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of that person and do not associate with him, so that he will be put to shame.”

It is clear throughout Scripture that the church is to remain pure.
That means both the pulpit and the pew

But try it sometime in our day and I can promise you will meet resistance.
The point is, what Ephesus was doing was amazing!
But it is even more impressive coming from the Ephesian church.

Why? – Because that is not at all who they started out being.

If you’ll remember, Timothy pastored that church for a while.

1 Timothy 1:3-7 “As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines, nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation rather than furthering the administration of God which is by faith. But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to fruitless discussion, wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions.”

1 Timothy 2:12 “But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet.”

1 Timothy 4:1-5 “But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer.”

1 Timothy 6:3-5 “If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain.”

1 Timothy 6:20-21 “O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge” — which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you.”

2 Timothy 2:14-19 “Remind them of these things, and solemnly charge them in the presence of God not to wrangle about words, which is useless and leads to the ruin of the hearers. Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, men who have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and they upset the faith of some. Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, ” Everyone who names the name of the Lord is to abstain from wickedness.”

2 Timothy 3:1-5 “But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these.”
Can you see the main issue Timothy had to deal with?
Ephesus was a church that tolerated false apostles and false doctrine.

Timothy’s main job (according to Paul) was to
• Confront those false teachers,
• Expose their heresy,
• Remove them,
• And entrust their teaching position to qualified men who teach the truth.

And according to Jesus here in the book of Revelation,
Ephesus had completely made that change.

They went from being a super tolerant church with no grasp of the truth
To a church firmly grounded and willing to confront error.

And as I said this is NOT easy.
• It is hard to stand up for truth.
• It is hard to confront and expose false teachers.

It is a hard thing to do.
In fact two other church of these 7
Were specifically reprimanded by Jesus for their failure to do this.

Pergamum
Revelation 2:14-15 “But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality. ‘So you also have some who in the same way hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans.”

Thyatira
Revelation 2:20 “But I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they commit acts of immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.”

These two churches had been unwilling to take the stand
That the church in Ephesus had taken.

What Ephesus did was not easy to do.
• They embraced the hard work
• They embraced the dirty work
• They embraced the unpopular work

They were a church that stood up to defend the truth
And uphold the integrity of the gospel.

Paul wrote to Timothy:
1 Timothy 3:14-15 “I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.”

And Ephesus clearly embraced that purpose.
They became “the pillar and support of the truth.”

And not only did they embrace the battle, but they gladly embraced it.
(3) “and you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary.”

They believed the name of Jesus was worth defending,
And they never tired of doing so.

These were warriors in every sense.
• Always ready to go to battle for truth.
• Always clothed in the gospel armor.

And since they were not always like that,
We certainly applaud them for their success in achieving it.

I just want to make sure you understand
How hard this church was working.

But this sermon is not about their success,
It is about their intolerable, inexcusable failure.

The Church, Their Lord, Their Success
#4 THEIR FAILURE
Revelation 2:4
“you have left your first love.”

It is true that when the Ephesian church started
• They had a problem with discernment.
• They struggled with false teachers.

But one they thing they didn’t struggle with at the very beginning
Was in their love for Jesus.

TURN TO: ACTS 19:11-20

These people didn’t understand everything,
But they did understand that Jesus was the most important thing.
And they were leaving everything behind for Him.

In fact, if you keep reading in Acts 19, you’ll find that they were so devoted to Jesus that it virtually killed the artisan business in Ephesus.

• The artisan’s had previously made a living selling crafted statues of Artemis
• Now the Ephesians had fallen so in love with Jesus that their businesses were
collapsing.
• Due to the economic strain one silversmith actually started a revolt to try and
get Paul killed.

The point being, the Ephesians didn’t have it all figured out in the beginning, but they did have one thing right,
And that was their love and devotion for Jesus.

He was their “first love”

But now Jesus says “you have left your first love”

“left” translates APHEIMI
It literally means “to leave alone”

It was the word used of when the disciples followed Jesus.
Mark 1:18 “Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.

It is also the word used of when they deserted Him
Mark 14:50 “And they all left Him and fled.”

In 1 Corinthians 7:11 & 7:12, it is translated “divorce”

In Revelation 2:20 the church in Thyatira is rebuked because they did this.
Revelation 2:20 “But I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they commit acts of immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.”

There it means that they just “left her alone”
And didn’t do anything with her.

So it is to abandon, or ignore, or to put away.

Incidentally Jesus said He would never do this to us.
John 14:18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.”

Jesus said He will never ignore us,
Or leave us alone, or send us away.

And yet, that is precisely what the Ephesians had done to Him.
“you have left your first love”
• (you have ignored Him)
• (you have divorced Him)
• (you have abandoned Him)

Sure you are busy defending Him
Sure you are busy proclaiming His truth
Sure you are busy rebuking those who slander Him
BUT YOU ARE NOT SPENDING TIME WITH HIM

You’ve gotten busy, you’ve gotten preoccupied,
And you’ve forgotten the very basics of the relationship.

That is what we are talking about.
This church was busy doing ministry, but they had forgotten Jesus.

They worked and toiled and served and fought and battled and endured,
But they had forgotten their most basic calling,
And that is to love Jesus.

And I want you to know that this was absolutely intolerable.
It was inexcusable.
#5 THEIR RESPONSIBILITY
Revelation 2:5

“remember from where you have fallen”

Don’t focus on the things you are now doing right…
That does not cancel out what you are doing wrong.
You are defending the truth, but you aren’t spending time with Me.

“do the deeds you did at first”

When you first got saved,
• You didn’t know much about the Bible, but you were hungry to read it.
• You didn’t know much about prayer, but you did it a lot.
• You didn’t know all the songs, but you sang the ones you did know.
• You didn’t have a lot of responsibilities at church, but you never wanted to miss

WHAT HAPPENED?
• It’s called complacency
• It’s called backsliddenness
• It’s called taking Jesus for granted

AND THAT IS NOT OK.
Your personal relationship with Jesus is important.
It’s not just about what you do FOR HIM, it’s about what you do WITH HIM.

Get back to those simple first things.
• Pray to Jesus
• Listen to Jesus
• Sing to Jesus
• Abide in Jesus
• Spend time with Jesus

And let me show you why we say failing to do this is inexcusable.

“or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place – unless you repent.”

Jesus actually said that if they didn’t do this right,
They would no longer be a church.
He was going to put them out to pasture, and pull them out of the battle.

He would rather have a weak bride that loved Him
Than a strong soldier that ignored Him.
Their battling was commendable,
But their lack of devotion to Jesus was inexcusable.

HE WAS THEIR LORD, BUT HE WAS NOT THEIR LOVE,
And that was not enough for Jesus.

Remember these stories?
Luke 10:38-42 “Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.” But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”

Can you really overstate what Jesus said,
“but only one things is necessary”?

Of all the things that could be said about our church…
Of all the things that could be said about you…
Could there be anything greater said than
They loved Jesus more than anything else?

It is after all the greatest commandment,

And Jesus never overlooked those who loved Him wholeheartedly.
Remember this lady?
Matthew 26:6-13 “Now when Jesus was in Bethany, at the home of Simon the leper, a woman came to Him with an alabaster vial of very costly perfume, and she poured it on His head as He reclined at the table. But the disciples were indignant when they saw this, and said, “Why this waste? “For this perfume might have been sold for a high price and the money given to the poor.” But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you bother the woman? For she has done a good deed to Me. “For you always have the poor with you; but you do not always have Me. “For when she poured this perfume on My body, she did it to prepare Me for burial. “Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be spoken of in memory of her.”

More important than service…
More important than benevolence…
IS OUR LOVE AND DEVOTION FOR JESUS
And if we fail to see that, then according to Jesus He has no use for us.

BECAUSE WITHOUT BEING PLUGGED INTO THE VINE
WE CANNOT PRODUCE FRUIT!!!

I’ve many times likened it to a water hose.
There are all sorts of attachments you can put on a hose.
But if you don’t tie the other end of that hose to the faucet
You’ll get nothing.
And Jesus cannot use a church like that.

It’s all about Jesus!
We can’t miss that.

#6 THEIR EXAMPLE
Revelation 2:7

Obviously there Jesus is saying that
The Holy Spirit is screaming this to the church.

He wants to know if anyone is listening.
“He who has an ear, let him hear”

And the promise to all who overcome this complacency,
“I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God.”

What is He offering?
Eternal life in heaven
• This is the tree Adam and Eve were banned from.
• This is the tree in the middle of heaven.

The implication is that people who don’t grasp this vital point
Won’t receive that.

Are you saying that the Ephesians were going to lose their salvation?
No.

What we’re saying is that
Anyone who doesn’t have a love for Jesus is not saved
Regardless of how busy they are in the church.

You can’t miss that point.

NOW DO YOU SEE WHY THIS FAILURE
IS INTOLERABLE AND INEXCUSABLE?

If you get everything right except for your relationship with Jesus,
Then you’ve missed the whole thing.

Nothing matters like He matters.
Loving Him is hands down the most important thing you can do.

And it is your relationship with Him, above all else,
• That secures your life and access to heaven.
• And that makes you effective for the kingdom.

If I can give you one piece of encouragement this morning
It is that above all else we need people
Who are head over heels in love with Jesus.

The church at Ephesus was BUSY, but they were BACKSLIDDEN.
It’s time that they return to Jesus.

The Final Word
Hebrews 13:20-25
May 3, 2016

This morning we come to the end of the book of Hebrews.
I hope it has been as encouraging to you as it has been to me.

In this great book we’ve learned the tremendous value
Of what it means that we have Jesus.

• In Jesus we have One who is greater than the prophets because He is the complete and perfect message of God.

• In Jesus we have One who is greater than the angels because they are servants who go, He is a Son who has taken His seat at the right hand of God.

• In Jesus we have One who is greater than Moses because Moses was a servant to the house of God, Jesus is a Son over God’s house.

• In Jesus we have One who is greater than Joshua because Joshua took Israel into the land, but never gave them rest. Jesus granted us that rest from our labors.

• In Jesus we have One who is greater than Aaron because Aaron never actually atoned for our sin, he only did it symbolically. But Jesus actually entered the presence of God for us and actually atoned for our sin and then He sat down having perfectly finished His work.

• In Jesus we have a better covenant because it is one based on God’s work, not mans. It is a covenant that brings forgiveness instead of condemnation.

• In Jesus we have a better sacrifice because unlike the blood of bulls and goats, the sacrifice of Jesus’ blood was actually acceptable to the Father and purchased forgiveness forever.

• In Jesus we have a better city, namely a heavenly one that will last long after this earthly one is gone.

IN SHORT, JESUS IS GREATER.

And after proving that and giving us a few words of encouragement
About how to live as a Christian,
The writer now brings his letter to a close with his final word.

And his final word is great.
God is going to help you be obedient, now go do it!

It is the ULTIMATE ENCOURAGEMENT
To those of us who desire to live a life that pleases God.

AND it is an encouragement that is ONLY AVAILABLE because of Jesus.

Think for a moment about the struggle of being Jewish
And living under the Law.
Every single moment of your life was filled with the anxiety of failure.

Paul described this anxiety perfectly in Romans 7
Romans 7:14-24 “For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?”

Paul is there describing the agony of a life that
Has a desire for righteousness but no ability for righteousness.

It’s one thing to be a pagan who doesn’t even care what God thinks and has no desire at all to please Him.

They can live sinful and to a certain extent not care at all.

But a person in religion (like Judaism) who has a clear understanding of what is right and wrong, and who even wants to be pleasing to God, and yet has no ability to do it is miserable indeed.

We talked with the youth Wednesday night about this very type of person.
Psalms 119:1-8 “How blessed are those whose way is blameless, Who walk in the law of the LORD. How blessed are those who observe His testimonies, Who seek Him with all their heart. They also do no unrighteousness; They walk in His ways. You have ordained Your precepts, That we should keep them diligently. Oh that my ways may be established To keep Your statutes! Then I shall not be ashamed When I look upon all Your commandments. I shall give thanks to You with uprightness of heart, When I learn Your righteous judgments. I shall keep Your statutes; Do not forsake me utterly!”

The fears and regrets of the Psalmist are obvious.
• He lives in shame every time he opens the Bible and he lives in fear that God
will just eventually throw him aside for good.

• He actually looks around that those who are obedient and says, “Man how
blessed those people are! I wish I was one of them.”

Such is the anguish of having a desire for righteousness,
But no ability for righteousness.

AND JUDAISM TRAPPED PEOPLE THERE.
It gave them line after line after line of command after command after command
And simply said “Do this” or “Don’t do this”.
And even those who desperately desired to be obedient
Found that they could not.
It was a life of guilt and shame and condemnation.

But that is not the truth for Christianity!
Christianity is not a religion set up for failure, but for victory!

Look at verses 20-21
“Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good things to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”

It is quite a doxology of praise to end the letter,
But it is also packed full of some wonderful truth.

The point of the two verses is clear.
God will equip you

• If you have a desire to “do His will”
• If you have a desire to perform “that which is pleasing in His sight”

Then you should be encouraged to know
That “through Jesus Christ” God will “equip you” to do just that.

• Gone are the days of expectations without ability.
• Gone are the days with a list of commands and no strength to obey them.

We now learn that God will give us everything we need
To live the life that He expects.
God is throwing failure out the window.

AND IF YOU’LL RECALL, this was precisely the point of this entire New Covenant we’ve been talking about since chapter 8.

Hebrews 8:10 “FOR THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS INTO THEIR MINDS, AND I WILL WRITE THEM ON THEIR HEARTS. AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE.”

It was a picture of God doing in us what we could never do in ourselves.
He would grant us the ability to live holy and righteous lives.

And this is what the writer wants you to understand here at the close.
God is NOT working against you.
Through Jesus, God is working FOR YOU!!!

And this entire reality stems from the TRUTH ABOUT WHO GOD IS.
Notice what the writer calls God.
(20) “Now the God of peace”
• Do you understand God in this way?
• Is this the name you would have given Him?

That reality, above all others, is the theme of the book of Hebrews.
No book in the Bible does a more thorough job outlining
What God did in order to bring peace than the book of Hebrews.

• This book has been about how God went about reconciling sinners to Himself.
• This book has been all about how God made peace with fallen man.

There was enmity
There was wrath
There was condemnation
But God, through His Son Jesus Christ, brought peace

Romans 5:1-2 “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.”

• It was Jesus who satisfied God’s wrath
• It was Jesus who satisfied God’s righteous requirement
• It was Jesus who offered Himself without blemish to God
AND THIS WAS ALL THE PLAN OF GOD.

Romans 5:8-11 “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.”

When you talk about a God who went to such great lengths
To forgive sinful humanity there are few titles that you could give Him that are more fitting than “God of peace”

• He obviously wasn’t out for a war
• He obviously wasn’t in favor of eternal destruction
• He obviously wasn’t seeking grounds to punish

Above all else God desired peace with sinful humanity
And Jesus became the solution for providing it.

He is the “God of peace”

The writer wants you to understand that THIS HAS NOT CHANGED.

God didn’t make a one-time demonstration on the cross and then say,
“All right, don’t mess it up again.”

He is still the “God of peace” and He is still in the business of bringing it.
HOW?
BY EQUIPPING US TO DO HIS WILL.

PUT ON YOUR JEWISH CAP FOR A MOMENT
Think about how their religion worked.

They had that Day of Atonement when their sins were forgiven,
But you know and I know that the peace only lasted a moment.

In virtually no time at all sin would again be committed and God would again be angry and you’d have to go do that sacrifice all over again.

But that is not the way it is any longer.
The one sacrifice of Christ was enough to bring peace,
And God continues to work us toward it.

AND LET ME SHOW YOU HOW GOOD GOD IS AT IT.

We already know it is “the God of peace,” but he reveals more.

He is also the God “who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord,”

We already studied and know what “the blood” of Jesus accomplished.
Hebrews 9:11-14 “But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”

• We know that when Christ died He entered the greater and more perfect tabernacle (heaven) and there actually atoned for our sin.

That act put an end to the old covenant of the Law
And ushered in the New Covenant that we’ve been talking about.

Remember when Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper the night before He died,
Matthew 26:27-28 “And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.”

So Jesus offered His blood to God to ratify that New Covenant.
• Through that offering we were sanctified.
• Through that offering we were made righteous in God’s sight.

THOSE ARE ALL THINGS THAT
JESUS ACCOMPLISHED THROUGH HIS DEATH.
BUT HOW WERE WE SUPPOSED TO KNOW THAT?
(After all, we can’t see into the heavenlies, to know what happened)

IT WAS IMPORTANT THAT YOU KNOW HOW EFFECTIVE JESUS WAS.
So what did God do?

He “brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep…even Jesus our Lord”

• That act was the ultimate demonstration that God had accepted the blood of
the covenant.
• That act was the ultimate demonstration that salvation had been achieved.

So it was a PROVING ACT, but it was also a POWERFUL ACT.
Who had ever heard of power so great that could make death turn loose?
We are talking about a powerful God.

Well, the powerful God who raised Jesus from the dead
Is the same God who will now:
(21) “equip you in every good thing to do His will”

He is the “God of peace” who has dedicated His tremendous power
To equip us “to do His will”

He is “working in us that which is pleasing in His sight”

Philippians 2:13 “for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”

2 Peter 1:2-4 “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.”

Both of those promises speak of a God who is at work within us
To help us be all that He has required us to be.

THE POINT is that God raised Jesus from the dead
To show you how effective Jesus was for you
And to give you a demonstration of what He would do in your life.

HE IS DOING FOR YOU WHAT HE DID FOR CHRIST.

He says that God will “equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, THROUGH JESUS CHRIST,”

Let me show you what the writer is referring to.
TURN TO: ROMANS 6

• The chapter begins with a question regarding whether or not a Christian can freely sin now that they have received the promise of grace.
• It is an unthinkable question that any true believer would want to use grace as a license to sin, but yet that is the debate at hand.

Paul sets out to explain what this not (nor should it ever be)
A Christian consideration.

And the reason is found in verse 2 which is that we “died to sin”

HOW DID WE DIE TO SIN?
(3) “Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death?”

Paul is referring here to that conscious decision you and I made
To enter a relationship with Jesus Christ. We were united with Him.

We died to self, and became one with Christ.
We came to identify with Him.

Perhaps to help you understand Paul also said that
The children of Israel were baptized into Moses.

The idea was that in their submission to Moses and obedience of His leadership
They became linked to him, and thus linked to God through him.

In an infinitely greater way Paul says that we are united with Christ.
And the reason for that was so that through Christ we might die.

Death is the only means of escaping sin and judgment.
So in Christ we died.

Paul told the Galatians that he had been “crucified with Christ”
That is what salvation is.

According to Romans 6 the reason that we die with Christ
Is so that we might be raised with Him.

(4) “Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.”

“we died so we could rise and get a new life”

(5-7) “For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin.”

When we yield our life to Christ and enter that relationship with Him,
We become sharers in His death AND IN HIS RESURRECTION.

The first brought forgiveness
The second brings new life

THIS IS WHAT THE WRITER OF HEBREWS IS REFERRING TO.
The God of peace sent Christ to die and bring forgiveness,
But He also brought Christ up from the dead symbolizing new life.

Through Jesus then, you not only have forgiveness,
But also this new life.

It is this new life “through Jesus Christ” in which
God is equipping you and working to allow you to do His will in all things.

2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

In Christ we die to sin
In Christ we get new life

Let me show it to you another place.
TURN TO: EPHESIANS 2
• In the first 3 verses Paul clearly explains what we were.
• We were sinners who wanted sin and who were destined to judgment because of it.

“But God…”

(4-7) “being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

This is the mystery of being “in Christ”

When we died to ourselves and yielded our lives to Christ,
We became united with Him.
Both in death AND in resurrection.

So we receive both forgiveness and new life.

This new life is the life where God promises to “equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight”

THIS IS SO IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND
SO THAT YOU WILL REALIZE
YOU ARE NO LONGER A PRISONER OF SIN AND FAILURE.

Adrian Rogers shared a fictional conversation between the devil and his angels.
“If those Christians ever really let Jesus out of that grave; Hell help us, all Heaven’s gonna break loose!”
The point to be seen here is that in Jesus
God has done something for us that He never did in plain old Judaism.
• They had symbolic forgiveness of sin through ceremonial sacrifices, but they
never had any sort of spiritual equipping to not sin any more.

That is absolutely unique to the church.
God is now doing that for His church.

But God has given you new life in Christ so that obedience is possible.

And that reality plays right into the next thing the writer says.
(VERSE 22) “But I urge you, brethren, bear with this word of exhortation, for I have written to you briefly.”

This is the flip side of the coin.
God is working in you
God has made obedience possible
So… You should OBEY.

Philippians 2:12-13 “So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”

• Since God is working in you
• Since God has made obedience possible
• Since God has opened the door to new life
THEN BY ALL MEANS WALK IN IT!

Colossians 2:6 “Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,”

Colossians 3:1-11 “Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory. Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience, and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them. But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him — a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all.”

Since God has provided a new life for you through Christ Jesus,
Then by all means take advantage of it!

Back in Romans 6 after talking about being raised with Christ, Paul went on to say:
Romans 6:12-14 “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”

Live the life God has equipped you to live.
God provided it, now take advantage of it.

And when you do this it gives glory to God.
That is also why the writer stays “to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen”

Somewhere along the lines there was a perversion of Christianity
That began to believe that sinners were glorifying to God.

It was sort of this belief that when I sin and continue running to God for forgiveness that that just makes God look all the more better.

But if God takes sinners, does this supposedly amazing work in their life,
AND AT THE END OF THE DAY THEY ARE STILL SINNERS,
One must ask the questions: WHAT DID GOD DO?
And WHAT KIND OF POWER DOES HE REALLY HAVE?

If you want to glorify God in your life then live holy.
Anyone in the world can live sinful, there is nothing impressive about that.

There is no higher form of worship to God than your holy life.
Romans 12:1-2 “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

This is THE FINAL WORD from the writer of Hebrews.
GOD HAS EQUIPPED YOU TO BE HOLY, SO BE HOLY.

And then he closes with an encouraging salutation.
(23-25) “Take notice that our brother Timothy has been released, with whom, if he comes soon, I will see you. Greet all of your leaders and all the saints. Those from Italy greet you. Grace be with you all.”

There are a few things here that you need to notice.

THE FIRST is that life for a Christian isn’t all bad.

These Hebrews had certainly had their fair share
Of disappointments and difficulties.

From a worldly standpoint they had lost in order to gain Christ.
Their reputation, their property, even their freedom as some had been put in jail.

And it is true that we must count the cost of following Christ.

But here we are reminded that it isn’t all bad.
Timothy had “been released”

I don’t want to stray too far of course here,
But if you are familiar with the book of 2 Timothy
Then you know that at the time of that letter
Timothy was in a similar boat as these Hebrews.
He was facing enormous opposition to his ministry.
In 2 Timothy Paul asked Timothy to endure and face that opposition anyway,
Much in the same way the writer of Hebrews asked these Hebrews to do.

2 Timothy 1:8 “Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God,”

Well it is apparent that Timothy did what Paul asked, suffered for it,
But now had “been released”

This is encouraging news.

A SECOND THING we must recognize here is the universal presence of the church.

The writer says, “Greet all your leaders and all the saints. Those from Italy greet you.”

Regardless of how it might feel at times, you are not alone in struggle.
• Others are facing it as well.
• Others are enduring.
• Others are gaining victory.

Regarding suffering, Peter wrote:
1 Peter 5:8-9 “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.”

It is encouraging to know that other believers across the world
Are facing the same difficulties you are facing and are finding victory.

There is the church, and she is a tremendous source of fellowship,
Encouragement, and support.

THE THIRD thing you should recognize is the continual presence of grace.

(25) “Grace be with you all.”

• Grace is more than just a form of favor that allows God to forgive sinners.
• Grace is also a source of power that allows believers to endure various trials.

When Paul was afflicted with a thorn in the flesh, he wanted it gone.
2 Corinthians 12:8-10 “Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”

We are reminded that there is always grace and grace is enough.

It is a final encouragement that good does come,
There is a church to encourage, and grace is always available.

And this is the close of the book of Hebrews.

These Hebrews who faced such hardship for their decision
Have now learned that despite their struggles
They have gained something of far more value.
THEY HAVE GAINED CHRIST!

He is greater than any aspect of Jewish religion they have ever known
And through Him they are not only made pleasing to the Father,
But through Him they can also now live pleasing to the Father.

The final exhortation is to now go do it!
• Obey God in hope that He can and will deliver you as He did Timothy.
• Be encouraged as you obey God knowing that you are supported by the church.
• Obey God in the strength that He supplies through His unfailing grace.

So, there’s the message.

Now, what about your life?

We would be terribly missing the point if we didn’t ask
WHAT YOU ARE DOING WITH JESUS?

• You will never encounter another treasure of greater value.
• You will never encounter another pearly worth more.
• The cost of following Jesus is real, but the value far exceeds them all.

He is greater than anything and anyone this world has ever known,
And the call is for you and I to forsake it all and pick Him.

Romans 10:11-13 “For the Scripture says, “WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for “WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.”

The God of Daniel – Part 1
Daniel 2:1-23
May 1, 2016

Last week we were introduced to a young Jewish refugee
Who had a heart for God.

• Taken captive by the Babylonians and put into a program meant to assimilate him, Daniel stood his ground.

• It was a very simple decision not to defile himself with unclean foods, but to step out on a limb and do things God’s way.

• Of course we learned last week that the decision paid off and God not only came through for Daniel, but also promoted Daniel to a position of influence inside the king’s council.

• As we saw last week, Daniel would spend the next 70 years of his life in faithful service to God while living on foreign soil.

Tonight we begin to see God at work through Daniel.

The first item of business is to reveal the message
That God would tell time and time again,
Which is a message regarding His sovereignty.

God is going to reveal who is really in charge.
Isaiah 40:21-24 “Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. He it is who reduces rulers to nothing, Who makes the judges of the earth meaningless. Scarcely have they been planted, Scarcely have they been sown, Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth, But He merely blows on them, and they wither, And the storm carries them away like stubble.”

And we are reminded that regardless of
How powerful a kingdom may become on this planet,
None are permanent; none will last forever.

1 John 2:17 “The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.”

Revelation 11:15-17 “Then the seventh angel sounded; 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 will reign forever and ever.” And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying, “We give You thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who are and who were, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign.”

As Adrian Rogers so perfectly put it:
“People ask all the time, ‘What’s this world coming to?’ I’ll tell you what this world is coming to, it’s coming to Jesus. Jesus owns this world, it was made by Him and the Bible says it’s coming back to Him.”

That is the continual message of the book of Daniel.
• Israel has been removed from the land.
• Israel’s kings have been killed and imprisoned.
• Israel’s nobles have been exiled to Babylon.
• Israel’s temple has been burned.
• Israel’s capital has been leveled.
• And for 70 years Israel will dwell under the leadership of the nations of Babylon, Media, and Persia.

Each of these kingdoms was supposed to last forever,
And none of them did.

The message of Daniel is that there is but one King and but one Kingdom.
It is a message that will be preached over and over.

And the first person who will receive this message is Daniel.

Now you could say, “No, the first person to receive this message is Nebuchadnezzar; after all, he had the dream.”

It’s true Nebuchadnezzar gets the dream, but he doesn’t get the point.

Yes, at the end of this chapter he makes a great statement.
Daniel 2:47 “The king answered Daniel and said, “Surely your God is a God of gods and a Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, since you have been able to reveal this mystery.”

It seems like Nebuchadnezzar is on the right path;
That is until you read chapter 3 and find out that
The vision went to his head and he made a pagan statue
And tried to force even the Israelites to bow down to it.
Nebuchadnezzar’s day is coming, but it isn’t this day.

Today is all about showing Daniel who is in control.
Today is all about God solidifying who He is to Daniel.

And God does this by giving Daniel an opportunity
That most likely scared the socks off of him.

Perhaps you remember some of the statements Jesus made about the coming hardships for His followers.
Luke 12:11-12 “When they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not worry about how or what you are to speak in your defense, or what you are to say; for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

Luke 21:12-15 “But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for My name’s sake. “It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony. “So make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves; for I will give you utterance and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute.”

Always interesting to me that Jesus used the word “opportunity” there.

• We are not genuinely inclined to see situations like that as opportunities.
• We tend to see them as horrible events that we simply want to be delivered from.

But those are the types of events that God uses
To reveal Himself both to His children and to a fallen world.

Daniel is going to get many of these “opportunities” in his life,
So it is important that Daniel know that
Through all of these instances that he can fully rely on God.

That is what he learns here.

There are three main points tonight that we will use as sort of an outline to work our way through this text.
#1 DANIEL’S DILEMMA
Daniel 2:1-13

First you notice that we have a relatively “green” ruler on the thrown.
“Now in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar”

This man was a new world ruler, but he had already had the audacity to
• Attack God’s city,
• Carry off God’s treasures,
• And exile God’s people.

Regardless of what type of man he appears to be,
We know that at the very least he is a man who DOES NOT FEAR GOD.

It is also apparent that God is going to introduce Himself.

This man “had dreams; and his spirit was troubled and his sleep left him. Then the king gave orders to call in the magicians, the conjurers, the sorcerers and the Chaldeans to tell the king his dreams. So they came in and stood before the king. The king said to them, “I had a dream and my spirit is anxious to understand the dream.”

So you see the situation.
• We have a pagan ruler who is quite rattled
• And he has turned to every form of worldly wisdom to get an answer.

Some have wondered why Daniel wasn’t there initially
And the answer seems quite obvious.

Daniel wasn’t a “magician” a “conjurer” a “sorcerer” or a “Chaldean”
Daniel was a personal servant of the king.

We learned last week that the king had found Daniel and his friends
To be 10 times better than all those men,
But regardless of the fact, they were not sought here.

Nebuchadnezzar sought out every form of worldly wisdom first.
We have a king filled with anxiety and fear
And seeking the world for an answer.

But you will notice that the king is no dummy.
(READ 2:4-9)

The king is a little skeptical and with good reason.
• He has seen more than his share of people who are willing to make up any sort of story in order to gain his favor.

Anyone can take a newspaper and start giving out explanations
For why it all happened, or what it all means,
But that doesn’t mean they are right.

I remember after hurricane Katrina Pat Roberson went on television and said that God had told him Katrina happened because abortion and homosexuality.

• I would be far more inclined to believe Pat Roberson actually heard from God
had he predicted Katrina ahead of time and warned the abortionists and
homosexuals to repent or else.

• I would have been even more convinced had only abortionists and
homosexuals died in Katrina.

You get the point…
Anyone can do what these people were willing to do.

Heck, tell me your dreams I’ll interpret them for you.
I can make something up as quick as the next guy.

Nebuchadnezzar knew it to, and at this point he is rattled enough
That he isn’t interested in an amusing story.

Nebuchadnezzar wants the truth.
• There are times that we see people in this world with “itching ears” who only want to be told something they like, but that is not where this man is.
• He wants the truth and the only way he can be sure that one of these people has access to it is if they can first identify the dream.

THIS IS A MAJOR PROBLEM FOR MERE MORTAL MAN.

(10-11) “The Chaldeans answered the king and said, “There is not a man on earth who could declare the matter for the king, inasmuch as no great king or ruler has ever asked anything like this of any magician, conjurer or Chaldean. “Moreover, the thing which the king demands is difficult, and there is no one else who could declare it to the king except gods, whose dwelling place is not with mortal flesh.”

THEY ARE OBVIOUSLY CORRECT THERE.
• There is no man on earth who could do this.
• This is certainly a matter for God.

The problem the Chaldeans had was
They didn’t know of any God
Who would we be willing to help out mortal man.

“there is no one else who could declare it to the king except gods, whose dwelling place is not with mortal flesh.”

DO YOU SEE THE STORY BUILDING?

Everyone realizes the problem.
The king is demanding something only the gods can supply,
And it is common knowledge that gods won’t help the people out.

It is a big dilemma.
AND THE KING IS FURIOUS

(12-13) “Because of this the king became indignant and very furious and gave orders to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. So the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they looked for Daniel and his friends to kill them.”

That is what we call Daniel’s dilemma.
• The king has a problem that Daniel wasn’t consulted about.
• All the wisest in the kingdom said it to be impossible,
• And now there is a death sentence in which Daniel is included.

DON’T MINIMIZE THE DIFFICULTY OF THE SITUATION.

Daniel’s only hope is if his God is willing to do for him
What no one else’s god is willing to do for them.

This is a terrifying scene,
I promise you Daniel has wondered more than once
As to just what kind of God he actually has.

And may I remind you of the facts?
• Daniel has seen God’s army fall to Babylon
• Daniel has seen God’s temple robbed by Babylon
• Daniel has been exiled by Babylon

God has chosen to seemingly set by and just allow all that to happen.
I have to think Daniel would have been a little afraid.
But that doesn’t stop Daniel from exercising his faith.

Daniel’s Dilemma
#2 DANIEL’S DECISION
Daniel 2:14-18

Think about what is happening here.
• Daniel runs in to the man who has been ordered to kill him,
• But if you will recall, God had already given Daniel wisdom.

Daniel 1:17 “As for these four youths, God gave them knowledge and intelligence in every branch of literature and wisdom; Daniel even understood all kinds of visions and dreams.”

God had made Daniel intelligent,
And it is obvious that Daniel uses that God-given intelligence here.

“Daniel went in and requested of the king that he would give him time, in order that he might declare the interpretation to the king.”

If you’re keeping score you will remember
That the king already rebuked the other wise men for seeking to buy time.

• But it is obvious that the king truly wanted to know the meaning of the dream, and that Daniel in his appeal must have convinced the king that he could surely deliver the truth to him.

And then Daniel makes his decision.
(17-18) “Then Daniel went to his house and informed his friends, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, about the matter, so that they might request compassion from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his friends would not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.”

They went in “so that they might request compassion from the God of heaven”

It wasn’t a question of whether or not
God knew the meaning of the dream,
It was a question of whether or not this God would help,
Or if He would just be like all the others.

Daniel is putting it all on the back of God here.

I liken this to events like Abraham being asked to sacrifice Isaac.
• After Abraham was stopped by God and saw the ram caught in the thicket, he named that place, “The LORD Provides”

The idea being that Abraham might have realized that God was a provider,
BUT ON THAT DAY IT WAS ABSOLUTELY SOLIDIFIED.

This is sort of the education of Daniel.
God is about to reveal Himself to Daniel.
GOD IS ABOUT TO PROVE HIMSELF TO BE DANIEL’S GOD

HERE IS THE LESSON
• God is going to prove His compassion (for He will answer)
• God is going to reveal His faithfulness (He comes through for Daniel)
• God is going to reveal His wisdom (for He will interpret the dream)
• God is going to reveal His sovereignty (that is what the dream reveals)

In this terrifying moment
Daniel does what none of the other wise men would do,
Daniel seeks God.

Daniel’s Dilemma, Daniel’s Decision
#3 DANIEL’S DECLARATION
Daniel 2:19-23

What encouraging words there!
“Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a night vision.”

We’ll get to the specifics of that vision in our text next week, but the main point here is that God came through!

• God did what no other god could do or would do.
• God did what the other wise men said He would not do.
• God answered Daniel and gave him the facts about that dream.

“Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven;”

I would imagine so.

And what we notice is that Daniel learned two great truths about God.

1) GOD IS THE SOURCE OF WISDOM (20-21)

“Let the name of God be blessed forever and ever, For wisdom and power belong to Him. “It is He who changes the times and the epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings; He gives wisdom to wise men And knowledge to men of understanding.”

If Daniel didn’t know it before, he knows it now.

Daniel knows that “wisdom and power belong to Him.”
Paul wrote:
Romans 11:33-36 “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.”

God isn’t just wise, God owns wisdom.
He is the source of it.
There is no wisdom apart from Him.

We looked at this not too long ago in Job, but
TURN TO: JOB 28

It is the reminder that wisdom is a commodity
That you can’t just pull out of the ground,
It only has one source and that is God.

Paul wrote:
1 Corinthians 3:18-20 “Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, “He is THE ONE WHO CATCHES THE WISE IN THEIR CRAFTINESS”; and again, “THE LORD KNOWS THE REASONINGS of the wise, THAT THEY ARE USELESS.”

Any wisdom you can gain from this world
Is of absolute no value before God.
In fact compared to God’s wisdom it is actually foolishness.
God is the source of wisdom.

Think about it.
• Daniel spent all that time in the Chaldean’s training.
• Daniel was educated
• Daniel was assimilated

But none of that helped him or anyone else
When the king wanted information that only God could provide.

Such it is in this world.
• I’m not knocking education, everyone seems to understand that education in the world helps you succeed in the world.

But education in the world will not help you
Succeed in eternity or in spiritual matters.

That is a wisdom that only comes from God, and Daniel praises God for it.

And that brings us to the second reality

God is the Source of Wisdom
2) GOD IS THE SHARER OF WISDOM (22-23)

“It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things; He knows what is in the darkness, And the light dwells with Him. “To You, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, For You have given me wisdom and power; Even now You have made known to me what we requested of You, For You have made known to us the king’s matter.”

God not only knew all the answers,
But this is what made God especially important to Daniel;
God revealed the answers!

“To You, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, For You have given me wisdom…You have made known to me…You have made known to us…”

Daniel found out that not only did God have wisdom,
But if you pray to Him, God will share His wisdom.

James 1:5-8 “But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.”

James 3:13-18 “Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

Luke 21:12-15 “But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for My name’s sake. “It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony. “So make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves; for I will give you utterance and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute.”

That is precisely what God did for Daniel.
God came through!

If Daniel had any doubts as to God’s faithfulness or involvement,
He does not have those doubts any longer.

This event was the purpose of teaching Daniel that He is in total control.

I CAN CERTAINLY UNDERSTAND THIS PASSAGE HERE.
• Every week there are two sermons and a Sunday School lesson that are my responsibility.

Every week I remind God that I don’t understand,
And every week I see Him come through.

He has proven Himself to me in this regard time and time again.
He knows what the text means, and He is always faithful
To share that information with me.

He continually comes through.

I’ve probably shared with you before the passage that has proven itself to me over and over.
Proverbs 2:1-6 “My son, if you will receive my words And treasure my commandments within you, Make your ear attentive to wisdom, Incline your heart to understanding; For if you cry for discernment, Lift your voice for understanding; If you seek her as silver And search for her as for hidden treasures; Then you will discern the fear of the LORD And discover the knowledge of God. For the LORD gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding.”

I have found that to be true far more times than I can count.

Perhaps you have an area where God has continually proven Himself in your life. (My parents continually spoke of His provision)

And you should know that
The area where God has proven Himself most faithfully to you
May just be the area where God plans to use you.

Daniel would be called upon on more than one occasion to share wisdom.
It was vitally important that he first learn
The source and sharer of all wisdom.

GOD WILL DO THE SAME IN YOUR LIFE.

Think of David for a moment.
1 Samuel 17:33-37 “Then Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are but a youth while he has been a warrior from his youth.” But David said to Saul, “Your servant was tending his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock, I went out after him and attacked him, and rescued it from his mouth; and when he rose up against me, I seized him by his beard and struck him and killed him. “Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has taunted the armies of the living God.” And David said, “The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, ” Go, and may the LORD be with you.”

Goliath wasn’t David’s first battle,
God had proven Himself here for David many times before.

• We’ve certainly talked several times about all the times God proved to Abraham that Isaac was the son of promise before God ever asked Abraham to sacrifice him.

• How many times did God prove Himself to Moses before asking Him to stand before Pharaoh or to walk through the Red Sea?

• How many times did Jesus prove Himself to Peter before using Him to preach to the masses at Pentecost?

THE IDEA IS SIMPLE.
Before God asked Daniel to proclaim God to the world,
God first proved Himself to Daniel.

He was proving to be Daniel’s God.

Think about those areas where God has already proven Himself to you.
• His faithfulness
• His provision
• His protection
• His comfort
• His wisdom
• His compassion
• His mercy
• His forgiveness

The areas where God has most revealed Himself to you
Could very well be the areas
Where God most desires to use you to reveal Him to others.

This is clearly what He is doing with Daniel.
Before asking Daniel to reveal that
He was the Sovereign God in control of all things,
He first revealed it to Daniel.

The Most High God
Daniel 3:1-30
May 22, 2016

As you know we are studying through this book of Daniel
And I have told you from the beginning that
Daniel is a book all about the sovereignty of God.

We’ll probably read it many more times before this book and our study of Revelation is over:
Isaiah 40:23-24 “He it is who reduces rulers to nothing, Who makes the judges of the earth meaningless. Scarcely have they been planted, Scarcely have they been sown, Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth, But He merely blows on them, and they wither, And the storm carries them away like stubble.”

Few books in the Bible reveal God’s sovereign control like this one.
And that is interesting since the circumstances of the day
Would tend to lead one to believe that God had lost control.

• His nation has been conquered
• His city has been invaded
• His temple has been burned
• His people have been deported

By all external accounts it would appear that
God was no match for Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian gods

That is why God takes this opportunity
To reveal to all who are watching
That He has not lost control in the least.

We found out that it was God who orchestrated this entire event.
• It was God who granted Nebuchadnezzar’s victory
• It was God who granted Daniel’s deportation
• It was God who also put Daniel in a position of power and influence

And God wasted no time declaring His sovereign power and plan.
In fact that is what we could call chapter 2
SOVEREIGNTY DECLARED

If you will remember, God declared exactly who was in control
And even gave an outline of His plan.

It came in the form of a dream that Nebuchadnezzar could not understand.
• We saw the rise of Babylon (the head of gold)
• We saw the rise of the Medes and Persians (the chest of silver)
• We saw the rise of the Greeks (the belly and thighs of bronze)
• We saw the rise of Rome (the legs of iron)

But we ultimately see that stone that the builders rejected
Will one day destroy them all and set up a kingdom which will never end.
God declared His sovereignty through that dream to Nebuchadnezzar.

Now, if you’ll remember, Nebuchadnezzar didn’t really get it.
(You’ll see tonight that he didn’t really like it either)

After the dream was revealed Nebuchadnezzar honored Daniel not God.
He could see that Daniel was a man of God,
But he still refused to see that God was the chief authority
And only sovereign of the universe.

In fact tonight Nebuchadnezzar sets out to prove that God is not.

I know the story tonight is one of our all-time favorites.
• Many of us grew up as children hearing the story about those three Hebrew boys that survived the fiery furnace.

• Often times it is even followed about how God will also deliver you from the fire if you have enough faith.

And surely by now you understand that that promise isn’t entirely true.

We’ve studied Hebrews recently.
Hebrews 11:32-39 “And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets, who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection; and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground. And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised,”

• It is true that some were saved from great peril.
• It is true that some were not saved from peril.

The salvation of God does not promise earthly deliverance,
It promises eternal deliverance.

So obviously we don’t hold this story up
As some sort of pattern about how not to be killed.
Many saints have been burned to death for their faith in Christ.

Well, if this story is not about escaping the flame, then what is it about?
It is about how God defended His sovereignty
Before a man bent on overthrowing Him.

Did you know that’s what this story was about?
Nebuchadnezzar isn’t just full of himself here.
He just saw a dream about how that head of gold would not last forever.
His objective here is to undo that prophecy
By weeding out any who aren’t totally loyal.

This is Nebuchadnezzar’s attempt to reverse God’s sovereign plan.
But as you will see, God is going to show him otherwise.

6 points to help us work through it tonight.
#1 AN AWFUL PLAN
Daniel 3:1-7

(1) “Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, the height of which was sixty cubits and its width six cubits; he set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.”

Don’t think for a second that this is coincidental.
• Nebuchadnezzar just heard that he was in fact the head of gold and that he would also fall to future kingdoms.
• He builds a statue of gold to demonstrate his greatness and the supremacy of his kingdom.
• Incidentally it is 90’ tall and 9’ wide.
• He’s certainly seeking to make his point.

And then of course you are familiar with the plan.
(4-6) “Then the herald loudly proclaimed: “To you the command is given, O peoples, nations and men of every language, that at the moment you hear the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery, bagpipe and all kinds of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up. “But whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire.”

This is more than just a man puffed up on his own ego.
A man who thinks he is the greatest hangs a banner demonstrating the fact.

This man is seeking to find who is and who is not loyal.
Then he is seeking to destroy those who are not loyal.

THIS IS AN ATTEMPT TO WEED OUT ANY THREATS TO HIS KINGDOM.
He is not going to just stand by and wait for his kingdom to fall.
So his plan is to force allegiance or remove the threat.

The problem for God’s people of course is that this is not a command which can be obeyed.

Worshiping graven images was strictly explicitly forbidden in the Ten Commandments. There is no gray area here. This is forbidden.

And that leads to a truly remarkable part of the story.
#2 AN AMAZING DECISION
Daniel 3:8-12

These Chaldeans come and remind the king of his order.
(It may be that these Chaldeans helped Nebuchadnezzar devise this plan, which would also explain why they are so intent on seeing it carried out)

They recognize 3 Hebrew boys who refused to bow.
(12) “There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the administration of the province of Babylon, namely Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. These men, O king, have disregarded you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image which you have set up.”

It wasn’t so much that these three “disregarded” Nebuchadnezzar
As it was that they REGARDED GOD.

This story is commonly used as an example of
When it is ok NOT to submit to the governing authorities.

You remember the command:
Romans 13:1-3 “Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same;”

But nearly every time I have ever taught that verse, inevitably someone says, “Yes but we don’t have to submit if they go against God’s commands”

(As if God didn’t know some governments would be corrupt
When He inspired that verse)

I generally respond, “Where does it say that in those verses?”
To which they usually say, “Nowhere, but what about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego?”

Look, you will not find these men being unruly or unsubmissive.
It is true they do not obey the king’s command,
But that does not mean that they are rebellious.

In fact, they still submit.
They simply submit to the consequences of their choice.

• They are not out to start a revolt
• They are not some sort of “Braveheart” characters ready to kill the enemy
• They are not on Facebook bad-mouthing the king

They just can’t obey this command,
But they are willing to endure whatever the consequence.
And we couldn’t be more amazed with a decision than we are with there’s.

These three boys willingly faced the flame in order to be obedient to God.
(Let that sink in)

Revelation 13:11-17 “Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb and he spoke as a dragon. He exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed. He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life. And it was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast would even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed. And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name.”

There isn’t much difference there.
These men are choosing to condemn themselves in order to obey God.

This story ISN’T primarily about their faith,
But we’d be mighty foolish not to recognize it.

• It forces us to ask questions of ourselves and our commitment.
• It forces us to wonder how important obedience to God is in our lives.
• It forces us to examine ourselves.

And in this search there is one thing we must all come to grips with.
WE FACE THIS DECISION EVERY SINGLE DAY

What?
No we don’t, no one is threatening to throw us in the fire.

Maybe not, but we still face the decision of
Obedience or disobedience every single day.

You can thank God that the stakes have thus far not been this high.
So far, we’ve just faced little battles that test our level of obedience.

But rest assured we are facing them.
And I am forced to ask myself this sobering question.

“If I can’t be obedient when faced with the insignificant repercussions that I face today, do I really think I’d be obedient if faced with the flame?”

It certainly compels each of us to seek God’s help in growing our faith.
We are not yet a finished product.

These men made an amazing decision in light of unbelievable consequences.

An Awful Plan, An Amazing Decision
#3 AN ARROGANT BELIEF
Daniel 3:13-15

Oh, now we’re getting somewhere.
Nebuchadnezzar is starting to show his true colors.

These men dared to defy him and made him angry.
And these boys were brought before the king.

And the king is certain he is able to intimidate them
Into doing what he commands.

His speech is very direct and condescending and the ultimatum is clear.
“If you are ready…to fall down and worship…very well”

But the very interesting part is
THE STATEMENT OF ARROGANCE Nebuchadnezzar makes.

“and what god is there who can deliver you out of my hands?”

• This is more than just a political stunt from a king with an ego.
• This is a king who did not appreciate a god who told him his kingdom wouldn’t last forever.

Nebuchadnezzar is not just challenging Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego, he is challenging God.

He is throwing down the gauntlet that
No god can keep him from doing what he wants to do.
Do you see that?

#4 AN ASSERTIVE ANSWER
Daniel 3:16-18

This is absolutely one of the most famous answers
Recorded in the entire Bible.

“O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter.”

That is, “there’s no need for you to play the music again.”

“We already know what we’re going to do and our minds are firm.”

(17-18) “If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. “But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

There is not a doubt in our mind that God is able to deliver us.
Furthermore, we are convinced that He will deliver us.
Their faith is obvious.

And then the statement we love:
“But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

Do you see that they made their decision regardless of what God might or might not do?

Their decision was not based on what God might do.
Their decision was based on what God deserved.

DO YOU UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCE?

So many today use faith as some sort of lottery ticket
Whereby they can get something they want from God.

The prosperity gospel crowd has so maligned passages about faith
That they have people claiming and expecting God to grant their every request, even though many times those requests are as fleshly as can be.

The faith of these three boys wasn’t about what they could get from God.
Their faith was about what God deserved.

This was their opportunity to honor God in the midst of a pagan world.

Luke 12:11-12 “When they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not worry about how or what you are to speak in your defense, or what you are to say; for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

2 Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.”

Luke 21:12-15 “But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for My name’s sake. “It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony. “So make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves; for I will give you utterance and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute.”

These boys were obviously walking in God’s strength, exhibiting God’s wisdom, and doing so for God’s glory.
But there is another analogy we can easily make.
Romans 12:1-2 “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Do you see their worship on display?

• Nebuchadnezzar set out to prove that there was no god greater than him.
• He was setting out to prove that no god could dictate his course or his future.
• He was setting out to annihilate any worship of any god who said otherwise.

These three Hebrew boys refused to let this man make such accusations.
• They didn’t do it by becoming disrespectful
• They didn’t do it by starting a riot
• They didn’t do it by slander and revolt

These three boys simply decided to sacrifice themselves
For the sake of the glory of God.

They certainly believed God would honor that,
But that was really beside the point.

This wasn’t about escaping the fire. This was about honoring God.
This was about worship.

I would submit that THIS IS WHAT GOD IS LOOKING FOR
In the midst of our crooked and perverse culture.

• God could reverse the direction any time He saw fit.
• He could remove any politician, any leader, any judge.
• He could destroy any activist with an evil agenda.
All of that is well within God’s wheelhouse of power.

Yet, for reasons known only to Him, He has not done that up to this point.

• Why would God even allow Nebuchadnezzar to build such a statue?
• Why would God allow our politicians to make such decrees on things
like abortion or gay marriage or transgender rules regarding
bathrooms?
We certainly know God is opposed to such things.

While we can’t know fully what God is doing through all of these things,
We can know fully what God is expecting.
He is expecting worship from His own.

He is expecting our willingness to submit to His will
And to choose to worship Him
Through the sacrifice of ourselves on His behalf.
Might God honor our commitment and change the culture?
Yes, He might, He certainly has that ability.

But even if He does not,
Our decision to worship and obey Him does not change.

It’s not about what God might do, it’s about what God deserves.
These three boys were focused in on that reality.
They chose God over their own personal safety.

An Awful Plan, An Amazing Decision, An Arrogant Belief, An Assertive Answer
#5 AN ANGRY RESPONSE
Daniel 3:19-23

Did you catch that?
• The king “was filled with wrath”
• He ordered to heat it “seven times more than it was usually heated”
• He chose “valiant warriors” to throw them in.
• And the furnace was so hot “the fire slew those men”

See these men had cut to the heart of the matter.
This wasn’t about obtaining worship and punishing those who refused.
This was about proving that no god could stand in his way.

And these three boys unequivocally declared that God could.
That is what infuriated Nebuchadnezzar.

He is about to make an example out of them.
Maybe these three boys were zealots, but when the rest of the world sees how they died, it will squash any further notion of following their God.

These boys were actually thrown into the furnace “still tied up”

And please notice:
THEY NEVER RECANTED
• I can’t imagine being led to a furnace so hot that it slew the people who threw them in.

• Certainly you would be able to feel the heat well before you ever even entered the doorway.

• If there was ever a time to change your mind, that would have been it, and yet these boys stood fast.

All the way to the furnace, and all the way in.
Their decision was to honor God, even with their lives.

#6 AN ASTOUNDED KING
Daniel 3:24-30

(24-25) “Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astounded and stood up in haste; he said to his high officials, “Was it not three men we cast bound into the midst of the fire?” They replied to the king, “Certainly, O king.” He said, “Look! I see four men loosed and walking about in the midst of the fire without harm, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods!”

This is what is commonly referred to as a Christophony
(a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ)

I’m sure Nebuchadnezzar expected screams and wales,
And anything that would benefit his cause of intimidation.

That is not at all what he got.
He saw them having a tea party right there in the middle of the furnace,
And he even saw a 4th man with them.

And though he didn’t know who the fourth man was,
He knew where the fourth man was from.

He looked “like a son of the gods!”

That’s why I told you this story isn’t just about the faith of these boys
And how God delivered them.
This story is about how God defended His sovereignty
To an arrogant king bent on overthrowing him.

God didn’t love these three Hebrew boys any more than He loved all the other martyrs throughout time who have not been delivered.

But God was using these boys
To put His sovereignty on display to Nebuchadnezzar.

And the message should have been crystal clear.
Nebuchadnezzar asked, “what god is there who can deliver you out of my hands?”

God answered, “Me!”

And notice how Nebuchadnezzar’s tune changes.
(26-27) “Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the furnace of blazing fire; he responded and said, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, come out, you servants of the Most High God, and come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego came out of the midst of the fire. The satraps, the prefects, the governors and the king’s high officials gathered around and saw in regard to these men that the fire had no effect on the bodies of these men nor was the hair of their head singed, nor were their trousers damaged, nor had the smell of fire even come upon them.”

Well, of all the gods that may have existed
There was no doubt to Nebuchadnezzar which one was the greatest.

It was the God that these three boys worshipped.
Nothing could touch them if God didn’t allow it.

And that leads to Nebuchadnezzar’s DECLARATION.
(28-29) “Nebuchadnezzar responded and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, who has sent His angel and delivered His servants who put their trust in Him, violating the king’s command, and yielded up their bodies so as not to serve or worship any god except their own God. “Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation or tongue that speaks anything offensive against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego shall be torn limb from limb and their houses reduced to a rubbish heap, inasmuch as there is no other god who is able to deliver in this way.”

I know this sounds good again.
We wanted to believe it a little bit after Daniel interpreted the dream, but you should know that while Nebuchadnezzar is making strides, he is still not there yet.

• First he recognized Daniel as a man of God.
• Here he recognizes God as the highest god.

But he has still not yielded up his life to God’s will.
In short, salvation has still not occurred.

All Nebuchadnezzar does is issue a decree that no one should speak “anything offensive against…God”

Why such a decree?
Because that is precisely what he was trying to do through this statue.
It wasn’t just about getting honor or worship.

The whole point of this statue was to stick his finger right in God’s eye and say, “dreams nothing, You’ll never stop my kingdom. You aren’t God enough to overthrow me!”

That’s what this statue was about.
And God answered.

So now he is calling for a truce between his country and God.

In short, he gives a command that no one should do anything that might make this God mad because “there is no other god who is able to deliver in this way.”

In short, “You don’t want to mess with this God!”

And here is the point.
Nebuchadnezzar is now acknowledging God, but that still does not equal salvation.

I actually hear this type of talk with people all the time.
• “I know God is up there.”
• “I know God has always been with me”
• “I believe in a higher being”
• “I believe there is a God who created all things”

BIG DEAL!
God is not looking for a cease fire or a truce
As though you posed any threat to Him at all.

What Nebuchadnezzar and many in our time fail to realize is that
God is not just hoping you will quit being angry at Him
And you will leave Him alone.

(In short, it’s not enough that you aren’t an atheist)

What humanity must realize is that we have offended God
And we must submit our lives to Him!

There is a great difference between Acknowledgement of God
And Submission to God.

Nebuchadnezzar realized the first, but had yet to reach the second.

In fact, if I could fast-forward a moment that is precisely what God is leading him to.

He is about to receive another dream and when Daniel sees the meaning of this one, I want you to recognize Daniel’s advice:

Daniel 4:27 “Therefore, O king, may my advice be pleasing to you: break away now from your sins by doing righteousness and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor, in case there may be a prolonging of your prosperity.”

God didn’t just want Nebuchadnezzar to hang a plaque that said,
“God is the Most High God”
That actually sounds a little like what Pilate did by putting a sign over Jesus that said, “King of the Jews” when he crucified Him.

What God wants is submission to Him.

It’s not enough to recognize that God is God.
You must trust Him as your God.

 

Nebuchadnezzar is moving in the right direction,
But he has still not come to where he must.

The story of Daniel is how the sovereign God of the universe,
Took him there.

And we find stories like this very encouraging.
Not simply because God has the ability to deliver me from harm
(I obviously like that)

• It is encouraging because it reminds me that there is no ruler so big that God can’t handle him.

• It reminds me that there is no agenda so strong that God can’t reverse it.

So when Scripture says to pray for your leaders and for those in authority,
DOES THAT REGISTER A LITTLE BIT MORE NOW?

1 Timothy 2:1-4 “First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

The leaders of our nation may be powerful men,
But it doesn’t change the fact that they are still men,
And they pose absolutely no threat to God.
He can get through to them at any moment.

In the meantime He may just be watching to see
If we will choose to worship and honor Him
In the midst of their corruption.

Romans 12:1-2 “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

God is in absolute control.
Make sure you live your life in light of that understanding.

I Saw The Lord!
Revelation 1:9-20
May 22, 2016

I’ve always liked the final story of John’s gospel.
It is a story that has often been instrumental in my life when regarding my life’s direction.

Peter has gone back to fishing and the other disciples have joined him, but the Bible says “that night they caught nothing.”

John 21:4-7 “But when the day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. So Jesus said to them, “Children, you do not have any fish, do you?” They answered Him, “No.” And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat and you will find a catch.” So they cast, and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.” So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his outer garment on (for he was stripped for work), and threw himself into the sea.”

There could be no greater excitement; no greater thrill, than seeing Jesus.
He had absolutely become everything to the disciples
And fellowship with Him far outweighed any other hobby or occupation.

All Peter wanted was to be near Jesus.

One can only imagine how the disciples
Must have clung to Him after His resurrection.

Of course this fellowship was short-lived.
Peter explained it like this:
Acts 3:19-21 “Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you, whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time.”

Peter preached in Jerusalem that Jesus HAD TO ASCEND into heaven
Until it was time for that period of restoration.

Jesus had to ascend until it was time for Him to return
To judge the living and the dead and to take His reign upon the earth.

In the meantime He ordered that the gospel be proclaimed in the whole earth and that sinners be given the opportunity for salvation before He returns in judgment.

HIS DEPARTURE IS NECESSARY,
BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN HIS PRESENCE WASN’T MISSED.

IMAGINE THEN THE EXCITEMENT when John gets to write a letter to seven churches with this main piece of information: “I SAW THE LORD!”

Many have falsified such claims in our day and time,
But John’s was the real deal.

Jesus appeared to John post-ascension and pre-return
Because there was something Jesus wanted His church to know.

WHAT AN EXCITING TRUTH TO HEAR!

Having finished with his introduction to the book,
John now gets down to the point.

Obviously if you are continuing on, you agreed with John that listening to what he had to say would be a valuable decision,
So John now gets into the message of the book.

It is simple: “I Saw The Lord!”
And John wants these churches to know what the vision was about.

Let’s break these final verses down into 3 points.
#1 THE LORD’S DIRECTIVE
Revelation 1:9-11

John does give a little background to the vision.
“I, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.”

And the reasoning here is simple.

After the ascension of Jesus there arose a ruler in Rome named Nero.
• Nero was a bad man.
• He burned down Rome and blamed it on the Christians.
• Some of those stories you hear about Christians being fed to the lions and so forth, that was Nero.

Following Nero was Domitian.
• He allowed for the spread of persecution.
• Domitian actually wanted to be worshiped as the emperor of Rome (a practice obviously refused by the church) and he persecuted all who refused.

In short, at the time of this Revelation it was hard to be a Christian.
The church was on the run.
Christians were being tortured and killed.

You can imagine then that
No one is listening to anyone whom they don’t trust.

It was important that John identify with his audience,
And this was not a problem.

• John was a “fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus”.

• John had even been exiled to “the island called Patmos because of the word of God.”

In short, John knew what they were going through,
And was certainly a credible messenger to a persecuted church.

He goes on to give the setting of the vision.
(2) “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet,”

John uses terminology here unique to that of the Old Testament prophets.

Ezekiel 8:1-4 “It came about in the sixth year, on the fifth day of the sixth month, as I was sitting in my house with the elders of Judah sitting before me, that the hand of the Lord GOD fell on me there. Then I looked, and behold, a likeness as the appearance of a man; from His loins and downward there was the appearance of fire, and from His loins and upward the appearance of brightness, like the appearance of glowing metal. He stretched out the form of a hand and caught me by a lock of my head; and the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the north gate of the inner court, where the seat of the idol of jealousy, which provokes to jealousy, was located. And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, like the appearance which I saw in the plain.”

• Ezekiel described an event in which God revealed things to him in the spiritual realm.
• Ezekiel said he was caught “between earth and heaven” and in a vision he was brought to “Jerusalem”.

He wasn’t physically there, but in a mysterious way,
God transported him in a spiritual sense.

Paul had a similar thing happen to him.
2 Corinthians 12:1-4 “Boasting is necessary, though it is not profitable; but I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord. I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago — whether in the body I do not know, or out of the body I do not know, God knows — such a man was caught up to the third heaven. And I know how such a man — whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, God knows — was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which a man is not permitted to speak.”

I most certainly don’t understand it, but it is clear that the Lord did it.

And John said it was this sort of thing that happened to him.
He was “in the Spirit” that is; he was in the spiritual realm.

He was so “on the Lord’s day”

• Some consider this a reference to Sunday
• Some consider it a reference to the end, as in “day of the Lord”

It really doesn’t matter to me, what does matter is John caught a vision.

And the first thing that occurred was that
He heard a loud voice behind him with A VERY FIRM DIRECTIVE.

(11) “Write in a book what you see, and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”

You will see this DIRECTIVE echoed at the end of the chapter as well:
(19) “Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things.”

THE PURPOSE THEN IS CLEAR.

John has been selected by God to be a recipient of a vision
That he is supposed to disseminate to the churches.

God has something He wants them to know,
And God has selected John to be the channel.
So, there is a message on the way.

The Lord’s Directive
#2 THE LORD’S DESCRIPTION
Revelation 1:12-16

This certainly makes sense to us; “Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me.”

Why wouldn’t you?
“And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands;”

With all the visions, it is always important
To notice the first thing that catches John’s gaze.

For example
• In the vision of chapter 4 he sees “a throne”
• In chapter 5 “a book”

These are often times indicators to the main thrust of the visions.

The first thing John sees is “seven golden lampstands”

We will of course find out in a minute that (20) “the seven lampstands are the seven churches.”

These weren’t like a menorah, it appears rather that
They were seven individual lampstands.

And it is not a stretch to make the point about those which are a light to the world,
As the church most certainly is.

This vision is given with reference to the churches.
Everything about this vision then relates to them.

They are the key piece as you will see in chapters 2 and 3.

Even more important was this person John sees among the churches.
He sees “one like a son of man”

And there are 5 elements about this man that John wants you to see.

1) HIS LOCATION
(13) “and in the middle of the lampstands I saw one like a son of man”

“son of man” is simply a title that means “human”
John saw a man.

His location is not without importance.
He was standing “in the middle of the lampstands”

Of course you know that this “son of man” is in fact Jesus Christ,
As will be made plane in a moment.

It is significant then that the Lord is in the midst of his churches.
Many times we read the promise
“and surely I will be with you always, even to the very end of the age.”

• Christ is not observing His church from afar.
• Christ is not receiving up to the minute intel on His church from messengers.
• Christ is there.
• He is in her midst.
• He has not abandoned her.
• He has not forsaken her.
• He is present.

The location of Jesus couldn’t be more encouraging.
(especially to a church being persecuted as harsh as these)

It is often in those difficult times that it feels like
We have been abandoned by the Lord, but such is not the case.

When Jesus revealed Himself to John He was right in the middle of it all.

It reminds of that often quoted poem written by Mary Stevenson
“One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky. In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, other times there was one only. This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life, when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints, so I said to the Lord, “You promised me Lord, that if I followed you, you would walk with me always. But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life there has only been one set of footprints in the sand. Why, when I needed you most, have you not been there for me?” The Lord replied, “The years when you have seen only one set of footprints, my child, is when I carried you.”

That’s not just a feel good story, it is a reality.
John’s first message to the church is that Jesus is with you.

But also important to John is the appearance of Jesus.
2) HIS WARDROBE
(13b) “clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash.”

It may at first seem insignificant, after all,
We tend to picture everyone in heaven wearing robes.

But this is important:
Leviticus 16:4 “He shall put on the holy linen tunic, and the linen undergarments shall be next to his body, and he shall be girded with the linen sash and attired with the linen turban (these are holy garments). Then he shall bathe his body in water and put them on.”

The wardrobe of Jesus is very consistent
With this wardrobe in the Old Testament.
Granted this individual had a linen sash, whereas Jesus will have a golden one.

But whose outfit is this?
This was the garment of the High Priest.

That’s fitting isn’t it?
Here is Jesus, sitting in the midst of His church,
And just as we learned from our study of Hebrews,
He is actively fulfilling His role as intercessor on behalf of the church!

Hebrews 5:5-10 “So also Christ did not glorify Himself so as to become a high priest, but He who said to Him, “YOU ARE MY SON, TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU”; just as He says also in another passage, “YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER ACCORDING TO THE ORDER OF MELCHIZEDEK.” In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His piety. Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered. And having been made perfect, He became to all those who obey Him the source of eternal salvation, being designated by God as a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.”

Hebrews 7:23-25 “The former priests, on the one hand, existed in greater numbers because they were prevented by death from continuing, but Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently. Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

Hebrews 8:1-2 “Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister in the sanctuary and in the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man.”

Without rehashing the entire book of Hebrews
I hope you do remember that absolutely amazing point.

When Jesus ascended,
• He didn’t just kick back and relax in heaven,
• He entered a most valuable role on our behalf.
• He entered the presence of God, sat down, and began His role as our great high priest.

He is our security, He is our assurance, He is our hope.
We still fail, and we still stumble, but we do not fall from our hope
Because Jesus is there to intercede for us.

What encouragement to these persecuted churches
To know that when John saw Jesus, he saw Him dwelling in the midst of the churches and wearing His high priestly garments.

His Location, His Wardrobe
3) HIS APPEARANCE
(14-15) “His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters.”

John distinctly points out 5 attributes of His appearance or description.
His head, His hair, His eyes, His feet, and His voice.

There is an obvious contrast to the Jesus we saw in the gospels.
The gentle, meek, mild, lowly human form is obviously set aside.

This description invokes fear
This description invokes wonder

It is no wonder that in verse 17 John says, “When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man.”

The Jesus He sees here is absolutely terrifying.
Coupled with that sword in His mouth
We realize we aren’t looking at a savior here,
WE ARE LOOKING AT A WARRIOR.

We are looking at judge
We are looking at an executioner

Make no mistake about Jesus.
He came into this world to offer salvation to the lost,
But don’t think for one second
That He will not judge and destroy those who refuse Him.

John 5:24-27 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life. “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. “For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He isthe Son of Man.”

In fact, it may surprise you to know that hell is not governed by the devil.
Revelation 14:9-10 “Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.”

Did you see who sits in charge of hell?
It is “the Lamb”

Jesus is a wonderful savior,
But do not let His mercy cause you to miss the fact
That He will also judge sin.

The picture here is not of a merciful savior, but of a holy judge.

“His head and His hair were white like wool, like snow;”

As God revealed the end to Daniel, he saw the exact same thing:
Daniel 7:9 “I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took His seat; His vesture was like white snow And the hair of His head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with flames, Its wheels were a burning fire.”

The picture is of an absolutely holy judge.

“and His eyes were like a flame of fire.”

Ever hear the expression, “he had a fire in his eyes”?
It is the very connotation of anger.

We see Jesus, and He appears to be fuming!

“His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace,”

His feet speak of His propensity to deal out judgment.
It is the picture of the day when Christ
Treads the winepress of the wrath of God.

Revelation 19:15 “From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty.”

The fiery eyes and the fiery feet of Jesus are not a picture of salvation,
They are a picture of judgment.

“and His voice was like the sound of many waters.”

Can we say terrifying?

Everything you see in the gospels about this meek and mild mannered Jesus, is the exact opposite of what you see here.

We read in Matthew:
Matthew 12:18-21 “BEHOLD, MY SERVANT WHOM IHAVE CHOSEN; MY BELOVED IN WHOM MY SOUL is WELL-PLEASED; I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT UPON HIM, AND HE SHALL PROCLAIM JUSTICE TO THE GENTILES. “HE WILL NOT QUARREL, NOR CRY OUT; NOR WILL ANYONE HEAR HIS VOICE IN THE STREETS. “A BATTERED REED HE WILL NOT BREAK OFF, AND A SMOLDERING WICK HE WILL NOT PUT OUT, UNTIL HE LEADS JUSTICE TO VICTORY. “AND IN HIS NAME THE GENTILES WILL HOPE.”

Or in 1 Peter:
1 Peter 2:23 “and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously;”

Jesus lived this life as the absolute perfect example for believers.
• He was perfectly meek, perfectly humble, perfectly trusting.
• He endured so much at the hand of sinners and perfectly fulfilled all that the Father asked Him to do in that regard.

BUT FOR HIM, THAT TIME IS PAST.
He has now stepped into the role of judge.

His Location, His Wardrobe, His Appearance
4) HIS EQUIPMENT
(16a) “In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword;”

We find here that Jesus is holding two things.
• He has “seven stars” in His hand
• He has “a sharp two-edged sword” coming out of His mouth

The “seven stars” are revealed later in verse 20 “As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands; the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.”

“angels” is also the word for “messengers”
It is likely that the pastors of those churches is here being referenced.

Jesus has a steady hold on the men who are leading these churches.
• And this sets Jesus up as the ultimate guide of the church.
• He holds the men that lead the church.

The sword is also obvious.
It is a weapon of judgment.

To read it again:
Revelation 19:15 “From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty.”

This is not a weapon of purification, this is not a weapon of evangelism.
This is a weapon of judgment.

Christ is still seen as the warrior judge.

One more thing
5) HIS RADIANCE
(16b) “and His face was like the sun shining in its strength.”

Obviously we are here dealing with His glory.

When Jesus was transfigured:
Matthew 17:2 “And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light.”

• This is not the Jesus veiled in human flesh.
• This is not the Jesus determined to keep His strength under control.
• This is not the Jesus holding back His holiness with ropes of grace.
Jesus has stepped forth in fully glory and in holy zeal.

BUT THAT CREATES A VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION.

• Why is Jesus revealing Himself like this to the church?
• Is it because Jesus is angry at the church?
• Is it because these churches are in trouble?

NO

Jesus reveals Himself not as a danger to the church,
But as the defender of the church.

As Jesus confronts these 7 churches in the next 2 chapters
He will continually reveal Himself to each church
Focusing on these revealed attributes.

For example:
Revelation 2:1 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this:”

Revelation 2:12 “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: The One who has the sharp two-edged sword says this:”

Revelation 2:18 “And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: The Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet are like burnished bronze, says this:”

And so on with all 7.

• So why remind a church like Pergamum that He holds a sword?
• Why remind Thyatira that His eyes are a flame of fire?

Pergamum had some in her midst that were falling into idolatry
And the Lord was coming after them with His sword.

Thyatira was courting a false prophetess and following her lead
And the Lord was furious and was about to kill her.

He reveals Himself here
Not as the One who is about to attack the church,
But as the One about to attack those who threaten His church.

He is not attacking the church, He is about to attack her enemies.

His Directive, His Description
#3 HIS DECLARATION
Revelation 1:17-20

John’s response to this vision is expected.
“When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man.”

I’m sure John was terrified.
After all, this is a terrifying vision.

It reminds of when Joshua stood before the angel of the Lord.
Joshua 5:13-14 “Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us or for our adversaries?” He said, “No; rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the LORD.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and bowed down, and said to him, “What has my lord to say to his servant?”

The whole concern was “Whose side are you on?”

John obviously feels that same fear.
But the answer of Jesus couldn’t be any better.

“And He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.”

What a wonderful answer Jesus has for John and a church under attack.

First of all, you don’t have to fear because I’m not after you.
Second of all, I win!
• There is none before Me, and there is none after Me.
• And even though I faced death, it couldn’t handle Me.
• In fact, I beat death, and I now own it!

1 Peter 3:18-19 “For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison,”

When Jesus died and dropped into hell,
It was in no way ready for what it received.
Jesus put hell on its knees and stepped out the other side.

Hebrews 2:14 “Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,”

Acts 2:24 “But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.”

Jesus overcame!

It is a tremendous message for the church.
• The churches of John’s day were under heavy attack.
• John himself was under heavy attack.

And in the middle of the storm
Jesus chose to reveal Himself to John and the churches.

Can we summarize what He showed them?
• I am with you.
• I am praying for you.
• I am guiding you.
• I am about to defend you.
• Nothing can stop Me.

How’s that for a message to a battered group of believers?

(19) “Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things.”

So John, write it down!
I’m about to show you the day when I show up to defend My bride!

So let me give you some encouragement
In the middle of a world gone wrong.

FIRST, you should know that regardless of how bad things get, or how wrong things seems, Jesus has not forsaken you.

He promised He never would, and He clearly never has.
When John saw Him, He was right where He said He would be,
In the midst of the church.

SECONDLY you should know that Jesus has faithfully maintained His role as your great High Priest.

Not only is He with us, but He intercedes for us.
He is able to save forever those who draw near to God through Him.
He has not forsaken His role as our intercessor.

THIRDLY you should know that He sees what is happening in His world and to His bride and He is angry. His eyes are a flame of fire and His feet are burnished bronze. Jesus is coming and His sword is coming with Him.

He will not let the world get away with what they do to His church.
He is ready to avenge.

FINALLY you should know that when the hour of His judgment comes, He will be victorious since there was never an enemy that had the power to handle Him.

NOT EVEN DEATH

So…in this life of hardship and pain, be encouraged.
• The enemy may pursue you
• The enemy may afflict you
• The enemy may attack you
• The enemy may even kill you

But the enemy cannot hold you because Jesus has the keys.

And because it all begins and ends with Him,
There is no reason for you to fear the things that occur in this world.
Jesus has it covered.

Jesus said:
John 16:33 “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”