The Powerful Tool of Scripture
2 Timothy 3:16-17
May 7, 2017

As you know we are in the middle of our study entitled
“500 Years of Reformation”.

It is in part a reminder of the history of the Reformation,
But more than that, it is a reminder of the absolute beauty of the true gospel
Which was rediscovered during that time.

It is out of the commitment of the Reformers that we get those 5 pillars.
Sola Scriptura, Sola Gratia, Sola Fide, Solus Christus, Soli Deo Gloria

We believe that we are:
• Saved by Grace Alone
• Through Faith Alone
• In Christ Alone
• As Revealed in Scripture Alone
• To the Glory of God Alone

And in our study we have thus far simply been examining that first Sola; SOLA SCRIPTURA.

As we have said many times, this sola is the foundation.
Without this one, none of the others ever come into play.

Before we ever move on to the other solas,
We must first be convinced and we must first settle the issue of
Where our authority comes from.

Scripture and Scripture alone gets the final say.

Luther certainly understood this.
He said, “We must make a great difference between God’s Word and the word of man. A man’s word is a little sound, that flies into the air, and soon vanishes; but the Word of God is greater than heaven and earth, yea, greater than death and hell, for it forms part of the power of God.”
Martin Luther, The TableTalk of Martin Luther (Ross-Shire, Scotland: Christian Focus, 2003), 110.

He also wrote:
“Whenever you hear anyone boast that he has something by inspiration of the Holy Spirit and it has no basis in God’s Word, no matter what it may be, tell him that this is the work of the devil…Whatever does not have its origin in the Scriptures is surely from the devil himself.”
Martin Luther, Luther’s Works, Vol. 23, ed. Jaroslav Pelikan (St. Louis; Concordia, 1959), 173-174, 144

Everything that the Reformers stood for got its basis in Scripture.
If you give credence to any other form of revelation
Then you are in danger of a distorted gospel.

So we are building that foundation of SOLA SCRIPTURA

Tonight we are looking at one of the MOST FAMOUS PASSAGES in the Bible regarding the Scripture.

“All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”

Just to read that passage is highly informative.

It helps us even more when we understand the context
In which that statement was made.

You will recall that Timothy was the understudy of Paul, and that Paul had given Timothy a very daunting task.

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.”

Ephesus had a truth problem.
• There were false teachers there who were looking to sources other than the
Scripture for their authority.
• Paul said they were teaching “strange doctrines” that they learned from
“myths and endless genealogies”.
• And to make matters worse they did not understand the Law even though they
spoke confidently about it.

You had a church that placed other sources on par with Scripture
And thus had grown knowledgeable in myths and ignorant of Scripture.

Timothy had been charged with straightening that whole mess out.

NOW IF YOU HAVE BEEN WITH US IN THIS STUDY
Then you are beginning to recognize that
The struggle Timothy faced was not all that different
From the struggle the Reformers faced. (Albeit on a larger scale)

The Reformers were also in a system
Which had elevated other sources to the same level of Scripture
And thus had grown knowledgeable in church tradition
And papal authority and ignorant of the Scriptures.

In many ways WE face the same struggle TODAY.
We have a culture that places other sources of inspiration
Equal to and even above Scripture and thus the church today
Is growing knowledgeable in myths and ignorant of the Scriptures.

Our question is:
HOW IN THE WORLD DO YOU FIX IT?
• That would have been a good question for Martin Luther to ask wouldn’t it?
• The Roman Catholic church is corrupt and truth is lost, how in the world do you fix it?

Well Paul’s admonition to Timothy was simple.
1 Timothy 4:11-16 “Prescribe and teach these things. Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe. Until I come, give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and teaching. Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the presbytery. Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all. Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.”

Paul told Timothy that faithfulness to the Scripture was the key
If he was to be successful in turning the tide at Ephesus.

However, by the time we get to the book of 2 Timothy,
We find a DISCOURAGED YOUNG PREACHER who is need of a boost.
Paul is addressing that.

Here in chapter 3 we can learn quite a bit.

We can see that it will most likely get worse before it gets better.
(READ 3:1-9)

We can see that persecution is a reality.
(READ 3:10-13)

And we can see that commitment to Scripture is required.
(READ 3:14-15)

Paul tells Timothy that he must be committed to Scripture because Scripture is “able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.”

That is to say: There is no other tool like Scripture
Which can produce the revival that you are looking for.

THAT IS WHAT PAUL REVEALS IN VERSES 16-17

3 Things
#1 THE SOURCE OF SCRIPTURE
2 Timothy 3:16a

“All Scripture is inspired by God…”
We have talked about this recently,
But of course this fact is ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL.

This is what makes Scripture AUTHORITATIVE.
This is what makes Scripture SUFFICIENT.

• It is not authoritative because we find it to be true…
• It is not authoritative because we find that it works…
• It is not authoritative because we find it historically or archaeologically accurate…
THE BIBLE IS AUTHORITATIVE BECAUSE ITS AUTHOR IS SOVEREIGN.

We believe this book to be the actual words of God.
“All Scripture is inspired by God…”
(literally, “God breathed”)

2 Peter 1:20-21 “But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”

And no doubt some would argue here
That Paul was referring to the Old Testament Scriptures,
Some have even used that argument to cast doubt
Upon the inspiration of the New Testament.

However, the N.T. makes it clear that it is also authored by God.
The men who wrote the New Testament
Knew they were recording the very words of God.

1 Corinthians 2:12-13 “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.”

2 Corinthians 2:17 “For we are not like many, peddling the word of God, but as from sincerity, but as from God, we speak in Christ in the sight of God.”

Galatians 1:11-12, 15-16 “For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ… “But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood,”

Colossians 1:25-27 “Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God, that is, the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints, to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

1 Thessalonians 2:13 “For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.”

Even listen to Peter as he talks about Paul’s writings:
2 Peter 3:15-16 “and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.”

John the apostle certainly knew he was recording Scripture.
Revelation 1:1-2 “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants, the things which must soon take place; and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John, who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw.”

Or listen to how he ended every single message to the churches.
7 times we have John make the exact same statement.
(2:7, 2:11, 2:17, 2:29, 3:6, 3:13, 3:22)

Revelation 2:7 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

I think you get the point.
The writers of the New Testament knew whose words they were writing.

That makes it superior to any and every other form of revelation.
• Whenever God speaks, it is always authoritative.
• Whenever God speaks, it is always true.
• Whenever God speaks, it is always binding.
• Whenever God speaks, it is always effective.

Isaiah 55:11 “So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”

So first and foremost we must understand what we are dealing with.
It is not the words of men…
It is the very word of God.

Spurgeon had a definite handle on this:
“O Bible! It cannot be said of any other book, that it is perfect and pure; but of thee we can declare all wisdom is gathered up in thee, without particle of folly. This is the judge that ends the strife, where wit and reason fail. This is the book untainted by any error; but is pure, unalloyed, perfect truth. Why? Because God wrote it. Ah! Charge God with error if ye please; tell him that his book is not what it ought to be. I have heard men, with prudish and mock-modesty, who would like to alter the Bible; and (I almost blush to say it) I have heard ministers alter the God’s Bible, because they were afraid of it…Pity they were not born when God lived far – far back that they might have taught God how to write. Oh, impudence beyond all bounds! Oh full-blown self-conceit! To attempt to dictate to the All-wise – to teach the Omniscient and instruct the Eternal. Strange that there should be men so vile as to use the penknife of Jehoiakim to cut out passages of the word, because they are unpalatable. O ye who dislike certain portions of Holy writ, rest assured that your taste is corrupt, and that God will not stay for your little opinion. Your dislike is the very reason why God wrote it, because you ought not to be suited; you have no right to be pleased. God wrote what you do not like; he wrote the truth. Oh! Let us bend in reverence before it, for God inspired it. It is pure truth. Here from this fountain gushes aqua vitae – the water of life – without a single particle of earth; here from this sun there cometh forth rays of radiance, without the mixture of darkness. Blessed Bible! Thou art all truth.”
(Spurgeon, C.H. [Spurgeon’s Sermons Volumes 1-2; Baker Books, Grand Rapids, MI, 2007] pg. 31-32)

That is the Source of Scripture
#2 THE SUFFICIENCY OF SCRIPTURE
2 Timothy 3:16b

“and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.”

Because it is the very word of God it is therefore “profitable”;
It is therefore tremendously valuable.

If you’ll remember what David said:
Psalms 19:7-10 “The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD are true; they are righteous altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.”

There is tremendous profit and value in this all authoritative word of God.

Paul even has his own list of what God’s word is profitable for.
“for teaching”

That is to say, it is profitable for the basic instruction of doctrine.
• How do you know what things please God?
• How do you know what He expects?
• How do you know how to reconcile with Him?
• How do you know what is true?

• In this book we find who God is.
• In this book we find who we are.
• In this book we find what salvation is, and how it is obtained.

These are very basic truths Scripture alone provides the answer to.

And throughout the scope of human history,
People without this basic knowledge were in grave danger.

Hosea 4:6 “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.”

We turn to the Scripture because in it
We find basic truth which must be taught.
Ephesians 4:11-14 “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;”

It is the Scripture that helps us discern what we see and here.
In it we find the basic truths of life and salvation.

This is why Timothy was so urgently commanded to read and preach it.
1 Timothy 4:16 “Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.”

The Scripture must be taught,
Because it gives us basic doctrinal truths that must be known.
If you want people to know who God is, teach them the Bible.

The Bible is also “profitable” “for reproof”

And of course this is so important in our world of “don’t judge me”.

Our society thinks any and all behavior is acceptable
So long as it doesn’t hurt anyone else.

The fact is however that there is certain behavior that offends God.
Our Creator was specific about
What is and what is not acceptable in His sight.

And incidentally, God is so offended by certain behaviors
That He has determined to eternally destroy everyone who has offended Him.

If you doubt His seriousness in this, you need lonely look back to the flood in the days of Noah.
Genesis 6:5-7 “Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. The LORD said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them.”

What happened next is referred to as the great flood in which every person on earth died, except for the 8 whom God determined to save.

Or go to Sodom and Gomorrah
Genesis 18:20-21 “And the LORD said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave. “I will go down now, and see if they have done entirely according to its outcry, which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.”

And then we read:
Genesis 19:24-25 “Then the LORD rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven, and He overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.”

And of course regarding eternity we read:
Revelation 21:8 “But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

The point being of course that offending God is a massive ordeal.
We need a guide that will confront and correct us
Any time we stray from what is acceptable to Him.
And nothing does that so well as the word of God.

In God’s word is lifted high the holy standard
By which all behaviors, motives, thoughts, intentions, actions, etc.
Are confronted and judged.

Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

And we need it.

Beyond that, if you seek to disciple others and are aware that they need reproof, by what standard are you going to reprove them?

Are you going to simply tell them that you don’t agree with their behavior?
Get ready for a “what gives you the right?” sort of response.

No, instead we hold open the Scriptures and show them
That their behavior is offensive to God
And therefore they must stop what they are doing.

I used to joke with Lenny. He’d sit in my office after a hard day of parent meetings and would talk with me about some of the dilemma’s he was forced to sort out. He’d then say, “I know you understand what it’s like to deal with people.”

I would then typically respond, “Yes, but your job is far more difficult. When people come in my office, I can simply open the Bible and the reproof comes from God and the answer is final. Lenny, you actually have to reason with these people.”

What tremendous value comes in having God’s word.

It is also “profitable” “for correction”

The Greek word here is only used this one time in Scripture,
But in Greek literature it is a word used of “sitting something back up after it has fallen over” (like a lamp)

It literally means “to restore to an upright state”
So not only does God’s word reprove, but it improves.

And we use it to help those who have fallen to be restored.

How many times has someone come to my office broken about their failure and we read:
1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Or we take someone who has made a mess out of life and they want a guide for living. What tool are you going to use?

Galatians 6:1-2 “Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.”

Are you just going to give them Dr. Phil to help them be restored?
No, you instruct them with the word of God.

It is profitable for putting a life back on the right track.

God’s word is also “profitable” “for training in righteousness”

The word for “training” here is PAIDEIA and it deals with the whole scope of training that you would give to a child.

In fact a form of that word is used in Paul’s letter to the Galatians:
Galatians 3:23-24 “But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed. Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.”

There referred to as a “tutor”.

It is that all-encompassing guide meant to take a new believer
And turn them into a mature believer.

How do you fit a new believer for the world?
How do you make them strong?

You do that through the teaching of God’s word.

Make no mistake about it, we are in the education business.

And by the way, the Reformers knew this.

Zwingli actually set up a school in Zurich.
It was a bible school.

He would start with Genesis 1.
• He’d have a Hebrew professor come teach it in Hebrew
• Then He’d have a Greek professor come teach it in Greek
• Then He’d have a Latin professor come teach it in Latin
• Then He’d have a German professor come teach it in German

And the next day he’d move on to Genesis 2. And so on.

John Calvin preached in Geneva where he preached the O.T. 6 days a week and the N.T. twice on Sundays.

WHY?
Because they saw the need to thoroughly teach the Scripture to each and every generation as it alone was useful for “training in righteousness”

And that was not a new thought.
Ever hear God’s command to Moses about how to train your kids?

Deuteronomy 6:4-8 “Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one! “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. “These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. “You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. “You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead.”

The key word there being: THOROUGH

Want godly children?
Want a righteous congregation?
THEN PREACH THE WORD TO THEM

Again let me read:
1 Timothy 4:12-16 “Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe. Until I come, give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and teaching. Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the presbytery. Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all. Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.”

It is God’s word which accomplishes this work.
And it is SUFFICIENT to do so.

Timothy was struggling to see revival in the church of Ephesus,
Paul reminded him that the Scripture was sufficient
For everything he wanted to see.

• Whether that was for teaching doctrine…
• Whether that was for reproving sinners…
• Whether that was for establishing the saints…
• Whether that was for producing righteous living…

God’s word was profitable for all of those things.
And of course that is because it is the very word of God.

So you see the Source of Scripture, The Sufficiency of Scripture
#3 THE SIGNIFICANCE OF SCRIPTURE
2 Timothy 3:17

And what a great statement.
“so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”

The title “man of God” is only used twice in the New Testament
And both times it is when Paul is addressing Timothy.

It is however a title used often in the Old Testament
Referring to the prophets of God.

Here Paul is referring to the preacher.
If the preacher wants to be “adequate” (word meaning “fitted for service”) then he must preach the word so that he may be “equipped for every good work.”

Literally that phrase is “enabled to meet all demands of righteousness”

If a preacher wants to do his job well
And see the type of results that God demands
Then there is only one tool which he can use; God’s word.

It alone can teach and reprove and correct and train.
It alone can produce spiritual results.

Isaiah 55:11 “So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”

And that reality is probably best illustrated to us through the Reformation.

• The Roman Catholic church was a machine of deception.
• Worse than that it was uniquely intertwined with the Kings and Monarchs of the day.
• You had entire countries bound under the ignorance that it produced and terrified of the threats it made.
• Catholicism had a death grip on this world.

How in the world would that stranglehold ever be broken?
How could reformers make a difference?

How could you ever turn entire nations like Germany, and Switzerland, and England, and Scotland away from Catholicism?

The answer: Preach the word of God.
God’s word did it all.

I love the statement Paul makes to Timothy in this second letter.
2 Timothy 2:8-9 “Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, descendant of David, according to my gospel, for which I suffer hardship even to imprisonment as a criminal; but the word of God is not imprisoned.”

Boy isn’t that the truth!
Once those Bibles went out in German and English,
There was no going back.
God’s word worked a transformation!

And so you understand why we begin with SOLA SCRIPTURA
Without it, we get nothing.

You also understand why when Timothy was discouraged
Paul had ONE MAJOR WORD OF EXHORTATION to him:
That word is found 2 Timothy 4.

2 Timothy 4:1-5 “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”

Just preach the word, it will do the rest.

What a tremendous reality,
And one that was continually proven throughout the reformation.

The Marriage of the Lamb
Revelation 19:7-10
May 7, 2017

This morning we have an announcement of
The most anticipated day in the life of every believer.

It is the day in which the final consummation comes with our Lord.

Make no mistake, the church has but one desire, one treasure,
And one anticipation, and that is Christ.

Paul said:
Philippians 3:7-8 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,”

Jesus is that treasure hidden in the field which is worth the loss of all things.
Jesus is that pearl of great value which is worth the loss of all things.
He is the church’s desire and treasure and great anticipation.

Paul even said:
Philippians 1:23 “But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better;”

Today we live in the midst of a great apostate Christianity
Which only seeks to use Christ to obtain earthly treasure.
This prosperity driven cult is not Christianity, it is idolatry to the very core.

True Christianity has but one desire and that is to be with Christ.
• It is the desire to see Him return…
• It is the desire to see Him reign…
• It is the desire to be with Him for eternity…

Paul actually summed up the redeemed in 2 Timothy 4
2 Timothy 4:8 “in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.”

True believers are those who love or long for the appearing of Christ.

LIKE A BRIDE separated from her husband longing for the wedding,
So is the church currently separated from the One we love,
Eagerly anticipating the day we can go and dwell with Him.

We are like the Shunamite in the Song of Solomon, who has been separated from her Beloved and who longs to find him again:

Song of Solomon 5:8-16 “I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, If you find my beloved, As to what you will tell him: For I am lovesick.” “What kind of beloved is your beloved, O most beautiful among women? What kind of beloved is your beloved, That thus you adjure us?” “My beloved is dazzling and ruddy, Outstanding among ten thousand. “His head is like gold, pure gold; His locks are like clusters of dates And black as a raven. “His eyes are like doves Beside streams of water, Bathed in milk, And reposed in their setting. “His cheeks are like a bed of balsam, Banks of sweet-scented herbs; His lips are lilies Dripping with liquid myrrh. “His hands are rods of gold Set with beryl; His abdomen is carved ivory Inlaid with sapphires. “His legs are pillars of alabaster Set on pedestals of pure gold; His appearance is like Lebanon Choice as the cedars. “His mouth is full of sweetness. And he is wholly desirable. This is my beloved and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.”

That is the current anticipation of the church.

Well, in Revelation 19 we see
A brief announcement of that day of consummation.

It is the announcement of “the marriage of the Lamb”

This morning, the goal of John and the goal of the angel who reveals this glorious day is simply this:
TO PRODUCE IN YOU A GREAT ANTICIPATION FOR THIS DAY.

So let’s look at this text together. 3 points
#1 AN IMPRESSIVE SCENE
Revelation 19:7-8

If you were with us last week you know that we heard the eruption of Heaven into what is commonly referred to as “The Hallelujah Chorus!”

When Heaven saw that great harlot and that immoral city Babylon thrown down and burned with fire, Heaven couldn’t help but to erupt in praise.

They cried “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God”
NO MORE is that pompous Antichrist strutting around claiming to be the world’s savior, with all the glory and all the power.
God just threw him down and proved that all glory is His.

And if you will remember, it wasn’t long before the 24 elders and the 4 living creatures joined in the festivities singing “Amen. Hallelujah!”

And then came a command.
(5-6) “And a voice came from the throne, saying, “Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great.” Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.”

All of the redeemed were commanded to join in the worship!
It was not optional. They must also cry “Hallelujah!”
Which they did “For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.”

It was a tremendous scene of praise for our God.
What WE LEARN THIS MORNING is that
The destruction of the harlot is not the only reason to rejoice.
There is another reason revealed here for the redeemed to rejoice.

WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE IS:
• This angel has just ushered John through the back doors of the church.
• And when John looks, there is a wedding taking place.
• He sees the decorations…
• He sees the preacher at the front…
• He sees that big candelabra…
• He sees the feast prepared…
• And He sees the groom up at the front…
• And he sees the bride standing at the back all dressed in white about to be presented to her husband…

AND IT IS A HAPPY SCENE!

“Let us rejoice and be glad and give glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.”

We have loved the fact that the harlot got what she deserved,
Now we long to see the bride get the groom.

This is the Hallmark ending…
• This is finally the way it is supposed to be…
• On this day, it all worked out, and we now have the happy ending.

THE GROOM IS WITH THE BRIDE!
This is call for rejoicing!
This is call for happiness!
This is call for praise to the groom!
Because on this day He has come to marry His bride.

And Scripture says “and His bride has made herself ready.”

That DOESN’T MEAN she finally purified herself.
That is made clear in the next verse.

(8) “It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.”

• We have a picture here of a less than deserving bride.
• We have a picture of a poor bride who could not afford a dress.
• We have a picture here of an unfit bride who did not deserve a dress.

And yet, the groom provides for her beauty and provides for her glory
That she may stand ready at the ceremony.

Ephesians 5:25-27 “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.”

The beauty of this bride is direct result of the work of the groom.
• He paid off her debts…
• He washed her with His word…
• He clothed her with His righteousness…

And He did it so that on this day, He might “present to Himself”
A perfect and beautiful and spotless bride.

She may have indeed put on the garment,
But it was a garment provided by the groom.
It is a glorious and beautiful day.

And just like you go to weddings and rejoice, that is the command here.
This is a good thing, this is a beautiful thing,
Be glad, rejoice and give glory to the groom.

It is a celebration.
That is the simple point here.

Impressive Scene
#2 AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE
Revelation 19:9

Well certainly you know by now that no piece of information given
Is just incidental information. There is always a point.

John just saw a small glimpse of a beautiful wedding ceremony.
BUT WE DON’T SEE THE CEREMONY YET.

Incidentally we won’t see the marriage ceremony progress until chapter 21.
Revelation 21:1-4 “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

Revelation 21:9-10 “Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,”

That is when we see the actual ceremony take place.

All we see here are the players.

• We see a groom ready to marry a woman
• And we know that the woman does not deserve to be there
• All her beauty was given to her by the groom.

And before any action was taken or the ceremony progressed
There is a pause and we are all supposed to learn something.

What are we supposed to learn just from seeing the groom and the bride?

(9) “Then he said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.'” And he said to me, “These are true words of God.”

Now let me help clarify some things here.
I used to get this verse all messed up.

I would run in to verse 9 and say,
“Well we know the church is the bride” so that can’t be the people here. These are people “invited to the marriage supper” so who are they?

And I tried to put O.T. saints here, and tribulation believers here.
And before I knew it I had this whole group of people who apparently got to attend the wedding but who didn’t get to marry Jesus.

Sound strange?
That’s because it is.

Don’t get too technical here in trying to fill in all the parts and pieces.

The bride we are looking at here is all the redeemed from all time.
It is redeemed Israel, it is the church, it tribulation believers,
It is all of them.

You say, then who are these people getting invited?
IT IS THE SAME GROUP.

When talking about who is getting invited,
We are including all those who are also the bride.

The point being made is that the bride doesn’t deserve to be here,
But she is totally fortunate to have been invited here anyway.

NOW, LET ME SHOW YOU.
The problem comes when we take one picture of marriage in Scripture
And try to make it trump all the others.

By far the most popular marriage analogy for us is that
Christ is the groom and the church is the bride.
But that is not the only way marriage is used as an analogy in Scripture.

Are you familiar with this parable?
Matthew 22:1-10 “Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. “And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. “Again he sent out other slaves saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened livestock are all butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.”‘ “But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them. “But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire. “Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. ‘Go therefore to the main highways, and as many as you find there, invite to the wedding feast.’ “Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good; and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests.”

Now in that parable, who is the bride?
(You don’t know, because the bride never is mentioned)

• What we know from that parable is that Israel are the original invited guests, who refuse the invitation
• And Gentiles are the slaves who are both evil and good who get invited instead.

So in that parable the church is not the bride,
The church is the dirty slaves who are fortunate to get to come.

How about this parable?
Matthew 25:1-10 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. “Five of them were foolish, and five were prudent. “For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the prudent took oil in flasks along with their lamps. “Now while the bridegroom was delaying, they all got drowsy and began to sleep. “But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ “Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. “The foolish said to the prudent, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ “But the prudent answered, ‘No, there will not be enough for us and you too; go instead to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ “And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut.”

Who is the bride in that parable?
You still don’t know.
• The 5 foolish virgins are Israel who were unprepared,
• The 5 wise virgins are the church.

So my point is, don’t try to push a certain marriage parable too far into Revelation 19, or you kind of miss the point.

The bride in Revelation 19 is all of the redeemed,
And those invited in verse 9 are also all of the redeemed.

The angel is simply pointing out to John that
Here we have a bride who has not earned the right to be at the wedding
And she is very “Blessed” to have been invited anyway.

Now, let me carry that picture a little farther for you.
For we also see the analogy of marriage in the Old Testament.

TURN TO: Hosea 1
• (We’re going to read a lot this morning, but bear with me, you need to see the
whole story)
• (Work through Hosea 1-3)

TURN TO: Ezekiel 16
• (Work through Ezekiel 16)

So you see a very similar story in both of those accounts.
It is of a woman whom God was gracious to,
But who did not deserve the husband she had been given.

And yet now we have that adulterous filthy woman
Restored into covenant anyway.

And before we get too tough on Israel,
We might do well to consider our own adultery to our promised husband.

James knew what we were.
James 4:4 “You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”

Paul told the Corinthians.
2 Corinthians 11:1-3 “I wish that you would bear with me in a little foolishness; but indeed you are bearing with me. For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, so that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin. But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.”

• Israel was no doubt an unfaithful bride who deserved to be sent away and stoned to death for her unfaithfulness.

• We are a filthy, undeserving pack of Gentiles who never deserved an opportunity to begin with, but who only received one because Israel refused to come.

• And then even we have been less than faithful to this husband who was so gracious to us.

The point is this.
THE WEDDING SHOULD HAVE BEEN CALLED OF LONG AGO!

Let me explain to you how this all works.
• In a Jewish wedding, the parents arranged the marriage.
• The bride and groom were chosen for each other.
• There was a dowry paid and they were engaged (binding)
• The groom then went to prepare a place for the two to live
• He then returned, there was a massive celebration banquet
• The two entered into a covenant,
• There was a celebratory supper
• And then the marriage was consummated

Now, let me show you how this worked.
• God Himself chose a bride for His Son.
• They are called, “The Elect”.
• They were chosen before time began.
• Their names were written in the Lamb’s book of life from the foundation of the world.

Ephesians 1:3-6 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.”

• We were chosen by the Father.
• The price was then paid for our redemption by the Son on the cross.
• And we entered into a covenant with Him, where we said He would be our Lord and we would forsake all others for Him.
• He then left to go and prepare a place.

John 14:1-3 “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”

• Now we await His return that we can celebrate the wedding and the consummation of being forever with our Lord.

BUT THERE IS ONE PROBLEM.
If any other bride had been as unfaithful as we have,
I’m not sure the groom would be interested any longer.

Isn’t that what Paul said to the Corinthians?
I wanted to present you to Christ as a pure virgin, but I’m not sure that’s possible any more.

MY POINT?
From our perspective, and based upon our unfaithfulness,
We would have every reason to expect that our Groom
Would have just gone on and left us behind.

BUT THAT IS WHAT MAKES THIS PASSAGE SO WONDERFUL!

He hasn’t!
“Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come…”

This marriage should have been cancelled long ago.
But it wasn’t. It’s still on.

And just that fact, (before we see any of the ceremony), led the angel to tell John to write something down.

What did he write?
“Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”

MAN I’D SAY SO!
Absolutely it is a blessing!
We sure didn’t earn it!

And just TO DOUBLE DOWN and to let us know that our Redeemer will in fact marry us still, the angel says, “These are true words of God.”

The wedding is still on!
• Despite Israel’s unfaithfulness…
• Despite our unfaithfulness…
• Christ will take us anyway.

Is that not a blessing?
HOW GREAT IS OUR HUSBAND!

Now that leads to a response from John.

An Impressive Scene, An Important Message
#3 AN IMPULSIVE RESPONSE
Revelation 19:10

John messes up here.
“Then I fell at his feet to worship him.”

Obviously this was a mistake.
And the angel instantly rebukes John.

“But he said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and your brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus, worship God. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

In other words, “Don’t worship me, I’m just a servant with a prophetic message about Christ, I’m not God.”

But what are we to make of this scene?

Well put yourself in John’s shoes.
• John has just witnessed the judgment of the world because of her sin.
• John has just witnessed the judgment of an unfaithful harlot.
• John has witnessed the fact that he also was unworthy to open the book and break its seals because he too was sinful.

When John saw that the marriage was still on and that he was still invited,
All he could do was fall down at the feet of the one who gave him the good news.

The point is, John was ecstatic!
John was overwhelmed and overjoyed!
John knew he was “Blessed”

It’s just that in his joy he fell down and worshiped the wrong person.
The messenger didn’t deserve the credit for this gracious wedding, God did.

Now, what are we supposed to do with this?

Well, let me take you back to the point.
“Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”

Well, who is invited to supper?
• As best as I can see, EVERYONE is.
• The problem is that many refuse the offer.

Back to that parable of the wedding banquet we looked at earlier.
Matthew 22:11-14 “But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, and he said to him, ‘ Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?’ And the man was speechless. “Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ “For many are called, but few are chosen.”

Everyone was invited.
Not everyone was willing to attend.
(In fact, because we believe in God’s sovereign hand regarding salvation we can see that no one was willing to attend had God not “chosen” them. But that’s a sermon for a different time.)

THE POINT HERE IS THAT EVERYONE WAS INVITED.

We see this type of invitation all time from Jesus.
Matthew 11:28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”

Romans 10:18 “But I say, surely they have never heard, have they? Indeed they have; “THEIR VOICE HAS GONE OUT INTO ALL THE EARTH, AND THEIR WORDS TO THE ENDS OF THE WORLD.”

It is there for the taking. You have been invited.

How sad it is when people fail to recognize
What a blessing it is to have been invited.

Luke 14:15-24 “When one of those who were reclining at the table with Him heard this, he said to Him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” But He said to him, “A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many; and at the dinner hour he sent his slave to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for everything is ready now.’ “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land and I need to go out and look at it; please consider me excused.’ “Another one said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’ “Another one said, ‘ I have married a wife, and for that reason I cannot come.’ “And the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the head of the household became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in here the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ “And the slave said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ “And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled. ‘For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste of my dinner.'”

It is a blessing, it’s just that people don’t see it that way and won’t come.

Or consider the Older brother in that parable of the prodigal son.
Luke 15:25-32 “Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. “And he summoned one of the servants and began inquiring what these things could be. “And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has received him back safe and sound.’ “But he became angry and was not willing to go in; and his father came out and began pleading with him. “But he answered and said to his father, ‘Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends; but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.’ “And he said to him, ‘Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours. ‘But we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found.'”

• Do you see that the older brother was invited into the banquet?
• He would have even been given new clothes if he had gone?

But he didn’t see that banquet as a blessing.
He didn’t see the marriage as a benefit.
He thought himself worthy of much more.

AND THERE IT IS FRIENDS.
• There is a great offer of salvation on the table.
• Christ has said “Come to me”
• Scripture has said “Whosoever will may come”

But so many do not see that offer as a blessing,
And instead choose to remain in their sin
And engaged in their own worldly deeds.

This morning I’m wondering if you see that call as a blessing?
I’m wondering if you’d be willing to
Leave your life behind and attend the wedding.

It’s a miracle that the wedding is even still on, but it is, and you’re invited.

Friend, the offer of salvation is on the table.
But you’re going to have to forsake all others
And pledge your life to Christ.

Romans 10:9 “that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;”

The Reliable Guide of Scripture – Part 2
Psalms 19:1-14 (9-14)
April 30, 2017

Last time we met we began our look at this 19th Psalm.
And we did so because it answers for us a very important question.

When you look at the end of the Psalm, you actually see the desire of the Psalmist.
(14) “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer.”

We have here a Psalmist
Whose desire is that he might be acceptable to God.
And not just acceptable in action, but acceptable in motive.

• He is NOT just looking for a list of rules that he can do whereby God will accept him.
• He wants to know how even the very thoughts of his heart can be transformed into that which is acceptable to God.

Obviously for something like that we need more than just a list,
We need something which can accomplish a great work in our hearts.

Psalms 19 answers that question for us.
The thing which can accomplish this work
And make even our motives acceptable to God, is His perfect word.

1 Thessalonians 2:13 “For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.”

It is God’s word which “performs its work in you”, and that is precisely what the Psalmist wants us to understand.

Now, he began by revealing to us the value of general revelation.
#1 THE MORE SEEN REVELATION
Psalms 19:1-6

And of course this is simply creation.
And just by looking at the majesty and order of consistency of creation one can actually learn a lot about the God who created it.
• David recognized His glory.
• David recognized His consistency
• David recognized His power
• David recognized His omnipresence

And if we wanted to spend the time on a separate study
There is great deal more we could learn about God
Just from looking at the general revelation of creation.
Paul said:
Romans 1:20a “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made…”

God’s creation does in fact tell us quite a bit about Him.

But as we said last time,
There is something we don’t learn much about from creation, and that is – WE DON’T LEARN MUCH ABOUT US.

More specifically, we don’t know how
That we can be made acceptable to the God of creation.

For that we need the second half of this Psalm.

The More Seen Revelation
#2 THE MORE SURE REVELATION
Psalms 19:7-14

And this is what we were looking at when we ran out of time last Sunday night.

There is in fact a more sure revelation.
That is what Peter called it.
2 Peter 1:19 “So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.”

And this more sure revelation is TOTALLY SUFFICIENT
For revealing to us everything we need pertaining to life and Godliness
And how to be made acceptable to God.

2 Peter 1:3-4 “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.”

That is what David is saying too.
He is showing us why God’s word is so reliable
For showing one how to become acceptable to God.

And we already looked at 4 realities last time.

(7a) “The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul;”

And hopefully you remember that the word “perfect”
Means “without blemish”.

That is to say that God’s word is everything He intended it to be.
He neither needs nor desires any revision to what He has said.
And because it is without blemish it restores (literally converts) the soul.
It is God’s word which takes sinners and molds them into saints.

Ephesians 5:25-26 “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,”

We also saw:
(7b) “The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.”

“sure” is AMAN which means
“stands firm, or believed, or faithful”

God’s word is reliable information,
It will never steer you wrong or leave you looking foolish.

I could probably go ahead here and tell you of another great Reformer.
• In Germany the Reformation began with Luther
• In Switzerland it began with Zwingli

In England the Reformation began with a man named William Tyndale.
In fact it is been said of Tyndale that he was the English Reformation.

Tyndale was a young man who grew up in a family of farmers,
• But who had enough money to send him to school at Oxford and eventually he went to Cambridge.

• While there, he became acquainted with some of Luther’s writings regarding Justification by Faith and spent much time pondering the doctrines.

• Tyndale became convinced that salvation would never come to England until people were allowed access to God’s word in their own language.

• At the age of 27 Tyndale decided to leave the academic circle so that he could devote himself more diligent to the study of the Greek New Testament that Erasmus had put out.

So Tyndale returned to his home town and took a job
Working for a family named Walsh who were high society
And often had priests over for dinner.

This time was influential to Tyndale.
• On one hand he is studying the Greek New Testament and building a conviction that unless England received an English Bible they’d never be converted.

• On the other hand he is listening to these priests who come to the Walsh home and can’t believe how ignorant they are in the Scriptures.

On one occasion Tyndale challenged one of the priests and in the heat of the argument the priest made the statement
“We had better be without God’s Laws than the pope’s”

To which Tyndale replied, “I defy the pope and all his laws…If God spare my life ere many years, I will cause a boy that driveth the plough, shall know more of the Scripture than thou dost”.
(Foxe, Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, 77)

From that moment on Tyndale set out to give us the English Bible.
• Now his life is filled with several twists and plots,
• But basically you should know that he was forced to flee various places and even to Germany where he lived as a fugitive for 17 years
• While there it was Tyndale who gave us our first English New Testament and even the Pentateuch in English.
• He was eventually lured into a trap by an undercover agent who pretended to be poor and who befriended Tyndale.
• Tyndale had been working on Joshua through 2 Chronicles, which was never confiscated and was put in the first ever complete English Bible known as “The Matthews” Bible, which would be published by John Rogers (Who published under the name Thomas Matthew), for which he was also killed. But was mostly the work of William Tyndale.

After a year and a half in prison, Tyndale was condemned a heretic, stripped of his priesthood and led to his death.

Tyndale was given one last chance to recant, which he refused,
And one prayer in which he prayed, “Lord, open the King of England’s eyes”.

After this Tyndale was strangled, burned, and blown up with gun powder.

See Tyndale understood what David was talking about.
All the religion in the world couldn’t make a man wise,
But knowledge of the word of God most certainly could.

Tyndale saw the ignorance that existed in the priests,
And vowed to make the boy in the field more wise than they.

It was unwavering faith in the Scripture to make one wise
That literally led to the Reformation sweeping through England.

David knew that very thing as well.

Next David taught us:
(8a) “The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart.”

They are “right” in the sense that they do not offend the conscience,
Which is why they can bring joy to a guilty heart.

• We may rightly feel guilty for many things we do in this life, but never do we feel guilty for obeying God’s word.
• God’s precepts do not offend the conscience.
• God’s precepts do not produce guilt when they are obeyed.

There is joy in obedience.
Jesus said:
John 15:10-11 “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. “These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.”

And finally we learned
(8b) “The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.”

Which reminds us that there is no ulterior motive to God’s word.
It will never deceive or distort or give faulty information.

That is why David says it “enlightens the eyes”

God’s word always reveals truth, it always portrays what is accurate.
And as we said last time, this is even why some people don’t like it.

But none the less we see what David is revealing.

God’s word is that which can:
• Convert your soul
• Guide you in wisdom
• Comfort your heart
• And grant you discernment

You can see why David is convinced that God’s word is that
Which can help him become acceptable to God.

Well, David wasn’t finished.

He also said:
(9) “The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever.”

In this one David actually lists an EFFECT of God’s word,
Rather than God’s word itself.

He refers to “the fear of the LORD”,
It is that fear which is produced through a study of God’s word.

As God’s word reveals Him, the more we see His glory and our sinfulness. This leads to an undoubted awe and fear of the LORD.

But David says that this “fear” is “clean”

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
Ever read Leviticus about all the things that are either considered “clean” or “unclean” (same word)

That which is clean may draw near to God,
That which is unclean must dwell outside the camp.

Here we have a Psalmist who wants to know how to be acceptable to God
And he has learned that God’s word has the ability to produce in him
A “fear of the LORD” which is in fact acceptable to God.

Remember what Jesus said?
John 15:1-4 “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.”

David knows that it is God’s word which produces fear of the LORD
And it is this fear of the LORD which makes a person clean.

And this, by the way, “endures forever”
It is not short-lived or ineffective.

And then David closes this descriptive section by saying
(9b) “The judgments of the LORD are true, they are righteous altogether.”

“true” is EMETH
And it doesn’t just mean true, it means “reliable”
Or “truth that has been tested and found true”

Genesis 42:16 “Send one of you that he may get your brother, while you remain confined, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you. But if not, by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are spies.”

We are talking about that which has been proven true.
And David says that is certainly the case with God’s word,
It is battle-tested and time honored.

It can be rested upon and leaned upon, it will never lead astray.

Now, that is just David’s assessment of God’s word.
• It Converts sinners
• It gives Wisdom to fools
• It gives Peace and Joy to the guilty
• It gives Discernment to the blind
• It produces Fear and Reverence which God accepts
• And it is battle tested and proven to do all of these things

And this is the pathway to learning how to be acceptable to God.

It all starts with the word of God.

It contains everything we need to take a selfish, sinful, foolish, guilty, blind, and unclean human being
And convert him, make him wise, discerning, clean and obedient.

If you have a desire for your entire being to be acceptable to God
Then it all begins with the word of God.

This was precisely what the Reformers came to believe.
• This was Luther placing faith in the Scripture over the word of popes and
councils.
• This was Zwingli determining to throw out anything that wasn’t prescribed in
Scripture.
• This was Tyndale knowing that the Scripture was the key to bringing genuine
salvation to England.

Scripture is the more sure word.
And you see why SOLA SCRIPTURA is so important.

THIS SCRIPTURE HAS SUCH VALUE.

And that is what David continues focusing on here in the 19th Psalm.

Speaking of the Lord’s judgments, David says:
(10) “They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.”

To David there was no possession as valuable as the Scripture.

We certainly don’t have time to cover it, but consider that 119th Psalm where David outlines his love of God’s word.

Psalms 119:72 “The law of Your mouth is better to me Than thousands of gold and silver pieces.”

Psalms 119:27 “Make me understand the way of Your precepts, So I will meditate on Your wonders.”

But my favorite stanza is: MEM
Psalms 119:97-104 “O how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day. Your commandments make me wiser than my enemies, For they are ever mine. I have more insight than all my teachers, For Your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the aged, Because I have observed Your precepts. I have restrained my feet from every evil way, That I may keep Your word. I have not turned aside from Your ordinances, For You Yourself have taught me. How sweet are Your words to my taste! Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth! From Your precepts I get understanding; Therefore I hate every false way.”

David knew the value of God’s word to make him wise
And to guide him in truth and thus he proclaimed it sweeter than honey.

And again we could chase a massive rabbit here
And seek to expose all the ways in which God’s word is valuable,

But if you’ll notice there is one reason David mentions here
As to why God’s word is so sweet to him.

(11) “Moreover, by them Your servant is warned; In keeping them there is great reward.”

David understood that God’s word was more than just wisdom to the foolish, but it was literally guidance to the lost.

It was like Peter said:
2 Peter 1:19 “So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.”

David saw God’s word as a great warning sign
Of potential threats and dangers.

And to fully appreciate this, all one has to do is think for a moment
Where you might be had God not given this revelation to us.

BUT LET’S GET EVEN MORE SPECIFIC.

What specifically did God’s word warn him about?

David here is not talking about some sort of mystic experience
Where God’s word warned him of a lion around the bend
Or of a Philistine hiding in the bushes.

There was an even greater danger
Which David would have never been able to see
Or defend against had God not warned him.

(12-13) “Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults. Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins; Let them not rule over me; Then I will be blameless, And I shall be acquitted of great transgression.”

What a great question.
“Who can discern his errors?”

How do you know if the things you do are right or wrong?
(Because they seem right to you)

I can illustrate the fault in that very quickly.
There are two women in my life that are more important to me than any other. I want to please them, I learn from them, they are important to me.

One is obviously my WIFE and the other is my MOTHER.

But I promise you, you have never met to women
With a greater difference regarding WHAT SEEMS RIGHT than these two.

If you were to walk outside and see a sign on the grass which reads, “Keep off the grass”.

Carrie would not only obey the sign,
• She would pause and find her kids to make sure they are aware of the sign,
• And would do everything within her ability to make sure no one under her
control walked on that grass.

If a hat blew off of my son’s head and landed on the grass, before Carrie would let him go get it, she would make sure and find whoever is in charge of that grass to get special permission and perhaps a temporary permit for them to venture on to the grass and retrieve the cap.

(Obviously I’m exaggerating here a little, but the point is…a rule follower)

My mom on the other hand would walk out the door, read the sign and say, “They don’t really care”
and then lead the kids across the grass
Just to prove it isn’t hurting anything.

And I could go on and on with their differences regarding things like:
Eating junk food, going to bed on time, speeding, etc.

My point is I don’t know of any two people
Who have the same inner sense of what is “right”

So how in the world are you ever going to discern what is right or wrong according to God in your life?

You’re just going to do what seems right to you?
(Like the period of the Judges)

That might be fine if pleasing yourself was the only objective.

David loves God’s word because it helps him see “his errors”. That is those things which God sees as “errors”.

And discerning his errors was what led David to repentance
That he might be acquitted of these “hidden faults.”

If he had never been exposed, he would have never repented and then never been acquitted.

Paul said essentially the same thing.
Romans 7:7 “What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, “YOU SHALL NOT COVET.”

• It was God’s word that showed him his sin and ultimately led him to
repentance.
• Paul wouldn’t have even known that coveting was wrong had God’s word not
exposed it.

Ever had God’s word do that to you?

You’re just reading along and all of a sudden – BAM! –
God confronts something in your life?

Only God’s word can do that.
It can expose what is hidden.
And you couldn’t know it otherwise.

Charles Spurgeon was not a reformer, rather he was a student of the reformation and a powerful preacher in England.

He wrote:
“In the Lateran Council of the Church of Rome, a decree was passed that every true believer must confess his sins, all of them, once in a year to the priest, and they affixed to it this declaration, that there is no hope of pardon but in complying with that decree. What can equal the absurdity of such a decree as that? Do they suppose that they can tell their sins as easily as they can count their fingers? Why, if we could receive pardon for all our sins by telling every sin we have committed in one hour there is not one of us who would be able to enter heaven, since, besides the sins that are known to us and that we be able to confess, there are a vast mass of sins, which are as truly sins as those which we lament, but which are secret, and come not beneath our eyes. If we had eyes like those of God, we should think very differently of ourselves.”
(Spurgeon, Charles H. [The Treasury of David Volume 1; Hendrickson Publishers, Peabody, MA] pg. 274)

Only God’s word has the ability to expose your sin to you.
Hebrews 4:12-13 “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.”

When David spoke of God’s word warning him,
He wasn’t talking about dangers on the outside.
He was talking about dangers within his own evil heart.

AND THAT’S NOT ALL.

David also valued God’s word because of the way IT SUBDUED HIS STUBBORN WILL.
(13) “Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins; Let them not rule over me; Then I will be blameless, and I shall be acquitted of great transgression.”

“presumptuous sins” are those which
Most greatly reflect our stubborn human will.

It is when we know better, but defiantly choose to do it anyway.
And David saw God’s word as a check against such defiance.

I chalk this up to the relentless nature of God’s word.

I’ve shared with you before how I wasn’t truly saved until I was 19, even though I had made a decision at the age of 8.

• And during my teenage years I was a typical teenage boy.
• I can assure you that regardless of an outward morality, my heart was as
carnal and immoral as anyone’s.
• I could not read the Bible during my teenage years without reading a verse
about lust or sexual immorality.

And despite my rebellion, God just wouldn’t quit.
His word refused to relent, until finally He drew me home.

David knew that the flesh is far too powerful a foe to conquer on our own.
If given the opportunity we will rebel every time.

However, God’s word is a powerful agent
Able to subdue the will and break the bondage of the flesh.

In short, God’s word was the only thing able to take a sinful man like David and mold him into a man who acceptable in the sight of God.

And again, this was David’s cry.
(14) “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer.”

• That is the desire…
• That is the goal…
• To be “acceptable” to God.

And when David wanted to know what this was,
There was only ONE PLACE TO TURN; the Scripture.

“They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.”

And when Peter wanted to know what this was,
There was only ONE PLACE TO TURN; the Scripture.
Because “we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place”

And this bore true for men like Luther and Zwingli and Tyndale as well.
These men found that SCRIPTURE ALONE WAS THE ONLY WAY TO KNOW the life which was acceptable to God.

And then these men died to make sure the world knew it.
That is really the foundation of the Reformation.

SOLA SCRIPTURA.

The Original Hallelujah Chorus
Revelation 19:1-6
April 30, 2017

Well if you’ve been following the book of Revelation with us
Then you know that we have just journeyed through
A very dark time for the world.

The last 7 years (as revealed in the Revelation) is a time like the earth has never experienced.
• We’ve seen wars and famine and pestilence
• We’ve seen asteroids and comets and earthquakes and hail stones
• We’ve seen demonic invasions and unprecedented death

God’s wrath has been no laughing matter.
He is judging the world for its iniquity.

Most recently this wrath has been focused on the city called “Babylon”.
It will be the capitol city of the Antichrist.

It will be the most immoral and defiling city the world has ever known.
Full of sexual immorality, greed, idolatry,
And void of any form of righteousness whatsoever.

The only thing in that city that is said to be righteous is the blood that flows through the streets which came from the saints they martyred.

It is a horrific place,
And we have just witnessed God’s destruction of that city.

The RESPONSE OF THE WORLD to that destruction was total grief.
• We saw kings…
• We heard merchants…
• We heard tourists…
• All crying “Woe, Woe!” regarding the fall of the great city.

That city represented their source of all their sinful pleasures.
And they grieve extensively when it falls.

But in the middle of the destruction and in the middle of the wailing there was ONE VERSE that seemed to stand out a little.

Revelation 18:20 “Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced judgment for you against her.”

In the midst of the judgment…
In the midst of the slaughter…
Heaven issues a command and that command is to “rejoice”.

The command is to rejoice over this judgment.

And I just want to take a second here and bring to your attention that
IF YOU ARE PROGRAMMED TO THINK LIKE THE WORLD
THEN THAT COMMAND SEEMS WRONG.

Our society has made a universal decision that judgment is wrong.

I read a post on Facebook this week by a person who was mourning the realities of abortion (and rightly so).

• But on their post someone commented that we don’t know the life
circumstances of people who have abortions and we should refrain from
judgment.

• To which the person who originally posted the article apologized and agreed.

• Here we have people who kill innocent babies and yet the person left feeling
guilty was the person who said it was wrong. That means that our society
thinks judgment is worse than abortion.

I saw another story this week about a man who chained a cross in a city street in New York that is known for homosexuality. Instead of removing the cross the citizens of the street changed the lock so it couldn’t be moved and painted the cross rainbow.

• The response to the story was: “Love Wins” And it praised the person who
painted the cross for “turning the cross into a symbol of love and acceptance.”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/love-cross-nyc_us_58ff5447e4b0b6f6014ac24e

My point is that our world sees judgment
As the most awful thing imaginable.

Our society doesn’t see any reason
Why sinners should even be confronted, let alone punished for their sin.

And yet, here we have a command issued that as God is judging sinners “saints and apostles and prophets” are commanded to “rejoice”

WELL, IF THAT VERSE SEEMED TO HIT YOU SIDEWAYS
Then I promise you won’t have any answer
For the one we are about to study this morning.

It is THE ORIGINAL HALLELUJAH CHORUS.

• You know the song you’ve heard so many times, usually at Christmas time.
• I am convinced that 99% of the people who sing it or listen to it have no clue
about the circumstances under which it was revealed.

The “Hallelujah Chorus” is heavens response
To the destruction of the world.

• We just saw God throw that corrupt city Babylon to the ground, burn her with
fire and then promise that she will never rise again.

• And in the middle of the earth’s mourning, heaven interrupts with one
deafening word: HALLELJUAH!
Incidentally the world HALLELUJAH is a Hebrew word.
It comes from two words, HALEL which means “to praise”
And “YAH” which is a reference to Yahweh or “The LORD”

The word literally means “Praise the Lord”

This passage is not only the LAST TIME it is used in Scripture, but also the ONLY TIME it is used in the New Testament.

The FIRST TIME the word is ever used is:
Psalms 104:35 “Let sinners be consumed from the earth And let the wicked be no more. Bless the LORD, O my soul. Praise the LORD!”

That is the first time this word is used,
And that is the same reason it is used the last time.

God is annihilating sinners and heaven is crying out: HALLELUJAH!

Isaiah 5:16 “But the LORD of hosts will be exalted in judgment, And the holy God will show Himself holy in righteousness.”

Psalms 58:10-11 “The righteous will rejoice when he sees the vengeance; He will wash his feet in the blood of the wicked. And men will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous; Surely there is a God who judges on earth!”

That is the same reality we are witnessing here.
God has just dealt a death blow the world and heaven is here responding.

And as we study this passage, I think it opens up for us
A WHOLE NEW UNDERSTANDING ABOUT OUR WORSHIP OF GOD.

Many times in life we evaluate a person’s actions by our own standards
• If those actions measure up then we give them a little praise.
• If those actions don’t measure up then we either withhold praise or even give a
reprimand.

The tragedy is when we do the same to God.

GOD IS WORTHY OF PRAISE.
If what God does doesn’t appear praiseworthy to you
Then it means you have a faulty understanding
Of what is in fact praiseworthy.

This morning as we witness
Heaven praising God in the midst of His judgment,
We learn some valuable truths about praising God and giving Him glory.

So…Regarding God’s Glory (or God’s deserved praise)
#1 HEAVEN DECLARES IT
Revelation 19:1

“After these things” indicates the immediate response after Babylon was destroyed and that angel threw that large stone into the sea.

As soon as that was over John says, “I heard something like a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God;”

I love this statement.
It carries with such important doctrine and understanding.

The “multitude” themselves are not specifically identified,
Namely because it doesn’t matter.
It is the substance of the song, not the source of it which matters.

We can however quickly deduce that it must be an angelic multitude
Since in a moment the redeemed are told to join them.

Regardless of who is singing here, the song is an absolute masterpiece.

“Hallelujah!” That is praise the Lord!

“Salvation and glory and power belong to our God”

Here the choir attributes three things to God.
In fact they say these things “belong to our God”

That is to say HE IS THE RIGHTFUL OWNER of them all.

Now, why would they say that?

Because for the last 3 ½ years there has been some real confusion on earth as exactly who the Savior really was.
• The earth thought the Savior was the Antichrist.
• They saw him as the one who would save them from God’s judgments.
• They worshiped him and cried “Who is like the beast and who is able to wage war with him?”
• They saw him as their provider of food and pleasure and commodity.
• They saw him as the conqueror of death since it was his fatal wound which was healed.

He was also the one claiming to have all the “glory”
• It was his statue that was talking
• It was his mark that men were forced to take
• It was his regime that crushed all false religion (the harlot) and demanded that no other name be worshiped but his own

Not only that, but they also ascribed all “power” to the Antichrist for this time period since it was he who was working all manner of wonders.
• It was Antichrist who was shaking his fist at heaven and killing God’s saints and declaring himself to be the all-powerful god of the universe.
I can only imagine that for the past 3 ½ years
The angelic host were fit to be tied.

• Who is this peon in the world who fancies himself to be the savior of the world?
• Who is this insignificant worm who would dare steal God’s glory?
• Who is this filthy human who would claim power like that of God’s?

I’m sure the angels were ready to puke!
(I thought this week about the day in Africa when we visited that male lion cage to watch the lions eat, and Ronnie got down and started looking that one lion in the eyes. I remember how badly that lion wanted Ronnie to come over into the pen with him. I liken that passion to the passion of the angels in heaven over what they’ve had to witness for the past 3 /12 years)

Well, IN ONE SWIFT SHOT (literally one hour) God vindicated His name
And demonstrated who the real Savior is, who really deserves the glory,
And who really has the power.

And as Babylon is burning the angelic host cry out.
“Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God”

AND LET ME JUST REMIND YOU OF WHY.

When we say that “Salvation” belongs to God; that is no insignificant statement.

That it is to say that salvation is totally and 100% His prerogative.
I know we live in a day where the multitudes seem to think
That salvation is a decision of sinners, but nothing could be further from the truth.

Listen to Paul talk about salvation:
1 Corinthians 1:26-31 “For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD.”

So who does salvation belong to?
You?
• Because you were smarter than lost people?
• Because you are stronger than lost people?
• Because you are more noble than lost people?

HARDLY! God did it according to His prerogative.

Listen to Paul in Romans 9
Romans 9:14-16 “What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! For He says to Moses, “I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION.” So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.”

Salvation most certainly isn’t up to the prerogative or choice of the sinner.
Salvation belongs to God and God alone.

And that is certainly proven true during the tribulation.

YOU REMEMBER that during that time period you have Antichrist on earth and he is forcing everyone to worship him and take his mark.

Do you remember who the only people are who won’t take that mark?
Revelation 13:7-8 “It was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him. All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.”

• The only people who will be saved…
• The only people who won’t worship Antichrist…
• Are not those who stronger than everyone at the time, but rather those who
had been chosen by the Lord “from the foundation of the world”

Jesus said the same thing regarding the tribulation
Matthew 24:22 “Unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.”

When this angelic choir sings that “Salvation…belong[s] to our God”
It is not just some idle statement.

For 3 ½ years Antichrist has claimed to be the savior,
On this day, it is evident who the real and only Savior is.

THIS ANGELIC CHOIR ALSO ATTRIBUTES “GLORY” TO “OUR GOD”

And let’s be honest here.
After watching God destroy the world and make such short work of the Antichrist and his kingdom, who else would you ascribe glory to?

That is to say, who else would you fear?
You certainly shouldn’t fear Antichrist any more…

Glory belongs to God alone.
• He doesn’t share it with men…
• He doesn’t share it with nature…
• He doesn’t share it with false deities…

Isaiah 42:8 “I am the LORD, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another, Nor My praise to graven images.”

Isaiah 48:11 “For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act; For how can My name be profaned? And My glory I will not give to another.”

God’s glory is solely and uniquely His.
It belongs to no one else.

That is even one of the reasons why this world is judged.
They were confused about where to ascribe the glory for all things.

Romans 1:24-25 “Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.”

Man has continually dishonored God by reason of
Ascribing His glory to other things, but not after this day.

The angelic choir sings hallelujah because on this day
There is no longer any doubt who the Savior is and who gets the glory.

The angelic choir also ascribes “power” to “our God.”

For 3 ½ years the earth had been mesmerized by the power of the Antichrist…buy my how weak he proved to be.

If you want to know where the real power is; it just fell from heaven.
Only God gets credit for power after this day.

Psalms 115:3 “But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases.”

God is what we call ALMIGHTY
That is to say that there is nothing He desires that He cannot perform.
He has power equal to desire.

God alone deserves praise and glory
And Heaven is making sure the world knows it.

Heaven declares God’s glory.

Let me tell you another thing about God’s glory.
#2 JUDGMENT DEMONSTRATES IT
Revelation 19:2-3

Today people want to give God glory when He “blesses” them.
• If God will give me what I desire…
• If God will not treat me as I deserve…
• If God will spare me some pain…
• If God will deliver me from some danger…

Then I will ascribe glory to God.

But Scripture says that God is also glorified in wrath and judgment.

Listen to WHY the angels ascribe glory to God here.
(2-3) “BECAUSE HIS JUDGMENTS ARE TRUE AND RIGHTEOUS; for He has judged the great harlot who was corrupting the earth with her immorality, and HE HAS AVENGED THE BLOOD OF HIS BOND-SERVANTS ON HER.” And a second time they said, “Hallelujah! HER SMOKE RISES UP FOREVER AND EVER.”

Heaven is actually singing Hallelujah here
Because they can see the smoke of the harlot rising.
And not just rising, but rising “up forever and ever”

That is to say, she’ll never return.
Revelation 14:9-11 “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. “And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; they have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.”

God demonstrates His glory through His judgment of immorality.
And through the vindication of His bond-servants.

2 Thessalonians 1:6-8 “For after all it is only just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.”

This judgment of God is fitting and it demonstrates His glory.

1 Chronicles 16:31-33 “Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; And let them say among the nations, “The LORD reigns.” Let the sea roar, and all it contains; Let the field exult, and all that is in it. Then the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the LORD; For He is coming to judge the earth.”

HEAVEN CERTAINLY UNDERSTANDS THIS.
They don’t just glorify God for the salvation of sinners,
But they also glorify God for the destruction of sinners.

Do you understand that?
At the end of the day God will be glorified either way.

He will be glorified by the redeemed saints around His throne,
And He will be glorified by the tormented sinners in hell.

My point is simply this.
You were created to bring glory to God, and you will.

Some people seem to think
We do God this great favor when we get saved
Because now we have decided to be those who will glorify God.

Ha! Friend you’re going to bring glory to God
Regardless of whether or not you are saved.

We don’t do God any favors in this area.
THE BENEFIT IS ALL OURS.
We are those who gain the privilege of giving God glory
From a position of redemption instead of a position of judgment.

But the reality is that God will be glorified even in judgment.

So, when we are talking about the glory of God we learn:
Heaven Declares It, Judgment Demonstrates it
#3 GOD DESERVES IT
Revelation 19:4

In the first 3 verses it is the angelic choir singing PRAISE THE LORD!

But in verse 4 we notice two more groups chime into the song.
• They are “the twenty-four elders” whom we said long ago we believe to be the raptured church.

• And they are “the four living creatures” who we know to be cherubim who surround the throne and guard the glory of God.

Well, here they join in the angelic chorus, and I love what they say.
“Amen. Hallelujah!”

I love that they don’t just say “Hallelujah!” but that they first say “Amen”

WHY?
“Amen” is a word that means “So be it”

The fact that this word is stated first
Brings with it an indication that this group first listened to the reasons of the angels before they joined the song.

They heard the angels immediately break out in “Hallelujah” Chorus.
• And the angels definitively said that God deserved praise because He judged the great harlot.
• And they definitively said that God deserved praise because He avenged His bond-servants.
• And they definitively said that God deserved praise because He continues to torment in fire and smoke.

And it as though the “twenty-four elders” and the “four living creatures”
Listened to what they said, pondered what they said,
And then came to the conclusion that they were absolutely right.

They say, “Amen”.
They say, “You’re right, God does deserved glory for this. God does deserve praise for judging that harlot.”

And then these two groups also join with a hearty “Hallelujah!”
They saw what God did.
They saw why God did it.
And they agreed, God does in fact deserve glory.

And friend this is something you certainly must see.
We live in a day where society is more and more
Refusing the authority under which they exist.

We saw a massive group of people just this past November boldly proclaim “NOT MY PRESIDENT” after President Trump was elected.

And that same sentiment is seen all the time in various areas.
• I’m not going to obey my boss because he’s an idiot and doesn’t deserve it.
• I’m not going to obey my parents because they’re dumb and don’t know
nothing.
• I’m not going to submit to my husband because he doesn’t do anything worthy
of my submission.
• I’m not going to “honor the king” or “submit to the governing authorities”
because they don’t deserve my honor

You get the idea…

But the fact is when talking about the God of the universe,
We are not just talking about what He has commanded,
But also what He deserves.

Jeremiah 10:6-7 “There is none like You, O LORD; You are great, and great is Your name in might. Who would not fear You, O King of the nations? Indeed it is Your due! For among all the wise men of the nations And in all their kingdoms, There is none like You.”

Jeremiah 10:11-16 “Thus you shall say to them, “The gods that did not make the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth and from under the heavens.” It is He who made the earth by His power, Who established the world by His wisdom; And by His understanding He has stretched out the heavens. When He utters His voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens, And He causes the clouds to ascend from the end of the earth; He makes lightning for the rain, And brings out the wind from His storehouses. Every man is stupid, devoid of knowledge; Every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols; For his molten images are deceitful, And there is no breath in them. They are worthless, a work of mockery; In the time of their punishment they will perish. The portion of Jacob is not like these; For the Maker of all is He, And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; The LORD of hosts is His name.”

It’s not just that heaven declares God’s glory…
It’s not just that judgment demonstrates God’s glory…
It is that GOD DESERVES GLORY

That means that when we refuse to give Him the glory He deserves, it is we who are in the wrong.

When talking about God’s glory:
Heaven Declares It, Judgment Demonstrates It, God Deserves It
#4 REDEMPTION DEMANDS IT
Revelation 19:5-6

Did you pick up what is happening here?
There is actually a command issued.

“And a voice came from the throne, saying, “Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great.”

• The angels immediately responded in Hallelujah’s of praise to God.
• The twenty-four elders and the 4 living creatures discerned the scene and quickly decided that the angels were right, God did deserve glory.

And now it is almost like those two groups look at the massive host
Of the redeemed who have been delivered from the great tribulation.

These would have had to have been a little shell-shocked
At what they have just witnessed.

But heaven wastes no time telling them what their responsibility is.
They MUST join the heavenly song of Hallelujah to God.

• God had just redeemed them from the world He destroyed…
• God had just rescued them from the kingdom of Antichrist…
• God had just enacted vengeance on the earth for them…
They owe it to God to give Him glory.

And that is exactly what they do.
(6) “Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.”

Psalms 106:48 “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, From everlasting even to everlasting. And let all the people say, “Amen.” Praise the LORD!”

And I think this is a really simple point.
God deserves glory in all things
And it is our responsibility to give it to Him.

• He deserves glory for judging sinners…
• He deserves glory for vindicating saints…
• He deserves glory for saving you…

He deserves glory simply for who He is.
THERE IS NEVER A TIME NOR SITUATION
THAT DOES NOT WARRANT FOR GOD TO BE GLORIFIED.
And that includes the judgment of the wicked.

I want to close this morning by having you
Turn To: Psalms 146

The last 5 chapters of the book of Psalms seem to capture and understand
The idea of praising God more than any other section of Scripture.

They remind us of our absolute responsibility to PRAISE THE LORD