How Long Sovereign Lord!
The Seven Seals (1)
Revelation 6:1-17 Lesson 6
Key verse. 6:10 Shp Kevin Jesmer NIU UBF 5-26-10
“They called out in a loud voice, ‘How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?’"
In this chapter the Lamb opens 6 of the 7 seals affixed to the scroll in God's hand. John received revelation concerning the judgments that would take place on earth as the Lamb opened the seals on the scroll (5:1). God gave him this information to help us understand what will take place (1:19). When each of the first 4 seals is broken, a horse and rider come out. They seem to represent in sequence: false conquerors or “saviors”, military conquest, famine and death of multitudes. These things cause great suffering. The focal point is the 5th seal. Under it are the people of God who were slain because of their faithfulness to God and to his word. They await the ultimate victory of the Lamb, when the Lord will come to judge the earth. The 6th seal is then opened. It reveals the wrath of the Lamb. He is to be feared far more than natural disaster or war. However, God will keep his own people safe, while unrepentant people will look for a place to hide. Indeed there are many hard times ahead for God’s people, but through the study of this passage may we determine to be faithful to Jesus and his word to the end, depending on his strength to do so.
Part l: The Four Horsemen Of The Apocalypse (1-11)
We are first introduced to the four horsemen. Look at verse 1. “I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. Then I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, ‘Come!’” The Lamb opens 6 of the 7 seals affixed to the scroll in God's hand. When each of the first 4 seals is broken, a horse and rider come out. The four horses are a foretaste of the final judgments yet to come They seem to represent in sequence: some sort of conquest, war, famine and death. The order of events here are very similar to the order Jesus predicted in the Olivet Discourse in the beginning of Matthew 24.
Glimpses of the identity these spiritual horses may be found in Zechariah 6:1-7 which reads, “ I looked up again—and there before me were four chariots coming out from between two mountains—mountains of bronze! 2 The first chariot had red horses, the second black, 3 the third white, and the fourth dappled—all of them powerful. 4 I asked the angel who was speaking to me, "What are these, my lord?" 5 The angel answered me, "These are the four spirits [a] of heaven, going out from standing in the presence of the Lord of the whole world. 6 The one with the black horses is going toward the north country, the one with the white horses toward the west, [b] and the one with the dappled horses toward the south." 7 When the powerful horses went out, they were straining to go throughout the earth. And he said, "Go throughout the earth!" So they went throughout the earth.” These may not be the same horses we found in chapter 6. But we can discover some characteristics of horses found in the heavenly herd. The horses in Zechariah were sent by God. They were powerful. They came forth from the presence of God. They strain towards their destination, intent on what they are doing. They were riding in unison. They were serving God’s purpose. They went throughout the whole world. Such were the horses in Revelation 6.
Going back to our passage, they affects brought about these horse and riders do not represent specific events that we can clearly identify. What I mean is, you can’t look at the newspaper and say, “This is definitely the event that John must have been witnessing.” They are more like categories, or types of events that will occur as part of God’s judgment. They could represent events that are already taking place and events that will take place in the future. I personally see all of these events occurring in the world right now.
There is a passage called the Olivet discourse in Matthew 24. In this passage we can find some solid evidence as to the identity of these four horses in give all Christians clear life direction in response to the damaging effects of their ride. Jesus was with his disciples on the Mount of Olives. The disciples were curious about what will happen in the future and so they asked Jesus in verse 3b, "’Tell us,’ they said, ‘when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?’" Listen to what Jesus told his disciples in verses 4-14, “Jesus answered: ‘Watch out that no one deceives you. 5For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ,[a]' and will deceive many. 6You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are the beginning of birth pains. 9Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” These verses will be referred to on several occasions throughout the message. I believe they will help bring clarity to this passage.
First, the rider on the white horse. Look at verse 2, “I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.” Out of all the horses and riders in this passage, I have not seem more confusion as to it’s identity. I interviewed Christians from several denominations and referred to several commentaries and the choices were that the rider represented military conquest, antichrists and false christs, and Christ himself. All Christians are not on the same page as to the rider on the white horse. What a controversial figure! Who is he? To begin with, let’s make a very simple assessment of the passage. He rides a white horse and wears a crown. He is carrying a bow with no indication of arrows. He heads up the other three horses who are all harbingers of destruction. Is he Jesus, based on John’s vision in Revelation 19:11-16? Revelation 19:11 reads, “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war.” This rider was on white horse and had many crowns. (19: 12a) He was not carrying a bow, but rather he wielded a sword that came out of his mouth. (19:15)
Why does everyone assume that the white horse is Christ and is even something good? Didn’t Roman generals ride on white stallions. Krishna, the Hindu God, rode on a white stallion. We have a lot of fixed ideas that affect our judgments on things. Let’s be neutral about the passage and approach it with fresh minds and hearts. The rider had one crown. (not many) He held a bow with no arrows, possibly indicating a bloodless victory. (Constable’s notes) There was no sword coming out of his mouth. The terrible world events which accompany the other three riders (3-8) do not imply an earlier conquest by Christ. And why do we assume that the first horse is associated with good when all of the other horses bring destruction? So, what do you think?
Based on Matthew 24: 4-5, we can catch a clue as to the identity of the rider on the white horse. It reads, “4Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. 5For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ,[a]' and will deceive many.” I would say that the rider on the white horse represents false religion, false philosophies, false Christs, or false saviors that capture and conquer peoples’ minds and hearts without the shedding of blood.
America is overrun by the rider in the white horse. Jesus first warned his disciples of all times against false christs. False christs can be people who falsely promise security, or religions or philosophies of life that promise peace of mind and heart in a troubled world. They vie to conquer our hearts painlessly. They could be ideologies and systems that falsely promise utopia. In the last century Communism promised the best possible life, with the motto, “From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs.” Many died trying to actualize it. But history has proven this system to be false in every way. Some people look to America as a kind of “savior” country because of democracy, freedom, money, military power, and so on. But America is full of unsolvable problems and unhappy people despite of our vast resources and technology. People think that other people can be their savior. Maybe political leaders can be their savior, but even the most “well intentioned” can not solve the problems in this age. Some young people turn to peers for love, recognition and security. Can a fellow teenager be a savior? Some people think the proper marriage partner will be their savior. Some young men will do anything for money, thinking it will give them security and happiness through a hedonistic life. They become easy prey for the devil. We must watch out for false Christs, riding into our hearts on white horses and conquering our minds and spirits. Only Jesus is our Christ. Jesus knows the end from the beginning (Isa 46:10). Jesus guides us with truth for salvation. He alone can lead us to life, victory, fruit bearing and a eternal life. We must turn to and trust in Jesus alone and never allow our hearts to be conquered by any false Messiah.
Next, the rider on the red horse. Look at verses 3-4, “When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, ‘Come!’ 4Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other. To him was given a large sword.” We can understand who this rider is by examining Matthew 24:6-7a. In it, Jesus says, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom….” The red horse symbolizes bloodshed and war. The rider of this horse removes peace from the earth. There have been terrible wars in our times. World War ll saw over 60 million people killed; 418,000 Americans killed as well as 6 million Jews and 23 million Russians. There about 4,500 American deaths in Iraq and 1,000 in Afghanistan. At any time there about 40 wars and guerilla wars going on in this world. Some young people have grown up knowing only war. There will be wars over religion, terrorism, wars over resources, like oil and water. In the end times there will be a definite increase in war and destruction.
Next the black horse. Look at verses 5-6, “When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, ‘Come!’ I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, ‘A quart of wheat for a day's wages and three quarts of barley for a day's wages; and do not damage the oil and the wine!" This rider symbolizing one of the ravages of war, namely, famine. He carries a pair of balance scales, a symbol of commerce, indicating his control of commodity prices. In the end times there will be great scarcity. Can you imaging paying $60 to $100 for a quart of wheat? This will barely feed your family. It reminds me of Germany in the 1930’s where a wheelbarrow full of Deutche marks bought a loaf of bread. This is indeed suffering. It is pretty obvious that the rider on this horse represents famine. Matthew 24:8 confirms this. “There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.” There have been many famines in our times, mostly because of lack of rain. But there have been famines caused by despotic rulers, like the Ukraine Famine caused by Joseph Stalin. Maybe global warming will cause all kinds of famines, especially in sub Sarah Africa. In the end times, the antichrist may be the cause of a famine.
There will also be an ever widening gap between the rich and the poor. The poor will have to pay almost all of their wages just to provided only one or two meals a day for their families. But there will also be wine and oil present. The rich will have access to wine and oil and they will tightly control the marketing of these commodities. In these end times we are seeing an every widening gap between the haves and the have “not’s”, especially in third and second world nations. The gap will definitely widen.
Next, the pale horse. Look at verses 7-8, “ 7When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, ‘Come!’ 8I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.” John next saw an ashen (lit. pale green) horse the color of a human corpse. It was being rode by Death. Death is the first death….heart attack, cancer, car accident, war etc. Hades is parallel to Hebrew sheol (grave or dirt-pit), and refers to the abode of the dead. The New Testament uses the Greek word hades to refer to the temporary abode of the dead (e.g. Acts 2:31; Rev 20:13) In Revelation 20:13-14 hades is itself thrown into the "lake of fire" after being emptied of the dead. (http://www.answers.com/topic/hades) It is not clear whether Hades was on a separate horse than Death or merely rode along with Death.” Perhaps John saw Hades following Death as a man on foot following a mounted warrior, grimly gathering in his victims. God gave these enemies authority to take one-fourth of the world's population. They would be casualties of war, famine, disease and attacks by wild animals. Presently the world's population is about six billion people. These calamities would reduce that number by one and one-half billion. Maybe nuclear war or some global pandemic could play some role in this devastation.
The fact that the four riders are given power over one fourth of the earth indicates that God is still limiting his judgment. Their destructive work is not yet complete. That means that there is still time for unbelievers to turn away from their sin and to Christ. In that case, God’s limiting himself reveals that he is merciful in giving people yet another opportunity to turn to him before he brings final judgment. There is no reason to wait any longer. Turn to Christ today for Today is the day of salvation. (2 Cor 6:2)
What about the fifth seal? Let’s read verse 9, “When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained.” Under the 5th seal are the people of God who were slain because of their faithfulness to God and to his word. The altar in this scene represents the altar of sacrifice in the temple, where the animals were sacrificed to atone for sins. Instead of animals’ blood at the base of the altar, John saw the souls of martyrs. These martyrs had been faithful and had suffered martyrdom for their faithfulness to Christ (cf. 3:5; 7:9, 14). More people would experience martyrdom before it would be God's time for Jesus Christ to return to the earth and judge the world. In the midst of a world filled with warfare, famine, persecution, and death, Christians will be called upon the stand firmly for what they believe. I pray for our young people to maintain the testimony of their Christian faith even in the difficult middle school and high school environments, where they ignored and even excluded by their peers because of their faith.
These Christian martyrs call out to God for justice. Let’s read verses 10-11, “They called out in a loud voice, ‘How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?’ 11Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed.” They must have seen such persecution and suffered so much. They saw their loved ones suffer. And so they longed for justice and cried out to God. Though the martyrs were eager for God to bring justice to the earth, they are told to wait and be patient. They were to wait for the ultimate victory of the Lamb, when the Lord will come to judge the earth. We may wish for justice immediately, as those martyrs did, but we must be patient. God works according to his own timetable, and he promises justice. Each martyr received a long white robe. Those who suffer and die for their faith will not be forgotten. They will be singled out by God for special honor. No suffering for the sake of God’s kingdom, is however, wasted.
All of this is very interesting, but in light of this passage, how should we apply our faith? Let’s return to Matthew 24:4-14. Especially 24:4 reads, “Watch out that no one deceives you.” And 24:13-14 reads, “but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Instead of just satisfying our curiosity we must watch out that we are not deceived. We must stand firm in our Christian faith. The only way to do this is engage our hearts and minds in sincere Bible study and put Jesus’ words into practice. And we also must live for world mission. Lastly we must pray to God for understanding and discernment. Then we will never be deceived.
Part ll: The Sixth Seal: The Great Day Of Their Wrath Has Come (12-17)
Now, about the sixth seal. Let’s read verses 12-14, “I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, 13and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as late figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. 14The sky receded like a scroll, rolling up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.” This seal reveals the final judgment of the Lamb. God will send a tremendous earthquake that will rock the whole world (cf. Lk 21:11). There will be the darkening of the sun, the reddening of the moon , and the falling of the stars to earth. Could this be a meteor-like shower? Could this be a metaphorical convulsion among the nations? The sky will appear to split and roll back in opposite directions (cf. Isa. 34:4).The universe will seem to be coming apart. The opening of the sky will give people a glimpse at the throne-room of heaven (v. 16). The coming event will be majestic and glorious for those who are in Christ.
It will be a day of terror for those who are not in Jesus. Look at verses 15-16, “Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. 16They called to the mountains and the rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!” Though God will keep his own people safe, unrepentant kings and slaves will look for a place to hide. But there would be none. Those, whose hearts are not prepared will not turn to God in repentance but flee and hide from Him in terror. At first they may be confused as to what is happening, but by the end of the sixth seal judgment, they will know that they are experiencing is the outpouring of God’s wrath. They will be terrified. Thank God that will not be in the group trying to hide from God. We will be in the group lifting our heads up and waiting eagerly for our salvation.
Even in the most despairing times, when everything seems negative and hopeless, what must we do? We must react properly. We must fall on our knees and confess our sins and ask God for his grace and mercy. Think about this story of cockroaches. When the lights go on the cockroaches scatter and look for places to hide. And rightly so, if they linger they will get squashed. But what if a cockroach stands in the middle of the room, falls on its six knees and begs for forgiveness and grace for messing up and infesting the owner’s house? Will not the person forgive that cockroach and either set it free or make it a nice condo to live out the rest of its days? That’s what I would do.
What must we do in the midst of all this? We need to be faithful to the word of God and the testimony of the gospel. We must be patient and wait on God to fulfill his will. We must never doubt the love of God even in the midst of the most dire of situations, Matthew 24: 13-14 can give us more direction. It reads, “but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Let us preach the gospel through 1:1 Bible study and may our lives be a clear testimony to a world lost in darkness.
Part l: The Four Horsemen Of The Apocalypse (1-11)
1. Read vs. 1. As Christ opens the first four seals, the world events are dramatized with the horses. What do these horses symbolize? (Zec6:3) What does it show that God has a plan for all the world events?
2. Read vs. 2-4. What are the outfits of the rider on a white horse? (2) How does he ride out? What does he represent? How does the rider on a red horse take peace from the earth? (4) What does he represent?
3. Read vs. 5-8. What does the rider on a black horse hold in his hand? (5) How do the living creatures express about the scarcity of staples? (6) What does he represent? How does the rider on a pale horse kill a fourth of the earth? (8) What does he represent? How does God reveal his wrath upon this world?
4. Read vs. 9-11. As Christ opens the fifth seal, what does John see under the altar in heaven? (9) Who do they represent? What do they plead and how does God answer? (10,11) What does it indicate that even persecution is in God’s control? In light of Jesus’ end-time teaching, how will these events occur? (Mt24:4-14)
Part ll: The Sixth Seal: The Great Day Of Their Wrath Has Come (12-17)
5. Read vs. 12-17. The cosmic calamity of the sixth seal ushers us to the final judgment upon this world. What happens to the earth and the heavenly bodies? (12-14, Mt 24:29) What do they symbolize? How do the people panic in response to the cosmic calamity? (15,16) How do they view such calamity? (17,Lk23:30)
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Revelation 19:6-9
The Ultimate Graduation Experience
Revelation 19:6-9 Shp Kevin Jesmer NIU UBF
Key verse 19:7 Graduation Ceremony Triton College 6-5-10
“Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come and his bride has made herself ready.”
Graduation time is such an exciting time. People have been preparing for years. It is the “pay off” after lots of hard work. It is a time where we are recognized by our mentors and our peers. It is an adventurous time, a springboard launching us into a bright new tomorrow, full of expectation. GRADUATION. Whether it is from Middle school or High School, this is your day and we applaud all of our grads today.
With five kids, I am beginning to get a taste the excitement of graduation. Hope had a graduation ceremony passing from grade 5 to 6. She and Mark even rented a limo to take them to school last Friday. Augustine graduated from grade eight. He had an honors night, an honors banquet and all of his friends went to Subway. Now he is here today to give honor and glory to God. He did it all. Graduates really like to celebrate. Jenn was invited to eleven graduation parties. (I don’t think she will go to them all of them.) But now we are here to celebrate the graduation of seven people, young Christians in our family of faith.
Hopefully, this is not going to be your only graduation. There will be many more graduation events. What about your graduation from College? Daniel already has on his Facebook page, Olivet Nazarene University graduate 2014. Some may be getting their master’s degrees. I had three graduations after high school. Then there are graduations in life. What about when you get promoted on the job; establish a family; see your kids grow to be blessings to their community and generation; and for those who are so called, planting a new church or bring a missionary? These graduation experiences go on throughout life. For those who are in Christ, the ultimate graduation experience will be our graduation into the Kingdom of God. It is a graduation that we must remain excited about and be prepared to celebrate throughout our journey on earth.
Part l: The Wedding Banquet Of The Lamb (6-7a)
What will this ultimate graduation be like? Look at verse 6. “Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: ‘Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns.’” It will be a very joyful time filled with millions upon millions of believers. They were so numerous that their voices sounded like the roar of rushing waters. They are so overwhelmed by God in all of his glory that they could not contain themselves and they kept turning to each other, saying over and over again, “Hallelujah!” and “Our God Almighty reigns!” Let’s practice with the neighbors on our right and on our left. Wow! It does sound like the sound of rushing waters!
This heavenly graduation ceremony will be like a wedding banquet. Let’s read verse 7. “Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.” I think that we have all been to a wedding banquet. They are very joyful with lots of food, family, music, laughter and dancing. This passage is about the beautiful wedding of the Lamb. Jesus is the Lamb of God. Our Father God is preparing the wedding of his Son Jesus to his bride, the Church (Rev 21:1-4); which includes you and I and all those who are in Christ. In the kingdom of God we will be surrounded by so many brothers and sisters in Christ. Our joy will overflow as we give glory honor and praise to Jesus Christ. Though many things seem to be happening in your lives at this time, exciting things, but, there is one thing that is the most important…God is preparing the wedding banquet for his Son, Jesus the Lamb, and he wants all of you to be part of it. God is so full of love, joy, hope and expectation about this wonderful banquet and he wants us all to be also.
Part ll: The Bride Has Made Herself Ready (7b- 9)
How should we respond to invite to this wonderful graduation banquet? Look at verse 7b, “…and his bride has made herself ready.” How can we make ourselves ready? There are a lot of things to say. The whole Bible is about getting ready to spend eternity with Jesus forever. But we can learn from our own present graduation experience. First, to get to graduation requires planning. In the ninth grade you plan out the courses for the next three years, making sure that you will end up with the right amount of credits. If you don’t have the right amount of credits, then guess what? You don’t graduate. But if you plan well then you have a very good chance to finish. In our Christian life, you need to plan ahead seeing the course that is set before you. You can’t see every detail in your journey of faith, but there are some requirements. Jesus says, in John 14:6, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one come to the Father except through me.” Learning Jesus is the curriculum. The word of God is the course description. The Holy Spirit is our class counselor. Bible study is where we begin to plan out our coarse work until that Great Graduation Day!
Second, graduating means faithfully studying hard. There is a universal truth: If you don’t study hard, then guess what? ...You don’t graduate. You have to deny yourself every single day, sometimes staying up late at night to get readings done and write papers. Working like this makes some students declare, “My brain hurts. That’s why I can’t do my dishes.” Following Jesus in life and into the Kingdom of God requires some hard work too. Jesus said in Luke 9:23, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” Your graduation is not end of hard work. It is the being point of finding your own personal cross and following Jesus all the way to the Kingdom of Heaven.
Indeed there are hardships to be embraced on our journey to the kingdom of God. Paul said in verse Acts 14:22b, “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.” Paul himself suffered a lot in order to advance the kingdom of God. Paul taught the disciples the way of the cross. We do not have the same hardships as Paul. We are not going to get stoned to death, nor have we got the burdens of a young growing world wide church on our shoulders. But we must go through many hardships if we are going to live as Christians in this world. The kids are experiencing being ignored from their classmates because they do not get involved in the worldly pursuits. In our busy lives we need to stop and make time for Jesus and his word. This is a hardship because our hearts are torn in many directions. Offering up our talents to God is a hardship, because you need to practice and be at certain places at certain times in order to co-work with other Christians. This is a hardship. Sometimes we need to spend gas money or conference fees, offerings etc. These are all hardships in this tough economy. We are not promised a cushy life with no struggles when you come to Jesus. But we are promised a joyful, victorious, meaningful life. Lets face it, there will be many hardships on our way to that great and glorious heavenly banquet and the sooner we accept this the happier we will be in Jesus. (Luke 9:23)
Graduating requires staying focused. You must stay focused for four years, not getting distracted and finishing your work on time. If you loose your focus and take it easy, do you know what happens? You don’t graduate. In the same way getting ready for the wedding banquet of the Lamb requires focus. That is why the author says in Hebrews 12:2, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Graduation time in not a time to “de” focus. Rather, now that you have practiced for years focusing on your school studies, you should be very good at focusing the eyes of your hearts on Jesus.
Graduating requires the support of family and friends. Imagine if you did not have a home to come home to. You wouldn’t have a quiet room to study. You would be hungry. You life would be insecure and unstable. But those who have stable families know how important they are in providing love; support; and encouragement. And isn’t it nice to come home to room, a fridge with food in it, reliable internet access. Likewise to prepare we need to surround ourselves with God’s people who can give us love; support; spiritual encouragement, especially who can pray for us. That is why Hebrews 10:25 reads, “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
There is one major difference between the graduation you are experiencing now and the graduation we will experience at the wedding of the Lamb. Let’s read verse 8 all together, “ 8Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear." (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)” All types of graduations, in this world, are rewards for all the hard work that you do. But in the kingdom of God, there is only one way to get a fine linen robe to wear. Look at verse 8a, again. Especially the part that says, “…was given to her. …” It is truly by the grace of our Lord Jesus. It is given to us by God through faith in Jesus. Let me explain it this way…The robes have to do with righteousness. It has to do with how God sees us. Covering ourselves with our own righteousness is like wearing dirty, smelly, ripped rags for graduation gown. When we believe in Jesus God covers our dirty sins and gives us true righteousness by faith in his blood. (Ro 3:25-26) To enter heaven we must be clothed with the Lord Jesus Christ. This is like us wearing bright, clean graduation gowns in heaven. This passage states that the graduation gowns are the righteous acts of the saints. These righteous acts are actions born out of our faith, like prayer, preaching the word, raising disciples, serving the poor, etc. They strengthen our faith in the blood of Jesus.
I really want to congratulate each of you on your graduation. You each got here through your forethought, your hard work, your focus, and the support of family and friends. Mostly you got here because of grace of God and the prayers and support of others. But what now, what is next? I hope that all of you may experience many more graduation experiences and the joy you feel today, you may feel over and over again. But I also want to keep your graduation on an eternal perspective. The ultimate graduation into the kingdom of God is what we must never stop longing for and being excited about. As excited as you are for this graduation day, may you be even more excited for the Wedding of the Lamb. And so, as you are launching out into the great unknown know who you are, the Bride of Christ. Spend the rest of your lives making yourself ready banquet of the Lamb. How? First, planning. Second, finding and carrying your own cross. Third, staying focused on Jesus. Fourth, gathering support and encouragement from people of God. And fifth, the most important thing, through faith, hold onto the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ given us through the shed blood of Jesus. This is your heavenly graduation gown. There is a great and wonderful promise for those that do. Look at verse 9. “9Then the angel said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!' " And he added, ‘These are the true words of God.’"
Revelation 19:6-9 Shp Kevin Jesmer NIU UBF
Key verse 19:7 Graduation Ceremony Triton College 6-5-10
“Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come and his bride has made herself ready.”
Graduation time is such an exciting time. People have been preparing for years. It is the “pay off” after lots of hard work. It is a time where we are recognized by our mentors and our peers. It is an adventurous time, a springboard launching us into a bright new tomorrow, full of expectation. GRADUATION. Whether it is from Middle school or High School, this is your day and we applaud all of our grads today.
With five kids, I am beginning to get a taste the excitement of graduation. Hope had a graduation ceremony passing from grade 5 to 6. She and Mark even rented a limo to take them to school last Friday. Augustine graduated from grade eight. He had an honors night, an honors banquet and all of his friends went to Subway. Now he is here today to give honor and glory to God. He did it all. Graduates really like to celebrate. Jenn was invited to eleven graduation parties. (I don’t think she will go to them all of them.) But now we are here to celebrate the graduation of seven people, young Christians in our family of faith.
Hopefully, this is not going to be your only graduation. There will be many more graduation events. What about your graduation from College? Daniel already has on his Facebook page, Olivet Nazarene University graduate 2014. Some may be getting their master’s degrees. I had three graduations after high school. Then there are graduations in life. What about when you get promoted on the job; establish a family; see your kids grow to be blessings to their community and generation; and for those who are so called, planting a new church or bring a missionary? These graduation experiences go on throughout life. For those who are in Christ, the ultimate graduation experience will be our graduation into the Kingdom of God. It is a graduation that we must remain excited about and be prepared to celebrate throughout our journey on earth.
Part l: The Wedding Banquet Of The Lamb (6-7a)
What will this ultimate graduation be like? Look at verse 6. “Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: ‘Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns.’” It will be a very joyful time filled with millions upon millions of believers. They were so numerous that their voices sounded like the roar of rushing waters. They are so overwhelmed by God in all of his glory that they could not contain themselves and they kept turning to each other, saying over and over again, “Hallelujah!” and “Our God Almighty reigns!” Let’s practice with the neighbors on our right and on our left. Wow! It does sound like the sound of rushing waters!
This heavenly graduation ceremony will be like a wedding banquet. Let’s read verse 7. “Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.” I think that we have all been to a wedding banquet. They are very joyful with lots of food, family, music, laughter and dancing. This passage is about the beautiful wedding of the Lamb. Jesus is the Lamb of God. Our Father God is preparing the wedding of his Son Jesus to his bride, the Church (Rev 21:1-4); which includes you and I and all those who are in Christ. In the kingdom of God we will be surrounded by so many brothers and sisters in Christ. Our joy will overflow as we give glory honor and praise to Jesus Christ. Though many things seem to be happening in your lives at this time, exciting things, but, there is one thing that is the most important…God is preparing the wedding banquet for his Son, Jesus the Lamb, and he wants all of you to be part of it. God is so full of love, joy, hope and expectation about this wonderful banquet and he wants us all to be also.
Part ll: The Bride Has Made Herself Ready (7b- 9)
How should we respond to invite to this wonderful graduation banquet? Look at verse 7b, “…and his bride has made herself ready.” How can we make ourselves ready? There are a lot of things to say. The whole Bible is about getting ready to spend eternity with Jesus forever. But we can learn from our own present graduation experience. First, to get to graduation requires planning. In the ninth grade you plan out the courses for the next three years, making sure that you will end up with the right amount of credits. If you don’t have the right amount of credits, then guess what? You don’t graduate. But if you plan well then you have a very good chance to finish. In our Christian life, you need to plan ahead seeing the course that is set before you. You can’t see every detail in your journey of faith, but there are some requirements. Jesus says, in John 14:6, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one come to the Father except through me.” Learning Jesus is the curriculum. The word of God is the course description. The Holy Spirit is our class counselor. Bible study is where we begin to plan out our coarse work until that Great Graduation Day!
Second, graduating means faithfully studying hard. There is a universal truth: If you don’t study hard, then guess what? ...You don’t graduate. You have to deny yourself every single day, sometimes staying up late at night to get readings done and write papers. Working like this makes some students declare, “My brain hurts. That’s why I can’t do my dishes.” Following Jesus in life and into the Kingdom of God requires some hard work too. Jesus said in Luke 9:23, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” Your graduation is not end of hard work. It is the being point of finding your own personal cross and following Jesus all the way to the Kingdom of Heaven.
Indeed there are hardships to be embraced on our journey to the kingdom of God. Paul said in verse Acts 14:22b, “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.” Paul himself suffered a lot in order to advance the kingdom of God. Paul taught the disciples the way of the cross. We do not have the same hardships as Paul. We are not going to get stoned to death, nor have we got the burdens of a young growing world wide church on our shoulders. But we must go through many hardships if we are going to live as Christians in this world. The kids are experiencing being ignored from their classmates because they do not get involved in the worldly pursuits. In our busy lives we need to stop and make time for Jesus and his word. This is a hardship because our hearts are torn in many directions. Offering up our talents to God is a hardship, because you need to practice and be at certain places at certain times in order to co-work with other Christians. This is a hardship. Sometimes we need to spend gas money or conference fees, offerings etc. These are all hardships in this tough economy. We are not promised a cushy life with no struggles when you come to Jesus. But we are promised a joyful, victorious, meaningful life. Lets face it, there will be many hardships on our way to that great and glorious heavenly banquet and the sooner we accept this the happier we will be in Jesus. (Luke 9:23)
Graduating requires staying focused. You must stay focused for four years, not getting distracted and finishing your work on time. If you loose your focus and take it easy, do you know what happens? You don’t graduate. In the same way getting ready for the wedding banquet of the Lamb requires focus. That is why the author says in Hebrews 12:2, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Graduation time in not a time to “de” focus. Rather, now that you have practiced for years focusing on your school studies, you should be very good at focusing the eyes of your hearts on Jesus.
Graduating requires the support of family and friends. Imagine if you did not have a home to come home to. You wouldn’t have a quiet room to study. You would be hungry. You life would be insecure and unstable. But those who have stable families know how important they are in providing love; support; and encouragement. And isn’t it nice to come home to room, a fridge with food in it, reliable internet access. Likewise to prepare we need to surround ourselves with God’s people who can give us love; support; spiritual encouragement, especially who can pray for us. That is why Hebrews 10:25 reads, “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
There is one major difference between the graduation you are experiencing now and the graduation we will experience at the wedding of the Lamb. Let’s read verse 8 all together, “ 8Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear." (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)” All types of graduations, in this world, are rewards for all the hard work that you do. But in the kingdom of God, there is only one way to get a fine linen robe to wear. Look at verse 8a, again. Especially the part that says, “…was given to her. …” It is truly by the grace of our Lord Jesus. It is given to us by God through faith in Jesus. Let me explain it this way…The robes have to do with righteousness. It has to do with how God sees us. Covering ourselves with our own righteousness is like wearing dirty, smelly, ripped rags for graduation gown. When we believe in Jesus God covers our dirty sins and gives us true righteousness by faith in his blood. (Ro 3:25-26) To enter heaven we must be clothed with the Lord Jesus Christ. This is like us wearing bright, clean graduation gowns in heaven. This passage states that the graduation gowns are the righteous acts of the saints. These righteous acts are actions born out of our faith, like prayer, preaching the word, raising disciples, serving the poor, etc. They strengthen our faith in the blood of Jesus.
I really want to congratulate each of you on your graduation. You each got here through your forethought, your hard work, your focus, and the support of family and friends. Mostly you got here because of grace of God and the prayers and support of others. But what now, what is next? I hope that all of you may experience many more graduation experiences and the joy you feel today, you may feel over and over again. But I also want to keep your graduation on an eternal perspective. The ultimate graduation into the kingdom of God is what we must never stop longing for and being excited about. As excited as you are for this graduation day, may you be even more excited for the Wedding of the Lamb. And so, as you are launching out into the great unknown know who you are, the Bride of Christ. Spend the rest of your lives making yourself ready banquet of the Lamb. How? First, planning. Second, finding and carrying your own cross. Third, staying focused on Jesus. Fourth, gathering support and encouragement from people of God. And fifth, the most important thing, through faith, hold onto the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ given us through the shed blood of Jesus. This is your heavenly graduation gown. There is a great and wonderful promise for those that do. Look at verse 9. “9Then the angel said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!' " And he added, ‘These are the true words of God.’"
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