No. 7 in the Series “What Is a Healthy Church?” from the book by the same name by Mark Dever. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Wednesday evening, October 8, 2008.
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No. 6 in the Series “What Is a Healthy Church?” from the book by the same name by Mark Dever. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Wednesday evening, October 1, 2008.
No. 5 in the Series “What Is a Healthy Church?” from the book by the same name by Mark Dever. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Wednesday evening, September 24, 2008.
An exposition of Jeremiah 31:31-40. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered a Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday evening, October 5, 2008
Intro:
Confused by the events of recent days they sat around the table trying to make sense of it all. Their heads were spinning. Just when they thought they knew what was going on something happened that altered everything. They were thrilled and frightened. This could be the end of everything or it could be a glorious new beginning. They just weren’t sure what to make of it all when it happened. He took the cup and said, “This is the new covenant in my blood.” New covenant? It was a reference to a prophecy given 600 years before by the prophet Jeremiah to a group of exiles down in Babylon. It was a prophecy of a “new day.” A day that would change everything. Our text this evening is found in Jeremiah chapter 31.
Text: Jeremiah 31:31-40
Jeremiah was told, on the front end, that his would be a ministry of plucking up, breaking down, destroying and overthrowing. But there would be a time to build and to plant (1:10). For 40 years he plucked up, broke down, destroyed and overthrew at last he was getting a chance to build and plant. It was his unenviable task to preach God’s judgment during the final days of Judah before her fall to Babylon in 587 b.c. He spent 28 chapters laying out the case that they had violated the covenant. That God was holy and just in bringing judgment upon them. But in chapters 30-33 he brings them hope. He speaks words of grace, mercy and healing. And our text this evening is a marvelous promise of grace and glory. God’s grace is powerfully revealed in that…
Thesis: While Judah was staggering under the weight of divine judgment God promised to cure her backsliding and restore hope through a new covenant.
God has always dealt with man through a covenant. We are familiar with the language throughout Scripture. We know of the Abrahamic Covenant, the Mosaic Covenant, the Davidic Covenant and so forth. But what is a covenant? We often think of it in terms of a contract and while there is some truth in that analogy that does not quite cover it. Perhaps it is more like a treaty? Well, not really. O. Palmer Robertson describes a biblical covenant as, “a bond in blood sovereignly administered.” John Murray – “a sovereign administration of grace and promise.” I think those of both on the right track but they neglect the notion of a response of the part of those involved. I like Philip Ryken’s definition: A biblical covenant is a binding relationship of eternal consequence in which God promises to bless and his people promise to obey.
- Jeremiah promises a superior covenant. (31:31-34)
This covenant brings a great reconciliation – 31:31. It will be different that the covenant with Moses and Israel – 31:32-34.- This new covenant will involve regeneration and the law written on the heart.
- It will reconcile men to God (I will be their God, they will be my people)
- It will bring forgiveness of sin.
Jonathan Edwards the great pastor/theologian of the 1st Great Awakening describe the difference in this way. The difference between the Old and New Covenants is that in the Old God promised to be their God upon condition of a hearty obedience. In the New God promises a hearty obedience.
- Jeremiah gives assurance that this is an everlasting covenant. (31:35-37)The God of creation is also the God of salvation. Therefore the new covenant is Christ is a reliable as the fixed laws of nature, if not more so. It is irrevocable. The likelihood of this new covenant failing is as likely as the universe grinding to a halt. How is it this is an eternal covenant? Because it is secure in Christ – he keeps the terms of the covenant perfectly. We are included because we are in Christ.
- This new covenant guarantees a future glory. (31:38-40)The restoration of the city of course is partially fulfilled in Nehemiah but ultimately it awaits the coming of the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven as a bride adorned for her husband. This is glorious good news for all those who struggle under the weight of divine judgment whether that be the temporal judgment experienced down in Babylon or the judgment of sin. Our hope is in the God of the new covenant who desires us to enter into life abundant with him.
An exposition of Revelation 14:1-20. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday morning, October 5, 2008.
Introduction:
I’m an old fashion kind of guy. I liked it better when good guys wore white hats and bad guys wore black. I enjoyed watching movies were you didn’t spend the first half of the movie trying to figure out which character was the good guy and which one was the villain. In other words I like the days before the “anti-hero.” I know life is more complicated than that. I understand that we are all complex human beings and there are varying degrees of good and bad. It get that. But there is something to be said for clear lines marking good and evil. In our gray world people do not like black and white but we cannot deny that black and white exist! There is right and there is wrong. There is good and there is evil. Truth and error. One of the things I appreciate more and more as I study the book of Revelation is its clarity. Throughout the book, in the midst of its vivid images and fantastic sights, there is a clear understanding of good and evil. There is an unmistakable clarity between holiness and unholiness, between righteousness and unrighteousness, between God and Satan. One passage that drives that distinction home in a vivid way is the 14th chapter.
Text: Revelation 14:1-20
John the beloved apostle and bishop of Ephesus found himself exiled to the isle of Patmos for his faithfulness to Christ and His Gospel. There along the shore, on the Lord’s Day, he had an encounter with the risen Christ. He was caught up into the heavens through an open door and given a vision of things to come. The church was suffering from severe persecution. Those troubled saints feared the end was in sight. The Lord of the church had something to say to his struggling saints and he would say it through John. Thus Revelation was intended as an encouragement and an inspiration to first century believers and to believers in every age until the Lord comes again. How do you live like a Christian when there is nothing Christian around you? Everywhere those Christians in Asia Minor looked wickedness abounded. The book of Revelation speaks to how we live for Christ in a Christ-less world. How do you maintain faithfulness when the whole world is in turmoil? John kept bringing them back to see the victorious Lamb. And in this text he makes it very clear the glory that awaits the people of God and the terror of the judgment that awaits the ungodly. As we explore this chapter we will discover that…
Thesis: The visions of Revelation 14 draw a clear line of distinction between the glory that awaits the redeemed and the wrath to be poured out upon the ungodly.
Though this chapter opens with this glorious scene in the heavenly Zion it is, in many ways, the darkest chapter of the Revelation. In vivid language John contrasts the glory of heaven and the shear terror of hell. The text forces you to come to grips with where you stand. You cannot passively consider this chapter. This chapter portrays your destiny. You will either enjoy the glory of the heavenly worship described in the opening verses or you will know the torment of God’s wrath unmixed, undiluted and in full measure.
- In the midst of ungodliness and unholy turmoil the righteous find peace and security in their identification with the victorious Lamb. (14:1-5)
The first thing we note is the Lamb standing on Mt. Zion. This is not the physical city of Jerusalem but rather the heavenly Zion referred to in Hebrews 12:22-24. This is the dwelling of the people of God. This is were we “abide.” The Lamb is standing – fixed, immovable. And who is with him? The 144,000 who have been redeemed from the earth. These are the redeemed. Those who have yielded to Christ. It is the redeemed community. This is the gathering of all the saints. Not an elite group. Not a spiritual Special Forces unit who’ve fought their way through the tribulation but all the redeemed. (12 X 12 X 10 X 10 X 10 = 144,000) The complete people of God from both Old and New Testament. In contrast to the mark of the beast they have the name of God on their foreheads. And note they were singing a new song. One that only the redeemed could sing. They were singing the song of redemption. Note how these worshipers are described:- Have not defiled themselves with women: celibate? Are these eunuchs? Taken in context I think it means they have not played the “harlot”. They did not commit spiritual adultery by declaring Caesar is Lord.
- They follow the Lamb wherever He goes: discipleship. They are devoted to the Lamb.
- They are “firstfruits”: they are offered to God – Romans 12:1-2
- In their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless: they speak the truth. They did not participate in the lie of emperor worship. Dear saint this is who you are. This is your identity. Regardless of how things seem. Regardless of how difficult things may get – this is your destiny. To be gathered with the saints from every generation around the throne of God in the presence of the Lamb singing the song of redemption. Now the rest of the chapter is in stark contrast to this scene. From their perspective it looks like they are on the loosing end of things. It seems as if Rome and those who march to the beat of her drum prosper while faithfulness to Christ leads to death. But in reality it is the other way around.
- Those who have made peace with the wickedness of this world are clearly and passionately warned of the wrath to come. (14:6-11)
In this section we are introduced to three heralds or messengers. The first in verses 6-7 proclaims the Gospel. The second messenger comes announcing the doom of the ungodly in verse 8. The third messenger vividly portrays the torment that awaits the ungodly in 14:9-11. The message is clear: If you refuse the mark of the beast you will face the wrath of the beast If you take the mark of the beast you will face the wrath of God Take your pick. This is a horrifying picture. There is no one of making this come out nice. “The wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger…” Full strength = unmixed, undiluted, not watered down. John, under the inspiration of the Spirit, makes it abundantly clear in this text that your only hope is in the Gospel. But we are not through yet. - All men are made sober by the certainty and the severity of God’s judgment. (14:14-20)
The time of judgment has come. It is appointed unto man to die once and face the judgment (Hebrews 9:27). The judgment is portrayed in this passage as the harvest. First the grain harvest which speaks of the inevitability of judgment. Judgment is unavoidable. When the time is right according to God’s schedule there will come a reckoning. This judgment is also portrayed in terms of a grape harvest. Look at 14:17-20. These images are drawn from Old Testament passages like Lamentations 1:15, Isaiah 63 and Joel 3. This speaks of the violent thoroughness of God’s judgment. This ought to go a long way in destroying the myth that God was wrathful in the OT but loving in the NT. He is both loving and wrathful in both Testaments because that is who He is! Wrath is the outworking of God’s holiness when He confronts rebels. We ought to fear His wrath. Our problem is that we fear temporal judgment. We are afraid of sickness and disease. We are afraid of financial ruin or embarrassment. We ought to fear God! But we no longer believe in hell therefore we do not fear it. I would submit to you there is nothing difficult about understanding this section of Revelation – there is a heaven to gain and a hell to shun!
The visions of Revelation 14 draw a clear line of distinction between the glory that awaits the redeemed and the wrath to be poured out upon the ungodly. What does your future hold?
An exposition of Jeremiah 31:7-26. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday evening, September 28, 2008.
Introduction:
The apostle Paul told the Corinthian church we are to walk by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). What does that mean? It means we live according to what God has said rather than by what we can see or how we feel. Let’s be honest – that is a tough assignment. That is very demanding. Especially during times of great distress or difficulty. When times are dark and hope is gone faith flounders. When your loved one dies or your job is taken away or you’re not sure how you are going to provided for your family or the diagnosis is not good - faith can be in short supply. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen but in times of crisis that sounds like, “wishful thinking and blatant denial” and that usually doesn’t put food on the table. I’m not trying to be flippant I’m trying to be honest about the struggle of faith. You may find courage to face that momentary sit back but what happens when the sit back becomes a crippling disability? What happens when that detour turns out to be a total rerouting of your journey? Jerusalem was in ruins. The temple burned. Israel’s best and brightest are captives in a foreign land. And God has made it clear this is not short-term thing. This is not summer camp this is for the long haul. Some of those now in Babylon will never see their home again. Dreams have died. Hopes have been crushed. Joy and laughter have departed and sorrow and mourning have become constant companions. How do you go on? What are you to do?
A voice is heard in Ramah,
lamentation and bitter weeping.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
she refuses to be comforted for her children,
because they are no more. Jeremiah 31:15; ESV
Rachel was the wife of Jacob. While traveling from Bethel to Bethlehem she stopped near Ramah. There Rachel began to give birth and had great difficulty (Genesis 35:16). She delivered a son in anguish and named him with her dying breath – “Ben-Oni” – “son of my trouble” later his father Jacob renamed him Benjamin. She was also the mother of Ephraim and Manasseh. She represents in Jeremiah 31 all those mothers who have lost their children as well as the nation of Judah weeping over the loss of her sons. Ramah was a transit camp for refugees (40:1). The Babylonians dragged their prisoners 5 miles from Jerusalem to a staging area in Ramah were they were chained together in preparation for the long march to Babylon. It must have been a place of great distress and grief. Mother’s wailed over the loss of their children. Some had starved during the siege, others died by the sword during the sacking of the city still others were ripped from their mother’s breasts never to be seen again. This was a place of national mourning. Of course Rachel wept. In her misery she cried out to God and God answered. Thus says the LORD:
Keep your voice from weeping,
and your eyes from tears,
for there is a reward for your work,
declares the LORD,
and they shall come back from the land of the enemy.
There is hope for your future,
declares the LORD,
and your children shall come back to their own country.
I have heard Ephraim grieving… Jeremiah 31:16-18a; ESV
When God came to comfort Rachel He did not come and say, “There now. Everything is okay. Don’t cry.” He came with a promise of doing something about her pain and her circumstance. He came promising to make things right. He promised their sufferings would not last forever. He promised to turn their mourning into gladness and to give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow. And His promises had to be received by faith because there were years of heartache and struggle between the promise made and the
promise fulfilled. Our text is found in Jeremiah 31.
Text: Jeremiah 31:7-26
How do we suffer in faith? That is what this text is about. How is it we exhibit our faith in Christ and God’s grace in the face of great difficulty? Jeremiah reminds us…
Thesis: When faced with overwhelming circumstances and great hardship believers cling tenaciously to the Sovereign God who promises grace, provision, peace and ultimately deliverance.
- God promises to restore the heart through worship. (31:7, 12, 13, 23)
- God promises to answer their prayer. (31:7-8)
- Closely associated with this is the promise of preservation. (31:8)
- God promises to return and restore the captives. (31:9, 18-19)
- God promises forgiveness. (31:9, 20)
- God promises guidance. (31:9, 21)
- God promises to shepherd His people. (31:10)
- God promises to ransom and redeem His people. (31:11)
- God promises to provide for His people. (31:12, 14, 24)
Jesus said, “Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted.” As the people of God we have no assurance of a life free from heartache and struggle – quite the contrary. But we have assurance of the presence, the grace and the promise of our God. How do we respond to life’s struggles? We don’t give in. We walk by faith. And joy will come in mourning.
An exposition of Revelation 13:1-18. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday morning, September 28, 2008.
Introduction:
It seems like a reasonable question to me. The kind of question that one would naturally ask given the context in which we live. “If Christ has finished his redemptive work and if he has conquered – why is the world in such a mess?” “If Satan has been defeated – how does he exercise so much power? Why does it appear that he is having a field day?” Doesn’t that seem to be a legitimate question? If what the Bible teaches and what we believe is true - why does there appear to be such a struggle between good and evil between righteousness and unrighteousness? The Bible is clear God is the creator of all things. That includes the devil. Satan and God are not equal powers struggling to gain mastery of the universe. God is the eternal, infinite, uncreated one. Satan is a created, finite creature. Thus it is not a “fair” fight. God is in control of all things. Everything is held together by the power of His might. But life doesn’t always reflect that – does it? There are those times when it seems that God has little or no control. There are those moments when you think He is not even paying attention.
What are you supposed to do when living righteously doesn’t “pay off”? How are you to live when your faith seems to create problems rather than guarantee peace? When unrighteousness runs rampant and godlessness prevails what then? The churches of Asia Minor at the close of the first century found themselves in great distress. Because of their faithfulness to Christ and their refusal to acknowledge Caesar as Lord they were stripped of their possessions, lost jobs, were imprisoned, tortured, tormented and martyred. The more faithful they were – the more they suffered. There was no end in sight Rome marched on and everything in their world said, “Give up.” But the Lord of the church had something to say to those struggling saints then and to unsteady believers now. “Things are not as they seem. Hold on. Victory is sure. Righteousness will prevail and I’m still in charge.” Our text this morning is found in Revelation chapter 13.
Text: Revelation 13:1-18
There are two great threats to the people of God – brute external force that seeks to conform us to the ways of this world and subtle deception that seeks to woo us from the worship of the True and Living God to the worship of that great pretender – the red dragon, the old serpent – Satan who is called the devil. The thirteenth chapter serves to remind us that…
Thesis: In a world of increasing hostility and mounting unrighteousness the people of God endure the most difficult hardships and crushing oppression by simple faith and trust.
By simple I do not mean easy. I mean it is not complicated or complex. The choice is clear. The options are distinct. Endurance and eventual triumph demands that I take God at His word and put my trust in Him. I want to point out just two things.
- The people of God do not cower before the show of brute force and overwhelming strength knowing God’s Sovereign purpose and seeing His providential hand. (13:1-10)
- The people of God do not fall victim to powerful deception and lying signs because they know the truth of God in Christ. (13:11-18)
The point is Satan and his horde are determined to destroy the work of God on the earth and bring an end to God’s people but we will endure the most overwhelming calamity and stand our ground in the face of unbridled wickedness. Hold on dear saint. Stand firm uncertain believer the Lamb is victorious and we will overcome.
An exposition of Jeremiah 30:18-31:6. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday evening, September 21, 2008.
Intro:
Have you noticed certain people just have a way of putting you at ease? Have you found that when things are really bad there are one or two folks that if you talk to them you are going to feel a whole lot better about things? They know you and you trust their judgment and you welcome their input. I have some friends like that. When I find myself struggling or frustrated I call them up and when I hang up the phone I feel better about things. When they assure me that life is going to go on and the sun will come up tomorrow – I tend to believe them. When they tell me I need to make some changes or adjust a few things I heed their advice. It comes down to trust. In the same way there are folks who make promises and I’m willing to go to the bank on their promise. There are other folks who can assure me until they are blue in the face and I’m never going to act upon it because I don’t trust them and they’ve proven their word is no good. You know as well as I do a promise is only as good as the person who makes it. The people of Judah had turned a deaf ear to Jeremiah the prophet. He told them for years that God was coming in judgment. They didn’t listen. As far as they could tell nothing had changed and besides “respected” religious leaders assured them all was well. But after decades of repeated warnings and mocking responses God did come in judgment. Babylon sacked Jerusalem and carried away Judah’s best and brightest. The temple was destroyed and God told the people to “settle in” down in Babylon because they would not see home for some time. In fact they were to build houses, plant vineyards, marry, have children, find spouses for their children because it would be 7 decades before they would be allowed to return to the Land of Promise. They began to look at Jeremiah in a new light. When he came declaring that God had spoken they were a little more inclined to listen. After years of “plucking up and breaking down; of destroying and overthrowing; it was finally time to do a little planting and building” (Jeremiah 1:10). In chapters 30-33 Jeremiah gets to bring the exiles some hope. He brought to them what one scholar called, “the grand hymn of Israel’s deliverance.” He brought them the Gospel, the good news that God delivers His people. Our text this evening is found in Jeremiah chapter 30, beginning at verse 18.
Text: Jeremiah 30:18-31:6
Last time we look at the first 17 verses of chapter 30. We discovered that 6 centuries before Christ Jeremiah revealed the glory of the Gospel to a bunch of stubborn, stiffnecked exiles. We continue along that same line this evening as we learn that…
Thesis: God’s people have always found courage and strength for troublesome times by resting in His promise of deliverance and blessing.
When I say, “resting” I mean trusting in or relying upon. It is an active rest. It means to embrace the promise of God and allow that promise to shape and mold your life. It impacts your daily decisions. It informs your response to the world around you. It becomes part of you. It is not just some information you file away and say, “Well some day that will mean something.” It means something now. It affects things now. It sooths your doubts and calms your fears now.
I want to briefly and quickly point out three things.
- God promises to bring glory out of the ashes. (30:18-20)
- God promises a gracious kingly priest. (30:21)
- God promises a glorious transformation. (30:22-31:6)
This is the hope of the people of God. Regardless of our circumstances – God is faithful to His promise. He promises to bring glory from ashes. He promises a gracious kingly priest. He promises a glorious transformation.
An exposition of Revelation 12:1-17. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday morning, September 21, 2008.
Intro:
We all know there are various ways of looking at things. Some are optimists and they see the glass as half full. Others are pessimists and they see the glass as half empty. There are antagonists and they always see things differently than you do. No matter what the subject or what their particular point of view – they just love to agitate (I must confess that I’m at times a bit of an antagonist myself). And of course during the political season we are well aware of there being different points of view. We see and hear it ad nauseam! Our worldview or how we look at the world greatly affects how we live. Whether you have taken the time to think it through or formally adopted a method of interpreting the world around you – you do have a worldview. There is a grid by which you interpret the world. And the basic framework of your interpretation determines, to a great extent, how you react to what’s going on around you. What is the met-narrative or “great story” behind history for you? For the Marxist it is the inevitable struggle between the classes. For Nietzsche it was the “death of God” and a new morality based in naturalism. What drives your understanding of the world? For the people of God the great story begins and ends with God. A biblical worldview looks at and interprets the world from a heavenly perspective. And of course I’m convinced this is what the book of Revelation is about. Written during a time of great struggle the Lord of the Church is saying to His people, “Things are not as they seem.” He wants His struggling saints to understand Caesar does not “run” the world. Caesar is not Lord, Rome is not the eternal kingdom and history is on schedule. It is easy to miss that when the world is collapsing in on you. When your world comes crashing down – you tend to say, “Lord what are you doing? Are you in control or not?” Revelation then gives us the “big picture.” It says, “Here is what is really going on.” Our text this morning is found in Revelation chapter 12.
Text: Revelation 12:1-17
As we make our way through the 12 chapter I think we’ll learn…
Thesis: At the heart of a biblical worldview is a bedrock understanding of the great
reality behind the human struggle.
In our text we find the “big picture” of our struggle. I want to point out three realities that the Lord of the Church gave to those struggling first century believers to lift their hearts and grant them courage in the battle. Truths that will do the same for you in our day.
- Reality number 1 – Satan is “hell-bent” on destroying the work of God. (12:1-9)
- Reality number 2 – Satan’s doom is sure yet his attacks are relentless and his appetite is ferocious. (12:10, 12-17)
- In spite of how things may seem – God’s people triumph in the end. (12:11)
3 ways in which we triumph:
- We stand united with Christ and his finished work at Calvary—the blood of the Lamb.
- The word of our testimony—not our “personal testimony” but our testifying to the truth and reality of the Gospel. By our “gospeling” the gospel. Our preaching of Christ.
- A simple willingness to die. You do know there are things worse than death. Worse than death would be my bringing disgrace on Christ and his church. Worse than death would be to cheat on my wife and ruin the witness of the gospel and bring shame on the church. What are you going to do with a group of people who are not afraid to die? How are you going to threaten them?
At the heart of a Christian worldview is a bedrock understanding of the great reality
behind the human struggle.
- Reality #1 – Satan is hell-bent on destroying the work of God.
- Reality #2 – Satan’s doom is sure yet his attacks are relentless and his appetite ferocious.
- Reality #3 – No matter how things seem, God’s people will triumph in the end.
An exposition of Revelation 10:1-11:19. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday morning, September 14, 2008.
Introduction:
Courage often is in short supply when you find yourself overwhelmed by circumstances. When your world falls in on you and trouble comes from every side, standing tall and courageous is next to impossible. Oh not in the beginning. Your first response will be to stand your ground and fight. But battling a relentless foe is exhausting. When you fight off wave after wave it begins to take its toll. Before long you begin to wonder if there is any chance for victory. That must have been where the churches of Asia Minor were when they heard there was a letter from John the beloved. The bishop of Ephesus had written to encourage and inspire them to faith and faithfulness in the midst of persecution, struggle and trial. His writing is preserved for us in the book of Revelation the best known and least understood of the biblical writings. Without question it is the most discussed book of the Bible. Throughout the centuries scholars, experts and laymen have argued its interpretation. With its vivid images and strange symbols it has spawn some wild interpretations. It is not an easy book to understand and thus wisdom would allow for a great range of interpretation. Good and godly men have seen things differently. It is not a simple matter of all those who believe the Bible see it this way and those who reject the Bible’s authority see it that way. Nor is it a matter of those who interpret it literally seeing it like this and those who spiritualize it see it like that. The truth is men who equally love and cherish the Scripture see it differently. Men who equally believe in a literal interpretation find themselves at odds with one another. I’m convinced that the nature of apocalyptic literature and the context of John’s writing hold the key for interpretation. Apocalyptic literature is intended to encourage and inspire. Written during times of severe trial and hardship it says, “Hold on. Be of good courage – things are not as they seem. Deliverance is coming. Victory is assured.” That was the message of the Lord of the Church to his struggling saints. That, in turn, is His message to saints throughout the ages as we await His return and the end of the age. It is my contention that this book meant something to those who first received it. For God to come to a group of struggling saints who feel they are on the verge of annihilation and say, “Hey cheer up I’ve got some good news for you.” And then give them a message not about their current crisis but something that will happen at the end of time thousands of years in the future would be cruel! That is my problem with the “futurist” interpretation of the book. That is those who say chapters 1-3 relate to the churches of Asia Minor – everything else is about that seven-year period at the end of the age. Some of them even argue that chapters 1-3 are not about what was happening then but rather are an outline of the church age. I don’t buy that. I do believe that the book of Revelation deals with the end of the age and the return of Christ but it does in the context of saying something very practical and faith building to the folks in Asia Minor. Our text this morning is found in Revelation chapters 10 and 11.
Text: Revelation 10:1-11:19
Chapters 10 and 11 form an interlude – a brief pause in the action to take a breath and get our bearings before moving on. The first interlude followed the breaking of the 6th seal. There we were reminded of God’s care for His own in the midst of tribulation. God marks/seals His own – this is His divine protection; and we are reminded of the blessed hope – our being in the presence of God with a great multitude in glorious worship. Following that interlude we are warned that God’s consuming wrath will fall. The 7 trumpet judgments reinforce that. That is where the second interlude comes in. Between the 6th and 7th trumpet we are given insight into the activity of the church in the throes of suffering and the world’s rage. Again I see the 7 seals, the 7 trumpets and the 7 bowls of wrath covering the same period of time from various perspectives but with a growing intensity. This section reminds us that…
Thesis: Hope and courage in the face of genuine suffering and sever trial demand a
divinely inspired vision of the power and triumph of the Gospel.
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Courage in the face of sorrow and trouble demands a firm grasp of the strength and power of the Gospel. (10:1-7)
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Faithfulness in proclaiming the Gospel demands we embrace and feast upon Gospel truth. (10:8-11)
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Steadfastness in Gospel ministry demands we recognize the inevitable struggle and eventual triumph of the Gospel. (11:1-19)
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