This is the Household of Faith in Christ stream. Welcome to it. You can find us online at HouseholdOfFaithInChrist.com. It's HouseholdOfFaithInChrist.com. Today we'll be in Revelation chapter 22, looking at verses 20 and 21. So the very end of our Bible, we have reached the conclusion of our Revelation series. This one, therefore, is titled Apocalypse Wrap Up. and review and we'll be obviously reading from Revelation 22 and from other parts of the Bible as well and alluding to parts of the Bible. Just a reminder that we're dealing here with God's word. We should treat it as such. It is inspired, inerrant, infallible. It is fully sufficient. It is the standard by which we gauge what we are to believe and how we are to live. I encourage you to always receive it as such and ask that those with ears would hear. He who testifies and affirms these things says, Yes, I am coming quickly. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. This is where we left off in our last sermon, verse 20 of Revelation chapter 22. Right before this, there were two verses that warn against ignoring or altering the words that are testified to and affirmed by Jesus. Anyone presumptuous enough to change words from the word or to scorn the call to endurance and purity or to upturn their nose at the promises and threats faces judgment. If you delete God's truth, God deletes you. Because as a liar, you're a threat. to the lamb's bride. The lamb, he jealously guards his bride from people who are working in league with the deceiving devil. For the one who rejects the Messiah, this is serious business, in a negative sense. For the one who accepts and follows Messiah, this is also serious business, in a positive sense. With the Lord fighting for and protecting his church, all believers can and should take courage. Even before the king's triumphant bodily return, he hasn't abandoned his people. We're not left as orphans. We don't need to fend for ourselves against the formidable foes we face. The grace of the Lord is with us. So when you find yourself embattled by the enemy, remind yourself of the indescribable joy that we can anticipate with confidence. Know that the spirit of Christ is with you. Every step you take, conforming you to be more and more like him until in glory, you get to see him just as he is, which is what it says in 1 John 3. And this reality, it's not far off. Our Savior says he is coming quickly. That's the Amplified translation. Again, I am reading from the Amplified and look at Revelation chapter 22. Other English Bibles, they translate quickly here as soon. Jesus is coming soon. So hang in there. Even better than hanging in there, live in light of this truth by living victoriously. The idea that stands behind the words soon, quickly. What it means is that it is at hand. At any moment, we could all be standing before the physical presence of the perfect and truly righteous judge. Are you ready? That's the sort of question before a number of times, but it is such a important question. Are you ready? Will you be caught off guard? when our eternal High Priest is with you personally and directly. It would impress upon you the words of the Apostle Paul that are written in 1 Corinthians 16, verse 22, if anyone does not love the Lord, does not obey and respect and believe in Jesus Christ and His message, he is to be accursed. And then the verse in this letter to the Corinthians adds, Maranatha, Oh, our Lord, come. Is this your heart cry? Do you sing with the Shulamite Bride as it's written in the Song of Songs in chapter eight? Hurry, my beloved, come quickly like a gazelle or a young stag taking me home on the mountains of spices. You know, the entire series of sermons on the book of Revelation, it has in one way or another touched upon the second coming. of the Incarnate Son of God. And we have discussed this coming as the plan of God. We've analyzed it as such. We've also highlighted how this coming is the culmination of all that is taught, not just in the Revelation, but in all of the Scriptures. And we have meticulously called attention to the connections that are found in both the Old and the New Testament, and various aspects within the New Testament, and so forth. Well, now here, at the end of the Revelation, the emphasis is quite a bit less didactic. It's quite a bit more emotive. It strikes right at the emotional center, drawing from the saints feelings of hope and longing. It spurs us to pray aloud, come, Lord Jesus, amen. Is this an accurate description of where you are? In your heart, in your mind, in your spirit? Some people hear the gospel, the good news, and they remain indifferent. Their heart rate, it remains unchanged. Other people, they deny the truth of the gospel, even with derision, their heart black with scorn. And there are some who are horrified by what is written in the Bible. Their heart, boy, if it doesn't stop, they kind of wish it would. And then there's a reaction of the remnant. Those with ears to hear. They welcome the news. They prepare for the dawning day. And with a conviction, they face all trials knowing that even those moments that are fraught with peril, are being used by the Lord for the good of his beloved and also for the fulfillment of his plan. This believing and trusting response of the remnant, this is due to the grace of the Lord. We don't work it up within ourselves, right? Grace is something that causes joy. It's something that assuages grief. Something about which John Newton once wrote rather famously, right? He's the author of his probably the most famous hymn of all time, Amazing Grace. Well, he also wrote another hymn. It's quite a bit lesser known, but it's also great. I asked the Lord that I might grow in faith and love and every grace, might more of his salvation know and seek more earnestly his face. "'Twas he who taught me thus to pray, "'and he, I trust, has answered prayer, "'but it has been in such a way "'as almost drove me to despair. "'I hoped that in some favored hour at once, "'he'd answer my request, "'and by his love's constraining power, "'subdue my sins and give me rest. "'Instead of this, he made me feel "'the hidden evils of my heart, "'and let the angry powers of hell "'assault my soul in every part. Yea, more with his own hand he seemed intent to aggravate my woe, crossed all the fair designs I schemed, humbled my heart, and laid me low. Why is this? I cried, Lord. Wilt thou pursue thy worm to death? Tis in this way, the Lord replied. I answer prayer and grace and faith. These inward trials I employ from self and pride to set thee free. and break thy schemes of earthly joy that thou mayest find they all in me." Aren't those beautiful lyrics? They are words to which we can all say, amen. We say amen quite a bit, don't we? Rather regularly when we pray. You know, it's a Hebrew word. It means that what is said is firm, it is trustworthy, true. Therefore applying this fact to the ending of the Bible, have no doubt about the message of the revelation. John has written amen twice in rapid succession here at the conclusion of his letter. Our Lord Jesus is coming quickly, amen. And the grace of the Lord Jesus is with all believers, amen. Some think that the phrase Maranatha is also used here at the end of the revelation, but not exactly. The Apostle Paul, he does definitely use the phrase in 1 Corinthians chapter 16, which we mentioned just a moment ago. In Paul's letter, the word maranatha, it's actually a two-word phrase in Aramaic. It means, come Lord. In St. Paul, he writes this in the context of judgment upon those who are anathema, those who are accursed. In other words, judge them, Lord. Come, Lord, anathema, maranatha. Well, there's a similar context in the Revelation, isn't there? Wickedness is dealt with by the one who says, vengeance is mine. And with the defeat of evil comes the victory of holiness. And so the Apostle John writes, come, Lord Jesus. In English, this sounds almost exactly like what the Apostle Paul had written on that earlier page of the New Testament. And essentially, they are equivalent. Paul uses the Aramaic, Marana, which means come, and Tha, which means O Lord. Marana Tha, come O Lord. Now John, he uses the Greek, Erku, which means come, and Kyrie, which means Lord, Erku Kyrie. He even adds the personal name, Yeshu, which means Jesus. Now, I guess the point here in all of this is that the two apostles are saying the same thing, but each one uses a different ancient language in order to say it. Now, this isn't a major thing, but I gotta say, I find this bordering on fascinating, and I figure others, if they don't find it fascinating, they might at least find it a little bit interesting. These final two verses of the Bible, they seem to feature an interplay of all three biblical languages. In the majority of the Old Testament, that's written in Hebrew, of course. And the majority of the New Testament is written in Greek, of course. And then there's a very small percentage of the scriptures where in the text we find a touch of Aramaic. Well, most of the words that John has written for us here in verses 20 and 21 of Revelation chapter 22 are Greek, right? But he also makes use of that word amen twice. And as we mentioned, that is a Hebrew word. And then on top of this, John uses a Greek translation of the Aramaic phrase, Maranatha. I don't want to have my imagination run away with me here, but as I meditate on this linguistic reality, I can't help but wonder if it's a sort of an Easter egg from God. You know what that is, an Easter egg? You know how sometimes in a movie you'll see the movie director leaves these little gifts scattered throughout the film for those who are major fans of the director's work. They recognize these things. They place an item in the background of a scene. It doesn't need to be there, but there's no harm in it being there either. And it's just a little kiss to those who like the work of that director and the films he puts out. Well, the Kendrick Brothers movie is very popular in Christian circles. So maybe some Christians are familiar with some of these Easter eggs in those films. For instance, there is a fictional cereal called Coney Bombs. It has a cereal box that looks an awful lot like a honeycombs box. And this fake cereal, it makes a cameo appearance in nearly every single Kendrick Brothers film. Same is the case with the Kendrick Brother films, almost always deploying the words J. Austin Motors in their movies. That's the name of the auto dealership that's at the center of the storyline in Flywheel, which was the very first Kendrick movie. There are a bunch of other examples too, so next time you're watching Fireproof or War Room or Facing the Giants or Overcomer, see if you can notice any of these Easter eggs that have been placed there for you. Anyway, I just wonder if our very clever Lord maybe didn't use an Easter egg himself or two. Actually, he probably invented the Easter eggs, right? Well, Easter egg or not, the Lord, he has given us a number of connections to find between Revelation chapter one and Revelation chapter 22 from the beginning to the end. These bookends. what the theologians like to call inclusio. Inclusios are here. There's promises, exhortations, confirmations that are introduced at the start, maintained throughout, and then they find their conclusions here. At the start, we're told that the words are trustworthy and true. Why? Because Jesus, he is the preeminent witness. And John, he follows the example of Christ, being a faithful witness himself. And he invites us to be diligent witnesses as well. The very first sentence of this epistle says that the letter is about the things which must soon take place. Well, the final sentence that is voiced by Jesus at the end of the book, it tells us that he is coming soon. There's an urgency to the prophecy at the start. There's an urgency to the prophecy at the end. The time is near. Christ comes quickly. Angels are involved in disseminating the message to and through John. See that on the very first page, and the angels are still here in the picture with John here on the final page. And the structure of what this human mediator John wrote, it's rather excellent. You know, in grade school, I think most of us have probably taught the importance of having a strong introduction, a strong conclusion in the papers that we turned in, right? We had these bookends that complimented one another, and of course reinforced the point that would be the thesis of the entire work we were turning in for a grade. Well, John, he has done this so well, incredibly well. In fact, he's done it so well, some scholars, they believe that John might have written the introduction after he wrote the other parts of this letter. Now, I'm not so sure about that. It is definitely a common practice today to write the introduction after everything else has been written. You know, get out your typewriter or your computer and you type out the introduction last. But to impose such a practice back into ancient times strikes me as potentially, perhaps, a bit anachronistic. But regardless of how he did it, John expertly has a great introduction and a great conclusion. It's a masterpiece here. And in the conclusion here is these elements that summarize briefly the chief aspects of the lessons that he intends for you to learn. We've all been taught that believers are called to persevere in the face of persecution, in the knowledge that reward awaits the faithful. You're to learn this. Also learn that punishment awaits the wicked. The Word of God gave this testimony to the angels, who gave it to John, who gave it to you. And now, you are to give it to others. Be faithful witnesses who attest to the eternality of God, the goodness of God, the righteousness of God, the holiness of God. These are all central themes that run through the book. These are the central themes that run through your life and actually run your life. Now in simple terms, the entire lesson that's being taught here is that God wins through the worthiness of the lamb. And the lamb and the flock belonging to him, it's true, they're under assault. The attacks of the wild beasts, they are violent, they're tenacious. So be warned, because there is struggle amidst the hope. But the devil is cast down, he is a fallen enemy. But this counterfeit, he is a powerful pretender. The evil manifests in a variety of guises. The dragon inhabits the beasts. in a sense, attempting to mimic the spirit of Christ inhabiting the bride of Christ. And the beasts being what they are, they bring false prophecy and corrupt governance and fraudulent opulence. And so to the naked eye, you know, it can almost fool us. We can be fooled into thinking that Satan and his minions, they're riding high. But the truth is they're brought low. The demons consigned to the abyss and then to the lake of fire. Now the ancient serpent of old, he is a prince of sorts in this world, but he's no match for the prince of peace, for the king of kings. The dragon and his two beasts, one of them somewhat secular, the other one somewhat religious, they constitute kind of an antichrist trinity. This is an attempted mockery of the true and eternal trinity of father, son, and spirit. And the temptress of darkness is a harlot to be damned forever, while the repentant and redeemed of Christ, not a harlot, but a bride, washed clean, exceedingly blessed forever. The enemy represents a type of ancient Babylon or Egypt or Rome, or even really the disobedient old Jerusalem. But the church militant, the church that's on the planet today, will one day be the church triumphant, the church in the heavenlies, represented in the pages of the Revelation as a new Jerusalem, a renewed holy city, the heavenly Jerusalem. So each person needs to make it clear who they serve. The true God? The true Christ? The true Holy Spirit? Well, if not, then who? Well, I'll tell you who. You're not worshiping the true God, Christ, and Spirit. You're worshiping the anti-God dragon, the anti-Christ beastly systems of this world, the anti-Spirit that seeks to build an anti-Church. So again, be clear. Who do you serve? Serve the authentic, not the inauthentic. This can be much harder to discern than perhaps we realize. Fake is very talented at wearing masks. Very, very talented indeed. So you think that the bad actors, sometimes they're set back, seem to be defeated for a while. You think maybe they're dead and gone, but then they arise again. Just keep coming at you. But they're arising, it's temporary, you see. It's not like the risen Lord Jesus who arose from the dead never to die again. and by the outpouring of his spirit, this victory is then shared with his followers. Now the Antichrist can almost seem to mirror this with great riches and great power and dazzling displays of deception. You hear Antichrist speak, you think you can live forever. You think you're gonna look young forever. You think you're gonna have nary a care in the world, this side of heaven. You hear that message, you think, well, all you have to do is follow after the masquerading angel of light. Follow what he tells you to do, and what he tells you to do is bow to me. Follow the ways of the devil, not the way, the truth, and the life. That's the message of this generation, isn't it? Of course it is, because it's the message of every generation. because every generation is loaded with sinners in desperate need of God's saving hand of rescue to pluck them from the fires of hell. That's pretty much the message of the revelation in a nutshell. What should this message do to you? Well, it should give you a proper perspective. to accurately understand your situation. Use the Lord's word as a mirror to see yourself as you are, as an image bearer of God, who's in need of saving from your sin. And use what you've learned from our approximately two year study of the revelation to also see your enemies as they are. The beast, the false prophet, the harlot, the dragon. Do you truly see their true colors? They're life-sucking vampires. They promise you tantalizing delights, but only so as to rob you of true joy, true life. And in the end, they consume you inside and out. And they might bring you momentary pleasures. Indeed they do, momentary pleasures. But at the cost of blessed eternal fulfillment and forever after happy contentment. And on your own, you cannot conquer the temptations of the one who prowls around like a roaring lion. Can't do it on your own. You need the infinitely worthy conquering lion to be your champion. the one who brings you from the mire to glory. Hopefully, as we have examined the revelation, you've recognized your need to repent as a fallen sinner. But also, hopefully, you've recognized in wonder your true beauty as someone who has been prepared by the bridegroom, is being prepared by the bridegroom for his wedding feast, his great wedding day. You know, so often the apocalypse, it scares the pants off people. I think this might be so that those who are trusting in the finished and perfect word of the Lamb, after they've had their pants scared off them, they can be dressed anew, dressed in robes of white, washed magnificently clean. You know, the guilty should be convicted by shame. That is right and good to be convicted by shame when you are guilty. We see the saints are declared righteous. And so there is no shame for the elect. That shame is borne by Christ. He bears the shame. And feel by the truth of this amazing grace. Endure as you suffer. Remain pure even as compromise invites you to give in. Live a life that bears witness by your actions. Don't end it there. Bear witness by your words too. I mean, how will people believe if they do not hear? So yeah, be a sermon in shoes. Live a life by example that draws people to wonder and investigate the claims of Christ for themselves. But have a body that occupies those shoes that also possesses a mouth and use it To give testimony, to share the truth of the good news, people need to hear the gospel. And it's been our charge to give it to them, to always be prepared to give a defense for the faith and the hope that we have, to go about the business of making disciples. Let's wrap up now with a very concise overview. The Revelation opens with a short intro and letters to seven churches. These churches, they represent all churches at various locations at various times throughout church history. And this comprises the first three chapters of the Revelation. And then there's a glorious view of the heavenly throne room, which is followed by the opening of the seven seal judgments. This comprises the next four chapters. And the trumpets there next, along with interludes that are between the judgments. This takes us from chapter eight to chapter 11. And at this point, this is where we're taken to the very heart of the conflict with the dragon attacking Christ by attacking Christ's people. This is the gist of the section from the ending of chapter 11 to the beginning of chapter 15. That's when the third of the three cycles of the Lord's wrath are revealed. Remember, there's these cycles, these repetitive nature of things. There might be some chronological order mixed in here and there, but don't be too atomistic and too exacting about that. You cannot do it. It will get you into some interpretive difficulties that you will not be able to solve, right? The recapitulation and the cyclical nature of the revelation is very important to make note of. Anyway, the seven bold judgments, they are poured out in chapters 15 and 16. Now at this point, the devil stands defeated. But we're still then introduced to the harlot of Babylon in chapters 18 and 19. Again, the reason why you can't just take things in strict chronological order. Now this beastly false prophet and the other beast, it's basically a puppet of Satan. They, along with Satan, also crushed forever in that last battle of chapter 20, which spills over into chapter 21. Now this is the section, you might remember, where we noted a whole bunch of controversy that exists within the church. over the meaning of the millennium and the timing of the events that lead to the last judgment. And our hope was in handling all of that to do so with fairness, with accuracy, working hard to keep the main point, the main point, and the main point is the enemies of God are losers. Our Savior is victorious. And with him, the body of believers are made victors too. And so the faithful remnant is welcomed into the new creation, the paradise that is the heaven on earth. And this is how the letter from John ends in chapters 21 and 22. Now there are several orthodox, and by that I mean biblical, schools of interpretation for all of this. I shared this all with you many months ago, so I'm not gonna get into the details now, but there's a camp that's called historicism, another called futurism, there's a third that's called preterism, and then there's one more called idealism. And there are sub-camps and ancillary camps within and surrounding all of these. And these areas have labels such as dispensationalism, historic premillennialism, amillennialism, postmillennialism. And slicing the pieces even thinner, there are also pre-tribulationists, mid-tribulationists, post-tribulationists. There are even a whole bunch of other theological groupings beyond even these that I've just now mentioned. I mean, it can get rather confusing. You can get bogged down in the weeds rather easily. But don't let it get you down. Don't let it defeat your spirit. These debates, they are intramural. By that I mean that they are family discussions that are had between believers. Believers sometimes can agree to disagree about some of the areas of the Bible that are harder for us to comprehend and put together. It doesn't mean that the scriptures are unclear. It means that maybe God just hasn't revealed everything that we would want him to, or perhaps everything has been revealed and we're just a little too dense right now to figure all of that out. But the fact is, it all does kind of work out in the end. And that's, this fact has led some people in the body of believers to call themselves pan-millennialists, right? Because it all pans out in the end. And there is some truth to that to be sure, right? So maybe we're all kind of pan-millennialists to a certain degree. And the way it all pans out is that Christ wins. And then he shares that win with his co-heirs. And if you're not a co-heir, you need to repent. Why? Because the kingdom of God is at hand. And if you are a co-heir, you can rejoice. Why? Because the kingdom of God is at hand. Before I pray, let me end with the words of assurance that end the revelation and therefore end the Christian canon. The grace of the Lord Jesus, the Christ, the Messiah be with all the saints, all believers, those set apart for God. Amen. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for shepherding us through this extended study of the final book of our Bible. We ask that you help us to internalize the truths that we found in these pages. We continue to plumb the depths and apply these truths to our lives in ways that really make an impact for ourselves, for our families, for our communities and for Christ's church. It's in his name, the name of Jesus Christ that we pray. Amen. So I'm gonna shut down the stream again. I invite you to our website, HouseholdOfFaithInChrist.com. That's HouseholdOfFaithInChrist.com. Till next time, God bless.