Second Presbyterian Church Sermons

If you could not fail...
Revelation 17:1-18

[1] Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, [2] with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.” [3] And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. [4] The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. [5] And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.” [6] And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.

When I saw her, I marveled greatly. [7] But the angel said to me, “Why do you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. [8] The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come. [9] This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; [10] they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. [11] As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. [12] And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. [13] These are of one mind, and they hand over their power and authority to the beast. [14] They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”

[15] And the angel said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages. [16] And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the prostitute. They will make her desolate and naked, and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire, [17] for God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. [18] And the woman that you saw is the great city that has dominion over the kings of the earth.” (ESV)

Big Idea: Throughout this book, we have learned this basic lesson—Jesus wins, and his followers will win with him because He loves us. The Spirit uses three words to describe the followers beloved by King Jesus who will celebrate victory over evil with Him at the end of history: called, chosen and faithful. Together those words explain how no one can ultimately fail who follows Christ. 

The word translated “chosen” is eklektos. Elsewhere in the New Testament it refers to the elect, those God predestined to eternal life before history. The Bible makes much of God’s sovereign choice of us because it overwhelms us with how much he loves us. The longest hymn of praise to God for his love for sinners is in Ephesians 1. Paul praises God the Father, “for he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.” And why did He choose us? Because we were good or because he foreknew we would be wise enough to choose Him? No, it was “in love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace” (4-10).

Consider/Discuss: 

Although it is the first word John uses to describe disciples, we look at “called” (kletos) secondly because it is the next thing that happens chronologically in the life of someone God chooses. Those whom God chose before the foundation of the world, He irresistibly calls to Christ for salvation. First look at the miserable state of those who do not follow Jesus. They are ultimately unknown because their names are “not written in the book of life from the creation of the world” (8). That means they are destined to eternal death. The “beast” represents every person, worldview and movement opposed to Christ and inspires most every political government in the history of the world. How very different is the calling God issues to those He has chosen. Having loved us before the creation of the world, He calls us to live in the experience of His Fatherly love (1 Jn. 3:1; Jude 1), knowing that because of His love, everything that happens to us is for our good (Ro. 8:28-30). 

Consider/Discuss: 

Finally, John says it will be Christ’s “faithful followers” who celebrate His victory alongside Him over the Evil One. The word πιστός (“followers”) is supplied by the translators and means “trustworthy, dependable or reliable.” It primarily describes something or someone that can be trusted. John teaches that faithfulness requires three things. First, it requires a “mind of wisdom” (9). Wisdom describes a Christian’s mind trained by God’s word and catechized theologically (Pr. 2:6; 1 Co. 2:7). Second, faithfulness requires confidence in God’s sovereignty. In v. 17, John affirms that the devil is God’s devil. Though He is never the author of evil, He overrules evil in such a way that it accomplishes “his purpose” and “fulfills his word.” The third and most important requirement for faithfulness is to go to Jesus first for it. Paul commands us to “put on the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one” (Ep. 6:16), because “the “Lord is faithful, and will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one” (2 Th. 3:3).

Consider/Discuss:

Revelation 16:17-21

The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, “It is done!” And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake. The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered Babylon the great, to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath. And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found. And great hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, fell from heaven on people; and they cursed God for the plague of the hail, because the plague was so severe. (ESV)

Big Idea: John is emboldening Christians of every age to live in the power of the Lord Jesus Christ who will conquer all evil spirits, decimate every evil system, and provide eternal satisfaction for his followers. 

The seventh bowl of judgment promises the utter defeat of all demonic powers. We have already understood from 16:13 that the devil (“dragon”) carries out his mischief through “demonic spirits” who empower leaders (“kings throughout the world”) to disseminate an anti-Christian worldview (“beast”). These demonic spirits can enable people to do amazing things, even “perform signs” which can influence fence straddlers to follow them. If Christians take their eyes off of Christ and look at these apparently “successful” leaders, they can be intimidated or grow despondent to the point that they compromise their loyalty to Jesus. The most important thing to remember is that the devil’s final defeat is assured. You must never be cowed, intimidated or overwhelmed by his terroristic threats or activities. He fights as he does because he is a desperate loser. His outlashes can be unpleasant and painful, but they are ultimately no match for the Greater One that lives within you as a Christian. And God’s promise remains that if you “resist him, he will flee” (Ja. 4:4). Resist him in prayer. Resist him by reading the Word. Resist him by asking others to help you in the fight. Resist him by commanding him to flee. 

Consider/Discuss: 

The second encouraging promise from King Jesus is that he will destroy all sinful systems. “Babylon” represents all the world’s systems that attempt to defy the Lordship of Christ (11:8 and 14:8). As Americans, we are accustomed to thinking of sin individually; that each person commits individual sins. However, we do not tend to think of sinful systems; that there are economic, governmental, and societal systems that generate sin—whether intentionally or simply by nature of being corrupted by sin. 

Consider/Discuss: 

Finally, we can be encouraged in knowing that the final Judgment will bring Christians everywhere a sense of deep satisfaction due to the fact that, once and for all, God’s righteousness will be vindicated, we will be free from all sin—both our own sin and the sin of others that afflicts us and other image-bearers of God. 

Consider/Discuss:

Revelation 16:1-7

Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”

So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and harmful and painful sores came upon the people who bore the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.

The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became like the blood of a corpse, and every living thing died that was in the sea.

The third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water, and they became blood. And I heard the angel in charge of the waters say,

“Just are you, O Holy One, who is and who was,
for you brought these judgments.
For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets,
and you have given them blood to drink.
It is what they deserve!”

And I heard the altar saying,

“Yes, Lord God the Almighty,
true and just are your judgments!” (ESV)

Big Idea: Through John, Jesus shouts, "No!" to our favorite sins to enable us to say a better "Yes!" with our lives to His sovereign grace. 

Say "Yes" to Courage (vv. 1-3)

The first bowl calls us to say “no” to blending in and “yes” to courage. We are able to ascertain this meaning because of what we have already learned about the “worship of the beast.” In John’s immediate context the “beast” was the Roman Empire, used by Satan to hinder the work of the gospel. Sometimes the Romans did that by actively persecuting Christians, but Satan’s most effective strategy was to pressure Christians to blend in with the rest of the culture.

They didn’t have to recant their faith or believe that the Emperor was a god; they just needed to go with the flow of their culture and not draw attention to themselves. The result was that gospel didn’t advance in individual lives or society at large. By sidelining these Christians, the devil accomplished more than he would have by killing them.

If you are blending in, you must hear the warning of God’s voice, which speaks loudly in v. 1. In Scripture, whenever there is a “loud voice from the temple,” it is for the purpose of bringing judgment on those who have broken covenant with God, especially by persecuting his disciples (Rev. 6:6; 9:13; Is. 66:6). The good news for the believer in Christ is that even when we fearfully blend in—just as Peter did. Jesus restores us by being our eternal advocate with the Father so that when we stand before him, he will say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” The opinions of other people are temporary and have no bearing on our eternity. God’s opinion of us makes us who we are.

Consider/Discuss: 

Say "Yes" to Contentment (vv. 4-7) 

The second and third bowls call us to say “yes” to contentment and “no” to materialism. The second and third bowls parallel the second and third trumpets but are more explicit and bring more complete judgment. The second trumpet brought “blood like that of a dead man,” but the second bowl leaves “every living soul dead.” Whereas the third trumpet turned the waters “bitter,” the third bowl turns the waters to blood.

Since commerce on the sea was the great engine of Rome’s economic success, these bowls promise complete economic devastation coming to those who have “stuff idolatry” (13:16-17; 18:17, 19). On the other hand, every suffering, every persecution, every worry, every fear, and every intimidating force in your life will be put in its place when you really believe God totally loves you.

Consider/Discuss: 

Glory, Glory, Hallelujah!
Revelation 15:1-8

Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished.

And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,

“Great and amazing are your deeds,
O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
O King of the nations!
Who will not fear, O Lord,
and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations will come
and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

After this I looked, and the sanctuary of the tent of witness in heaven was opened, and out of the sanctuary came the seven angels with the seven plagues, clothed in pure, bright linen, with golden sashes around their chests. And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever, and the sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished. (ESV)

Big Idea: Because we will be blessed with rest from all our enemies, we must patiently endure and faithfully keep his commands. 

First, John urges us, as he did these Roman Christians, to endure. To endure with confidence, we need two assurances as God's people. First, we need to be assured that all that is wrong will be made right; complete justice is coming. Second, we need to be assured that we are going to make it to the end and participate in the final song of victory. 

A.  Complete Justice:

John says that when these seven bowls have been poured out, God’s wrath will be “completed.” The use of the number "seven” (God’s number, often used to signify completion) reinforces the perfection and total fulfillment of the justice (Lv. 26:21). That there are seven angels conveys that there will be more than enough divine power to conquer all evil. The seven bowls of plagues would signal to the Jew that God will unleash all the wrath necessary to liberate his people once and for all from the dominion of evil. 

A.  Final Song: 

John inspires us again with the promise that those who are “victorious over the beast” will rejoice in that Day of completed justice.  We have already learned that victory is living in loyalty to Jesus. Victory is refusing to compromise your allegiance to Christ by blending in with everyone else. Those who persevere to the very end in their loyalty to Christ will sing the “song of Moses.” This will not be a new song but one that believers have sung throughout all of redemptive history.

Consider/Discuss: 

1) How might evil and injustice keep us from enduring? Can you think of any  specific examples of how an awareness of sin and brokenness (both internal and external) can result in spiritual exhaustion, tempting one to give up? 

2) What good news does this passage have for those discouraged by evil? 

Not only must we wait patiently for Christ to bring his complete justice on all evil, we must live faithfully in the meantime. We said above that key to enduring will be remembering, but how do we remember? The reason the faithful Jew only needed the first couple of lines to remember this long song of Moses is that he sang Exodus 15:1-18 every Sabbath evening in synagogue worship (NIV Study Bible). The Church has always worshiped corporately morning and evening. There were morning and evening sacrifices throughout Old Testament history (Ps. 92) and when the synagogue emerged, Jews gathered to read the Scriptures, confess their sins, and sing praises to God every Sabbath morning and evening. This pattern of bookending the Lord’s Day with corporate worship contributes mightily to endurance and faithfulness because it cuts deep gospel grooves in the mind and heart.

A. Judgment on the Beast:

So we come full circle in this passage: the judgment of the beast and the justification of the saints. “Golden sashes” represent Christ’s kingly role and the judgment he will sovereignly execute on his enemies. “Shining linen” represents his priestly role and the ultimate salvation he will bring to his followers. 

B. Justification of Christians:

Our glorious perfection is not merely our individual perfect moral conformity to Christ but also execution of righteous judgment on rebels. We will be so perfectly conformed to the image of Christ that we will not be able to tolerate the existence of unbelief, so in union with Christ we will participate in judgment.

Consider/Discuss: 

1) Can you think of an example of how something you heard, read, or learned from corporate worship helped you endure in following Christ?

2) Is corporate worship a priority in your/your family's life? Are there changes you need to make to make corporate worship more of a priority? Are there barriers that are currently keeping you from this?

The Judgment Could Save Your Life 
Revelation 14:14-20

Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand. And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped.

Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, the angel who has authority over the fire, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Put in your sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, for its grapes are ripe.” So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as a horse’s bridle, for 1,600 stadia. (ESV)

Big Idea: By revealing to us the terrors of Judgment in contrast to the beauties of heaven, this passage drives us to the love of God who provided his Son as a sacrifice to save us from hell.  

It seems most consistent with the rest of Scripture to see this as two harvests. It contrasts the harvest of God’s redeemed people with the harvest of unbelievers for Judgment. In this scene, judgment occurs “outside the city.” The enemies of God will be destroyed outside Jerusalem (Joel 3:2, 12; Zech 14:4-5) and absolutely rejected by Him. This is why Jesus went outside the city to redeem us (He. 13:12). Those who have been become righteous through Christ will come into the city while unbelievers will remain outside (Re. 21:9-27). Therefore, hearing the warning and turning to Christ is how Judgment can save your life!

Consider/Discuss: Can you think of a scenario where you or someone you know shared a difficult or challenging truth for the good of another person, as God does in this passage? What does God's warning reveal about His character?  

We now know that the beginning of the passage describes that time when Christ will gather his people to himself when he returns. To the believer, this is the ultimate comfort. The Judgment Day means rescue for us, not punishment. The Judgment Day means vindication of all that is righteous, not shame. Realizing that now can save your life. Through this passage, Jesus wants to lead you off the way that leads to death and onto the path that leads to life. If he has frightened you with these threats of Judgment, it is only because he loves you so much that he does not want you to experience it. He would rather you be in heaven. If you receive Christ's life, death, and resurrection in your place, committing your life to him in response to his giving of his life for you, then you will delight in the anticipation of his return, rather than dread it.

Consider/Discuss: Beyond your personal assurance of salvation, what other assurance(s) does God’s judgment of sin give us? Can you think of any specific circumstances, people, or scenarios where the promise of God's judgment of sin tangibly changes/shapes your view of this circumstances, person, or scenario? 

Following the lamb wherever he goes
Revelation 14:1-5

Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb, and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless. (ESV)

Big Idea: From eternity past, God determined to save you through the crushing substitutionary sacrifice of His Son. What response does eternally sacrificial love require? It requires nothing short of cross-like love for Him.

If Christ is your savior, your future is secure because your redemption has been accomplished. In other words, if you are in Christ, you are a part of these 144,000 whom God has chosen to save. This text’s direction to Mt. Zion gives us great assurance. Why was Mount Zion so important throughout the Old Testament, and why is it so important in Revelation? Because it was there that the Lamb was slain once for all to make us His people.  

Consider/Discuss: If your eternal future is secure in Christ, how might that change how you view your future in this life? How might this embolden you to stand with Christ wherever he stands? 

The song described here is one God has sung over His son, Jesus Christ, for all eternity, proclaiming through it the worthiness of His son. And because Jesus knew He was fully secure in the Father’s love, He came to earth, suffered, and died for us. Since there has never been a time when the Lamb was unconscious of being slain for sinners, there has never been a time when Christ has not been loved and praised by His Father. In Christ, we are fully secure in God’s love as well. In other words, when we trust in Christ, He puts this song in our mouths, too. 

Consider/Discuss: What is the proper response of someone who is fully secure in God’s love? 

This simply means that you will consider holy whatever God considers holy. Like many biblical writers, John uses a shorthand reference for all the commandments. As a pastor, he knows with what sins his people struggle most, so he likely mentions those predominant ones: sexual immorality and lying. Jesus did a similar thing with the rich young ruler who asked him how to get into heaven. He didn’t list all the commandments, just a few, until He got to the one that was the young man’s stumbling block—covetousness. So John tells these Romans living in an immoral and deceitful culture that those who truly embrace the love of God in Christ will live in sexual purity and honesty. When you realize that God has suffered loss from all of eternity in order to redeem you, then keeping His commands will no longer be burdensome to you. 

Consider/Discuss: What area of your life might Jesus be calling you to sanctify, or make holy in His sight? What aspect of the gospel can motivate and enable you to do this?  

Battling the Beasts II
Revelation 13:11-18

[11] Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. [12] It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. [13] It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, [14] and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. [15] And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. [16] Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, [17] so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. [18] This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666. (ESV)

Big Idea: We must be wise, because…

Jesus warned us that the devil will cause deceivers to arise within our community. So we cannot rely on our church walls, membership, or even ordination to protect us from deception. For the sake of the community, we must each take responsibility to be on guard against deceivers.

Consider/Discuss: What is a prevalent teaching or belief that fails this test that you have noticed recently? How might it fool people by being a parody? How does this profile of true teaching expose it as a lie? If you are confident that you have the truth revealed in Scripture, how might that enable you to engage in dialogue in a constructive way? 

There has been a great amount of conjecture about the number 666 in this passage. As is usually the case, the Bible interprets itself. John explains “it is the number of a man.” Any Jew would have understood, and by now we should as well, that 7 is the number most often used to refer to God’s perfection and the fullness of his grace. Though made in God’s image, just a little lower than the angels, man is not God, so a number just short of 7 understandably symbolizes man’s inferiority to God. We have also learn in Scripture that when anything is doubled or tripled it is for emphasis. Therefore, three sixes symbolize something that is intensely man-centered. 

Consider/Discuss: What competing definitions and displays of greatness, riches, and freedom do you find at work in our culture? How does God’s Word expose their fallacy? Practically speaking, how is believing false conceptions of these things detrimental in people's lives? In other words, what is the "fruit" of believing false ideas about greatness, riches, and freedom?