Sermon notes from Sunday 13 May 2018
Revelation 4 verses 1 - 11, chapter 5 verses 1 - 5
The things of earth have now passed away and John is looking into the realms of heaven. The clouds have parted, the door has been opened and John starts to tell us what this place is like. Psalm 91 verse 1 "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty." That is what it is all about. The moment we trust Christ as Saviour, when he cleanseth us in his precious blood, we take up a special living place in this world. It is a secret place. No man can find it for himself. It is the only place where the Holy Spirit shows us our need of conversion and conviction. We receive the protection and provision as we live there. In John 14 Jesus said about his departure "I go to prepare a place for you."
Notice the welcome John receives. He tells us in verse 1 "After this I looked, and behold a door was opened in heaven and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me which said, Come up hither and I will show thee things which must be hereafter." There is the invitation, a welcome from God`s own heart. He flings open the door. The earthly scene is gone and the heavenly one comes into focus. Most commentators say verse 1 is a picture of the raptured church. It is important not to see the church as a building. The church here is the church of Jesus Christ, born again of the Spirit of God, living for him. It is not the established church. There will be some churches packed with people when Christ comes back but the people in them may never have trusted Christ as Saviour. In 1 Thessalonians 4 we read of a people concerned about their loved ones, people who had passed on and those left behind wondered if they were lost, had they missed out on heaven? In verse 13 Paul is telling these people "I would not have you to be ignorant ... that ye sorrow not even as others which have no hope." You have a hope that these people will meet God. Yes there is a sorrow for those who have been those taken by Christ but you also have a hope. Verses 14 - 16. The body is in the ground but the soul is in the presence of the Lord. The body is not the life of me, the soul is, the real you and I, that part of living. When you and I die believing in the Lord the body goes into the ground but our soul goes into the presence of the Lord. "Absent from the body, present with the Lord." Paul says you have taken your loved ones to the grave but do not sorrow for them. The dead in Christ will rise first then we which remain will be caught up. Verse 17. "Comfort one another with these words." This is the format for that day. This rapture when it happens will be sudden, no man knows the day. This event will catch multitudes out, people not prepared, not ready. In Luke 17 Jesus likened it to the day when God came to destroy Sodom - verse 28. Life was going on as normal. It is going to be a surprise. Lot made his way out of Sodom and God reigned judgment on Sodom. One day it will happen the same way. God`s return will be a surprise for many many people. People will be going about their normal lives, it will be a surprise and many many people will be caught out. There will be 2 in the field, one will be taken and the other left. There will be 2 grinding corn, one will be taken and the other left. Jesus spoke of the servant whose master had gone away. The servant was told to watch for him coming back. For a while he looked but then the servant got his eyes off his master. When the master returned the servant was involved in all sorts of activity. When the Lord comes again it will be a surprise, it will be so sudden. 1 Corinthians 15 verse 51 the word "sleep" is the same word used in Thessalonians talking about people who have died. Their bodies were in the ground. In a moment, not a prolonged thing. Remember Paul said there will be a shout, the voice of an archangel will be heard. The first thing John heard was the voice, the sound of a trumpet. This will happen suddenly, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, as quick as you blink your eyes. This transaction will take place when Jesus comes again. Multitudes will leave this earth. An event that will not be able to be explained away. There will be those who believed a lie. The anti Christ will explain why those people have disappeared. A lie has to be made up, the manufacturing of something to explain away the situation that multitudes are no longer on the earth. The anti-Christ will come up with a lie that will suffice. Commentators say the anti-Christ could say Christians were terrible believers and God had to destroy them. A lie will be told in time. These bodies of ours are not fit for heaven so they need to be changed. 1 Corinthians 15 verses 53 and 54. The body we have at this moment in time is fit for this earth not for heaven. When Jesus came back to his disciples his body had changed just as ours will one day. God will change us in an instant and we are given new bodies. Do not think you will have time to make amends. The opportunity is gone. The dead will be raised and then if we remain there will come the changing of our bodies and this will be in an instant. That is the welcome we have to look forward to. Is that something you are really looking forward to today? The only thing that should hinder us is to know our families are not saved. People`s minds are being blinded and deceived today.
There is also the wonder of heaven and the witness of heaven. The wonder of heaven is seen in the beauty John describes to us. Jesus is the witness of heaven, the lamb of God. He is able to take this book that is sealed with 7 seals. It is written on the outside and the inside. There is not a man in heaven or on earth who is qualified to take this book. He will take one seal at a time and break it. The consequences of what he is doing in heaven is shown in earth over a period of years. Judgment will fall on the earth.
There is also the worship of heaven. Is it anything like the worship we have here for our Saviour?
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