Gooding, David: 10 - Revelation and the Tabernacle

Later on this evening, you will begin to need the outline for section five of the book of the Revelation. If you still haven't received a copy of it, please raise your hands, and you will be supplied with one forthwith. By the end of our session then this evening, we must have conducted a survey, however superficial, of section five of the Revelation, so that we may concentrate on that tomorrow morning in the first part of our session, without, uh, the necessity to go through a lot of preliminaries. And yet, we have not completed so far our s- our study of section four. So tonight we shall divide this session in half. We shall cover the rest of section four as well and quickly as we may, then we shall sing a hymn, and then after the hymn we shall spend just a brief while doing some homework in preparation for tomorrow as we study and outline our section five. So now we come to complete our study of section four. and if at this moment you can find the layout of section two, the notes on section two that you were given, and have them ready to compare with section four from time to time, you will find that helpful. This morning, then, we noticed that section four, like all other main sections of the book of the Revelation, is composed of four major constituent parts. And we set ourselves to discover this morning, if we could, what was the function of the first part, what I have called on your sheet the first trilogy in section four, and we found its function to be as follows. The second trilogy, part two of section four, is about to describe that period at the end of the age when, by Satan's manipulation, there shall arise the most hideous world dictator that this world has yet seen. He shall not appear forthwith to be hideous to those who dwell on the face of the earth. In fact, multitudes on earth will welcome him as the greatest genius that ever has been, and they will cry peace and safety as they experience what they te- take to be the tremendous benefits of his worldwide rule. In that of a apparent goodness and benefit lies, of course, in part the hideousness of the deceit that Satan will then perpetrate on the inhabitants of Earth. The second trilogy, part two then of section four of the Revelation, is about to describe to us that period and the apparent complete and universal success of Satan's king. That period will be so terrible, and particularly for God's people who are living at that time, that God in his mercy has put the first part of this section, the first trilogy, before the second. Because before he describes what the reign of the beast will be, he takes his people behind the scenes. Indeed, he transports them at first from earth to heaven and shows them the secrets that lie behind the beast's almost universal empire and success. And the thing God shows us in that first part tell us this, that however great the success of the empire, uh, uh, of the beast, it cannot last. It is built on inadequate foundations. It is founded on rotten props. There are certain vital strategical points that have to be taken, captured, and held if anyone would retain world universal empire. And Satan is seen in this first trilogy making three attempts to capture these strategic points and fails in every one of them. And is driven out from heaven, frustrated and defeated. And coming down to earth, realizing he has but short time, he does his dastardly best to take the final of these strategic points and fails therein as well. And it is a defeated and frustrated Satan that goes away to stand on the seashore to manipulate the rise of his great universal empire. We are comforted, strongly comforted by God, by being shown the truth that lies behind the empire, knowing it cannot last, and that the trial of the believers of those days, however severe it shall be under the beast, it'll presently end, and they shall be victorious. So now this, this evening we come to the second major part of section four, what I have here called the second trilogy. We are to consider the throne of the beast and on what that throne is based. We shall from time to time be comparing things here in section four with what we earlier found in section two. You remember section two s- told us of the throne of God and the worthiness of God and of the Lamb to receive the worship and service of God's whole creation. Section four is at pains to describe in detail on what grounds God will insist on the loyalty and service of the whole creation. Now, by contrast, by vivid contrast, we are to consider the throne of the beast and the grounds of his demand, a demand that he will make to all mankind to receive universal worship. We shall then consider God's answer to the beast and to his master Satan. So, in the first part of the second trilogy, John tells us that he saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns ten diadems, and upon his heads names of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his great power and his throne and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as though it had been smitten unto death, and his death stroke was healed. And the whole earth wondered after the beast, and they worshiped the dragon because he gave his authority unto the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, who is like unto the beast, and who is able to war with him? The first ground then, on which the beast will demand, and people will grant to him divine honors, obedience, and worship. The ground of his throne, the power of his throne in his fascination over the people is simply that, his apparent superhuman power. He had the s- a wound of a sword and did live. We are not told exactly what form the sword wound. It obviously will be some mortal blow or other, but instead of perishing under that mortal wound, some superhuman power will bring him to life again. It appears there will be a staging of some kind of a resurrection. We needn't know more about its detail to see at once that it is, of course, a fake resurrection, and people will cry out in their astonishment, who is like unto the beast, who can make war with him? His power seems to be demonstrably superhuman, and the conclusion people will reach is this, that his power is irresistible. If he's had the wound of a sword, and in spite of it, his superhuman power, whatever it is, has brought him up alive again and restored, who could possibly make war with him? Only a fool would try. Wisdom's part is to recognize the reality of his superhuman power and to submit. And all the world shall grant him the divine honors he seeks. Who is like to the beast, they say. And of course, I will call to your mind the questions that are raised in the Old Testament, and notably in the song that Moses and the Israelites sing when they stand on the bank of the Red Sea and see Pharaoh and his hosts overcome by the power of God, and in their gratitude and praise and admiration of God, they say, who is like unto the Lord Jehovah? This, of course, was the central doctrine of Israel's faith, and many a child in the Hebrew nation was named by his reverent and doting parents, Mikayahu, Micah, in other words, in modern languages, Mikael and so forth. Who is like unto God? Who is like unto Jehovah? And of course, the question is a rhetorical question. There's not expected an answer unless the answer be, none is like to Jehovah. He is absolutely unique. But at this time, at the end of the age, such will be the impressive supernatural superhuman power given by the dragon to the beast, that men shall own his supernatural power and say that this, he deserves the ultimate worship of God. It's an imitation, of course, you know that already, don't you? You know it's a fake. The resurrection you would be very suspicious of, but how do you know it's a fake? If a supernatural power raises this beast from some death or other, how would anybody know it was a fake? Are you not in the habit, my brother and my sister, of preaching the gospel in this fashion, that the gospel is the good message concerning Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who was of the seed of David according to the flesh, but proclaimed and declared to be the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead. Isn't that basic to your gospel? You say, perceive the resurrection of Christ, it is a historical fact, and you fill in all the historical details and the evidence. And then you press upon your hearer the implication that is, uh, in- involved in it. You say, look, this was the supernatural power of God, obviously. Only God can raise the dead. And Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. See the power of it. He is declared to be the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead. Suppose the beast comes along with the same argument. My resurrection proves I am God. And you can't, uh, disprove the fact that the power that's raised him is supernatural. So what will you say now? How will you know it's a defeat? How would you know it were a fake and false if you were there? Or knowing your- yourself, how would you convince anybody else that they shouldn't worship the beast on the very same kind of ground that you worship the Lord Jesus? And here we should observe that power is not the final adjudicator. Oh, do beware, my dear brothers and sisters. It has pleased God from time to time to validate his gospel with powerful miracles. And the very basis of the gospel is the power of God that raised Jesus from the dead, but please understand it quite clearly. Power is not the final arbiters between what is truth and what is a lie. Be wary of power evangelism, won't you? What is the thing that distinguishes the gospel of our blessed Lord Jesus from the gospel of the beast? Both have resurrections. Ah, but the difference between the two resurrections is this. Look back at, uh, section four, if you will, and to the p- the the paragraph that stands opposite, uh, this number two. Section 2, paragraph 2, compare it with section 4, paragraph 2. The lamb was also slain. The lamb was also raised again, and where lies the difference? And, uh, section two will tell you. The lamb was slain, not as some political dodge or publicity stunt. The lamb was slain to redeem us from our sins by his blood. To reconcile us to God. To cleanse us from the guilt of sin. To solve the great moral heritage of sin and rebellion that hangs round our neck and threatens to destroy us. Here you see your Savior God. Not in this simply that he had power to raise Jesus from the dead, but first of all, Jesus died for our sins, according to the scriptures. That is a thing to be remembered. This is a test by which we can test all kinds of religions, even in our own present time. For religion as such has no atonement to offer. Two years ago, I was in Kiev and enjoyed my stay immensely, and was welcomed by a headmistress to her state-run school, there to address the school on the topic of Christianity. She not only welcomed me like, uh, I was her long-lost brother, but she told me I was free to speak in this Russian state school on Christianity and anything on it I liked at all, and if I were concerned to talk about the historical side of Christianity, all the better, but anything I liked, we'll say. And as I stood there talking, I had to nip myself to make sure I was in Russia, and then to remind myself that I was doing in Russia what I couldn't do in a state school in America. And after the talk, the deputy headmistress came up, a very friendly soul she was, and very responsible, and very graciously she said, and what do you really think about unidentified flying objects, UFOs, as we call them? Uh, I said, madam, I- I- that's a very interesting question, you know. Actually, uh, uh, uh, um, we haven't had a lot our way. And, uh, uh, those we have had, the government has said they weren't the real thing. So I- I'm afraid I have to say I'm quite ignorant, really, about UFOs, but I- I understand you've had a lot of them over here. And she said, yes, we have. In fact, she said, uh, one of the recent ones, when the occupants got out of this UFO thing, they told the local people that Buddhism was the right religion and not Christianity. What do you think of that, she said. I said, that's altogether remarkable, madam. I said, you'll say, because as you probably know, in Buddhism, well, it depends which form it is, but you see, in Buddhism, many of them believe in, uh, uh, transmigration of souls. But they'd say that if you have really been a very and exceptionally good person in this life, when you die, you needn't be, you needn't come back again to this life, and you become a spirit in the world beyond, you'll see. But that such spirits are available to get in touch with Earth and to help men, men and women who are still living here in their difficulties in life. And I said, madam, if, if they said, uh, Buddhism was the true religion, they could perhaps be, what would you say? One of these disembodied spirits maybe, or a lot of old demons perhaps. I said, as for their claim, you see, madam, that, uh, uh, uh, uh, Buddhism is the true religion and not Christianity. I said, uh, uh, uh, let me tell you, um, uh, what my experience was just a year or two ago. I said I was in Japan, and a good Japanese lady came to me after a Bible study, and she said, you know, I, I, I like your Lord Jesus myself. I, I, I do really, and I want to believe in him. But she said, why do you Christians say that Jesus Christ is the only way to God? Now, I'd like to be a Christian, but, um, why must you say it's the only way to God? I mean, why can't you allow that the Buddhism is also a way to God? You know, many paths up the mountain, and you all meet at the top. Well, I said, I said to this Japanese lady, and this I was telling to the deputy head in Kiev, you'll see. Um, I said, well, I said to the Japanese lady, I said, my ma- madam, I said, you know, for me, really, I tell you why, uh, I think Jesus is the only way. You'll see, for me, it's a practical problem. I'm a sinner, madam, as you probably have guessed. And, uh, my problem is that, uh, not that I don't know I ought to be good. I know that all too well, and really I don't need any preacher, parson or priest to tell me. I know I ought to be good. My problem is I haven't been good. And therefore my problem is, how can I find forgiveness of a sort that will uphold my values, uh, uh, let alone God's values, and allow me to respect myself? It's no good saying sin doesn't matter, is it? Just forget it and brush it under the carpet, as we say. Because if my sin doesn't matter, what I do doesn't matter, and if what I do doesn't matter, then I don't matter, and nobody matters. And I said, the difficulty with me is in Buddhism, that Buddhism has no answer to the problem. In Buddhism, normally in major Buddhism, there is no such thing as forgiveness. So I said, I, I, I, I, I, I don't have any difficulty solving the problem, madam, I said gently. For this very reason, Jesus Christ is the only one that comes alongside me and offers me that forgiveness that is my fundamental need. The only one that comes along and says, look, I'm your creator, you have broken my law, you deserve to perish, but the I, but I am your creator, and I love you, and for your sakes I gave my life on the cross, and through me you may have forgiveness. I said, uh, not a question of saying Jesus Christ is the only, only one, he's the only one that has anything to offer. And it remains true. Alas, for a modern criticism that in some circles has given up the doctrine of the atonement and merely preaches religious ethic. Of course, then they see no difference between the religions worth talking about. The mark of the true thing is not just the, a demonstration of supernatural power in the resurrection of Jesus. It's what Jesus did before he was resurrected that counts. His death, he died for our sins, an atoning death according to the scripture. Ah, but then there comes a, uh, second item. From verse eleven of chapter thirteen onward, we read of a second beast, minister of information or disinformation, according to how you look at it, for the first beast. And we are told that he had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like a dragon. When you saw him to begin with in the vision, you thought this could be, he was a lamb, perhaps he was the lamb, he was like a lamb anyway. But presently, listening to his speaking, you heard not the voice of a lamb, but the voice of a dragon. So he was a pretense too, was he? Uh, yes, he was a, a very good pretense. How would you recognize that what he says is not the voice of truth, but the voice of the dragon is the lie? They did some marvelous signs, didn't they? Um. Yes, you say, but uh, they were lying signs. The Bible here says so, deceitful si- signs. And incidentally, it is that that two Thessalonians two reminds us of and warns us of, is it not? When the beast comes, it will, he will come with all deceivableness and lying wonders, comments Paul in two Thessalonians two. And our Lord added that if it were possible, they would deceive the very elect. His signs are deceitful signs. There's no denying that they were, uh, pretty clever lies, weren't they? Because, uh, we read there, he, he maketh a fire come down out of heaven upon the earth in the sight of men, and he deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by reason of the signs which it was given him to do in the sight of the beast. And that's not bad going, is it? For in the Old Testament, it was when Elijah brought down fire from heaven that he was able to convince the crowd that Jehovah was the true God and Baal was the false God. Mark the extent of the deception that the second beast will perpetrate in those coming days. They won't be silly little miracles. They will bear all the apparent hallmark of being miracles of God. Fire coming down from heaven, a modern day Elijah, they will say, it's no less than this. Uh, on what grounds could we perceive they were false? You'll say... You'll answer perhaps, ah well, see what he does with his signs, you'll say. He uses his signs to convince people that they are to make an image to the beast and bow down and worship him. Yeah. But aren't you in the habit of giving out the Gospel of John to your unconverted friends? And the Gospel of John says the reason why it was written was this: many other signs did Jesus in the presence of his disciples that are not written in his book, but these signs are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and having life, you might so have life in his name. And having believed he's the Son of God, don't you bow down and worship him? On the basis of those signs? So what, after all, is the difference? How would you know the signs of our blessed Lord Jesus are real and true, and the signs of the second beast are deceitful signs? Well, one straw in the wind is this, and through those signs he leads the world to make an image of a beast and then to bow down to it, and the b- the image can show who does bow down and who doesn't bow down, some kind of thought reading, perhaps. And then he brings in a new law that except you take the mark of the beast on your hand or your forehead, you cannot either buy or sell. And the mark is six six six. And here is wisdom, says God. The mark of the beast is six hundred And sixty six. You say, tell us what's that going to stand for? Now, is is is that Nero Caesar, or is it somebody else? Well, I'm not going to attempt tonight, for I don't know. I can tell you what it does represent. It is, comments the Holy Spirit, the number of a human Being. being. And I beg you notice the utter degradation and humiliation of the people of Earth, that in the end they bow down and worship a mere man, and take the mark of a mere man on their forehead and on their hand, and own themselves the slaves of, the property of a mere man. And what's the difference between this man and the man Jesus? Well, everything in the world. This man who is the beast, the Holy Spirit's point out, is a mere man, all the while trying to raise himself and climb up and become God. A man exalting himself above all that is called God or is worshipped, says Paul in two Thessalonians two. Man trying to be God. And our Lord Jesus Christ? He's not a man trying to be God, is he? He's not a man trying to climb up. It's the other way round. He is God, come down to be man. All the loveliness of it. He who was in the form of God and considered it not a thing to be grasped at, to be on equality with God, put himself out and became a slave and was found in fashion as a man, wherefore God highly exalted him and gave him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow. Jesus Christ then is not a mere man who, after his death, was foolishly served by his fatuous followers and turned into some kind of demigod. The story is the other way round. It is God become man. It is God become man. It is right and proper to worship him, and in so doing, none commits blasphemy. Ah, but there is a deeper thing, isn't there? You'll say, these first paragraph thirteen and verse four, tells us that when the beast gives his great demonstration of power, the people are led to worship not merely the beast, did you notice that? But consciously they worship the dragon who gave the beast his power. Now, of course, you are to know that they don't call him the dragon. That's John's title for him. That's God's description of him. The people who worship him won't call him the dragon. Of course not. And what do you suppose they will call him then? I can't tell you, but I suspect they might call him very, very likely to call him the great world spirit. Who has, uh, given his power to the beast and is now using the beast, as the beast gives himself to the great world spirit to be used by that great world spirit. At least, of course, I cannot say, but it wouldn't surprise me if so it was. For John tells us that Antichrist comes, but says John, there are already many Antichrists, and this is how you'll know Antichrist. Whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ, this is the liar. This is Antichrist. I was giving some lectures in a place far from here, many, many, many years ago, when after the lecture there came up to me a gentleman in some distress. He told me he'd been in the British Air Force and been out in India, and out in India he'd studied deeply into Indian philosophy and gone through not simply superficial yoga, but all the profound exercises, physical, psychological, and spiritual that they go through, and had advanced far in Indian spiritist philosophy. Coming home and being demobbed from the RAF, he, uh, had begun to feel his life was a bit empty, and he began searching for reality. And there came a man working on the RAF station that began to point him to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord. And one day, as best he knew how he wanted to receive Christ, he told me, and I didn't know what to say, so I, I said the Lord's Prayer, said he. But he said, I'm troubled still. As a result, he came to my room, and I was a student, this was. And sometimes when he came, he was in such breathing convulsions and looking so white as a sheep, I thought the man was going out of his mind. I found the only thing possible to do with him was not to pray with him, but to sit by his side and read the word of God. It was the only thing I found that would calm the man down. You'll be pleased to know he eventually found the Lord and wrote me many years afterwards, I have found peace through the written word. But at one stage, he, uh, uh, and I got talking. I said, tell me, when you were studying this Indian philosophy and when you were studying theosophy in England, what did they tell you about Jesus? Did they tell you he was the Christ or not? And the man had scarce read the Bible all his day. Oh no, says he, no, no, no. They told us that Jesus isn't the Christ. The Christ is the Great World Spirit, and Jesus lent himself to the Christ, you'll see, for the purposes of the Christ. And now Jesus is in the seventh category, somewhere out in the blue, and uh, presently the Great World Spirit is coming again and will have another person whom the Great world spirit will fill. But Jesus, he said. Well, no, they said that quite clearly. Jesus is not the Christ. I said to him, let me read you a little verse in the scripture. Who is the liar, save he that denies that Jesus is the Christ. And permit me, because I am an old man and given to reminiscing, also, um, permit me to tell you another story upon that line. I was sitting at ease like Nebuchadnezzar in my house in Belfast, not so many years ago now, when there came a knock on the door. I went out to the door and found a bright young thing of about twenty years old on the doorstep waiting to evangelize me. She told me she had been to London to a certain Indian, uh, group of people that had come over to Britain to evangelize Britain, and their leader was the Messiah. I said, that was very interesting. Yes, she said, and she'd been to London, we'll say, and she'd paid her ten pounds, and she had seen the light. What did I think of that? I said, my dear, I'm sure you've seen the light. My difficulty would be to know what light it is you have seen. You'll see, because the Bible says that even Satan's ministers, you'll see, transform themselves into angels of light, so doubtless you've seen the light of some kind, but which light, you'll see. And we fell to talking about it when the leader of her group came up, and he wasn't very well pleased, and he said, you narrow-minded evangelicals in Northern Ireland, you'll see, we're all really preaching the same thing. I believe that Jesus is the Messiah. I said, do you really? Yes, of course I do. I believe he's the Christ. I said, how interesting. I said, you also believe that your Indian leader is the Christ as well, don't you? Well, of course I do. I said, where is he? He said, at the moment he's in New York. I said, that shows he isn't the Christ, doesn't he? Because our blessed Lord said, if any time someone comes and says, look here, behold, the Christ is here or there or somewhere else, you'll know it isn't the true one, won't you? And if you say your Christ is in New York, that tells me straight he's not the Christ. He was getting a little bit annoyed at this stage. And he said, we do believe, you see, that Jesus is the Christ, and our man is the Christ as well. I said, no, you don't. There happened to be two milk bottles standing on my doorstep. We antiquated Irish, we still have milk delivered in bottles, you see, on the doorstep, and these two were empty, and there they were, gracing my doorstep. I said, see those two milk bottles down there? I said, now, two bottles, aren't they? Yes, two bottles. If they were both of them filled with milk, how should we describe them? Should we say there were two milks there? No, we wouldn't say there were two milks. We would just say there was milk. But the milk was in one bottle and in the other bottle. Two bottles, but one milk. And I said, you don't really believe that, uh, Jesus is the Christ, do you? You don't even believe that your man is the Christ, do you? You believe that the great world spirit is the Christ, and that the great world spirit filled the man Jesus when Jesus was on earth, like this milk fills this one bottle. And now the great world Spirit, who is the Christ, is filling your man like this milk fills the other bottle. You believe the Great World Spirit is the Christ, but not Jesus, nor even your man. Well, he said, if you want to have it that way, that is what we believe. Well, I said, now we've got it clear, haven't we? You deny that Jesus is the Christ. And Satan's object in raising up the beast and giving him his power and filling him with his satanic spirit is eventually so that mankind shall fall down and worship the great world spirit that is Satan himself. Perhaps you see, even from my simple stories, how difficult it is sometimes to get the truth out of people and to get people to see through the deceptions. They think that they are believing in Jesus still, and they're believing in this, this guru and that guru, and you can combine the whole lot of them. And the fact is, there are many antichrists already, and the mark of them is they'll talk about the great world spirit. They'll deny that Jesus is the Christ. Deception then. We need in our day to know how to deal with it, because we may expect, and particularly in Europe, as in America, and now in Eastern Europe and the East, we may expect an enormous surge, both of occultism and New Age movement, and all these kinds of, uh, ex- of Hinduism and spirit worship and demonism masquerading as though it were compatible with true Christianity. And what then is God's answer to it? Let's turn to something happier, and we come now to chapter fourteen, that is the third element in the second trilogy of section four. Now, the systematic theologians debate at great length, do they not, who these one hundred and forty four thousand uh are standing on Mount Zion with the Lamb. And as usual, I do not propose to enter into questions of systematic theology. Tonight we are simply doing what we've been doing and following the theme of the book and seeing how the major themes cohere, and leaving to the systematic theologians to solve the next order question. Here then is God's answer to the beast. And here is a part of God's salvation demonstrated in this answer to the beast. And seeing all groups of believers of whatever age are saved according to the same principles, we may profitly consider on what principles these people have been saved. I'd been watching, said, uh, John, I'd been watching Satan at his tricks. The old dragon as he went away, and he stood on the seashore, and his two beasts came up, and his empire grew, and I was absolutely entranced and open-mouthed at the wonder of the success of his universal kingdom. When I happened to turn around, and look there. Why, if that isn't the Lamb himself. And look where he's standing. He's standing on Mount Zion. Yes, of course he is. And when you see the blessed Lamb standing on Mount Zion, you might come to the conclusion that it was rather foolish of Satan the dragon to go and stand on the seashore, wouldn't you? So all the while he's been in his parade, arranging his empires, and what have you? Here's the Lamb standing on Mount Zion. Oh, listen to the psalm. The nations, why do the nations rage, and the kings of the earth set themselves together against the Lord and his anointed? Yet have I set my holy king, says God, upon my holy hill of Zion. Then the holy king himself, the Messiah, comments, I will declare the degree. Lord said unto me, thou art my son, this day have I begotten thee, ask of me, and I will give thee the ends of the earth for thine inheritance. And our blessed Lord Jesus stands on the holy hill of Zion, where God has placed him. To put it in the terms of the earlier vision, the man child has been caught up to the throne. The interesting thing is that he stands not alone, he has a hundred and forty-four thousand with him. Who... who look there? They've got no mark of the beast on hand or forehead. In fact, plain written on their forehead for everyone to see is the name of the Lord Jesus and the name of his Father, and they openly proclaim to all who can read that they belong to the Lord Jesus. If the men on earth have sold themselves to the beast and have taken his name and are now his property, they are glad to announce to the world, these one hundred and forty four thousand, that they are the property of the Lord Jesus and his Father. These are virgins. The word is being used metaphorically. Normally, true believers are regarded as feminine, are the bride of Christ, who resists the advances of the world. But now the Apostle John uses the male metaphor. These are men, but they're virgins. That is to say that whereas males go hunting females, don't they, and go after all sorts of things, these have had as their goal in life. And the ultimate, uh, desire of their hearts, and this is what they have pursued. The Lamb is the great goal and desire of their hearts. They may be physically married or not, who knows, that's beside the point. We're talking about the deep, deep, profound love, devotion, and allegiance of the human heart. These have given their deep, profound, and most fundamental love and allegiance to the blessed Lamb, and they follow him with as whoever he goeth, absolute devotion. And in their mouth is found no lie. There's no pretence. And what is more, they seem through the lie of the devil. And they follow him who is true. And the point that's raised is, how did the Lord get them? There is, I sometimes think, a certain irony in the word of God. For the scripture replies twice over, they were bought from among men. Nice, isn't it? The old beast and his false prophet had laid down a law of recent times. You won't either buy or sell unless you take the mark of the beast. Oh dear. And how did you manage to get these people, says the Lord? I, I, I bought them, you know, and I bought them out of earth. No. Oh, the beast, uh, can make what restrictions he like on, on his international markets. But God isn't going to be pushed out of the market. He entered the market too, and he bought them. And that's why they're his. Bought them with what? He bought them with his life's blood. Here we stand at the center of the battle. Here, the central battle of the war, the contest for the human heart. And the question is, who is prepared to pay the biggest price? And the Lamb has won. These men have been bought. And I don't know but what I look at you, my brothers and sisters, tonight, but what it mightn't be your story. I think I know you. Why do you carry on living for the Lord Jesus and following him? Why do you sacrifice for his sake? You could do much better in the world, you know, couldn't you? Why do you go hungry? The beast came along and he offered them. They could have their food, they could have their business, they could have their homes, they could have their cars, they could have their clothes. They could have anything, position and fame and wealth and anything, provided only they bowed down and worshipped his image. And they were to know if they refused to bow down and worship his image, then they could neither buy nor sell. Famine, hunger, death faced them in the face. And Satan tried to buy them. And along came the Son of God. What did he offer them? Well, he said that as long as they needed it, his father would see they had enough. But they were to know that in the world they would have tribulation. There would very likely come times for some of them when in following him, they must be prepared for pain and torture and sacrifice and death. You say, how did he buy them? What price did he buy them? He bought them with the price of his own blood. Would you not make the same answer if I asked you? Why do you bother to live for Christ and sacrifice for him when you could do much better in the world? You know you could if you didn't. Aren't you free? And you would say to me, yes, well, yes, well, in a sense I'm free, it was my own free decision, but you know, no, I'm not free, for Jesus Christ has bought me. Jesus, thou hast bought us, not with gold or gem, but with thine own lifeblood for thy diadem. Oh, what a marketplace this world has become, where two buyers plead for the souls of men. And what would God want with me? Why would God trouble to come and buy me? I cannot explain it. I can tell you this, that the blessed heart of God so wanted you, that he was prepared to pay the infinite and indescribable price. You are bought with the blood of his own. And because they had been bought, says John, there was at this stage heard coming from aloft music, a new song being sung before the elders and before the throne, and the fact was that nobody could learn the song except the one hundred and forty-four thousand. A new song. What was that about, I wonder? Well, we read about it in section four, didn't we? In that same paragraph too, of course. But only they that have been redeemed by the Lamb can understand the music of heaven. And I think if I had to choose between the commerce of earth and the music of heaven, I think I should choose the music of heaven. And now finally and briefly, we have to consider the judgments. They come in the verses 6 of fourteen down to fifteen verse one. Uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, you'll see, they are the judgments peculiar to this particular part of the revelation. First comes a warning, a last minute plea from God Almighty, before men finally and irrevocably commit themselves to taking the mark of the beast, an appeal from the very heart of God to worship the Creator and not to worship anybody who didn't make the universe. That's a simple gospel, isn't it? But it's very basic and very potent. For of all the things that his satanic majesty has got up to, he never made the universe yet. And the merest of basic human instinct would be that if you're going to worship, you worship the Creator and nothing less. Then another came saying, fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, which has made all the nations to drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. And for the moment, we're not told who Babylon was, nor what the significance of her fall is. We have to be told of that in the next section of the book. But to anticipate a little, Babylon has been that great system, that false woman, that false bride that has encouraged the nations of the earth with the idea that it's all right to compromise with the beast. And in the name of her worldwide religion, she has told people you're cranky if you don't, uh, uh, work in with the beast and compromise with the beast, for she herself has lusted after the beast and desired to control the beast, and thus to have influence and control the very Sat- uh, empire of Satan. And in the course of her endeavors, she has been pleased to murder and get rid of any of these narrow-minded, bigoted fundamentalists that stand in the way and won't compromise. And she has been a delusion. To multitudes of people, they say, there you are, Babylon says it's all right. You can be really religious and yet, uh, join in with the beast. And to stop our influence, God Almighty has it proclaimed in the ears of men. Take no notice of Babylon. Babylon has indeed fallen as a result of our own folly. Then comes a solemn warning, if anyone worships the beast, then the result will be everlasting torment. The truth is, there is only one creator, and the biggest insult you could offer to him is to fling his gospel in his face, deny him and the Lamb, and worship instead the creature, instead of the Creator. A solemn voice is heard saying that such is the persecution, that death for a believer at this stage will be a mercy. And since God's people need not fear dead- death, blessed are they who die in the Lord. And thereafter comes the harvest. The harvest first of the grain and then of the grape. The harvest, the grape harvest, is obviously a harvest of judgment. What shall we say of the corn harvest? The exegetes and expositors are divided in their opinion. Some of them say that in some parts of scripture, the corn harvest and the grape harvest stand together as a double symbol for God's judgment on the wicked at the end of the age. And they may be right. I find it difficult to believe, however. For it is said that the harvest of the earth is ripe and now is reaped. I find it difficult to believe at the end of this age, when the harvest of the earth is reaped, reaped, there shall be absolutely nothing for God there at all, don't you? And I think I have the Lord Jesus on my side, for when he used the analogy of a harvest, he said the harvest, the corn harvest, is the end of the age, and the reapers shall come forth, and they shall bundle the old tares into bundles and cast them into the furnace of fire, and the true wheat they will gather into the Lord's granaries. Yes. Oh, don't tell me, please. I can't believe it, that when the harvest of the earth is reaped in that final day, there shall be nothing for God at all, but nothing but judgment on the wicked. And if you will allow me that, now allow me another conceit. Two examples of this, of salvation in this section. One is the 144,000. They are said to be the first fruits of the harvest. And the aspect of salvation is dealt with there is that they were bought from the earth. They were redeemed by the blood of Christ. And now the next aspect of salvation, and the final one that is seen in the harvest of the corn, is the ripening of the harvest. Some translations say the harvest is overripe. That's a mistranslation of the Greek, actually. The Greek says the harvest is dried up, and when corn is ripe, it simply dries. At least wheat and barley do. The harvest has been ripe. And now you'll see the wisdom of God, won't you? He triumphed over the beast. He bought the one hundred and forty four thousand out of the market of this world at the price of his precious blood, and they are redeemed, they're purchased, they're bought. And then he left some of them under the beast, and the beast did his very worst to destroy them. And what did it do? It simply ripened them for the heavenly granaries. I like that. You'll say the worst persecution that Satan could ever bring upon the people of God will be turned by his divine strategy and used for the ripening and the maturing of the character of his people. Finally, the comment. We are taken now in vision to the great glassy sea that is before the presence of God in his tabernacle, to see those that come victorious from the beast and from his image. And they sing there the song of Moses and the servant of God and the song of the Lamb, saying, great and marvelous are thy works, O Lord God the Almighty, righteous and true are thy ways, thou King of the ages. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name, for thou only art holy. For all the nations shall come and worship before thee, for thy righteous acts have been made manifest. They sing now in their victory over the beast. They sing the song of Moses and of the Lamb. Moses had two songs, didn't he? The one he taught Israel when they stood on the banks of the Red Sea and saw Pharaoh and his host drowned in the sea, and they had escaped. And now they were victorious over Pharaoh, and they sang till their lungs would be fit to burst. Who is like unto Jehovah? The horse and his rider hath he thrown in the sea. Pharaoh had sought to keep them. He'd run after them, and he said in his heart, you know, they are trapped. They've gone up to the Red Sea, and they can't get any farther. Uh, my armies are coming up behind, and they're trapped, you see. If they dare go into the Red Sea, they'll be drowned, and they won't dare go into the Red Sea and be drowned. But go into the Red Sea is what they did dare to do. And it proved not to be death, but the way to life. They weren't half laughing when they got the other side. The waters triumphed, they said, you see. When old Pharaoh tried to do the same thing and walk through the Red Sea, the waters came over and drowned the lot. What for Pharaoh was the instrument of destruction was for the Israelites a passage to life and glory. Oh, Satan has thought, hasn't he? He had the power of death, the old devil. And by having the power of death, he sought to keep in bondage for the whole of their lifetime people through fear of death. Our blessed Lord Jesus has made us, made it possible for us to conquer. He has annulled him that had the power of death. We're able to walk through safe to the other side and free. And then as they stood there on the backs of the Red Sea, they sang, as Moses later did, of the marvelous works of God. All the nations shall hear of it, said Moses and his strong. They shall hear of the wondrous works of God, of his judgments upon Pharaoh, and they shall worship the Lord. And so sing these people. When God puts forth at last his mighty power and crushes the beast, then all the nations will see his righteous acts, and they will come and worship him and own that he alone is worthy. And what a victory it is. For before it all happened, there were they singing, and singing to the effect how wonderful God is. And Satan must have gnashed his teeth. Since the dawn of history in the Garden of Eden, he's tried to persuade men and women that God is horrible. God is a dictator. God is evil. God is against you. These have overcome the beast. And in spite of everything the beast can do, listen to them. They're singing, my brother. They're singing! The song of the Lamb, and they're giving s- expression to their heartfelt belief that God is indescribably marvelous. We'll carry on singing, won't we? Carry on singing when you're in the middle of the battle, for this is the note that Satan does not wish to hear, and for folks that have come through a sea burning with fire into the Lord's presence, to be able to sing that they still think God is marvelous, is the triumph. That is the victory of Of all all life life's experience. experience. You may say that you live in a different time. But there will come times in all our lives when trials so severe shall come that Satan's temptation and pressure will seem almost irresistible. What do you think of God now? I thought you said that God loved you. How can you carry on believing that God loves you? And the battle will be... if with tears in your eyes and a heart that's fit to break, you can stand up in the face of Satan's slanders and say, I don't care what you say, God is wonderful, and he's going to be wonderful, and I think him wonderful, and I trust him still. This is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith. Now let's take a short break, and then we're going to spend just ten minutes looking at tomorrow's lesson, and then go to bed. But as we take a break, let's sing a hymn, a piece of a hymn together, shall we? We'll so sing the hymn sixty nine, When I survey the wondrous cross on which the Prince of Glory died, my riches gain I count but loss, and is to consider, and your minds are sated with study and with prayer, and you deserve a well-earned rest. It is simply the fact that tomorrow we shall be just a little bit pushed in our studies to complete our survey of the book of the Revelation, and so I beg of you these ten minutes more till the appointed hour of nine to do a little homework in advance for tomorrow, and then you may go to bed or wherever it is you go when these studies are normally ended. We have tomorrow to begin to look in earnest in the morning session, in the first half of that session, at section five of the book of the Revelation. Fortunately for us, it is one of the better known passages of the Revelation, and is is discussed in the commentaries at great length, and many of the theories that have been advanced concerning it, and that comforts my heart because tomorrow I have to confess I shall have to deal with it very shortly. Because what we are attempting is not, as you know, a verse by verse exposition, but a survey of the book, and naturally some parts will get more surveyed than others. It will help us, therefore, if we can, just for a few moments, look at the formal contents and the formal arrangement of the contents of section five, and it will prepare our minds for our study tomorrow. You have before you on the notes, page eight, a detailed analysis, and we find that this section five is composed of four major parts, like all the other sections of the Revelation are. Like all the other sections of the Revelation, the setting of this particular session- section is this, that when it starts, something is opened in heaven, namely the temple of the tabernacle of testimony. But instead of some article of f- heavenly ta- furniture being then perceived, what is now perceived is smoke from the very glory of God. In other words, now coming to the climax of the book, we have moved from the holy place into the holiest of all, not even now to look upon the ark, which is the symbolic throne of God, but to see with our eyes the visible evidence of the very presence of God himself. The glory, the Shekinah glory of the immortal God. The glory that Moses and the Israelites once saw when the tabernacle was complete on earth and the fire descended. The glory that Solomon and his people saw when the temple was complete, and the glory descended and filled the house until no one was able to enter for a while into the house. Here in this section five, when the temple of the tabernacle in heaven, the temple of the tabernacle of testimony is opened, and you see right into the most sacred, holiest part of all. You see finally the glory of God and the smoke that arises from the glory of God and from his power, so that none is able to enter in until the vials of wrath are finished. We shall have to consider, of course, as we have considered in every other section, how that vision that is the setting of this section relates to the topic and the subject matter of the section that follows. One other thing we can do, and that I should like you to do this evening, is a very simple thing. I should like you to notice the formal arrangement of the material in this section, and in particular, I should like you to fasten your attention on the series of seven judgments that come in this section five. You remember the other night we began a little experiment, didn't we, in our research? We noticed that every section of the book of the Revelation has somewhere or other a series of seven judgments. And we began to notice where they come, each of them, in their particular section. Let's go through that again very briefly, and then come at section five. You have there somewhere with you the layout of section one. We can do this quickly enough. In section one, there is a series of seven. it's page three of your notes. The series is, in a sense, a series of judgments. It is Christ's appraisal of his churches, his praise of them, but his criticisms of them, and his announcement of his chastisement unless some of them repent. A series of seven, Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea, coming under the scrutiny of the eye of the Lord and judge of the church. We notice that that series of seven comes in section one at point four. It comes at the end of the section. We moved on the other night to page five to the layout of section two. And that also had a series of seven judgments, the judgments that come under the opening of the seals. But they come not at section point four, they come at point three. We then moved on to consider section three, that is page six of your notes. It has its series of seven judgments, but they come not at point four nor at point three, nor at point two, but at point one. And we half suggested to ourselves the other night that perhaps this is merely for the sake of literary variety, you know, to have the same pattern everywhere would make for dull reading, wouldn't it? And John is simply varying the order of things to make it more interesting. Until we came to section four, and there we noticed that it had, uh, a series of seven judgments, or at least seven warnings of judgments, and then judgments, and that they came not in point one nor in point four, but at point three. And as we noticed that, we had a sudden fit of memory and said, wait a minute, there was a previous one, wasn't there, where the judgments came at point three? And we remembered and looked back at section two. And in section two, the seven judgments came at point three, as they do in section four that we had just completed. And having noticed that, we went on to notice that there is a remarkable symmetry and sharing of phraseology between all four parts to both of those sections. And then we discover the more important thing, the reason for that similarity, that formal equivalence, the way they're set out, is that both section two and section four are dealing with a similar topic, topic, one from one side and one from the other. Section two was dealing with the throne of God and the worthiness of God and of the Lamb to receive the worship and service of God's whole creation. Section four has been dealing with the opposite, the throne of the beast, and the grounds of his demand to receive universal worship. So with that in mind, we come now to section five, and you have it there before you, section five, It has seven judgments, of course, and they come not at point four nor yet at point three, but at point 1. And now, perhaps, though it is late at night, we may have another fit of memory. Which was the section in which the judgments came at point one? And of course, that is section three, isn't it? So let's put section three beside section five, and see if there are any formal similarities between them. It doesn't take a long while studying the two series of seven judgments, the judgments under the trumpets and the judgments as the seven vials of wrath are poured out to observe, that the judgments are almost the same. Except for this, that whereas, for instance, in section three it's a third of the sea that's turned to blood, in section five it's the whole of the sea. In section three it's a third of the rivers and fountains of waters that become bitter. But in section five, it is all the rivers and fountains of waters that become blood. A third of the sun is, uh, darkened in section three. In section five, the sun is given to scorch men with fire. And so forth and so on. I needn't delay you. The judgments are remarkably similar between those that come under the trumpets and those that come under the vial. And intelligence would demand that we ask ourselves, why should that be? But look at the second part each time. Here there comes down an angel clothed with a cloud and a rainbow on his head, and his face is the sun, and in his hand is a little book, sweet in mouth but bitter in belly. And in section five point two, we're introduced to Babylon clothed in par- purple and scarlet gold and jewels and pearls, and in her hand she has not a book, I warrant you, but a golden cup of wine, sweet and pleasant to the taste, full of unclean things. More to the point, the great angel swears by the creator that there shall be delay no longer. He is concerned with this question of the silence of God and why there is an apparent delay. Why God has not answered the prayers of his people and avenged his people before, and the angel swears an oath to comfort them. There's not going to be much more delay. As in point two of section five, John, in being shown the judgment of Babylon, to a panorama of history. One of the beast's heads, uh, will say, five are fallen, says the angel, one is. One is yet to come, and he must, uh, uh, uh, come for a, a short while. And then there comes the final one. He's one of the seven, he is an eighth, and he goes into perdish- perdition. John is being told the timetable in terms of the history of imperial powers on the earth, and by that timetable being given to know when Babylon will be destroyed and the saints of God avenged. And, uh, the angel uses the term, doesn't he, mystery. When the seventh angel sounds, he says, the mystery of God shall be finished. Meet Babylon. On her front is the word mystery. It is indeed a mystery of iniquity. Then we come to point three in each case. And in section three, paragraph three, focus of attention is upon the holy city trodden underfoot by the Gentiles for forty two months. In paragraph three of section five, attention is concentrated on what you may call the unholy city, the city of Babylon the Great. And where Jerusalem is downtrodden of the Gentiles, Babylon says, I sit as a queen, and I shall not see mourning or desolation. After the 100 and sixty days, the lampstands of the prophet's witness are extinguished by the beast. But when Babylon is finally judged of the Lord, we read that no lamp shall ever shine in her again. And finally, you will notice how similar are the comments that come at point four in each of these sections. In section two of the work, the comment was by the great multitude coming with their praises to God for his salvation. They come escaping from the great tribulation. It was an escape story. At the end of four that we have just studied, we hear the song of those that come victorious from the beast. It is an escape. But neither of these are escape stories. In three and in five, the comments are in the form of thanksgivings to God, that the time of his judgment has come. The time to avenge his servants, to give reward to the prophets, and to destroy them that destroy the earth. So here, these two sections, three and five, are not only formally the same, but all the way down they share common themes. And why is that? The reason is, of course, that they are discussing the same problem once more from two different points of view. And I have tried to sum it up in the blurb that I have put at the top of each, uh, page. In section three, it was the problem of the silence of God in the face of evil and his apparent delay in avenging his saints, apostles, and prophets. And when it ends, the time has come to reward the prophets and the saints and those that fear God's name and to avenge them. In section five, the Holy Spirit con- uh, concentrates on the judgment of Babylon. And why on Babylon? Because Babylon it is, says the Holy Spirit, that has been largely responsible for the persecution of the saints and the apostles and the prophets. In her was found the blood of all the slain. And when at last Babylon is judged, the voice breaks out in heaven, and calling upon the apostles, the prophets, and the saints to rejoice, saying, God has judged your judgment on her. This is a filthy woman, drunk with the blood of the martyrs and the saints. She, in her mad career of trying to sit upon the beast and use the beast for her own interests, has been the one largely responsible for the persecuting of the saints, for the suppression of true teaching, for the execution of the prophets all down the ages. And at last, that great persecutress is judged and destroyed by God, and the prophets and the saints and the apostles are finally avenged. Two sections dealing with the same theme, but from different points of view. We've already considered the one point of view. We've already considered the one point of view. Our task tomorrow will briefly answer as briefly as we can the question, well, what is the point of view of the other section, namely section five? And if perchance tonight, before you go to bed or wherever it is you go, you will do a little thinking on that score, a little extra bit of homework, well, it would be all to the good, but I don't expect you will. I have no right to expect you. Yours has been a heavy day. Thank you for your patient listening. Shall we just commit our studies to the Lord? Lord, now we put ourselves before thee once more. We thank thee for this day and the way thou hast enabled us to use it, to wait upon thee and to study thy holy word. Now our minds and our bodies are tired, and we commit to thee what we have tried to learn, what is of thy good and holy spirit implanted upon our minds and memories, that in the day to come the blessed Holy Spirit may revive it as we may have need. In it all, show us what is good, that we should retain, and what is false that we may discard. But in it all, be pleased to use it, we do beseech thee, to the glory of thy Son. Today, by thy grace, we have heard thy call. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, mind, soul, and strength. By thy grace, we have thus sought to do. To love thee with our minds, till our minds now are tired, and to love thee with our hearts. Take these little sacrifices of our time and energy, we do beseech thee, for thy son's dear sake, and use them for his increased glory, for his name's sake. Amen.