Revelation Study Series 24 - God’s Mysterious Plan Fulfilled (Chapter 19a)
05.22.22
Message…
Revelation 19
1 After this, I heard what sounded like a vast crowd in heaven shouting,
“Praise the Lord!
Salvation and glory and power belong to our God.
2 His judgments are true and just.
He has punished the great prostitute
who corrupted the earth with her immorality.
He has avenged the murder of His servants.”
3 And again their voices rang out:
“Praise the Lord!
The smoke from that city ascends forever and ever!”
4 Then the twenty-four elders and the four living beings fell down and worshiped God, who was sitting on the throne. They cried out, “Amen! Praise the Lord!”
5 And from the throne came a voice that said,
“Praise our God,
all His servants,
all who fear Him,
from the least to the greatest.”
6 Then I heard again what sounded like the shout of a vast crowd or the roar of mighty ocean waves or the crash of loud thunder:
“Praise the Lord!
For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.
7 Let us be glad and rejoice,
and let us give honor to Him.
For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb,
and His bride has prepared herself.
8 She has been given the finest of pure white linen to wear.” For the fine linen represents the good deeds of God’s holy people.
9 And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.” And he added, “These are true words that come from God.”
10 Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said, “No, don’t worship me. I am a servant of God, just like you and your brothers and sisters who testify about their faith in Jesus. Worship only God. For the essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus.”
Key Verse:
Revelation 19:9
And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.” And he added, “These are true words that come from God.”
Our daughter Anna’s wedding was yesterday!
Like any bride at a wedding all eyes were on her. My mother-in-law made her beautiful wedding dress (saving us a bunch of money)...
It was an honor to walk her down the aisle! ?(A relief to give her away! Only joking!)
Everyone stood as we took those steps!
All eyes on her! (No one cared about me!)
You get to the end of the aisle and the preacher says…
Who gives this bride to be married to this man, “her mother and I”!
For any of you fathers, parents…that is an emotional moment in a wedding!
You just handed over something that means (has meant/still does) the entire world to you!
(Yet, you do so celebrating because you know, hope…it will get you grandkids!!!)
The groom comes and takes the bride's arm/hand…
they exchange vows, rings, and then a kiss…and they are married!
Now she becomes the world to him!
Then, a reception…a big wedding feast!
For us it was brunch! Anna wanted breakfast food! (I didn’t care…it came with bacon!)
When they were first talking about getting married I asked Anna what she was planning. She said it would be small. I asked how many were “small”, she said 250! I said that’s not small!
She also asked me how much money I had been setting aside for her wedding! I said…well, I have news for you! ?That is small!!!
Weddings are expensive people!
Guess the average cost of a wedding in America? $28,000 In Michigan $25,000. The highest is New Jersey at $47,000. And, the lowest is Wyoming at $15,800. ?Go to Wyoming!
https://www.theknot.com/content/average-wedding-cost
Parents…let me help you out here! Kids, girls, ladies… you don’t need an expensive wedding! Save that money on living after the wedding!!! ?Just some advice!
After the wedding you have the reception! That whole feast is a celebration of the two, a bride and a groom becoming one…husband and wife!
Everyone celebrates and rejoices in the life they look forward to sharing together. You eat, clink your glasses or utensils to make them kiss!
Weddings are fun! (As long as you're not paying for it!)
There is going to be a wedding in Heaven! All are invited!
Jesus spoke of this in a parable…
Remember, a parable is a story that reveals spiritual truth…
Matthew 22:1-2
1 Jesus also told them other parables. He said,
2 “The Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a king who prepared a great wedding feast for his son.
Clearly, this “son” is the Son of God. Jesus is the “son” in this story.
Matthew 22:3-14
3 When the banquet was ready, he sent his servants to notify those who were invited. But they all refused to come!
4 “So he sent other servants to tell them, ‘The feast has been prepared. The bulls and fattened cattle have been killed, and everything is ready. Come to the banquet!’
5 But the guests he had invited ignored them and went their own way, one to his farm, another to his business.
6 Others seized his messengers and insulted them and killed them.
?(Seems like an odd response to a wedding invitation, right? You can understand why the son might be upset.)
7 “The king was furious, and he sent out his army to destroy the murderers and burn their town.
8 And he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, and the guests I invited aren’t worthy of the honor.
9 Now go out to the street corners and invite everyone you see.’
10 So the servants brought in everyone they could find, good and bad alike, and the banquet hall was filled with guests.
11 “But when the king came in to meet the guests, he noticed a man who wasn’t wearing the proper clothes for a wedding.
12 ‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how is it that you are here without wedding clothes?’ But the man had no reply.
13 Then the king said to his aides, ‘Bind his hands and feet and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
14 “For many are called, but few are chosen.”
?That sounds like a rough wedding!
People were invited and didn’t come…every wedding has that!
But, not often are people who attend carted off and cast into darkness/weeping/gnashing of teeth (hell)!
…”Bind his hands and feet and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’” (vs. 13)
What’s going on at this wedding in this parable?!
You’ve heard of people crashing weddings!
There will be no crashing the wedding of the marriage between Jesus, and His bride!
All are invited! Many will choose to not go!
Others have hated the very fact that they were even invited! And, they have plotted, worked against, and killed those that did the inviting!
Some want to go…but they are not dressed properly.
Being properly dressed is talking about salvation!
Isa. 61:10 I am overwhelmed with joy in the LORD my God! For He has dressed me with the clothing of salvation and draped me in a robe of righteousness. I am like a bridegroom dressed for His wedding or a bride with her jewels.
But, Jesus said elsewhere…
Matthew 7:21-23
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
Who enters the kingdom of Heaven? All who do His will!
What is His will?
Matt. 7:37-40
37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.
38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.
39 This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day.
40 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”
I said earlier that in a wedding all eyes are on the bride.
In this wedding all eyes are on the Groom! Jesus!
The bride is the church! The Bible tells us this.
This bride is not a denomination, or religious institution or building! The church is those that are His…a called out assembly of believers!
We are told that our human marriage is symbolic of what our relationship to Jesus is supposed to be…
Ephesians 5:21-27, 31-32
21 And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
22 For wives, this means submit to your husbands as to the Lord.
23 For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of His body, the church.
24 As the church submits to Christ, so you wives should submit to your husbands in everything.
25 For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up His life for her
26 to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God’s word.
27 He did this to present her to Himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she will be holy and without fault.
…
31 As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.”
32 This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one.
Most Bible scholars believe that this wedding feast takes place in Heaven, while the people on the earth at that time are in the last days of the Great Tribulation.
It will take place right before Jesus' Second Coming (His glorious appearing), but only after the judgment Seat of Christ has occurred in Heaven.
There are two judgments…
The Judgment Seat of Christ which is for believers and occurs before Jesus' millennial reign.
2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body.
And the other is The Great White Throne Judgment which is for all unbelievers and occurs after the millennial reign.
(We will see this in ch. 20)
Salvation is not about works! It is of faith!
Ephesians 2:8-9
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
However, our works after salvation…the evidence and proof we are saved are important for they will bring us reward…or lack thereof. You can gain reward and you could lose reward!
(We don’t lose salvation, but can lose reward in Heaven!)
James 2:18-19
18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
19 You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!
20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?
Works does not save. But, works is the evidence you have been saved!
Revelation 19:9
And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.” And he added, “These are true words that come from God.”
Why should you be one of the few who accepts Christ’s invitation to the wedding feast? To be His bride? To receive Him unto salvation?
Vs. 19…
“Praise the Lord! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God.
“belong” - He owns it! It’s who He is!
What belongs to God?
Salvation…
Isaiah 45:22
Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.
Acts 4:12
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
Glory…
Psalm 145:5
I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty, And on Your wondrous works.
Power…
1 Chronicles 29:11
Yours, O Lord, is the greatness,
The power and the glory,
The victory and the majesty;
For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours;
Yours is the kingdom, O Lord,
And You are exalted as head over all.
Salvation, Glory, Power…that’s the Groom that is waiting for you!!!
Revelation 19:9
And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.” And he added, “These are true words that come from God.”
even so come
All of creation all of the earth
Make straight a highway a path for the Lord
Jesus is coming soon
Call back the sinner wake up the saint
Let ev'ry nation shout of Your fame
Jesus is coming soon
Like a bride waiting for her groom
We'll be a Church ready for You
Ev'ry heart longing for our King we sing
Even so come Lord Jesus come
Even so come Lord Jesus come
There will be justice all will be new
Your name forever faithful and true
Jesus is coming soon
So we wait we wait for You
God we wait You're coming soon
So we wait we wait for You
God we wait You're coming soon
Like a bride waiting for her groom
We'll be a Church ready for You
Ev'ry heart longing for our King we sing
Like a bride waiting for her groom
We'll be a Church ready for You
Ev'ry heart longing for our King we sing
Even so come Lord Jesus come
Even so come Lord Jesus come
God we wait we wait for You
God we wait You're coming soon
?
CCLI Song # 7036288
Chris Tomlin | Jason Ingram | Jess Cates
