Grace For Your Day November 13, 2023
In his Commentary on the Book of Revelation, Robert H. Mounce writes:
In Revelation 19, we come now to scenes that depict the final victory of God over Satan and the forces of evil. The fall of Babylon in chapter 18 is a picture of the demise of a proud institution that glories in its accomplishments at the expense of all that is right and good. However, in the end, God’s righteousness will prevail over it.
Following the ecstatic praise of God for his just punishment of the wicked we are told that the time for the wedding supper of the Lamb has come. The church as the bride of Christ will at last be united forever with the Lamb. The realization that this long-awaited day has come overpowers John, who falls to his knees in worship.
This remarkable section of Revelation, which begins with an announcement of the marriage of the Lamb (19:6-10), leads on to the return of Christ as messianic conqueror (19:11-16), the final destruction of the Antichrist and his allies (19:17-21), the binding of Satan (20:1-3), the millennial reign (20:4-6), the end of Satan’s regime (20:7-10), and the great final judgment (20:11-15). As the visions follow one after another, they leave an ever deepening awareness that God really is in control and that righteousness will reign eternally supreme.
Robert H. Mounce is right because the final chapters of the Bible demonstrate that the Lord is sovereign and, one day, He is going to bring justice to the earth because He will not allow the world to go on as it currently is. He will hold everyone accountable for their sin which causes the people in heaven to burst into praise. As Revelation 19:1-6 says:
After these things I heard something like a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying,
“Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God; because His judgments are true and righteous; for He has judged the great harlot who was corrupting the earth with her immorality, and He has avenged the blood of His bond-servants on her.” And a second time they said, “Hallelujah! Her smoke rises up forever and ever.” And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!” And a voice came from the throne, saying,
“Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great.” Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying,
“Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.”
A key word here is the term “Hallelujah” because it is repeated four times in this passage (verses 1, 3, 4, 6) in order to tell us why the people in heaven are praising God. They are doing it for His justice because “He has avenged the blood of His bond-servants” (verse 2). In other words, He has judged those who have hurt the saints. He has not let the guilty go free but, on the contrary, He has punished them for their sin.
We do not often think about this but one of the things that we will be praising God for in heaven is his justice because He will avenge all the wrongs that have been done to us. Every hurt. Every lie. Every crime that has been committed against believers will be pursued with perfect retribution.
The reason I mention that is because this week we are talking about “The Marriage of the Lamb” in Revelation 19:7-10. It is one of the most joyful occasions in the Book of Revelation because it describes the consummation of the union between Christ and His church. However, this event is preceded by one of the most tremendous scenes of celebrations in the letter where the people of God praise Him for His victory over the forces of darkness and, as they do, they remind us that the Lord will triumph over evil in the end.
Do you believe that today? Do realize that God will triumph over evil? Many people struggle with it because they see all of the wicked things that are happening in the world today and believe that they will go on forever but they will not. The Bible says that Jesus will put an end to them in the final pages of Scripture.
Please join us as we talk about that this weekend. The service will begin at 9:30 on Sunday morning and the sermon will be recorded and placed on our You Tube Channel afterwards for all those who cannot make it in person.
- Jeremy Cagle
In Revelation 19, we come now to scenes that depict the final victory of God over Satan and the forces of evil. The fall of Babylon in chapter 18 is a picture of the demise of a proud institution that glories in its accomplishments at the expense of all that is right and good. However, in the end, God’s righteousness will prevail over it.
Following the ecstatic praise of God for his just punishment of the wicked we are told that the time for the wedding supper of the Lamb has come. The church as the bride of Christ will at last be united forever with the Lamb. The realization that this long-awaited day has come overpowers John, who falls to his knees in worship.
This remarkable section of Revelation, which begins with an announcement of the marriage of the Lamb (19:6-10), leads on to the return of Christ as messianic conqueror (19:11-16), the final destruction of the Antichrist and his allies (19:17-21), the binding of Satan (20:1-3), the millennial reign (20:4-6), the end of Satan’s regime (20:7-10), and the great final judgment (20:11-15). As the visions follow one after another, they leave an ever deepening awareness that God really is in control and that righteousness will reign eternally supreme.
Robert H. Mounce is right because the final chapters of the Bible demonstrate that the Lord is sovereign and, one day, He is going to bring justice to the earth because He will not allow the world to go on as it currently is. He will hold everyone accountable for their sin which causes the people in heaven to burst into praise. As Revelation 19:1-6 says:
After these things I heard something like a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying,
“Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God; because His judgments are true and righteous; for He has judged the great harlot who was corrupting the earth with her immorality, and He has avenged the blood of His bond-servants on her.” And a second time they said, “Hallelujah! Her smoke rises up forever and ever.” And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!” And a voice came from the throne, saying,
“Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great.” Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying,
“Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.”
A key word here is the term “Hallelujah” because it is repeated four times in this passage (verses 1, 3, 4, 6) in order to tell us why the people in heaven are praising God. They are doing it for His justice because “He has avenged the blood of His bond-servants” (verse 2). In other words, He has judged those who have hurt the saints. He has not let the guilty go free but, on the contrary, He has punished them for their sin.
We do not often think about this but one of the things that we will be praising God for in heaven is his justice because He will avenge all the wrongs that have been done to us. Every hurt. Every lie. Every crime that has been committed against believers will be pursued with perfect retribution.
The reason I mention that is because this week we are talking about “The Marriage of the Lamb” in Revelation 19:7-10. It is one of the most joyful occasions in the Book of Revelation because it describes the consummation of the union between Christ and His church. However, this event is preceded by one of the most tremendous scenes of celebrations in the letter where the people of God praise Him for His victory over the forces of darkness and, as they do, they remind us that the Lord will triumph over evil in the end.
Do you believe that today? Do realize that God will triumph over evil? Many people struggle with it because they see all of the wicked things that are happening in the world today and believe that they will go on forever but they will not. The Bible says that Jesus will put an end to them in the final pages of Scripture.
Please join us as we talk about that this weekend. The service will begin at 9:30 on Sunday morning and the sermon will be recorded and placed on our You Tube Channel afterwards for all those who cannot make it in person.
- Jeremy Cagle
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