VIDEO
Will We Experience The Wrath Of Calm? (Revelation 15:1-4)
GIST: We’re given a picture of the end where God’s wrath leads to purifying calm and God’s people sing a song of truth.
Welcome back to our study of Revelation! After taking the summer off for our Summer in Psalms, we’re picking back up with Revelation 15. However, since it’s been about three months since we talked about this book, let me recap with a few quick points.
First, Revelation is not meant to be a puzzle for us to solve. It is designed to show us (reveal to us) Jesus. Now, there is a ton of imagery in this book because it’s apocalyptic literature, and because John was using the best language he knew to describe Heavenly things (which were beyond his experience ☺ ️)—so the whole book is steep in Old Testament imagery. In many ways, these pictures are pictures of how God is moving to bring about His plan to rescue the world and defeat sin. It describes who Jesus is and what the world will be like until He returns often from a variety of angles.
Chapter 14 brought us to an end of one set of images, and chapter 15 picks up with the last major cycle of “7’s”. If you remember from before, the number 7 comes up a lot in Revelation because it was a number of completion, and these list show God completing His work of redemption. But, before we get too much into that, let’s read just the first 4 verses today from Revelation 15→
“1 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. 2 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. 3 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! 4 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."”
Here’s our gist for this morning: We’re given a picture of the end where God’s wrath leads to purifying calm and God’s people sing a song of truth. I want to develop that picture with you guys a bit this morning, then step back and try to chew on some practical takeaways before we close.
I. We’re Given A Picture Of The End
“1 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.”
I won’t keep us here too long, but there are a few points worth noting in the beginning here. First, this is→
Another Sign. John has been walking us through several pictures. This is yet another. And it’s a great and amazing picture. This is actually something we’ve seen throughout the letter. Before we see the judgement of God, we’re given a picture of His glory. Typically, we’re taken into His throne room (See 4:1, 8:1, 11:19). It’s a vital reminder to remember His power and person so you have context for His judgment.
We also see→
7 Angels & 7 Plagues. At least, we will eventually ☺️. Today, they’re just introduced. This is the last of these picture of completion—at least in this “list of 7” format. And it’s said that with this list the wrath of God is finished, so, yes, this is moving toward a picture of the end of the world. Not the last one we’ll see (I mean, we’re in chapter 15 of 22 ☺️), but we’re getting there! And in this end is→
II. Where God’s Wrath Leads To Purifying Calm
“...for with them the wrath of God is finished. 2 And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire…”
Again, I have two points here I want to digest just a bit. First, in seeing this is the end, this specific phrase comes up→
Wrath Of God. Thinking of God’s wrath isn’t something that makes us real comfortable. We love talking about His love, grace, forgiveness…etc., but wrath? Doesn’t that make God seem angry? Let me just make a couple quick remarks on this. First, God’s wrath is still part of His character, which means God’s wrath has to be righteous. When we’re wrathful, it comes from a place of anger, and our anger is almost always riddled with sin. God doesn’t sin, so that kind of anger can’t be the motivation for His wrath. What is then?
See The Strange: The Gospel According To Revelation had a really interesting way of defining God’s wrath. The author pointed out that God is love. It is who He is at all times. God’s wrath, then, is “God’s love burning away all that is not love” (Davis). God does not punish sin because He’s cranky. He punished sin because He loves. Love cannot look at sin which destroys and just do nothing about it. That kind of God is only appreciated in a world where we never see pain.
After being told God’s wrath is about to be brought to an end, we see a→
Sea of Glass Mingled With Fire. If you can remember back to a few months ago, you might pick up on the contrast here. The last time we saw a “sea” it was a picture of chaos and it had the beast coming out of it, who represented those consumed by sin and bent on opposing Jesus. Then, the sea alluded to this ancient view of the sea as a place of danger and uncertainity.
Now, though, the sea is calm… but it’s also mixed with fire. Fire has been a picture of God’s purifying judgment throughout this letter. So what are we seeing here, God’s purifying judgment calming the sea—making things right. He’s not coming to destroy the world willy-nilly. He’s coming to rescue and restore. He’s coming to redeem.
The verses we’re going to close out with today then end with→
III. God’s People Singing A Song Of Truth
“--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. 3 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! 4 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."”
God’s People. They are described as those who have conquered the beast and it’s image, and the number of its name—all of these were symbols of the world consumed by sin. So these are God’s people because no one conquers sin except those who have received the rescue of the sin conqueror! So, they’re standing beside this sea by calm by the purifying fire of God, and they’re→
Singing A Song Of Truth. Notice they have harps in their hands. We’ve talked about this several times as we’ve walked through this study. Harps were used for songs of joy. They are rejoicing as they begin to sing what is called the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb. Moses sang a song after the exodus from Egypt praising God for His deliverance. Jesus came as the Lamb of God, the fulfillment of the Old Testament bringing ultimate deliverance. This is a reminder that all Scripture has been pointing to the same truth and same purpose…and the same God! And He is described in the song:
He is Great & His Deeds Are Amazing. Oh, how I need to step back and remember this. He is also Almighty—nothing is outside His hands, nothing is bigger or better or brighter than Him. He is Just—He does what is right. He is True—truth comes from Him. He alone is Holy—seperate from sinful man, untainted by our falleness, perfect. And still…He loves us any way. He is the good King of All Nations. The song asks: Who won’t serve Him? Who won’t glorify Him? It’s almost rhetorical because the next line says: All will worship Him. There is coming a day when even those who have rejected Him will see Him for who He is and fall on their faces in awe as they realize what this book has been showing us all along—His Righteousness Has Been Revealed!
Ok, let’s hit a few→
TAKEAWAYS
Take time to look away from pain and toward His glory. I need this reminder! The world will try to suck you into despair. Guys, I know I seem like a naturally upbeat person most of the time. That’s not put on. It’s who I am. But that doesn’t mean I don’t feel the weight of the world on my shoulders sometimes. I do, just like you. To be honest, this past few months of ministry has been simultaneously the most rewarding and challenging time of my life. I have seen God do so much good…it’s been amazing! And Satan doesn’t like that, so there has been a lot of Spiritual warfare. I needed this reminder today. Maybe you did too.
Trust His love—which includes His love-driven wrath—to calm all sin-induced storms. There isn’t anything you’re facing right now that His love can’t reach. And immediately as I’m typing those words, Crowder’s “I Am” is jumping into my head: “There's no space that His love can't reach/There's no place where we can't find peace/There's no end to Amazing Grace”.
Rejoice in who He is! Amazing, just, true, holy, King of the World. Grab those joy-harps when your soul is stuck on a loop of angst and belt it out!
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