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 Sermon > Official Service |
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Title |
Revelation Lectures(38) |
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Speaker |
Rev. Jaerock Lee |
Bible |
Revelation5:9-14 |
Date |
2007-09-14 |
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Revelation 5:9-14
[9] And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.
[10] "You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth."
[11] Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands,
[12] saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing."
[13] And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, "To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever."
[14] And the four living creatures kept saying, "Amen." And the elders fell down and worshiped.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
God says in Isaiah 43:21, "The people whom I formed for Myself Will declare My praise."
He is talking about the reason He chose the people of Israel.
That is, God formed them for Himself so that they could declare His praise.
And these words apply to all people who are saved and become the children of God.
And so, God is well pleased to receive the praise that His children offer up before Him.
But, He doesn't receive all of the praises with joy.
He receives only the praise that becomes incense as it rises.
The incense of the praise is different from person to person.
Depending on how pure and clean the heart of a praise-giver is, and how sincerely and fervently he gives his praise, the incense the praise becomes is different.
The richness of the incense is different. So is its thickness as the incense rises.
All these are precisely measured, and the results are delivered to the throne of God through angels and archangels.
The same applies to prayers.
Your prayers are also delivered to the throne of God as the incense of prayers.
The prayers you give fervently by faith are put into a golden bowl and brought before God. When it reaches the proper measure according to the justice, you will receive an answer.
But not all the prayers become incense that is brought before God.
When you pray, if you still have a barrier of sin, if you babble in idle thoughts or drowsiness, or if your prayer is not in accordance with the will of God, your prayer cannot be brought before God.
And depending on how much your heart is sanctified, and how much faith and love you offer your prayers, the incense of prayers becomes different.
Such incense of your prayers and praises are precisely measured, and brought before God. And on the Last Judgment Day, all these will be clearly revealed.
And you will receive reward according to the amount of the incense of the prayers you gave for the kingdom of God.
By the way, the reward is given not only for your prayers and praises.
In Matthew 12:36, Jesus says, "But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment."
No matter how trivial the word that people speak, it will be recorded at it is, they will receive reward or punishment for it.
Therefore, you must realize how important every single one of the words in prayers or praise is.
People will make mistakes in their measures or records, but the measurement and record made by angels will have no mistakes at all.
On the Last Judgment Day when everything you've done in your lifetime on this earth is revealed on the sea of glass like crystal, you won't be able to make any excuses for it.
I urge you in the name of the Lord to bear this fact in mind, and make every word you speak during your prayer or praise always beautiful in the truth.
In the verses 9 and 10 is the content of the praise that the 4 living creatures and the 24 Elders are giving to the Lord.
It says, "And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.""
Here, 'a new song' doesn't refer to a song in this world. It rather refers to a newly sung song in heaven.
In this earth, there are songs that we sing in order to praise and worship God. But there are also songs that we sing in order for ourselves to receive fullness and inspiration.
But if we go to heaven, we no longer need to sing a song to receive fullness and inspiration for ourselves.
Of course we will receive all the more fullness and inspiration when we sing praises in heaven. However, since we won't be in the form of flesh as now in the earth, we don't need to sing a song to receive fullness and inspiration any more.
Therefore the purpose of our praise will be only to worship God and to give glory and thanks to God.
Right now, the 4 living creatures and the 24 Elders are singing a new song that is different from the songs they used to sing on earth.
And the song is about the testimony that Jesus Christ is the only one who is worthy to break the seals. And it is also about His ministry as our Savior.
Jesus is not the savior only for the people of Israel. He shed all His blood and died to become the Savior of all mankind.
Just as the verse 9 says, "You purchased men for God with Your blood," Jesus paid with His blood to save every tribe and tongue and people and nation.
In the name of Jesus Christ, the door to salvation was opened, and a blessing has been given for us to become God's children.
"You were slain" refers to the fact that the Lord died at the young age of 33.
Now, the verse 10 says, "You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth." It means that we, who are saved through Jesus Christ, will become a kingdom and priests to our God, and that we will reign on the earth.
In the Old Testament times, only the priests were able to go into the sanctuary.
When a man committed sin, a priest killed an animal on his behalf, took its blood, entered the sanctuary, and sprinkled the blood on the altar in order to redeem him from his sin.
But when Jesus died on the cross as a peace offering between God and us, the veil of the temple was torn apart.
Matthew 27:51 says, "And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split."
And Hebrews 10:19-20 says, "Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh."
And so, it now becomes possible that the saved children of God can worship God in the sanctuary and directly communicate with God.
It is like obtaining the qualifications as a priest.
In addition the saved people receive the right to become the children of God, and they become brides of the Lord, who is the King of the kings, and they will participate in the 7 Year Wedding Banquet in the air.
They will also reign upon the earth in the Millennium Kingdom.
That's why 1 Peter 2:9 says, "You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession."
The 4 living creatures and the 24 Elders are singing a new song about this to the Lord, and it is their testimony that all these are fulfilled through the Lord, Jesus Christ.
Now, the continuing verses 11 and 12 say, "Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.""
The Apostle John is currently looking at many angels around the throne of God and the 4 living creatures and the 24 Elders.
When there are that many angels around the throne of God, just how much more angles are there going to be in all of heaven?
By the way, there is also precise order in the hierarchy of angels.
They also have individual names, and their abilities and authority are also different from one to another.
There are heavenly host that are different from angels, and there are archangels that are the leaders of angels.
That's why we can find names of archangels such as Gabriel and Michael. There are also expressions like 'a strong angel.'
But all angels are the spirits that are managed by God. They obey at the order of God, and they help God's ministry.
God may order angels to control the weather, or God may give them authority over and to manifest natural disaster.
2 Samuel 24:16 says, "When the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented from the calamity and said to the angel who destroyed the people, "It is enough! Now relax your hand!" And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite."
In many parts of the Book of Revelation, we can find that the angels that receive the authority of calamity from God bring about various disasters upon the earth.
In addition, God may send angels to minister to His children.
Daniel 6:22 says, "My God sent His angel and shut the lions' mouths and they have not harmed me, inasmuch as I was found innocent before Him; and also toward you, O king, I have committed no crime."
Upon being cast into the lion's den, Daniel was protected by an angel sent by God.
Also, Acts 12:7 says, "And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter's side and woke him up, saying, "Get up quickly." And his chains fell off his hands."
God sent an angel of the Lord, and the angel appeared in a prison, and saved Peter.
In addition, just as written in Hebrews 1:14, which reads, "Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?" all angels are sent out by God to render service for the saved children of God.
And when the children of God end their life in the earth, their spirits are guided by the angels.
Likewise, each of the angels is given duties (respective to their abilities and authority), and they faithfully accomplish them.
There are countless angels around the throne of God, and they are now making a declaration in a loud voice before the Lord.
They are declaring, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing."
Great is the power of the Lord. We were destined to death, but in His power He led us to eternal life.
And great are the riches of the Lord that are not the perishable riches of this earth, but the riches of heaven.
Everything in the universe belongs to the Lord.
The Lord is one with God who is the origin of wisdom.
And the wisdom of the Lord is the wisdom of sanctification and the wisdom of goodness.
If you can attain this wisdom of goodness, that is possible by sanctification, everything you do will be prosperous.
You can discern the wisdom of cunning Satan, and you can break any kind of evil schemes.
The Lord has might, but this might doesn't refer to the fleshly strength.
It rather refers to the spiritual might that can be acquired through sinlessness.
Limitless might can be obtained from a sanctified heart that has no sin.
It can rule, overcome, and destroy any kind of darkness.
If you sanctify your heart and meet the proper qualification before God, then you will receive the might and authority of spiritual light.
And, it is the Lord who created everything in the universe, and it is the Lord who governs all of it.
He is the most honorable, and He is worthy to receive honor from all creatures.
And He is also worthy to receive all the glory and blessing.
Now, the verses 13 and 14 say, "And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, "To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever." And the four living creatures kept saying, "Amen." And the elders fell down and worshiped."
They keep giving praises to God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, the Lord.
They are saying how great and glorious is the name of God, and they are praising God who accomplished all providences.
All the heavenly host and angels, the saved souls, and every created thing which is on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them are giving praises to God the Creator and the Lord.
And the 4 living creatures respond with 'Amen,' and the 24 Elders fall down and worship.
Likewise, when the history of human cultivation comes to an end, not only the spiritual beings but also the saved souls will understand all the will and providence of God that are accomplished in the name of the Lord.
And all creation will worship before God.
That's because they will be set free from their slavery to corruption.
Romans 8:19-22 says, "For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now."
Therefore, you must long for the day when you receive the freedom of the glory, and fervently adorn yourselves as brides.
If you don't you will fall into the 7 Year Great Tribulation, and enter the midst of suffering that you could never want to even imagine as written in the 6th chapter of Revelation.
We will take a close look at chapter 6 beginning with the next lecture. For now, I will explain the flow of world history as it will become the background of the incidents of Chapter 6.
That is, I'm telling you how and why the incidents of Chapter 6 will take place.
Dear brothers and sisters.
If you look back on the (recent) flow of world history, you can see that the US has led the flow as the dominant country.
They have stood with a sense of their predominance and they have often led the flow of events to their own advantage without due consideration of world opinion.
They have raised their voice on the world-stage and pushed their demands in pursuit of their own national interests.
That is why, as many of the mistakes they made in the past became evident, and though they didn't mean to, many unwanted enemies were made.
And other forces of influence came into existence that are in opposition to the US. They restrain the US, and have begun to compete with them.
In the past it was the prevailing thought that the US would have its own way for long. But now, there are influences that restrain the US from acting independently on it's own.
This condition will deepen more and more. And the US will lose more of its influence over the flow of world events in the future.
It doesn't mean that it will lose the dominant power that it has built up in a day. But the whole world already recognizes how weakened the power of the US has become.
And there will appear the new influential power appearing on the world stage. They are China and the European Union.
Russia will also become a great power of influence.
And in such a situation, the significance of oil will become greater than ever. The oil will become like a weapon, and it will be strategically important.
They will finally compete over oil against each other.
And Israel and the Middle East will become the focal point.
There is already high tension between Israel and other Middle East countries. And the forces of the world will compete against each other in the Middle East over oil.
Not only the US but also China and Russia, and EU which will rapidly grow in its strength and will appear and ally on the stage of competition and confrontation.
And they will naturally be divided into two camps.
Outwardly it will look like confrontation between Israel and Middle East countries, but there are greater forces behind them.
The US, the conventional ally to Israel, will support Israel, but EU, which will become a restraining force against the US will support Middle East countries.
In such a situation, it is important which side China and Russia will ally. Eventually, they will take sides with the EU.
Then, the US will appear to be inferior to others. However, even though their power has become weak, they still have great power.
Moreover, there will be many countries in the world that will take sides with the US.
Therefore, it appears that the whole world is divided into two great powers and that they stand against each other in Israel and Middle East.
Of course there will be countries that don't want to get involved, but in this way the whole world will be drawn into a huge vortex of war.
Middle East will be in a touch-and-go situation, and situation will be so insecure that a tiny touch will ignite the dynamite and it may become a world war.
Likewise, the flow of the history of the world will become very tense, and in the end the 3rd World War will break out in Middle East.
It doesn't mean that the 3rd World War will break out as soon as the 7 Year Great Tribulation begins.
The trend of the world events will develop all the more rapidly during the 7 Year Great Tribulation, and when the time comes, the World War will eventually break out.
We will get down to Chapter 6 beginning with the next lecture.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
Since the beginning of this church, I have prophesied the history of the world.
I always communicate with God, and at this time God tells me in great detail.
I cannot tell you everything, but you are the witnesses to the fact that what I prophesied has been precisely fulfilled so far.
The same will happen in the future history of the world that I will tell you during this lecture of Revelation.
They will be precisely fulfilled as prophesied. .
As I told you before, even though I'm telling you the things that will take place in the future, none of you will have to experience them.
All of you must enjoy the 7 Year Wedding Banquet with the Lord.
I don't to even think about any of you falling down and entering the midst of the 7 Year Great Tribulation.
Therefore, I urge you to possess true faith to reach salvation through the countless works of God's power and the fulfillment of the prophecies that you have witnessed so far.
May all of you give praise, honor, glory, and blessing before God the Trinity - the Father God, the Lord, and the Holy Spirit - forever and ever, in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, I pray! [Amen] |
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