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 Sermon > Official Service |
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Title |
Revelation Lectures(87) - Revelation Lectures (87) |
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Speaker |
Rev. Jaerock Lee |
Bible |
Revelation 21:8-9 |
Date |
2009-01-16 |
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Scripture
Revelation 21:8-9
[8] But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.
[9] Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, "Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb."
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
Once the Final Judgment is over, Apostle John looks into New Jerusalem that God has prepared.
Tears, mourning, and afflictions are over on the earth. Through God's many long years of long-suffering He has accomplished His providence of getting true children.
The saved souls can now enter heaven, and especially those who have become sanctified and have been faithful in all God's house can enter into the glorious New Jerusalem.
The scripture has already described New Jerusalem in detail, however, God gives a word of warning once again.
Revelation 21:8 says, "But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
It is to remind us of the fact that there are souls who cannot enter heaven even though God has prepared it so wonderfully.
Now, who are the cowardly?"
They are those who are afraid of the Judgment because they act in sin and evil even though they profess they believe the Lord.
Just as the Bible says, "The wage of sin is death," no matter how many times people confess with their lips that they believe the Lord, if they act in unrighteousness, they cannot enter heaven.
They've heard it and learned it, and they know it, but they still love the world and they won't depart from sin and evil.
Since they are not confident of their salvation, they have fear of hell. They cannot be confident before God, either, because they've heard the truth and they know it as knowledge.
Our God is love itself, and He is the Father full of mercy and compassion.
However, to the extent that they have untruth in their hearts, people consider God not as the God of love, but as a God who is to be feared and the God of judgment.
1 John 4:18 says, "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love."
When you live in the Light and accomplish perfect love, you will have no fear in your heart.
By the way, from time to time you may find that the Bible tells us to fear.
For example, Philippians 2:12 says, "Work out your salvation with fear and trembling."
And 1 Peter 1:17 says, "If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth."
The "fear" in this case is not the 'fear' of the cowardly who are afraid of the punishment of judgment.
Instead it has the connotation of being sensible and exercising self-control in order not to commit sin and to live by the word before God.
It is the heart of fearing the God of Justice, and it is being sensible in order to keep from committing sin in self-indulgent looseness and arrogance.
Furthermore, among those who don't completely live in the Light because they are weak in faith, some can keep their faith because of this 'fear.'
They still have affection for the world, but they keep making an effort not to commit sin because they don't want to go to hell.
In this case, it's not that they cannot go to hell because they have this 'fear.'
If they are able to live in the truth because of this 'fear,' they can be saved and go to heaven.
Even in this way, if their faith grows up, then they will be able to live a Christian life not because of fear, but because of the joy and thanks they have in their love for God.
Next, who are "the unbelieving?"
Of course, the worldly people who don't believe in the Lord cannot enter heaven.
However, "the unbelieving" in this scripture refers to those who go to church but don't have true faith.
They have faith that is no more than stored knowledge.
They believe in the parts of the Bible they want to accept, but if something is not in accordance with their thinking and beliefs, they deny it.
Some don't believe in the resurrection, heaven and hell, and the countless signs and wonders.
And thus, even though they go to church, they cannot be healed of even a small disease.
Those who truly believe God believe that God will surely pay back, and thus they seek for others' benefit; they become humble and they die daily.
On the contrary, those who don't believe disobey the truth for their benefit, and they compromise with the unrighteousness. In this way they are no different from the worldly people.
James 2:17 says, "Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself."
Even though they say they believe their faith is dead. It is faith without works. Since they don't have spiritual faith even as small as a mustard seed, they cannot enter heaven.
Now, "the abominable" are those who abandon human restraint and reason in actions which pass over the bounds of common sense
Of course, even though they may have been a felon criminal, if they accept the Lord and repent, they can receive salvation.
However, if they still commit cruel sins while confessing they believe, it is for sure that they will have nothing to do with salvation.
Now, "murderers" refer not only to those physically murder a man, but also to those who are spiritual murderers.
Here, "spiritual murder" is to cause someone to stumble in faith.
It is to cause someone to come out of the truth, and to harm his spirit.
For example, there is a situation where someone who is in a leading position in a church acted in unrighteousness by teaching church members wrong things that would cause them to go to the way of destruction.
There is another situation in which he gave improper counsel to church members to cause them to fall into greater troubles than already existed.
There are other cases where they speak what should not be spoken, and they convey evil words to make others stumble.
Conveying other's transgressions to others to make them judge and condemn, making people hate each other, and making a synagogue of Satan; all of these are situations of spiritual murder.
Slandering a servant of God or a church wrongfully to make others stumble will also be judged before God without fail.
Luke 17:1-2 reads, "He said to His disciples, "It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble.""
If they are truly children of God, they should never cause others to stumble because of their evil.
"Immoral persons" also have two meanings.
You may already know the physical meaning of "adultery," and its spiritual meaning is to love something more than God.
Children of God should love God more than anything else.
Of course, when they are novice believers, they may love the world more than God.
Even if a novice believer loves the world, it doesn't mean that the novice believer cannot be saved.
What matters is the people who are experienced and have been given duties yet they love the world more than God while professing that they love God.
For example, someone loves sports games so much that he thinks only of a sport game which is on TV even when he comes to church and worship God on Sunday.
Chances are that he may skip the Sunday Service and go to see the game.
It is to love the world more than God and to make God sorry.
James 4:4 says, "You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God."
The more he does those things that are hostile toward God, the farther he is from salvation.
Now, "sorcerers" are those who call for and communicate with evil spirits through secret arts in the forms of magic or the conjuring of spirits.
They communicate with evil spirits not only for themselves, but they also tempt others.
Believers should know all things are from God, and they should depend on God for any matters and solve them according to the spiritual law.
When faced with a problem, however, those who deeply communicate with the evil spirits try to solve the problem through the force of the darkness such as depending on exorcism and using a charm
It doesn't help solve the problem, but it rather worsens it and calls in the works of the evil spirits.
When they try to solve the problem through the evil spirits, it may appear to be OK in the beginning, but it will actually become worse and worse.
Besides, if God-believing people do things like this, they will be ridiculed by the enemy devil and Satan, and they will also be neglected by God.
As written in Leviticus 20:27, you can find that the Bible tells us that we should not tolerate any man or a woman who is a medium or a spiritist, but they should be stoned to death.
God also strictly warns that those who believe and follow them should also be cut off from others.
However, the 'sorcerers' in this scripture doesn't only refer to those who perform secret arts to communicate with evil spirits.
Some people continue to accept evil thoughts and they even develop their evil thoughts all the more even though they go to church.
Even if they used to do like these before they accept the Lord, they should change after they accept the Lord.
They should continue to change their thoughts into the thoughts of truth and goodness and light.
However, if they still develop their evil thoughts, it is eventually to accept the work of Satan and to communicate with the darkness.
Since they accept the darkness into their hearts, they may become completely be captivated by the darkness.
They give in their heart and mind to Satan, and they finally accept the work of the devil or demons.
Those of you who have heard the world of truth should be able to discern whether what you have in your thoughts is the thinking in the Spirit or the thoughts of flesh.
Of course, you may have worries or anxieties in the Lord.
However, even in this case, those with thoughts in the Spirit will have life and peace deep in their hearts.
Moreover, when their thoughts come to an end and they reach a conclusion they can depend on God and their strength will be renewed
If it's not the case, and instead their hearts have become darkened, confused, or disheartened, and if they don't get strength but become discouraged and tired, they have the thoughts of flesh that are hostile toward God.
At this moment, they should immediately cut off the fleshly thoughts.
Moreover, they should not stop praying fervently so that they can burn up all the fleshly thoughts and the untruth which is the foundation of fleshly thoughts.
I hope that no darkness will come near you but you will only communicate with the Holy Spirit.
Next, you may already know what it is to 'worship idols.'
Those who practice idolatry to an extreme become the prey of evil spirits and they fall into many hardships.
The curse comes not only onto them but also brings harm to their third or fourth generation.
Congenital disability, alcohol addiction, mental illness, depression, suicide, and other troubles don't stop.
Even if they want to repent and know God, they are interfered with spiritually so as to not to keep them from having faith.
However, you've heard the word on how to cut off the bonds of curses, and there are actually those who have managed to severe the ties that bound them.
It is to completely repent of their or family's idol-worshipping, and to diligently pile up the works that can please God.
Above all else, if they come into the spirit, any binding of evil can be cut off.
I've told you that besides this fleshly idol-worshipping, there is spiritual idol-worshipping.
It is to love children, husband, or anything more than God, and to make whatever it may be a spiritual idol.
No matter how many times people see the works of God and live as a Christian, unless they believe in the depth of their heart, they may still have the affection for the world.
If you truly believe in the word of God and in heaven, you will give everything to possess this heaven.
But, people don't believe God completely and thus they have something that they love more than God, and it becomes an idol; this is an affront to God.
Just as 1 John 5:21 says, "Little children, guard yourselves from idols," I urge you to have nothing to do with either fleshly idols or spiritual idols.
Now lastly, the scripture mentions about "all liars."
Our God who is Light is the truth itself, and there is no shifting shadow with Him.
Being fond of lies and speaking lies are against God; it is the attribute of the enemy devil and Satan.
Usually, people will make up lies which can hurt others and gain personal benefits.
In order to cover their faults or shame, they distort the truth and moderate what they say.
Well, it's not that you immediately fall into hell when you tell a trivial lie in your everyday life.
However, if you long for New Jerusalem, you should never leave even the trace of the attribute of falsehood
Not walking the right way but compromising, giving wrong answers, and playing the hypocrite; all these are from the false heart.
You should keep the promise with God for sure, and you should not break the promise with others, and you should not change what you've decided for your benefit.
In addition, those who hate brothers while confessing they love God, and those who don't live in the light but walk in the darkness while confessing they have fellowship with God; the bible says they are also liars.
When people continue to pile up these lies, they can even tell a lie that may lead them to death.
They can speak lies to the people of God without fear, and they can try to deceive before God.
For example, since Ananias and Sapphira tried to deceive a servant of God who was with the power of God, their souls left them on the spot.
1 John 2:22 says, "Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ?"
In their evil, they deny the truth, blaspheme the work of God, and tell lies; how evil are they?
There are even some who call the work of God the work of Satan, and blaspheme the Holy Spirit.
Tonight's scripture says, "The cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
It means that, even if they go to church and confess they believe the Lord with their lips, if they live in sin and evil, they cannot go to heaven.
Now, as this word of warning is done, Revelation 21:9 starts to talk about New Jerusalem again.
It says, "Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, "Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.""
The reason it mentions 'the seven bowls and the seven plagues' is not because there are still some plagues left.
It is to mention the seventh plague that was from the seventh bowl among the many plagues that took place during the 7 Year Great Tribulation.
It is that, one of the angels who carried the plagues spoke to John.
Now then, who is "the bride, the wife of the Lamb" that the angel tries to show to John?
Does it refer to our God-believers?
No, it doesn't.
Later in the scripture, the angel takes Apostle John to New Jerusalem and shows the holy city to him.
"The Lamb" refers to Jesus Christ, our Lord, who became an atoning sacrifice to save all mankind.
And the brides of the Lord are us, the true believers.
However, in tonight's scripture, "the bride, the wife of the Lamb" doesn't refer to us but to New Jerusalem.
Those of you who heard the last lecture may become curious.
In the last lecture, New Jerusalem was made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
I explained that it is because New Jerusalem is like a bride to the true believers.
As I explain its meaning once again, I hope you can understand tonight's scripture and the last lecture well.
A bride is a woman who is adorned and waiting for her bridegroom.
Also, a wife is a person who stays close to her husband so that they can depend on each other and love each other.
Now in heaven, it is our dwelling place where we will live that plays the role of our bride and wife.
Especially those houses in New Jerusalem are adorned best to welcome their owners and wait for them.
When each enters their own house, they will dwell in it forever, and they will be provided with all they need.
According to their taste, they will be provided with all kinds of services as they wish to receive.
No matter how well a bride in this earth serves her bridegroom, she cannot be better than the house in New Jerusalem serves its owner.
Moreover, the houses in New Jerusalem will be filled with all kinds of things only when we enter there, and then they can have true value.
Thus far is the explanation of the last lecture regarding the relationship between New Jerusalem and the God-believers.
Now, let's look at the reason tonight's scripture calls New Jerusalem "a wife of the Lamb."
It's because the meaning of New Jerusalem goes in a pair with the meaning of the Lamb, Jesus Christ who completed the Law.
"A wife" can be paired only with "a husband," and they can have one complete meaning.
New Jerusalem also has its pair with spiritual meaning; its pair is the Lamb, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Jerusalem in this earth is the city to symbolize the Law of the Old Testaments.
I also told you that the reason God names the holy city New Jerusalem is to celebrate that Jesus completed all the laws with love.
By the Law of Old Testaments, for a sinner to be forgiven of sin, he sacrificed a spotless male lamb, which was a year old.
However, as Jesus Himself was crucified on the cross on behalf of this little lamb, whoever believes in it can receive an eternal life.
In addition, thanks to Jesus who became a little Lamb, countless people can now enter the holy city, New Jerusalem.
Therefore, the little Lamb who became an atoning sacrifice to complete the Law and New Jerusalem which is the new version of Jerusalem which symbolized the Law becomes a pair.
To explain this relation, tonight's scripture describes New Jerusalem as a wife of the Lamb.
To explain this meaning of 'the pair,' it doesn't say 'the wife of the Lord,' but 'the wife of the Lamb.'
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
Romans 2:13 says, "For it is not the hearers of the Law who are just before God, but the doers of the Law will be justified."
No matter how well you may hear and learn heaven, no matter how much truth you may know, it doesn't make you righteous.
Even though God proclaimed this year of 2009 is the year of blessing, it doesn't mean that the blessing may come on all of you.
That's why God gives a word of warning again and again.
You should not just listen; you should practice the truth and cast off all the untruths from your heart.
And you should prepare the vessel of blessing.
Only then can the word of New Jerusalem, and the word of blessing of the year 2009 become yours.
Coming into spirit and whole spirit should not just become a confession of lips; I urge you to accomplish it with deeds and truthfulness.
May you have a house in New Jerusalem which is like an adorned bride, in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, I pray!
[Amen] |
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