Well we come back to Revelation
19 and to look particularly at the second half but always there's
something to say to set the context. I've called this message the
victorious lamb and his armies because that's what we see in
the second half of Revelation 19. The God of grace is taking all of his people out
of this world to eternal glory. Thus it is. That's what he's
doing. And the book of Revelation is given to assure the people
of God, to assure us. It isn't, as some people treat
it, some weird spiritual jigsaw puzzle. And, you know, if you
rise to certain levels of prophetic competence, you're able to fit
all the pieces together in the most compelling way. That's not
our purpose. We're not trying to fit together
some weird spiritual jigsaw puzzle, but to see the promise of eternal
good to his people, because right at the very start, that's what
God says. is the purpose of it, to show his servants things which
must shortly come to pass. It's his promise of eternal good
to his elect multitude. It's his promise of just judgment
of all rebellion, beginning with Satan's rebellion and right the
way through everything that has come from him and his rebellion.
All of that will be judged justly because the nature and being
and holiness of God demands it. Now the purpose of this book
It's not some complex picture that we have to fit together.
Its purpose is to comfort the people of God. Its purpose is
to assure the people of God, for we live in a world of flesh
and of trials and of sin and of things that would drag us
down and things that cloud our vision. But the purpose of this
is to give comfort and assurance. The book consists of seven visions,
seven clear visions of accomplishment of God's kingdom. It must be
seven. The number of God is seven, the number of perfection. That's
the number that it takes to complete the triumphant kingdom of God.
The triumphant kingdom of God, triumphant over Satan's rebellion. And of course, I've mentioned
many times, it isn't chronological. It doesn't start at chapter 1,
and events unfold, and then by the time you get to 22, that's
the end of the story. No. It's a set of changing perspectives
as they unfold in time. Changing perspectives of God's
purpose in time to recover his kingdom that Satan usurped in
the fall in the Garden of Eden. When we got to the end of chapter
16 of Revelation, that was the end of history. The people of
God had been taken out of the world before the seven vials
of the wrath of God, the holiness of God, the righteousness of
God, in the context of the sinfulness of man and of this world. The
end of chapter 16, that was the end of history. The people of
God taken out and then those vials fall to bring it all to
the end. So you think, well, is that the end of the book?
Well, no, it isn't. Chapter 17 to 20 gives separate reports
of aspects of the end of the world. So in chapter 17, we saw
a woman, a gorgeously arrayed woman. Oh, it must be the church.
No, it was Babylon. It was mystery. It was Antichrist. It was this world religion, false
world religion, the whore sitting, riding upon the world empires,
upon the beasts that came up out of the sea of humanity, the
beasts of chapter 13. We saw Babylon, the Antichrist
and the world empires, unmasked for what they really are. We
saw world history there, in a nutshell. And then, in chapter 18, we saw
that godless worldly society of Babylon, because it's all
Babylon, the godless worldly society, we saw it violently
ended. And everything that men and women
trust in, and treasure, and put their hopes in, and aspire to
accumulate great amounts of, and set all their hearts and
their hopes on the things that they can possess in this world,
we saw it violently taken from them. And they were wailing and
they were screaming as they saw it all taken away from them.
But that's the just judgment of God that is coming. And then
in chapter 19, we've seen God and his people in heaven. And
remember I said that I believe that that is outside of time.
We're in a realm of time. Eternity is outside of time.
And I believe in that realm. If you're Christ's child, if
you're the child of God, if you're one of his believing people whom
he redeemed from the curse of the law with his precious blood,
you and I now are sitting in heaven. And we were there when
John saw that much people in heaven. And then In chapter 20,
which we'll get to next week, we have a summary of history
and of Satan's striving for supremacy, but limited by how much God allows
him to do. And then the final eternal judgment. And then, of course, in chapters
21 and 22, we have the full final realization of God's triumphant
kingdom in heaven, the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven. But
in trying to understand and fit it all together, Keep in mind,
this is how God completes his kingdom. And if you are his,
if I am his, this is your eternal reality. This is my eternal reality. This is the solid thing to which
we look. That old song, I wouldn't say
it's a good source of sound doctrine, but these words are very accurate. This world is not my home. I'm
just a passing through. Do you remember it? That's true. This world is not my home. For
a believer, this world is not my home. I'm just passing through.
So we've seen various perspectives in Revelation of the end of this
world. It even started in chapter 6,
with the seals being the sixth seal of the seven-sealed book. In Revelation 6, 12 to 17, there's
the great day of his wrath has come. That's one perspective.
of the end of the world. Then in chapter 11, verses 15
to 19, there's the seventh trumpet and this Christ triumphant, another
perspective of the end of the world. Then in chapter 14, verses
17 to 20, there's the glorification of the saints, the people of
God, and the righteous judgment of God's enemies, another perspective
of the end of all things. In chapter 16, verses 16 to 21,
there's that most vivid description of the battle
of Armageddon, which is again a perspective of how God brings
justice to play on this sinful world of rebellion and Satan's
schemes to dethrone God. It's the final destruction of
all things. And you might say, well, I'm
struggling to understand all of that. I'm struggling to fit
together this great big jigsaw puzzle of complicated visions.
Well, get this. Just boil it down to this. For
sure, this world in which we live is heading for its end. I don't care how young you are,
how old you are, that is the fact. God has revealed it. This
world is heading for its end. And nothing that you or anyone
else in this world might value here will survive. And that's
why Jesus said, don't lay up treasure for yourself on earth.
Lay up treasure in heaven. Where your heart is, that's where
your treasure will be. Is your heart in heaven? Is that
your home? Is that where you long for? Nothing
that you or anyone might value here is going to survive. And
then secondly, get hold of this. that this world seems to be evil,
doesn't it? It seems to be growing in evil.
It seems that godlessness abounds, and what a terrible state it
is. If you're a child of God, if you are taught by God's Spirit,
if His Word is your guide, you must be distressed and alarmed.
But don't be, for Christ will defeat all opposition to His
rule. He defeats all opposition to
His rule. None of it will survive. And
then, Grasp this, the righteousness and truth of God will be upheld
in strict justice. It says, let God be true and
every man a liar. What everybody thinks, I don't
care how esteemed they are in the eyes of this world, let God
be true and every man a liar. Oh, they bow down before the
big names who support this kingdom of Antichrist, but Know this,
on the strength of God's Word, and by the direction of His Spirit,
the righteousness and truth of God will be upheld in strict
justice. Those worthies, those worthies
of this world, that this world so reveres, those symbols of
the image of the beast that this world so reveres, are going to
be brought down to hell. That is fact. And fourthly, get
hold of this, only those who are the Lamb's bride. Only those
whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. Only those
chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world. Only those for
whom Christ came to shed his precious blood, because it was
only those whose sins he bore in his own body on the cursed
tree. Only those shall escape in triumph with the Lamb of God
for eternal bliss. Let me remind you of the Lamb's
Bride. I'm not going to repeat last week's sermon, but just
briefly, verses 7 to 10 of chapter 19. Last week we looked at the
clothing. The glorious, the bride made
herself ready. It was granted, granted. She didn't do it herself. It
was given as a gift to her that she should be arrayed in fine
linen, clean and white. For the fine linen is the righteous
acts of the saints. What are the righteous acts of
the saints? The Pharisees asked Jesus. This is the thing that
you do, to do the will of God, to do the works of God. Believe
on Him whom He has sent. That righteousness. And it says
in Isaiah, doesn't it, 61 verse 10. It says in Isaiah 61 verse
10, He has clothed His people with the garments of salvation.
It means that He has made His people fit. There's another parable,
that marriage supper of the Lamb is pictured and they're all arrayed
in the garments of salvation and therefore justified and qualified
and made meat to be there at that great feast, that marriage
supper of the Lamb. And one comes in who doesn't
have that garment on, and of course he doesn't really, it's
a parable. You cannot go there without that garment, that righteousness
of Christ. And how do we get it? We are
made the righteousness of God in Him. He who knew no sin was
made sin, the sins of His people, and He bore that sin, and He
suffered the curse, and in suffering the curse, He took the curse
away for His people, that His people might be made the righteousness
of God in Him. But how do you know you're counted
among them? How do you know? Am I among them? How do I know
that I am counted among these people of God? Look at verse
10. John was so overawed by this vision that the one who was revealing
these things to him, he says, I fell at his feet to worship
him. And he said unto me, don't do that. I am your fellow servant. I'm one who's in heaven already. I am your fellow servant and
of thy brethren and have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God,
for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. He's
one of his brethren. We're brethren together. How
do you know you're counted amongst them? You're amongst the brethren
of the people who believe the Lord Jesus Christ and have the
testimony of Christ. And what is that? It's to live
by the Gospel, to know the Gospel and live by the Gospel. It's
to confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh to redeem
his people from the curse of the law, as the book of God has
said right from the start. It's discerning that it is only
by the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, shed for me
in my place, that I am counted worthy to be amongst the brethren
of God in heaven, worshipping Him. We rejoice in His salvation
accomplished. Do you know what it says in Philippians
3? We worship God in the Spirit, we rejoice in Christ Jesus, we
have no confidence in the flesh. We rejoice in His salvation accomplished. I love reading Robert Hawker, so much good spiritual food,
but how does he say often, so often, oh my soul, look at this,
look at this truth in the scripture, oh my soul, look at this. Do
you have that feeling? Do you know that rejoicing in
the salvation that Christ has accomplished on our behalf? This
is what it is to be among the brethren of this one in heaven
with the testimony of Jesus, to be counted among them, living
now with this testimony. We make ourselves ready. It's
not something that you do and then go away. We live with it
now and make ourselves ready. We do these things, as Peter
says, 2 Peter 1 verse 10. He says, give diligence. He talks
about the things of the precepts of the gospel and of grace. Give
diligence to do these things, because if you do them, you will
make your calling and election sure, he says. You will get that
assurance that you are among those people. whom he's coming
for, who when you leave this life are going to be with him.
We're living in this world. We're living in this world. We
have to breathe its air and eat its food and drink its water.
We're living in the world, but we live in wilderness separation
from it. We live not as rebels, not as
aggressive troublemakers. We seek, as Paul encourages,
to live at peace with all men. As much as is in us, we don't
do anything to try and cause an argument. We seek peace with
all men, but we don't imbibe the culture of this world. We
don't drink that in. We don't treasure its values.
We don't go, oh yes, this is what they're telling us that
we should believe in these days, so we better go along. No, no,
no, we live according to this word. To the law and to the testament,
if they speak not according to this word, there is no truth
in them, no light in them. That's our touchstone. The morals of this world, we
don't go along with them. because they're the morals of
Satan and of evil. We don't go along with its Antichrist
teaching concerning religion. It's man-made religion. We don't
go along with it to the law and the testimony. We seek to live
by this word. It's ambitions. We don't go along
striving after the ambitions of the world. You know, I keep
hearing the advertisements on the radio, go and buy your lottery
ticket. This week it could be you. That's
not my ambition. That would be the greatest curse
that could ever happen to you. No, we don't go along with the
ambitions of this world. We live as the people of God,
as Don Faulkner used to say, on the tiptoe of faith, looking
for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. anticipating His return,
hoping like the virgins in that parable, the ten virgins who
had oil in their lamps, Holy Spirit oil of communion with
God in their lamps, ready for the bridegroom to come, ready
for Christ to come. That's how we make ready. But
be sure He is coming. He is coming. And heaven is our
destiny. I saw much people in heaven. This is God's glorious kingdom.
It's the eternal home of God and his redeemed people. That's
it, the eternal home of God and his redeemed people. So many
live, I know we live in flesh and we're bound by time, but
so many live as if this is it, this is all that there is. No
it isn't. Heaven. heaven. The glorious kingdom
of God is the eternal home of our God, our loving Redeemer,
our friend and our brother, who is our Master and our Lord. It's
the eternal home of Him and His redeemed people. As Hebrews says,
Hebrews 13, 14, he says, here we have no continuing city. But we seek one to come. Oh,
this, yeah, this world is not our home. We're just passing
through. Like Abraham, we look, as Hebrews
11 verse 10 says, we look for a city which has foundations,
whose builder and maker is God. Not the razamataz of this world's
cities, not the evil and the vice of this world's cities. We look for a city which has
foundations, whose builder and maker is God. These things which
are seen are temporary. These things that seem so solid
are temporary and passing away. The unseen things of heaven of
the spirit world, of the spirit of God, they're the things that
are eternal. That's, you know what I've said
in the past, I really do not like the idea for a believer
to say, oh, that's on my bucket list and I must do this, that,
and the other, no. Do you know there's only one thing that should
be on the bucket list of God's true people? Everything else
is incidental, but there's only one thing on the bucket list
of God's true people, and that's to attain to the kingdom of God
in eternity. That's it. That's where our treasure
is invested. Not here. Do you believe that? Well, look at the Lamb's victory.
In verses 11 to 21 that we read earlier, the second half of chapter
19, we get another perspective of the certainty of Christ's
victory. It's not that this happened after
the previous ones did. They're different perspectives
on the same thing, in the same way that the four Gospels are
like different aspects of looking at the same statue. the same
account of Christ. This is another perspective of
the certainty of Christ's victory over the beast, over the false
prophet, over all the world's powers who serve and worship
them. This is another perspective. Divine righteousness is vindicated. The lie of Satan. What's the
lie of Satan? The lie of Satan is this, that
we can have a united world utopia, but don't bother about the justice
of God. Don't bother about the righteousness
and holiness of God. We can have that utopia without
the satisfaction of divine justice. It started not only in the Garden
of Eden, but then at Babel, with Nimrod and the Tower of Babel,
all attempting to reach to heaven without satisfaction of the justice
of God. And of course, there's only one
thing that enables heaven to be attained, to satisfy the justice
of God, And that's the redemption accomplished by the Lamb of God. That's why He is the Lamb slain
from the foundation of the world. God's people are all with Him
in heaven. And all of them in heaven, all
of them, this is hard for us to imagine, but it's true, will
be without sin. Sin mars everything we think
and do in this flesh. For we're all children of Adam
in this flesh. Time is coming. He's using the
wrong word, isn't it? Time, talking about eternity.
But the state is coming when we will be without sin. We will
be clothed in the garments of salvation. We will be taken out
of the world before the vials of God's just wrath fall. We will be taken out before Armageddon. So what are we shown here? about
the one who is described as the captain of our salvation. Hebrews
chapter 2 describes Christ as the captain of the salvation
of his people. Now clearly, this is a vision. The words that were read by Stephen
to us earlier, this is a vision. It is symbolical of reality,
but it isn't literal. How can it be? Think about it.
How can somebody wear many crowns? It's just not physically possible.
How can an angel be in the sun? It's not physically possible.
Look at the ravenous birds eating the... It's all vision and symbolical. It's vision of complete military
triumph. Look in verse 11. I saw heaven
opened and behold a white horse and he that sat upon him was
called faithful and true and in righteousness Righteousness,
he doth judge and make war. That white horse pictures military
triumph. A great stallion, a powerful
beast of war, it's always a picture of military triumph is the white
horse. This is clearly God in the person
of His Son. No man has seen God at any time.
The only begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father, He
has made Him known. He's coming to judge and make
war in righteousness, because this creation is cursed with
sin, with rebellion against God, and the very nature and being
of God cannot possibly tolerate that. He who is infinite and
above all cannot tolerate that. His justice, his character, his
name, his person will not tolerate it. He must come and judge it.
So as God in holiness of being, with all the authority of his
office. You know, we even try to make it happen like that in
a court of law, that the judge who is a mere man or woman is
elevated to a position where everything has to bow in respect
before the office of what that one does. And look at his name,
faithful and true. Faithful and true. Oh, what a
contrast to Satan, who is the father of lies. Satan is the
father of lies. The Lord Jesus Christ is faithful
and true. Everybody in this world, all
the ones who seek to lead, constantly talk about, we must seek the
truth. We must get to the bottom of
this and find out the truth. And then you see them have their
inquiries and their parliamentary debates. And there's nothing
other than lies in it all. There's nothing other than distortion
and self-interest. Because why? The heart of man
is sinful. It's deceitful above all things.
Who can know it? Who can know it? God knows it.
God tries the reins. He is faithful, the Lord Jesus
Christ, the Son, the manifestation of God to His people, is faithful. He's faithful to the Father.
He came to do the will of the Father, and that's what He accomplished.
And what was the will of the Father? That all that He gave,
all the people, the multitude, chosen in Christ before the foundation
of the world, that He gave to Christ to redeem from the curse
of the law, He should redeem every one of them. and the justice
of God would be satisfied. So he's faithful to his father,
to his father's will, to fulfill the covenant, that covenant between
the persons of the Godhead before the beginning of time. Faithful
to his people in the promises he makes to them. He's faithful
to his enemies in the judgment that he's coming for. He has
promised they will not escape the judgment. Contrast this to
the lies of Satan, that if you're an unbeliever, If you're hedging
your bets, and you know there's something in the truth of Christ,
but you don't want to go along with it yet, you're an unbeliever,
and you have believed the lies of Satan. The Lord Jesus Christ
came in time. He came in time, didn't He? Here
He is, riding on a white horse, a symbol of military majesty. He came in time when He laid
that glory aside, as Philippians 2 tells us. He came in humility. He laid aside that glory which
He had for the Father from before the beginning of time. He rode
into Jerusalem, not on a majestic white stallion. he rode into
Jerusalem on a humble ass's colt. Not even the adult one, an ass's
colt, a symbol of fallen mankind. He went, how far did he go? He
went to the cross, the wooden cross, the Roman cross, the Roman
cross of a shameful death. Why did he go there? To bear
the sins of his people in his own body on that cursed tree,
that there the payment might be made to the full. He said,
I have finished, and the word he uses is, I have paid the penalty
in full. If you believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ, Your penalty before the law of God has been paid in full. And when you read those words,
that we must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ and
give an account, you say, He died for me. Who shall bring
any charge to God's elect? He died for me. Here He is, in
majesty, in this vision and certain victory. We read right at the
start, Psalm 45. Do you think on Christ? Look
at this, Psalm 45, my heart is indicting a good matter. Ah,
these are good thoughts to think on. These are good thoughts to
meditate on. Not the vile things of this world.
My heart is indicting a good matter. I speak of the things
which I have made touching the King. Touching is talking about
the Messiah. My tongue is the pen of a ready
writer. Oh, I've got to write this down. Thou art fairer than
the children of men. That echoes of the Song of Solomon,
isn't it? Grace is poured into thy lips.
Oh, the truth and the... No man ever spake like this man. His enemies sent those to round
him up and put him in irons and take him away and they came back
without him and they said, why haven't you brought him? We sent
you a band of strong soldiers to go and bind this Jesus of
Nazareth and stop him talking. And they said, no man ever spake
like this man. Grace is poured into thy lips,
therefore God hath blessed thee for ever and ever. Now listen,
we've seen this vision of him in Revelation 19. Gird thy sword
upon thy thigh, O Most Mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty,
and in thy majesty ride prosperously, because of truth meekness. What did he say? I am meek. He
who is above every name, name above every name, he who has
the preeminence over everything said, I am meek and lowly of
heart. This is gospel truth. because
of truth and meekness and righteousness. And thy right hand shall teach
thee terrible things. Thine arrows are sharp in the
heart of the king's enemies, whereby the people fall under
thee. Look who he is, this one riding
this horse. Thy throne, O God, is for ever
and ever. the scepter, the royal symbol
of power. The scepter of thy kingdom is
a right scepter, unlike Satan's, which is an evil scepter. Thou
lovest righteousness and hatest wickedness, therefore God, thy
God, see this is the persons of the Trinity, hath anointed
thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. Look in verse
12 of chapter 19. He has eyes that are a flame
of fire. We've seen this before. There
is nothing that He cannot see. He sees into the very heart.
On His head were many crowns. He has complete authority. And He has, look at verse 12,
the end of it, He had a name written that no man knew but
He Himself. a name written that no man knew
but he himself. Look at Revelation chapter 2
and verse 17 in one of the letters to the churches in the first
vision. He says this, He that hath an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit saith unto the churches. To him that overcometh will I
give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone,
that's a stone of justification, of righteousness, and in the
stone a new name written, which no man knoweth, saving he that
receiveth it. Is this not saying to us in chapter
19 and verse 12 and then that reference
in chapter 2 verse 17. It's only Christ and his people
know how his blood makes satisfaction for their sins. That's it. The
world doesn't know. It's a name that only he knows
himself, how he has accomplished redemption. Only his people that
have that name, only they know that name. It's the name that
says your sins are forgiven and taken away. And then in verse
13, he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood, and his name
is called the Word of God. He has blood-stained garments. Many people say this is the blood
of redemption, the blood shed at Calvary. Well, maybe, but
I think if you look at Isaiah 63 and verses one to four, we
read this. Who is this that cometh from
Edom, from the enemies, with dyed garments from Bosra, this
that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of
his strength, I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save.
Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like
him that treadeth in the wine-fat? I have trodden the winepress
alone, and of the people there was none with me. For I will
tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury, and
their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments. And I will
stain all my raiment, for the day of vengeance is in mine heart,
and the year of my redeemed is come.' This is God in Christ
coming. in vengeance for sin. The blood-stained
garments are that that we've read in Isaiah 63. Then in verse
15, Out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should
smite the nations, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron,
and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of
Almighty God. There's echoes of Psalm 2 there,
isn't there? A rod of iron. He shall rule
them with a rod of iron. A rod of iron consuming his enemies. With what? With the word of his
mouth. with the sword of the word of
his mouth that comes out of his mouth, for that sword of the
Spirit is the word of God. In the winepress, we read about
that in Revelation 14, the winepress of the judgment of God, blood
up to the horse's bridles for 1600 furlongs was the image there. In verse 14, the armies which
were in heaven followed him upon white horses clothed in fine
linen, white and clean. The armies go with him. What
are they? Are they angels? Well, probably, I don't know,
it isn't precise, but I'm sure it speaks of the saints of God.
For the saints of God, as chapter 14 and verse 4 says, these are
they which were not defiled with women, for they are virgins.
These are they which follow the Lamb, whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among
men, being the firstfruits unto God and unto the Lamb. They follow
him. wherever He goes. And they're
on white horses, just as He is. For it says in 1 John 4, 17,
as He is, as Christ is, so are we in this world. As Christ is
in the judgment of God, so are we in this world. If we're in
Him, we're clothed with the garments of His salvation. There's no
weapon. We're simply armed with the things
of God. In 2 Corinthians 10 verse 3,
for though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh.
For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through
God to the pulling down of strongholds. We're simply armed with the sword
of the Spirit. Christ is elevated. He is the
word of God. God has magnified his word above
all his name, it says in Psalm 138 verse 2. It says also elsewhere, he's
given him a name, Philippians 2 for example, he's given him
a name which is above every name. Magnified his name above everything,
he magnified his word above all his name. This is Christ. Christ
is the word of God, the one who manifests the fullness of God
to his people. And there the redeemed follow
him. They follow the Lamb. in righteous
warfare, with all that opposed God in this creation. In verses
17 and 18, I saw an angel standing in the sun, crying with a loud
voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven,
come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great
God, that ye may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of captains.
Now I know that sounds like a gory picture, But that is a picture
of utter and complete defeat on the battlefield of old. Come
and witness the judgment being executed. The opposition is there. The beast, verse 19, the beast,
the kings of the earth, their armies gathered together to make
war against him that sat on the horse and against his army. But
the war is finished as soon as it's begun. The beast was taken,
and with him the false prophet, there, go back to chapter 13,
that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them
that had received the mark of the beast, head and hands, thoughts,
what you do, this world, all around us, and them that worshipped
his image. These both were cast alive into
the lake of fire, burning with brimstone. Oh, we don't believe
all that utter nonsense there. Why, how can anybody believe
that this day? You wait and watch. God will
do what he has said. They will be cast into the lake
of fire, burning with brimstone. That's what he says, that's what
he means. The war is over as soon as it started, because Christ
has destroyed them with the word of his mouth. The remnant were
slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse. Which sword
proceeded out of his mouth? The sword of his word. And all
the fowls were filled with their flesh. This is the certain end
of all things. that are in opposition to God's
rule, to God's righteousness, to God's justice. There is nothing,
listen, children of God, you who believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ, there is nothing for God's people to fear in this
final battle. I remember talking to people
who claimed to be Christians years ago and they were like,
oh dreading the battle of Armageddon, oh is it going to be terrible,
we're going to go through the battle of Armageddon, oh how
dreadful it's going to be. There is nothing for the people
of God to fear in this final battle. You know, the scripture
is so rich. You go back a long way in the
Old Testament. Second Chronicles, chapter 20 and verse 15, we hear
this. Be not afraid nor dismayed by
reason of this great multitude arrayed against God, for the
battle is not yours, you people, it's God's, and God is supreme
over everything. Now, before I close, just in
a couple of minutes that remain, I want to say a word about prayer.
We've been thinking about eternal certainties. Eternal certainties
that are promised to us here. But how do we remain connected
with all of these things? The answer is this, simply, we've
got the Word of God to show them to us, but prayer, it's prayer
by which we communicate with God, we commune with Him. In
Revelation 5 verse 8, and other places too, the odours which
are the prayers of the saints ascend up to the throne of God. While we remain here, we have
this Word of God, but we also have prayer. We have access into
God's presence for He's redeemed. In Proverbs 15 verse 29, it says
this, the Lord is far from the wicked. Who are the wicked? Told
you before. Who are the wicked? Oh, people
that do really bad things. No, no. What's the biggest wickedness
you can commit in this world? Because it's the root of every
other wickedness. The biggest wickedness you can commit is
to disbelieve God. Unbelief is the biggest wickedness
you can commit. The wicked are those who do not
believe God. And they're in opposition to
those who are righteous. How are they righteous? They
are made the righteousness of God by faith in the Lord Jesus
Christ. The Lord is far from the wicked.
but he hears the prayer of the righteous. Are you made righteous
by the Lord Jesus Christ? The God of the universe, the
God who spoke and it happened, the God who today, in the person
of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Word of God, upholds all things
by the Word of His power, hears the prayer of those he has made
righteous. He hears the prayer of those
he has made righteous. This is living spiritual reality. It is to spiritual life what
breathing is, to physical life. We must breathe. You know, you
can do without water for a couple of days. You can do without food
for a bit longer. You can't do without breath for
more than a minute or two, can you? It's like breathing. Spiritual
reality is this, prayer to God. God will have us pray. You know
what he says in Ezekiel chapter 36 verse 37, if ever you doubted
Hear this, this is what God says in Ezekiel. He said, I will be
inquired of, of the house of Israel. I'll have them pray to
me. Why? To do it for them. I will have them pray to me so
that I can do it for them. Oh, children of God, let us learn
to come into the throne room before the throne of grace and
pray. Pray without ceasing. Pray persistently. How many parables talk about
that? Don't give up. You know, in Exodus chapter 17,
I'm not going to be long. I know 40 minutes has gone, but
Exodus 17 and verse 11. Israel's in its wilderness wanderings,
and they're fighting with Amalek, one of their enemies. And verse
11, it came to pass when Moses held up his hand, that means
he prayed to God with uplifted arms, that Israel prevailed. Israel was winning. And when
he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. Amalek was winning.
But Moses' hands were heavy, because he was of flesh. And
they took a stone, he was an old man as well, and they put
it under him. And he sat there on. And Aaron,
his brother, and her, H-U-R, stayed up, held up his hands,
the one on the one side and the other on the other side. And
his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. And as
long as his hands were held up, as long as he was praying for
the people of God, Joshua discomfited. Good word that, isn't it? Joshua
discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. That
is written in a book for a memorial. Pray without ceasing, persistently,
not giving up when things, when crises, because we get crises
that appear and we pray and God answers and it seems settled
and so our enthusiasm to pray wanes because we're weak in the
flesh. No, hold up those hands. Brethren, one another, encourage
one another to hold up those hands. Prayer is the beating
heart, the breathing lungs of communion with God while we wait
for his promised victory to fill our gaze in eternity, which it
surely will. Amen.