Let's turn with me to Revelation
chapter 1. Our study begins this morning,
beginning in chapter 1, verse 7, with the announcement of comfort,
joy to all believers. John says in verse 7, Behold,
he cometh with clouds. Take note. give attention to this great
fact, He cometh. Who cometh? Well, the fateful witness, He
who we considered last Sunday, the first begotten of the dead
the prince of the kings of the earth, Him who loved us, that
is to say, His people, and washed us from our sins in His own blood. He who has made us kings and
priests unto God and His Father. That's what we consider. characteristics
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Who is He? That's who He is. He was taken up, the Scripture
says, turn over to Acts chapter 1. He was taken up back in the
first chapter of the book of Acts. He had spoken. He was speaking. to his apostles. And he said in verse 8 to his
apostles, But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost
is come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in
Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the
uttermost part of the earth. And when he had spoken these
things while they beheld." Now think about this. He's talking
to them. And while he's talking to them,
telling them, this is what's going to happen. While they beheld,
he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly
toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them
in white apparel, which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why
stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus which is taken
up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as ye
have seen Him go into heaven." Now you stop just for a second. Just realize something. At this very moment, as we speak. Our Lord is in heaven. He is our High Priest, our great
High Priest, there ever living to make intercession for His
people. And at this very moment where
two or three are gathered in the midst He is here. And the Scripture says back in
Revelation, Behold, take note, be aware of, don't be confused
about, listen up, He cometh. While they looked, these two
men told Him, this same Jesus that you see taken up He is coming
back. Brother Scott just read John
14. He told them. He said, I go to
prepare a place for you. There where I am, there you may
be also. In my Father's house are many
mansions, many dwelling places. He said, if it wasn't so, I told
you. I am telling you. That was the faithful witness
saying that. And he said, if I go to prepare
a place for you, I'm coming back for you. Now this is the anxious
anticipation of God's people that He cometh. That's what John
said, Behold, He cometh. Now let me tell you the amazing
thing about that word, cometh. It doesn't say, He shall come. It doesn't say, He's going to
come. Now, I understand the implication
of the way we think. But that word right there, He
cometh, it's a present word. He cometh. My kids with us, all
of my kids, Hannah, Becca, and Sammy, they're all my kids, you
know. The other day they were on their way to come to the house. And I kept calling, you know,
where are you? What point are you along the
trip, you know? And they finally called and told
me, they said, we're 18 miles out from exit 132. Well, in my
mind, they're here. They're here. And so about that
time, I go to the house and like a caged lion, you know, I'm just
kind of standing out there just looking out, you know, just watching
the driveway. Why? Because I know that in a
moment I'm going to see a car out there and I'm going to go
out there and greet them, you know. They're cometh. You know,
they're cometh. He cometh. They're right there. Right now, right now in the heart
of God's people, He cometh. Right now. Days of a thousand
years of the Lord and a thousand years is a day and He cometh.
Right now He cometh. His Word establishes it. And presently, the people of
God, they anxiously anticipate Him coming. Titus chapter 2 and
verse 13, looking for, Paul said, that blessed hope and the glorious
appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ with
anticipation. He cometh. This is how God's
people, that glorious appearing, that's how He's going to come. Behold, John said, He cometh
with clouds. Clouds. Back in Matthew chapter
24. Turn with me there. Matthew,
we're going to turn to a few passages, but as I've said before,
This is needful. These Scriptures. We take our
Bibles and we open our Bibles up and we look upon these words
and the Spirit of God reveals to us. Matthew 24, 29. The Scripture says, immediately
after the tribulation of those days, shall the sun be darkened
and the moon shall not give her light. The stars shall fall from
the heaven and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken,
and then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven.
And then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they
shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with
power and great glory. And He shall send His angels
with a great shout of a trumpet, and they shall gather together
His elect from the four winds and from one end of heaven to
the other. He came the first time in humility. Let me just read this for you. Philippians 2 verse 7 and 8,
He made Himself of no reputation, took upon Him the form of a servant,
and made in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion as
a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even
the death of the cross. also had highly exalted Him and
given Him a name which is above every name. He came into this
earth, first time, in humility, born in a manger, a stable, wrapped in swaddling
clothes, had the presence of animals. Isaiah 53 says, He is despised
and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces
from Him. And He was despised and we esteemed
Him not. He came into this world He was spoken to disrespectfully there at that mockery of a trial. He was spit on, laughed at. He's being laughed at right now. I don't doubt for a second that
it's not one place in all of the world. I don't doubt in any
one congregation Scripture talks of tares among the wheat, foolish
virgins among the wise virgins. In any one congregation, even
this one, those that know Him not in their heart, they laugh.
They think nothing of Him. And here He came into this world
despised and rejected of men, but the Word of God says, Behold,
he cometh." Not as a baby, not as the little baby Jesus wrapped
in swaddling clothes, not as some men stick these little stickers
on the back of their car. I saw one the other day that
says, ìMy boss is a Jewish carpenter.î Let me tell you something. Your
boss may be a Jewish carpenter, but Iím telling you who this
Word right here declares is coming back. God Almighty in glory and
honor, not one that you can hawk at, He cometh as the King, the
Judge to receive His own to Himself and to execute wrath and judgment
to receive His own to Himself, to divide the sheep from the
goats. Behold, He cometh." The scribe, you David, said in
Psalm 68, verse 3, strength unto God. His excellency is over Israel. His strength is in the clouds. He is coming back. And not in
secret. People talk about this secret. It is a secret. Don't be. The
Scripture says, Behold, He cometh with clouds, and every eye is
going to see Him. You are looking at me right now.
One of these days, we are all going to look on Him. He shall come. He is coming. And to every one of His sheep,
They shall see Him when He shall appear. They'll see Him like
He is and they'll be like Him. They'll see Him as He is and
will rejoice. They will behold Him as their
Redeemer, their Elder Brother, their Substitute and their Salvation. And immediately, they'll know
Him. That's Him. That's my hope. That's all my
glory. He's all my honor. And they,
the Scripture says, love His appearing. But the Scripture
says, every eye shall see Him, and they also that pierced Him.
You see, those folks have been dead for almost 2,000 years. Those that pierced Him, they'll
see Him. and those that pierce Him now
in unbelief, they will see Him. Every eye is going to see Him.
And the Scripture says, "...and all kindreds of the earth shall
wail because of Him." All races, all clans, all people, everybody. I am talking about the person
that is in the farthest, most remote jungles of the farthest
country that you can possibly imagine where no sense of civilization
at all has ever seen. And I'm talking about those that
sit in the capitals of the world and those that sit this morning
in any house, in any part of any nation or country or anywhere
that sit right here down the street. Every eye, every one
of them, they're going to wail Not in repentance, but in absolute
hopelessness. Every eye is going to see Him.
Those that know Him will rejoice. Those that don't, the Scripture
says, they will cry for the rocks and mountains. Fall on us and
hide us from the face of Him that sits on the throne and from
the wrath of the land. Behold, He cometh. Listen, you
will never forget the words that you just heard. You'll never
forget them. Those words will forever be in
your mind. Forever. Those that know Him
and those that don't, you will never forget the words you just
heard, and neither will I. Behold, He cometh. And John said
in verse 8, these words spoken, I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning
and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and
which is to come, the Almighty." Here is the One that cometh. The immutable, eternal, God Almighty. Alpha and Omega. A to Z. And all between. That's who's
coming. A to Z. Everything. Nothing before, nothing after. You think about the alpha and
the omega. Twenty-six letters in the alphabet,
I think. Twenty-six letters. If someone
were to say, well, I'll tell you what I think I'm going to
do. I'm going to write something outside of those right there,
Sammy. I'm going to write something before A or something after Z."
You say, you can't. There is nothing else. Well,
I'll make up one. No, you won't. It's not understandable. There is no letters. There's
nothing before A. I'm going to get something before
A. No, you're not. Well, I'll just write something
and add to Z. No, you won't. I'm Alpha and Omega, beginning
and end. Four times the Lord Jesus reveals
His title. in this revelation. He is the
complete, perfect, eternal revelation of Almighty God. There's no hidden
parts. There's no secret. As Brother
Scott said, there's no other way. I am the way. Alpha and Omega, beginning and
end. No other truth, no life outside
of me. When God said to Moses, Moses
said, who shall I say sent me? He said, you tell him that I
am. I am. First, last. A to Z. Alpha, Omega. I am. Same with the Father. In verse 4, this was the description
of the Father in John 1, 4. John, to the seven churches which
are in Asia, grace be unto you and peace from Him which is,
which was, which is to come. There's the Father. And from the seven spirits which
are before His throne, there's the completeness of the Spirit. And look at verse 5, and from
Jesus Christ who is the faithful witness, first begotten. And
now in verse 8, the Lord speaking, He says, I'm Alpha and Omega,
I'm the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is and
which was and which is to come." What he's saying is this, I am
the Father of one. That's what he said in John 10.30. He starts all things. He ends
all things. Even when I say starts, that's
not even the right word. There's no beginning. How do
you say, I little fickle mind? I mean, you know, how do you
speak and say we always think of something had to start. No,
it didn't. The everlasting Father. The Prince
of Peace. The beginning. The beginning. When you come to a beginning,
then there was uh-uh. No, it was before that. Everlasting. He is the reason of all things. By Him all things consist. All things were made by Him and
for Him. And without Him was not anything
made that was made. So if all things were made by
Him, He is before all things. That's what the Scripture says.
Everything that is said of hope and peace and comfort before
Almighty God is Him. The chief cornerstone, the Good
Shepherd, the King of kings, the Lord of lords. the water,
the bread, the great High Priest. The Lord said in John 24-27,
speaking to the two on the road to Emmaus, it says, In beginning
at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in all
the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. The Scriptures, they
speak of Him as the Law of God. He's the Lawgiver, the Alpha. The end of the law? He's the
Omega. I'm the beginning and the end.
So in Him, we're free from the law. That's what we're saying
about it. Free from it as far as obeying it for salvation. Christ is our need. He said, I'm the end of the law.
And the wonder of this glorious revelation of the Lord Jesus
Christ is that God Himself has revealed Himself unto men. Matthew 11, 27 says, No man knoweth
the Son, but the Father. Neither knoweth any man the Father
save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him. And then John says in verse 9,
I, John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation
and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ was in the isle
that is called Patmos for the Word of God and for the testimony
of Jesus Christ. We see, first of all, the common
ground upon which all of God's people stand. Here He is set
forth or setting forth Himself. John is. fellow believer. All of God's people are on the
same ground in grace, in mercy. Now, I understand, and you too,
that there are different positions that, you know, maybe one person
is set apart by Almighty God, but there's not one person that
is set apart, exalted above measure. That's what Paul says that the
Lord sent a messenger of Satan to buffet him, lest he should
be exalted above measure. There are eyes and ears and feet
and toes and hands, but they are all put together for the
glory of Almighty God and the good. John says, I am your brother,
your companion in tribulation. I am your brother. You know,
when I read that word, I am your brother, That speaks of adoption. Adopted into the family of God. God Himself speaking to men through
a man. Men who are all led to walk providentially
in this world and suffer trials. That's what 2 Timothy 3.12 says. All that will live godly in Christ
Jesus shall suffer persecution. But if you be without chastisement,
whereof are all partakers, that is, all of God's people, then
you are bastards and not sons, if you be without chastisement. John says, I am here as your
brother, a companion in tribulation in the kingdom and patience of
Jesus Christ. for the Word of God and for the
testimony. That is the reason that he was
here on this island, an island called Patmos. And the Lord had
sent him there. Now, I know this, that there
was probably no doubt that men saw John as being an opposer
to the established religion Now, the world is not opposed to religion. No, on the contrary, the world
is religious. The world is not opposed to preaching,
that is, lies. What the world is opposed to
is they are opposed to the Lord Jesus Christ as this book, this
Scripture, reveals Him to be. Nobody is mad at a Jesus that
died on the cross to try to save people and to make salvation
possible. Nobody is opposed to Jesus who
came into this world and went to the cross and died, as they
say, paying for everybody's sins and if you will accept Him. Nobody
is opposed to that. But I'll tell you this, I'll
tell you what the world is opposed to. The world is opposed to the
revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ who is God's Messiah,
God's Lamb, who came into this world and walked in this world
as a man and obeyed perfectly the law of God as the representative
of His people and they in Him who went to Calvary and was made
to be sin, truly sin, real sin. Now, I don't understand the depth
of what I'm saying, but I can tell you this. He was made sin. He was made to be what you and
I are. real and suffered the wrath of
God Almighty for His people and laid down His life for them and
died for them and paid the penalty for them being made sin if He did not become what we
are by nature. And you and I have no hope. That's the Christ that men hate. That's the reason John said,
I was here. Because of the Word of God and
for the testimony of Jesus Christ. Men don't hate the other one,
but that's another Jesus. They hate God because God Almighty
is sovereign and does as He will. Hates the message that gives
man nobility. and no honor and no glory. That's
the Christ they hate. He said, I'm your brother and
companion in tribulation and in the kingdom, in the patience of Christ. I was in this isle
for the Word of God. As far as the world was concerned,
some criminal act. But truthfully, He was there
for the glory of Almighty God. All things work together. for
good to them that love God, who are the called according to His
purpose. I know and don't doubt for one second that, humanly
speaking, John suffered while he was on that. He wasn't in
a good place. I don't doubt that. I'm sure that there were no real
conveniences. I don't doubt that. But how thankful
I am that Almighty God in His infinite mercy and wisdom and
grace and goodness, for His honor and His glory and for our good,
Put that man exactly where he is right now. I'm thankful. I appreciate it. I'm thankful. I'm thankful for Brother Scott.
I'm thankful for those things that you've suffered. And I know
you have. I'm thankful. I'm thankful. But Almighty God would take a
man and put him in a place. Bring him through some stuff.
and teach him some things, and show him some things for his
honor and for the good. He said, I'm here. I'm your brother. I'm your companion in tribulation,
in the kingdom, in the body, in the church, and in the patience,
waiting on God Almighty, knowing that He's doing all these things
well. And he said, verse 10, I was
in the Spirit on the Lord's day. And I heard behind me a great
voice as of a trumpet. Now, I don't doubt for one second
that John in this particular point right here was caught up
as Paul and Peter and Ezekiel. And I've read, and you have too,
read of instances in the Word of God The Lord took a man just in a
way that is beyond what we know of. Away and taught him. Paul
says, he said, there was a man, whether in the body or out of
the body, and I don't know. He said he was caught up in the
third heaven. Heard things that couldn't be
uttered. And God Almighty taught him some
things and used that man to pen. The Spirit of God moved upon
that man to call him a holy man. The Holy Ghost moved upon holy
men. Men set apart and made holy,
Chuck, by the imputed righteousness of Christ. And they wrote down
under the inspiration of God's Spirit. I know that. Back in
Ezekiel, Peter said, I was on top of a roof one day. And the
Lord began to show him something. He saw a sheet coming down. You know what I'm talking about.
So in a sense, I know that when Peter said or John said, I was
in the Spirit on the Lord's day, I am convinced that the Lord
and taught him some things and showed him some things in a way
that you and I don't know anything about. But, in a sense, all believers
live and walk in the Spirit. He said, I was in the Spirit
on the Lord's day. In Romans chapter 8, the Scripture
says, There is therefore now no condemnation
to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh,
but after the Spirit." Now, I looked up that word, walk. It means
to live, to follow, and to be regulated. To walk. to have the inward and outward
life regulated by the Spirit of God. It includes judgment, the judgment,
making decisions. That's what I'm talking about.
Judgment. I'll decide to do this or I'll decide to do that. The
purpose and external conduct. The evidence of walking in the
Spirit. There's no condemnation to them
that walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. What is
the evidence of those that walk in the Spirit? I want you to
turn to this. 1 Corinthians 2. 1 Corinthians 2, verse 14 to
16. 1 Corinthians. Verse 2, 14-16, The natural man,
that is to say, every man, every woman, as they are born in Adam. Every man, every woman, born. The natural man receiveth not
the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto
him. Neither can he know them, because they are spiritually
discerned. But he that is spiritual judges
or discerns all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who hath known the mind of
the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of
Christ. In 2 Thessalonians, I want you
to look at this one too. Quoted it so many times, but
look at it. 2 Thessalonians 2.13. But we are bound to give thanks
all the way to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because
God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification
of the Spirit And look at this, and belief of the truth. God
has chosen you from the beginning to being set
apart by the Spirit of God, sanctified by God's Spirit. And belief of
the truth is the evidence of that. The evidence of those that
walk or live or follow are regulated by. That's what walking in the
Spirit. Somehow people get it in their
mind that when you say walking in the Spirit that somehow there's
an extra, there's a moment or something, they're in a higher
plane or something. I was walking in the Spirit.
All God's people, regenerated by God's Spirit, walk in the
Spirit. They are regulated by. They follow
after. That's what the Lord said. My
sheep hear my voice and they follow me. John said, I was in
the Spirit on the Lord's day, regulated by following after,
hearing. This morning, all you that believe,
you're in the Spirit. You see, but not with natural
eyes. You hear, but not with human
or physical ears. Yes, you do, but it's more than
that. You have ears to hear and eyes
to see and a heart to believe. And the Scriptures set forth
that there's no condemnation to you that are in Christ Jesus
who walk not after the flesh, not regulated by the way of the
natural thinking, but by the Spirit of God. John said, I was
in the Spirit on the Lord's Day. The Lord's Day. Two times this
word, Lord's, is used. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's
Day. That word, Lord's, it's used
two times in Scripture. Ownership. Here and in 2 Corinthians
11 concerning the Lord's Supper. It is the day here of ownership
is what it's talking about. It was the Lord's day, the possessive,
the ownership. Well, I know that we can say,
well, they're all of the Lord's. But this day was set as the Lord's
day commemorating His death, His resurrection, I'm sorry,
resurrection. The Lord's Supper. The Lord's
Supper commemorates His death. The Lord's Day, His resurrection. Matthew 28. Matthew 28, verses
1 to 6. Speaking of this particular day, 28.1,
in the end of the Sabbath. Okay? Matthew 28.1. In the end of the Sabbath it
began to dawn toward the first day of the week. Came Mary Magdalene
and the other Mary to see the sepulcher. And behold, there
was a great earthquake, for the angel of the Lord descended from
heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and
sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning,
and his raiment white as snow. For fear of him the keepers did
shake, and became as dead men. And the angel answered and said
unto the woman, Fear not, ye, for I know that you seek Jesus,
which was crucified. He's not here, for He's risen. As He said, come, see the place
where the Lord lay. That was the first day of the
week. It's on that first day in Acts
chapter 20. The apostles, they began to meet. And you have to understand, these
men didn't just start meeting just arbitrarily, just pick a
day. Chapter 20 and verse 7, it says, Upon the first day of
the week, when the disciples came together to break bread,
Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow, and
continued his speech until midnight. This is the day that we meet
together. Now, why did we pick this day?
This is the first day of the week. The apostles, they began
to meet. Why did they pick that day? It
was the day in commemoration of the Lord's resurrection, the
first day. Not the Sabbath. It was the first
day. This is the reason that we are
assembled here together, to worship the Lord on His day, the Lord's
day, the possessive day. And we worship Him. John said,
I was in the Spirit. John 4.24, God is Spirit and
they that worship Him must worship Him. in spirit. That's the only
way. How does a man or a woman worship
God in spirit? I'll tell you how they do. God
Almighty regenerates them. He gives them a new heart, new
ears, new eyes to see and to hear. John said, I was in the
Spirit on the Lord's Day and I heard behind me a great voice
as a trumpet. It wasn't a trumpet. The Scripture
says, I heard behind me a great voice as of a great trumpet,
powerful, piercing, distinct. I heard Him. The Lord said, My
sheep hear My voice. How do they know it's the voice
of the Lord? Because He speaks in agreement
with His Word. Exactly. That's how He knows. When the Lord spoke in the Old
Testament, the trumpet signified that piercing authority of His
Word. Isaiah 58 wants us to cry aloud,
Spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people
their transgressions of the house of Jacob, their sin." A trumpet
is distinct. Gary and Sean was playing that
trumpet. You know what? You can say, that's a trumpet.
And you hear exactly. That's it. When God's men speak,
they speak exactly, distinctly. You don't walk out of here, I
bet you, I'll bet you any amount of money that there was not a
time that you walked out of here, Brother Scott, and be preaching,
and you say, I wonder what he meant. He didn't make that exactly clear.
I'll bet you understood just exactly what he's talking about.
Speak. I heard behind me a voice as
a trumpet. And this was the message of that
great voice. He said, I'm Alpha and Omega,
the first and the last. Or He was saying, all is well,
John. I that speak to you am the Eternal. I know the end from the beginning. What thou seest, write in a book
and send it unto the seven churches which are at Asia, unto Ephesus,
unto Smyrna, unto Pergamos, unto Thyatira, unto Sardis, unto Philadelphia,
and unto Laodicea. The message of the Lord is a
revelation shown by the Spirit of God to the people of God concerning
Him, the Lord Jesus Christ. Here's the means of His communication
from Christ to His people. A preacher. This is how God speaks
to His people. His servants that bear witness
of the Word of God and of the testimony, that's what John said,
of Jesus Christ, written in a book. a record, Scriptures that speak
of Him and are a blessing to all those that read and hear
the message. And it was sent unto the seven
churches, not to the world. This book, I'm telling you, is
not... This is to God's people. It's the record of Jesus Christ,
the testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ written to His people. His bride, those who are the
remnant according to the election of grace, the church that is
assured, being taught by the Spirit of God, of the authority
of His Word. And this is what they're assured
of. He shall prevail. He has prevailed. He's God. And the gates of hell are not
going to prevail. over us. We are more than conquerors
through Him that loved us and gave Himself for us. John said
this is the message. In Him was life. The life was
the light. Behold, He cometh. Okay, Gary, you come. this.