Revelation chapter 22. And I'd
like to look at verse 14 and 15. In particular, if we have
time, we'll move into verse 16. But I need to go back just a
moment in verse 14. We looked at that some time ago,
as we're going through the book
of Revelation. And according to my count, I've
missed three Wednesday nights. two in St. Croix and one in West
Virginia. So we've had to push our expected
end date ahead. Verse 14. Blessed are they that
do his commandments, that they might have right to the tree
of life and may enter in through the gates into the city. Now
it's interesting, I was doing some study on this verse and
I just happened to open up my Greek in a linear and found out
that this verse in there is translated completely different. So I did
a little work in trying to figure out what's going on, and most
of the earlier translations or earlier manuscripts to the Greek
Bible had this translated this way. Now, neither one of them
are going to tell us that we're going to enter the city by doing
our works, but the second way, and most of the translations
besides the King James translate it this way, in fact, A.T. Robertson,
who did a masterful work on the study of the Greek language,
also translated it this way, blessed are they that wash their
robes. Now, that's a big difference.
Blessed are they that do His commandments. And I talked to
Marvin about this, and in his margin, it had been translated,
blessed are they who wash their robes. And some of them, blessed
are they who wash their robes in the blood of the Lamb. Now
that really takes us back to an earlier verse of scripture
here in the book of Revelation, where blessed are those, they
came through great tribulation and washed their robes in the
blood of the Lamb. So it just fits with that verse of scripture
and another Translation how blessed are those who wash their robes
in the blood of the Lamb? So I am more inclined Because
of those that have spent a lot more time on this than I have
and have a much greater Understanding of the Greek language. I'm more
inclined to go to that direction Then blessed are they that do
his commandments because that sure can be be misleading times,
but those who wash their robes. Revelation chapter 7 and verse
14, if you look at that with me for just a moment. Revelation
chapter seven and verse 14, Mr. Roberson, as he talked about
this, they that wash their robes, he went right back to this verse
of scripture, and it would certainly lend itself for us doing the
same. And I said unto him, sir, thou
knowest, and he said unto me, He said to me, these are they
which came out of great tribulation and have washed their robes and
made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Now, when we went
over this, most people today interpret that great tribulation
as a thing that the tribulation is between the 69th and 70th
week, or the 70th week becomes the great tribulation. This has
nothing to do with that. This has, I believe, as we compared
it with other scriptures, what God takes his people through
when he regenerates them. He strips them of their religion.
He strips them of their righteousness. He strips them of their ideas. He strips them of their view
of God. He strips them of their view
of sin. He strips us. when he regenerates us. He takes
away all the old and gives us the new. He takes us away from
our idols and gives us God. He takes us away our own created
peace and gives us real peace. He takes us away our interpretation
of the word and gives us Christ as the interpretation of the
word. So that is really a tribulation that he takes us through when
he takes us from our old dead self to new life. You may not
be able to ask a baby if they went through tribulation when
they were born. But the mama knows it, and the
doctor knows it, and many times what happened to them knows it. It's just a tribulating period
of time. So he takes us through great
tribulation, and at the same time, we are given the opportunity,
the privilege, the blessing of washing our robes. He gives us
the robe of righteousness. Christ's righteousness now becomes
ours. And those that are washed in
this blood may enter in through the gates into the city. So he's
just saying that these that have been washed in the blood of the
lamb, these are those who enter into the city. These are those
that Christ has redeemed. These are those that have their
robes clean. So I'm going to go from here
on out. When I teach this, I'm going
to go to they wash their robes. It just has such a, it's a clear
tone. When I went through there and
about the commandments, there was just something that, it kind
of made me resist even looking at it, but there's also that
verse of scripture that we went over with regard to the commandment,
what is the work of God? Believe on him whom he has sent.
That's the work of God. All right, now in verse 15, The Lord shares with us another
way. He shows us another way, another
contrast between believers and unbelievers. There are those
who are in the city, and there are those who are out of the
city. There are those who are in Christ, there are those who
are out of Christ. There are those who have been
redeemed by the blood, there are those who have not been redeemed
by the blood. He compares the two here, and
the ones that are in the city, they are bright, they're shining,
They have clean robes. They have access to the tree
of life. They have all the rich blessings
that are in Christ. And then in verse 15, we read
these words. And without, outside of the city,
outside of Christ, outside of belief in Christ, outside of,
well, just outside, unbelievers are excluded because of their
unchanged heart. I've heard preachers, I think
Brother Rupert has shared one time, that people without Christ
in heaven would not be happy. They would not be happy. They
would not be settled. Only those that are in Christ
would be pleased to be in his eternal everlasting presence
without discussion, would love to have that. So unbelievers
are excluded because of their unchanged heart. And here we
have just again, a whole section on about what it is to be in
the church, what it is to be in the city, what it is to have
access to the city and all the blessings that go with it. And
then conversely, without the city, are dogs, and sorcerers,
and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, whosoever loveth
and maketh a lie. What is he saying? Outside are
unbelievers. They do not have a changed heart.
They have never had God work on their heart. And the Lord
shared with us through his ministry a number of times about what
it was going to be like in the city and out of the city. Turn
with me if you would to the book of Matthew chapter 7. He uses
this terminology about sheep. He says sheep and then he uses
the term wolves. Sheep, they're just a statement
made about the Lord, about his people. There are his, the sheep
of his pasture. There are those he leads. My
sheep hear my voice, they follow me. He uses that illustration
of a shepherd and his sheep. And then he, at times, and we'll
look at that, one time he says, there's my sheep and there are
the goats. Here it shares with us in Matthew chapter seven and
verse 15. the comparison, or I should say
the contrast between the believers and the unbelievers. Matthew
7, verse 15, it says, beware of false prophets which come
to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. How do you know the difference
between a false prophet coming in sheep's clothing? As soon
as they open their mouth. One goes, bah, and the other
one can't mimic that. One goes grace and grace alone,
and the other one cannot mimic that. One of them, that account
over there in the Old Testament, they knew that some were not
part of the whole because they could not pronounce a word. You
just can't get wolves to pronounce grace and free grace alone. It's
not part of their vocabulary. So once they open their mouth,
now they may appear, if they just keep their mouth shut, we
may not know the difference. But when they open their mouth,
they soon share with us that they have no part in this. Now, the apostle Paul, or was
it Peter, had a man, he followed along, went through all the,
he was baptized, he said, made a profession of faith, baptized,
followed along, and finally he said, I will pay you so much
if you'll let me have the same gift. And the preacher said,
I perceive you're in the bond of iniquity. You open your mouth,
you're a wolf. You come in sheep's clothing,
but you are a wolf. The contrast between them, they can appear,
they look like, that's what they dress like. But as soon as they
open their mouth, I was in the Pittsburgh airport, and they
have great big TV monitors down there in the airports anymore,
and you watch the news. Well, someone had put it on Benny
Hinn. That guy is a nut. I just had
to leave the area. I can't stand to listen to that
kind of stuff about my God. He looked, but as soon as he
opened his mouth, all he could Fine was the need to send in
money. And I just, I found another place. I wish I'd have found the switch.
I'd have rather listened to the news than that stuff. Well, sheep and wolves, wolves
in sheep's clothing, as it tells us here, beware of false prophets. which come to you in sheep's
clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Their heart
is not in it." They do not have a changed heart. They're not
regenerated. They're without. They want to pretend they're
in, but they're without. Turn with me, if you would, to
the book of Matthew chapter 10 and verse 16. Matthew chapter
10 and verse 16, this word, going back there just a moment, ravenous
stresses their greed and cruelty, that's what that word ravenous
means, and it's related to the verb to snatch or to seize. They
are ready to, they're not in it for good. They're in it for
evil. That's those, all right, Matthew
10, 16. Behold, I send you forth as sheep
in the midst of wolves. Be there for wise as serpents
and harmless as doves. The Lord left his people here. He left his people in this world. He left his people among the
world. That is one more reason for the
value of a local body of believers, where we can assemble together,
where we get away from that for just a moment, where we can visit
with people that have an idea about who God is and what God
does. And then we're sent as sheep
among wolves again. Now, by God's wonderful grace,
once in a while, those people that appear to be wolves are
just really lost sheep, and they have every outward characteristic
of wolves. They don't talk good about God
until God gives them a heart. They don't love God until God
gives them a heart. And so it's incumbent upon us
to be minded about this. That's where we once were. Now,
they're never, they're never wolves. They're just lost sheep. You can't make a wolf into a
sheep. It doesn't matter about putting the clothing on them
or putting the garment on them or putting the wool on them.
You just can't change the voice, can't change the heart. We can't
do that, but God can. So it's no good to have a whole
bunch of robes, sheep robes over here to put on people. God's
got to take care of that from the inside. Sheep in the midst
of wolves, a contrast. Sheep, they need a master. They
need a shepherd. Wolves, they've got their alpha
wolf, but sheep need shepherds. Look at Matthew 25, if you would. Matthew chapter 25, here again
is the comparison, the contrast, I should say, the contrast between
those who are in the city and those who are out of the city.
Those out of the city, there's not one of those that we'd wanna
go visit, or we'd want our children to visit. There's some pretty
serious people there. There's nothing, liars and thieves
and people who live unclean lives. And we just as soon keep our
kids away from people like that. The Lord wanted us to have a
contrast there. All right, Matthew chapter 25
and verse 32, it says here, and before him shall be gathered
all nations, and he shall separate the one from another, as a shepherd
divided his sheep from the goats. There's the contrast. When a
baby sheep and a baby goat are born, it's hard to tell the difference,
but as they grow, you could see the difference. You see the difference
in their voice. You see the difference in their
structure. You see the difference in their appearance. You see
the difference in their attitude. You see the difference. Goats
very seldom need the shepherd like the sheep do. Now there
are goat shepherds. I remember Brother Milton Howard
mentioning about taking his father down into Mexico. And his dad
said, look at that. There's a whole bunch of sheep
running with a whole bunch of goats. And Milton says, look
again. He says, what are you talking
about? He says, there's a shepherd with a bag full of rocks chucking
them at the goats, trying to keep them going, and the sheep
are following him. That's what it is, chucking rocks
at them to keep them going. Now, they make good goats too,
I guess. And that's about it. Anyway,
the sheep from the goats. There's a contrast here that
the Lord wanted us to know just as much as there is a contrast
between those who are in the city and what they have and what
they enjoy. No need of light. No need of
a temple. All of those things are taken
care of. We have no need, spiritual needs there, all are taken care
of. We're completely made whole in Christ on the outside. Now,
that doesn't mean that heaven is gonna have all these things
outside. He's just saying, in the church is this, outside of
the church is this. In the church are God's people,
outside of the church are unbelievers who do not have a changed heart,
and this is what they appear to be like. And none of it is
decent or good. I think the least of it all is
a liar. We deal with that all the time, but the rest of them
are sorcerers. And I've had people say, well,
that's what this means. That just means they're just
sinners without a changed heart. In the city is sinners with a
changed heart. Outsiders are sinners without
God. Insiders are sinners with God. God makes all the difference. In John 10, look at John 10 with
me. John 10 in verse 8, as we see
the contrast here again that the Lord Jesus shares with us. He was assaulted with religious
thieves and robbers. John 10, verse 8, the scriptures
say, all that ever come before me. Now, I thought about that.
What does that mean, all that ever come before me? The only
ones that ever voluntarily ever come to Christ are thieves and
robbers. The rest of them have to be drawn. They don't want
to come. Thieves and robbers. I want in,
Lord. I want in. Buy my works. I want
in. Buy my works. I want in. And all the sheep,
he has to create a new heart in them. They won't come. They
stand off. I don't want to be around that.
But thieves, all that ever came before me are thieves and robbers.
But the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. By me, if any
man enter in, he shall be saved and shall go in and out and find
pasture. Thieves and robbers want to climb up another way.
They're the ones, they're the exceptions. Christ said, you
must be born again. Thieves and robbers are the exceptions. I don't have to go that way.
I can go my way. It's my righteousness that is
good. So he divides the sheep from the goats, and then he tells
us all that ever come. The sheep, what's it say about
the sheep? He says, but the sheep did not
hear them. And in verse John 10, 24, look
there with me, John 10, 24. It says here, John 10, 24, then
came the Jews round about him and said unto him, how long dost
thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us
plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you
and you believe not. The works that I do in my Father's
name, they bear witness of me, but ye believe not. Now those
are the outsides. Those are the ones on the, you
believe not. We've mentioned this a number of times. What
do you have to not believe to be an unbeliever? It doesn't
take much. God's people are going to take
God's word like that. They will not question it as God's word.
They may say, I don't understand it. I had a wonderful conversation
with Marvin over this, just discussing this and laying it out. We will
say and readily admit, and every preacher I know that preaches
grace will say, I just don't understand about 99.9%. I just don't understand it. But
that doesn't mean I don't believe it. I believe it. God said it. I
believe it. And whether I believe it or not,
God still said it. But my sheep hear my voice. God, when he opens his word,
when he opens his mouth, so to say, God's people say, that is
right. That is true, and those without
don't believe it, won't believe it, couldn't believe it, and
they are always fussing about it, and they're always the ones
that want to go another way. They want another plan. They
want plan B. They want their way in this,
their works, their righteousness. He goes on to tell us here in
John 10, 24, it says, I told you and you believe not.
The works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me.
But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep. As I said
unto you, my sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow
me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish,
neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My father which
gave them me is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck
them out of my father's hand. I and my father are one." Why
did he go into this long statement about that? Because these guys
did not believe it. These Pharisees did not believe
it. They did not believe in eternal security. They did not believe
that God could hang on to them like that. And it's been this
transferred down through religion today. Why in the world do we
have a whole group of religious group of people that says that
God is not powerful enough to keep them? You believe not my
word. He said he's able. The church
said, yes, he's able and thank God for it. And the religious
world says, no, he's not. All that ever came to me were
thieves and robbers and wanted to come in some other way. The
contrast. The church, bright, shining, glorious because of
Christ. Outside is darkness. And it's
a serious darkness. Not only is it dark, but there's
traps out there. There's quicksand out there.
There's pits out there. It's not safe to be out there.
And as we look at that, would you turn with me back to the
book of Jeremiah, Jeremiah 23. Jeremiah 23. Jeremiah 23, the Lord's shares
with us some things about his prophets. And, uh, if there's an army approaching
and the prophet says, peace and safety, don't believe it. And that's what they were doing.
The armies were, were piling up out there and he says, don't
worry about it. It's okay. And God, listen to this, Jeremiah
chapter 23 verse 13. Then shalt thou say unto them,
thus saith the Lord, behold, I will fill all the imaginations,
excuse me, all the inhabitants of this land, even the kings
that sit upon David's throne and the priests and the prophets
and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with drunkenness. And I'll dash
them one against another, even the fathers and the sons together.
Saith the Lord, I will not pity nor spare nor have mercy, but
destroy them. Excuse me, I'm in 13, I wanna
go to 23. Sorry about that. Jeremiah 23, verse 13. And I have seen folly in the
prophets of Samaria. They prophesied in Baal and caused
my people to err. I have seen also in the prophets
of Jerusalem a horrible thing. They commit adultery and walk
in lies. They strengthen also the hands
of the evildoers. Now, whether they were doing
physical adultery or not, spiritual adultery is terrible. Worship
in Baal instead of God. following after idols instead
of God. His priests were doing that and
leading the people astray. That was the crime that Balaam
did. He got the people to worship
dumb idols. And if you can get people to
worship dumb idols, you're dealing with a people that don't have
a changed heart. It is impossible for God's people
to bow for a long period of time. Someone may come in and say,
I've got a new idea. But boy, after a while, it's going to
be, that is not right. That just does not ring true.
And back they come. But to take them off for that
period of time, all right, it goes on to tell us here, I have seen also in the prophets
of Jerusalem a horrible thing. They committed adultery and walking
lies. They strengthened also the hands of evildoers that none
doth return from his wickedness. They are all of them unto me
as Sodom and inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah. Therefore, thus
saith the Lord of hosts concerning the prophets, come, I will feed
them with wormwood and make them drink the water of Gaul. For
from the prophets of Jerusalem is profaneness gone forth into
all the land. Thus saith the Lord of hosts,
hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto
you. They make you vain. They speak
in a vision of their own, excuse me, own heart. It's not out of
the mouth of the Lord. They say still unto them that
despise me, the Lord has said, you shall have peace. And they
say unto every one that walketh after the imagination of his
own heart, no evil shall come unto you. For who has stood in
the counsel of the Lord and hath perceived the heart of his word,
who hath marked his word and heard it? Behold, a whirlwind
of the Lord has gone forth in fury, even a grievous whirlwind,
and it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked.
The anger of the Lord shall not return until he have executed,
until he have performed the thoughts of his heart. In the latter days,
ye shall consider it perfectly. So the Lord said here with regard
to those prophets, they've just led my people astray, but my
people will not hear it. They have a heart that is different
than this. There's just a clear sound the
other day. I I was in a in a Carpet store
and a fella come in and he wanted to sell a silver dollar And he
offered it to a fellow there and The guy says I don't think
so. So I stepped up and they said
do you mind if I take a look at your silver dollar? And he
says, no. And he says, I've been told not
to take less than $20 for it. I says, I've got $16 in my pocket. He says, that's enough. There's one thing about those
old silver dollars. I mean, they're big, and they're silver, and
they really have a clear tone. You can hit them with another
coin, and you just hear that. It's so clear. Now those Ike
dollars, they're still a dollar, but plunk. That brass and copper
and all that stuff, oh, it doesn't sound appealing, but that silver,
it's such a clear, clear ring. If you haven't tried it for a
while, I'll bring my silver dollar and you can try it. That's the
way the gospel is. It has such a clear ring to it. and all those prophets with all
of their nonsense and their clad coins. It looked like real coins,
but when you hear it, it just is mush. It doesn't sound right. And that's really the truth about
it. If it doesn't sound right to God's people, it probably
isn't right. There's something wrong here.
There's been something added to it or something taken away
from it. They've limited God or they've
made him do things that he wouldn't do. Don't tell me about a God
that wants to do something and can't. Boy, once that happens,
that's clunk, clunk. That's just clunk. But a God
that does whatsoever he pleases, now that's a clear, God's people
just love to hear that. All right, and over in the book
of Philippians, Philippians chapter three and verse two. Now since
then I found out that that coin is worth more than $16. And I've hunted for that guy all
over town trying to pay him the rest of it. Philippians chapter three, Philippians
chapter three. Philippians chapter 3, verse
1 and 2. Finally, my brethren, rejoice
in the Lord. To write the same thing to you,
to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe. Beware
of dogs. Did you notice that dogs is one
in the list in that verse 15 in Revelation 22? Now, listen
to this. Beware of dogs, beware of evil
workers, beware of the concision. And that word concision means
mutilation. Beware of those who mutilate
the word. Beware. For we are of the circumcision,
circumcision of the heart. They're of the mutilation. We
are the work that God has performed in the heart. They are the ones
that are always working the concision, the mutilation. We are the circumcision
which worship God in the spirit and rejoice in Christ Jesus and
have no confidence in the flesh. Big difference. That's a contrast.
Dogs. evil workers and mutilation,
contrasted with circumcision, worship God in the spirit, rejoice
in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh? That's
the difference between verses 14 and 15. That's the difference between
that whole section on the church and that one verse put in there
about what's outside. They are evil workers. They are
dogs. They are. Now, that word dog
doesn't have a very good connotation. It's not the puppy dog. It means
a male prostitute. It means those who destroy the
Word of God. And usually it's men. Destroy
the Word of God. Destroy God's Word. Mutilate
the Word of God. finally 2nd Peter chapter 2 2nd
Peter chapter 2 I'll never forget brother Rupert
saying there's a whole lot more sin and goes on Sunday morning
then Saturday night people who have, they have a false idea about
God, and try to pronounce that on everybody. 2 Peter chapter
two, verses one, two, and three. But there were false prophets
also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers
among you, who privately shall bring indamnable, that's a serious
word. Not just heresies, but damnable
heresies. Even denying the Lord that bought
them and brought, bring upon themselves swift destruction.
And many shall follow their own pernicious ways by reason of
whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. The way of truth,
evil spoken of. Well, you just mentioned the
sovereignty of God and it's evil spoken of. Salvation by grace,
that's evil spoken of. Salvation by grace alone, without
any works, that's evil spoken of. And through covetousness
shall they with fiend works make merchandise of you, whose judgment
now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth
not. The contrast. Contrast between
inside and outside. The contrast between in Christ
and out of Christ. The contrast between those that
believed and those who did not believe. For without are dogs,
and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters,
and whosoever loveth and maketh love lie. That's without. And then verse
16, and we're not going there, but I'd just like to read it. Red words, Jesus's words. I, Jesus, have sent my angel
to testify to you these things in the churches. That angel is
John, his messenger. In the churches, the seven churches
of Asia, plus all the other churches that ever got to read this letter,
I am the root, I am David's creator and offspring. I'm also David's
child. I'm his creator and his child
and the bright and morning star. Six verses to go.