Emmanuel Lutheran Church

Sermon for Midweek of Trinity 12

Revelation 16:12-21

John’s visions are taking us closer and closer to the end of the world. His vision of the sixth and seventh bowls filled with the wrath of God show us the “last battle” at the place called Armageddon. Except, as we’ll see, it isn’t much of a battle. In fact, there’s no battle at all. It’s the battle that never was.

The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, so that the way of the kings from the east might be prepared.

This is the second time we’ve come across the river Euphrates in John’s visions. It was the great river on whose banks the city of Babylon was built. It ran down from the north and then split around Babylon, so that part of the river flowed to the west of Babylon, while the other part flowed to the east. You have to remember your history here. Babylon was the capital city of the Babylonians, who, led by King Nebuchadnezzar, destroyed Jerusalem and took the Jews captive in Babylon for 70 years in the sixth century BC. He was a wicked king, but God used him to punish the Jews for their idolatry. Eventually, his successors became even more wicked than he was. So God sent the Mede and Persian armies to conquer the Babylonians. The Medes and Persians came from the east, and each had its own king: Darius the Mede and Cyrus the Persian. So here, in John’s vision, the sixth angel’s bowl dries up the Euphrates so that the “kings from the east” might have easy access to Babylon, to destroy it, because its days are numbered. The prophet Jeremiah had much to say about Babylon’s impending fall in chapter 51 of his book.

Here in Revelation, Babylon symbolizes the world powers that stand against God and His Church. So the message here is that, although God has allowed the world powers to threaten and mistreat His Church for a time, just as He allowed the Babylonians to hold the people of Jerusalem captive for a time, now it’s time for the hostile forces of the world to pay, just as Babylon paid at the hands of the Medes and Persians for their mistreatment of God’s people.

And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth, indeed, of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon.

You recall that the dragon stands for the devil, the beast stands for world government, and the false prophet stands for the Antichrist. From the mouth of these three, John sees unclean spirits going out like frogs, croaking their lies and their deceptions to all the kings of the earth, so that all the world rulers are allied against the true Church. Now, remember, this doesn’t only mean openly anti-Christian hostility. The false prophet is involved, too, who speaks his lies from within the outward Christian Church. That means that the persecution against the Church may well have a veneer of godliness, of being pro-religion, and yet it will be hostile to the true religion taught in Holy Scripture.

It says that the demons will influence the kings of the earth by performing signs. St. Paul said that the coming of the Antichrist would be similar to this: false miracles designed to lead astray all those who refused to be led by the Scriptures themselves. So these demons will perform signs. Now, here are some things I would include in those signs that serve to confirm the rulers of the world in their rejection of Christianity: UFO sightings. The fact is, if there were actually aliens out there, then the message of Scripture really falls apart. So the claimed UFO sightings end up turning people away from trusting in Scripture, which is exactly what the goal of the demons has always been, to make people doubt God’s Word. Another demonic sign would be all the supposed “evidence” that’s asserted to “prove” that the earth is millions of years old. Now, there’s no actual evidence to support that, and yet the teaching of evolution undergirds practically all the sciences in the modern world. We might even include the climate change religion among these demonic delusions that permeate the nations of the world and end up turning the rulers of the world against the Christian religion, which teaches an entirely different cosmology and purpose for mankind and for the world. Add to that the demonic delusion of the “Pride” flag and the “Trans” flag, and most of the “isms” that have filled the world, which target both Christian doctrine and Christian history.

Yes, the powers of the world are being gathered together for a final battle against God’s people who hold to the pure doctrine of Christ. The place where they’re gathered is said to be called in Hebrew “Armageddon,” which only shows up here in the Bible. Armageddon isn’t a single Hebrew word at all. People have debated its meaning over the centuries. But it seems to be a combination of the word “Har,” which means “mountain of,” and “Megiddo,” a place in the land of Israel. Now, what is Megiddo known for? Well, King Josiah of Judah was killed there by Pharaoh Necho of Egypt. But that was in the Valley of Megiddo. What is the mountain of Megiddo? Well, the most famous one is Mount Carmel. Do you remember what happened there? There was a “battle,” of sorts, but a battle with swords. The prophet Elijah faced off against wicked King Ahab and 450 prophets of Baal. It looked like the end for Elijah. But the Lord gave him the victory that day with fire from heaven, and all the prophets Baal were put to death.

So Armageddon isn’t a scary thing at all for the people of God. It’s a symbol of God’s victory over the idolaters who threaten His people. That goes along perfectly with what John says here, that the kings of the earth are being gathered to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. What the world powers imagine will be a decisive defeat of the Christian Church is actually the “great day of God Almighty,” the day that belongs to God, not to His enemies, the great day of judgment.

And that’s exactly what we see revealed in the seventh plague.

Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, “It is done!”

It is done!, says the Lord. It’s just one word in Greek. So much for a battle! There wasn’t even a fight. The world powers gather together against the Church of God, and God turns the tables on them and defeats them with a word.

And there were noises and thunderings and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such a mighty and great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth…Then every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. And great hail from heaven fell upon men, each hailstone about the weight of a talent. Men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, since that plague was exceedingly great.

Again, this is a picture of the final destruction of the earth that will take place on the last day.

Now the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. And great Babylon was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath.

The “great city” here is Babylon. The world powers can’t stand in the presence of God. They’re broken apart, and all the cities fall—the cities which already today are becoming lost causes for every form of wickedness and violence and destruction. And God will remember all the ways in which men have threatened or harmed His people. And justice will finally be served.

“Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame.”

There’s an interjection from Jesus Himself in the midst of this vision, a warning and an encouragement, not for the unbeliever, but for the believer who listens to the reading of this book of Revelation. I am coming as a thief! He’s said that before. In other words, you won’t be able to predict the day or the timing of His coming. It won’t be that obvious. Things will be going on in the world more or less as they have been. So He urges His people to watch, to notice the signs, and to expect Him at any moment. Then He urges His people to “keep their garments,” to hold onto faith and to the righteousness that covers us through faith. Only faith in Christ will make us worthy to stand before God on His great day. Only faith in Christ will keep us safe at the battle of Armageddon, which won’t really be a battle at all. Amen.

Sermon for Midweek of Trinity 11

Revelation 16:1-11

The vision of the seven bowls filled with the seven plagues of God’s wrath is actually very similar to the vision of the seven trumpets that we reviewed several weeks ago. We would need a whiteboard or something to place the comparisons side by side. If you’re interested, you can take your Bible and compare the two visions at home.

Tonight we heard about the first five bowls and the plagues that were poured out from them. But just as we did with the vision of the seven trumpets, so we’ll do here: we’ll recognize that the plagues poured out upon the earth, upon the sea, upon the rivers and streams of water, and upon the sun, are not to be taken literally. In other words, in the last days before Christ’s return, we don’t expect to see all unbelievers walking around with sores all over their bodies, nor do we expect all the waters of the world to be turned into human blood, or for all the sea creatures to die off, nor do we expect the sun to start setting people on fire, literally. That would all make for a thrilling sci-fi movie, but it isn’t what the Bible is talking about. In fact, I wonder if, the more they make movies to portray the events described in Revelation as literal, the less people will take to heart the true, spiritual meaning behind those pictures, which are meant to serve as warnings to unbelievers and as a great comfort to Christians.

The first [angel] went and poured out his bowl upon the earth, and a foul and loathsome sore came upon the men who had the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image.

Earlier, John saw a beast come up out of the earth. That was the Antichrist, the symbolic leader of the false Church. A plague is poured out on that Church in the last days. This first bowl is what gives it away that the plagues are spiritual, not physical. Because the only ones who receive these foul and loathsome sores are the ones who have the mark of the beast, who worship his image. That is, the unbelieving and idolaters, especially those who have attached themselves to the false Christian Church. True Christians, believers in Christ, are not plagued with these sores. So these must be sores on the conscience and on the rational part of the soul, punishments sent by God on those who disbelieve His Word and His Gospel, who are in love with the false teachings of the false-teaching Church that sits within the borders of the visible Christian Church. If the Gospel is twisted, then men no longer have the peace that comes from it, but their consciences are tormented, as by painful sores.

Then the second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it became blood as of a dead man; and every living creature in the sea died.

Earlier, John saw a beast come up out of the sea. The sea stood for the unbelieving nations of the world, out of which antichristian rulers arise. Now the sea is turned to disgusting blood. Unbelievers are already spiritually dead. But this plague seems to indicate the removal of everything that was good and wholesome among the societies of the world. Reason and rationality are gone. Good order is gone. Good will is gone. In the vision of the seven trumpets, something similar happened to the sea, except that only a third of the living creatures there died. Now in the very last days, it’s “every living creature.” The societies of the world, together with their governments, are utterly ruined. Does that sound like the world we live in?

Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood.

There is nothing left to refresh and sustain the unbeliever when things come to this point. The Word of God, which is often compared to refreshing water in Scripture, no longer refreshes, because it has been so twisted and corrupted by men that the Christianity that’s preached in the world in the last days is no longer the Christianity of the Bible. The gospel that’s preached is no longer the true Gospel, but a false one that cannot save. As Paul wrote to the Thessalonians, God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

And I heard the angel of the waters saying: “You are righteous, O Lord, The One who is and who was and who is to be, Because You have judged these things. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, And You have given them blood to drink. For it is their just due.” And I heard another from the altar saying, “Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments.”

These judgments of God are just. The world wasn’t willing to be instructed by God’s Word. As Paul writes to Timothy, the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. And so God said, “Fine. Have it your way. You didn’t want My Word? You didn’t want the preachers I sent to you? Then I’ll see to it that you only hear false doctrine and that you only have false teachers, so that you are deprived of the only thing that could bring you to repentance and faith. This is justice.”

Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and power was given to it to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God who has power over these plagues; and they did not repent and give Him glory.

The sun was given to give the earth heat and light, to be a blessing to man. This seems to be another picture of God’s Word, which is meant to be a lamp for our feet and a light for our path. But when God allows the light of His Word to be corrupted, when He allows false Christianity to fill the world with its false version of Christ and His Gospel, then it no longer serves to lead people to God. Men rejected the Gospel for centuries when it was purely preached. So now men don’t even have the wholesome witness of the Christian Church filling the world anymore, but only the false witness that doesn’t give true comfort or joy or peace but only a burning emptiness inside, because truth has been replaced with falsehood.

Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues because of the pain. They blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and did not repent of their deeds.

The throne of the beast represents the governments of the world that oppose Christ or twist His Word. Civil government was instituted by God to be a blessing, to promote a quiet and peaceful life. But when false and demonic delusions turn governments into promoters and defenders of “institutionalized robbery, militant atheism, atheistic evolution, murder of the unborn, pornography and countless other evils, what was intended to be a blessing becomes a curse and a source of pain and suffering,” as one commentator puts it, as people trip all over themselves and one another in the darkness of the reality they’ve created for themselves. And even though men have corrupted the Word of God and the Christian religion, the same men then turn around and curse the Word of God and Christianity as they’ve corrupted them.

But Christians are spared from all these plagues. Not that it’s comfortable living in a world that is living under the curse of God’s punishment, but the curse of false doctrine doesn’t touch those who hold to the truth of Christ. We don’t have to suffer any of the fear, or bitterness, or irrationality, or despair, or guilt, or ignorance, or confusion that the unbelieving world suffers. Because, by God’s grace, we still have the light of His Word. We still have the peace of His Gospel. We still have the guidance of His Holy Spirit. Where the truth of God’s Word is still proclaimed, there the plagues cannot fall.

So watch in society for the plagues John talks about here and how they’re manifested among those who reject the pure teaching of the Gospel. Take comfort in God’s protection, even as you witness that protection being removed from the unbelieving world. For the believer who clings to God’s Word and is watching out for false doctrine, the words of David in Psalm 18 ring true: The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies. Amen.

Midweek of Trinity 10

Revelation 15:1-8

Last week, in the sixth vision of the set of seven visions, we heard about the harvesting of the earth, both the wheat and the grapes, the believers and the unbelievers, the believers for eternal joy and peace in God’s home, and the unbelievers for eternal crushing in the winepress of God’s wrath.

This evening, we bring to a close the set of seven visions with the seventh vision, which, as in the previous three sets of visions, serves as an introduction to the next set of visions, which will be the visions of the seven bowls filled with the final seven plagues of God’s wrath.

John sees something like a sea of glass mingled with fire. He had seen this sea of glass earlier in the book, too, where it was “before God’s throne.” This isn’t the turbulent sea of this world in which we live at the moment. It’s the smooth, calm, surface of perfect peace in God’s presence. Standing on that perfectly peaceful sea were those who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name. Remember, in an earlier vision, we encountered this beast, along with the other one. The beast from the sea, which stood for the secular forces, led by the governments of the world, which persecute Christians in any number of ways, from physical torture, imprisonment, and execution, to promoting falsehood, to marginalizing the Christians who refuse to go along with the falsehoods; and the beast from the earth, which stood for the Antichrist and all the false teachings that are designed to lead God’s people astray from Christ and His Word, even within the outward Christian Church. Earlier, John saw the beast being victorious over the saints, that is, succeeding in making life miserable for the saints and in executing them, too.

But here John sees the reality. The saints are actually victorious over the beast. By refusing to give in to the world’s requirement that we abandon the true God, by refusing to be led astray by the lies of the Antichrist, by clinging to Christ and His Word, the saints prevailed. They won. They now stand in the presence of God in perfect peace. As Paul writes to the Romans, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

John sees them here with the harps of Gods, singing the song of Moses and of the Lamb. Harps signify music and joy and praise. These harps are provided by God Himself. He is the One who inspires our thankfulness. He is the source of our eternal joy. The words sung by the saints echo the words of Moses in the book of Exodus and again in the book of Deuteronomy. He sang to the Lord after the Lord brought Israel safely across the Red Sea on dry ground, having destroyed their enemies, the Egyptians, by the waters of that same sea. That’s reminiscent of the Flood, too, isn’t it? By those waters God saved Noah and his family as the waters lifted them up to safety, even as the same waters drowned the unbelievers in the world. Which, as Peter writes in his first Epistle, symbolizes what God does for us in Holy Baptism, saving believers by those waters, even as the unbelieving world will be wiped out with fire. So, too, the saints in heaven sing for joy about how God gave them the greatest deliverance, washing them in the blood of the Lamb through Holy Baptism and granting them final salvation in heaven as their enemies in the world are about to be destroyed.

Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the saints! Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy. For all nations shall come and worship before You, For Your judgments have been manifested.

Right now, in these days before the end of the world, it’s hard for the saints confess that the Lord’s ways are just and true. The righteous don’t always prosper here, while the wicked often do. Christians who do the right thing are often punished for it by the unbelieving world, while evildoers go free. Such is the way of things here, and that’s not justice. It’s injustice. But we will finally see. We will finally understand what the Lord was doing as we look back, after the fact. As the world meets its doom, the saints will see how the Lord God Almighty worked everything out perfectly. And justice will then be done.

Then John sees the heavenly temple being opened. Right now it appears closed. In other words, right now, we can’t see God’s justice. Right now, we have God’s Word proclaiming His Law and His Gospel. But the wicked don’t listen. The wicked go on in their wickedness, thinking that God’s Word is untrue, thinking that God doesn’t see, that God doesn’t care, or even that God doesn’t exist. But in the end, God will make Himself known to the world. And when He does, it won’t be for another chance at salvation. When He finally opens His heavenly temple, it will be for the final revelation of His wrath against impenitent sinners.

And out of the temple came the seven angels having the seven plagues, clothed in pure bright linen, and having their chests girded with golden bands. These angels seem to symbolize heavenly angels, not the human preachers of God’s word, like the seven angels of the seven churches, although some think they do represent preachers of the Gospel. These are clothed like the angels who appeared at Jesus’ resurrection, but with golden bands wrapped around their chests signifying their divinely given authority to carry out the work they’re about to do.

Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever. If the four living creatures represent the prophets and apostles, as we’ve surmised, then it makes sense with what John says here, because throughout Scripture, the prophets and apostles have prophesied the coming of the day of wrath and the destruction of the wicked. That’s why we see the four living creatures handing over the bowls filled with God’s wrath to the angels who will implement the will of God.

The temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power, and no one was able to enter the temple till the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed. When the glory of the Lord fell upon Solomon’s Temple at its dedication like a bright cloud of smoke, the priests weren’t able to minister in the temple until the glory of the Lord lifted. So at the end of the world, when God opens His temple and determines that it’s time to bring final judgment and destruction on the wicked, no one will be able to intercede for them or delay God’s wrath any longer. When it’s finally time for the day of wrath to come, there will be no stopping it.

So, look forward to that day, as those who have been brought to repentance and faith. Keep hearing and learning God’s Word. Cling to His promises. Hold on as the world spirals to its demise. And, instead of having God’s wrath poured out on you, you will be saved, by faith in Christ Jesus, and you will join the endless worship of the victorious saints on the sea of glass. Amen.