The Last Battle

Have your Bibles with you today turn I think you would Revelation 19.

Look at verses 17 through 21 this morning that I saw an angel standing in the sun with a loud voice he called all the birds that fly directly overhead. Come gather for the great supper of God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders in the flesh of all me in both free and slave, both small and great. I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army and the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who did receive the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image.

These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur and the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse all the birds were gorged with their flesh. Spray heavenly father, we are dealing today with a very difficult passage in yet a passage war that brings great glory and honor to your name passage Lord that assures us that the day of judgment is coming.

Heavenly father, we can rejoice because of the grace of God that is been applied to our hearts. And Lord, we know that we are undeserving sinners. We did not deserve that Grayson get you and your gracious and glorious love for us have saved us, not just for time, but for eternity and father. Today we can just sit back and rejoice in those glorious truth that you are indeed are great and glorious God heavenly father today as we look at a passage like this, we remember that we have people that we love may be family.

Maybe friends may be acquaintances that don't know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior made this helpless Lord, that we might pray for them more diligently as we look at this may we just develop a deeper desire to share the gospel with these people that we love and care for the people that we don't even know heavenly father we pray for their souls today that you might do a great work within them, that you might bring them to yourself. Got directors to this passage now may Jesus be uplifted and exalted through it by this congregation, beatified by and is in Jesus precious and holy name we pray. Amen. You may be seated. CS Lewis wrote some great books books like the weight of glory. Mere Christianity. The problem of pain. The great divorce and a plethora of others. But the book said CS Lewis is probably best known for the ones that were the bestsellers were children's books, and he wrote a series of seven books, Chronicles of Narnia that started the lion the witch and the wardrobe and ended with the booklet's call.

The last battle.

My title for the sermon today is taken from Lewis's last book in that series.

The last battle for what Lewis had to say in that book is exactly what the apostle John is telling us in Revelation 19 verses 17 through 21.

Now, this passage deals with the destruction of the beast and the false prophet, contrary to dispensational premillennial teaching those two. I do not believe our two individuals. I believe that these are symbolic representations here and the beast represents the global secular world political world system that is anti-Christ and is totally against God's people always in a fuss always in a fight with the people of God, the false prophet is the false religious system that supports and backs up this global secular political world system. The false religious system would call itself the church but it is the exact opposite of what the true church is I do not have a love for the truth. They do not have a love for God's word. In fact, they despised the word of God.

They call good evil and evil good, but light for darkness and darkness for light, this passage deals with the judgment of those two entities and their destruction now said last week, this judgment is real.

It is sudden it is frightening. It is powerful and it is decisive.

Let's go back 2000 years ago, and let's just take a look at the scene that's taking place here. John is exiled for preaching the gospel on the island of Patmos is he standing there on the shore the island of Patmos. Probably all they can be heard is the beating of the waves on the shore and the seagulls calling from overhead. But all of a sudden he is given another vision and this vision is this great mighty huge angel that Scripture says he standing in the sun he so big that he's just blocking out the sun's rays. John could spend a lot of time here just getting caught up in the visual that he sees here but he knows that he can't do that for the visual is not what's important what is important is the vocal message that is being proclaimed and what I want to do today is to share with you three points. Concerning the great message from this angel and what is the message in one of the three points. Point number one a glory but glorious message look again at verse 17 through 18. Then I saw an angel standing in the sun with a loud voice he called all the birds that fly directly overhead. Come gather for the great supper of God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders in the flesh of all me in both free and slave, both small and great. Now what does this mean in the Old Testament to give someone's flesh to birds express the idea of total defeat and shameful subjection to the enemy ocean think of David and Goliath for just a minute. Goliath was the Philistine giant, the great warrior. He was one that that mocked Jehovah God one that laughed at the at the army of Israel and the army of Israel cowered before this great giant on this one particular day came out and stood against the armies of Israel and get the mocked Jehovah God laugh at the at the armies of Israel, and young David step forward only a teenage boy.

He has no armor on. He has no weapons at all except one little weapon a slingshot any cousin he stands before this great giant don't you listen to what he proclaimed to him and in first Samuel chapter 17 verse 46 this day the Lord will deliver you into my hand and I will strike you down and cut off your head, and I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

May we never forget that message when we get overwhelmed by slick talking politicians and pseudo-intellectual college professors and and and immorality, loving society, we can very easily get discouraged and we can lose hope. We need to remember the message that God gave to David as he was going out to face Goliath, God said to David.

David, do not fear for this battle is not yours. It is God's brothers and sisters, we need to remember that that message is absolutely life-changing. This battle is not ours, is God's, and the outcome is not in question. You go through a trial right now. You're hurting down in the heart. Had you been mistreated had you been misunderstood.

If you been lied about is your reputation been hurt do you feel like just throwing up your hands and given up.

Don't don't. The story has not ended and the battle is not yours Paul said all the live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.

It was Peter who said this. Think it not strange. All these fiery trials come upon you. Is it some strange thing has happened to you, but rejoice that you were counted worthy to suffer for Christ sake, go back to this passage that were looking at today. Read the words over and over and over again and rejoice in the message and what is the message. The message is this Jesus wins praise God. Jesus wins last week, I shared with you some of the reasons that I disagree with the teachings of the dispensational premillennialist on the book of Revelation.

Today I want to share with you why disagree with some of the post-millennial views now post-millennial's believe that the church is going to experience great victory before Christ returns. They believe that is Christians become the salt of the earth and the light of the world.

As Christians go out and share the gospel. The world will respond and when Christ returns, the church will hand over to the world.

A Christian society.

In other words, the world is going to get better and better and about the calls of the church's witness and testimony. It is my belief, which is an millennial belief that this world is not going to become Christianized over time but will actually become more and more bitter and more and more hardened. Hear me out. That's not a negative position to take the church will ultimately triumph Jesus will call out all his people. Jesus said on this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.

The church in the last day will be a persecuted church, but it will be a faithful church. It will be a church that is willing to die for Christ sake, if necessary, and that church will become the salt of the earth, it will become the light of the world.

It will preach the gospel, and we will see real, genuine, spiritual fruit, but I do not see a full, complete, Christianized society before Christ returns. So what is a post-millennial site about a passage like Revelation 19 verses 17 through 21. Have they interpreted, they would say that Revelation 19 is not a last days passage they would say this is description of the spiritual warfare that you and I enter into the on a day by day basis. One post-millennialist Peter Lockhart said the following about Revelation 1917 to 21 to the bloodied conquest of the sinful world by the sword wielding Christ is seen to describe the churches success in conquering the world by his victory. The warrior cleanses the earth of the influence of the beast and the false prophet, and this, combined with the fall of Babylon and the binding of the Dragon inaugurates a period of unprecedented power for the church. Under this view, Christian should view the military images of conquest and slaying as depicting the church's present warfare against unbelief and evil in society. Here's the danger and taken up of you like that if you take this passage is a description of how her to do spiritual warfare right now while were living in this on this earth in this time you might come up with some wrong conclusions.

You might say Christ minding the nations and the vultures eating the flesh of the unbelievers is our God stamp of approval on things like the Holocaust where Hitler said that he wanted to annihilate the Jewish people off the face of the earth and did it in the name of Christ or the Crusaders, who did some of the very same things brothers and sisters, we have to be very careful second at at one to share with you apologists about spiritual warfare in Ephesians chapter 6 verses 10 through 13, Paul said, finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and the power of his might.

Put on the whole armor of God, that you might stand against the wiles of the devil.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against powers and principalities rulers of darkness of this world, and spiritual wickedness in high places where forte can you look whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in that evil day, and having done all, to stand and then a second Corinthians chapter 10 verses three through six 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, casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ, having a readiness to revenge all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. I am not a pacifist effect on the exact opposite. I believe in Augustine's teaching on a just war.

I believe that God is called a deity to protect his family, not just spiritually but also physically to protect his children to protect his wife to protect his family. I believe in the second amendment. I do not believe that these teachings are antithetical with this truth that God gives us in his word, but our spiritual warfare is unlike the warfare of the world that the question is what is it look like to fight the lost world with God's weapons in the politically correct world that we live in.

In how can we reach homosexuals with a life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ and yet not compromise the truth of God's word a few years ago to look in your conference. Her testimony of the ladies name is Rosario Butterfield. She gave her testimony. She described herself as having been a leftist lesbian professor.

She was a professor at Syracuse University. She hated Christians she hated the Bible and she was convinced her said she was that there was no God.

1997 she wrote an article in the local newspaper. They are New York, where she was attacking the men's ministry called promise keepers. The response was overwhelming. She got a lot of mail and she got a lot of mail from professing Christians.

That said, we hope that you rot, inhale she got that, mail a lot of it but there was one letter that came from a conservative Presbyterian pastor.

He courteously challenged her to defend the the presuppositions of her argument. She read the letter and she was touched by and she said you know he's got a point and so she responded and she started a dialogue with pastor Qian that absolutely changed her life. She described how the pastor and his wife reached out to her with the love that she had really never felt before. This is from her biography. They entered my world. They met my friends we did book exchanges we talk openly about sexuality and politics. They did not act as if such conversations were polluting them. When we ate together. Qian prayed in a way that I'd never heard before.

His prayers were intimate. They were vulnerable. He repented of his sin in front of me. He thanked God for all things cans.

God was holy and firm yet full of mercy. She went on to say that pastor Qian did not sidestep God's judgment.

He did not downplay the sinfulness of her lifestyle and he told her about the reality of hail. Then she said with tears in his eyes.

He walked her to the cross and showed her God's undying love for sinners. He gave her hope. He gave her a hug, so she started attending cans church. She said the people they are reached out to her and witnessed tour but live donor and and just did everything they could to help her. Somebody gave her a Bible and she rate read that Bible voraciously we finish reading her testimony. One Sunday morning I rose from the bed of my lesbian lover and I were later sent an appeal with the Syracuse reformed Presbyterian Church. She said I began worshiping the God I had previously reviled confessed my faith in Jesus and am today married to a male Presbyterian minister. I am now reaching out in gospel truth to those captured in the bondage of sin brothers and sisters.

That's the way to do spiritual warfare pastor Qian did not just win a battle. He did not just win an argument.

He won the war without compromising truth. He broke her heart with the gospel, Rosario Butterfield later said this when I became a Christian I had to give up everything my life, my friends, my writing, my teaching, my close my speech, my thoughts, I was tenured to a field I could no longer work in, I was writing the book that I no longer believed in and I was scheduled in a few months to give the incoming address to all of Syracuse University's graduate students.

What would I say to them. Richard Phillips said this about Rosario's statement that I just read the question she knew was whether she was willing to suffer reproach to the gospel of Christ standing up publicly against the beast and the false prophet is Iranian. The unbelieving circles of academic prestige.

Her address originally scheduled to be on the topic of queer theory was instead presented as her coming-out statement of faith in Jesus Christ.

It was received with hostility. It resulted in her losing her faculty assignments. It calls Rosario most of her friends and it was, as John said in the first epistle, the victory that overcame the world, even our faith.

In other words, Jesus wins, Jesus wins .2. The last battle participants verse 19 I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. The one seated on the horses.

The Lord Jesus Christ. The Army is who it is us. The Christians all the Christians in history and the Angels. First Thessalonians 4 verse 16 through 17 says the us for the Lord himself shall the sin from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and the trump of God and the dead in Christ will rise first and then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so shall we ever be with the Lord. Those who have died in Christ will be resurrected. Those Christians who are alive and on this earth. At that time will be translated taken to be with Jesus in the twinkling of an eye receiving new glorified bodies we will go to be with the Lord. We will rejoice with him and immediately return to this earth, brothers and sisters.

My dad will be with me. Spurgeon and Jonathan Edwards and Calvin and Luther and Peter and Paul and John and my wife and my charts are going to be with me man you talk about a glorious scene. I can't think of anything more glorious or better than that.

CS Lewis, does a great job in his book explained in this is a book comes to any in brave king Tyrian calls the legendary Narnia and heroes all the way back from all the seven books he's calling them calling them forward and they do come forward. You remember some of those characters, Polly and digger Ian Edman and Lucian Jill and Eustace in the Hocking theater there that the picture of the church militant at the picture of the church all the way through history and then what happens who appears Aslan the great lion appears and crams them in victory.

Yeah, that's a great children's story to sit down and read with your kids or your grandkids and you can read that story to them to get to that point and those kids will have goosebumps will CS Lewis's purpose was not to give your kids goosebumps. It was a lot deeper than that. It was to give every Christian glory bumps glory bumps as we see what this really is because this is not a fantasy. Were talking about here. This is an absolute certainty. It's gonna happen. Verse 19 speaks not only of us but also of the enemies of Christ, the beast, the global secular political world system led by the kings of the earth, followed by all the people he bawled into that garbage and accepted it, and turn from Christ hated Christ hated his truth. What happens they will be frighteningly awakened by the suddenness of his coming share a few scriptures with you that back this up.

Psalm two verse 249. He then sits in the heavens shall laugh. The Lord shall have them in derision. The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, thou shalt break them with a rod of iron, thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. Second Thessalonians to eight and then the lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.

Have we seen any foreshadowing so that we can go back in and look at that that give us a little inside and what's gonna take place. Oh yeah, I think of the Red Sea. When the Lord opened up the red see the children of Israel walked through two huge walls of water to the other side. Finally they got there safely and then the Lord lifted up the pillar of fire and when he did the Egyptian army came to the same two walls of water.

I got about halfway down, God let loose his power was walls of water came crashing down, killing and destroying every last Egyptian soldier I think of Jericho in just a matter of seconds. The Scripture says that God knocked the walls down flat in the city was taken. I think of Hezekiah, praying, and against the Assyrians, who had already surrounded of the this that the city of Jerusalem look like absolutely no hope for Judah and Hezekiah prayed in on that very night God flew hundred 85,000 Syrian soldiers and Judah never lifted a finger but I believe the post-millennial list are dead wrong in their interpretation of this passage John is not describing the gradual conquest of evil in the spiritual struggles of the faithful. This is a glorious one time event where Christ is coming where we will be with them. He is coming in great power and the beast.

The fault secular political world system all of its followers. The false religious system, the false prophet, false church altogether will be absolutely done away with .3 after the last battle 2321 and the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those would receive the mark of the beast and those who would worship its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur and the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse. And all the birds were engorged with their flesh.

Paul spoke of this event. Second Thessalonians 1. 713 he said to grant relief to you are afflicted as well as to us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might.

When he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed because our testimony to you was believed these passages describe vividly the physical destruction that will come upon the unbelieving world.

It will be sudden and it will be complete but it will not be there and the Scripture says they will be cast into a burning like a fire. I want you to know that the burning like a fire inhale is not the same thing that might surprise some folks the burning like fire, hail is not the same thing.

If you are an unbeliever and you died today.

Your body would decay your spirit would go into hail is a place of burning, it is a place of anguish, a place of not knowing of teeth, a place of darkness, a place of solitude. It is a place where you have a memory of every rejection of Jesus Christ that you ever did. That's what hail is and that's MS where the unbeliever would go if he died right now, today, but on that last day there will be a resurrection in John chapter 5 verse 28 to 29. John said this, do not marvel at this for hours, coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out.

Those who have done good to the resurrection of life, those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. Then listen to Revelation 20 verse 14 through 15, and death and hell were cast into the lake of fire.

This is the second death, and whoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. I said that hail in the burning like a fire are not the same Scripture says here that death and hail were cast into the burning like a fire hail is horrible. Absolutely horrible but it's not as horrible as the burning like a fire and the day will come when there that final day. That last day there will be a resurrection of the just and the unjust.

The unjust will stand before Christ and they will be condemned and then they will be cast into the burning like a fire that's not annihilation. Some people we will here teach that that were just to be annihilated. We will cease to exist, that will be all there is to it. None. The Scripture says this is eternal torment never ending Revelation 20 verse 10 says, and the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever for just a moment I'll ask you to do something on ask you to meditate for just a moment on what I just see it is not a scare tactic. This is not a fairytale. This is a certain absolute reality at this judgment. Every pleasure that sinners have engaged himself in to their lifetime will be stripped away from them and people who live only for the temporary pleasures of the world the flesh and the devil.

Those pleasures are can be out of reach. And then there will be eternal judgment, eternal torment. Did you realize that Jesus spoke twice as much about hail as he did about heaven. Jesus spoke more about hail than any other person in the New Testament. He described it as eternal, never ending, and is great torment Richard Phillips said this these symbolic images.

The lake of fire and the carrion birds who eat the flesh combined to show the torment and shame that God will inflict on his enemies. When Christ returns the solemn scene with which Revelation 19 concludes, confirms the warning of Hebrews 1031 is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God on close with this question. Have you obeyed the gospel. If you repented of your sins and trusted Jesus Christ as your Lord is your savior, and I think maybe even more important is your treasure is Jesus Christ your joy is Jesus Christ your your treasure is a duck.

I'm just not sure what should I do run to Christ run to Jesus. Jesus said he comes to me I will in no wise cast out. Here's a question. Is Jesus Christ your treasure is pray.

Heavenly father, we come before your throne today to praise you and thank you for your goodness and your grace to thank you Lord that you provided the only way of salvation through the precious shedding blood shed blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We thank you Lord that you love her so much that you did not leave us helpless but you provided the way the only way that we could know you heavenly father would be looking at a tough passage today. The passage is hard to preach on the passes hard to listen to a passage that we don't even like to think about. And yet, a passage Lord that is so very important that we understand heavenly father, I do pray for all those exists auditorium today that are here and do not know you that Lord you might do a work in their heart right now that their eyes might be open if they might see Christ and Christ alone.

Is there a heavenly father for those of us who know Jesus.

I would ask that you take a tough hard passage like this and help us to realize Lord, the responsibility that we have, to share the gospel with those that we love with those that are friends with those that are acquaintances with those that we just come in contact with that people might hear the gospel going far as we get ready now to participate in celebrated in the Lord's supper, we would ask father that you be with us in great power, and that your spiritual presence. Lord might be so real here that this would be just a sweet sweet time of fellowship with each other and you and it's in your holy and precious thing that we pray. Amen