The Last Trumpet

Jitterbug was with you to determine if if you would Revelation chapter 11 women look at verses 15 through 19. The seventh angel blew his trumpet there were loud voices in heaven, saying, the kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.

The 24 elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying, we give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was you've taken your great power and begun to rain the nations rage, but your wrath came the time for the dead to be judged for rewarding your servants the prophets and saints. Those who fear your name, both small and great for destroying the destroyers of the earth and God's temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of the covenant was seen within his temple. These were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and earthquake and heavy hail spray heavenly father we stand amazed at this great passage of Scripture that is so absolutely field with meaning and and depth. We pray heavenly father's we look at it today that you might open the word of God up to us that we might understand Lord how this should be right now.

In these very days in which we are living impacting our lives that we might love Jesus more that we might be more like Christ, that we might have a hope deep in our heart, Lord, that you would come and you would come quickly. Heavenly father, I would pray for every person that send this congregation the day that that you might deal with every heart and father for those that are here today that don't know you pray heavenly father that you might do that work of regeneration. The day Lord that that we as human beings are incapable of doing and help them.

Lord, that they might come to know and and love you got us and direct us through this passage today Lord.

May Jesus be uplifted and glorified by this congregation beatified and will give you praise for what you do for us in Jesus precious and holy name we pray.

Amen.

You may be seated. One of my spiritual heroes is my uncle Percy, blah, married my dad's Sr. Sarah is with the Lord to days gone on to heaven. But back when he was in high school.

He was a football player and made Allstate in the state of Tennessee and got an invitation to go to the University of Tennessee on the fools football scholarship but God called him to missions and so he gave that up did not go instead he went to Moody Bible Institute, and while he was there he met my aunt they graduated on one particular day on the very next day they got married on the next day they got on the boat and I headed to Brazil where he would be a missionary and they headed they are and that was their their honeymoon. He learn Portuguese in six months reached his first sermon and he was there on the mission field in Brazil for almost 50 years, and other only reason he came home was because his mission board at an age limit and they made him come home.

When he came home he preached at churches all over North and South Carolina and he taught at the Columbia Bible College extension school and available he continued to do all of that until two weeks before he died at age 95 when I was in my former church. I asked him to come and preach and he did and he came in he preached on the second coming of Christ, and I can remember thinking, I believe I might see Jesus face-to-face before the sermons over a minute it was that powerful, but we we went out to eat after that. In and member sit down. He looked over at me and he said Doug he said, I believe that Jesus is going to come back before I die and I said but Jesus said that no man will know the day of our he said. I realize that I'm not saying this emphatically said is just something that I believe in my heart and something that I long for and hope for.

I believe that Jesus might come back before I die. Well that didn't happen.

He died 15 years ago, went to be with the Lord only ask you something you think that him going to be with the Lord.

Then, without see in the second coming. You think that he felt cheated. Did you think that he felt just disappointment. I don't voice and a second print this chapter.

Five.

Recite the Scripture says of the Christian to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord PA breathe his last breath here on earth in a split second later he opened his eyes and glory, and the first thing he saw was team Jesus, I don't think he felt cheated. I think he will you think is very happy where he is right now it and we tell you this, when the second coming does take place. He is going to highly participate.

But what did that hope of the second coming. What did that due to his heart. It cleansed him. It encouraged him. It helped him to fight sin, it encouraged him to to shove off worldliness and it put an evangelistic zeal down it deep down inside, having listen to what John said in first John chapter 3 verse two through three blood and we are God's children now and what we will be has not yet appeared but we know that when he appears, we shall be liking because we shall see him as he is in everyone who thus hopes and he him purifies himself, as he is pure.

Here's a question I will not just throw out to you the hypothetical question. What if you knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus Christ was going to return tomorrow at noon we change anything that you gonna do for the rest of the day or till noon time tomorrow if you have a son that was lost, would you not jump in your car, rush over to his house and with tears flowing down your cheeks share the gospel with what would you spend time watching television and playing video games probably not, would you go to a person that you've offended and apologize it as that person for forgiveness. Would you cry out to God. During this time and in confession and repentance is a passage of Scripture in the book of Titus that of the last couple weeks the Lord has just been blessed me with an and just using in my life to draw me closer to him and it's a passage that that deals with the grace of God is what happens when the grace of God is in your life and with the Spiritual fruit that you also be producing in your life or the Lord out of a producing in you if if you truly been say that this is it is where you are in your spiritual life. This is kind of thing that I'll be going it sounded Titus chapter 2 in verse 11 through 13 sister the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age waiting for our blessed hope, appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. This passage teaches us that where grace reigns grace trains and what does that mean that that means that the grace of God is not given to us just to forgive us of our sins, but is given to us to help us, that we might have power over C and look what it does here. The Scripture says it trains us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives. Now, in this present age and look at the longing that he puts in the heart, a longing for what he said waiting for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ Michael Pursley was one of my spiritual heroes I looked at him and I could see the person of Christ in his life, and I think one of the reasons that I could do it is because this longing for the second coming. Literally burned in his heart, we come to the end of Revelation chapter 11 today and what's happening here the last trumpet is sounded. Jesus Christ returns to this earth.

That's what's going on here now in the book of Revelation. You have 22 chapters chapter 11 the end of this chapter puts us right dead in the center of the book of Revelation that you would think will the second coming all to come at the end of the book not right here in the middle of the book. Why is that when you jog your memory will be.

Remember when we first started the book of Revelation. I shared with you that you can't study the book and read it in a chronological sequence or in the chronological order bridge not written that way is broken down into seven chapter divisions were those chapters, chapters 1 through three chapters 4 through seven chapters 8 to 11 chapters 12 through 14 chapters 15 to 16 chapter 17 through 19 chapters 2222 and each one of those chapter divisions is a separate picture of the church age.

From the first coming of Christ to the second coming of Christ. And so you see seven of these different pictures of the same time.

But they're coming from different angles and from different perspectives in their come in with a different emphasis member.

I shared with you scum like watching a football game and and enters up a play in the football game where it's kind of confusing people can't quite figure it out.

So they start showing you these different video shots from different angles and you get a shot from overhead and then you get a shot from behind the quarterback.

A shot from in front of the quarterback. A shot from the right shot from the left and then you take all that you put it together and you got the complete picture. Today we complete the third section, chapter 8 through 11 and it ends with the last trumpet, the return of Christ, that we don't have all the details here about the second coming will get a lot more that as we get to the later chapters of the book of Revelation but what we have here is a view of the second coming from heaven. What we get here is God's perspective of the second coming three points I want to share with you today .1 is the kingdom of God declared look at verse 15 then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, the kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever.

The seventh trumpet is the last trumpet, and the book of Revelation is not the only place where we read about this trumpet in first Corinthians chapter 15 versus 5352.

The Scripture says this I tell you this, brothers, flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold, I tell you a mystery.

We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed with a funny story about that verse, verse 51. I had a pastor friend of mine that's up took that diversity in the edit printed out and in and really enlarged and he took it any put it over the nursery door at his church, and so when the new moms with their babies go walk in and they take their babies to the Putman in the Korea as they're walking through.

They see that passage, we shall not all sleep, but we shall be changed. Thought that was as pretty good verse 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last truck for the trumpet will sound of the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed in first Thessalonians chapter 4 verse 15 to 17 Paul said, for this we say and do you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord shall not precede those who are asleep.

The Lord himself shall dissent from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and the trump of God and the dead in Christ shall rise first and way you are alive and and remain shall be called up together in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.

And so shall we ever be with the Lord. Verse 15 here says that the trumpet sounded, and there were loud loud voices that cried out, and what are they say the kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever. Another dispensational essay that Christ is going to return Neil set up a millennial kingdom of thousand year period of time here on this earth and it will be a king that will last for that literal thousand years. But the Scripture says here that when Jesus returns, he will come and reign, not for a thousand years, but the rain starts here for eternity for ever and ever. Some people think that when Christians die they go to heaven that's gonna be our eternal home and know that's true. When we die as Christians.

Now we go to heaven. We are in the very presence of God we are with him, but when the second coming takes place. Those of us in heaven will receive our new glorified bodies, and we will go back to this earth with Christ, the enemies of Christ will be vanquished and then what will Jesus do. Jesus will cleanse and re-create this earth, and he will reign their not just a thousand years, but for ever and ever and we will reign with when the kings of England came to Westminster Abbey to be crowned and to be to be sworn in as Kings. They stood beside an altar and on the altar there was a Scripture written on that altar and it was Revelation chapter 11 verse 15 the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ makes a statement done.

It a statement that earthly rulers must answer to a higher authority in that higher authority is Jesus Christ. The first time the Handel's Messiah was sung and performed in England, King George II was there in the audience when the hallelujah chorus started. There's a verse of Scripture that comes out very plainly, is Revelation chapter 11 verse 15.

And when that verse was was song King George II stood up and from that point in time. All of us have stood up at that point in the hallelujah chorus, but why did he do that he did that to make a statement. I am the king of England, but there is one who has much greater authority than me and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. That's interesting that the inscription on the altar at Westminster of Revelation chapter 11 verse 15 has a word that's missing a letter and the word that's missing a letter is the word kingdom and a it is not missing the Leonard Ansell letter and that this is kingdoms plural instead of kingdom, singular now what is that matter. Answer all the secular empires in history. All of them belong to one kingdom, the Roman Empire, the monarchies of Europe. The Nazi Germany, the communist regimes of China and Russia. The Moslem dynasties, humanistic societies of the West all belong to one kingdom, that is a kingdom that belongs to this world and that is a kingdom that is run by Satan in the Scriptures telling us here at the time is coming when fat kingdom is going to be overtaken and they will yield to the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ. That's what I shared with you last week folks is not but two categories of people on this earth, and who, what are the categories the lost and the saved the those that are in the kingdom of light and those that are in the kingdom of darkness. Those that know and love the Lord Jesus and those who don't. Those are the seed of the woman and those who are the seed of the serpent.

Only two peoples, one more thing I want to say about verse 15 what does John mean here when he speaks of the kingdom of the Lord and of his Christ, Richard Phillips said it this way. I thought this was pretty plain to the coming realm is the kingdom of our Lord and his Christ in the New Testament Lord usually refers to Jesus, but in Revelation. It identifies his Lord and ours God the father, the coming kingdom thus involves the joint rule of our Lord and his Christ, God the father and God the son reign in love over there extended redeem family. The ancient of days in the Son of Man exercising joint sovereignty, the one who sits on the throne of the Lamb who was slain raining together over heaven and earth, the father's Lord of creation. The sun is Lord of redemption. Together, they rule in power and grace and divine glory. Here, the fullness of deity is ascribed to Jesus Christ, who is one with God the father in divine rule Christ kingdom comes as the final realm of history or we might even say after history. Heaven exclaims he shall reign for ever and ever.

I point to is the kingdom of God celebrated. Look at verse 16 through 18 and 24 elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worship God saying we give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was you've taken your great power and begun to rain the nations rage, but your wrath came in the times of the dead to be judged and for rewarding your servants the prophets and saints and those who fear your name, both small and great, and for destroying the destroyers of this earth brothers and sisters.

This is the second coming. This is the end of history.

This is the beginning of eternity future, and the 24 elders represent what that they represent the. The Old Testament believers and the New Testament believers and what kind of reaction do they have what kind of reaction do they have to to the second coming of Jesus.

They stand up and then they fall on their faces and look what they say in verse 17 we give thanks to you, God Almighty, who is and who was less interested in it because you remember when we heard the 24 elders before when they are speaking of Jesus had with a describing to the one who is and who was and who is to come.

But here there is no who is to come. Why did they leave that out because this is a second coming and he's already here.

He doesn't have to come he's already here.

GB Caird said it this way, the song of Revelation 11 verse 17.

However, God is no longer claimed as the one who is to come.

We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty. They say who is and who was they do not say who is to come. This glaring omission reflects the fact that with the return of Christ.

The seventh trumpet ushers in eternal glory. Eternity no longer is to come, but simply is there can be no future. Once futurity has been removed from the very name of God.

This is another reason why we can be sure that this trumpet does not bring in a temporary millennial kingdom but heralds the end of history in the eternal state. We would expect to read that God is to come. We instead read for you have taken your great power and begun to rain. This is what used to be the future. What is still future to us right now God's taking up do you ever contemplate eternity. What will it be like to be outside of time, brothers and sisters. If you belong to Jesus, it's going to be glory glorious absolutely glorious. We are going to be with him and we will be in a state never to to suffer never in those anguish or frustration or sin or death ever again. We will never know anything else but joy unspeakable and full of glory. W a Crystal gave an illustration one time that help me to understand eternity a little better.

He said, is this. If this hold earth that we are on was a big ball of steel and a little bird would come down and and sharpen his beagle netball a steel once every 10,000 years.

Then finally when he had gotten it worn all the way down to absolutely nothing.

Not one second would've passed away for maternity. I like that.

If you know and love the Lord Jesus let truth out to real your soul. You should be saying to yourself, whatever the cost to serve Jesus. It will be worth it.

Whether I'm spent on whether a moderate weather going through a difficult time with people not understanding what I am in and why I believe like I do, whether persecuted, whether I'm even martyred.

That's okay because that's temporary, but eternity is forever is a negative side to the second coming, as well as the positive the Lord sheet will be rewarded with the goats will be judged.

Scripture says they will be cast into a burning like a fire burning like a fire. Those who reject Christ is that's their end and that place like heaven has one thing in common in both heaven and the burning like a fire or eternal. They are forever folks in the burning like a fire. There is no second chance. There is no hope of change. It is a place of absolute solitude, a place of horrible, terrible torment of a place of anguish and frustration, a place where there is the absence of anything good in the absence of the conscious presence of God.

But the worst thing about that punishment. The worst thing about an eternal burning like a fire will be memory if you say no to Jesus Christ.

If you reject what he did for you on the cross, you will remember the sermon, and you will remember that there was a time when you heard a preacher say what Jesus said, except you repent, you shall all likewise perish.

You remember what Jesus said I'm the way the truth and the life no man comes to the father but by me.

Why would you say no to the son of God who is perfect love, who is perfect righteousness whose perfect goodness, we may say well I don't believe the Bible. I don't believe that's can happen. I don't believe that's true, you might say that you might say well I don't want to do that because I love my sin too much. I enjoy the pleasures of secularism and humanism and materialism and and I don't want to give it up because it brings me this happiness me tell you something brothers and sisters. That's a delusion is bondage. It is not joy, and it is extremely temporary. The Scripture says that our sin leads to death and the death that is talking to their is about about. There is not just physical death. It is spiritual death, which is to be ever separated from our holy God.

This world is not all there is to it. Despite what our entertainers and our sports heroes and and are politicians are telling us. This world is not our home. We were created for a different world. We need to remember what Jesus himself said they do not fear that one who can only destroy your body, but not your soul, but fear that one who can destroy both body and soul and hail usually don't want to. I do this is what you do you run to Christ, you run to him in faith you put your trust in what he did for you. 2000 years ago by going to the cross and shedding his blood that your sins might be atone for that he might be the propitiation for your sins, you go to him and you trust that and that alone to save you his resurrection power to break the power of death over you. You trusting now. I gave you that Titus to passage a moment ago. I think that's a good test.

A good test, you will know MI truly a believer.

Do I truly know the Lord.

Then ask yourself is this kind of spiritual fruit being produced in my life. We read that again. Titus 211 to 13 for the grace of God is appeared, bringing salvation for all people training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. I'm not trying to beat anybody down about trying to manipulate you.

I just have a burden on my heart and I would love to know deep down inside of me that everybody in this congregation today knows that he or she longs to Christ that Christ belongs to them. Revelation 1118 again the nations rage, but your wrath came the time for the dead to be judged for rewarding your servants the prophets and saints. Those who fear your name, both small and great for destroying the destroyers of this earth at the second coming of Christ. There will be a resurrection of the just and the unjust is not separated since this together. The unsaved dead will be taken out of hail where they are now and they will be judged. They will be judged, condemned and sentence to a burning like a fire, but this is not a mock fairytale took to laugh at. This is the inerrant word of God to believe the say dead will be taken out of heaven given new glorified bodies, and we will return with Christ to this earth. John five. Jesus spoke of it.

Jesus was the father has life in himself, so he is granted the son also to have life in himself, and is given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at the effort. I was 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, as you have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. Matthew 25 Jesus spoke of the parable of the talents and in parable of talents, he explains how we would reward the faithful, and he said this well done my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in little, I will set you overmuch. Enter now into the joy of the Lord. Revelation 1118, John tells us that the rewards will be. Not just for the great but for the small and the great now. Maybe you're here today your thinking all that little bit that I've done for Christ is not an account for much of think again that you have done for Jesus will be rewarded and remembered for ever and ever and ever. So you ladies that are changing diapers in the nursery. Remember you did that for Jesus and he knows it. You guys to get out in the parking lot when it snows and and shovel off the parking lot so people can get to church. The Lord sees it you that take meals to sick families. He sees it you that sit down with the person whose heart is broken and needs to hear the gospel and shares the gospel with them. Jesus sees it but is not just the Calvins and the losers in the Spurgeon's that will be rewarded is the great and the small part .3 is the kingdom of God consummated verse 19 then God's temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of the covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and earthquake and heavy hail. This verse ends the first half of the book of Revelation. In verse 19 explains the results of the second coming of Christ for all believers.

This is a glorious symbolism here. This is God symbolic white as a Christian you are going to have access to the very presence the physical presence as well as a spiritual presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. Verse 19 says that God's temple was opened and ark of the covenant was, I want you to do to see that those words the ark of the covenant was seen that in the old covenant in the Old Testament was ark of the covenant seen know where was it.

It was behind the veil in the holy of holies, and only one person saw it and that was the high priest, they only saw one time a year. That was on the day of atonement. He would go back behind the veil. He would take a look at the bowl of the goat's blood is handy would dip it down in to the is branch of hyssop into it.

He would sprinkle it on the mercy seat the little ark of the covenant, and then they would come back and the people would know their sins were forgiven for that year. In other words, ark represented God's holy presence in the Old Testament because the blood of Christ had not yet been had not yet been Vince poured out because it had not been poured out, the people could not approach the ark of the covenant that represented the presence of God.

But what happened when Jesus died. You remember when when Jesus died on the cross.

The Scripture tells us that the the veil in the temple was rent from the top to the bottom and what did that give people access to. They were able to see right in to the holy of holies itself looks.

It was the blood of Jesus that gave us the privilege of having access to the presence of God.

Here the second coming of Christ will read a very similar thing Jesus comes, he destroys the wicked and rewards the saved and he assures us that we will have unlimited access to the very presence physical presence of Jesus Christ. The message of ark of the covenant being seen is that we should not fear the return of Christ, we should rejoice over the return of Christ, because what of the blood of Jesus done for us is opened up not only the opportunity with the reality that we belong to him and he has delivered us from sin and he is clothed us in his righteousness, and now we are going to be in his presence forever and ever and ever on the close of the statement from Richard Phillips. He said while enemies of Christ must stand in his terrible judgment.

The time for the believers to stand is nail is a 24 elders who fell on their faces, praising God or any indication we will fall down and adoration of our Savior on that day casting at his feet. The pansies given us. But now, as we await is coming.

We are to stand as those who know what song will be planned when history comes to an end. We are to stand for God's truth in our teaching and living stand for his mercy in our gospel outreach stand for his glory and kingdom by living holy lives in refusing to swear allegiance to the kingdom of this world in sin. If we standard faith by his grace we will hear with joy the trumpets sounding that day.

The voices from heaven crying out in wonder the kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever. Amen. Spray heavenly father, we thank you and praise you for your precious word that gives us such assurance that that day is coming when you're coming back. Lord we will see you face-to-face then and will be with you, not just for some short period of time before all of eternity. Lord made that affect our lives so much that we might live it out nail that you would be glorified that our wards would be greater. Not that we could collect the men and be selfish with the Lord, but that we would have crayons that we might lay at your feet, that our worship of view might be extended in greater father got us and direct us and help us, that we might love Jesus more heavenly father's we get ready now to partake in the Lord's supper. We pray father that your presence might be sweet. You have promised. Lord, that you would be with us in a very special way, and the time of the Lord's supper and we would ask now, Lord, that you prepare our hearts help us, that we might enjoy your sweet presence. Help us Lord, that we might celebrate what you have done for us on the cross, God directors now through our Lord's supper will give you praise and honor and glory for all you do this, Jesus precious, holy name we pray. Amen