[0:00] Thanks, Rob.
[0:14] So let's turn in our Bibles to Revelation 22, the very, very end, the last few verses of Revelation and indeed all of Scripture.
[0:44] Before we read, just a couple of extra things to say. Yes, the carol service tonight at 5.30, so look forward to having everybody along to that.
[0:59] If you're wanting to know how can I help, well, come early. Imagine if you're a visitor and you've never been here before and you're the first person to arrive because all the locals arrive at 25.2 or something like that.
[1:16] So come early, take your seats and be ready to welcome those who come. The other thing is the Thanksgiving service tomorrow for Mrs. Beamish, which will be out in Westside in Bandon.
[1:32] If anybody is going to that, I'll be taking the service. If anybody's going, if they'd let me know, we're just looking for another person to help with stewarding and welcoming people.
[1:45] So just speak to me afterwards about that. Well, let's turn to God's Word. Revelation 22, verse 6, to the end.
[1:57] Let's hear what God has to say to us today. Remember, John the disciple is writing.
[2:11] The angel said to me, These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.
[2:27] Look, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll. I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things.
[2:41] And when I heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. But he said to me, Don't do that.
[2:55] I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of the scroll. Worship God. Then he told me, Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll because the time is near.
[3:17] Let the one who does wrong continue to do wrong. Let the vile person continue to be vile. Let the one who does right continue to do right.
[3:28] And let the holy person continue to be holy. Look, I am coming soon. My reward is with me and I will give to each person according to what they have done.
[3:43] I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. Blessed are those who wash their robes that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.
[4:02] Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
[4:18] I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright morning star.
[4:33] The spirit and the bride say, come. And let the one who hears say, come. Let the one who is thirsty, come.
[4:45] And let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life. I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll. If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll.
[5:05] And if anyone takes away any from this scroll, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this scroll.
[5:20] He who testifies to these things says, yes, I am coming soon. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
[5:32] The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen. Well, let's pray. Our Father God, we echo these words.
[5:51] Come, Lord Jesus. Come, by the power of your Holy Spirit, so that we may have eyes and ears to see and hear the amazing truth of your word and what you are speaking to the churches in this time and this generation, what you are speaking to us today.
[6:20] Help us to hear and help us to live our life in response to you. In Jesus' name. Amen.
[6:31] Well, are you ready? As we thought about at the beginning of our service, are you prepared? Well, if you're not, you'd better get a move on because Christmas is only seven days away.
[6:49] A date has been set. Yes. Everybody knows the 25th of December is Christmas Day. Leave it a day late and it's too late.
[7:03] So in preparation, we've all been busy. Decorations up. The tree is there. Plans for dinner. Got the presents. You visit friends. You send the cards.
[7:14] Because having the date keeps our minds very focused. Leave it a day late, the 26th, and it's too late.
[7:27] Well, Christmas is not the only day that is coming. There is another day. We don't know the date of this day, but we can be absolutely sure it's coming.
[7:41] Did you see the promise in our text? Look at verse 7. Jesus says, Look, I am coming soon.
[7:54] And in case we missed it, verse 12, Look, I am coming soon. And again, verse 20, Jesus, who testifies to these things, says, Yes, I am coming soon.
[8:12] You better believe it. So we must be ready. We must be prepared. Leave it a day late, and it's too late.
[8:26] Of course, if we've been following along in our studies in Revelation, this will come as no surprise whatsoever. Look back at verse 6.
[8:37] The angel said to John, This is the angel who'd been giving him the visions. The visions had come from God to the angel to John.
[8:49] The angel said to me, These words are trustworthy and true. Well, what words? What words is he talking about? Well, all the words that we've been reading through Revelation.
[9:03] The book of Revelation is trustworthy and true. You can believe every word, and you can depend on every word. Because these words tell us what we are to expect.
[9:21] Look at the rest of verse 6. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, that is, the God who gives words to the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.
[9:41] What must soon take place is what's happening between the resurrection of Jesus and the return of Jesus. And the climax of what must soon take place is and will be the coming of Jesus again.
[9:57] This is where all of history is heading. It's heading to that day when Jesus will return. Every day is a step closer to Christ's coming.
[10:13] But how do we know? How can we be absolutely sure that Jesus is coming? How do we know these aren't just made up words? Well, we know that Jesus came once.
[10:28] Two thousand years ago. That's what we celebrate at Christmas. Just as the prophets foretold. So look at this from Matthew's Gospel.
[10:39] It was talking about the birth of Jesus. And the writer Matthew says this, All this, the coming of Jesus, all this took place to fulfil what the Lord had said through the prophets.
[10:57] And he quotes from Isaiah, The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and they will call him Emmanuel, which means God is with us.
[11:10] God had spoken in the past about the coming of Jesus. Jesus came and now God speaks again through his servant John, who is telling us that in the future, Jesus will come again.
[11:25] Just as the first promise is true, so the second promise is true. So we can trust God's words. They are trustworthy.
[11:37] You can build your life on them. What he says we can depend on. So are you ready? Leave it a day late and it's too late.
[11:52] Well through our text, we're going to see that there are three ways we can be prepared. This is how we are to live our lives as we wait for the return of Jesus.
[12:05] Three things. Keep the words of Jesus. Obey the words of Jesus. And heed the words of Jesus.
[12:16] So keep, obey and heed. So the first one. We are blessed by keeping the words of Jesus.
[12:31] Look at verse 7. Look, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll.
[12:45] He's given us his word. And rather than ignore revelation, we're to keep it. And keeping the words of Jesus are going to mean at least two things.
[12:58] First, it's going to mean that we meditate on them continually. Now verse 7 is reflective of chapter 1 verse 3.
[13:09] Go back to chapter 1 verse 3. It's really a repeat of what we were told at the very beginning of Revelation. Revelation chapter 1 verse 3.
[13:25] And this will help us to understand what it means to meditate. So verse 3. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy.
[13:39] Blessed are those who hear it. And take to heart what is written in it because the time is near.
[13:49] Because Jesus is coming soon. So to keep the word of Jesus means that we're to read it. We're to hear it.
[14:01] We're to learn it. But not in a mechanical way. We are, look at verse 3, to take it to heart. That means we're to reflect on it.
[14:14] We're to think deeply about the words of Revelation. We're to study it. We're to meditate on it. Not just once, but continually.
[14:27] Let's go back to chapter 22. Chapter 22 verse 10. We're to meditate on it. Not just once, but continually.
[14:39] Look at verse 10. Then he said to me, do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll because the time is near. But you might think, well, this is the last sermon.
[14:53] This is Revelation done. Tick box. I don't have to read it again. No. Now that you've read it, don't seal it up.
[15:04] Don't staple the pages of Revelation together. You've read it. You've heard its message. Don't ignore it. But keep on reading it.
[15:16] Meditate on the words of Revelation continually. Now this helps explain the strange words that we read in verse 11.
[15:27] Let the one who does wrong continue to do wrong. Let the vile person continue to be vile. But let the one who does right continue to do right.
[15:42] And let the holy person continue to do holy things. You see, it's pushing us to make a choice. What are we going to do now that we've gone through Revelation?
[15:55] There's no middle ground. We either shut it up and close it up and we live our own way or we keep it open and we keep on reading it and live God's way.
[16:13] So what's our response going to be? Meditate on it continually. Now second, to keep God's word is not just to meditate but it's to worship God.
[16:30] You see, when John received these visions, we're told in verse 8 that he went to worship the angel. But, verse 9, the angel said to me, don't do that.
[16:42] Stop. I'm a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll.
[16:54] Worship God. You see, the words that we are reading and learning, the words of Revelation that we are taking to heart, lead us to worship God.
[17:06] In other words, to keep the words of Jesus means that we respond in thanks and praise. As we take in God's word, we see his sovereignty over suffering and opposition.
[17:20] We see his victory over Satan and evil. We see the glory of the new creation to come. His words lead us to trust and depend on him who knows all things and rules all things.
[17:34] And in response, we worship God. We worship God. Now, if we keep his words, if we're meditating on them, if we're worshipping God, there's going to be a blessing.
[17:59] Look at verse 7. Look, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words. To be blessed blessed is to know and experience God's favour in your life.
[18:17] In other words, revelation isn't to be used to speculate about the future. It's to bless us. Yeah, we find parts of it difficult, but the main things are always the plain things, and the plain things are always the main things.
[18:36] We can all read that and get that message. And if we keep these words, they are going to encourage you to keep on going.
[18:47] Read these words and they will strengthen you in times of hardship. Read these words and they will keep you as you face opposition. So first, let's together keep the words of Jesus and you will be blessed.
[19:07] Keep the words of Jesus and you will be prepared for the coming of Jesus. So, first one is obey the words.
[19:20] Second, sorry, keep the words. Second, we're to obey the words. We know life if we obey the words of Jesus.
[19:32] Look with me at verse 12. Again, look, I am coming soon. My reward is with me and I will give to each person according to what they have done.
[19:50] You see, how we live today is really important. as we wait for the coming of Jesus, it really matters because he will reward us according to what we have done.
[20:06] And we don't need to be concerned that it's going to be unfair or unjust. Look who holds us to account. Verse 13. Jesus says, I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.
[20:25] I see your life from your first breath to your last breath, from your birthday to your death day.
[20:37] I see all, I know all, the private things, the public things, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. So how am I going to be ready?
[20:55] And what kind of reward am I going to receive? Well, to be ready we need to obey. We need to obey the words of Jesus.
[21:09] And that will mean two things. First, it will mean that we obey the call for cleansing or obey the command for cleansing.
[21:24] Look at verse 14. Blessed are those who wash their robes that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.
[21:40] Look, if we're unclean, we can't enter God's city. If we're impure, we'll not come to the new creation.
[21:52] Because sin stains and spoils, it leaves us dirty, filthy, unacceptable to God. Like the workman, we mentioned this before in Revelation, who's been clearing the sewage pipes all day and then tries to gain access to a fine dining restaurant.
[22:11] No way, you're not coming in. clean. So Jesus says, if you're not clean, then, verse 15, outside are the dogs, meaning the dogs are those who roll about in their own filth, they don't care.
[22:32] Those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, not just the person who has an affair, but the one who looks and lingers too long, the murderers, not just those who actually kill, but those who have hate in their hearts, the idolaters, anyone who puts anything or any person before God, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
[23:07] have you ever loved the sin you've been involved in? You see, verse 15 is challenging because, well, I see myself in verse 15.
[23:23] Can you see yourself there? we won't be allowed access into the city. This will be our reward.
[23:33] This is what we will deserve. But if we obey the command of Jesus in verse 14, to wash our robes, well, then we will be given entry.
[23:50] Now, this isn't a physical washing, but a spiritual washing. It's not about taking off our clothes and sticking them in the washing machine and giving them a good old clean.
[24:04] It's about an internal cleaning of our hearts. It's coming to Jesus and trusting him that when Jesus took my sin, Jesus became unclean for me.
[24:19] And in his place, we receive the cleanliness, the purity of Jesus. He takes my uncleanness and by faith, I receive his cleanness.
[24:36] What I deserve, the rewards that I should get, Jesus takes. And the rewards that Jesus deserves, I now receive by faith.
[24:49] I am made clean. Like the sewage worker who goes home, has his shower, scrubs up, puts on his clean clothes from the wardrobe and comes to that fine dining restaurant, he will be welcomed in to sit, eat, drink and feast.
[25:08] feast. Well, here's the command. Get yourself clean, not by doing things yourself, but by coming to Jesus, who will wash you, so that you have the right to go through into the city, the new creation.
[25:29] second, then, is not just get clean, but invite to come.
[25:42] You see, the evidence that we have been made clean, the evidence is that we want others to be made clean and ready too.
[25:54] If I say, yes, I'm trusting Jesus, then a big part of my life is going to be wanting others to be there in the new creation.
[26:05] Look at verse 17. The spirit and the bride say, come. Well, we know the bride is the church, God's people, so the spirit speaks through the church, through God's people, he gives the church an invitation to send that invitation out to people, and the invitation is simply, come.
[26:34] Well, come to what? What are we inviting people to? Well, look at the rest of verse 17. And let the one who hears say, come.
[26:45] Let the one who is thirsty come. And let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life. It's an invitation to people to say, come.
[27:01] Come to Jesus. You see, people all around us are thirsty. And maybe you're thirsty today, not in the physical sense, but in the spiritual sense.
[27:14] You're not satisfied with what the world throws at you. You're left empty, dry, and thirsty. You keep drinking it in, but nothing changes.
[27:26] Whatever you add to your life never seems to quench your thirst. Well, come to Jesus who gives, verse 17, the free gift of the water of life.
[27:41] Jesus will quench you. Listen to his words. Take on board his words. Come to him and he will clean up your life.
[27:52] He will deal with your past and give you a new and eternal reward. You see, that's what we're about as we wait for the coming of Jesus.
[28:05] Our business, wherever we are, whether it's at home with our children, or at work with people, or at college, amongst our neighbours, we're people who have been sent out with an invite, and the invite is just simply come.
[28:20] Come to Jesus. Because now, today, is a time of mercy and grace. Now is a time of salvation. Come now.
[28:32] Come and take this free gift of life. Now, if we obey these words of Jesus, if we obey the command to come, then we receive life.
[28:53] Isn't that the message of verse 14? Clean up, get washed up, so that you can have the right to the tree of life. Also, the end of verse 17, take the free gift of the water of life.
[29:11] life. You see, Jesus is not just the creator of physical life, he is the source of true, lasting, and abundant life. You see, to have life from Jesus means that whatever circumstances we are in right now, whether we're rich or poor, whether we think ourselves as being healthy or unhealthy, healthy, whether we're sad or happy, worried or no concerns, whatever our situation, Jesus will always be enough for you.
[29:45] He will satisfy you and fill you. His words, the words of revelation, will give you all that you need every single day, moment by moment, as you live your Christian life.
[30:00] remember Jesus' invitation to the broken and forsaken woman at the well? He was speaking about himself when he said this, whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst.
[30:20] Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water, welling up to eternal life. people around us are thirsty and they're trying to quench that thirst with things that will never satisfy.
[30:40] And we've been sent with an invitation to say come and receive life, life from Jesus. So keep the words of Jesus, obey the words of Jesus.
[30:59] And third, heed the words. We have hope by heeding the words of Jesus. Look at verse 18.
[31:12] I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll. A warning to everyone who's read Revelation.
[31:23] we need to heed these words of Jesus. And we do that in two ways. First, come on flicker, don't add verse 18.
[31:48] He says, I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll, if anyone adds anything to them. Don't add.
[32:01] The word of Jesus is full and final. What he's given to us in the book of Revelation is enough. We don't need to add anything extra to it. That means we need to be very careful of well-meaning folk who say things like, God told me, God revealed to me, God told me to tell you.
[32:27] We need to be especially careful of people who claim to have knowledge about the end times and how it's all going to figure out. No, we don't need to add to it.
[32:40] Jesus has spoken and he has his words written down for us. He didn't forget to put something in and he now needs you or I to finish it off.
[32:52] Jesus isn't going, oh my goodness, Revelation 23, I forgot. Would you please finish 23 for me? No, don't add anything to it.
[33:07] And this is serious, look at verse 18. If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll.
[33:20] Well, the plagues were those of judgment. So mess with God's word, add to God's word, and you will face judgment.
[33:35] The other way in which we heed God's word is the opposite. Don't subtract verse 19. and if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy.
[33:51] You see, the word of Jesus is sufficient and complete. What he's given to us in Revelation is just what we need to hear. We're not to leave any of the bits out.
[34:03] Again, that means we need to be careful of well-meaning folk who say things like, well, you know what we read in Revelation? Revelation, that only applied to people in the first century.
[34:15] Things are very different now. We've kind of moved on. And if people are going to accept Jesus, you're talking about the invitation to life. Well, we've got to subtract.
[34:27] We've got to take some of the things out. I mean, it's pretty dark, isn't it, some of Revelation? The rider coming on the horse with his sword.
[34:37] I mean, let's leave those judgment bits out. They're a bit uncomfortable. And the talk of the beast rising up from the sea.
[34:49] All that stuff of Satan, people don't want to hear that. Let's just talk about the new creation. No, don't subtract from it.
[35:02] What Jesus has spoken, we need to hear. We need to hear all of Revelation. Revelation. And it's serious, verse 19.
[35:13] Look at the end of verse 19, if we subtract, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the holy city which are described in this scroll.
[35:30] Mess with God's word and we will not enter the city. God's love. You see, Jesus doesn't need an editor, does he?
[35:41] He doesn't give us a pen or an eraser and say, I want you to go through Revelation or indeed all of Scripture and rub out the bits that you don't like and write in the bits that you want to add.
[35:54] God's love. God's love. He doesn't need us to proofread Revelation. He's made no mistake in giving us his word. What he requires of us is humility, humbleness before his word, to keep his word, obey his word, and to heed his word.
[36:18] that means we need to be people who have our Bibles open because if we don't have our Bibles open, we're adding to it with our own way of thinking and we're subtracting by keeping it shut.
[36:36] Now, if we heed the words of Jesus, there is hope. Not the kind of hope we think of like, I hope to get a brand new car this Christmas.
[36:51] Now, hope in the Bible is complete assurance and total confidence that God will always deliver on his promise. And the hope we have is both future and present.
[37:04] Look at our future hope, verse 20. He who testifies, Jesus who testifies to all these things, says, yes, I am coming soon.
[37:17] He'd the words of Jesus and we have the promise of his word that Jesus is coming again. And when he comes again, he's going to bring all things to their completion.
[37:29] Where we will live in the new creation forever and ever. A world full of justice and life. No more evil or suffering. Everything made wonderfully new.
[37:40] This is our guaranteed future hope. But we also have a present hope. A hope for today.
[37:53] Look at verse 21. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen. By heeding the words of Jesus, we have the promise of his grace to help us and keep us as we wait for the coming of Jesus.
[38:17] You see, it's all by grace. The fact that we have life in Christ today is because he came to us and he saved us.
[38:29] It's the grace of Jesus that's going to keep us in times of suffering and opposition. It's the grace of Jesus that will sustain us when we want to give up.
[38:41] It's grace all the way through. As we often sing through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come.
[38:53] Tis grace that brought me safe thus far and grace will lead me home. It's all of grace we have a glorious hope.
[39:07] hope. So Christmas will remind us this week and this season that Jesus came once. Tonight we'll sing carols, we'll celebrate the coming of Christ, the life he comes to bring.
[39:26] But his first coming reminds us of his second coming. are you ready? Are you prepared?
[39:37] Well the way to prepare is to listen to the words of Jesus, verse 6, the words that are trustworthy and true. So let's together, as we start into a new year not too far away, let's live by these words as we wait for the soon return of Jesus.
[40:02] Let's together keep his word, obey his word and heed his word. And if we do, our lives will be the better for it for we will be blessed, we will experience life in all its fullness and we will have hope for today and for eternity to come.
[40:26] Let's pray. Lord God, we thank you so much that you gave these revelations, these visions to John, that he wrote them down so that we have access to your word today speaking to us today.
[41:02] Thank you for your word. Thank you for its trustworthiness. Thank you for its truth. And we pray for the help of your Holy Spirit that we would be keepers, obeyers, and headers of all your word.
[41:24] And that you would work in us a life of blessing, a life filled with hope, and life forevermore. Help us then together, we pray, in Jesus' name.
[41:39] Amen. Well, we're going to sing a song that's really reflective of our theme this morning.
[41:59] Speak, O Lord, as we come to you to receive the food of your Holy Word. May this be our prayer, our encouragement to one another. prayer.