Salvation Belongs To The Lamb

We're going to get another great glimpse of heavenly worship We just got a great glimpse of heavenly worship in Revelation 5 and now we're going to follow that up with another one and we're going to follow that up in Revelation chapter 7 as we focus on a particular phrase in Revelation chapter 7 verse 10, but let's go ahead and read verses 9 and 10

After this I looked and behold a great multitude that no one could number from every nation and from all tribes and peoples and languages standing before the throne and Before the

Lamb clothed in white robes with palm branches in their hands and crying out with a loud voice

Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the

Lamb Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the

Lamb Now that is a magnificent declaration

Salvation belongs to The Lamb that's what we're going to focus on this final session what it means what the significance is of salvation

Belonging to the Lamb the Lord Jesus Christ What does it mean? What does it mean for salvation to belong to Jesus to belong to the

Lamb? And we're going to answer that question in six different ways

Number one, what does it mean for salvation to belong to the Lamb? It belongs to the

Lamb by Eternal decree it belongs to him by Eternal decree if something belongs to you you possess it, right?

If something belongs to you, it is yours. It's in your possession You possess it and what's amazing here in this passage and in the book of Revelation and in all of God's scripture

It's amazing that it is something Jesus possesses salvation is something he possesses

But he's been possessing it if you will by design and purpose for a long long long long long long time

It has been belonging to Jesus from eternity past So when we hear the worthiness of the

Lamb because salvation belongs to him I It's important and fitting to remember that it's been belonging to him from eternity past.

Oh Yes, he had to come to earth Oh, yes, he had to do certain things while he was here and we'll talk about those things

But we have to remember that all of that was according to decree Eternal decree theologians say from eternity past even in our in our book the book of Revelation chapter 22 verse 13

Jesus is called as you all say here the Alpha and the Omega He's the eternal one.

He is the eternal one and from eternity past he's been in route to come here to perfectly fully save a

Part of his great plan and purpose the plan and purpose of the triune God now

I certainly think it's fitting for us to be in the at the end of the

Canon in Revelation to focus there some but realize that there's so much that's been aiming toward and Anticipating and and moving toward that great final conclusion

And so I do want to look at a couple of other passages outside of Revelation specifically Ephesians chapter 1 would be

Important text to learn about what the salvation is that belongs to the Lamb by eternal decree also 2nd

Timothy 1 9 I'll reference in Ephesians chapter 3 But if you just want to turn to Ephesians 1 and let's see some of the background of salvation

Belonging to the Lamb and to realize it's been belonging to him for a long long time

As you're turning to Ephesians 1 listen to these words from 2nd Timothy 1 9 He saved us and called us to a holy calling not because of our works, but because of his own

Purpose and Grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began

I Love to hear that in part because it's something

I can't comprehend But also in part because it makes me realize that salvation is even more magnificent than I even imagined than I would have ever imagined and and it helps me understand just how

Great it is to have salvation Belonging to the Lamb, and that's why

I've been saying in this message so far. It's been belonging to him so Paul can say before the ages began we might say in Eternity past it belonged to him because it's part of an eternal decree

When you first become a Christian typically it's not always the case but 99 % of the time you had no idea

You hadn't you it was you didn't have any kind of category for this You know I have decided to follow

Jesus is kind of how we all look at it And then the more you read the Bible you you start by thinking

Jesus is a great Savior You start on that good and right track, but the more you realize and the more you know the more you read the scripture

It blows your mind all the more before the ages began Ephesians chapter 3 verse 11 says according to the eternal purpose according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our

Lord and then that great great text Ephesians 1 where we see if we were to look at the whole thing we would see the

Predestinating plan of the Father and we'd see the applying work of the Spirit And we would see the redeeming work of the

Son and how this has been planned and purposed Long before you were born long before I was born this

Salvation plan has been belonging to the Lamb Since eternity passed, but let's at least sample it because it's so magnificent and so mind -rocking

Hopefully worship inducing even how about verse 4 even as he chose us in him

That saving lamb before the foundation of the world That we should be holy and blameless before him in love

He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ according to the purpose of his will

To the praise of his glorious grace with which he has blessed us in the beloved in him

We have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of our trespasses according to the riches of his grace which he lavished upon us in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will according to his

Purpose which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time

To unite all things in him things in heaven and things on earth verse 11 It will end there in him we have obtained an inheritance having been predestined

According to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will

Salvation belongs to the Lamb and certainly according to decree and in anticipation of all his completed works on the earth

It's been belonging to him for a long long long long long time and so as you think about the greatness of the

Lord Jesus Christ and the great salvation that he gives Realize that it wasn't a plan

B Realize it didn't start with you and your conversion realize it started

According to the triune God planning and purposing before the foundation of the world

Talk about worship inducing Praise be to him praise be to the

Lamb salvation belongs to the Lamb How impressive it is to consider him number two.

What does it mean for salvation to belong to the Lamb? It belongs to the Lamb because he earned it it belongs to the

Lamb Because he earned it when I read those words salvation belongs to the

Lamb I think of possession in another sense. It belongs to him because he secured it by his own works

It belongs to him because he earned it Let's look just back two chapters to the passage.

We just heard preached in Revelation 5 9 It's a good emphasis there on his earning his

Redeeming work 5 9 says and they sang a new song worthy Are you to take the scroll and to open its seals for you were slain and by your blood?

There we go by your blood you ransomed people For God from every tribe and language and people and nation belongs to the

Lamb he Ransomed he is the one who saved by his own actions

By his own deeds by his own efforting by his own works I know my brother well enough to know what he likes to say and I know that he likes to say to you for shock value

Salvation is by Works, isn't it? Salvation most certainly is by works.

I love to say that to people and say true or false salvation is by works And it's like a trick kind of question, right?

Because we say no salvation is by grace It's not of works so that no one may boast No mere human being who's a sinner may boast no one in this room may boast

But we're actually called to boast in Christ because salvation most certainly is by works

Grace is not some kind of force from Star Wars Grace God's free gift that wasn't free to him

It's free to us. It's not free to him. The one thing that ever cost God anything

Only one thing ever cost him anything and that's the giving of his son and his son most certainly

Saved us by his works, right? Should be a no -brainer.

It's good shock value He did something. He did something glorious and an amazing and therefore

Salvation belongs to him Rightfully, so he didn't just think nice thoughts about us

He did something Romans 5 8

Christ died for us. That's effort Hebrews 12 to he endured the cross effort

Matthew 3 15 he Came to fulfill all righteousness

Salvation is by works friends the works of the Lamb How great and amazing is his love for us that he would do those works so that we might be acceptable before God Oh indeed

Salvation belongs to the Lamb to tragedy

But this is controversial This is controversy.

It shouldn't be controversial This one strikes close to home,

I know people who say most certainly this isn't the case Sadly in the church where I even pastor they're listening to a bad teacher

Saying that this isn't the case and we like to follow teachers.

We all do Somebody saying well if the Bible teaches salvation by grace and it's only by grace

And people ready to leave Omaha Bible Church because I'm saying salvation is by the works of Christ We died for our sins he fulfilled all righteousness

Christians Protestants have never believed that somehow we're saved by some sort of force idea thought

It's always by the works of Christ Shorthand we might say it otherwise and we're certainly saying and clearly saying it's not by our works

RC Sproul put it nicely Ultimately the only way one can be justified is by works

We are indeed justified by works by the works that just but the works that justify us are the works of the second

Adam To be justified by faith means to be justified by faith in the works of Christ Our faith is not the ground of our justification

Faith serves as the instrument by which we receive the benefits of the works of Christ the sole ground of our justification

I'm hearing that just Common biblical sense it makes me want to say as it says in Revelation 7 with a loud voice

He's worthy He did this for me according to his divine purpose not because I was worthy not because you were worthy

But according to his eternal decree reaching back into eternity past for his own glory and praise

Ultimately he died for our sins. He lived for our righteousness

So that we might be justified before him Salvation belongs to the Lamb Salvation belongs to him

Number three, what does it mean for salvation to belong to the Lamb? It belongs to the Lamb because he accomplished the otherwise

Unaccomplishable he accomplished the otherwise Unaccomplishable What would be?

Unaccomplishable What would be unaccomplishable? well

Salvation would be unaccomplishable. It's impossible and let's think about this for a second here.

We are Spiritually filthy in and of ourselves I need to be spiritually clean to be in the presence of the great and holy king

And so do you? But it can't be done. I'm in Adam Even if for the rest of my life

I could do the the right thing which I can't but even if I could and you know, even if you could What about all the past?

It's impossible For us and then Jesus says things very clearly like in Matthew chapter 5 be perfect Well, I'm in the red as it is

Be perfect Your Heavenly Father is perfect the impossibility of salvation is what we're looking at the

Lamb is The one whose salvation belongs to because he accomplishes the otherwise

Unaccomplishable look with me again if you would at verse 9 of Revelation chapter 7 notice what's happening there

Notice those who are surrounding him. They are standing before the throne and before the

Lamb clothed in white robes Say what clothed in white robes that's an utter impossibility that kid that can't be

If that's emblematic that's symbolic of our of our spiritual cleanness that that just can't otherwise be unless salvation belongs to the

Lamb Verse 13 then one of the elders addressed me saying who are these clothed in white robes?

Those are those are believers Clothed in white robes, how in the world could this happen book of Revelation uses a lot of things that are from Isaiah And so I'm gonna use a little bit of the same rationale just to help us to appreciate this better This is impossible.

It's impossible for us to have those white robes or those tribulation saints to have those white robes Apart from the

Lamb who owns salvation by his own efforts But just listen if you would to the rationale of Isaiah and why this would be impossible

Which should cause us to all the more loudly praise him the one who? salvation belongs to You know the passage probably if you've been in church more than twice or so Isaiah 64 6

We have all become like the one who is unclean spiritual uncleanness and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment

Again we know the answer, but how in the world did these people get around the throne with white garments? Because even all of our righteous deeds are our dirty garments.

How could this be it can't be? Unless salvation belongs to the land

How about Isaiah 1 Isaiah 1 18 gives us some hope and then the rug is pulled out from under us

Isaiah 1 18 come now Let us reason together says the Lord though your sins are like scarlet, and that's true

They shall be as white as snow. Oh, there's hope that's good though They are red like crimson.

They shall become like wool, and there's that great Anticipation of hope there and Isaiah 1

But it's important that we keep listening or reading the very next verse verse 19 if you are willing

And obedient You shall eat the good of the land, but if you refuse and rebel you shall be eaten by the sword for the mouth of the

Lord has spoken verse 21 how the Faithful city or oh how the faithful city has become a whore the

ESV says you know 118 all cleansing

Scarlet turns to white yes There's hope that I could have a clean Karma and be acceptable before God if you do these things

Slays us. We know we're spiritually dirty because we don't keep the

End of the bargain if you do these things doesn't look promising unless something extraordinary happens unless the otherwise undoable is done by someone other than us and Eventually we make our way to Isaiah 53

Isaiah 53 verse 5, but he was pierced for our transgressions

Our whoredom if you will He was crushed for our iniquities

Upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace and with his wounds

We are healed now when

I go back to Revelation chapter 7 just with a little bit of surveying in the book of Isaiah I go

I get it now And you can say I get it, too white garments pure undefiled chaste ready

Welcomed in his presence not because we kept our end of the bargain But because he the last

Adam gave himself for us Salvation belongs to him again.

That's why we don't say we did it That's why we don't do mutual congratulations in heaven.

That's why worthy is the Lamb Salvation belongs to him from start to finish it belongs to him

So we worship We worship he does the otherwise undoable

Have you ever thought before or spent much time considering that salvation is impossible

It's utterly and entirely impossible it can't be done apart from Apart from someone else doing it for us by their own perfect actions.

I Remember years ago Mike giving me a tape back in tape days and How many of you have ever heard of John Gershner?

Anybody ever some enough for enough of you have heard of John Gershner he was like a mentor of RC Sproul's and a friend of RC Sproul's and I Don't know if he smoked like 16 packs of cigarettes a day

Maybe he never smoked a day in his life, but he had one of those kinds of voices

And I can remember being so terrified listening to John Gershner and he had this message

He did on called reformed evangelism, and I call it Halloween evangelism because he would say

That you could not be saved even if you Wanted to be saved because God hates you with a holy hatred

I'm all lightheaded now, too because it is utterly and entirely

Impossible for you to be saved Maybe not a very good imitation of John Gershner, but you get the point

He may not have been right about everything, but he was right that salvation is utterly and entirely impossible apart from the perfect work of Jesus Christ Which is why he's praised because salvation belongs to him.

It's his We're thankful. He gives it to us, but it's his I want to cry out with a loud voice

Salvation belongs to the land To boast in him number four What does it mean for salvation to belong to the lamb it belongs to the lamb and therefore it belongs to those who belong to?

God It belongs to him and therefore it belongs to us if we belong to God as the people of God once again verse 10

Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the lamb

Let's put some emphasis on it belongs to our God Question in what sense is

God our God? He's not our God because he's under us

He certainly doesn't mean that in what sense is he our God it says he's our

God the heavenly worshipers say it belongs to our God and to the lamb in what sense is he our

God? I love it that he's ours Well you go back to Genesis you start to hear this kind of description of God He's the the creator of heaven and earth.

Yes. He's the almighty sovereign over all yes But he has a unique people and you start hearing this language this this language of possession, and he's he's our

God Back in Genesis chapter 17 Back in Genesis 17 7

I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you through their

Generations for an everlasting covenant to be God to you Well, he's already

God Overall, but now this is unique to be God to you in a personal way and to your offspring after you verse 8 of Genesis 17 and I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings all the land of Canaan for any

Everlasting possession, and I will be their God it says and then we hear it again and again and again

It's a statement of Loyalty from God. I'll be your

God covenant language theologians say

Bible scholars say Covenant loyalty language Promissory language

Relational language God is our God and salvation belongs to him and so therefore it belongs to us

When you hear that Worship in heaven by those saints who are there salvation

Belongs to our God Well, the great news is he's our

God and if he's our God and we belong to him by faith Then that salvation is our salvation

Good and exciting. He's a loyal God and if you belong to him, he'll keep his promises to you

Sometimes we want to object to this and maybe we think we're too smart for our own good and we say but but that's only

For Old Testament Israel. Well, look at Revelation 7 verse 9 again

It's not limited to the Jews every nation it says

He shows loyalty to his people from every nation even those original covenant promises

Even those original covenant promises to make a nation to make Israel Include blessings to all the peoples of the earth

Genesis 18 18 you can write it down Genesis 22 18. We moved to the New Testament Galatians 316

I'll reference Galatians 3 8 listen to this and the scripture foreseeing that God would justify the

Gentiles by faith Not just the Jews preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham saying in you shall all the nations be blessed

So then those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham the man of faith

He's our God He's our God he if he's not your

God because you say I just can't go there because that sounds covenantal Well, then you're smoked

Because salvation doesn't belong to you because he's not shown his covenant loyalty to you

You've got to realize that if you are a believer You're like Abraham and it was in that original promise to Abraham that not only the

Jewish people would be blessed that all the nations of the earth would be blessed And we say

I want a covenant keeping God You Need a covenant keeping

God and what we also know is we we all we move not just from that Abrahamic Covenant Which is very good and very important and Paul thinks it's very good and very important in Galatians 3 that that Building from there with Christ fulfilling all of his duties and works that he would do here on earth

We then move into what is called even better the new covenant

Ratified solidified secured in his what in his blood

Salvation belongs to him why? well because of his blood because of his shedding of his blood because of what he does but salvation belongs to him and That means if we belong to him

If God is our God it belongs to us This is a great reality.

It's a great truth. Let's be like those described in our text with a loud voice saying

Salvation belongs to the lamb. It belongs to our God Read that right benefactor beneficiary beneficiary

I get that wrong any attorneys here What are the ones that receive right? He's the one they get let's move on now.

Let's move on to number five What does it mean for salvation to belong to the lamb it belongs to the lamb to never lose?

This is a pretty obvious one don't need to spend a lot of time here It belongs to the lamb and if it belongs to the lamb, it'll never be lost

That's this gets we should even think back to the eternal decree thing. It's certainly locked in. It's certainly going to happen

We say you can't take it with you go to museums and see that a lot of people have thought you could take it with you

But this is gonna forever belong to him because his work is accomplished and because as we learned from pastor

Mike earlier in Revelation 5 6 he's the lamb who was slain, but he's the lamb who was slain who now what?

Stands He stands because he's the victor. He stands because he was raised from the dead

And so if he's the one that salvation belongs to He's not the guy who was a great moral teacher who's dead salvation belongs to a dead guy some good that is to you and to me

Salvation belongs to the lamb who was slain. Yes, who was slain but now happens and So we say yes

With a loud voice we say belongs to him it belongs to the standing slain

Savior That makes Christianity different than anything and everything that anybody's ever seen

It's why we worship him We give him praise we give him glory. We give him exaltation

Isn't it interesting sometimes and we we want to be so kind of Stayed and we want to be so reserved and and be for fear that we might look like We worship something, you know worshipers are passionate

Mike talked about sporting events earlier, you know passionate they're worshiping

Really? Guess what Christians are worshippers of the one

True worthy object of worship. So we see it here belongs to the lamb to never lose

Salvation belongs it is in a state of belonging To the one who sits on the throne

Isn't it interesting? He's the standing sitting lamb Because in one sense he sits because his work is done and he rules and reigns

Yeah, in another sense he stands because he's the victor making it clear that he's alive

Resurrected. I love Hebrews chapter 7 verse 25. He always lives

Now always lives to make intercession, but just for our sake here. He always lives Which means he can always live to make intercession for us

Never to lose it Never to lose it You know, we get caught up in debates about especially for me as a young Christian.

Can you lose your salvation? Can you not lose your salvation? And and then somebody helps you to realize that if it's by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone you can't lose what you yourself didn't earn and that makes tons of sense and And then you start thinking in terms of well

And that's right in the Bible talks about perseverance and God who began a good work in you would be faithful to perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus and Philippians 1 6 comes into play and John 10 and John 6 and all of this is important to know sometimes what we overlook is the obvious and sometimes

I like to state the obvious because that's really what what What shocks us sometimes? We believe in eternal security because the

Lamb is Resurrected and will always and forevermore be alive and apart from that There would be no eternal security

Salvation belongs to the Lamb to never be lost by virtue of the fact that he is

Raised from the dead to always be raised He lives forever to make intercession for us and Finally number six.

What does it mean for salvation to belong to the Lamb? It belongs to the

Lamb for his maximum exaltation It belongs to the

Lamb for his maximum exaltation How about verse 9 again after this

I look and behold a great multitude thinks think Maximum a great multitude that no one could number from everything maximum every nation from all tribes and peoples and languages standing before the throne and before the

Lamb clothed in white robes with Palm branches there to worship to praise to celebrate in their hands verse 10 and Crying out with a loud voice.

They're all of these you can't even count how many of them there are They're from all different kinds of backgrounds all different kinds of people coming from all different kinds of places

And what are they doing there with a loud voice? Maximizing the exaltation to Christ because he is the one to whom salvation belongs

It maximizes his exaltation Salvation belongs to our

God who sits on the throne and to the Lamb This is so central imagine what this looks like not in your imagination

But in light of Scripture and what it says this is so extraordinary. This is so awesome.

This is so Amazing. This is so Magnificent and this it's so grand and great with so many exalting him ready for this

That there are even non redeemed angelic beings

Joining in the praise and exaltation beings that don't know

What it's like to experience who don't know what it's like to experience mercy

Who don't know what it's like to experience what this great multitude is experience

But he is so great and what he has done for those sinners that even the angelic beings

Join in let's see it now verse 11 says and all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living

Creatures and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God saying amen

They're an agreement Amen Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our

God forever and ever. Amen How magnificent is that?

They know that it's right. They know where the focus should be They're affirming what redeemed sinners are doing

Extraordinary for us to see Salvation belongs to the land glory be to the land.

You probably know that song. What wondrous love is this? Never gonna sing that song the same way again ever in my life

To God and to the Lamb, I will sing I will sing to God and to the Lamb I will sing to God and to the

Lamb who is the great I am All millions join the theme. I want to say more than millions.

I will sing I will sing while millions join the theme I will sing

What wondrous love is this wondrous love is this salvation belongs to Father, thank you for our time that we've had together and thank you for the men and women and boys and girls

Who are here? May we never grow weary never grow tired of hearing of our great

Savior Jesus We're grateful that While we don't understand why?

We do Understand that he's a great Savior who has chosen to save and he's chosen to save us

Why us we don't know, but we're grateful to be able to join with the countless millions upon millions upon millions as well as with the angels one day and boast in Christ Lord help us to be good

Good worshipers in the here and now as we anticipate that day where our worship will be unhindered