Revelation 19:1-10 (The Wedding Supper, Jeff Kliewer)

Psalm 33 and the Call to Trust the Word of the Lord

Things about we get to do this service twice when we're outside. It's the first.

Time through and I don't usually look ahead to see what song Michaels got picked out. I just let. I just let the Holy Spirit bless. You know my heart my soul when I hear the song and hearing this song outside magnify the Lord with me.

Just really it got me going really good and so now I'm sitting over here. It's the second service and I knew where it was going to be going so I was ready ready for it. You guys sounded awesome. Now it is really cool to be outside and to be in the open air and to be praising God.

But I don't know we got 25 or so 30 people here to hear the sound just reverberating in this room. It just really lifts lifts me up which made me think what is it like for the angels in heaven. Now they look down on earth in wonder and in awe and and they're there around the throne praising God.

And I gotta think that it is a really neat thing for the angels to hear the Saints on earth singing magnify the Lord. What a great testimony. Now outside there were people that came by. I saw a runner and there are cars that go by and our sound is is wafting out there and that's a really cool thing in here.

We're together and in fellowship. We're going to get through this virus someday and we're going to be able to be in closer fellowship. But for now I want to welcome you this morning to Cornerstone. I want to welcome you as we gather together in worship and in praise of his name want to take us to Psalm 33.

Psalm 33 is a psalm of gladness. It's a psalm of rejoicing and it's a psalm expecting the fullness and the blessings of God. There are some very well-known verses phrases that you've heard. Verse 1 shout for joy in the Lord.

Verse 3 sing to him a new song. Verse 20 our soul waits for the Lord. I want to take us to verse 4 because I think there's a an important key pin in verse 4 for the word of the Lord is upright for the word of the Lord is upright.

A couple of observations. Number one is what God says and what he does is not only written down for our teaching for our edification but it's relevant to today and it impacts our life today when we hear the word when we see what God does it is relevant to who we are today.

It was written centuries ago and it's as true today as it as it ever was. And then everything that God says everything that he does is true. We got a messed up world right now. And I was talking with somebody out in the parking lot just before the service and we were we were talking about the efficacy of masks and I'm not here to say it one way or the other but we've heard a whole lot of things on both sides of it.

Okay the word of the Lord is true. What you're gonna hear and what you're gonna see God do and say it is true and you can rely on it. And so we need to choose him above everything else. Choose him above everything else.

Jesus took his followers into the upper room. John 13 through 17 he taught them of things. It's almost like a master's degree on what Jesus did is is in those chapters he told them he was about to go to the cross.

He told them he was going to the father. He told them that I was gonna I'm going to send you another a comforter so much that he taught them. And then in chapter 17 he prays to his father. And one of the things he says in verse 15 I pray father that you don't take them out of the world but that you keep them from the world.

This crazy world I talked about God allows us to be here. We are by the way the salt and the light in that crazy world. But in that crazy world we need truth. So in verse 17 of chapter 17 he says. Sanctify them in the truth.

Thy word is truth. So my challenge to you threefold and it has to do with allowing the Word of God to speak truth into your life. And so the first challenge is take the time to do it intentionally. Take the time to do it.

And this doesn't mean just passing by it but take the time to do it because there are going to be distractions. And so the second is to realize acknowledge and call on God's help depend on his grace. Rely on the Holy Spirit to avoid those distractions that keep you away from the truth.

And then the third is be receptive and listen to it because it is truth. Choose his word. It says in Psalm 33 verse 4. For the word of the Lord is upright. Amen. Some announcements. Number one women's ABF tonight.

Kimberly will be here at 630 this evening for the women come and and join in with her as she opens up the word. If you're not able to come there is a parallel zoom so please take part of it. Guys it's now quarter to 11 tomorrow at 6 o 'clock in the morning I want you guys all here.

It's our monthly first Monday of the month men's prayer breakfast at 6 o 'clock. Ladies kick him out of the bed at 530 so he can get here. Okay we will be meeting here in person if you can't there is a parallel zoom available.

Number three in a week and a half it will actually be the the 14th of this month on a Friday we are going to have a one day VBS event. So if you have children if you have neighbor children if you have relatives if you have friends come on out here for a one day VBS event.

For the details you can see pastor Ben. You can see Jen Abinger Carrie Meyer. But please come here. I understand I don't have a cell phone so I I mean I don't have a smartphone. All I got to flip phone but I understand that there are things called apps on the smartphones.

Churchcenter .com has got the information and finally get ready for the fall. It's coming. This is already August. September is going to launch a ton of stuff. Starting point class for those who are not yet members who are interested in our church in our congregation pastor will be leading a Sunday evenings Sunday evenings in September a starting point class.

You can contact him or myself if you're interested. We are going to be launching a Bible study an adult Bible fellowship. It's going to have two opportunities for you to be part of it. It will be on Wednesdays at noon here in the sanctuary.

Pastor Jeff and I are going to team teach through the book of Isaiah. We think we'll get it done in about two months. Jeff. Yeah right. It's going to be filmed and put out there on media and it's available then as the adult ABF if you're here great.

If you can't make it here there will be a link that you can observe it. So we'll be starting and that will be starting the second Sunday. Andrew Rappaport. The interface is continuing. Pastor Jeff is talking to him in October.

He will be coming for a couple of Sunday evenings. I believe it is to talk to us about the covenants. It sounds heavy but it's important. And by the way we're talking about some other opportunities to go along with it.

One Sunday we might have a bring your own dinner before so we can have a time of fellowship another Sunday. Jay we're probably gonna do a hymn sing. Okay I need him because he plays the piano and we are in now actually an active conversation with the chief of police and here in Mount Laurel so that we can minister in a way to our local law enforcement's that should launch sometime in September.

Prayer for the Word, Communion, and the Sermon on Revelation 19

So now let's pray Lord God. What an awesome thing it is that we can do this magnify your name forever that that our ability to come to the throne of God with the help of the Holy Spirit to cry Abba Father that our relationship is restored through the blood of the cross.

We'll be celebrating communion today as we recognize his bloodshed his body broken for our sins. Pray father for our relationship with you our relationship with one another to encourage and to build each other up our relationship with the world assault and light that we would be a ministry in our community and a witness to family to friends to neighbors.

Pray for our missionaries who are in a world of unrest who have an important message who have the power of the Holy Spirit. There's a world that resists. Give them your strength protect them and let their word go out with power.

So now this morning we pray. Pastor Jeff opens up revelation 19 the wedding feast of the lamb that your spirit would give him power would give him truth and that our hearts will be prepared to hear we pray these things in Jesus name amen.

I sing a few songs together if you could.

Stand with me without hope without light. So from heaven you came running there was mercy in your eyes to fulfill the law and prophets. To a virgin came the word from a throne of endless glory to a cradle.

In the days the father raised the son raised the spirit and raised forever to the king lost in your son their side knowing this was our salvation. Jesus praise the father praise the son raise the spirit.

God outlawed its breath, till the stone was moved for good dead. The church pays the case forever, to the case forever, to the King.

We can sing together praises to our King, praises to the creator of all, the Lord of Lords. The real question comes down to, have you surrendered everything to Christ? Is Christ all you need, or are some things in the way that ultimately would be idols in your life?

Things that restricts your walk and your faith. We're asked to walk by faith. We don't have to run, we don't have to get weary. We have to walk every day, surrendering everything to Him. Our doubts, our fears, our anxieties, all of us may be followers of Christ.

Maybe there are some that aren't. But ultimately, we have to decide, are we going to follow Christ? Even after we're believers and we're stepping in faith with Him, every day we have to still decide, am I going to follow Christ today?

Am I going to follow Christ in this situation? It's our hope and prayer that you decide to follow Jesus every day.

Christ's my, my reward, all of my devotion. Now there's nothing in this world that could ever satisfy every child. My soul will sing, no turning back, being set free. Crying out, our hope will see us this year.

And you may be seated. If you didn't get one of these on your way in, in the back there's a little cup of juice and a little wafer. And to get at the wafer, you're going to need to pull back the clear plastic on top.

We're going to take communion at the end of my sermon today because it ties in to the message. So make sure you have that available.

Let's pray.

God, thank you so much for this opportunity. Today we'll sit and take of the Lord's table. Be reminded of your body and blood. We will look forward to the wedding supper of the Lamb. We pray that as we learn from Revelation 19 today about the wedding supper of the Lamb, that we would be changed by it, that we would let go of the things of this earth and take hold of things that are eternal.

Help us to readjust our focus, priorities in life. Transform us through your word. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Cornelia was named after her mother in 1892. As she grew up, because her mom was Cornelia, they just called her Corrie.

Little Corrie grew up near Amsterdam in the Netherlands. As she came of age, she fell in love. At the age of 23, she thought she was about to get married. However, the man that she thought she was about to marry fell in love with another woman and ended up marrying her.

The heartbreaking thing for Corrie was he eventually came around with her, introduced her to his new bride, and actually put her hand in the hand of his bride and said, I would love for you guys to be friends.

Corrie said, when he did that, I wanted to scream. She was so angry and she had a lot of trouble dealing with that heartbreak. But the Lord brought her through that and she came to rest in the perfect plan of God.

Corrie did not become bitter. Instead, she learned to raise a hallelujah. Maybe 20 years later, she learned probably why she was single, one of the reasons for that, because God always has a purpose in everything.

But in her 40s, as she approached 50 years old, something significant happened that you guys are all familiar with. The blitzkrieg of Germany in World War II rolled through the Netherlands and conquered.

And the Gestapo began to round up all the Jewish people in the land and take them to concentration camps. Corrie also worked with disabled people, but the disabled people were being rounded up and summarily executed as well.

Because of the policies of the Nazis. Corrie, being a woman of God, a strong faith, and not putting her hope in the things of this world, but in the things to come, she began to rescue the persecuted.

She began to rescue Jewish people mostly. And there were over 800 people saved by her and her family. What they would do, they actually had a false wall in one of their rooms. When the raid would come through looking for people, they would hide behind the false wall in a little compartment, kind of the size of a wardrobe.

They could cram six people in there. And they kept rescuing people that way in this underground movement to save lives. Corrie ten Boom experienced that until finally, one of her own countrymen, the Judas Iscariot of his day, betrayed the ten Boom family.

And they were discovered. Corrie was taken to a concentration camp, as was her father and her sister. Her sister died there. Her father died just 14 days into the concentration camp. But just a week before she was to be sent to the gas chamber, by a clerical error, Corrie ten Boom was released.

And her entire group was killed just a week later. God still had a purpose for her in this life. And she wrote the book, I think it was 1967, she wrote the book called The Hiding Place. And the world has heard her story.

And glory has been given to Christ. As she looked not to this world, but the things to come. Her suffering didn't end there. With five years left in her life, she suffered a stroke and she was blinded.

So she now needed to learn how to endure life without sight. And then a second stroke took her ability to move. And so she was a paralytic. If her hope was in the things of this world, what a pitiful state to be, huh?

If our hope was in this world, given everything that we see happening around us, pity us. But our hope is not in this world. We have a hope in a coming wedding, the wedding supper of the Lamb. Revelation 19, go with me there.

Today, the main idea is that we have this hope, this long, joyful feast, which I think will last not days, but years. The wedding supper of the Lamb, which will then culminate in an eternity with our Lord Jesus Christ.

As we look to that blessed hope, it helps us to endure the sufferings of this life. And more than just endure, because it's one thing to endure, it's another thing to be like Corrie Ten Boone and live a life of hallelujah.

She didn't live as a victim. She didn't live a woe is me kind of life, although she had lived part of her life in a concentration camp. She lived with joy, exalting in God, glorifying God throughout her life.

And that's an example for us. So Revelation 19, one. After this, I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven crying out, hallelujah, salvation and glory and power belong to our God.

Let's stop there and take note of this word, hallelujah. Okay, this is your Bible quiz for today. And I'll give you the answer first. Now I might just pop this quiz on you at some point, okay? Here's the answer.

This is the only chapter in the New Testament where the word hallelujah appears. It does appear in the Old Testament, the Book of Psalms, but this is the only place in the New Testament. I think that's because it's associated with this great celebratory event, which is the return of Christ and the wedding supper of the Lamb.

It will appear four times in six verses.

The word hallelujah.

So just a few notes about this word. It comes from the Hebrew and the word hallel means praise. So it also was a recitation that the Israelites would do when they would go up to the festivals. They would recite Psalm 113 through 118.

And that praise, as they walked up to Jerusalem, that praise was called hallel. They would recite the hallel. Well, the word means praise. And so if you look at the second half of the word, hallel, jah.

What does jah mean?

J-A-H.

That's a derivative of the proper name of God, Jehovah, Yahweh. Yahweh, Y-H-W-H, is that proper name of God given to us in the Old Testament. When it transliterated into the Latin, people began to say Jehovah.

And that shortened first part of the word is jah. So wherever you see that jah, that refers to God. But not just the general term like God. There's many gods, false gods, and the true God. But the word for God here is the specific name of our God.

So when you say hallelujah, you are actually singing to his name.

To who he is.

It is specifically a Christian word, comes out of Judaism. Salvation and glory and power belong to our God. Another great place to look to understand that word is Psalm 150. Because the first verse and the sixth verse, the last verse, say hallelujah.

And it's a call to praise God. To use everything you can, instruments, your voice. It's an exclamation. And so Psalm 150 is saying hallelujah. It should be an exclamation. As I said to the service out there outside, nobody can say hallelujah under your breath.

Or half-heartedly.

Can't say hallelujah.

You just can't do that.

The word itself is exclamatory. In the Greek, there's no exclamation mark. But the reason it's supplied in our translation is because the word itself is exclamatory.

Okay?

We should be shouting joyfully, exultantly. And we'll see this again in verse seven. So now, verse two. Verses two through four give us the reason why we should be so exultant. Why would anybody be shouting hallelujah at church?

I mean, that's almost a joke, isn't it? Like when you see people mocking Christians, or maybe they're just having fun and just being playful. The preacher's preaching, and the guy on the front row, what's he doing?

He's shouting hallelujah. And he's dancing around. And the world laughs at that. Why do they shout? Well, there's a reason for it. There's a good reason. Here's the reason. Verses two to four. Four, that word four grounds us in the reasoning.

This is what we're responding to, why we're shouting hallelujah. His judgments are true and just. For he has judged the great prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality and has avenged on her the blood of his servants.

Once more, they cried out hallelujah. The smoke from her goes up forever and ever. It seems like a harsh hallelujah there. And verse four. And the 24 elders, I think the 24 elders are the 12 apostles and the 12 patriarchs.

So they're representative of the church and Israel. So all the chosen people of God together are shouting and the four living creatures. So they're examples of the angels. Remember the angels? These four living creatures.

One has a face like a lion. Another face like an ox. One has a face like a man and another a face like an eagle. And they just fly around with many wings, six wings. Their wings are covered with eyes.

Interesting creatures. And they sing holy, holy, holy all day long. These seraphim, these beautiful creatures worshiping God who is seated on the throne. And what do they say? Here's the third hallelujah.

Amen, hallelujah. So the teaching here, the reason is God's justice. Habakkuk complained to God.

Why is it?

He said, the law is paralyzed and justice never goes forth. Habakkuk 1 .4. The problem of evil. Why is it that people in the world do what they want to do? They live for themselves and they seem to be fine.

There's no judgment. And there are dictators that come on the world scene and they do things like the Holocaust. God, how can this be? Why so much evil in the world? Why don't you just strike them all with lightning bolts as soon as they go to do something?

He delays his justice. But the hallelujah here at the wedding supper of the lamb is that justice is not delayed forever. There's coming a day of judgment and his judgments will be true and they will be just so evil will be put down.

And that's reason for rejoicing. We should rejoice in that. That God will be true and just and he will judge evil. There's a better yet reason to rejoice. And that's coming in a minute. But first I want you to notice who introduces this concept?

Verse five. And from the throne came a voice saying, praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, small and great. Some Bible commentators say, well, an angel just said that. Praise our God.

Makes sense because he says, praise our God. But other commentators noticed the first part from the throne came a voice. And because of the context of revelation where Jesus himself speaks time and again, I think this is the voice of Jesus.

From the throne, God is the one seated on the throne and Jesus is God. If you look back at Revelation 18, four, another voice from heaven there again, this voice, it's not identified as Jesus, but I think that was Jesus.

Come out of her, my people. God calls the church, my people. And earlier in revelation, it was Jesus that spoke directly to John. When John turned to see the voice that was speaking to him, there was Jesus.

And again, in Revelation four, one. So you do see Jesus's voice popping up again and again. And I think that's who's speaking here. Now, what about this idea that he says, praise our God? Is it appropriate for Jesus to call the father his God?

Isn't it just us who worship God? And by the way, someone who doesn't believe in our Lord Jesus Christ would say, well, he calls the father his God. Therefore, he can't be God because he worships God.

Not true. He calls the father God and the father regards Jesus as God as well. In Hebrews chapter one, verse eight, the father speaking to the son says, your throne, oh God, will endure forever and ever.

And then responsibly, Jesus answers back, Hebrews one, nine, saying, of the father, my God. So Jesus does speak of his father as his God. And that's the economy of the Trinity, that both the father and the son acknowledge the divinity of the other.

It doesn't take away from their own divinity. It just acknowledges the divinity of the other. When Jesus rose from the dead, his disciples were clinging to him and he said, don't cling to me. I haven't yet ascended to my father, to my God and your God.

So it's the language of the Bible to regard the father as our God, which includes Jesus. So this is a little Trinitarianism for you. The father, the son, and the Holy Spirit each recognize the divinity of the other.

Three in one. So it's Jesus speaking. And now let's get to the substance of what he says. Let's get another hallelujah. Verse six through the first part of seven. This is the fourth hallelujah, the last place the word hallelujah occurs in the New Testament.

Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, hallelujah, for the Lord, our God, the almighty reigns.

Let us rejoice and exalt and give him the glory. Notice three things about what a hallelujah is. First of all, it's joyful. Let us rejoice. The Christian walk is not meant to be grumpy. If you're grumpy day in and day out, something's a little askew.

The Christian life is responsive to something that God has already done for us. He's laid down his life. Jesus has laid down his precious blood to purchase us for God, to wash our sins away, to redeem us from a fallen world.

And so he's done that already for us. We can say thank you as a lifestyle. So it's a rejoicing kind of word, hallelujah. Next it's exultant. There's a triumphalism that's part of it.

He won.

Christ conquered the grave. He conquered Satan. He crushed the head of the serpent. We exult in our champion. He is Christ, our king. And it gives him the glory. It doesn't look inward at our own stuff.

It looks upward. So that's why we shout hallelujah. If nothing else today, I want you leaving, remembering that word hallelujah. Just to give that shout when you see the sunrise. You might be walking by yourself, going for a jog.

Just give a shout of hallelujah as you think about what he's done for you. That's that word. So that's what it's all about. It's a rejoicing, exultant, God-glorifying cry. And now let's look at the second major reason.

The first reason was the justice of God. He's gonna make it right. Everybody who seems to be getting away with stuff, living for themselves and prospering unjustly, God will deal with that. His justice will be done.

But here, the reason is his love. What love the father has for us that we would be called the children of God. 7b through the end of eight. For the marriage of the lamb has come and his bride has made herself ready.

It was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure. For the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. The reason for this roar. Now this roar is like the first one, only this time it's described as many waters and loud thunder.

So there's analogy to something that's just overpowering and joyful, extreme, hallelujah. Why? Because of the love of God. You guys know that song, the love of God is greater far. One of my favorite songs.

It compares to the love of God to a scroll that stretched from sky to sky. And the author says that if the entire ocean were filled with ink, writing the love of God would drain the ocean dry.

Beautiful hymn.

Google it, listen to it later. But the point being his love is so vast, his ocean of love for us, that we are invited to the wedding supper of the lamb. We have something to look forward to. I have a little boy that just celebrated a birthday.

And in all those days leading up to that birthday party, he's looking forward to it. And it's on his mind, he's thankful, he's excited. And the big day comes and he's rejoicing. That's how we should be looking forward to the wedding supper of the lamb.

We have something so good coming to us that it puts all of our sufferings into perspective. We're looking forward to the wedding supper of the lamb. It's this wonderful event that's coming based on his love for us.

In the 1800s, when Charles Darwin wrote his famous book, The Origin of Species, and taught that lie called evolution, many of the churches got caught up in it and began to rethink the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible.

They stopped believing in creation. And the church, the Anglican church in England, was just in a complete frenzy. Few ministers were holding faithful, but many were just running after this Darwinian lie, which has now been completely debunked both by science and by the word of God.

But when that was happening, there was a faithful minister who took pen to paper and wrote these words that you might recognize. The church's one foundation is Jesus Christ the Lord. She is his new creation by water and the word.

From heaven, he came and sought her to be his holy bride. With his own blood, he bought her. And for her life, he died. Jesus came to purchase the salvation of his bride. From heaven, he came and sought a bride.

And as he died on the cross, he knew each one of us who would belong to that. The bride imagery of the New Testament is never individual. You don't see some kind of romantic interaction at all between God and individuals, not at all.

What the image is, is the corporate bride. All of us together, the church. He came for his church. And he loved us so much that he laid down his life for us. Now recognize, in the Jewish marriage ceremony, there were three phases.

The first phase was betrothal. And then there was the coming of the groom in the night to get his bride. And then the third phase was the feast, the wedding supper. We currently are in this time of being betrothed,.

Being engaged.

But it's stronger than engagement in our culture. This is the first phase of a wedding that's sure and secure because the one who's coming for us is faithful. There's no doubt. He's not going to leave us as the church at the altar.

He's not going to run off for some other woman. No, he came and died for his church. And he loves us so much, he washed us with his blood. That's already happened. Now we're just waiting for his coming.

We're waiting for phase two. And then we go right into the wedding supper of the lamb. So we're at verse nine. And the angel said to me, write this, blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the lamb.

And he said to me, these are the true words of God. So the angel now appears and tells John to write down some words. Because these words are part of God's invitation to the wedding feast.

Who's invited?

We know that he bled and died for his church, but he offers the gospel call, the invitation to one and all. He sends that gospel message to the ends of the earth. I love the parable in Luke 14 that Jesus told.

You guys remember this? A master of the house threw a feast and he sent out his servant to issue invitations to his friends. But one after another, they began to offer excuses why they couldn't make the feast.

The first guy said, well, you know, I just bought some land and I have to go look at it. So please let me be excused. The next guy said, I just bought five yoket of oxen. So I have to go look at these animals.

So please let me be excused. The third guy had a slightly better excuse, but still not worthy. He said, I just found a bride. I need to go get married. And so please let me be excused. Not realizing that this master refers to God and something even more valuable than earthly things.

So what did the master do? First, we're told he was angry. Because there's many who reject his offer. He's angry, but he doesn't stop there. He says this to the servant, go back out there. And you tell anybody and everybody, you tell the blind and the lame and the cripple and whosoever, you tell them all to come.

And after he had done that and the house was getting full, there was still room left in the house. And so the master sent him out again. And he said, now you go to the highways and the hedges. You go and you compel them to come in.

You compel them. And that brothers and sisters is a picture of the invitation that we are to offer to the wedding supper of the lamb. You go to everybody you know and every neighbor on your block and everybody at the park and the grocery store.

And you tell them that they are invited to come. Repent of your sins, turn to Christ. You will find him to be a perfect savior. We're called to go preaching this gospel, compelling them. That means pleading with them.

As ambassadors, we plead with men, be reconciled to Christ. So this invitation to the wedding supper is something being offered right now. Finally, last verse. Then I fell down at his feet to worship him.