Everlasting Gospel — Chuck Smith

Well, as we journey through the Bible, we are now in Revelation Chapter 14, closing in on the finish, and so we encourage you to read it over. Of course, we'll be over at the Anaheim Stadium tonight for the final night of the Crusade, but next Sunday night we'll be taking Chapters 14 and 15 of the Book of Revelation.

The Everlasting Gospel in Revelation 14

This morning we'd like to draw your attention to the 14th chapters, verses 6 and 7, where John tells us, I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.

He is saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him, for the hour of his judgment is come. Worship him that made heaven and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of water. The Bible tells us that God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

God's Invitation During Judgment

And I think that this scripture proves this beyond dispute. The fact that as we are coming towards the end of the great tribulation period, the time when God's judgments are upon the earth because of man's rebellion, God is still holding out to man the everlasting gospel, inviting men to receive the everlasting gospel even at this late period of man's history.

God is judging the world because of its rebellion against him, and their rejection of his son Jesus Christ. But God is still at this point sending the angel to proclaim the everlasting gospel, which does mean that there is still time for them to repent.

But just what is the everlasting gospel? The word gospel, as you know, means good news. Now we usually watch the 10 o 'clock news at night before we go to sleep. It's rare when we ever hear or see anything that you could classify as good news.

In fact, it's sort of a miracle that we can go to sleep after we find out all that's going on in the world today. It puts a real exclamation point on our good night prayers when we ask God to watch over us as we sleep and give us a good night's rest.

The Good News of Salvation in Christ

But the good news is found in John 3 .16. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever would believe in him would not perish but have everlasting life. For John tells us that God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved, telling us that he that believeth is not condemned.

But he that believes not is condemned already, seeing he has not believed on the only begotten son of God. And this is the condemnation. That light came into the world and men loved darkness rather than the light.

That is the everlasting gospel and believe me that is indeed good news. We deserve death and eternal separation from God because of our rebellion and sin against him but God so loved us he sent his son to take our sins to die in our place and to offer us the gift of eternal life.

As Paul wrote, if you truly believe in Jesus there is therefore now no condemnation to those that are in Christ Jesus. In Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, there in chapter 15, Paul said moreover brethren I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which you received and by which you stand, by which you are also saved, if you keep in memory what I preached unto you unless you have believed in vain.

For I delivered unto you, first of all, that which I received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures. He was buried but he rose again on the third day according to the scriptures.

Basically three things, Christ died for our sins, he was buried but he rose again on the third day according to the scriptures. Now in our text today we are told that the angel is flying through the midst of heaven toward the end of the tribulation period and he is declaring to the world this everlasting gospel to people of all nations and backgrounds, ethnic backgrounds, tongues and tribes, declaring this everlasting gospel, the eternal truth of God, the eternal truth of God's love and his offer of forgiveness for our sins.

The Gospel During the Great Tribulation

During this period of time when this angel is declaring this message of the eternal or everlasting gospel, the world will be going through the worst period in the history of the world. Jesus in speaking of these days said there in Matthew 24, 21, for then shall be great tribulation such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

And in the midst of this great tribulation when at least half of the world's population will be wiped out by the wars, the earthquakes, the meteorite showers, the plagues, and even possibly the sun going into a supernova, yet God is still offering to men the everlasting gospel, still holding out the forgiveness of sins and the hope of eternal life.

Why do you suppose God is offering still the everlasting gospel? Perhaps it's because as he said to Ezekiel, Ezekiel tell these rebellious people, as I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked would turn from his way and live.

Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways, for why will you die? Or as Peter wrote, the Lord is not slack concerning his promises as some men count slackness. But he's faithful to us, and he is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

And though we're towards the end of the great tribulation period and the culmination of the world as we know it, still God is offering the hope of salvation to those that would turn, even at that point, to Jesus Christ.

David wrote in Psalm 86, 15,. But you, O Lord, are a God who is full of compassion. You're gracious, long-suffering, and you're plenteous in mercy and truth. And surely this is demonstrated by the fact that God is still offering to man salvation through Jesus.

Humanity's Refusal to Repent

It's amazing to me, however, at this point, that there will still be people so stubborn, so obdurate, that they will reject salvation even at this point, when they are going through all of the sufferings of God's judgment upon the earth.

Moving ahead to chapter 16, where we'll be in a couple of weeks or so, we read there beginning with verse 8,. The fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun, and power was given to him to scorch men with fire.

This is why I mentioned earlier, possible a supernova. And men were scorched with great heat. But what did they do? They blasphemed the name of God, which had power over these plagues, and they repented not to give him the glory.

I find that almost inconceivable, that at this point, when the everlasting gospel is being offered to them, they blaspheme God, and they refuse to repent. Going on, the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was full of darkness, and they gnawed their tongues for pain, and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and they repented not of their deeds.

Some people disdain God so much, that as the scripture tells us, they are not even willing to repent at this point, but remain stubborn in their resistance of God's love. As Asaph said in Psalm 73, that they speak contemptuously of God.

They say, how does God know? And is their knowledge in the Most High? Or as David wrote in Psalm 94, they say, the Lord doesn't see us, neither does God care. But David asks, you think that this is logical?

Be wise. He that created the ear, don't you think that he can hear? He that created your eyes, don't you realize that he can see? He that chastises the heathen, do you think that he is unable to correct?

And he that gave man knowledge, don't you realize that he knows? The Lord, he said, knows the thoughts of men, that they are vanity. Paul tells us in Romans chapter 2 verse 5, concerning those that reject the gospel and feel that they are getting by with their sinful practices.

He said, but the result of your hard and impenitent art, you are only treasuring up to yourselves wrath that shall be revealed in the day of wrath and the revelation of the righteous judgment of God. We are reading here in Revelation of the day of wrath and his righteous judgment, but to me, the amazing thing and the wonderful thing is that God is still holding out the offer of salvation as the angel goes through the midst of the heaven declaring the everlasting gospel.

The Urgency of Repentance Today

It would appear that God will pursue a person almost to their grave to offer them the opportunity to receive the everlasting gospel and be saved. But there are some people who are so foolish to think, well, if that be so, then I'll just wait until I'm on my death bed and then I will ask God to forgive me and to cleanse me from my sin and to give me a place in heaven.

But there is total folly in that thought because you may suddenly have a heart attack and no opportunity to repent or you might be in an accident and in a moment it is all over. As Isaiah exhorts us to seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he may be near.

Let him turn to the Lord for he will have mercy upon him and he will abundantly pardon. You're making a false assumption if you think that the life of the flesh living after your flesh is superior to the life of the spirit.

People think this because they have believed Satan's lies. Satan tells you that if you surrender your life to Christ, you won't be able to have fun anymore. Well, if you think that becoming drunk and entertaining the crowd with your foolish antics is fun, or if you believe that being a sex fiend is fun, then I guess you're right.

You can't have fun anymore. Yet the Christian life is described as one that is full of joy, joy that is indescribable and full of glory. I can personally testify to the truth of that statement. The truth is that living a Christian life is the most exciting, thrilling life a person could ever live.

What joy, what indescribable joy I've experienced in following the Lord and in serving him. I wouldn't trade it for any kind of entertainment or thrill or excitement that the world might offer. Satan tells you that if you become a Christian, you're going to have to give up all your friends.

But in reality, those people that are encouraging you to take the path that leads to death, destruction and hell, how can you call them really friends when they are seeking to promote your own destruction?

Jesus said in Mark 10 29, I speak the truth. There is no man that has left his house or his brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children for my sake and for the gospel's sake. But he shall receive in this world a hundredfold and in the world to come eternal life.

Salvation Brings Peace and Eternal Life

To receive the everlasting gospel is to be saved. Saved from what? Well, saved from the worry and the anxieties of the uncertain future that played your mind. Saved from the fear of death. For the prophet Isaiah said, the wicked are like a troubled sea.

It cannot rest. Its waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith the Lord, for the wicked. But for those who are saved, those that have received the everlasting gospel, as Paul wrote, the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and your mind in Christ.

Love, joy, peace. These are the qualities that one experiences when he receives and accepts the everlasting gospel. In our text, this message of the everlasting gospel is taken by the angel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people.

God is giving one last final call to humanity. One last final opportunity to receive the forgiveness of sins and to escape the judgment of eternal punishment. The angel is carrying the gospel to all the world.

The Church's Mission to Preach the Gospel

It's interesting that Jesus commanded his disciples, go into all the world, preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved. He who does not believe will be damned. The commission that the Lord gave to his disciples and to the church is that we should carry the gospel into all the world, preaching it to everyone who lives.

In speaking of his coming again, Jesus said, and this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all of the nations, and then shall the end come. Now there are many mission groups which have taken this scripture as their rallying cry, and their motto is often, till the whole world knows.

And they talk about taking the gospel into all the world. And surely the Lord has given us tremendous opportunity. Our webcast that we have reaches 169 different nations throughout the world. And we are really taking the message of God's love to the world in which we live today.

But if we acknowledge the truth, the world is not becoming more Christianized, nor are we reaching the world today with the gospel, though we have all of the advantages of modern media. In fact, the world is becoming more paganized.

Take a look at England. England was once the heart of missionary sending. The gospel went out from England by missionaries to the far corners of the world. And yet, though England had such a great place in getting the gospel out, sending out missionaries through the world, now we are sending missionaries to England.

You know, if I felt that we as the church had to reach the whole world with the gospel before the end came, I would be very discouraged because I would see that we are getting further and further from the end and the coming of Christ than we are getting closer.

But this passage of scripture in Revelation indicates that God is going to finally intervene and he is going to send his angel to declare the everlasting gospel to all of the nations and all of the tribes and tongues and people.

Supporting Missions and Training Workers

Now I am a strong advocate for missions. I believe that this should be one of the primary goals of the church, to take the gospel to all the world. And I am grateful for the missionary outreach that goes forth from Calvary Chapel.

The fact that we have missionaries all over the world that we are supporting and this little mission magazine that we have available, we encourage you to take it and to look through it and the little missionary booklet that lists all of our missionaries and the areas where they are serving the Lord, I would encourage you to take that and to realize the impact that God is making in the world through you, that we have a real vital part in carrying the gospel into our world today.

We have some 61 Bible colleges all over the world that are training people in the Word of God to go out and to share the faith and to start churches. And yet we're going backwards in the total sense as far as the world is concerned.

And so God will take it upon himself. He will send this angel after the church is gone. While the world is going through the great judgment period, God will still be holding out his hand, inviting people to come to receive the everlasting gospel as God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

The Present Invitation to Receive Christ

Right now, I am proclaiming to you the everlasting gospel. If you have not yet accepted Jesus Christ, I want you to know that God does love you so much that he sent his only begotten son to take your sins and the guilt of your sin and to die in your place, that by your believing in Jesus, surrendering your life to him, you will be forgiven of all of your sins and you can have that hope of eternal life with him in glory.

Right now is the opportunity. Right now, the opportunity to enter into that eternal life that God is offering to you. When this day comes, when the gospel is proclaimed by the angels, the opportunity is still there, but it's going to be a lot more difficult at that time than it is now.

You're in an environment where people are praying for you, an environment where people love you and they want to see you receive God's love and the gift of eternal life. In that day, you'll be in a time of God's judgment and people blaspheming God and to stand at that moment will take martyrdom as a general rule for you to make it into the heavenly kingdom.

So you're better off to take the offer now than to wait until later and the slim chance that you'll have under extremely adverse conditions. Paul wrote to the Corinthians and he said, Behold, now is the accepted time.

Behold, now is the day of salvation and it could be that God is saying that to you today. This is the accepted time. This is the day of salvation. I would encourage you, listen to that voice of the Spirit of God that is speaking to your heart and let this indeed be the day.

Closing Prayer and Call to the Altar

Father, we thank you for how gracious and merciful you are, how long-suffering and compassionate. And Lord, that you are still holding out unto man the offer of the eternal gospel and that you continue and will continue, Lord, up until the dying day that men might turn from their sin and turn their lives over to Jesus Christ and receive, Lord, the blessed truth and the wonderful gift of salvation.

Lord, thank you for your faithfulness and your patience and your persistence. May our struggle against you end this day as we receive the everlasting gospel. In Jesus' name, amen. Shall we stand? The pastors are down here at the front to minister to you today.

If you'd like to receive God's gift, if you'd like to receive this everlasting gospel, as we're dismissed, we would invite you rather than head for the exit, head for the altar. Come on down here and open your heart and receive God's love and God's invitation to be a part of His family.

May the Lord be with you. May the Lord watch over and keep you in His love. May He fill you with His Spirit and may He cause you to abound in all things in Christ Jesus our Lord. The Lord bless thee and keep thee.

The Lord make His face to shine upon thee and be gracious unto thee and be gracious unto thee. The Lord lift up His countenance upon thee and give thee glory.