{"id":19025,"date":"2020-03-08T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-03-08T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sugar-land-bible-church.local\/sermon\/revelation-74-today-is-the-day-of-salvation\/"},"modified":"2020-03-08T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2020-03-08T06:00:00","slug":"revelation-74-today-is-the-day-of-salvation","status":"publish","type":"sermon","link":"https:\/\/slbc.org\/es\/sermon\/revelation-74-today-is-the-day-of-salvation\/","title":{"rendered":"Revelation 74 – Today is the Day of Salvation"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","book":[111],"series_event":[490],"sermon_service_type":[472],"speaker":[6],"class_list":["post-19025","sermon","type-sermon","status-publish","hentry","book-revelation","series_event-revelation","sermon_service_type-main-service","speaker-dr-andy-woods","no-post-thumbnail"],"acf":{"sermon_title":"Revelation 74 - Today is the Day of Salvation","sermon_date":"20200308","sermon_month":"3","sermon_year":"2020","sermon_notes":7584,"sermon_slides":7585,"sermon_mp3":7587,"sermon_id":"38201342554814","series_or_event":490,"service_type":[472],"speaker":6,"books_of_the_bible":111,"chapter_and_verse":"22:11-17","sermon_transcript":"Andy Woods\n\nToday is the Day of Salvation, Revelation 22:11-17\n\nLesson 74\n\nLet\u2019s take our Bibles and open them to the Book of Revelation, chapter 22, and verse 11.\u00a0 The title of our message this morning is Today is the Day of Salvation.\u00a0 And here we are continuing on in the Book of Revelation, having completely and totally finished the vision that\u00a0 John saw on the Island of Patmos two thousand years ago. And what we\u2019re into right as we conclude the book is the section called the epilogue, sort of concluding thoughts.\u00a0 There was a prologue that started the book, chapter 1, verses 1-8 so it\u2019s fitting that there should be an epilogue, chapter 22:6-21, three parts to this epilogue, words of comfort, words of warning, and then a conclusion with a brief benediction.\n\nWe\u2019ve been looking at, and I may finish this part of it today, I don\u2019t think we\u2019ll finish the whole Book of Revelation today, words of comfort.\u00a0 John here is reminded, going back to verse 6 that these are faithful words.\u00a0 These things will happen!\u00a0\u00a0 Christ is coming soon, there is a blessing for the one who reads and heeds these words but make sure that you give glory completely only to God and take the vision that you have received John, and don\u2019t hide it under a bushel, but unseal it and proclaim it because the time is at hand.\n\nAnd so verse 10 we sort of concluded with an exhortation that the Holy Spirit gives John to unseal this book.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 Because the time is at hand.\u00a0 And if the time is at hand, verse 11, the day is coming in human history where people\u2019s destiny\u00a0 will be fixed.\u00a0 There won\u2019t be an opportunity to decide for Christ any longer.\u00a0 Whatever decision that a person has made follows them into the eternal realm, particularly this eternal state that we have been studying, chapters 21 and 22.\n\nThe fact of the matter is there are some things that you can do right now that you will not be able to do in eternity and one of those things is evangelism.\u00a0 Evangelism is a privilege that we all have but it\u2019s a very temporary privilege.\u00a0 The time in history is going to come where evangelism itself will not be needed.\u00a0 That\u2019s why any decision that people make for or against Christ needs to be made now!\u00a0 Hence the title of this message, Today is the Day of Salvation.\u00a0 Where am I getting this from?\u00a0 You\u2019ll see it there in verse 11. \u201c\u00a0<\/sup>Let the one who does wrong, still do wrong; and the one who is filthy, still be filthy; and let the one who is righteous, still practice righteousness; and the one who is holy, still keep himself holy.\u201d\n\nCharles Ryrie, in his Ryrie Study Bible says this concerning verse 11, \u201cWhen Christ comes there \u00a0\u00a0will be no more opportunity for a man to change his destiny.\u00a0 What he is, then he will be forever.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 I remember hearing and watching the late Billy Graham in his evangelistic appeals, I think the title of some of his magazine, if I have it right, his radio program, was something along these lines---the day of decision.\u00a0 And it\u2019s an interesting title and we think, because we hear the gospel so frequently as evangelicals and Bible believers and we summon people to faith, we think that that message is something that\u2019s just going to go on and on forever and it\u2019s not.\u00a0 Today is the day of decision, tomorrow\u2026 not necessarily.\u00a0 In the eternal realm, in the eternal state there are no decisions, there are no gospel tracts, there are no more appeals to come to Christ.\u00a0 That day is over!\u00a0 And this is why the Scripture exhorts us in 2 Corinthians 6:2, \u201cBehold, now is the DAY OF SALVATION.\u201d\n\n[2 Corinthians 6:2, \u201cAT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU, AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU.\u201d Behold, now is \u201cTHE ACCEPTABLE TIME,\u201d behold, now is \u201cTHE DAY OF SALVATION.\u201d]\n\nThe mistake we make in our thinking is we assume that what was normal yesterday is going to be normal today, and what is normal today is going to be normal tomorrow.\u00a0 And we\u2019re told very clearly in the Bible that\u2019s a wrong way of thinking.\u00a0 You only have today, you only have the unique opportunity to believe in Christ in this brief mist that appears for a little while and then it disappears. And once humanity moves in the eternal realm whatever decision has been made is in cement for an awful long time; forever is a long, long time!\u00a0\u00a0 And that\u2019s why John is told, verse 10, to unseal the prophecy; warn people now while the opportunity to warn them is available because that opportunity will not exist forever.\n\nJesus gives another word of exhortation to John also concerning not just the urgency of the hour but the need to keep on keeping on, because as a Christian it\u2019s very easy to become weary in well doing.\u00a0 And yet we\u2019re reminded there in verse 12 not to be weary in well doing because Jesus says He\u2019s keeping an eye on what we\u2019re doing as Christians and He wants to reward\u00a0 us accordingly.\u00a0 He says in verse 12, \u201c\u201cBehold, I am coming quickly,\u201d now \u201cquickly\u201d is a description of the manner\u00a0 in which He is coming.\u00a0 It\u2019s a lot like saying it\u2019s going to happen so quick and it\u2019s going to happen so fast that the opportunity to repent won\u2019t be available once this particular event here begins to transpire. So whatever repentance is going to happen in a person\u2019s heart it needs to happen this side of that event because He\u2019s coming quickly.\n\nAnd notice what He says in verse 12, \u201cand My reward\u201d God is a rewarder, the Book of Hebrews tells us that.\u00a0 \u201cGod is a rewarder of those who\u201d what?\u00a0 \u201cdiligently seek Him.\u201d\u00a0 Hebrews 11:6 [\u201cBut without faith, no one can please God, for whoever is brought near to God must believe that he exists and that he is the rewarder of those who seek him.\u201d]\u00a0 \u201cBehold I am coming quickly and my reward is with Me to render to every man according to what he has done.\u201d \u00a0The doctrine of rewards for the Christian.\u00a0 In our future there is something following the rapture of the church as the events of the tribulation period are taking place on the earth below there is something called the Bema Seat Judgment of Christ where Christians will either be rewarded or not rewarded based on how they invested their earthly sojourn in Jesus Christ.\n\nThe Scripture as a whole portrays at least four future judgments and the one there that I have embolden is this judgment seat of Christ, one that every believer in Jesus Christ right now as I speak will be a participant in.\u00a0 Paul, the apostle in 2 Corinthians 5:10 says, \u201cFor we, <\/u>Paul included himself there, must all<\/u> appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one<\/u> may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.\u201d\n\nLook at all these important words here:\u00a0 \u201cwe,\u201d Paul says I\u2019m a part of that group; \u201cmust\u201d this is not something he could opt out of, you can\u2019t throw out a sickly form and vacation form and get out of it.\u00a0 There\u2019s an exam in our future.\u00a0 \u201cAll,\u201d who is \u201cAll\u201d?\u00a0 Everyone in the church age.\u00a0 \u201cAll must appear before the judgment seat of Christ so that each one may be recompensed for the deeds done in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad.\u201d\n\nOne of the distinctives of the Judeo-Christian biblical world view is this life ends in judgment.\u00a0 There is a day of reckoning coming.\u00a0 It\u2019s interesting that when you go back to the foundations of the United States of America and you look at the requirements that office holders in government were to hold before they were qualified to hold any office in the United States.\u00a0 As you go back into American history you see these various requirements\u2014such and such an office holder must believe that God is a rewarder\u00a0 of the good and the punisher of evil.\n\nYou had to believe, I wish I\u2019d brought in all the historical evidence, it\u2019s there if you want to look.\u00a0 You had to believe that there\u2019s a future judgment coming because the idea is if an office holder believed in a future judgment coming they were always under the awareness that someone greater than themselves was looking over their shoulder, and was going to hold them responsible and accountable for their conduct in office.\n\nNow we\u2019ve gotten away from that, haven\u2019t we, where people think that they\u2019re accountable to no one other than themselves and in the process they\u2019re running afoul of what America was founded on and they\u2019re running afoul of what the Bible teaches, that this life ends in judgment.\u00a0 Certainly for the unbeliever it does.\u00a0 The Book of Hebrews says, \u201cIt is appointed for men to die once\u201d and then to face the judgment. \u00a0[Hebrews 9:27, \u201cit is appointed for men to die once and after this comes<\/em> judgment.\u201d]\u00a0 There is no recycling, or coming back in a different life form as reincarnation, Eastern mysticism teach.\u00a0 It\u2019s a day of reckoning and accountability, a frightful day for the unbeliever!\n\nAnd even for the Christian although our sins have been forgiven and we have been transferred from death unto life at the point of faith alone in Christ alone, the fact of the matter is God is still going to hold us account-able based on how we lived for Him,, how we allowed\u00a0 Him to express Himself through us as believers. This is not a judgment to punish sin, that issue has been taken care of at the cross of Christ.\u00a0 John19:30.\u00a0 [John 19:30, \u201cTherefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, \u201cIt is finished!\u201d And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.\u201d] It\u2019s not a judgment to determine salvation, that issue was taken care of the moment we trusted in Christ.\u00a0 John 5:24.\u00a0 [John 5:24, \u201cTruly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.\u201d]\n\nWell then, why have this judgment for the believer?\u00a0 It is to either give or simply to withhold rewards based on how we invested our lives for Christ in the present age.\u00a0 At this coming judgment five crowns will either be given or not given to people.\u00a0 The incorruptible crown for the believer that gains mastery over the flesh, not a believer that is sinless but is sinning less under God\u2019s resources.\u00a0 The crown of rejoicing for the soul winner.\u00a0 [1 Corinthians 9:24-27, \u201c\u00a0<\/sup>Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only<\/em> one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. [25]\u00a0<\/sup>Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it<\/em> to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. [26] \u00a0<\/sup>Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; [27] \u00a0<\/sup>but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.\u201d]\n\nThe crown of rejoicing for the soul winner.\u00a0 [1 Thessalonians 2:19-20, \u201cFor who is our hope or joy or crown of exultation? Is it not even you, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming? [20] \u00a0<\/sup>For you are our glory and joy.\u201d]\n\nThe crown of life for the believer that endures trials.\u00a0 [James 1:12, \u201cConsider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials.\u201d\u00a0 Revelation 2:10, \u201cDo not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.\u201d]\n\nThe crown of glory for the believer that faithfully shepherds God\u2019s people,\u00a0 [1 Peter 5:2-4, \u201cshepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of<\/em> God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; [3] nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock. [4] And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.\u201d]\n\nAnd the crown of Righteousness for the believer that longs for the appearing of Christ and has not become so in love with the world that he\u2019s no longer looking forward to the next world and the return of Christ.\u00a0 [2 Timothy 4:8, \u201cIn the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.\u201d]\n\nThe Bible over and over again reminds us of this.\u00a0 2 Peter 1:11 says, \u201c\u00a0<\/sup>for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.\u201d\u00a0 You\u2019ll notice there in verse 11 how God wants us to enter His kingdom and not just enter it but enter it \u201cabundantly supplied.\u201d\n\nCharles Ryrie on this particular verse says, \u201cA Christian life\u201d, 2 Peter 1:11, \u201cthat can be rewarded <\/u>will provide the abundance into heaven.\n\nThe reality is it\u2019s completely possible as a Christian to enter eternity by God\u2019s grace but smell the smoke on\u00a0 your garments, because we\u2019ve spent so much time in the flesh wasting our lives.\n\n1 Corinthians 3:15 says, \u201cIf any man\u2019s work is burned up he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved,\u201d look at that, \u201cyet as through fire.\u201d\u00a0 Entering eternity saved and yet the examination at the Bema Seat Judgment of Christ as not us but our works are scrutinized, found to be of a selfish quality, a fleshly nature, are put through a fire and are dissolved and yet the person is still saved because salvation initially was never given on the basis of good works but grace.\n\nHow important it is for us as believers in the grace of God and the freeness of the grace of God, not lose sight of the fact that decisions in daily life still matter.\u00a0 They don\u2019t affect salvation, that\u2019s a done deal!\u00a0 But the do affect one\u2019s standing before the Bema Seat Judgment of Christ. Paul himself in\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 1 Corinthians 9:27 says, \u201cI discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.\u201d\u00a0 Disqualified from what Paul?\u00a0 Salvation?\u00a0 NO!\u00a0 Paul always taught that salvation, justification is by grace so obviously one\u2019s disciplining of their body does not make them more saved today than they were yesterday.\n\nWell why discipline your body and make it your slave?\u00a0 Because it affects one\u2019s standing for a prize.\u00a0 Paul, in the beginning there of those verses, verse 9:24 says, \u201cDo you not know that those who run in a race all run but only<\/em> one receives the prize.\u00a0 Run in such a way that may win.\u201d\u00a0 What prize is he talking about?\u00a0\u00a0 Not salvation, but one\u2019s standing at the Bema Seat Judgment of Christ.\n\n2 John 8 says, \u201cWatch yourselves, that you do not lose\u201d lose what?\u00a0 Salvation!\u00a0 NO, that\u2019s eternally guaranteed, it\u2019s not speaking of salvation here, \u201cWatch yourselves, that you do not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full\u201d what?\u00a0 \u201creward.\u201d\n\nRevelation 3:11, Jesus says, \u201cI am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, so that no one will take your crown.\u201d What a word of exhortation to these struggling churches in Asia Minor who were the original addressees of the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 This is the original audience.\u00a0 These churches, as we have studied that material, Revelation 2 and 3, are having difficult times.\u00a0 The world itself seems like it\u2019s stacked against them.\u00a0 The powers of Rome are coming down on them; we know historically,\u00a0 by this time.\u00a0 Nero is on the throne and after him Domitian and how Nero, a mad man began to light Christians on fire to illuminate his garden parties.\u00a0 The coliseum where Christians are thrown to the wild beasts is in full swing now.\u00a0 The nation of Israel, having rejected their own Messiah hates these people.\n\nAnd Satan himself has even wormed his way into many of these churches and they\u2019re struggling in every area you can struggle in.\u00a0\u00a0 And what a warning, or what a word of affirmation I should say would come to them when Jesus says keep on keeping on because my reward is with me.\u00a0 It\u2019s not all in vain, it\u2019s not for naught, Jesus is keeping a record and He wants to fully reward that believer at the Bema Seat Judgment of Christ.\u00a0 And how easy it is in the midst of life adversities, and there are plenty, to just sort of quit on God, just sort of conclude that well, service in the local church is for others but it\u2019s not for me.\u00a0 And Christian works for other people, it doesn\u2019t work for me.\u00a0 Our prayer life can dissipate, taking seriously the things of God can begin to dissipate because life, quite frankly just becomes too strenuous.\u00a0 And there are so many distractions.\n\nAnd we have been taught that we\u2019re saved by grace so what does it matter how I live?\u00a0 It matters here, verse 12, because Jesus speaks to that issue, He says, \u201cI\u2019m coming quickly, My reward is with Me, and I will render to every man according to what He has done.\u201d\u00a0 I\u2019m reminded of the Book of Galatians, chapter 6 and verse 9, which says, \u201cLet us not lose heart in doing good for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.\u201d\u00a0 And how easy it is to grow weary in life and the things of God and just quit when victory could very well be right around the corner.\n\nOne of my basketball heroes growing up was Larry Byrd. \u00a0I watched a lot of documentaries on Larry Byrd.\u00a0 Most people know a lot there is to know about Larry Byrd but when you research his background you\u2019ll find he had a father who became just despondent over finances and decided that through his military service and some things that would come to his family if his life ended that he would just take his own life, which he did.\u00a0 And you wonder how things could have been different for him if he had just hung on a little more.\u00a0 I mean, he, no way in his mind, fathomed that his own son was Justine to become an NBA superstar and have more money for the family that he could ever hope for or spend in several lifetimes.\u00a0 But he just left, he checked out via suicide too early, before that tree could blossom properly.\u00a0 And he missed out on what his son would become.\n\nAnd I think that many of us are like that, we just sort of quit, we check out, we quit our marriage, we quit our family, we quit raising our children in godliness, quit our church, not fully understanding that victory could be just around the corner.\u00a0 And if it\u2019s not right around the corner it certainly will be on full display at the Bema Seat Judgment of Christ.\u00a0 What a word this is to be struggling Christians.\n\nHe goes on, verse 13, and he describes how Jesus is qualified as this great rewarder.\u00a0 I mean, how do you really know Jesus is keeping a record of things?\u00a0 How do we really know His reward is with Him?\u00a0 Look at verse 13, Jesus says, \u201cI am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 Are you kidding, you think Jesus is unqualified to keep a record of things?\u00a0 He is the first, He is the last, He is the beginning, He is the end, He is the first letter in the Greek alphabet, alpha, He\u2019s the last letter in the Greek alphabet, omega.\u00a0 He is the one that\u2019s outside of time that sees perfectly everything, the end from the beginning.\n\nIt\u2019s a lot like in some of my crazier youth, the fiery days of my\u00a0 youth, I used to\u2026 and I didn\u2019t do this often, but I would go down there to the Rose Parade in Pasadena, California, stay out all night long, now I\u2019m not going to do that anytime soon unless God coerces me into it, just to see the Rose Parade.\u00a0 And you kind of stay out there and you get this really good seat there on Colorado Boulevard and you watch the parade and the floats come by one at a time.\u00a0 That\u2019s the human perspective.\u00a0 And finally you get smart and you say well, next year I\u2019m just going to watch the whole thing on television.\u00a0 And on television they give you the aerial shot where you can see almost the very first float in the parade and the last float in the parade from the helicopter.\u00a0 And you no longer are combined to Colorado Boulevard seeing one float after another go by.\u00a0\u00a0 And that\u2019s the difference in human perspective.\u00a0 Our perspective is the Colorado Boulevard perspective; that\u2019s all we can see.\u00a0 Vision is finite.\u00a0 That\u2019s why we question whether God actually has a record of what\u2019s going on in our lives.\u00a0 But God\u2019s perspective is the aerial shot that you see on television from the helicopter.\n\nHe sees the whole thing.\u00a0 He\u2019s not bound by the limitations that we are bound by.\u00a0 He\u2019s the first and the last.\u00a0 He\u2019s the beginning and the end.\u00a0 He\u2019s the Alpha and the Omega.\u00a0 He has a complete know\u00adledge of history past and history future.\u00a0\u00a0 Isn\u2019t that what history is, after all at the end of the day,\u00a0 His story?\u00a0 Isn\u2019t He the one at the end of the day created all things?\u00a0 John 1:3, \u201cAll things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.\u201d\u00a0 Hebrews 1:2, not only is He the heir of all things but \u201cHe made the world.\u201d\u00a0 [Hebrews 1:2, \u201cin these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.\u201d]\n\nColossians 1:16-17, \u201cFor by Him all things were created, both<\/em> in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities\u2014all things have been created through Him and for Him. [17] \u00a0<\/sup>He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.\u201d\u00a0 Not only does He see the orchestrated end of everything but He sees how it came into existence and He is actually the one holding everything together as we speak.\u00a0 I mean, what keeps the heart beating and the respiratory system working so I can even have enough strength this morning to get up and shut off my alarm clock, which came one hour earlier\u2026 did you notice that?\n\nI mean, what gave me the energy to get out of bed?\u00a0 The Lord did!\u00a0 A lot of people didn\u2019t get out of bed this morning, they died in their sleep last night.\u00a0 But you got out of bed, I got out of bed; it was the orchestrating hand of God that allowed that.\u00a0 And because He is the One that holds all things together and He is the one that started all things and He is the One that is bringing everything to an orchestrated conclusion, He is completely competent as a record keeper and He wants to reward you.\u00a0 And consequently we\u2019re told to not<\/u> grow weary of well doing for we will reap if we do not grow weary because He\u00a0 is coming quickly and His reward is with Him.\n\nAnd then in verses 14 and 15 He begins to talk about the blessings to the redeemed.\u00a0 Notice what He says there in verse 14, \u201cBlessed are those who wash their robes so that they may have the right to eat from the tree of life and may enter the gate into the city.\u201d\u00a0 Now this word \u201cblessed\u201d is something we have been keeping track of; it\u2019s the word makarios<\/em>, and if you track that word through the Book of Revelation what you\u2019ll discover is there are seven beatitudes, just like you have beatitudes of blessings pronounced in the Sermon on the Mount, seven of these in Revelation.\n\nThe first one was in Revelation 1, a blessing upon the reader and heeder of the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 The second one was in Revelation 14, a blessing upon the tribulation martyr.\u00a0 The third one was in Revelation 16, a blessing pronounced on the spiritually prepared.\u00a0 The fourth one is in Revelation 19, there is a blessing pronounced on being invited to something called the marriage supper.\u00a0 Then there\u2019s a blessing, number five, Revelation 20, on those that participate in the first resurrection. And then there\u2019s another blessing that we saw last week, Revelation 22, on the one that heeds and reads the Book of Revelation.\n\nAnd then we come to our seventh and final makarios<\/em>, beatitude where we have a blessing upon the citizens of the eternal city.\u00a0 What eternal city?\u00a0 The one we\u2019ve been studying.\u00a0 The one that exists right now in time and space but is unfit, cannot come down to this earth because the earth is in a state of sin.\u00a0 But the day will come when we will have a new heaven and a new earth where it\u2019s the earth as God intended it before sin entered and this city, which exists now in heaven, will come down to the earth, a new earth, and we will be participants in it. This is the seventh and final blessing spoken of in the Book of Revelation.\n\nWhy are the redeemed here called \u201cblessed\u201d?\u00a0 Because they\u2019re citizens of that coming kingdom.\u00a0 See, the kingdom that you\u2019re destined for is not a kingdom that can be voted out of power.\u00a0 It\u2019s not a kingdom or a city run by grafts and corruption and self-serving people.\u00a0 It\u2019s a perfect environment and a perfect city.\u00a0 In fact, the city is so perfect it\u2019s made out of pure glass; there\u2019s nothing to hide in other words.\u00a0 No sin is in it!\u00a0 It can\u2019t be eradicated through violent revolutions, voting people out of power, it\u2019s a city whose builder and maker is God.\u00a0 In fact, the Book of Philippians, chapter 3, verse 20, tells us that our citizenship is where?\u00a0 It\u2019s in heaven.\u00a0 [Philippians 3:20, \u201c\u00a0<\/sup>For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.]\n\nAnd you look at all of the struggles on the earth and the strains on the earth and the catastrophe of world history, and we can just consider ourselves blessed that this world is not our home. I, quite frankly, don\u2019t know, and I\u2019ve thought about this for a long time, ever since coming to Christ as a teenager, I don\u2019t understand how people can even make it through the day without promises like this.\u00a0 The only thing you\u2019re stuck with is the nasty now and now and the stock market is up and then it\u2019s down, and is that my hope?\u00a0 NO, our hope is in a city whose builder and maker is God, a city of immovable foundations.\u00a0 And if you\u2019re a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ your citizenship is in that city and for that you\u2019re blessed in addition to all of these other blessings that we have been studying in the Book of Revelation.\n\nYou\u2019ll notice that the redeemed are blessed because they have had their robes washed.\u00a0 Well how do I get my robes washed and who does the washing exactly.\u00a0 You\u2019ll find the answer in the Book of Ephesians, chapter 5 and verse 26 describing Christ\u2019s relationship to His church.\u00a0 Concerning the church He says, \u201c\u00a0<\/sup>so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word.\u201d\u00a0 You\u2019re washed in the blood of Christ because of the word of Christ.\u00a0 And faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of Christ.\u00a0 The moment you trust in that message, which we call the gospel, is the moment\u00a0 your robes are washed.\u00a0 I hope you\u2019re not sort of planning on beautifying yourself before you appear before a holy God.\u00a0 I have absolutely no intention of standing before a holy God in my own robes of righteousness because I know at the end of the day they\u2019re not going to get me very far anyway.\u00a0 I plan on standing in the robes that He provides me, not having a righteous\u00adness of my own but a transferred righteousness at the point of faith alone in Christ alone.\n\nIf you\u2019re a citizen of that city and your robes have been washed how blessed are you?\u00a0 And what are some of the things we\u2019re going to be doing in that eternal city?\u00a0 Verse 14, \u201cBlessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 You can walk in the city and walk out at will.\u00a0 And anytime you want to go to the tree of life you have full access to it.\u00a0 And that\u2019s not a privilege that has been afforded to the human race ever since the fall in Eden.\n\nRemember what happened with the fall in Genesis 2:22-24, how humanity was barred from the tree of life with the presence of cherubim and flaming swords after the fall of man preventing man from re-entering Eden and eating from the tree of life.?\u00a0 [Genesis 2:22-24, \u201cThe Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. [23] \u00a0<\/sup>The man said, \u201cThis is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.\u201d\u00a0 [24] For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.\u201d]\n\nRemember what it says?\u00a0 \u201cThen the Lord God said,\u201d Genesis 3:22-24, Then the Lord God said, \u201cBehold, the man has become like one of us,\u201d now who\u2019s the \u201cus\u201d? It seems to me it\u2019s a pretty early inference of the Triunity of God.\u00a0 \u201cthe man has become like one of us knowing good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever\u201d\u2014\u201c\u00a0 God didn\u2019t want people to live forever in their fallen state.\u00a0 [23]\u00a0\u201c<\/sup>therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to cultivate the ground from which he was taken. [24]\u00a0<\/sup>So He drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden He stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life.\u201d\n\nWe don\u2019t even know where the Garden of Eden was today; I mean, where was it and how do I get into it?\u00a0 It\u2019s an impossibility.\u00a0 And those that fell immediately knew where it was but they couldn\u2019t get back in. See, that\u2019s the nature of sin; sin will bring consequences and the consequences involve a change of something that can\u2019t be reversed.\u00a0 This is why the Bible says, \u201cThe wages of sin is death.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 Romans 6:23, \u201cFor the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.\u201d]\n\nThere are some friendship and relationships that I personally can\u2019t get back into today.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 Because I did something wrong or ill-tempered or too quick without thinking?\u00a0 And yet people will extend an olive branch, etc.\u00a0 But it\u2019s not the same; I can\u2019t reverse what has been done.\u00a0 That\u2019s how sin works.\u00a0 And think of a time period where all of the ramifications for all of our bad choices are removed and you just do what humanity has been barred from doing for all of these millennia, entrance into the city at will.\u00a0 It\u2019s not locked, it\u2019s not closed, there are no cherubim or flaming swords.\n\nAnd you partake at the tree of life at will because what Jesus is speaking here when He says all things have become new.\u00a0 It\u2019s a world, not only with sin not in it but all of the consequences for sin have been taken away.\u00a0 I sadly, like\u00a0 you, have spent a lot of my life as a simple person, living with the consequences of my own choice.\u00a0 Think of a time period where the consequences are removed and things get back to how they\u2019re supposed to be.\u00a0 That\u2019s what\u2019s being described here, that\u2019s why you\u2019re blessed if you\u2019re part of this city, having trusted in Christ.\n\nNow you go to verse 15 where you see the contrast; the contrast here I think is being incorrectly taught by many people.\u00a0 It\u2019s not a Christian struggling with sin.\u00a0 What it is, is a person that has never been regenerated, they\u2019ve never believed.\u00a0 Why do I say that?\u00a0 Because they are outside, not where the believers are, they are outside where the domain of non-believers exists.\u00a0 In fact, there\u2019s a list here of what characterizes such unbelievers and we saw an identical list in Revelation 21:8, just one chapter earlier, and there it\u2019s told that such people are in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.\u00a0 [Revelation 21:8, \u201cBut for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be<\/em> in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.\u201d]\n\nJohn doesn\u2019t repeat that phrase because he expects us to carry over into chapter 22 what we learned in chapter 21.\u00a0 This is a description not of a Christian that sins or struggles with sin, it\u2019s a description of someone that has never trusted in Christ.\u00a0 In contrast to the blessings of the redeemed, verse 14 is an open description of the lack of blessings that accrue to those who have never trusted in the grace of God.\u00a0 [Revelation 22:14, \u201cBlessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city.\u201d]\n\nWhat exactly is their destiny outside of the dogs, the sorcerers, the immoral persons, the murderers, \u00a0the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying. Who are the dogs?\u00a0 I\u2019ve heard a lot of interesting commentaries on this, there\u2019s not going to be animals in heaven and all these kinds of things.\u00a0 No!\u00a0 Who are the dogs?\u00a0 The dogs are not animals, Charles Ryrie says in his Study Bible but people of low character.\u00a0 When Paul was describing people of low character in Philippians 3:2 he says \u201cBeware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision,\u201d those that were prorogating false doctrine, false teaching, false living, people living obviously beneath the moral standards of God.\u00a0 That\u2019s the unbelievers.\u00a0 That\u2019s what they\u2019re like experiencing their lack of blessings as God\u2019s\u00a0 people inside the city are experiencing all of those blessings.\n\nWhat else characterizes these people?\u00a0 They are sorcerers.\u00a0 Now we\u2019ve run into that word sorcerer many times in the book of Revelation; pharmachos<\/em> there, where we get the word pharmacy.\u00a0 What do you get in a pharmacy?\u00a0 Drugs! The same sin was described in Revelation 9:21 as pharmakeia, the same word.\u00a0 [Revelation 9:21, \u201c\u00a0<\/sup>and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their immorality nor of their thefts.\u201d]\u00a0 Persons who, for whatever reason, are not depending upon the Holy Spirit for their source of power but have tapped into foreign substances.\u00a0 And without even understanding it they have opened their mind up to spiritual realities of the negative source.\n\nIt is somewhat alarming to me to know in the United States how certain drugs that used to be considered taboo are now culturally accepted.\u00a0 Countless states, I think the number was 15, the last time I checked, it could be more, have legalized the use of marijuana which as we know is a gateway drug into something more experiential, because when Satan gives someone an experience the interesting thing about that experience is the experience, all of a sudden\u00a0 you reach a point where it no longer totally satisfies, so you\u2019ve got to go deeper and find another experience of a more intense nature.\u00a0 We see that in the area of sexual perversion.\u00a0 We certainly see that in the area of\u00a0 pharmakeia<\/em>, and when someone is involved with pharmakeia<\/em> they\u2019re opening themselves up to doors that they don\u2019t understand.\n\nAnother basketball player, you can watch this online, just google basketball junky, Chris Herron, probably one of the best high school basketball players that the state of Massachusetts has ever produced.\u00a0 And he went away to college and if\u00a0 you watched the documentary he says he went into a dorm and he was offered drugs, cocaine, he said like most do, I\u2019ll just do this once, and according to his own words, this is almost a direct quote, he says\u201d it opened a door I couldn\u2019t shut for eleven years.\u201d\u00a0 How he, with all of his talent and all of his money threw away, literally, a stunning collegiate career that he could have had, a stunning career in the NBA, and he was actually highly successful as an NBA basketball player with this particular handicap or disability, or better said weakness.\u00a0 What could he have been without all of that stuff?\u00a0 That\u2019s the nature of pharmakeia<\/em>.\u00a0 And his story of how he came out of that and how he is touring\u00a0 youth groups, high schools, etc. warning the youth not to open the door that he opened, and by his own words couldn\u2019t close.\n\nThose outside the city are wrapped up in this sorcery or this pharmakeia<\/em>.\u00a0 What else? They are immoral persons.\u00a0 These are people who really no longer care about God\u2019s standards\u00a0 of sexuality.\u00a0 We\u2019re living in a time period where everybody wants to invent their own sexuality\u2026 if it feels good do it!\n\nGenesis 2:24 lays down the standard.\u00a0 \u201cF For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.\u201d\u00a0 I\u2019m not here to harangue anybody that\u2019s fallen short of this standard because the grace of God is always available.\u00a0 But it doesn\u2019t change the fact that there\u2019s a standard.\u00a0 And isn\u2019t it interesting that almost anything and everything is expected today in the way of sexuality except this?\u00a0 The person that wants to promote this is a hate\u00a0 monger, or the bigot, or the closed minded person.\n\nYou start talking like this and you\u2019re going to get a lot of vitriolic emails in response, particularly if your ministry happens to be online.\u00a0 And my response to this vitriolic e-mails is don\u2019t get mad at me, I didn\u2019t invent the standard.\u00a0 This is God, this is God\u2019s world, this is God\u2019s gift, sexuality, these are God\u2019s rules.\u00a0 The Book of Hebrews, chapter 13 and verse 4 says, \u201cMarriage is to be held<\/em> in honor among all,\u201d that\u2019s not what\u2019s happening in the United States, it\u2019s not being honored.\u00a0 \u201c\u2026 and the marriage<\/em> bed is to be<\/em> undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge.\u201d\u00a0 He certainly is here, that\u2019s why they\u2019re outside the city, immoral persons.\n\nWhat else are these unbelievers like?\u00a0 They\u2019re murderers!\u00a0 Outside of the gods, the sorcerers, the immoral persons and the murderers!\u00a0 Proverbs 6:16-17 says, \u201cThere are six things which the Lord hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him:\u00a0 [17] \u00a0<\/sup>Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood.\u201d\u00a0 If you want to know how God feels about \u201chands that shed innocent blood\u201d study the life of David because that\u2019s what David did.\u00a0 He took the life of a man to cover his own sins, not fully understanding that he was actually betraying innocent blood.\u00a0\u00a0 And how the Lord dwelt with David!\u00a0 And how the Lord deals with anybody that puts themselves into some kind of a position where they are slaying the hands of the innocent.\n\nI don\u2019t want to necessarily go down this road, it\u2019s trite and over used but if you look at what is happening in the United States via abortions, and you look at what God said to Cain in Genesis 4, where God said the blood of your brother cries out from the ground.\u201d\u00a0 [Genesis 4:10, \u201c\u00a0<\/sup>He said, \u2018What have you done? The voice of your brother\u2019s blood is crying to Me from the ground.\u2019\u201d]\n\nYou think of all of the innocent blood that has been spilled in this country and you think of that crying out to the ears of God; that\u2019s what\u2019s happening.\u00a0 And it\u2019s always a risk to talk like this because within the sound of your voice are those that have been involved in abortions, or pushed someone to have an abortion, or had an abortion, and they immediately fall into condemnation and the answer to that condemnation is the grace of God.\u00a0 The grace of God being so deep and so rich that it even covers a sin like that. \u00a0I\u2019ll remind you that three of God\u2019s choicest servants had blood on their hands.\u00a0 Moses, Paul and David, and\u00a0 yet God gave all grace and used all mightily.\u00a0\u00a0 The grace of God doesn\u2019t change the fact that there\u2019s a standard of God.\n\nWhat else are these unbelievers like?\u00a0 They are idolaters, now if you become an idolater you\u2019ve missed it because you\u2019re missing or violating the first two commandments in the Decalogue.\u00a0 No graven images, not gods before Me, and yet how many people wake up every single day worshipping other gods, whether it be an icon, a statue, a retirement account, not that retirement accounts are wrong, but you\u2019re looking to for your security for the future when God is saying look to Me, I am the living God.\u00a0 A job that brings you a certain amount of prestige, when God is saying I\u2019m your prestige.\n\nWe\u2019re so prone as human beings to idolatry and that\u2019s what these unbelievers are like and beyond that they\u2019re liars, they\u2019re lying which violates commandment number nine, is it?\u00a0 To misrepresent, to just kind of roll the odometer back a little bit in the car sale.\u00a0 To misrepresent your standard of living, pastors do this a lot, they misrepresent the size of their churches.\u00a0 I call that evangelasti<\/u>cally speaking.\u00a0 I just found out, fudged today that no, maybe I don\u2019t need this, fill out the\u00a0 vacation form the way I should, it\u2019s a small thing.\u00a0 No it\u2019s not!\u00a0 God watches, God has standards.\n\nYou\u2019ll notice that these people are not just lying, and this is what pushes me in the direction that these are unregenerate people is because they love and practice lying.\u00a0 You say well pastor, are you saying that you can love your sins?\u00a0 You bet your bottom dollar you can love them\u00a0 Why is that?\u00a0 Because sin brings a window of pleasure; it id didn\u2019t bring the window of pleasure we wouldn\u2019t do it!\u00a0 Moses, having forsaken the household of Israel, lived among the Hebrews. \u00a0Hebrews 11:25, \u201cHaving forsaken the passing pleasures of sin\u201d because of the brief window of excitement or whatever that it gives us we love sin.\n\nIn fact, Jesus, in John\u2019s other book, John 3:19-21 says, \u201cThis is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world,\u201d now you would think that the world would just run to Christ, wouldn\u2019t you?\u00a0 \u201cLight has come into the world,\u201d but that\u2019s not what the world does.\u00a0\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 \u201cmen loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. [20] For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. [21]\u00a0<\/sup>But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.\u201d\n\nThere are sins that we commit of such a caliber that we will never bring to God in our depravity because sin, there\u2019s something in it that I love.\u00a0 There\u2019s something in it that I\u2019m drawn to.\u00a0 And I don\u2019t want to get too close to Christ, and I don\u2019t want to get too close to the word of Christ, and I don\u2019t want to get too close to the church of Christ and I don\u2019t want to get too close to the things of Christ because the closer I get the brighter the light.\u00a0 The brighter the light the greater the exposure.\n\nSo rather than going to a church that preaches the Bible from Genesis to Revelation I\u2019m comfortable getting my spiritual nibble for the day from some guy that has perfect white teeth, but will never say a single word about hell, Satan, sin or holiness.\u00a0 Now that\u2019s a church that will pack out!\u00a0 In fact, that church could become so big we might have to get an athletic stadium and turn it into a church.\u00a0 I mean, why is that?\n\nWhy do people flock to a place like that?\u00a0 It has to do with this issue right here; I don\u2019t want to get too close to truth, I don\u2019t want to get too close to the light because it\u2019s condemning me.\u00a0 And yet when you come to the light so that your deeds may be fully wrought in God and you yield certain things in our lives to God,\u00a0 you know what you discover?\u00a0\u00a0 You discover Satan\u2019s best kept secret, a secret I should say that he doesn\u2019t want anybody to know.\n\nThe secret divulged is this: Jesus will give you the power to turn away from everything of a negative verity in your life.\u00a0 And you know what?\u00a0 You may suffer a little bit of loss but here\u2019s the deal: God will put into your hands something better.\u00a0 Instead of sexual perversion He\u2019ll put into your hands a marriage that honors God, and a family that honors God.\u00a0 Now the devil doesn\u2019t want you to know that, he just wants\u00a0 you to focus on what you\u2019re missing because of our love for sin.\u00a0 Did not Jesus say in John 10:10, \u201cI have come that they may have life and have it to the full.\u201d\u00a0 Jesus did not come into the world to destroy the lives of people.\u00a0\u00a0 That\u2019s what Satan wants you to think.\u00a0 In fact, what\u2019s destroying you is what you\u2019re involved in right now, because the devil on the front end never gives you the price tag.\u00a0 And yet there\u2019s always a price tag \u201cFor the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.\u201d [Romans 6:23]\n\nWe come to verses 16 and 17 and what a wonderful way for this section to conclude by talking about the grace of God.\u00a0 Charles Ryrie summarizes this section as follows:\u00a0 Jesus is gracious because: \u00a0(1) He gave the Book of Revelation to the churches.\u00a0 (2) As the Son of David He will fulfill Israel\u2019s promises.\u00a0 (3) He is the morning star, the precursor of the new day.\u00a0 And (4) Jesus Christ offers\u00a0 the waters of life freely.\n\nLook at verse 16 if you could.\u00a0 \u201cI, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.\u201d\u00a0 The first reason, Jesus is gracious, He gave us the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 He is the revealer, which by the way is what the title of the Book is; the Apokalopsis, which means the unveiling.\u00a0 Henry Morris writes, \u201cIt must be stressed that Revelation means unveiling and not veiling.\u00a0 He even sent it through His angel as the vision went from the Father to the Son to an angel, to John, to a book, to a preacher, to a listener in the seven churches there in Asia Minor.\n\nDid you catch verse 16 where it says \u201cfor the churches.\u201d\u00a0 \u201cI, Jesus have sent My angel to testify to you these things\u201d for the seminaries.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t say that. \u00a0\u201c\u2026for the academic elite.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t say that!\u00a0 It says \u201cto the churches.\u201d\u00a0 The Book of Revelation, its intent was not to be dissected by scholars for the last two thousand years; there\u2019s nothing wrong with being a scholar rightly directed but it was sent \u201cto the churches.\u201d\u00a0 It was sent to the rank and file.\u00a0 It was sent to the ordinary Christian, and yet how many Christians think we can\u2019t study that book, it\u2019s too complex.\u00a0 Yet the very book itself is for the Christian, it\u2019s for the churches.\n\nNumber two, Jesus is the covenant keeper because He is the root and the descendant of David.\u00a0 Every jot and tittle of what the Old Testament speaks concerning Jesus ruling the Davidic Kingdom one day in millennial fashion will be fulfilled because Jesus has the right to do it, because He\u2019s the right gemological pedigree.\u00a0 That\u2019s why Matthew is so careful in his articulation of the genealogy of Christ.\u00a0 Most of us are bored with that, all those names, they don\u2019t mean anything to us.\u00a0 Well, they\u2019re a big deal in Matthew because He\u2019s saying Jesus is the guy, and yeah, the nation rejected Him at His first coming but it won\u2019t be that way in the second coming because He is the offspring, the offshoot of David He will inherit these Davidic promises.\u00a0 2 Samuel 7:16, Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever<\/u>; your throne shall be established forever.\u201d\u2019\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 He\u2019s the right line coming from that promise.\n\nNumber three, I really like this one, He\u2019s the morning star.\u00a0 You know, to be frank with you I\u2019ve spent a lot of my life studying the Bible and when I looked at this carefully this week I had no idea what it meant?\u00a0 What does that mean, \u201cthe morning star\u201d?\u00a0 He is, as \u201cthe morning star\u201d the pre-cursor of the new day.\u00a0 Genesis 1:5 when it describes the first day says, \u201cAnd there was evening and there was morning.\u201d\u00a0 That\u2019s what\u2019s coming upon the earth.\u00a0 Evening, a time of darkness and despair that the world has never seen.\u00a0 But it\u2019s followed by the morning, the glorious millennial kingdom.\n\nAnd what tells you that you\u2019re moving out of the evening into the morning?\u00a0 It\u2019s something that appears in the black of night, called the morning star.\u00a0 It\u2019s a signal that the sun or the day is right around the corner.\u00a0 This is why Jesus is called \u201cthe morning star,\u201d Revelation 2:28.\u00a0 [Revelation 2:28, \u201cand I will give him the morning star.\u201d]\u00a0 Revelation 22:16, \u201cI, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things [<\/sup>a<\/sup><\/a>]<\/sup>for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.\u201d\u00a0 The passage we just read.\u00a0 And Peter calls Him the morning star, 2 Peter 1:19.\u00a0 [2 Peter 1:19, \u201cSo<\/em> we have the prophetic word made<\/em> more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.\u201d]\n\nBut that star appears in the midst of blackness showing us that the evening is about to end and the morning is coming.\u00a0 That\u2019s what transitions humanity from darkness, the tribulation period, to the kingdom of Jesus Christ, the return of Jesus who bridges the gap between the two.\u00a0 It\u2019s just like a morning star does.\n\nAnd then finally verse 17, he offers the water of life.\u00a0 Notice what it says in verse 17, \u201cThe Spirit and the bride say \u201cCome.\u201d And let the one who hears say, \u201cCome.\u201d And let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the water of life\u201d watch this now, \u201cwithout cost.\u201d\u00a0 It\u2019s an invitation to unbelievers to come and partake of this water through he will never get thirsty again.\u00a0 Jesus told the woman at the well if you drink from that water you\u2019ll be thirsty again, why don\u2019t you try My water?\n\nI like how it says \u201cWhosoever wants it,\u201d a lot of\u00a0 Christians don\u2019t believe that, well, that\u2019s an invitation to some.\u00a0 No it isn\u2019t!\u00a0 That\u2019s an invitation to the whole world.\u00a0 I mean, anybody knows that who reads John 3:16.\u00a0 That \u201cWhosoever believes.\u00a0 [John 3:16, \u201cFor God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.\u201d]\u00a0 If you want it come get it.\u00a0 Come take it.\n\nAnd I love what it says here at the end of verse 17, it says the same thing in Revelation 21:6, \u201cwithout cost.\u00a0 [Revelation 21:6, \u201cThen He said to me, \u201cIt is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.\u201d]\u00a0 You mean I don\u2019t have to crawl through a bed of nails and broken glass to get this?\u00a0 Because the world of religion will tell you that you\u2019ve got to do that.\u00a0\u00a0 You\u2019ve got to through a maze.\u00a0 The Bible doesn\u2019t say that.\u00a0\u00a0 It\u2019s as simple as faith alone in Christ alone.\n\nRomans 4:4-5 says, \u201cBut the one who does not work but\u201d what? \u201cbelieves.\u00a0 [Romans 4:4-5, \u201cNow to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due. [5] But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness.\u201d]\n\nLewis Sperry Chafer says this: \u201cUpwards of 150 passages of Scripture condition salvation upon believing only.\u201d\u00a0 Religion says Jesus did most; Jesus bought the lunch but you leave the tip.\u00a0 You do 10%.\u00a0 What am I supposed to do?\u00a0\u00a0 Well, you\u2019re supposed to do what everybody in religion does, you pay, pray, and obey!\u00a0 And you live the rest of your life wondering if you\u2019ve left a tip, like you\u2019re supposed to?\u00a0 Was the tip large enough?\u00a0 I mean, I left a 15% tip, now they want a 20% tip.\u00a0 What does Christianity say?\u00a0 \u201cJesus did it all.\u201d\u00a0 100%, in fact, the final words of Christ are on the cross, prior to His death, where \u201cit is finished.\u201d\u00a0 He doesn\u2019t say it\u2019s about 97% done.\u00a0 And so you receive it as a gift by faith alone which, according to Romans 4:5 is the only way that you can do something before God which is nonmeritorious.\u00a0 That\u2019s the only thing He\u2019ll accept. That\u2019s why it\u2019s so easy.\n\nThis is why people, when they hear this, they stumble right over it because it can\u2019t be that simple, because our pride is such that I say well I need something to brag about.\u00a0 But God has designed salvation in such a way that there are not boasting rights.\u00a0 You have to receive it as a gift.\n\nSo our conclusion is have you received that gift?\u00a0\u00a0 You can receive it right now as I am speaking.\u00a0\u00a0 It\u2019s not a matter of walking an aisle, joining a church, giving money.\u00a0 It\u2019s a matter of privacy between\u00a0 you and the Lord where the Spirit convicts you and you respond to it by trusting in the message.\u00a0 And that gives you access to the water of life without cost.\u00a0 It\u2019s something you can do even now as I\u2019m speaking.\u00a0 If it\u2019s something you need more explanation on I\u2019m available after the service\n\nLet\u2019s pray.\u00a0 Father we\u2019re grateful for this truth, this message, these words.\u00a0 We\u2019re grateful for an opportunity to have gone through the Book of Revelation, almost completing it, most likely completing it next week.\u00a0 And I hope, Lord, as we have traveled that we have not just gone through the Book of Revelation but the Book of Revelation has gone through us.\u00a0 And I trust that the words taught here will be used in the life of many people.\u00a0 We\u2019ll be careful to give you all the praise and the glory.\u00a0 We ask these things in Jesus\u2019 name, and God\u2019s people said\u2026. Amen!","series_sermon_number":""},"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t