Let us pray. Almighty God, indeed you have given us your word. Help us to know your word so that we might not be put to shame. It is our desire to continue in what we have learned and become convinced of. Father, all scripture is God-breathed and useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness so that we may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. The scriptures, indeed, are able to make us wise unto salvation, not just the forgiveness of our sins, but even to the day of full glorification. And so, Father, we pray, bless us by your word and by your spirit. Give him who brings your word what he needs to bring it in clarity, both thought and expression, and work in our hearts that we may be comforted, that we might be encouraged, that we might be pointed to Jesus Christ and to follow him. We pray in Jesus' name, amen. Our scripture reading will be from Zechariah 4 and then from Revelation chapter 11. I'll also make a reference in the sermon to Zechariah 2, where there is a reference to a man with a measuring line, and that symbolism comes back in Revelation 11. But Revelation chapter 4. Then the angel who talked with me returned and awakened me as a man is wakened from his sleep. He asked me, what do you see? I answered, I see a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lights on it with seven channels to the lights. Also, there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left. I asked the angel who talked with me, what are these, my Lord? He answered, do you not know what these are? No, my Lord, I replied. So he said to me, this is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel, not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, says the Lord Almighty. What are you, almighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel, you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the captives to shouts of, God bless it, God bless it. Then the word of the Lord came to me. The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple. His hands will also complete it. Then you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you. Who despises the day of small things? Men will rejoice when they see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. These seven are the eyes of the Lord, which range throughout the earth. Then I asked the angel, what are these two olive trees on the right and left of the lampstand? Again, I asked, what are these two olive branches beside the two gold pipes that pour out golden oil? He replied, do you not know what these are? No, my Lord, I said. So we said, these are the two that are anointed to serve the Lord of all the earth. Thus far the reading there, now Revelation chapter 11, just a reminder that the part that we are reading in the book of Revelation is an interlude between the sixth trumpet and the seventh trumpet, and between the second woe and the third woe. And that is just something we have to take note that God always puts these interludes into the book of Revelation in order to comfort the church and to keep the church focused on Christ and on their mission. Revelation 11. I was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, go and measure the temple of God and the altar and count the worshipers there. But exclude the outer court, do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months. And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days clothed in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies. This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die. These men have power to shut up the sky so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying, and they have power to turn the waters into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want. Now, when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the abyss will attack them and overpower and kill them. Their bodies will lie in the street of the great city, which figuratively is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. For three and a half days, men from every people, tribe, language, and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial. The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and we'll celebrate by sending each other gifts because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth. But after the three and a half days, a breath of life from God entered them and they stood on their feet and terror struck those who saw them. Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, come up here. And they went up to heaven in a cloud while their enemies looked on. At that very hour, there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. 7,000 people were killed in the earthquake and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven. The second woe is past. The third woe is coming soon. May God bless to us the reading of his holy word. Dear people of God called to be saints, how important is the church to you. And by the church, I don't mean this building. How important is the worshiping together of God's people? How important is the fellowship of God's people? How important to you is the mission that we have together in this world? How important do you think we are in our world, in our community? Think anybody pays attention? What do you think we could do to be more significant? And there are different theories, of course, on how to do this. There are many churches and many people in churches who are saying, well, what you have to do in order to get people in is to give them what they want. And others will say, whoa, whoa, whoa. No, no, no. Because then the church doesn't go in the right direction. You've got to stay with the old ways, the tried, the tested, and the true. And we can keep arguing about that. And if we make the church the central issue, we will lose focus and we will be insignificant in our society. Then the church will be insignificant in our own lives. We are to follow Christ. We are to worship Christ. We are to proclaim Christ. All people must see him, must hear him, must learn his teachings, must follow him. Our mission is to make disciples of Christ. And if Christ is essential to us, then the fellowship of those who follow Christ is important to us. And then the mission of those who follow Christ is important to us. And we will become increasingly relevant in our society. Relevant either for the saving of sinners or the condemnation. of the wicked. If we follow Jesus, then we will not only be significant, but we will survive forever and will be victoriously raised and reign with Christ forever. It's really what Revelation 11 is telling us. It shows us the situation of the church in a world opposed to God, a world that refuses to repent of their sin. It shows us that God separates off his people for himself. Even as he calls the church as a witness, he encourages the church not to be dismayed and assures the church of her ultimate victory. We will see those elements this morning. In Revelation chapter 10, we noted that John was called to devour the word, to take in the word, not just taste it a little bit, but to devour the word, letting it nourish every part of his life and proclaim that word to every aspect of life. John, as revelation continues, becomes increasingly active in his visions. And here he is to take a measuring reed and to measure the sanctuary and the altar and to count the worshipers. But he's not to measure the outer court. It's for the Gentiles. There are more courts than just the court of the Gentiles, but that's what's relevant for this image. I made reference to you before we read from Zechariah 4 about Zechariah 2. There a young man is to go out and to measure the walls of the city, city of God. There it was so that the city could be built, separating her in that sense from the world out there and so that the city could be protected, preserved. And you find also this idea of measurement of the city in the book of Ezekiel. Starts in chapter 40 and goes on for several chapters. And then of course here also in the book of Revelation. The idea is that you mark something out for protection and preservation, what is measured will be kept. It will last. It will endure. It is similar to the idea of the sealing of the elect that we talked about in Revelation chapter 7. But there is also this aspect to measuring of separation. What you are measuring, you are separating out from that which is outside of the measurement. And here, the temple is to be measured. It's to be preserved. But the outer court is not. There's a separation. There's a distinction being made. And we may wonder about that, but we do remember that we are dealing here with symbolism, with pictures. And we understand that in the New Testament, the sanctuary or the temple is another way of referring to the body of believers. That's consistent with what you read in Ezekiel 43. But 1 Corinthians 3 says, don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's spirit lives in you? That's plural. If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him for God's temple is saved and you, plural, are that temple. 1 Corinthians 6, what agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. Therefore, come out and be separate. You can find more texts. that show that together we are in the Spirit, the temple of God, His dwelling place on earth. We are, you see, the body of Christ, His presence in the world. So John here is really being told to take a measurement of the body of believers, not of all people. We are separate from the world. That's indicated here by the separation of the outer court, in this measuring. The inner court, you could say, is the temple proper. The outer court was for those who could basically observe. Only the priests were allowed into the temple proper, into the inner sanctuary. Well, in the New Testament, We who believe are priests. And we are called to come out and to be holy. We are the ones here who are to be measured. And there are those in the church, you'd say, a structure of the church, the court of the Gentiles, who do not follow Christ and are to be excluded here from the preservation of the saints because they are not serving as priests. They're not anointed as prophets, priests, and kings of God. There are those who are members of the church and yet are outside of the church. because they yet love the world and the ways of the world and they give themselves over to the way the world thinks and practices. They don't seem to hesitate or they do. They still give themselves over to a compromising holiness by living undedicated lives. They are willing to remain silent with the truth. or even distorted. They want to be involved with the world, not in order to make disciples, but to enjoy the benefits of the world. They love it. We read that these are given to the world because that is in essence what they are, even though they are within the temple compound in the vision. And we read that the world, Following this separation, we'll trample on the city of God for 42 months. City of God here, of course, being Jerusalem, a picture, again, of the gathering of God's people. And what it illustrates is that although the world will persecute, intimidate, and in fact infiltrate the church, there will always be this remnant of faithful who will be preserved. There are those who are anointed as we saw in chapter seven here, those who are measured, protected, separated out. Many who are members of an organized church may be given over to worldly thinking and living because that's where they feel at home. Many in love with the world will, in fact, seek to adapt the gospel message to make the world feel more at home in the church. And yet, in spite of this trampling in the church, of the church, the church will continue because she is measured, she is separated, and she is protected by the grace of God. The time period is 42 months. Daniel refers to this time in which the sanctuary and city of God will be trampled. Speaking of the day when Antiochus Epiphanes overran and tyrannized Jerusalem, a time of horror and grief for the Jews, but again a time of limited duration. Well here, the spirit uses this symbolism so that the reader understands that the trials of God's people, although severe, will be limited and a remnant will endure. It's a picture almost of Israel in the wilderness. Israel in the wilderness, encamped 42 times. The message becomes clearer. In the last days in which we live, the church will be trampled on by the world, but she will survive because she is sealed, measured, protected, she is holy unto the Lord. The faithful witness. Those committed to the priesthood and service of the Lord and the gospel, those who are true to God and his word who come out and are separate in that they live holy lives will survive. The gates of hell will not prevail against the church. And then in verse two, three, we read of the two witnesses who will prophesy for 1000 260 days. That's 42 months. So referring to the same time period. Reference again to this whole time period from the first coming of Christ to the second, from Jesus to judgment. The two witnesses are described as two lampstands which stand before the Lord of the earth and are fed by to all of trees. The two witnesses are protected by divine power and judgment. Now in Zachariah chapter four, we read of one lampstand between, between two trees. The lampstand refers to the light or to the witness, that Israel was to be to the nations under the leadership there of those anointed for the task, Zechariah, Zerubbabel, through whom the spirit of God flowed, which is why the Lord declares that through this power, that this prophetic and kingly power, he will accomplish his purposes, not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, says the Lord. Well, in Revelation, again, symbolism is used. It's a little different. Here we read of two lampstands. It's a reference, again, to the witness of the church in the world. We saw that, of course, first part of the book of Revelation, where there are seven lampstands. Lampstands are placed in the world in order to give light to the world. So there in Revelation, it's the fullness of the church to give light to the world. The faithful church is referred to as a lampstand, like Smyrna, Philadelphia. None of the churches were perfect, but they were yet lampstands. And the picture is of the church fed by the spirit and power of God as she witnesses through the gospel ages, 1,260 days. or 42 months, and I might as well just mention this this time because this symbolism is going to come back. 1,260 days is equal to 42 months. It's equal to three and a half years, or to the same phrase used, time, times, and half a time. Those are all equivalent. The church, and they symbolize a time period from Jesus to judgment. The church, we read here, is given prophetic powers like unto Moses and Elijah. In Exodus 18, we read, I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brethren. In Malachi, we read, behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. Both prophecies find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ, but a secondary fulfillment in the body of Christ on the earth, the church. The church is given prophetic powers pictured here by the plagues of Moses and with the withholding of rain and the descending of fire like unto Elijah. You know, there are people today who wonder why we don't see such miracles today, why we could not have simply prayed and stopped that seven to 10 inches of rain this past week, or why we can't call down fire and judgment on the disobedient, or there are people who want to show the dramatic power of God, believing that that kind of presentation will attract people. Well, in the days of Moses and in the days of Elijah, such powers did not necessarily win all people over. There are people who think if we can see people raised from the dead, then they will believe. Jesus says, oh, no. They can see people raised from the dead, but if they don't believe my servant, Moses, they don't believe the word, won't do many good. Many people are blind to what's happening to you this morning. The power of a proclaimed word. Just as they were blind to the power of the rain or the calling down of fire. God's judgment comes. God's grace is revealed. through the power of the word proclaimed. Again, you can raise the dead, but if people do not believe the word, they will not believe in the rising of the dead. The church has been given the keys to the kingdom, power that has an everlasting effect. It opens and it closes the door to the kingdom of heaven. What's happening here has eternal consequences. And we and our generation are going to be judged on what we do with the gospel, with the proclamation of the word, how we treat those who bring the word, how we treat the witnesses of Christ, the church, That's why Jesus says, whatever you do unto the least of these, my brothers, you do it unto me. Whenever the church is faithful in presenting the gospel. Then the judgments of the gospel are the judgments of God. And the mercy of the gospel is the mercy of God, just as certainly as the fire and rain of Elijah. We have a powerful message. A powerful message. And it will be heard throughout the ages. And according to Revelation, we proclaim this word dressed in sackcloth Because as we proclaim Jesus Christ, which is salvation for the repentant and believing sinners, our proclamation of Christ is one of judgment upon the rebellious and the unrepentant. That is part of the impact of our proclamation of the gospel. You know the story of Jonah? He proclaimed judgment. And he discovered what he knew. That through that proclamation of judgment, God could save people. Presenting the gospel is never a failure. Right? Presenting the gospel in its truth, is never a failure. It always produces salvation and repentance in those who hear Christ the sheep. And it is always a sentence of death for any who harden their hearts. It always brings comfort or it brings distress. and how people respond makes all the difference, faith or unbelief, but the gospel is powerful, like a two-edged sword. The gospel is the same. When the message was proclaimed, accomplishing what God intends, then anti-Christian forces rise up against the church, the proclaimers, the proclaimer of the gospel, in order to silence her, devour her, destroy her. This is a reference to the beast coming out of the bottomless pit of hell itself. This beast wages war against the church and seeks to kill it. And in John's vision here, it does kill the witness. Anti-Christian forces are so effective that today, much of us, much of the church, keeps her witness confined to the walls of the church. And even in many cases within the walls of the church, many are afraid to proclaim the full gospel. That's how effective the forces of the world are today. When Christians reach out with the gospel and showing its application to any aspect of life, that will meet with opposition. It will meet with ridicule. It will meet with persecution. And you can see today the way people in our own nation are responding to the church and to the way of life of Christ. Often Christians will meet with militant opposition so that those who want to apply biblical principles to their daily life, their daily work, even to the raising of their children or the shape of their marriage, increasingly find laws resisting them and making it harder for them, the costs exorbitant. Even the world that infiltrates the church can inflict a form of persecution on those who strive to be faithful to the word and encourages the church to adopt secular means to accomplish spiritual goals. And when the church does, while such congregations are welcomed by society. But the result is a church that has form, but no power. She appears dead in the streets of the city, which symbolizes man and rebellion to the service of God. Humanity united against God is symbolically called Sodom and Egypt. and Jerusalem, where Christ was crucified. It's characterized by inhumanity, perversion, and the oppression you find in those places. Sinful man looks on the church, and what do they see today? They often see lifeless forms. They see people going through motions of worship and education. That's okay. That's okay. You can worship in your church. You can educate your children. Just don't force this on anybody out there. Just keep it to yourself. As long as you do that, the world doesn't mind. They don't want to hear the gospel. They don't want to be educated in the ways of Christ. They like churches that ignore them or make them feel good about their lives, their desires, their feelings. In this vision, you find the world is celebrating when they see the church, the witnesses, lying dead in the street. They celebrate by throwing a party like Christmas. They give gifts to each other. This is awesome. We like a church like this. They celebrate because the church's witness is effectively gone. Their reminder, you see, of sin and rebellion and judgment to come is gone. Don't tell them of Jesus coming again to judge the world. Don't tell them of a savior who removes the sin that they're in love with. When the church does proclaim faithfully, Jesus Christ, while it's received with joy by the sheep, it is not soothing to sinners who refuse to repent. And so the removal of the power and the authority of the church is a welcome thing. When the church fails to exercise the power of proclamation of the word, the world rejoices because their consciences are no longer being troubled. A faithful church meets opposition. The reason why so many Christians today live so comfortably in society is because we ourselves are not always faithful in applying the word to every aspect of our life. We don't always root out all the sin that remains in our own lives, our work, our play, our fellowship. The peace we enjoy often comes because we're content to live with lives even if those lives are not consistent with sound doctrine. You see, we are a people who tend to like the status quo. While we should enjoy peace and security, it should never be because we are being unfaithful in some ways to the teaching example and gospel of Jesus Christ. That's why we have to keep our focus on him, learning of him, and following him. And if we remain faithful to Christ, following in his footsteps, we will receive the victor's crown. At the resurrection of Jesus Christ, to the absolute amazement of the world, the church will rise victorious at the trumpet of the Lord. That is called the day of revelation of the sons of God. Then they're gonna see who these witnesses are lying in the streets, appearing to them as dead. And the result is a terrified world, and they'll see their error, and they'll be forced to give glory to God, not a glory of repentant faith, but a glory given like that of King Nebuchadnezzar. This is what the psalmist refers to when it says in Psalm 2 that every knee shall bow. Remember the six trumpets? Chapters eight and nine? Remember how in spite of the disasters in creation and the prevalence of violence and war, people still don't repent? They just continue in their immorality and their rebellion. We've seen that God does not reveal every detail of his judgments, but he assures us that his kingdom is coming and is not being delayed. And we are to be busy. We are to be busy devouring the word so that we can live it, that we might present Christ to the world and make disciples. We are to be faithful in taking in the word so that it's the word that may be presented to the world so that Jesus, the coming judge, will be seen as the only savior, the only one through whom salvation and life comes. We are to be faithful priests praying for the lost. We are to be faithful prophets bringing the gospel. We are to be faithful kings applying the word with justice and righteousness. The only way for sinners to survive is to hear the good news of the gospel so that they may repent and believe in Jesus Christ. History has shown when things get difficult, there is always a remnant that survives. God keeps his church and preserves his church. And here, by the grace of God and the power of God, the church rises again to glory. So the Lord is saying, by his vision, don't be discouraged. In spite of what it looks like, even if the church seems dead, God preserves His people. Remember the prophet? So discouraged because of the state of faith in Israel? And God said, I've preserved my people. You grow discouraged by the state of affairs in our congregation or in the church at large? Don't be discouraged. It may appear dead in the streets. You say, what kind of a witness is the church today? Don't be discouraged. God preserves his people and he will accomplish his purposes of saving his people and this creation. When I say don't be discouraged, that doesn't mean sit back and don't do anything. You still have to be encouraged to be about the task that God calls us to do. But never despise the days of small things, the little changes in people's lives, the little steps of sanctification a church can take. Never be discouraged by the day of small things, as Zechariah says. Conversions are often small steps. We don't always know how we will progress. We don't always know how things will go in the future. But the power of the gospel Spoken and lived will prevail. The spirit of God continues to work through that word. We are called to be the witnesses. To the end, hold fast to what we believe. Hold fast to Jesus Christ. Profess him boldly. Live him consistently. Amen.