Turning in our Bibles this morning to Revelation chapter 15. Taking up our series on the book of Revelation. Again this morning, the sermon titled, The Stage is Set for Final Judgment. You'll find from our text, you'll find in the reading, the song of victory sung by the saints around the sea of glass. We will also be told about the seven angels emerging from the tabernacle of testimony. And in conclusion, the Bible tells us about the smoke that fills God's temple, barring entrance to anyone. Beloved of God, let us read now, before the sermon, I ought to actually read the Scripture. Hear now God's holy word. Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished. And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire. And also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God, the Almighty. Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations. Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you. for your righteous acts have been revealed. After this I looked and the sanctuary of the tent of witness in heaven was opened and out of the sanctuary came the seven angels with the seven plagues clothed in pure bright linen with golden sashes around their chests. And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever. And the sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power. And no one could enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished. There we end the reading of God's holy word this Sabbath. Beloved of God in Christ Jesus, final judgment is certain and on its way. Furthermore, when it comes, the saints of God in Christ will be there, will witness it, and will celebrate it, praising God for it. Chapters 15 and 16 of the book of Revelation go together. And so we have the first half of that couplet here this morning. This first half of the story, chapter 15, sets the stage for God's final judgment. Chapter 16 describes God's final judgment as the full bowls of God's wrath are poured out upon a sinful and unrepentant world. And so understand in this chapter, we have the stage set. the rationale given, the main players introduced, and then the judgment is poured out. Our text says, I saw another great and marvelous sign, seven angels with the seven last plagues last because with them God's wrath is completed. Now, though the words I saw occur 42 times in the book of Revelation, the word signs occurs this many. Three times. Right? The first two times occur in Revelation 12, verse 1, where we read, a great and marvelous sign appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun. And we know that that woman stands for the church and the child she would bear to be her Savior. The Savior of the church. Savior of God's people of all ages. The second time we read the word sign is two verses further in Revelation 12 verse 3. Then another sign appeared in heaven, an enormous red dragon. And so you see the antithesis is introduced again. It's the church and her nemesis, her enemy. The ancient serpent who opposes both the church and her child, Jesus Christ. Now in chapter 15, the Apostle John sees another great and marvelous sign. For the third time, we hear the word sign. which completes the trio, the three, the triangle. The seven last plagues by means of which God will smite the red dragon and all those who worship the red dragon and the means, these seven plagues, the means by which He will save all those who belong to the child and to the true church. Seven angels pour out these seven plagues in which God's burning wrath is poured out upon His enemies. There are seven angels with seven plagues to symbolize the divine perfection and holy justice of the completion of this final judgment. Now the Apostle John is going to tell us about these seven angels with their seven bowls filled with the last seven plagues. But before he does, he wants to show us the celebration of the church. The celebration of the church triumphant. Why? So that the church militant may take heart. so that you and I may be courageous in this world and not give way to fear, so that you and I may rejoice here on earth already with the church in heaven that God has brought deliverance from all of our enemies throughout the ages. And I saw in heaven what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and his image, and over the number of his name. They held harps, given them by God, and sang the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb. Now clearly, this vision is based on the redemptive event where God caused the waters of the Red Sea to part, to stand up like two towering walls creating a highway for Israel to escape right through the middle of the sea, escaping from the Egyptians. But when Pharaoh and his army and their horses and chariots tried to pursue them and tried to do the same, The great deliverer of his people proved himself to be the great destroyer of his enemies when the walls of water came crashing, thundering down upon them, drowning every last one. Pharaoh and his horsemen. Israel stood on the safe side of the Red Sea and watched as God destroyed their oppressors. This is the theme of the Song of Moses. And this will be the theme of the Song of the Lamb. They are the same song with different stanzas. Stanzas celebrating the salvation of the very same delivering God. I will sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted, the horse and rider He has hurled into the sea. And you can just see those chariots being hurled right upside down. Wheels over tea kettle, so to speak. In the same way, those given victory over the beast, his image, and his number, are rejoicing in heaven to see the judgments of God that are being poured out upon the wicked. And the church militant ought to do the same. And it does become a litmus test of a church. Are you a true church or a false church? How to tell? Well, here's the litmus test. Do you rejoice in the victories of God? Or do you rejoice in the victories of the world? In the victories of the culture? In the victories of all that's politically correct? You know, that's the litmus test. Which side are you on? Whose victories are you celebrating? We're given the opportunity to show our true colors and our true stripes. You see, beloved, how God's victory over Pharaoh and his whole host, drowning them in the Red Sea, is a foreshadowing of the victory God will get over the beast, Satan, and the multitudes who serve him. And that is why the church triumphant is singing the song of Moses and of the Lamb. In both cases, it was the Lamb who gave the victory. Though the theme of their songs are the same, the precise lyrics recorded here in Revelation actually come from the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, and, as we said earlier, Psalm 86. We must observe here this morning that the sea which John beholds is made of glass mixed or mingled with fire. You can see the fire through the glass. It symbolizes God's transparent righteousness revealed in His holy, hot judgment upon the wicked. In this case, divine perfection demonstrated with seven plagues. It's as though this sea of glass, which reflects the perfection of God in all His judgments, inspires the church triumphant to sing the refrain of God's redeemed saints down through the ages, and now again in heaven where all praise is perfected and the God of righteous judgment is glorified. Great and marvelous are Your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are Your ways, King of the ages. Who will not fear You, O Lord, and bring glory to Your name? For You alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before You, for Your righteous acts have been revealed. You want to shout your own hallelujah. Just as Israel ascribes glory to God on earth, so the victorious crowd John sees ascribes glory to God in heaven. God is praised for both His deliverance of His saints and for His judgments upon the wicked. And in the end, the entire universe will have to acknowledge God's righteous character. The wicked were warned over and over and over. They did not repent. The fault is therefore wholly theirs. God is therefore justified in pouring out the bowls full of His holy wrath. The church triumphant will clearly see this and will joyfully glorify God for it. The church militant also should begin this praise on earth that will be perfected in heaven. as we too learn to sing the song of Moses and of the Lamb. And so the challenge comes before us. Is it mankind's glory or God's glory? Which attracts us? Which holds a fascination for us? In other words, have you taken your stand around the sea of glass, which reflects the righteousness of God? Once you have, you'll discover with joy that it is God Himself who has placed a harp in your hand and put a song in your heart. As the Bible says, they held harps, given them by God, and sang the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb. The desire to sing. The ability to sing. The holy joy in singing is given by God Himself. And so each of us must ask ourselves, has He not given me a harp? With what joy? We answer, yes, He has. Second this morning, the seven angels emerging from the tabernacle of testimony. After this I looked, and in heaven the temple, that is the tabernacle of the testimony, was opened. And out of the temple came seven angels with the seven plagues. They were dressed in clean shining linen and wore golden sashes around their chests. Now the attention of the Apostle John shifts from the grateful praise of the saints around the sea of glass to the purposeful emergence of the seven angels from the tabernacle of testimony. Now things are going to begin to happen. The actors are taking their place upon the stage of history. The important thing being communicated here is the place from which the seven angels emerge. The place from within which they're coming from. The seven angels with the seven plagues are coming out of the temple, or out of the tabernacle that is the tent of testimony. The expression testimony refers to the Ark of the Covenant that was placed in the Holy of Holies. And the Ark of the Covenant contained two tablets of stone on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed. These ten moral laws of God are the basic condition of the covenant God made with His people at Mount Sinai. If they would obey Him, He would bless them. If they would disobey Him, God would punish them and bring severe judgment. These two slabs of stone on which God's law was written were called the two tablets of testimony. Now nowhere does the Bible tell us that five commandments were written on one side and five on the other. And of course generally we split the commandments between four and six. The four which have to do with our relationship to God and then six which have to do more with our relationship with our fellow man. keeping in mind that all ten reveal what our relationship to God is. And so we tend to split the commandments, putting them on both tablets. But more recent archaeology reveals the tendency of that culture to actually make two tablets which are two copies, identical. We would say, make that in duplicate. One for you, one for me. This is our contract. This is our covenant. These two slabs of stone on which God's law was written were called, therefore, the tablets of testimony. And these 10 commandments testify, they bore witness to the details of God's holy requirement. And when those laws of God are broken, they bear witness to the transgression of the nations of the world. He said all have fallen short of the glory. It's a testimony that all deserve this final judgment. The people's transgression against God's moral law calls forth. You see, that is what is calling forth the plagues, the seven bowls of judgment. They are being called forth on the basis, on the foundation of God's holy law itself. This is the law by which all men will be tried. This is the law which forms the basis, the reason why we need God's hope in Christ Jesus. It is therefore from the presence of God and the basis of the testimony of God's law that divine judgment is now literally marching forth in the form of seven angels. Seven messengers sent from God with seven plagues Let us all understand today that this is the basis of His own laws that God passes judgment and executes justice upon all the nations of the world. And you have just to think about the arrogance of nations, the idolatry, the false worship, the sin, the self-aggrandizement of human leaders and of human nature in general. of all those who have trodden underfoot the Son of God, the perfect sacrifice, who kept the law in our place, God's holy law, who have trodden underfoot, rejected the only blood that can cleanse from sin, which is, by definition, a transgression of God's holy law. And as a consequence of this rejection of the Savior, these seven angels are now empowered with divine power to pour out seven plagues on all the followers of the Antichrist. Which, by the way, all people are if they are not followers of the Christ. There are only two groups of humanity. These seven angels with the seven plagues in which the seven bowls filled with God's wrath are a very clear reference to Leviticus 26. And I would like all of you to turn there. Pick up your Bibles and turn to Leviticus 26. You have to see this with your own eyes. Leviticus 26, verse 14. As we said, there's really nothing all that new in the book of Revelation. It's all a revelation of the rest of Revelation, God's Holy Word. How many times do you see the phrase, seven times? Looking at Leviticus 26, beginning at verse 14, where the Bible says, but if you will not listen to Me and carry out all these commands, And if you reject My decrees and abhor My laws and fail to carry out all My commands and so violate My covenant, then I will do this to you. I will punish you for your sins seven times over. If you remain hostile toward Me and refuse to listen to Me, I will multiply your afflictions seven times over as your sins deserve. If in spite of these things you do not accept My correction, but continue to be hostile toward Me, I Myself will be hostile toward you and will inflict you for your sins seven times over. If in spite of this you still do not listen to Me, but continue to be hostile toward Me, then in My anger I will be hostile toward you and I Myself will punish you for your sins seven times over. And so you see, verse 14, 18, 21, 23-25, 27-28, those are the places that I read. Seven times over. Repeated five times in those verses. And so the seven angels come forth from the presence of God, representing holy wrath for offense done against God's holy law. And as these seven angels leave the inner sanctuary of God's holy throne room, they are given authority over the discharge of seven plagues on all those who have rejected God by rejecting Christ the Savior. what almighty peril the nations of the world are in today. For almighty wrath and judgment are coming their way. The stage is set. Notice the apparel of the angels is made of clean, shining linen that symbolizes holiness. The golden sash around their chest communicates dignity, authority, and a commissioning of Christ Himself to represent Him in carrying out His judgment on earth. Their appearance is like the Son of Man, you'll remember, who also appeared with a golden sash around His chest. We read in Daniel, the prophet Daniel chapter 10 verse 5. And again, this identifying sash is given to us in the book of Revelation chapter 1 verse 13. So, let there be no doubt about the fact these seven angels represent Christ Jesus Himself. And the plagues they are about to pour out upon the earth are His plagues. and will be poured out for His glory." In conclusion, this morning, the smoke that fills God's temple barring entrance to anyone while this judgment is taking place. Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven bowls filled with the wrath of God who lives forever and ever. Revelation 15 verse 7. The four living creatures who represent all animate creation, that means all living things, are also intimately concerned with the work of these angels. Why? Well, you know why. For the whole world has suffered from the fall of man. The whole world has been suffering under man's failure to be a faithful steward of all that God has made. And one of these four living creatures is given the privilege of handing the seven bowls filled with the wrath of God to the seven angels who will then pour them out. As we are told in Romans 8, verse 19-21, The Bible explains the creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. Right? Angels have elsewhere been called the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. As the seven angels emerge with the seven bowls filled with God's wrath, as it emanates from the ark of God's covenant, God's holy law, And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power. And no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were accomplished and completed. Well, these words remind us of the event when God came down to fill the earthly tabernacle, the first tabernacle, and God filled it with His glory once it was completed. It's like it's another occurrence, but a greater occurrence of Exodus 40, verse 34. And the same type of event took place at the dedication of the temple built by Solomon, 1 Kings 8, 10 through 11, where the glory of the Lord fills the temple with a Shekinah cloud of God's glory, and everyone was forced out. Again at the commissioning of Isaiah in the year that King Uzziah died, Isaiah saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. And seraphim were flying, calling to one another, Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty. The whole earth is full of His glory. And at the sound of their voices, the doorposts and the thresholds shook, and the temple was full of smoke. Isaiah 6 verse 4. So this is yet another instance of this. You see how God does not change. God is consistent. And His glory is so great. Mere man cannot stand in the face of it. These are all a revelation of divine glory. Holiness. And now in revelation at the end of the Gospel age, this glory has turned to holy wrath. And I wanted to Quite honestly, I deliberate. Whether it's a good explanation or no. But it seems to me that children get a sense of when their parents are righteously angry, and you know you'd better get out of the kitchen and probably get out of the house. Right? When you know you've got it coming. It's that kind of thing. This is glory revealed in holy wrath. On that day, no one will be allowed to enter The Holy of Holies. No one to approach the mercy seat. No one to touch the throne of grace until the seven plagues poured out by the seven angels are completed. And the only thing that occurs to me is the importance of being in Christ, the great High Priest on that day. Oh, to be a Christian on that day. To be yourself. That glorious temple in which God dwells by His Spirit. Oh, to have your sins wholly covered by the blood of Christ. And oh, to delight in the testimony in the divine law, the inspiration in your own heart which causes you to sing the song of Moses and of the Lamb. By grace, we will stand in glory, in basking in glory as we behold Christ face to face, God in Christ, to gain entrance to God's throne room by the blood of the Lamb. What glory this is! And what an opposite experience of unbelief. An opposite experience of all those to whom entrance to God's throne room will be denied. Oh, to belong to the judge on that great and terrible day. Beloved, seek His face this day that you may see His face on that day. Amen. Let us pray. Lord God in heaven, we thank You for speaking to us about Yourself. About Your holiness. About Your testimony. About Your righteousness. Your truth. Lord, about Your holy wrath. Lord, we thank You for speaking to us about how our hearts should be set, dedicated to You, O God, and all that pleases You, warning us, Lord, not to be caught up with fascination and dedication to this sinful world. Lord, we thank You for showing these things to us that we may gain a heart of wisdom, a wisdom unto salvation, a wisdom to set our hearts on high, to get our hearts in tune with You, O God, and with the salvation that You have so graciously provided that we may be on the right side of Your judgment when it comes. Lord, grant to us all these things and so much more, all that you intend, transforming our hearts and lives after the image of your Holy Son. In Jesus we pray, amen.