We’re continuing our series in the Book of Revelation. Chapters 12 and 13 were pretty intense, as we are introduced to a dragon and two beasts, whom we know to be the devil, the antichrist, and an evil false prophet.
In Chapter 14, the attention is turned away from the powers of evil onto the power of God. Today’s sermon is entitled “The Winepress of God.”
Before we get into this heavy passage, let’s go to God in prayer and ask Him to speak to us.
(prayer)
Have you ever been in a situation where someone is frightened, so you try to point them to something that will calm them or bring them comfort?
When I get upset, my wife can give me a big hug and make me feel better. When my kids get frightened during a movie, I say, “Here, have some more popcorn.” Some children like to sleep with a toy or stuffed animal to bring them comfort.
Well, Chapters 12 and 13 were pretty intense, right? Perhaps even frightening for some. However, Chapter 14 brings us some news that brings comfort to those who follow Jesus.
Let’s just look at the words of verse 1:
Then I looked, and there was the Lamb . . .
Oh, brothers and sisters, the Lamb changes everything.
That’s our first point today. Notice . . .
I. God’s Lamb.
Look at verses 1-5:
1 Then I looked, and there was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him were 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. 2 I heard a sound from heaven like the sound of cascading waters and like the rumbling of loud thunder. The sound I heard was like harpists playing on their harps. 3 They sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders, but no one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. 4 These are the ones who have not defiled themselves with women, since they remained virgins. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were redeemed from humanity as the firstfruits for God and the Lamb. 5 No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.
We learn that John’s focus is shifted away from the dragon and the beasts to the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ.
John says that the Lamb is standing on Mt. Zion, which was historically in Jerusalem, the center of Jewish worship.
Here, in Revelation 14, it refers to a place where Jesus is standing victoriously, perhaps in heaven, perhaps on the earth.
Notice that with the Lamb are the 144,000 who have the Lamb’s name and God the Father’s name written on their foreheads.
Now, wait a minute; we just heard in Chapter 13 about the mark of the beast written on people’s foreheads.
However, what we see in Revelation 14 is no evil mark; this is a heavenly, godly mark!
The mark of the Lamb and of the Father marks and seals those who belong to God who are set apart for His plans and purposes.
As a reminder, the 144,000 are introduced to us back in Revelation 7. We learn more of them here.
We learn that they are singing a new song before the throne of God, which only they know.
We learn that they had been redeemed from the earth.
They are described as being virgins, which may refer to a spiritual purity, rather than physical abstinence.
They follow Jesus wherever He goes.
They’re described as the firstfruits for God, perhaps meaning they are set aside for a special purpose by God.
We learn also that they are blameless, which of course, refers to the time after they are redeemed from the earth.
So, we see the Lamb of God, on the scene, with His 144,000, ready and poised for what will come next.
Well, what will come next?
Let’s continue by hearing from . . .
II. God’s angels.
Look at verses 6-13:
6 Then I saw another angel flying high overhead, with the eternal gospel to announce to the inhabitants of the earth—to every nation, tribe, language, and people. 7 He spoke with a loud voice: “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship the one who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”
8 And another, a second angel, followed, saying, “It has fallen, Babylon the Great has fallen. She made all the nations drink the wine of her sexual immorality, which brings wrath.”
9 And another, a third angel, followed them and spoke with a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 he will also drink the wine of God’s wrath, which is poured full strength into the cup of his anger. He will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the sight of the holy angels and in the sight of the Lamb, 11 and the smoke of their torment will go up forever and ever. There is no rest, day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or anyone who receives the mark of its name. 12 This calls for endurance from the saints, who keep God’s commands and their faith in Jesus.”
13 Then I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.”
“Yes,” says the Spirit, “so they will rest from their labors, since their works follow them.”
So, we’re told here of three angels who have messages to share:
First, is an angel with the “eternal gospel.”
Let’s remember that “gospel” means good news. This angel has some good news, which is this (look at verse 7):
“Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come.”
Why is this message good news? Because God has a plan and a purpose to make all things right, which happens in part, through His judgment of sin and evil.
It is good that God will put sin to death. It is good that God will put evil to death. It is good that God will put death to death.
The coming judgment of God is good news for the people of God.
The second angel has another message.
This angel says (in verse 8):
“It has fallen, Babylon the Great has fallen.”
The literal Babylon was once a mighty godless empire that conquered ancient Israel.
During the time of Jesus and the apostles (including John), some referred to the Roman Empire as Babylon.
What this angel is likely referring to here is the power of evil itself. You see, for a period of time, the empire of evil has had a hold on the people of the earth. However, the time of evil is limited. God’s judgment is coming.
Finally, we hear from this third angel.
This angel announces the coming of God’s wrath. This angel says in verses 9 and 10:
“If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he will also drink the wine of God’s wrath, which is poured full strength into the cup of his anger.”
This angel’s message transitions us nicely into the last point:
III. God’s wrath.
Now, let’s talk about what wrath is. Wrath is extreme anger. So, in this context, we’re talking about God’s extreme anger towards sin.
So, with that in mind, let’s look at verses 14-20:
14 Then I looked, and there was a white cloud, and one like the Son of Man, was seated on the cloud, with a golden crown on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. 15 Another angel came out of the temple, crying out in a loud voice to the one who was seated on the cloud, “Use your sickle and reap, for the time to reap has come, since the harvest of the earth is ripe.” 16 So the one seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.
17 Then another angel who also had a sharp sickle came out of the temple in heaven. 18 Yet another angel, who had authority over fire, came from the altar, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Use your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the vineyard of the earth, because its grapes have ripened.” 19 So the angel swung his sickle at the earth and gathered the grapes from the vineyard of the earth, and he threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. 20 Then the press was trampled outside the city, and blood flowed out of the press up to the horses’ bridles for about 180 miles.
Ok, we see in this passage at least three angels and one who is like the Son of Man.
Let’s address the one who is like the Son of Man.
This figure may likely be Jesus, but he doesn’t have to be.
Someone can be like Jesus without being Jesus
We’ll talk more about this figure on Wednesday night at Digging Deeper.
Notice also that we have two figures who are reaping with a sharp sickle and two who are telling them when to reap, which means to swing the sickle to cut the crop.
For those who don’t know, here’s what a sickle looks like. It’s swung and it cuts whatever is meant to be cut, such as grapes or grain.
So, there are two reapings or harvests taken from the earth in this passage. The first one doesn’t have a lot of detail; we can dive into it a bit more on Wednesday night.
However, pay attention to this second harvest (in verses 17-20).
We see that the angel who is reaping is told in verse 18:
“Use your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the vineyard of the earth, because its grapes have ripened.”
This idea of the grapes being ready to harvest likely refers to the fact that God is ready to show His wrath towards sin. In other words, God is essentially saying, “That’s enough. It’s time for judgment.”
Verse 19 tells us what happens with these grapes. It says:
So the angel swung his sickle at the earth and gathered the grapes from the vineyard of the earth, and he threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath.
A winepress was a stone structure that had chambers where the grapes were gathered and trampled in order to make juice for wine. The grapes would be crushed and pressed, then the juice would run out.
Well, this is no ordinary winepress in Revelation 14. This is the great winepress of God’s wrath.
Verse 20 tells us the purpose of this winepress. It says:
Then the press was trampled outside the city, and blood flowed out of the press up to the horses’ bridles for about 180 miles.
This verse makes it very clear that God’s wrath is a terrifying thing, particularly if you’re on the receiving end.
Make no mistake: This passage is referring to the killing of people; people who will be killed as a result of the judgment of God being poured out toward sin.
In fact, there will be so much killing that the blood will come up to the bridles of horses.
Bridles are the straps or harnesses that go on a horse’s head. That’s a lot of blood. Here’s what this means: There will be so much blood spilled at this time that it will be five to seven feet deep, for about 180 miles.
My goodness, there will be a lot of death because of the anger of God towards sin.
Remember where this chapter started: With the Lamb of God.
God does not overlook sin; God judges sin. These events will start to unfold with the Lamb of God.
That takes us to our bottom line:
Bottom Line: The Lamb of God is poised to make all things right.
At this point in Revelation, we’ll start to see more and more how Jesus the Lamb will defeat sin and defeat Satan. He will make all things right.
However, that is not the only way that He will make all things right.
You see, Jesus not only will deal out the wrath of God, He also absorbed the wrath of God Himself when He took on sin for us through His crucifixion on the cross.
The blood of Jesus was spilled so that our blood would not need to be spilled by the wrath of God.
When God the Father is ready, Jesus is poised and ready to pour out judgment.
So, also, if you come to Jesus for forgiveness right now, He is poised and ready to forgive you of your sins and spare you from the wrath of God.
What will it be? Will Jesus pay the judgment, or will you?
Challenge yourself this week in this one way:
Weekly Challenge: Accept the task of announcing the gospel.
Go back to verse 6. It says:
Then I saw another angel flying high overhead, with the eternal gospel to announce to the inhabitants of the earth—to every nation, tribe, language, and people.
The message of these angels is the good news. Pay attention, here: The good news is not only that Jesus saves, but also that God will judge sin. The message of Revelation 14 is that God will judge sin. That is the gospel that this angel proclaimed.
The angel says in verse 7 says:
“Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come.”
Brothers and sisters, the good news is that Jesus can save sinners. The good news also is that one day Jesus will put sin and evil to death.
May we turn from our sin and turn to Jesus; may we proclaim to every inhabitant of the earth to turn from their sins and turn to Jesus, because the wrath of God will one day be poured out on sin and sinners.
(Gospel presentation)
(closing prayer)
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