Revelation (Revelation 5: 1-6)

[00:00:00] Speaker A: Always winter, but never Christmas. This is a familiar line from the C.S. lewis book the lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe out of the Narnia series. And it's a line that I quote. Actually, I mumble to myself often this time of year. [00:00:26] Speaker A: And it's mostly during the times when I'm looking out of my back window, the back window of our house. In our kitchen, we have a large window that looks off into a wooded area behind our house. And during this time of year, it is extremely depressing. The cold, gray winter. This scene that nine months, at least nine months of the year, brings me great joy and happiness every morning when I wake up and look out. [00:00:58] Speaker A: But during winter, what was once lush, green, full of life, seen behind my house is now dead and depressing. And you may understand, I hate winter. Like, really, really hate winter. And some of you have told me, well, this is called seasonal affective disorder. I don't know anything about any of that. But I do know it is sad. [00:01:30] Speaker A: Winter makes me very sad. The cold, the early sunsets, the snow. I even mute the meteorologist, Chris Bailey, during this time of year. Some of you love him. He's like a hero to you, especially school teachers. [00:01:48] Speaker A: But he irritates me. This time of year, every update is bitterly cold, wintry blast, record lows. And he's so excited about it, and I hate it so much. [00:02:04] Speaker A: And some of you think you love winter. It's kind of like camping. I don't think anybody really likes camping. [00:02:11] Speaker A: Send your emails to Clayelisland Church. [00:02:17] Speaker A: I think I've taken more flack about that statement than anything else I've ever said from up here. But some of you think you like winter. You think you love winter. It's so magically cozy. You're like Lucy Bevensey when she first entered Narnia. And she's kind of mesmerized by winter, the snow. She's fascinated by it. It's amazing to her. And then Mr. Tumnus informs her that, no. [00:02:43] Speaker B: Winter is the spell of the White Witch. It is a curse. [00:02:48] Speaker A: And it is a curse. [00:02:51] Speaker A: And some of you are blinded to that fact. [00:02:55] Speaker B: But the point is, winter forever is miserable. [00:02:59] Speaker A: And this is what he explains to her. It's winter in Narnia. [00:03:03] Speaker B: And it has been forever. [00:03:04] Speaker A: So long. Always winter, but never Christmas. [00:03:09] Speaker B: You see the reality. [00:03:10] Speaker A: The only good thing about winter is Christmas. It gets us through winter. And without Christmas, winter is miserable for me and for others who really understand things. [00:03:28] Speaker A: But the truth is, without Christmas. [00:03:32] Speaker A: The world in which we live, cursed by sin, and death is miserable. There's no hope. And in Revelation 5, we are carried even further into the throne room of God to see that Christmas has come to rescue us from winter, the winter of sin and death. [00:03:54] Speaker B: When we were in chapter four a couple weeks ago, we saw this amazing. [00:03:59] Speaker A: Scene in heaven, a worship service that. [00:04:02] Speaker B: Is taking place before us. We don't see it in the spiritual realm where God is at the center and all of heaven is bowing before him, worshiping him. [00:04:18] Speaker B: In this place of set apart authority. And for the persecuted church that John. [00:04:24] Speaker A: Is writing to, they are to understand. [00:04:27] Speaker B: And know and see with the eyes of their heart that this is going on now. So Caesar, who's trying to kill you for saying Jesus is Lord is not. [00:04:36] Speaker A: King of heaven, God is and he's ruling. [00:04:41] Speaker B: And by faith we are to see God enthroned above all of our problems. [00:04:47] Speaker A: And look to him and worship him even as we suffer in this winter. But as we move even further into this scene, as we move even further into heaven, there is reason to weep, there is reason to mourn. There's weeping in heaven. We're to weep because the world is broken. Notice verse one. [00:05:15] Speaker A: John, who is seeing this vision, this angel has unveiled to him to prepare the churches for persecution during the last days. At this moment, he sees in the right hand of him, God who is seated on the throne. The presence and power of God, he sees in his right hand. And this is just a way to describe a place of authority at the right hand or the. Or a place of authority in the presence of God. It's an anthropomorphic image. God doesn't have a right hand, but. [00:05:53] Speaker B: At a place of power and authority. [00:05:56] Speaker A: Before God, there is this scroll that he sees. And notice. [00:06:03] Speaker A: The scroll has something written notice within it and on its back. Now that's just a way to describe that this scroll is full. There are words all over it and. [00:06:17] Speaker B: It'S overflowing with words. And this scroll contains the decrees of. [00:06:23] Speaker A: God for the last days. We're going to get into that in chapter six. What the last days look like the. [00:06:31] Speaker B: Last stage of human history. What is about to unfold, or what we now know is unfolding as we live through is God's plan. There is a plan and there's someone. [00:06:42] Speaker A: In charge of the plan. [00:06:43] Speaker B: And it is God. He is right written the end of human history. And he holds the plan in his hand. He has control over it. And what we're going to see in Revelation is, is a plan for justice. As the book unfolds. What we see is justice for God's enemies, for those who reject Christ. They will be punished. [00:07:10] Speaker A: There will be justice. [00:07:12] Speaker B: But as this unfolds, the redeemed will be rescued. They will be gathered from the nations. This is God's plan for justice, to judge his enemies and rescue his people. And that's what this scroll contains. [00:07:29] Speaker A: His plans, his blueprint for the end of time. [00:07:33] Speaker B: And this plan was to be given. [00:07:35] Speaker A: To his king, to his son, like an inheritance. It's like a last will and testament. [00:07:43] Speaker B: That has been to be given to. [00:07:45] Speaker A: God's king, the only one who can. [00:07:48] Speaker B: Open up the plans and unfold human. [00:07:51] Speaker A: History to its end. [00:07:53] Speaker B: God's king. He's the only one who deserves the scroll. [00:07:57] Speaker A: And that's why we see that it is sealed with seven seals. In Roman courts, often documents were tied up and they were sealed with seals that had an imprint of a signet on it. [00:08:13] Speaker B: And only if you were a part of the family or you were granted the signet by whoever wrote the scroll, whoever wrote the document, or whoever gave you the inheritance, only if you had that signet, could you open the scroll, could you open the document? And so the question is asked in verse two by a mighty angel. [00:08:38] Speaker B: Proclaiming with a loud voice, who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals? [00:08:48] Speaker B: In some sense, this is a rhetorical question. [00:08:53] Speaker A: It's calling to attention. There's only one who has credentials. There's only one who has the ID to be given this document and notice who is worthy, who can handle it, who can take upon himself this weight to open the scroll, the scroll and break its seals. [00:09:16] Speaker B: The question really is, where is God's king? Where is the person who holds the signet? Where is the person who can come forward and unleash God's plans for human history? Where is God's king? [00:09:33] Speaker A: And then there's silence. Verse 3. No one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it. So in this moment, there's a pause, and we're to feel the weight, we're to feel the tension. Because there's no created being who can approach the throne room of God, into the presence of God, go up to God's right hand and take this scroll. No, no, no created being can do this. No one on earth or under the earth. [00:10:07] Speaker A: Was able to open the scroll or even to look into it. No one could. If you could see God's plans for the last stage of human history, you. [00:10:18] Speaker B: You wouldn't be able to take it. [00:10:19] Speaker A: It would take your breath away. Devastation, destruction. [00:10:25] Speaker A: God bringing his enemies to justice. You wouldn't be able to handle it. [00:10:29] Speaker B: There's no one in heaven or on. [00:10:31] Speaker A: Earth can handle this. [00:10:33] Speaker B: And so notice what John does. [00:10:37] Speaker B: He begins to weep loudly. And this is grief that happens only. [00:10:45] Speaker A: In the face of death. Grief. If you've ever been in these moments where around hospitals, ERs, or in scenes where family members have been told that a loved one has tragically passed away and you've ever looked into their eyes and you've seen that terror and that. [00:11:09] Speaker B: Panic and that helplessness and you've heard. [00:11:12] Speaker A: The wells and the screams. [00:11:16] Speaker A: That'S what John's doing here. This is bad news for him that. [00:11:20] Speaker B: No one's answering the call. Is there no one in heaven? Is there no one on earth? And he begins to scream and mourn and weep loudly because he feels the tension. If there's no one who can open the scroll and enact God's justice on his enemies, then all is lost. Caesar wins, Rome wins. We are helpless, we are hopeless. [00:11:47] Speaker A: Because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or look into it. There's no hero to save the day. And what this means is the world is forever broken. We need to feel that. [00:12:01] Speaker B: We need to look around the world. [00:12:02] Speaker A: At times and think if there were no Jesus, this would be utterly hopeless and desperate. [00:12:14] Speaker A: I was reading last night of the thousands of Christians in Nigeria who are being slaughtered because they are Christians. [00:12:26] Speaker A: There's videos online. [00:12:29] Speaker A: Don'T recommend watching them because they're following Christ. They're having their children taken from them. [00:12:38] Speaker A: Brutally beaten and raped because they are Christians, thousands upon thousands. [00:12:46] Speaker A: If there's no Jesus, that's meaningless, that's hopeless. And this time of year it's good for us to look at our family and friends and kind of lean into the desperation that's there for those who don't know Jesus. [00:13:04] Speaker A: Many will show up at get togethers with you family and everything will be holly and jolly and merry. [00:13:12] Speaker A: And then they'll go back home. And behind closed doors there's strife. [00:13:20] Speaker A: In their families, there's just loneliness. They walk around like zombies in a world depressed and lonely. [00:13:29] Speaker A: If there is no Jesus to bring this to completion, to make all things new to come rule and reign. We are hopeless and we should weep. And we should weep for those who do not have Jesus. And we should scream, come, Lord Jesus, come quickly. But Christmas has come. [00:13:55] Speaker A: It's not all winter. Notice next in verse 5. We are to weep because the world is broken. But we can Rejoice, because the lion is a lamb. Notice verse 5. And one of the elders said to. [00:14:09] Speaker B: Me, weep no more. Now, this is a command, and it. [00:14:13] Speaker A: Is an intense command. [00:14:15] Speaker B: It's an imperative. [00:14:18] Speaker B: In some sense. This elder, remember we talked about these angelic beings that the highest of high power crowned in authority before God. No one gets to God until they go through them. And they are bowed with their power before God. [00:14:38] Speaker B: They turn to John and say, hush. [00:14:42] Speaker B: Stop it. [00:14:46] Speaker B: Stop crying. Weep no more. No more. [00:14:50] Speaker A: Cry. [00:14:51] Speaker B: Stop. [00:14:53] Speaker A: And why? [00:14:55] Speaker B: Behold. Look, why are you weeping? [00:15:00] Speaker A: Look. [00:15:01] Speaker B: Why are you crying? Look. Stop crying. The lion of the tribe of Judah. And immediately we are to think there is a king, and it is God's king. And we know this from Genesis, chapter 3, verse 15. [00:15:19] Speaker A: We know the promise of a seed born of woman who will crush the serpent's head. And by the end of Genesis, we realize that this is a lion of the tribe of Judah, one who will come from Jacob's line in Genesis 49:1 from Bethlehem in Judea will be raised up. [00:15:41] Speaker B: This little lion, Cuban, out of nowhere will rise up, and the scepter and the rule of God will never depart. [00:15:52] Speaker B: So the question is, where is God's king? Oh, the lion of tribe of Judah. He does exist. He is real. God has fulfilled this promise. The root of David in Isaiah, Israel. [00:16:07] Speaker A: Is pictured like a vineyard. [00:16:11] Speaker B: And it's a vineyard that God will come in judgment, and he will raise. [00:16:15] Speaker A: It down to nothing, burn it to nothing, and it will seem hopeless and all is lost. [00:16:21] Speaker B: But then there will be this little. [00:16:22] Speaker A: Shoot that will just sprout up out of nowhere, and the vineyard will be restored. And it's a picture of God's kingdom. [00:16:31] Speaker B: That it looks hopeless. God's people, it looks like they will be wiped out. [00:16:38] Speaker A: But there will be a king that will grow up out of nowhere, a kingdom that we read in Daniel that will rule them all and crush all other kingdoms. [00:16:49] Speaker B: And it will come from David's line. [00:16:52] Speaker A: And we know at Christmas that this kingdom has sprouted up. [00:16:57] Speaker A: In the womb of a virgin Mary, a little poor peasant girl in Bethlehem. [00:17:04] Speaker B: The lion of the tribe of Judah has come. Joseph and Mary's boy is the king who has come to save his people from their sins, who has come to defeat sin and death. And notice we see here in verse five has conquered. [00:17:21] Speaker B: Who can open up the scroll? [00:17:24] Speaker A: Well, God's king has already conquered his enemies. [00:17:27] Speaker B: Notice this past tense. The king has already defeated his enemies, so he can open up the scroll and its seven seals. So who has defeated all Of God's enemies in heaven and on earth, his king, there is one. There's a last man standing, and it's. [00:17:49] Speaker A: Jesus. [00:17:51] Speaker B: Who was promised the lion of. [00:17:54] Speaker A: The tribe of Judah. The root of David has come and conquered so he can open up the scrolls. And some of us need to be reminded of that right in this moment. You're going through the worst time in your life and you're trying to prepare yourself to have a good Christmas. Just. I got to just kind of be happy for the kids and move through and you don't want to. You're miserable right now. [00:18:22] Speaker A: That's okay. [00:18:25] Speaker A: Heaven would tell you, weep no more. [00:18:30] Speaker A: Christmas has come to your winter. [00:18:34] Speaker A: Your king has conquered. Look to him. Look to him. It's a reality. In heaven, the king stands victorious. So who is this king? Notice verse 6. And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders. Now, notice the picture here. If we go back to chapter four. The presence of God is center and encircled by all of these angelic beings, these creatures. [00:19:03] Speaker A: And those with authority and power. [00:19:06] Speaker B: And the point of chapter four is. [00:19:09] Speaker A: That God is unapproachable. You can't just walk in there. You can't just walk up to him and so he's got this scroll. [00:19:20] Speaker B: You're not just going to walk up and take the scroll. [00:19:21] Speaker A: Let me look into it. [00:19:22] Speaker B: Nobody's going to do that. [00:19:24] Speaker A: But one who's conquered all of his enemies. But the in betweenness is significant because. [00:19:34] Speaker B: Here there is one who stands as. [00:19:36] Speaker A: A mediator between God and his creation. [00:19:40] Speaker B: Between God and humanity. There is one that stands in between. [00:19:47] Speaker B: His king. [00:19:50] Speaker B: And there's only one who's able to stand there. [00:19:55] Speaker B: And so is it a mighty warrior. [00:20:03] Speaker A: I saw a little lamb. [00:20:06] Speaker A: What in the world? [00:20:09] Speaker B: God's Lion King. [00:20:14] Speaker B: The one who rules and reigns, has defeated all of his enemies. Look and see him. [00:20:23] Speaker A: The little lamb. [00:20:26] Speaker A: The word for lamb here is little lamb. [00:20:31] Speaker A: To emphasize this is like a pet lamb. [00:20:35] Speaker B: I'm supposed to stop crying. [00:20:41] Speaker B: At the sight of a little precious cute lamb. [00:20:46] Speaker B: Is this a joke? What's going on here? This doesn't make any sense. [00:20:54] Speaker B: Trying to process. Do I see it correctly? Oh, there must be a lion behind the lamb somewhere. Where is he? He's going to come out a grand entrance. [00:21:07] Speaker A: No, no, no. The lamb is the lion. [00:21:12] Speaker A: And that's what we celebrate at Christmas. [00:21:16] Speaker B: And if the lion isn't a lamb, we have no hope at all. [00:21:22] Speaker B: We need both. [00:21:24] Speaker A: Jesus is both the lion and the lamb. [00:21:29] Speaker A: You see this weak. [00:21:32] Speaker A: Tepid. [00:21:35] Speaker B: Wimpy version. [00:21:36] Speaker A: Of Jesus that we so often think about. And if we're honest with you, it's so weak it makes us uncomfortable. That's not really the Jesus I want. [00:21:49] Speaker B: Who'S just over to the side. Will you guys please have something to do with me? [00:21:57] Speaker A: Tepid Jesus. Ugh. That's not who you need, and you know that. [00:22:06] Speaker B: Sin, death, suffering. You don't want weak, tepid Jesus. [00:22:12] Speaker A: And I'm trying to be kind with my description. [00:22:17] Speaker A: But you also don't want distant tyrant Jesus who has nothing to do with you. [00:22:24] Speaker B: You don't want either one of those. [00:22:27] Speaker B: We don't want a weak Jesus. We don't want a distant Jesus. Good news. Jesus is a lion, and he's a lamb. [00:22:38] Speaker B: You need a lion who, when he. [00:22:40] Speaker A: Roars. [00:22:43] Speaker B: The hair on your neck stands up because it scares you to death. [00:22:49] Speaker A: But you also need a lamb who moves toward you in meekness and in your sin. [00:22:57] Speaker A: And guess what? Christmas has come. [00:23:02] Speaker A: Holy, holy, holy. The Lord God Almighty of chapter four is now a lamb who has moved toward us, the creator of all things. [00:23:16] Speaker B: Who'S pure and righteous, 100% God. You do understand that at Christmas we get to study and reflect and meditate and have our minds blown by the truth that Jesus is 100% God and 100% man. [00:23:33] Speaker A: The hypostatic union of Jesus. [00:23:35] Speaker B: And it's good, and it's mind blowing that that God would take on flesh and for nine months. [00:23:44] Speaker B: Live in the womb of Mary, would become a baby that had to be fed and wiped and had to learn how to walk. The lion is a lamb. All at once in the same moment. It's mind blowing. [00:24:03] Speaker B: He got hungry, he got tired. [00:24:07] Speaker A: He was sacrificed. [00:24:10] Speaker A: Which is also why we should be courageous, because the slain is standing notice. As the text continues. We're to weep because the world is broken. We're to rejoice because the lion is a lamb. And then we are to be courageous because now the slain lamb is. Is standing notice. [00:24:35] Speaker B: I saw a lamb standing as though it had been slain. [00:24:40] Speaker A: Now, the word here could be translated sacrificed or slaughtered. And it's like the lambs that were used in Egypt, as at Passover, when God said, I'm going to come and I'm going to judge the firstborn in Egypt. And what I want you to do. [00:24:55] Speaker B: Is I want you to take your. [00:24:56] Speaker A: Little pet lambs out back. And what would happen is the dad would take the lamb and he would take a knife and he would grab the lamb and he would slit its throat and blood would pour out into a Pan. And then they would eat some of the lamb. But then they would take that pan of blood and they would get a brush and they would brush the doorpost of their home so that when God came and judged the Egyptians firstborn, if you had blood over your doorpost, he passed over. This is a passover lamb. [00:25:44] Speaker B: The lamb stands. [00:25:45] Speaker A: Jesus stands as a lamb that has been slain so that God would pass over our slaves. Sin. That's who's standing in heaven. [00:25:55] Speaker B: And notice, it is a lamb who's endured judgment for our sin. [00:26:03] Speaker B: Who has. [00:26:03] Speaker A: Had its throat slit, blood poured out. [00:26:09] Speaker B: He stands. He can tell this is a lamb that was once dead. How do I know? I see the wounds. I see the scars. But it's not slumped over and it's not bleeding. It's standing with a scar from a fatal wound where blood poured out of its arteries. But it's standing and it's alive. The slain is standing. And when we see that, we know what to see. Right, because we know what happens after the resurrection. Jesus comes to his disciples and says, look at my hands. [00:26:50] Speaker B: No, you could see the scars in my side. I was dead. I was pierced, I was crucified. [00:26:58] Speaker A: But I stand before you alive, once a former corpse. And that's who stands in heaven, ruling and reigning. [00:27:07] Speaker B: See, because we know the Gospel, because we know about Easter. [00:27:15] Speaker B: We know what's standing here. A shepherd king who's back from battle. [00:27:23] Speaker B: And he's beaten and bloodied, and he's got scars on him and scrapes from fighting the enemies. [00:27:32] Speaker A: But he stands there with the head of sin and death that he sawed off. He defeated sin and death. [00:27:43] Speaker B: Yeah, he was bloodied and bruised, but. [00:27:47] Speaker A: He came out victorious. [00:27:49] Speaker B: And that's who's ruling in heaven. And here's the point. Get this before we move on. He's standing because he did not deserve to die. Jesus didn't die for his sin. He died for our sin. That's why God raised him up, because he was innocent. He was a sacrifice for our sin. Now, why is this important? Well, Rome was clad with powerful images. They had images of their emperors everywhere. And they were painted and they were imprinted as gods. Often you would see a myriad of gods in these statues and images and paintings. And amidst the gods would be the emperors they wanted them to see. Yes, Caesar is like a God. [00:28:39] Speaker B: You must fear him. You must have reverence for him. [00:28:44] Speaker B: Often they would be portrayed as holding. [00:28:47] Speaker A: Stars in their hand. [00:28:49] Speaker B: They rule the galaxies, they rule the heavens. [00:28:53] Speaker A: But here, John sees who really rules heaven. It's A little lamb standing at the center of the throne. This is heaven's image of power. [00:29:05] Speaker B: So you look at Caesar's image of power. Strong, mighty, like a God. [00:29:11] Speaker B: What's the powerful image of heaven? [00:29:13] Speaker A: A little lamb that was slain standing. And it should be terrifying for the Roman government because this little lamb has rendered the Roman cross powerless. [00:29:26] Speaker B: In Rome, the cross was used to invoke fear and terror. Do not tread on Rome. You will be crucified. [00:29:33] Speaker A: Oh. Now the cross, the cross that you. [00:29:36] Speaker B: Use to scare us, is rendered powerless. Why? Because the lamb died for our sin. [00:29:41] Speaker A: And he has defeated death. So we don't have to fear death anymore. [00:29:45] Speaker B: So Rome, the power that you have over us, fear of death. You have no longer the lamb standing, rendered your weapon powerless. Don't fear the beast. As we move to the end of the book, do not fear the opponents of God. The lion wielded the cross as a slain lamb to defeat sin and death. [00:30:09] Speaker A: And he is standing. [00:30:11] Speaker B: You see, so often we come to. [00:30:13] Speaker A: The book of Revelation and it's mysterious and. [00:30:16] Speaker B: And it's scary. Some of you are like, I'm never reading Revelation. [00:30:20] Speaker A: It's too scary. [00:30:20] Speaker B: I'll go to chapters 20 and 22. But the rest of it is just scary and it's confusing and we're so intimidated by it. If you skip chapter five, you should. [00:30:32] Speaker A: Be scared to death. [00:30:33] Speaker B: But as you move through the rest and you see the world is bleak and it's dark and it's unraveling, you're to know the Lamb is standing and he's controlling it all. [00:30:45] Speaker B: And the Lamb is for us. He's not against us. So whatever's going on in the world around us, he's in charge of it. And he loves us because he died for us. So we won't be lost in the chaos. We won't be lost in the destruction. No, we can worship. [00:31:05] Speaker B: So as you endure suffering, as you look at the world around you, what we've said throughout is worship and witness. That is the power over the beast. [00:31:15] Speaker A: The forces of darkness, Satan, sin and. [00:31:17] Speaker B: Death is that as the world is chaotic and it looks like it's unraveling and there's destruction everywhere, the Church looks up to heaven and says, look at the Lamb. He's ruling and he's reigning, and we worship him and we celebrate he's defeated sin and death. We exalt him even as things are bleak and horrible and. [00:31:38] Speaker A: And winter, we know Christmas has come. [00:31:44] Speaker A: And so that's what we should do. We should worship. Because the King who is executing justice. [00:31:50] Speaker B: In the last days. [00:31:54] Speaker A: We'Ve already been judged. We've been judged in him. And we should witness. [00:32:02] Speaker A: As you. [00:32:04] Speaker A: Watch and listen and read the evening news, which is meant to scare you absolutely to death anyway. You don't have to be scared. [00:32:15] Speaker A: Jesus has defeated sin and death. And if you're in him, you can live bold and courageous during this time. This is the greatest time for us to be alive. [00:32:28] Speaker B: Don't have to think about some golden age I'd love to go back to. No, right now. God has you here right now in the events that you see daily. God has you here right now to tell everybody around you. No. Jesus is ruling and reigning and to witness. [00:32:44] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:32:45] Speaker B: War, persecution, famine, destruction, natural disasters. And you are here to tell the people around you. Yes, But Jesus has defeated it all. Look to him. We worship and witness. Be courageous, because the slain is standing. [00:33:03] Speaker A: And then we are to repent because the Lamb is judge. Notice further the description of Jesus the lion, who is a lamb. He has seven horns. Now, the word seven throughout Revelation is it refers to completeness or fullness. And so he has seven horns. Horns are meant to. To communicate power. We're to think about an ox horn. And in Luke, Zechariah prophesies in this song declaring that baby Jesus is a horn of salvation. Sweet, precious baby Jesus. He's raised up like an ox horn that's gored all of our enemies. [00:33:50] Speaker A: The horn of an ox who has gone through and pierced all of its enemies. That's who Jesus is. [00:33:57] Speaker B: He is the fullness of all power. The little lamb with seven horns. [00:34:03] Speaker A: The power to gore all of his enemies and our enemies. That's what that's who's standing there. Notice with seven eyes. This refers to wisdom. He sees all things. He knows all things. In Zechariah 4:10, the eyes of God roam the world, meaning God is omniscient. [00:34:22] Speaker B: And here Jesus has the power of God and he has the wisdom of God. All power. He can do whatever he wants. And he sees everything and he knows everything. And notice which are the seven spirits of God. And this refers back to Isaiah 11. [00:34:40] Speaker A: In verses 1 through 11, there is this description of the anointed Messiah, servant. [00:34:45] Speaker B: King who will come, and he will be full of the Spirit of God. And being full of the Spirit of God, what will he have? He will have all power and he will have all wisdom. But what does he do with the power and wisdom? Notice, sent it out into all the earth. So the Lamb is the lion king, anointed with the Spirit of God to bring about God's purposes on earth as the Messiah. And In Isaiah, chapter 11. [00:35:15] Speaker B: Way in which he will bring about God's purposes. [00:35:17] Speaker A: Is judging the wicked. [00:35:19] Speaker B: And so the Lamb has been anointed with the Spirit of God to bring about God's justice in the earth. And he's been anointed with the Spirit of God to have power to do so. So you wonder who is going to defeat God's enemies. [00:35:37] Speaker A: It is the anointed king, the Lamb. [00:35:40] Speaker B: He has all power to do so, and he has all wisdom to do so. [00:35:43] Speaker A: Meaning it's not just power. [00:35:45] Speaker B: Without wisdom, he's going to do what's right. Do you see that? This is God's judge to execute justice. This is what Jesus meant after the resurrection when he says, all authority is given to me in heaven and on earth to bring about the end, to bring about justice. So go, tell everyone to follow me. [00:36:09] Speaker A: Make disciples of all nations. And so what we see here is Jesus the Lamb. His credentials match what it means to open up the scroll and unfold justice. But he will do so as a judge. You understand that, right? [00:36:28] Speaker B: For the Church, he is our Redeemer. He is our Savior. He is the lamb slaughtered. But for those who oppose him, he is God's judge who will bring about justice upon them. How do we know Jesus is going to do a good job judging the world? He's righteous. How do we know he's righteous? God raised him from the dead because he was perfect. He died for our sin because he was perfect. He has proven his righteous and purity and justice on the cross. So he's the only one worthy to bring about justice. Because he's the only one who can do it, right? That's why we don't fully and finally enact vengeance on our enemies. Because we can't do it. We can't be trusted to do it. We can't do it apart from God, Jesus is the display of God's righteousness. [00:37:19] Speaker A: Raised from the dead, who will judge the world. Now that's good news for those who look to him. Because you say, my justice has already been taken care of in Christ, right? [00:37:32] Speaker B: So when Jesus comes to enact justice. [00:37:35] Speaker A: You look at the Lamb and you say, he has endured my justice. But for those who are apart from Christ, it's not a Merry Christmas. It's terrifying. [00:37:47] Speaker B: It's bad news because no sin will go unpunished. You understand that, right? God is holy and he's righteous and he's perfect. What that means is all sin will ultimately Be punished, all of your sin, all of the world's sin. And it can either be punished in Christ when you look to him, or you will be punished forever by Christ. And he has been raised up as this all powerful, wise, anointed king who has God's wisdom and justice to go out into the world and execute judgment. [00:38:20] Speaker A: And. [00:38:21] Speaker B: And that's what we're going to see as history unfolds and the seals are broken and the scroll is rolled out. We're going to see how the Lamb executes justice. And it should be terrifying. [00:38:33] Speaker B: For those. [00:38:34] Speaker A: Who don't know him. You see, Christmas is dangerous. [00:38:40] Speaker A: I love Christmas. First of all. Some of you are like, does he like anything? He hates winter. He hates snow. I love Christmas. But I also understand how dangerous it is because the power and wisdom in flesh that has come to save us is also what will condemn us. And how trivial do we treat Jesus. [00:39:03] Speaker B: During this time of year? We kind of mumble through the songs. Everyone does it, the world does it. [00:39:11] Speaker B: So sentimental. Holy infant, tender and mild. The little figurine that you get out of storage, it's got dust on it and you wipe it off. [00:39:25] Speaker A: That's dangerous. You know that, right? You know, sometimes we like that because we can control the little figurine. You can't control Jesus. Jesus is dangerous. That's why I hate this so much. So don't do it around me, please. This whole sweet baby Jesus, six pound Jesus thing, I despise that. It's not funny. It's okay that you laugh and I'm saying it now, but. [00:39:57] Speaker A: I want us to lean into that a little bit. It's not funny because. [00:40:05] Speaker A: There'S no longer a sweet baby Jesus. [00:40:09] Speaker A: There is a lion who's a lamb that will rip your face off. [00:40:15] Speaker A: There's a Jesus who died and who is back from the dead and who. [00:40:18] Speaker B: Will judge the living and the dead. Judgment Day will not be funny. There will be no one standing before Jesus on Judgment Day with a sentimental view of him. There will be no one standing before him as if it's a joke. Actually, when we get to Revelation 6, the most powerful people on the planet are begging. [00:40:41] Speaker A: The mountains fall on us, fall on us, because we don't want to face the Lamb. And we should tremble knowing that this infant became ruler of heaven and he's exalted. That's the Christmas story that Jesus humbled himself, became a man, became a slave, like a slave was cursed on the cross in Philippians chapter 2, says, he has been raised and he's exalted. [00:41:08] Speaker B: He's been given the name above every name. And every knee will bow. [00:41:11] Speaker A: And every tongue will confess. [00:41:12] Speaker B: What? That Jesus is Lord to the glory of the Father. This is your king. God. This is your king. And in that moment, you will confess. [00:41:21] Speaker A: Listen. [00:41:21] Speaker B: Everybody will confess. Jesus is Lord. Everybody. Whether you believe in him as the Lamb that was slain for you, or whether you reject him, he will be the lion that judges you forever. But you will say he's Lord. [00:41:38] Speaker A: This is Christmas in your winter. [00:41:43] Speaker A: And as terrifying as it is, it's great news, right? [00:41:47] Speaker B: You're here today. And if you've never believed in Jesus, I plead with you right now to. [00:41:53] Speaker A: Believe in Jesus alone for salvation. He is your only hope. If you're here today and you're trying. [00:41:59] Speaker B: To figure out, how do I make it through this life, you're racked with guilt and you're racked with fear. But believe in Jesus, the lamb who became a slaughtered sacrifice for your sin, he is raised up. If you reject him, he will judge you. [00:42:17] Speaker B: He will condemn you. [00:42:21] Speaker A: Because there's Christmas and winter, but there's no heaven and hell. [00:42:27] Speaker A: Would you believe in Jesus today?