The Justice of God
Revelation 15:1-8
Message #29
There’s an ancient proverb about the Wheels of Justice, and then there is a biblical application that says, The mills of God’s justice grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly fine. This is speaking of the huge grinding wheel in an ancient grain mill, and it’s referring to the seeming slowness of the Justice of God but also to the ultimate exactness of the Justice of God.
In Genesis Chapter 3, the enemy of your soul and the enemy of God deceived Adam and Eve into bringing sin into Mankind. Adam was the Federal Head of Mankind, and when he sinned, sin entered Mankind. And since that day in Genesis Chapter 3, we have been sinners by nature and by choice. In Genesis 3, verse 15, God promised justice for both the serpent who brought sin into the world and justice upon the sin of the world.
And so, for 1,500 years, God proved that people could not do this alone. If you’ve ever wondered why there is an Old Testament, its purpose is a critical preface to the purpose of the New Testament. The purpose of the Old Testament is to prove to all of Israel and to you that you can’t be holy on your own, so the justice of God must fall on your sin. So, for 1,500 years, God proved that. And during that time he promised that the only hope of escape from the consequences of sin (the justice of God falling upon the sin of Mankind) is through a Savior – a Messiah. And then God brought that Savior into the world in the Person of Jesus Christ. And now, for 2,000 years since the Savior came to be that hope of escape from the judgment and justice of God, the message of salvation has been covering the earth.
Here’s the message of salvation. For those who have received salvation through faith in Jesus Christ as their own Savior, we become so identified with Jesus (through our faith) that his payment, the penalty he paid for sin – the sin of the world – is transferred to us (appropriated). We appropriate it. And 2 Corinthians 5:21 says he became sin for us so that we could become the righteousness of God in him. That’s God’s justice. And so, when you receive Christ by faith, God is not excusing your sin. He’s not overlooking your sin. He’s not giving you a few extra points. When you receive Christ by faith, Christ’s payment for sin becomes your payment for sin. Listen, either way, God’s justice has been one hundred percent met.
God must judge sin, or he cannot be God. God is, first and foremost, holy and just and righteous, and so he must judge sin. And so, Romans says that God made a way for him to be both just and the justifier of those who put their faith in Christ. Because God’s justice must come. And so, if you’ve received Christ today as your Savior, then God’s justice (his judgment upon your sin) has been one hundred percent met in the sacrifice and victory over sin in Jesus Christ. It’s met in full. And in exchange, you have the righteousness of Christ, allowing you to spend eternity in Heaven with God.
But, for the world that rejects God’s free gift of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, justice must still come. And so, it gets really simple. If you understand that God must judge sin, then you understand that God’s plan is either you receive the judgment for your sin that fell upon Jesus, or you choose to pay for it yourself. Honestly, sometimes I struggle with why some people have a hard time with that decision. It is a free gift. If you don’t receive it, there is eternal separation from God. Not because God’s a “bad guy,” it’s because sin cannot be in the presence of a holy God. And so, if you’re not made righteous, you cannot be in the presence of God.
And so, the justice of God must fall upon the world that rejects the free gift of Jesus Christ. Justice still must come. And it has been coming slowly for thousands of years. But there is a day when God’s final justice will be brought upon the enemy of hell and upon the sin of the world. In Revelation, that final day begins in Chapter 15.
The mills of God’s justice grind slowly, but ultimately, they grind exceedingly fine.
Revelation 15 is the shortest chapter in Revelation, but it is a very powerful turning point in the book. Today is a solemn and ominous day in the Book of Revelation for all those who stand against God.
Revelation 15:1 (NLT)
1 Then I saw in heaven another marvelous event of great significance. Seven angels were holding the seven last plagues, which would bring God’s wrath to completion.
There it is: The mills of God’s justice grind slowly, but ultimately, they grind exceedingly fine.
This is the beginning of the final justice of God upon the enemy of hell and the sin of this world, and if we look at God’s judgment throughout the Bible, we see the same thing. God’s mercy and patience seem to go on and on. But when that day finally comes, God’s judgment is swift and complete.
Think of Noah and the Flood. It took one hundred years to build a boat – there were no Bass Pro Shops. It’s a big boat. But when it started raining, it came from everywhere. It came from out of the ground, from the sky. . . the judgment came from everywhere.
What about Sodom and Gomorrah? Abraham’s interceding for Sodom and Gomorrah with the Angel of the Lord. Hey Lord, what if there’s fifty? What if there’s thirty? What if there’s twenty? What if there’s ten? And God is patient, patient, patient. But when the judgment fell on Sodom and Gomorrah, whoosh! It was swift. But God was patient. His mercy and his grace always goes before his justice.
It was the same for the Pharaoh in Egypt.
Even for ISRAEL. When Israel was conquered by Babylon and taken into Babylonian captivity, it was years, and years, and years. In fact, Nebuchadnezzar attacked Jerusalem three times before the final captives were taken.
God is SO long-suffering and SO merciful. But when the Day of Judgment finally comes, it comes with the full righteousness and justice of God.
H.A. Ironside says here [God] has given us these revelations out of kindness to us, that we may be warned thereby to avoid what lies ahead [for] this guilty world.
Listen, God would not be a loving God if he did not tell you that the bridge was out in front of you. God’s not like that construction worker who takes away the “Bridge Out” sign and then stands by and watches the cars go over the cliff. That’s not God. God puts up the sign and says, “Hey! The bridge on this road you’re on – it’s OUT! And you should deal with it before you get to the cliff.” Do you understand what I’m saying? That’s how much God loves us. He warns us, and so, receive that.
God would not be a loving God if he did not warn us of the justice that must come upon the enemies of hell and upon the sin of Man.
Revelation 15:2(a) (NLT)
2 I saw before me what seemed to be a glass sea mixed with fire . . .
We first saw this “Sea of Glass” back in Chapter 4, where we see the Rapture and the Church taken to Heaven. This Glass Sea is like a transparent pavement around the Throne of God, and here, the Sea of Glass is “mixed with fire,” an obvious reference to God’s judgment. And so, the Sea of Glass that surrounds the Throne of God is, in essence, on fire. And it’s an ominous sign. It’s a turning point sign.
Revelation 15:2(b) (NLT)
2. . . And on it (the sea of glass mixed with fire) stood all the people who had been victorious over the beast and his statue and the number representing his name. They were all holding harps that God had given them.
This group of Tribulation Saints standing on this Sea of Glass mingled with fire are those who have conquered The Beast and his image and his number. They have stood faithful to God in the midst of the fire of all of the devil’s attacks.
They chose eternal life with God over temporal life on this earth, and they are being rewarded for that choice right here.
They refused to worship the BEAST
They refused to worship his IMAGE
They refused to take his MARK
And it meant death on this earth for them.
But when it comes to life with God, what the world thinks is death is ultimately life, and what the world thinks is life is ultimately death. So, when it comes to life with God, what this world thinks is death is really eternal life. So, when a non-believer dies, everyone says they died. But when a Believer dies, then everyone says, “Their eternal life has started. They’re in the presence of the Lord. And eternity means time’s not passing. And for those of us who have received Christ, we’ll see them again.” It’s a Celebration of Life. But the world says, “Oh yeah. They died.” Again, what the world thinks is life, God says is death.
And there are those who say, “I’m going to party hard. You only live once! YOLO! Ha ha. Man, I’m living it to the extreme! I’m going to party as hard as I can.” NO! No! No! What you’re doing is dying. God says you’re dying. You’re on the bridge out road. And what you think is life is actually just the process of death. But it’s death for eternity.
The world thought taking the Mark and worshiping the Beast meant life. But Chapter 14 made it clear what the world thought was life was actually death (for eternity).
And those who seemed to be choosing death on this earth by NOT worshiping the Beast were actually choosing eternal life with God. That is the group we see here.
And there is a huge application for us here. Who we give our allegiance to here – either the world or Jesus Christ – determines whether we are choosing eternal life or eternal death.
That’s as simple as it gets. If we give our allegiance to the world and that YOLO lifestyle, and that fleshly seek after the things of the world, then we just need to come to grips with the fact that we’re going to spend eternity in what the Bible calls death. Eternal death. Separation from God. (It’s so important – especially in a message like this that I say that as gently as I can.)
Here’s the good news. If we give our allegiance to Jesus Christ here, even if it means death here (you can kill me, but you can’t take my life because I’m going to live forever), it means that we will live forever in eternity.
Who we choose to give our allegiance to here determines where we spend eternity.
So, the Saints who had conquered the Beast BY their faith in God are standing on a Sea of Glass mixed with fire.
And verse 2 says they’ve been given harps of God
and verse 3 says they are singing praises to God.
Revelation 15:3(a) (NLT)
3 And they were singing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb: . . .
The Song of Moses is the first Song of Deliverance in the Bible. Israel sang it just after the Exodus from Egypt. (Egypt always represents the world.) And so, the first time the People of God were led in Exodus out of the world, when they crossed the Red Sea, they sang the Song of Moses. God’s People were enslaved in Egypt, and that slavery was a picture of our slavery to the world. And their Exodus is a picture of God’s deliverance of his people from slavery to the world.
And these saints in the Tribulation have also made an Exodus from slavery to the world, and they’re singing the same song! In Revelation 15, the saints are singing the same song that was sung in Exodus 15, both in celebration of their Exodus from the world that God gave them.
Hear just a few verses from Exodus 15, The Song of Moses.
Exodus 15 (NLT)
1 . . . “I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously. . .
2 The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory. This is my God, and I will praise him . . .
11 “Who is like you among the gods, O Lord— glorious in holiness, awesome in splendor, performing great wonders?
13 “With your unfailing love you lead the people you have redeemed. In your might, you guide them to your sacred home.
This is a powerful song of deliverance for God’s People, sung at the first Exodus from the world in Egypt, and sung at the last Exodus from the world in the Tribulation.
And Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah Chapter 12 that when the Lord brought his people back to himself, this would be the song they’d sing. One of the primary reasons of the last half of the Tribulation (which is called the Time of Jacob’s Trouble – that’s when it gets really bad for Israel, for the Jewish people), and THE primary purpose (for Israel, it is) it’s to draw them to him through the trials and tribulations of the second half of the Tribulation because it’s bad. And then, when he shows up, they’re going to realize, “Oh. He is the Savior.” And they’re going to get saved.
God’s promises of justice and victory are steady, sure, and guaranteed from the days of the Pharaoh in Egypt to the days of the Antichrist in the Tribulation.
And these victorious saints are also singing The Song of the Lamb. Back in Revelation 5:9, the twenty-four Elders (representing the Church) sang a new song to the Lamb.
Revelation 5:9–10 (ESV)
9 . . . “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation,
10 and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”
That is the one place that people call The Song of The Lamb. But here are the lyrics of the song we know called “The Song of The Lamb.”
“You alone are holy, Lord God Almighty. Great and marvelous are Your works, You have delivered us. All the nations, Shall come and, Join in, The song of the Lamb. May the Lamb receive the reward of His suffering. Sarting with me. For the Lamb is worthy”
And those lyrics came from Revelation 15, verse 3.
Revelation 15:3(b)-4 (NLT)
3 . . . “Great and marvelous are your works, O Lord God, the Almighty. Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations.
4 Who will not fear you, Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous deeds have been revealed.”
This is a song of victory as God begins to pour out his final judgment on enemies of hell AND on the sin of the world. Please, believe me, you want to be on the right side of this song. You have to decide whether you are going to be standing on the Sea of Glass around the throne singing the Song of the Lamb, or am I going to be on the other side? And trust me, between now and Chapter 19, it gets beyond ugly.
Guys, we need to realize God’s justice and his final judgment are just as true as his grace and mercy.
And now, all of Heaven is going to come to attention in awe of what is about to happen. (This is how I see it. I see this ominous, solemn moment when all of Heaven is holding their breath – like a pin drop.)
Revelation 15:5 (NLT)
5 Then I looked and saw that the Temple in heaven, God’s Tabernacle, was thrown wide open.
This is as holy and powerful as it gets. John first wrote about this moment at the blowing of the seventh Trumpet in Chapter 11 because the seventh Trumpet brings on these final seven bowl judgments. John is seeing into the Holy of Holies, past the Holy Place, into the Holy of Holies, in the actual Temple that’s in Heaven that the Tabernacle and Temple on earth were patterns of. John is seeing into the Holy of Holies, where the Shekinah Glory of God dwells. So, Revelation 11, verse 19, is speaking of this same moment because the final judgments of God are about to be poured out.
Revelation 11:19 (NLT)
19 Then, in heaven, the Temple of God was opened and the Ark of his covenant could be seen inside the Temple. Lightning flashed, thunder crashed and roared, and there was an earthquake and a terrible hailstorm.
This is that moment, and it is a huge moment in Heaven.
Continuing in verse 6.
Revelation 15:6 (NLT)
6 The seven angels who were holding the seven plagues came out of the Temple. They were clothed in spotless white linen with gold sashes across their chests.
Out of the Holy of Holies, seven angels come – in spotless, white linen, representing God’s righteousness, and with golden sashes representing God’s deity. They come from the inner Presence of God, from the inner presence of the Temple, to begin the ultimate work of justice on earth.
And as Heaven is “standing at attention” in awe, we read this.
Revelation 15:7 (NLT)
7 Then one of the four living beings handed each of the seven angels a gold bowl filled with the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever.
Remember, this is the final seven bowl judgments. This is the final wrath of God, the final justice being brought on both the enemies of God and on the sin of the world.
We first met these four living creatures back in Chapter 4. They are unique heavenly beings created for worship around the Throne of God. They continually fly around, circling the throne, singing, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty. Who was, and is, and is to come.” These are very special worship (probably Cherubim and Seraphim). They’re specially designed for worship. Is one of these beings (who were created for worship around the throne of God) who gives to the seven angels the seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God.
This is obviously connecting worship to God’s justice. We can struggle with that. We may think, “I worship God when he gives me stuff.” (That’s the disease of the Western Church culture.) We don’t worship God when he gives us stuff. We worship God when we recognize who he IS. We worship God because of WHO he IS. And we worship God even in his justice and in him bringing justice. Not because we are worshiping him for those who are rightfully receiving his justice, but we’re worshiping him because we’ve escaped that justice, that judgment. Because we know that we deserve that judgment that is being poured out on those who have rejected it. And I know that sounds hard-core, but it is hard-core.
So, the worship being gives the seven angels the seven golden bowls. Heaven knows THIS is the beginning of the end.
The Final Justice of God
upon the Enemy of hell and
upon the sin of the world is about to be poured out.
The mills of God’s justice grind slowly – but ultimately, they grind exceedingly fine.
This is an ominous, powerful, and holy moment.
Revelation 15:8 (NLT)
8 The Temple was filled with smoke from God’s glory and power. No one could enter the Temple until the seven angels had completed pouring out the seven plagues.
The glory and power of God have filled the Temple in Heaven like smoke. There are only two other times that happened – at the spiritual inauguration of both the Tabernacle and the Temple on earth. All of Heaven is involved and watching.
The grinding mill of God’s justice – has reached the Day of Sentencing.
And the final day of God’s judgment on the powers of hell and on the sin of the world has begun.
A man may sit on death row for twenty years, but when the day of his execution finally comes, justice is swift and complete. And the Bible says this world is under a death sentence because God must judge sin, or he CANNOT be God.
But Jesus Christ has come to this “death row” we are living on, and he has offered a full and complete pardon to all who will receive it through faith in him.
But to those who reject it, to those who try to improve their time on death row instead of accepting the full pardon of Christ, to those – the final day of justice is ultimately coming.
Our sin must be judged by God, or God cannot be a holy and just God. And so, God, in his mercy and grace, has given us the choice either to have Jesus Christ take that judgment in our place through our faith in him OR for us to pay that entire judgment ourselves on the final day of God’s judgment that must come.
This is the beginning of the end in the Book of Revelation. Please don’t be so focused on trying to improve your condition on death row that you miss the free and complete pardon that Jesus Christ is offering you through faith in him. Allow Jesus to move you from death row to eternal life in Glory with him.
In Genesis Chapter 3, the enemy of your soul and the enemy of God deceived Adam and Eve into bringing sin into Mankind. Adam was the Federal Head of Mankind, and when he sinned, sin entered Mankind. And since that day in Genesis Chapter 3, we have been sinners by nature and by choice. In Genesis 3, verse 15, God promised justice for both the serpent who brought sin into the world and justice upon the sin of the world.
And so, for 1,500 years, God proved that people could not do this alone. If you’ve ever wondered why there is an Old Testament, its purpose is a critical preface to the purpose of the New Testament. The purpose of the Old Testament is to prove to all of Israel and to you that you can’t be holy on your own, so the justice of God must fall on your sin. So, for 1,500 years, God proved that. And during that time he promised that the only hope of escape from the consequences of sin (the justice of God falling upon the sin of Mankind) is through a Savior – a Messiah. And then God brought that Savior into the world in the Person of Jesus Christ. And now, for 2,000 years since the Savior came to be that hope of escape from the judgment and justice of God, the message of salvation has been covering the earth.
Here’s the message of salvation. For those who have received salvation through faith in Jesus Christ as their own Savior, we become so identified with Jesus (through our faith) that his payment, the penalty he paid for sin – the sin of the world – is transferred to us (appropriated). We appropriate it. And 2 Corinthians 5:21 says he became sin for us so that we could become the righteousness of God in him. That’s God’s justice. And so, when you receive Christ by faith, God is not excusing your sin. He’s not overlooking your sin. He’s not giving you a few extra points. When you receive Christ by faith, Christ’s payment for sin becomes your payment for sin. Listen, either way, God’s justice has been one hundred percent met.
God must judge sin, or he cannot be God. God is, first and foremost, holy and just and righteous, and so he must judge sin. And so, Romans says that God made a way for him to be both just and the justifier of those who put their faith in Christ. Because God’s justice must come. And so, if you’ve received Christ today as your Savior, then God’s justice (his judgment upon your sin) has been one hundred percent met in the sacrifice and victory over sin in Jesus Christ. It’s met in full. And in exchange, you have the righteousness of Christ, allowing you to spend eternity in Heaven with God.
But, for the world that rejects God’s free gift of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, justice must still come. And so, it gets really simple. If you understand that God must judge sin, then you understand that God’s plan is either you receive the judgment for your sin that fell upon Jesus, or you choose to pay for it yourself. Honestly, sometimes I struggle with why some people have a hard time with that decision. It is a free gift. If you don’t receive it, there is eternal separation from God. Not because God’s a “bad guy,” it’s because sin cannot be in the presence of a holy God. And so, if you’re not made righteous, you cannot be in the presence of God.
And so, the justice of God must fall upon the world that rejects the free gift of Jesus Christ. Justice still must come. And it has been coming slowly for thousands of years. But there is a day when God’s final justice will be brought upon the enemy of hell and upon the sin of the world. In Revelation, that final day begins in Chapter 15.
The mills of God’s justice grind slowly, but ultimately, they grind exceedingly fine.
Revelation 15 is the shortest chapter in Revelation, but it is a very powerful turning point in the book. Today is a solemn and ominous day in the Book of Revelation for all those who stand against God.
Revelation 15:1 (NLT)
1 Then I saw in heaven another marvelous event of great significance. Seven angels were holding the seven last plagues, which would bring God’s wrath to completion.
There it is: The mills of God’s justice grind slowly, but ultimately, they grind exceedingly fine.
This is the beginning of the final justice of God upon the enemy of hell and the sin of this world, and if we look at God’s judgment throughout the Bible, we see the same thing. God’s mercy and patience seem to go on and on. But when that day finally comes, God’s judgment is swift and complete.
Think of Noah and the Flood. It took one hundred years to build a boat – there were no Bass Pro Shops. It’s a big boat. But when it started raining, it came from everywhere. It came from out of the ground, from the sky. . . the judgment came from everywhere.
What about Sodom and Gomorrah? Abraham’s interceding for Sodom and Gomorrah with the Angel of the Lord. Hey Lord, what if there’s fifty? What if there’s thirty? What if there’s twenty? What if there’s ten? And God is patient, patient, patient. But when the judgment fell on Sodom and Gomorrah, whoosh! It was swift. But God was patient. His mercy and his grace always goes before his justice.
It was the same for the Pharaoh in Egypt.
Even for ISRAEL. When Israel was conquered by Babylon and taken into Babylonian captivity, it was years, and years, and years. In fact, Nebuchadnezzar attacked Jerusalem three times before the final captives were taken.
God is SO long-suffering and SO merciful. But when the Day of Judgment finally comes, it comes with the full righteousness and justice of God.
H.A. Ironside says here [God] has given us these revelations out of kindness to us, that we may be warned thereby to avoid what lies ahead [for] this guilty world.
Listen, God would not be a loving God if he did not tell you that the bridge was out in front of you. God’s not like that construction worker who takes away the “Bridge Out” sign and then stands by and watches the cars go over the cliff. That’s not God. God puts up the sign and says, “Hey! The bridge on this road you’re on – it’s OUT! And you should deal with it before you get to the cliff.” Do you understand what I’m saying? That’s how much God loves us. He warns us, and so, receive that.
God would not be a loving God if he did not warn us of the justice that must come upon the enemies of hell and upon the sin of Man.
Revelation 15:2(a) (NLT)
2 I saw before me what seemed to be a glass sea mixed with fire . . .
We first saw this “Sea of Glass” back in Chapter 4, where we see the Rapture and the Church taken to Heaven. This Glass Sea is like a transparent pavement around the Throne of God, and here, the Sea of Glass is “mixed with fire,” an obvious reference to God’s judgment. And so, the Sea of Glass that surrounds the Throne of God is, in essence, on fire. And it’s an ominous sign. It’s a turning point sign.
Revelation 15:2(b) (NLT)
2. . . And on it (the sea of glass mixed with fire) stood all the people who had been victorious over the beast and his statue and the number representing his name. They were all holding harps that God had given them.
This group of Tribulation Saints standing on this Sea of Glass mingled with fire are those who have conquered The Beast and his image and his number. They have stood faithful to God in the midst of the fire of all of the devil’s attacks.
They chose eternal life with God over temporal life on this earth, and they are being rewarded for that choice right here.
They refused to worship the BEAST
They refused to worship his IMAGE
They refused to take his MARK
And it meant death on this earth for them.
But when it comes to life with God, what the world thinks is death is ultimately life, and what the world thinks is life is ultimately death. So, when it comes to life with God, what this world thinks is death is really eternal life. So, when a non-believer dies, everyone says they died. But when a Believer dies, then everyone says, “Their eternal life has started. They’re in the presence of the Lord. And eternity means time’s not passing. And for those of us who have received Christ, we’ll see them again.” It’s a Celebration of Life. But the world says, “Oh yeah. They died.” Again, what the world thinks is life, God says is death.
And there are those who say, “I’m going to party hard. You only live once! YOLO! Ha ha. Man, I’m living it to the extreme! I’m going to party as hard as I can.” NO! No! No! What you’re doing is dying. God says you’re dying. You’re on the bridge out road. And what you think is life is actually just the process of death. But it’s death for eternity.
The world thought taking the Mark and worshiping the Beast meant life. But Chapter 14 made it clear what the world thought was life was actually death (for eternity).
And those who seemed to be choosing death on this earth by NOT worshiping the Beast were actually choosing eternal life with God. That is the group we see here.
And there is a huge application for us here. Who we give our allegiance to here – either the world or Jesus Christ – determines whether we are choosing eternal life or eternal death.
That’s as simple as it gets. If we give our allegiance to the world and that YOLO lifestyle, and that fleshly seek after the things of the world, then we just need to come to grips with the fact that we’re going to spend eternity in what the Bible calls death. Eternal death. Separation from God. (It’s so important – especially in a message like this that I say that as gently as I can.)
Here’s the good news. If we give our allegiance to Jesus Christ here, even if it means death here (you can kill me, but you can’t take my life because I’m going to live forever), it means that we will live forever in eternity.
Who we choose to give our allegiance to here determines where we spend eternity.
So, the Saints who had conquered the Beast BY their faith in God are standing on a Sea of Glass mixed with fire.
And verse 2 says they’ve been given harps of God
and verse 3 says they are singing praises to God.
Revelation 15:3(a) (NLT)
3 And they were singing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb: . . .
The Song of Moses is the first Song of Deliverance in the Bible. Israel sang it just after the Exodus from Egypt. (Egypt always represents the world.) And so, the first time the People of God were led in Exodus out of the world, when they crossed the Red Sea, they sang the Song of Moses. God’s People were enslaved in Egypt, and that slavery was a picture of our slavery to the world. And their Exodus is a picture of God’s deliverance of his people from slavery to the world.
And these saints in the Tribulation have also made an Exodus from slavery to the world, and they’re singing the same song! In Revelation 15, the saints are singing the same song that was sung in Exodus 15, both in celebration of their Exodus from the world that God gave them.
Hear just a few verses from Exodus 15, The Song of Moses.
Exodus 15 (NLT)
1 . . . “I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously. . .
2 The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory. This is my God, and I will praise him . . .
11 “Who is like you among the gods, O Lord— glorious in holiness, awesome in splendor, performing great wonders?
13 “With your unfailing love you lead the people you have redeemed. In your might, you guide them to your sacred home.
This is a powerful song of deliverance for God’s People, sung at the first Exodus from the world in Egypt, and sung at the last Exodus from the world in the Tribulation.
And Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah Chapter 12 that when the Lord brought his people back to himself, this would be the song they’d sing. One of the primary reasons of the last half of the Tribulation (which is called the Time of Jacob’s Trouble – that’s when it gets really bad for Israel, for the Jewish people), and THE primary purpose (for Israel, it is) it’s to draw them to him through the trials and tribulations of the second half of the Tribulation because it’s bad. And then, when he shows up, they’re going to realize, “Oh. He is the Savior.” And they’re going to get saved.
God’s promises of justice and victory are steady, sure, and guaranteed from the days of the Pharaoh in Egypt to the days of the Antichrist in the Tribulation.
And these victorious saints are also singing The Song of the Lamb. Back in Revelation 5:9, the twenty-four Elders (representing the Church) sang a new song to the Lamb.
Revelation 5:9–10 (ESV)
9 . . . “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation,
10 and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”
That is the one place that people call The Song of The Lamb. But here are the lyrics of the song we know called “The Song of The Lamb.”
“You alone are holy, Lord God Almighty. Great and marvelous are Your works, You have delivered us. All the nations, Shall come and, Join in, The song of the Lamb. May the Lamb receive the reward of His suffering. Sarting with me. For the Lamb is worthy”
And those lyrics came from Revelation 15, verse 3.
Revelation 15:3(b)-4 (NLT)
3 . . . “Great and marvelous are your works, O Lord God, the Almighty. Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations.
4 Who will not fear you, Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous deeds have been revealed.”
This is a song of victory as God begins to pour out his final judgment on enemies of hell AND on the sin of the world. Please, believe me, you want to be on the right side of this song. You have to decide whether you are going to be standing on the Sea of Glass around the throne singing the Song of the Lamb, or am I going to be on the other side? And trust me, between now and Chapter 19, it gets beyond ugly.
Guys, we need to realize God’s justice and his final judgment are just as true as his grace and mercy.
And now, all of Heaven is going to come to attention in awe of what is about to happen. (This is how I see it. I see this ominous, solemn moment when all of Heaven is holding their breath – like a pin drop.)
Revelation 15:5 (NLT)
5 Then I looked and saw that the Temple in heaven, God’s Tabernacle, was thrown wide open.
This is as holy and powerful as it gets. John first wrote about this moment at the blowing of the seventh Trumpet in Chapter 11 because the seventh Trumpet brings on these final seven bowl judgments. John is seeing into the Holy of Holies, past the Holy Place, into the Holy of Holies, in the actual Temple that’s in Heaven that the Tabernacle and Temple on earth were patterns of. John is seeing into the Holy of Holies, where the Shekinah Glory of God dwells. So, Revelation 11, verse 19, is speaking of this same moment because the final judgments of God are about to be poured out.
Revelation 11:19 (NLT)
19 Then, in heaven, the Temple of God was opened and the Ark of his covenant could be seen inside the Temple. Lightning flashed, thunder crashed and roared, and there was an earthquake and a terrible hailstorm.
This is that moment, and it is a huge moment in Heaven.
Continuing in verse 6.
Revelation 15:6 (NLT)
6 The seven angels who were holding the seven plagues came out of the Temple. They were clothed in spotless white linen with gold sashes across their chests.
Out of the Holy of Holies, seven angels come – in spotless, white linen, representing God’s righteousness, and with golden sashes representing God’s deity. They come from the inner Presence of God, from the inner presence of the Temple, to begin the ultimate work of justice on earth.
And as Heaven is “standing at attention” in awe, we read this.
Revelation 15:7 (NLT)
7 Then one of the four living beings handed each of the seven angels a gold bowl filled with the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever.
Remember, this is the final seven bowl judgments. This is the final wrath of God, the final justice being brought on both the enemies of God and on the sin of the world.
We first met these four living creatures back in Chapter 4. They are unique heavenly beings created for worship around the Throne of God. They continually fly around, circling the throne, singing, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty. Who was, and is, and is to come.” These are very special worship (probably Cherubim and Seraphim). They’re specially designed for worship. Is one of these beings (who were created for worship around the throne of God) who gives to the seven angels the seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God.
This is obviously connecting worship to God’s justice. We can struggle with that. We may think, “I worship God when he gives me stuff.” (That’s the disease of the Western Church culture.) We don’t worship God when he gives us stuff. We worship God when we recognize who he IS. We worship God because of WHO he IS. And we worship God even in his justice and in him bringing justice. Not because we are worshiping him for those who are rightfully receiving his justice, but we’re worshiping him because we’ve escaped that justice, that judgment. Because we know that we deserve that judgment that is being poured out on those who have rejected it. And I know that sounds hard-core, but it is hard-core.
So, the worship being gives the seven angels the seven golden bowls. Heaven knows THIS is the beginning of the end.
The Final Justice of God
upon the Enemy of hell and
upon the sin of the world is about to be poured out.
The mills of God’s justice grind slowly – but ultimately, they grind exceedingly fine.
This is an ominous, powerful, and holy moment.
Revelation 15:8 (NLT)
8 The Temple was filled with smoke from God’s glory and power. No one could enter the Temple until the seven angels had completed pouring out the seven plagues.
The glory and power of God have filled the Temple in Heaven like smoke. There are only two other times that happened – at the spiritual inauguration of both the Tabernacle and the Temple on earth. All of Heaven is involved and watching.
The grinding mill of God’s justice – has reached the Day of Sentencing.
And the final day of God’s judgment on the powers of hell and on the sin of the world has begun.
A man may sit on death row for twenty years, but when the day of his execution finally comes, justice is swift and complete. And the Bible says this world is under a death sentence because God must judge sin, or he CANNOT be God.
But Jesus Christ has come to this “death row” we are living on, and he has offered a full and complete pardon to all who will receive it through faith in him.
But to those who reject it, to those who try to improve their time on death row instead of accepting the full pardon of Christ, to those – the final day of justice is ultimately coming.
Our sin must be judged by God, or God cannot be a holy and just God. And so, God, in his mercy and grace, has given us the choice either to have Jesus Christ take that judgment in our place through our faith in him OR for us to pay that entire judgment ourselves on the final day of God’s judgment that must come.
This is the beginning of the end in the Book of Revelation. Please don’t be so focused on trying to improve your condition on death row that you miss the free and complete pardon that Jesus Christ is offering you through faith in him. Allow Jesus to move you from death row to eternal life in Glory with him.