Key Verse:
Revelation 11:15 NKJV
15 Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!”
Not the final reckoning, but rather, the final reconciliation.
Selah
Where to begin?
Revelation 10:10-11 NKJV
10 Then I took the little book out of the angel’s hand and ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth. But when I had eaten it, my stomach became bitter. 11 And he said to me, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, tongues, and kings.”`
John was given a charge: Prophesy to the nations. Preach in the valley of dry bones; the Valley of the Shadow of Death. Preach the Gospel. Speak life!
The Lesson
Revelation 11:15 NKJV
Seventh Trumpet: The Kingdom Proclaimed
15 Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!”
The sounding of the seventh trumpet heralds a new beginning, a fresh start. Terrible have been the disasters that precede the sounding of the seventh trumpet. However, at the sound of the trumpet, all attention is focused toward Heaven. And nameless voices from Heaven declare the majesty of our God and of our Messiah. Those voices declare God victorious over all the principalities and governments and kingdoms of this world and that Hr, God has become ruler over all of them. Those same voices declare from eternity that His reign over all of earth’s kingdoms will be eternal. The grip of time and space has been overcome. All things will subsist in His presence.
Revelation 11:16 NKJV
16 And the twenty-four elders who sat before God on their thrones fell on their faces and worshiped God,
The four and twenty elders. Again we are looking at a multiple of twelve, in this case, two times twelve. As we discussed last week twelve represents God’s government in the earth. God’s government under God’s unction. The multiplier adds emphasis and encompasses the entirety of God’s plan unveiled. God birthed the promise of salvation through Abraham, to Issac, then to Jacob, through whom God raised a great nation; Israel. Through the twelve tribes of Israel, God preserved and then delivered His Word: His Son, the Messiah, Jesus. That accounts for the earthen vessel through which God revealed His Son. The second set of twelve is commonly believed to be representative of the twelve disciples, to whom was given the responsibility of spreading the good news, the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the whole earth. In earth, all of the Church are of the tribe of the one of the twelve, thirteen if you count Paul as an Apostle born out of due season, nonetheless, chief among the brethren.
So then, the twenty-four elders are representative of the entirety of God’s plan for mankind. He declared Himself to us through the nation of Israel and then through the institution of the Church as inspired by the precious Holy Spirit.
It is important to consider as well that the twenty-four elders are ELDERS. They will judge angels in eternity. This speaks to the holiness attached to their office. That they have thrones and crowns speaks to their royalty. So then, we see represented here a royal priesthood of God, with the prophetic insight provided by the Holy Spirit. In essence, this is another picture, or rather, depiction, or revelation of a Spirit-filled Church, led by God to victory before His very throne. It is here, before the throne that they prostrate themselves before our most Holy God and before our Messiah in worship. Eternal worship. Worthy is the Lamb!
Revelation 15:17 NKJV
17 saying:
“We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty,
The One who is and who was and who is to come,
Because You have taken Your great power and reigned.
This first stanza of the worship song of the elders provides a lesson for us today: Enter into God’s presence with adoration. Enter into His presence with praise. Anytime we are taking time out for devotion and worship, be reminded that you set aside that time for Him. In that time, give God all of your attention. All of it. Take time to thank Him. Take time to adore Him. Clear your mind and worship.
Revelation 15:18 NKJV
18
The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come,
And the time of the dead, that they should be judged,
And that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints,
And those who fear Your name, small and great,
And should destroy those who destroy the earth.”
Having spent quality time exclusively in worship, now it is time to bring your petitions to God. In the case of the elders, they have no petition, rather observations of God’s will and purpose coming to fruition in the earth. From our vantage point, it seems that great horror has been unleashed on the earth, but the elder’s proclamations reveal that ultimately, the enemies of God and of His creation will receive their just rewards. They also proclaim that the righteous: the prophets and the saints will receive their eternal reward. This is simply God taking the reigns of the entirety of His kingdom. He will be entirely within His rights to do so, and He will be entirely just in all of His judgments. Beloved, that’s good news. It was good news to the persecuted church to whom John was writing and it’s good news to us today. This is a picture of love, God’s love not ever failing. Amen.
Revelation 15:19 NKJV
19 Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail.
Then, at the close of this song, something quite wonderful: The temple of God is opened. Its opening is accompanied by excessive lightning and thunder, an earthquake, and great hail. But, most remarkable is the item within the temple, revealed at its opening: the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark of the Covenant is where the Mercy Seat of God abides. The Mercy Seat, where the Blood of the Lamb of God is poured, thus providing mercy for all of those who believe on His Name; the Name of Jesus.
In my hometown, Austin Texas, there is a place, Mt. Bonnell, where we used to go and watch the storms come in from the west down the Colorado River. From atop Mt. Bonnell, you could safely watch a storm come down the valley and on into the south part of Austin. You could watch the rain and the lightning, but normally you would only feel the mist on your face from the rain. It was a long climb, but worth it if you could catch a storm coming in.
Much like Mt. Bonnell, from atop the Holy Mt. Zion, whether there are lightnings, thunderings, earthquakes, or hail, from our vantage point, we will but be heavenly observers of the magnificence of God’s creation in all of its terrible wonder and glorious majesty. And in all of it, we too will find ourselves prostrate in rapturous worship before our God and our King, Jesus Christ. The Mercy Seat! Hallelujah! What a mighty God we serve!
Selah,
wb
Exodus 24:8-11 NKJV
8 And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, “This is the blood of the covenant which the Lord has made with you according to all these words.” 9 Then Moses went up, also Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, 10 and they saw the God of Israel. And there was under His feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and it was like the very[b] heavens in its clarity. 11 But on the nobles of the children of Israel He did not [c]lay His hand. So they saw God, and they ate and drank.
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