Revelation 15

It is good to be reminded that what we have recorded in this last book of the Bible are the signs in heaven that the Apostle John himself saw. The man who was the disciple that Jesus loved, the young follower to whom Jesus entrusted His mother as He was dying on the cross, the faithful proponent of Christian love who gave us the gospel account that bears his name, this man who was sent into exile on the Island of Patmos because of the Word that he preached, this John saw all these things. If we would not ignore the letters of Paul, we should not think it wise to ignore the great and amazing visions of John. They are reliable, and we need to take them in.

Many of these signs, including those in Revelation 14, impress upon us the fact of the divine judgment that is coming upon the earth. Notice that the plagues that come down upon the earth are in the hands of angels sent from heaven on a mission from above. The wrath that they bring is not the wrath of the dragon, but the wrath of God, who is bringing His anger to a culminating display of divine justice against the Lord's enemies. No one has a right to accuse the Lord concerning these events. He is right to be angry about the sinful rebellion of mankind, and He warned us for many centuries that He would one day bring a Day of Judgment against the earth.

It is perverse for sinful men to think that we have the right or ability to enter into judgment against the Almighty. He is the ultimate Law-Giver. He is in heaven, and He does what pleases Him. Far from thinking that we have the wisdom and knowledge to critique the Lord, we should listen to the chorus of the redeemed in heaven who extol the Lord.

Those who have resisted the devil and the beast on earth, those who would not worship the world but who loved to call on the Name of the Lord, they are there around the shore of the sea of glass mingled with fire in John's vision. They are engaged there in extolling the most worthy Recipient of all our love and admiration.

They have conquered the beast. This is an amazing statement since some of these worshipers have lost their lives on earth at the hands of ungodly oppressors. They were involved in a struggle that ended in their death. Everyone thought that the beast won, just like it looked in the struggle between the priestly faction and Jesus. He was the one who ended up on the cross. Yet He won. He conquered. Martyrs who have followed the Lord have seemed to be the losers in their earthly struggles. But all who live and die in the faith of Jesus are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

Now they sing on high the Song of Moses, the Old Covenant mediator, and the Song of the Lamb, Jesus of Nazareth, the New Covenant Mediator. These are not two different songs, but one, since the message of the Law has been fulfilled in the Prophet, Priest, and King about whom Moses testified. The Lamb of God has come, and the saints in heaven are singing to Him and to the Father.

“Great and amazing are your deeds,
O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
O King of the nations!
Who will not fear, O Lord,
and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations will come
and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

The Son of God is the Lord. He is the Almighty One. He has all of the justice and truth of His Father. And now He has become the King of the nations. We do not yet see all things in submission to Him, but His Name is to be feared and glorified together with the Name of the Father. He has completed all of the righteousness required under the Law, and now as the risen Lord of heaven and earth, all nations shall worship Him.

Even today, we really do know that is a great joy to praise the Lord! Some people who truly do believe, may yet have trouble feeling the joy of worship the way that others within the family of faith do. That's alright. We don't live on our feelings. Surely we all know that God is worthy. But when we get to heaven, we will all feel it and know it in the fullness of joy and truth that is the very air of that place.

A prominent element of heavenly truth is that the judgment of God Almighty is coming out of heaven and is descending upon the earth. This final devastation of the seven golden bowls proceeds from the very center of the glorious community of worship above, coming out of the heavenly sanctuary in the hands of seven angels bringing the fullness of seven plagues upon the earth.

God is in the midst of the judgment of the earth. As hard as it is for us to fathom today, this is a matter of God's glory and character. He does not run away from it, though He is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He is so very present in His heavenly sanctuary as these angels are sent forth, that His glory and power are overwhelming in that place.

This same glory and power also came against our Savior on the cross when He died for us. How can we cheer about that? The Innocent One suffered for sinners. Yet we do boast in the cross, and now alongside of the glory of God's justice, we have come to know the glory of His mercy and grace, and we are moved to praise Him even now, as we see in these words what John once saw with his very eyes. Believe in the testimony of God, and rejoice in the Lord always.