November 18, 2014
WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?
Revelation 15
Noah Brown
Central Truth
The purpose of God's wrath is to reveal His righteousness. It's not because He's mad at us and has a need to be vindicated. Quite the opposite. He wants all to repent, but He won't allow evil to run amok forever.
Key Verse | Revelation 15:4
"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."
(Revelation 15:4)
Revelation 15
The Seven Angels with Seven Plagues
1 Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished.
2 And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. 3 And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
“Great and amazing are your deeds,
O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
O King of the nations!
1
15:3
Some manuscripts the ages
4
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.”
5 After this I looked, and the sanctuary of the tent 2 15:5 Or tabernacle of witness in heaven was opened, 6 and out of the sanctuary came the seven angels with the seven plagues, clothed in pure, bright linen, with golden sashes around their chests. 7 And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever, 8 and the sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.
Dive Deeper | Revelation 15
Have you ever been pulled over for speeding? Were you angry that the officer was doing his job and upholding the law? Were you indignant that YOU were the one who got caught? (Full disclosure: I would answer those "Yes, Yes, and Yes.")
Why is that? Why do we get so mad when we get caught, even when we know we're clearly wrong?
God's wrath is hard for me to understand. Honestly, I don't even really like to think about it. As a sinner, I tend to respond the same way I would to a cop giving me a ticket. "What's the big deal? Everybody does that sometimes. Gimme a break!"
Up until now in Revelation, we've seen some pretty heavy stuff, and it's about to get way worse. But before we get there, God reveals to John (and us) a glimpse of His saints in heaven praising Him for His righteousness.
At first, it can feel like an intermission between the first and second acts. Get up, stretch your legs; okay, back to the mayhem. But what if it's actually THE point of the whole show?
The purpose of God's wrath is to show us His righteousness, but as sinners, we get so caught up in what we consider justice -- namely, what feels right to us. Ever since Eden, when we ate the forbidden fruit, we have been hopelessly trying to define righteousness ourselves. And how's that working out?
Only when we see the ultimate penalty for wickedness -- chaos and death -- are we able to agree with God's definition of righteousness and repent. In His mercy, He reveals to us that the pain and destruction we've stored up for ourselves is going to catch up to us.
God's wrath shows us that sin DOES have consequences, and it's only through the cross of Christ that we can escape destruction! Proverbs 29:1 (NASB) says, "A man who hardens his neck after much reproof will suddenly be broken beyond remedy." The moral is this: don't be that guy.
Discussion Questions
1. Have you ever been caught for doing something wrong? How did you respond? If you could go back and change things, would you not do what you did, or would you not get caught?
2. How much of God's wrath are you feeling in your life right now? What do you think He is trying to communicate through it?
3. Paul, speaking to the Christians in Ephesus, says we were all once "children of wrath," but now God has shown us "the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 2:3, 7). Spend a few minutes reflecting on what your life used to be like and thanking Jesus for His grace. If you are not a Christian, reach out to your local church or a Christian friend and tell them you want to hear the good news!