[Originally preached 11 January, 2004]
Revelation 16.15
Our text has the words of Jesus. And if truth be known, they really seem out of place. John is busy describing the coming battle and right in the middle of it, between the place where he describes who’s coming to the battle and the place where he describes the location of this battle we have these words of Jesus about His return. What an odd place to put them. And yet, as we’ll see, it is an appropriate place to put them. Our text uses some symbolism, but the message it contains is easily understood. Let’s take a look at it.
Let’s start with the words of blessing. The NKJV that I read to you has, ‘Blessed is he who watches…’ Now the ESV and the NASV have, ‘Blessed is the one who stays awake…’ What we have is a call to be watchful, to be alert. It is a warning against nodding off to sleep. It is a call to vigilance. Now, Jesus says something quite similar earlier in Revelation to the church at Sardis.
Here, you need to remember a key theme in the book of Revelation. It is the theme of warfare. It’s the Church against Satan and his agents, the beast, the false prophet and the prostitute, along with all those people who follow them. Revelation is about the war. Now, what does it mean if some Christians lose a battle? Are they taken as POWs until the end when prisoners are exchanged? No. And it’s not that Satan just kills them so that they can go to heaven. Losing a battle means becoming one of his followers. Losing a battle means becoming a traitor to the Gospel and fighting against the Church and her Lord. Losing a battle ultimately means being doomed to share Satan’s eternal fate. The church at Sardis was losing the battle. It was on the way to becoming one of Satan’s allies. The church at Sardis was becoming worldly. So, Jesus shouts to them, ‘Wake up! Wake up before it’s too late!’
Jesus’ words in our text have the same point. ‘Be watchful! Be vigilant! Stay awake lest you lose the battle, lest you become like the world that is attacking you.’ Jesus is warning His Church.
Now, how can you tell if you’re being vigilant? Remember now that being in danger of falling asleep isn’t something that is obvious. The church at Sardis seemed to be doing just fine when they were actually at the brink of death. How can you tell if you’re being alert in this battle? Here’s one thing to look at: your prayers. For one thing, a vigilant person prays. He has an active prayer life. The watchful person knows that there is a war on. He knows that there is danger out there. He knows of his need. And so he prays. He knows that the only weapons that will work in a war like this one are the weapons that only God can give. So, he prays.
But it’s not just that he spends time praying. Pagans also spend time praying. Some of them spend a lot of time praying. But you will see something important as you consider the content of an unbeliever’s prayers. He prays with himself and his concerns at the center. The focus of his prayers is about the people and things that are important to him. Some are more noble than others in this, but it pretty much boils down to the same thing. They are earthbound prayers. But the prayers of a vigilant Christian are different. It’s not that he avoids praying about himself or those close to him. But there is a difference in the goals and desires that lie behind his prayers. He understands that this universe is more about God than it is about him. He understands that what is of first importance is the honor of his God and not his own welfare. And so, his prayers focus on Jesus and His glory. His prayers include the worship of God. And even when he is praying about himself and those close to him, it’s always in the context of bringing honor to his God. One way of being able to tell if you’re being vigilant is by looking at your prayers.
Back to our text. Next is the symbol of the garments. What is this? There are some clues in the rest of Revelation. Listen to what Jesus said to the church at Laodicea.
This leaves the last bit of imagery of the text. Jesus tells us that He is coming like a thief. First of all, please understand from this the certainty of His coming. One day Jesus will return and all of us will be standing at His judgment seat. And on that day Jesus will separate the sheep from the goats. God forbid that any of you end up among the goats! Our text is reminding us of the fact that Jesus is coming back. You can bank on that. It goes on to tell us that His coming will be like that of a thief, sudden, unexpected. And so, any who tend to put off things until tomorrow need to be aware that they may not have tomorrow. So, if the Spirit is pointing out some area of your life that needs attention, if there is some aspect of being vigilant that needs improvement, don’t wait till tomorrow. Begin to work on it now. Jesus may come for us all tonight. Or He may just come for you tonight. Don’t assume that you have years of life left. People have died unexpectedly, in the prime of their lives.
Now, I have taken our text as a warning. But I need to say that it is an encouragement as well. It is an encouragement to those who are being vigilant. It is an encouragement to those saints who are striving to be watchful and alert. It is Jesus’ promise to those who do pray and who pray with God’s glory at the heart of those prayers. Sure, there is a lot of repenting that goes on in your life. You see your sins and lament that you have committed them. But that grief over sin is another sign of a living faith. And over the years you have seen fruit, change, growth. Jesus’ words are for you also. They are to encourage you in the midst of the warfare you face.
Consider the context. As I had pointed out, these words of Jesus are stuck in the middle of a paragraph about some huge battle. It seems an odd place to put them. But it’s the right place for them. We are engaged in a war that spans this globe and has been going on for thousands of years. Our text warns us of the time when this war will come to a climax. Satan will not go quietly. So, he gathers his hordes to attack the Church again, one last time. And those who think of this as some military action in the Middle East miss the point entirely. ‘We wrestle not against flesh and blood…’ As the war reaches that climax, being faithful will become more and more difficult. It will look bleak for the Church. And the questions will come. ‘Can we hold out? Can we remain faithful to Jesus? Or will we stumble and fall, overwhelmed by evil?’ And what is the answer of our text? ‘Behold, I am coming!’ Jesus shouts to His little lambs to encourage their faith in the face of the wolves. ‘You are not forgotten! The war is not lost! You will not be defeated! I am coming!’ Jesus will come to rescue His own. This is true of the very last battle of this hateful war. But it is also true of every other battle. There will be times when the outlook seems so bleak. It appears almost hopeless. Your strength to stand and hold to faithfulness will seem at its very end. It’s times like that when you need to remember the words of Moses to the Church of his day when things looked especially bleak.
Revelation 16.15
Our text has the words of Jesus. And if truth be known, they really seem out of place. John is busy describing the coming battle and right in the middle of it, between the place where he describes who’s coming to the battle and the place where he describes the location of this battle we have these words of Jesus about His return. What an odd place to put them. And yet, as we’ll see, it is an appropriate place to put them. Our text uses some symbolism, but the message it contains is easily understood. Let’s take a look at it.
Let’s start with the words of blessing. The NKJV that I read to you has, ‘Blessed is he who watches…’ Now the ESV and the NASV have, ‘Blessed is the one who stays awake…’ What we have is a call to be watchful, to be alert. It is a warning against nodding off to sleep. It is a call to vigilance. Now, Jesus says something quite similar earlier in Revelation to the church at Sardis.
I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you. Rev. 3:1-3Here, is a church that has fallen asleep. They were not vigilant. Jesus warns them that they are about to die. Now, their problem isn’t an obvious one. To all appearances they were doing fine. They had that reputation for being alive. But, as Jesus says, in actuality it’s quite the opposite.
Here, you need to remember a key theme in the book of Revelation. It is the theme of warfare. It’s the Church against Satan and his agents, the beast, the false prophet and the prostitute, along with all those people who follow them. Revelation is about the war. Now, what does it mean if some Christians lose a battle? Are they taken as POWs until the end when prisoners are exchanged? No. And it’s not that Satan just kills them so that they can go to heaven. Losing a battle means becoming one of his followers. Losing a battle means becoming a traitor to the Gospel and fighting against the Church and her Lord. Losing a battle ultimately means being doomed to share Satan’s eternal fate. The church at Sardis was losing the battle. It was on the way to becoming one of Satan’s allies. The church at Sardis was becoming worldly. So, Jesus shouts to them, ‘Wake up! Wake up before it’s too late!’
Jesus’ words in our text have the same point. ‘Be watchful! Be vigilant! Stay awake lest you lose the battle, lest you become like the world that is attacking you.’ Jesus is warning His Church.
Now, how can you tell if you’re being vigilant? Remember now that being in danger of falling asleep isn’t something that is obvious. The church at Sardis seemed to be doing just fine when they were actually at the brink of death. How can you tell if you’re being alert in this battle? Here’s one thing to look at: your prayers. For one thing, a vigilant person prays. He has an active prayer life. The watchful person knows that there is a war on. He knows that there is danger out there. He knows of his need. And so he prays. He knows that the only weapons that will work in a war like this one are the weapons that only God can give. So, he prays.
But it’s not just that he spends time praying. Pagans also spend time praying. Some of them spend a lot of time praying. But you will see something important as you consider the content of an unbeliever’s prayers. He prays with himself and his concerns at the center. The focus of his prayers is about the people and things that are important to him. Some are more noble than others in this, but it pretty much boils down to the same thing. They are earthbound prayers. But the prayers of a vigilant Christian are different. It’s not that he avoids praying about himself or those close to him. But there is a difference in the goals and desires that lie behind his prayers. He understands that this universe is more about God than it is about him. He understands that what is of first importance is the honor of his God and not his own welfare. And so, his prayers focus on Jesus and His glory. His prayers include the worship of God. And even when he is praying about himself and those close to him, it’s always in the context of bringing honor to his God. One way of being able to tell if you’re being vigilant is by looking at your prayers.
Back to our text. Next is the symbol of the garments. What is this? There are some clues in the rest of Revelation. Listen to what Jesus said to the church at Laodicea.
I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Rev. 3:18It’s the same kind of exhortation that we find in our text. And it helps us in understanding our text because it tells us that these garments are not something we create. They are received from Jesus. Now, again, we need to consider the Old Testament to fill in the gaps in our understanding of the symbols.
I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. Isaiah 61:10The garments of our text are the ‘garments of salvation’, garments received from the Savior. Jesus warns His Church lest any be caught naked, having lost these garments of salvation. Remember, the blessing is for the Christian who ‘keeps his garments’. Now, the question that many will raise at this point is this. ‘Does that mean that you can lose the garment of salvation? Can you lose your salvation?’ I’ve touched on this before, but it’s worth dealing with again. It’s a simplistic and selective understanding of Scripture that results in slogans like, ‘Once saved, always saved.’ And it is slogans like that one that lull people to sleep. It’s slogans like that one that lead people into thinking that they don’t have to be vigilant. It’s slogans like that one that result in people ending up in hell. The simple answer to this question is, ‘What does our text say? What is it that Jesus is warning about? What happens to those who aren’t alert and watchful?’ Our text is a warning and a call to vigilance. We cannot take it any other way. Does this mean that we reject the doctrines of election and God’s sovereignty? Absolutely not! But the important issue for us right now isn’t that we sort out how all of this fits together. The important issue now is that we take Jesus’ warning seriously. Those who are sloppy and fall asleep while the war with Satan and his hordes rages all around them will find that they will end up on the wrong side. They will lose their battle with evil and thus become evil. And all of their protests that they believed once upon a time will do them no good. The faith that saves is not some faith of the past. It is a faith that is very present. It is a living and growing faith. It is a vigilant faith. And it shows in things like the prayers that are offered up. We must take Jesus’ warning quite seriously or we shall share Satan’s fate.
This leaves the last bit of imagery of the text. Jesus tells us that He is coming like a thief. First of all, please understand from this the certainty of His coming. One day Jesus will return and all of us will be standing at His judgment seat. And on that day Jesus will separate the sheep from the goats. God forbid that any of you end up among the goats! Our text is reminding us of the fact that Jesus is coming back. You can bank on that. It goes on to tell us that His coming will be like that of a thief, sudden, unexpected. And so, any who tend to put off things until tomorrow need to be aware that they may not have tomorrow. So, if the Spirit is pointing out some area of your life that needs attention, if there is some aspect of being vigilant that needs improvement, don’t wait till tomorrow. Begin to work on it now. Jesus may come for us all tonight. Or He may just come for you tonight. Don’t assume that you have years of life left. People have died unexpectedly, in the prime of their lives.
Now, I have taken our text as a warning. But I need to say that it is an encouragement as well. It is an encouragement to those who are being vigilant. It is an encouragement to those saints who are striving to be watchful and alert. It is Jesus’ promise to those who do pray and who pray with God’s glory at the heart of those prayers. Sure, there is a lot of repenting that goes on in your life. You see your sins and lament that you have committed them. But that grief over sin is another sign of a living faith. And over the years you have seen fruit, change, growth. Jesus’ words are for you also. They are to encourage you in the midst of the warfare you face.
Consider the context. As I had pointed out, these words of Jesus are stuck in the middle of a paragraph about some huge battle. It seems an odd place to put them. But it’s the right place for them. We are engaged in a war that spans this globe and has been going on for thousands of years. Our text warns us of the time when this war will come to a climax. Satan will not go quietly. So, he gathers his hordes to attack the Church again, one last time. And those who think of this as some military action in the Middle East miss the point entirely. ‘We wrestle not against flesh and blood…’ As the war reaches that climax, being faithful will become more and more difficult. It will look bleak for the Church. And the questions will come. ‘Can we hold out? Can we remain faithful to Jesus? Or will we stumble and fall, overwhelmed by evil?’ And what is the answer of our text? ‘Behold, I am coming!’ Jesus shouts to His little lambs to encourage their faith in the face of the wolves. ‘You are not forgotten! The war is not lost! You will not be defeated! I am coming!’ Jesus will come to rescue His own. This is true of the very last battle of this hateful war. But it is also true of every other battle. There will be times when the outlook seems so bleak. It appears almost hopeless. Your strength to stand and hold to faithfulness will seem at its very end. It’s times like that when you need to remember the words of Moses to the Church of his day when things looked especially bleak.
Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent. Exodus 14:13-14As you look back through the history of the Church from that fateful day of Adam’s sin down to today, the odds have always been against us. It’s always been the disorganized rabble of Israel against the trained armies of mighty Egypt or little David against the giant Goliath, or seven tiny churches against an empire. Our hope is not to become like they are, organized, strong and cunning. Our hope has always been to wait quietly and faithfully for Jesus to come and act. And though at times it seems especially bleak, His timing is always perfect. Our text is to encourage the faithful to continue on vigilantly. You are not forgotten. And when it gets especially hard remember the promise of our text. ‘Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake.’
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