This is Living Waters of Grace, the teaching ministry of Clark
Wofford, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel of Westmoreland,
County of Greensburg, PA. Now here's Pastor Clark as he
continues teaching through God's Word.
We have become so focused on, and we need to be on sound
doctrine. We need to be focused on the
Scriptures and what they teach Sola scriptora that God does not
speak independently or in opposition to what is found in
the Word of God. But we can become so dogmatic in
our minds and so in a way have everything in a box about God
and how He works, that we don't allow ourselves or avail
ourselves to be open to what is called the manifest presence of
God. I remember I was babysitting
some kids one time and every little thing I did, they would
tell me I was wrong. It could be the words I was
saying or the way I was eating. It's because the way their
household functioned wasn't the same as how I was accustomed to,
and there was no grace involved. Today, Pastor Clark says
Christians can get so caught up in the rules of being a
Christian that sometimes we become legalistic.
There's grace in the gospel because of his love.
He sent his Son for you, even if you fail now.
Here's Pastor Clark in Revelation chapter 14 with
today's edition of Living Waters of Grace.
Revelation 14 verse one. Then I looked and behold, a lamb
standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 having his Father's
name written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven,
like the voice of many waters and like the voice of loud
Thunder. And I heard the sound of
harpists playing their harps. They sang, as it were, a new
song before the throne, before the four living creatures and
the elders, And no one could learn that song except the
144,000 who were redeemed from the earth.
What a picture, a lamb, the Lord Jesus Christ, capital L,
standing on Mount Zion and with him 144,000 on fire.
Jewish missionaries, Jewish believers who minister during
this terrible time of the great Tribulation.
And God has protected them in spite of what we learned last
week, the beast, the devil, the Antichrist, the false prophet.
And we see that these people are victorious.
They've been through the Tribulation and they haven't
been destroyed. They haven't been taken out.
God has spared them and protected them to do His will.
And Revelation 14 answers 2 specific questions that are
raised in Revelation 13 regarding this beast.
As it said in the seventh verse of chapter 13, it was granted to
Him to make war with the Saints and to overcome them, and
authority was given to Him over every tribe, tongue, and nation.
Well, the 144,000 represent the 12 tribes of the nation of
Israel, and it's obvious here they're standing physically on
this mountain with Christ Himself at the end of the
tribulation, victorious. So obviously the 144,000 were
not under his authority. And also what happens to this
beast and his followers? We'll look at that as we
continue through 14, but today we're just going to cover the
first 3 verses primarily. Why does he mention Mount Zion?
Well, Mount Zion is seen and described throughout the the
history of the Bible as the hills that surround the ancient
city of Jerusalem. And this is a place where Christ
will come and one day establish his Kingdom.
He'll come physically atop the Mount of Olives and stand and be
King of kings and Lord of Lords and reign forever on the face of
the earth. Isaiah 2423 says, Then the moon
will be disgraced and the sun is shamed.
For the Lord of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
and before his elders gloriously.
Joel chapter 2 verse 32 says, And it shall come to pass that
whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be
deliverance, as the Lord has said, among the remnant whom the
Lord calls. And then over there in Micah
chapter 4, verse one through 7, a tremendous prophetical
statement. Now it shall come to pass in the
latter days. At the mountain of the Lord's
house shall be established on top of the mountains, and shall
be exalted above the hills, and people shall flow to it.
Many nations shall come and say, Come, and let us go up to the
mountain of the Lord, to the House of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways, and we shall walk in his paths.
For out of Zion the law shall go forth, and the word of the Lord
from Jerusalem He shall judge between many peoples and rebuke
strong nations. Afar off they shall beat their
swords, and the ploughshares and the Spears and the pruning
hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword
against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.
But everyone shall sit under his vine and under his fig tree, and
no one shall make them afraid. For the mouth of the Lord of
hosts has spoken. For all people walk each in the
name of his God. But we will walk in the name of
the Lord our God forever and ever.
In that day, says the Lord, I will assemble the lame, I will
gather the outcast and those whom have afflicted.
I will make the lame a remnant and the outcasts a strong
nation. So the Lord will reign over them
in Mount Zion from now on, even forever.
This tremendous things to look forward to, isn't it?
I mean, it's tough as life seems to be at times in this world and
the struggles and the heartache that the human race goes
through. This is the future that the body
of Christ has to look forward to and all those who've believed on
the Lord God. I can't wait for that day.
I love this and Micah where it says that God will turn their
weapons and into plowshares and pruning hooks.
They won't have the desire or the interest in destroying human
race anymore. Christ will establish His
Kingdom and He'll roll with the iron hand.
And these folks have the privilege of on their foreheads,
the Father's name, written opposite of what we studied
about in 13, where the unbelievers and those who pay
homage to the Antichrist will have the mark of the beast on
their foreheads. So who are these people, this
special group of people, the 144,000?
You might have speculated yourself.
I believe it's the movement of Calvary Chapel.
Everybody else is in trouble without this kid.
A lot of people claim that they're the special group,
right? The Baptists, the Methodists,
the Lutherans, the Catholic, the Orthodox, Everybody has their
own little idea of what things would be like in the end.
That they'll be the special privilege room in heaven for
obviously those who belong to Calvary Chapel.
No, it's going to be the Father's name only.
No sectarianism, no denominationalism, no division.
That's the name of the Father on the forehead.
I can't wait for that John 17 This is Jesus prayer that they
all may be one as you Father are in me, and I in you, that they
also may be one in us, that the world may believe that you sent
me. So the name of God, even their
Father stamped on their forehead.
As I was studying that I thought about all flesh is grass and the
glory thereof fadeth away, right?
Every one of us, we have a season to live our lives and
then all of a sudden it's gone. All the great movements of God
throughout church history, all the great men and women of God
who we read about in history, they're no longer here, are
they? But the name of our God remains,
Amen. The name of our God remains
forever. And Jude, I love this.
How the apostle ends the citation of exhortations in the
book of Jude. Now unto him who is able to keep
you from stumbling. There's only one that can keep
you from stumbling and present you faultless before the
presence of his glory with exceeding joy.
To God our Savior, who alone is wise, Amen.
God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty,
dominion and power, both now and forever, Amen.
So John tells us about these experiences as he's given this
book by the power of the Holy Spirit to write these things
down. And you think about his
experiences and, and what he actually encountered is, is
quite fascinating to me. It says he heard a voice like
the voice of many waters, the voice of God, verse 2 of chapter
14, a voice of many waters. In chapter 1, verse 15, it says
John heard this, his voice is the sound of many waters.
Chapter 4, verse 5, it says, and from the throne proceeded
lightnings, thunderings and voices.
It says that there's sound of harpist playing.
I get a kick out of these people that say that there's no musical
instruments that are supposed to be in the church today.
You know, there's some groups who believe that everything's
Acapola. The Eastern Orthodox Church
teaches that, the Church of Christ teaches that.
But I, I don't know where they come up with this stuff because
in the throne room of heaven, there's instruments, there's
harps, there's music. You know, it's interesting how
people develop traditions of men.
I would say that make God's word of no effect.
But they're playing to accompany the worship singing of the
144,000. That's like, we're blessed here
to have our musicians accompany us as we sing praises to our
God. And it says they're going to
sing a new song. 144,000 people. Their feet are planted on Mount
Zion physically, yet their praise takes them right into the
presence of God. It says their voice is like many
waters, the voice of a loud Thunder.
They sang in verse 3 as it was a new song before the throne,
before the four living creatures and the elders.
Now, how in the world could they be before the throne and on the
earth at the same time? God does miraculous things when
our hearts are open to the work of the Holy Spirit.
How many of you here have experienced the presence of God
in the midst of worship here at Calvary?
OK, how does that happen? We're just not singing songs or
playing music. But this is for God to God about
God, and he desires us to worship him in spirit and truth
so he can see our hearts and sense our praise.
And as we worship him with lyrics that are biblical and
songs that are God honoring and God glorifying, God hangs out in
the midst of that kind of encounter with his people, and
he makes himself manifest. He makes himself real.
And so they're worshiping before the throne of God spiritually.
They're encountering God in a way that's supernatural, and
they're experiencing God in a way that is completely different
than what you would experience at AU2 concert or a Paul
McCartney concert, right? I mean, there's a whole
different dimension of reality in the midst of God's Spirit, in
the midst of his throne and his Kingdom.
And that's what I wanted to sort of segue into as I was thinking
about this kind of stuff on vacation, as well as preparing
for this message. If you flip over to Hebrews
chapter 10 for a minute, Hebrews 10/19, it says Therefore,
brethren, having boldness, tenor, enter the holiest by the
blood of Jesus, by a new living way which he consecrated for us
through the veil that is to his flesh and having a high priest
over the House of God. Let us draw near with a true
heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts
sprinkled from an evil conscience in our body washed
with pure water. So again, physically here, and
yet by invitation of God Himself, I'm allowed to enter
into the holy of holies and you are too.
I think what happens today in our modern Christian experiences
that we have become so focused on and we need to be on sound
doctrine. We need to be focused on the
Scriptures and what they teach sola scriptura that God does not
speak independently or in opposition to what is found in
the Word of God. But we can become so dogmatic in
our minds and so in a way have everything in a box about God
and how He works, that we don't allow ourselves or survey
ourselves to be open to what is called the manifest presence of
God. Christianity is designed by God
to be an encounter with God, not to be a religion.
Religion is dead. I'm not interested in religion.
I'm sure you aren't either. I'm interested in encounter, in
relationship. And God was speaking to me as I
was away this week. That Clark, you need to
encounter me in a deeper way. It's good that you know about
me. You know my word.
You can teach my word, you can speak about the things I've done
through history, you can proclaim the gospel, but I have
something so much more for you than just that.
And I wanted to cause you, as you're open to encounter me in
ways that perhaps you haven't experienced yet.
If you flip over to Hebrews chapter 4, same kind of idea
here verse 14. Seeing then we have a great high
priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of
God. Let us hold fast our confession,
for we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our
weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet
without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to
the throne of grace. Where is the throne of grace?
Sin? The heavenly Kingdom and it says
that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of
need. When's the last time you have
entered into that throne room of grace where you really realize,
hey, I'm in a completely different place than I usually
am on planet earth? God by His Spirit has compelled
me and allow the door to be open for me to enter into a realm and
a dimension. It is completely not normal, not
normal when I came to Christ 2020 years.
I'm making myself younger than I really am over, you know, about
40 years now I had a spiritual encounter with God that I I
can't to this day really articulate completely in in
vocabulary and I'm sure many of you have too.
But I all I know is that I woke up the next day after I repented
of my sins and I asked Christ to to save me and to help me that I
went from total darkness and confusion and insanity in my
mind. And the next day I had a peace
that passes understanding, human understanding.
I got up the next day and even the way I saw the world and the
way I saw people and the way I saw creation.
It was like the light was turned on.
It was bright. It was no no longer obscurity.
There was no longer a veil that was up to keep me outside the
reality of the God of creation, the God of heaven.
And I realized for the first time that I knew Him and that He
knew me and that I had a relationship with Him now that I
never had before. And down through the years, it's
ebbed and flowed as it has in all of our lives.
Sometimes it gets weaker, sometimes it gets stronger, but
I really believe in these days that we're living that God wants
the revelation of His Holy Spirit to become so much more
real and evident in all of our lives.
I have people I love and you guys in the church and people I
work with that I see go through tremendous adversity and
tribulation. I only can help them to a
certain extent, but I can't point to this door that enters
into a supernatural spiritual realm that, as the apostle says,
we can come boldly to this throne of grace that we may
obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Is anybody in the time of need here today?
Is anybody need the mercy of God and the grace of God?
We all do. So when's the last time you have
gotten on your face and said, Lord, I want this privilege,
this right, this inheritance to enter into your throne room and
experience this mercy and grace that you promised I can have in
my time of need. Now, if you're like me, lots of
times you read that. That's nice, that's cool, but
you don't avail yourself to it. We don't enter into that
promise. We don't enter into that reality
of what Christ is established for us now.
God is a spirit and he has no face.
His face is seen in the person, his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ,
God the Son. Without that we wouldn't be able
to comprehend it, the transcendence of God.
But the Holy Spirit is interesting person in the
Godhead because he also has no face.
Jesus describes him in John 3/3 as like the wind.
He blows in this direction, He goes in that direction.
You can't seem to catch him or figure out what he's going to do
next. But his whole purpose is to
glorify the sun and to reveal to us our sin and to cause us to
repent. The Holy Spirit is the one who
lives in us to give us Peace of Mind and tranquility and comfort
and hope and patience and love and self-control and humility.
That person who lives in US desires to live through us and
get us out of the way so that Christ can be seen through us.
But these experiences of the 144,000 I I can't imagine.
In some ways I can cause I've experienced it in some sense.
But this is a special occasion because all the songs that have
been written in in history about God, you think, well, you know,
why do I listen? You guys are saying how great
thou art or to God be the glory or how can it be this, this sing
those songs. That's good enough for me.
It says that God gave them a new song.
I'm interested to know what would be said in that song that
is so different than a lot of the songs we sing today.
But obviously it's important to God that there's a new song.
It's a kind of worship that I don't think anybody has ever
encountered in the history of Christianity.
This particular song and 144,000 are given the privilege to sing
this, and it says they're the only ones that can learn the
song at this particular point in time.
It says no one could learn that song except 144,000 who were
redeemed from the earth. A special opportunity for a
special group of people singing before the throne of God.
I know in my heart of hearts, guys, that my ability to do
anything on any given Sunday morning is impossible.
I've learned that through the ups and downs and the failures
and the struggles of my own ministry with people and trying
to help and to teach and to disciple, You know, I'm not the
Lord, but God in our midst is here to work in all of our lives
through His Word. And so he wants us to have a
hunger for righteousness. He says if you're hungering and
thirsting for righteousness, you will be filled.
And I think at times we leave church on Sunday and we're not
filled because we haven't hungered and thirsted for him,
him alone. And maybe the worship isn't what
you like it to be sometimes, or maybe the preaching or the
teaching sort of left you cold. But that's no excuse, right?
For your own heart hungering and thirsting for Him His
righteousness He promises you you will be filled so not one of
us can have an excuse when we gather as a body and every time
we gather as a body crisis in our midst, no matter how weak
and frail we are as his vessels that doesn't in invade the the
sovereign power of God to 0 in on every human heart that's here
on a given Sunday. But if I'm coming today and I'm
hungering and thirsting for God, which I am and I trust many you
are. I'm going to leave here filled
today, and it might not even be anything that I heard through my
own message or through worship. It's just going to be something
that God did where he transported me into his throne
room, into his presence in a way that I never maybe encountered
or experienced before. And throughout the course of the
Bible, you can see that many people experience these things
in different ways. Paul in Second Corinthians
chapter 12. This is what he says.
It is doubtless not profitable for me to boast.
I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord.
I know a man in Christ who 14 years ago, whether in the body I
do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know.
God knows. Such a one was caught up to the
3rd heaven and I know such a man, whether in the body or out
of the body I do not know. God knows how he was caught U
into paradise and heard inexpressible words which is not
lawful for man to utter. Do you think God can do that?
Well, obviously you can't. He did it for Paul.
He's done it for countless God, godly people throughout the
ages, where people heard God speak to them about going into
missions or going to be a pastor or going to be some kind of
servant of God in the ministry. They've heard specifically God's
voice to their hearts that this is my will for you.
Of such a one I will boast. Yet of myself I will not boast
except in my infirmities, my weakness.
For though I might desire to boast, I will not be a fool, for
I will speak the truth, but I will refrain unless anyone
should think of me above what he sees me to be, or hears from me,
unless I should be exalted above measure.
By the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the
flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me.
Isn't it interesting how God can even use the enemy to keep us
humble, lest I be exalted above measure concerning this thing, I
pleaded for the Lord three times that it might depart from me.
And he said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for my
strength is made perfect in weakness.
Therefore, most gladly I will rather boast of my infirmities,
that the power of Christ will rest upon me.
Thanks for being with us today here on Living Waters of Grace.
We are in the Book of Revelation, and we find it
fascinating how influential and involved the angels are in this
book. They bring about whatever it is
that God has instructed them to do, but it's through their
actions that much of the judgements come on the earth.
The angels are in submission to God as their authority, but He
utilizes them in unique ways throughout this book.
Like angels have a specific purpose from God, you have a
unique purpose and plan too. God wants to use you in your
life as a testimony to others and to bring others who are
currently lost into the fold of God.
God would love more than anything for all who are willing
to come to Him for salvation, but he wants it to be their
choice, not a forced situation. This is the way God works, not
forcing himself on anyone, but giving each person free will.
If you're interested in learning about this choice that's free
and that it's a gift, go to calvarychapelonline.com and
click on the About Us tab and then find the link for what we
believe. We'd love to be a help and a
resource for you as you walk through what it means to be a
follower of Jesus. If you find the contact tab on
our website, you can get in touch with us or submit a prayer
request. We'd love to hear from you.
That's all for today's edition and Revelation, but there's much
more that Pastor Clark plans to share with us from this
culminating book of the Bible. Stay tuned for that and make
sure to mention this radio program to others.
Invite them to tune into Grace FM 91.7 FM and they can stream
worldwide at Grace Radio dot FM. This has been living waters of
grace.