1 00:00:03,840 --> 00:00:08,119 This is Living Waters of Grace, the teaching ministry of Clark 2 00:00:08,119 --> 00:00:12,240 Wofford, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel of Westmoreland, 3 00:00:12,240 --> 00:00:16,400 County of Greensburg, PA. Now here's Pastor Clark as he 4 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:18,720 continues teaching through God's Word. 5 00:00:37,080 --> 00:00:41,120 Christ sees everything and everyone, everyone of us today 6 00:00:41,120 --> 00:00:44,440 are manifest before his throne. If you flip over to Hebrews 7 00:00:44,440 --> 00:00:48,320 chapter 4, you know there's a lack of of the fear of God in 8 00:00:48,320 --> 00:00:51,640 our day that we live. Men love darkness rather than 9 00:00:51,640 --> 00:00:53,520 life because their deeds are evil. 10 00:00:54,320 --> 00:00:57,000 Many times we think we can get away with certain types of 11 00:00:57,000 --> 00:01:00,640 behavior and actions and no one sees it. 12 00:01:00,640 --> 00:01:04,560 Well, no human as far as us, flesh and blood might be seeing 13 00:01:05,040 --> 00:01:07,320 what's going on, but God sees everything. 14 00:01:07,680 --> 00:01:10,480 Growing up, I was told that my mother had eyes in the back of 15 00:01:10,480 --> 00:01:13,320 her head. While I eventually discovered 16 00:01:13,320 --> 00:01:18,120 that to be false, she did manage to know or discover a surprising 17 00:01:18,120 --> 00:01:21,680 amount of information. As informed as my mother was 18 00:01:21,680 --> 00:01:26,680 about my whereabouts, Christ truly does see and know all that 19 00:01:26,680 --> 00:01:29,640 happens. God is omniscient or all 20 00:01:29,640 --> 00:01:33,760 knowing, and He sees everything. In today's message, Pastor Clark 21 00:01:33,760 --> 00:01:37,760 discusses how we can take comfort in confession knowing 22 00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:40,040 that we have nothing to hide from God. 23 00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:44,120 Now here's Pastor Clark in the Book of Revelation chapter one 24 00:01:44,120 --> 00:01:47,360 with today's edition of Living Waters of Grace. 25 00:01:47,760 --> 00:01:51,320 I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and 26 00:01:51,320 --> 00:01:55,480 Kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that 27 00:01:55,480 --> 00:01:59,320 is called Pathmos, for the Word of God and for the testimony of 28 00:01:59,320 --> 00:02:02,200 Jesus Christ. For I was in the Spirit on the 29 00:02:02,200 --> 00:02:06,720 Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice as of a trumpet, 30 00:02:06,960 --> 00:02:10,160 saying, I am the Alpha and Omega, the 1st and the last. 31 00:02:10,800 --> 00:02:14,000 And what you see, write in a book and send it to the seven 32 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:17,640 churches which are in Asia, to Ephesus, to Smyrna, the 33 00:02:17,640 --> 00:02:20,800 Pergamus, to Thyrotyra, to Sardis, to Philadelphia and to 34 00:02:20,800 --> 00:02:23,840 Laodicea. Then I turned to see the voices 35 00:02:23,840 --> 00:02:26,960 that spoke with me, and having turned, I saw 7 golden 36 00:02:26,960 --> 00:02:30,960 lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands one like 37 00:02:30,960 --> 00:02:35,040 the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet, and 38 00:02:35,040 --> 00:02:37,480 girded about the chest with a golden band. 39 00:02:37,800 --> 00:02:41,760 His head and hair were like wool, white as wool, as white as 40 00:02:41,760 --> 00:02:44,120 snow. His eyes were like a flame of 41 00:02:44,120 --> 00:02:47,920 fire, his feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a 42 00:02:47,920 --> 00:02:51,120 furnace, and his voice as a sound of many waters. 43 00:02:51,680 --> 00:02:53,960 He had in his right hand seven stars. 44 00:02:53,960 --> 00:02:57,960 Out of his mouth went a sharp 2 edged sword, and his countenance 45 00:02:57,960 --> 00:02:59,960 was like the sun shining in its strength. 46 00:03:00,320 --> 00:03:03,000 And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. 47 00:03:03,520 --> 00:03:06,480 But he laid his right hand on me, saying to me, Do not be 48 00:03:06,480 --> 00:03:09,160 afraid, I am the 1st and the last. 49 00:03:09,480 --> 00:03:13,280 I am he who lives and was dead, and behold, I am alive for 50 00:03:13,280 --> 00:03:14,120 evermore. Amen. 51 00:03:14,120 --> 00:03:17,080 And I have the keys of Hades and of death. 52 00:03:17,520 --> 00:03:21,320 Write the things which you have seen, the things which are, and 53 00:03:21,320 --> 00:03:23,480 the things which will take place after this. 54 00:03:24,040 --> 00:03:27,160 The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in my right hand, 55 00:03:27,560 --> 00:03:32,200 and the seven golden lampstands. The seven stars are the angels 56 00:03:32,200 --> 00:03:36,680 of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands which you saw 57 00:03:36,840 --> 00:03:39,760 are the seven churches. John is continually teaching us 58 00:03:39,760 --> 00:03:42,920 through this book that he's encountering the Lord Jesus 59 00:03:42,920 --> 00:03:46,840 Christ himself personally and individually, and he's actually 60 00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:50,600 hearing Christ speak to him. It must have been a wonderful 61 00:03:50,600 --> 00:03:54,080 experience for the apostle John because it's been about 60 years 62 00:03:54,080 --> 00:03:57,800 since he had the privilege of hearing Christ's voice speak to 63 00:03:57,800 --> 00:04:00,400 him personally. It's been approximately 60 years 64 00:04:00,400 --> 00:04:03,160 since Christ has ascended. And you remember John, the 65 00:04:03,160 --> 00:04:07,640 beloved apostle, He was the one that laid his head on the chest, 66 00:04:07,640 --> 00:04:10,440 the breast of Jesus. He was called the beloved 67 00:04:10,560 --> 00:04:12,720 disciple. So he had a tremendous 68 00:04:12,720 --> 00:04:15,640 relationship with the Lord. Very, very intimate, very, very 69 00:04:15,640 --> 00:04:18,360 close. And to be able to hear, you 70 00:04:18,360 --> 00:04:22,000 know, when you read the word, sometimes we receive what God 71 00:04:22,079 --> 00:04:24,120 feels is necessary. But there's a lot of things in 72 00:04:24,120 --> 00:04:26,720 between the lines. The Bible says if everything was 73 00:04:26,720 --> 00:04:29,160 recorded of what Jesus both didn't do, there wouldn't be 74 00:04:29,160 --> 00:04:32,200 enough books in the whole world to to contain everything. 75 00:04:32,440 --> 00:04:35,960 But I would think that John was pretty excited to hear that 76 00:04:35,960 --> 00:04:39,680 voice that he remembered hearing when Jesus was on earth and when 77 00:04:39,680 --> 00:04:42,800 he was discipling John and showing him the way. 78 00:04:43,080 --> 00:04:47,480 So John is going to do exactly what the Lord has instructed him 79 00:04:47,480 --> 00:04:49,960 to do. He's going to write these things 80 00:04:49,960 --> 00:04:53,040 and send this message to the seven churches. 81 00:04:53,280 --> 00:04:56,720 Now, as we see in verse 12, it says he, he turns to see the 82 00:04:56,720 --> 00:05:00,280 voice that spoke with me and he, he begins to have these visions 83 00:05:00,280 --> 00:05:04,960 of various objects, the vision that he had. 84 00:05:04,960 --> 00:05:08,120 I, I, I don't know exactly how that came about. 85 00:05:08,120 --> 00:05:13,120 Was it a, a dream type state? Was it some form of ecstasy that 86 00:05:13,120 --> 00:05:15,880 he was experiencing? Was he just having some kind of 87 00:05:15,880 --> 00:05:19,560 thoughts in his mind of, of what the spirit was revealing to him 88 00:05:19,560 --> 00:05:22,120 or whatever it was that was occurring? 89 00:05:22,120 --> 00:05:26,360 It was very, very transcendent of, of this world and how the 90 00:05:26,880 --> 00:05:29,200 earth communicates to the human heart. 91 00:05:29,560 --> 00:05:33,200 This is God communicating in ways that only he can 92 00:05:33,240 --> 00:05:36,440 communicate. And so he's manifesting truth 93 00:05:36,440 --> 00:05:39,440 through various symbols here. He, he says in verse 12, he 94 00:05:39,440 --> 00:05:44,080 refers to these lampstands. And these lampstands, as we see 95 00:05:44,080 --> 00:05:46,880 in verse 20, they, they represent the seven churches. 96 00:05:46,880 --> 00:05:49,480 And the church is supposed to be a light in the world. 97 00:05:49,640 --> 00:05:54,720 Whenever the church is no longer manifesting light in the midst 98 00:05:54,720 --> 00:05:57,240 of darkness, the church has lost its purpose. 99 00:05:57,560 --> 00:06:00,560 Christ is always the centerpiece of the church. 100 00:06:00,920 --> 00:06:04,640 Christ's in our midst. And it's his light today that 101 00:06:04,640 --> 00:06:08,480 illumines every heart that is here through the teaching of his 102 00:06:08,480 --> 00:06:10,440 Word. That's the way he's established 103 00:06:10,440 --> 00:06:16,280 his truth to be manifest and this vision that John gets very, 104 00:06:16,280 --> 00:06:20,640 very profound vision is is amazing in a sense of how it 105 00:06:20,960 --> 00:06:24,000 similar similarity in Daniel Chapter 7. 106 00:06:24,000 --> 00:06:25,400 If you flip over there for a minute. 107 00:06:25,720 --> 00:06:30,200 Daniel is a another amazing book because it it parallels what we 108 00:06:30,520 --> 00:06:35,480 what we read in Revelation and almost verbatim here some of the 109 00:06:35,480 --> 00:06:40,960 words and concepts that John used or also used by Daniel and 110 00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:45,560 Chapter 7 verse 9. It says I watched till Thrones 111 00:06:45,560 --> 00:06:49,120 were put in place and the Ancient of Days was seated. 112 00:06:49,520 --> 00:06:53,760 His garment was white as snow. The hair of his head was like 113 00:06:53,760 --> 00:06:56,960 pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, 114 00:06:56,960 --> 00:07:02,840 its wheels a burning fire. A fiery stream issued came forth 115 00:07:02,840 --> 00:07:08,520 from before him. 1000 thousands ministered to him. 10,000 * 116 00:07:08,520 --> 00:07:12,560 10,000 stood before him. The court was seated and the 117 00:07:12,560 --> 00:07:14,680 books were opened. I watched them because of the 118 00:07:14,680 --> 00:07:18,040 sound of the pompous words which the horn was speaking. 119 00:07:18,640 --> 00:07:21,800 I watched till the beast was slain and its body destroyed and 120 00:07:21,800 --> 00:07:25,120 given to the burning flame as the rest of the beast. 121 00:07:25,120 --> 00:07:28,400 They had their dominion taken away, yet their lives were 122 00:07:28,400 --> 00:07:31,920 prolonged for a season and time. I was watching in the night 123 00:07:31,920 --> 00:07:36,200 visions, and behold one like the Son of Man coming with clouds of 124 00:07:36,200 --> 00:07:40,360 heaven, He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought him 125 00:07:40,360 --> 00:07:42,960 near before him. And then to him was given 126 00:07:42,960 --> 00:07:46,240 dominion and glory, and a Kingdom that all peoples, 127 00:07:46,240 --> 00:07:48,360 nations, and languages should serve him. 128 00:07:48,720 --> 00:07:52,240 His dominion is an everlasting dominion which shall not pass 129 00:07:52,240 --> 00:07:56,400 away, and His Kingdom, the one which shall not be destroyed. 130 00:07:56,680 --> 00:08:00,840 So amazing that the parallels prophetically that are given 131 00:08:00,840 --> 00:08:04,240 from Daniel himself, given to Daniel himself, just like they 132 00:08:04,240 --> 00:08:08,400 were given to the apostle John in the Book of Revelation. 133 00:08:08,680 --> 00:08:13,720 So we see the garments that Christ is wearing, verse 13, 134 00:08:14,240 --> 00:08:15,960 They're they're priestly garments. 135 00:08:16,920 --> 00:08:19,880 We don't wear those kind of things in our church tradition. 136 00:08:19,880 --> 00:08:23,680 Our our priestly garments are blue jeans and sweaters and 137 00:08:23,680 --> 00:08:26,840 T-shirts, you know, but there was such a majesty in the Old 138 00:08:26,840 --> 00:08:30,080 Testament in regard to how God was worshipped in the midst of 139 00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:33,760 the temple with the priest. The robes weren't worn to draw 140 00:08:33,760 --> 00:08:37,720 attention to human beings. They were warned to represent 141 00:08:37,919 --> 00:08:42,039 and a type pictorially what the glory of heaven is like and the 142 00:08:42,039 --> 00:08:44,520 beauty of heaven and the symbolism. 143 00:08:44,760 --> 00:08:46,720 Sometime we have a chance. We'll, we'll look at those 144 00:08:46,720 --> 00:08:49,000 things in more detail. But they're marvelous. 145 00:08:49,000 --> 00:08:52,240 Some churches, they actually still use a vestments, they call 146 00:08:52,240 --> 00:08:55,480 them or priestly robes. And unfortunately, for the most 147 00:08:55,480 --> 00:08:58,480 part, it's become to say a tradition and the the people 148 00:08:58,480 --> 00:09:01,440 really don't even understand the purpose of why the people would 149 00:09:01,440 --> 00:09:04,120 wear these things. It's been this loss with the 150 00:09:04,120 --> 00:09:06,880 deadness of of modern day religion. 151 00:09:07,320 --> 00:09:10,920 But it refers to these garments as being one who would also be 152 00:09:10,920 --> 00:09:15,880 represented as the judge of all men and the King of kings and 153 00:09:15,880 --> 00:09:18,760 Lord of Lords. In verse 14, it says his head 154 00:09:18,760 --> 00:09:22,160 and his hair were like white wool, as white as snow. 155 00:09:22,560 --> 00:09:29,640 And the white hair represents the eternality of the ages that 156 00:09:29,640 --> 00:09:32,760 Christ is and was and always has been. 157 00:09:32,760 --> 00:09:34,760 There is no beginning and no end. 158 00:09:34,760 --> 00:09:38,600 He is the Ancient of Days as it says in both Daniel and 159 00:09:38,600 --> 00:09:42,360 Revelation and verse 14, it refers to his eyes. 160 00:09:42,360 --> 00:09:44,360 His eyes are like a flame of fire. 161 00:09:45,080 --> 00:09:49,000 Christ sees everything and everyone, everyone of us today 162 00:09:49,000 --> 00:09:52,280 are manifest before His throne. If you flip over to Hebrews 163 00:09:52,280 --> 00:09:56,080 chapter 4, you know there's a lack of of the fear of God in 164 00:09:56,080 --> 00:09:59,320 our day that we live. Men love darkness rather than 165 00:09:59,320 --> 00:10:01,200 life because their deeds are evil. 166 00:10:01,960 --> 00:10:04,560 Many times we think we can get away with certain types of 167 00:10:04,560 --> 00:10:08,160 behavior and actions and no one sees it. 168 00:10:08,160 --> 00:10:11,960 Well, no human as far as us, flesh and blood might be seeing 169 00:10:12,400 --> 00:10:14,760 what's going on, but God sees everything. 170 00:10:15,520 --> 00:10:20,840 Everything we do, everything we think God is aware of, and it 171 00:10:20,840 --> 00:10:23,080 tells us. In Hebrews 412, the Word of God 172 00:10:23,080 --> 00:10:26,880 is living and powerful and sharper than any 2 edged sword. 173 00:10:26,880 --> 00:10:30,560 It's able to Pierce even to the division of soul and spirit, of 174 00:10:30,560 --> 00:10:33,240 joints and marrow. As a discerner of the thoughts 175 00:10:33,240 --> 00:10:36,520 and intents of the heart, I think of that sword as it goes 176 00:10:36,520 --> 00:10:38,920 into our hearts this morning, as the Word is being preached. 177 00:10:39,280 --> 00:10:41,440 There's nothing. It's hidden here and on any of 178 00:10:41,440 --> 00:10:44,080 our hearts. And if we think we're hiding 179 00:10:44,080 --> 00:10:47,120 something, if we're not revealing it before the face of 180 00:10:47,120 --> 00:10:51,480 God and repenting of it, God will dig away until you're real 181 00:10:51,480 --> 00:10:56,240 aware that He's exposing you. Now the Bible tells us that if 182 00:10:56,240 --> 00:10:59,480 we repent of our sins, the Lord covers our sins. 183 00:11:00,240 --> 00:11:04,680 But if we try to hide our sins, God will eventually expose them 184 00:11:04,680 --> 00:11:08,320 and make them evident. It says in verse 13 there is no 185 00:11:08,320 --> 00:11:12,240 creature hidden from his sight, but all things are naked and 186 00:11:12,240 --> 00:11:16,360 open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give an account. 187 00:11:16,880 --> 00:11:19,720 Every one of us one day will stand before the Lord and give 188 00:11:19,720 --> 00:11:22,960 an account of our lives for the things we've done in our body, 189 00:11:22,960 --> 00:11:27,280 whether they be good or evil. The Bible tells us a fearful 190 00:11:27,280 --> 00:11:30,000 thing in Hebrews to fall into the hands of the living God. 191 00:11:30,520 --> 00:11:34,880 That's why I urgently implore you each week, as well as 192 00:11:34,880 --> 00:11:39,120 myself, that we must repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at 193 00:11:39,120 --> 00:11:41,720 hand. I don't know when I'm going to 194 00:11:41,720 --> 00:11:43,120 leave this world. Neither do you. 195 00:11:43,120 --> 00:11:46,160 But when I leave, I want to be leaving in a state of 196 00:11:46,160 --> 00:11:49,200 repentance. I think of the years that the 197 00:11:49,200 --> 00:11:50,880 Lord gives us to live on this earth. 198 00:11:51,240 --> 00:11:55,880 Some of us have longer years than others, but as a fallen 199 00:11:55,880 --> 00:12:01,360 human being, and these days in my own life, I want to repent 200 00:12:01,360 --> 00:12:05,880 even more for the things I've done in my life, but also for 201 00:12:05,880 --> 00:12:10,520 the things that I still do. The things I think at times, the 202 00:12:10,520 --> 00:12:14,200 attitudes, the judgments, the criticisms, all the things that 203 00:12:14,200 --> 00:12:16,560 our human heart is capable of manifesting. 204 00:12:16,560 --> 00:12:19,720 I want to be able to see those things as they occur in my 205 00:12:19,720 --> 00:12:21,800 heart. I want the Lord to search my 206 00:12:21,800 --> 00:12:24,280 heart. I want him to try my thoughts. 207 00:12:24,480 --> 00:12:27,520 I want him to see the wicked ways in me and reveal them to me 208 00:12:27,720 --> 00:12:29,240 and lead me in the way everlasting. 209 00:12:29,240 --> 00:12:32,240 I want my heart to be purified. I want it to be cleansed. 210 00:12:32,240 --> 00:12:35,160 And when God points his finger and says, Clark, this has to go, 211 00:12:35,160 --> 00:12:38,200 this has to change. I want to be like David and say 212 00:12:38,360 --> 00:12:41,920 create in me a clean heart, O God, which after you is created 213 00:12:41,920 --> 00:12:43,800 in righteousness and true holiness. 214 00:12:44,160 --> 00:12:49,800 If we're exposed by the Spirit of God, it's not to make us 215 00:12:49,800 --> 00:12:53,080 miserable, it's to free us. Because everything that the Lord 216 00:12:53,080 --> 00:12:56,520 touches and everything that he wants to change in your heart is 217 00:12:56,520 --> 00:12:58,960 to make you more like Himself, right? 218 00:12:59,560 --> 00:13:01,840 It's to give you joy. It's to give you peace. 219 00:13:01,840 --> 00:13:05,840 And so allow the Lord to do what he wants to do in your heart. 220 00:13:06,120 --> 00:13:08,640 And I love what he says. Seeing then we have a great high 221 00:13:08,640 --> 00:13:12,360 priest after God exposes all this stuff that we need to 222 00:13:12,720 --> 00:13:16,200 repent of, who has passed through the heavens. 223 00:13:16,200 --> 00:13:19,840 Jesus, the Son of God. Let us hold fast our confession. 224 00:13:20,120 --> 00:13:23,320 For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our 225 00:13:23,320 --> 00:13:25,400 weakness. The Lord knows us, doesn't He? 226 00:13:25,880 --> 00:13:29,760 He knows our struggles, He knows the areas that each of us have 227 00:13:29,760 --> 00:13:34,200 that are so prone to failing, and He wants to work in our 228 00:13:34,200 --> 00:13:36,480 hearts so that we begin to have victory. 229 00:13:36,840 --> 00:13:39,520 And as we trust in Him to change us, He will. 230 00:13:39,720 --> 00:13:42,720 It says He was an all points tempted as we are, yet without 231 00:13:42,720 --> 00:13:45,760 sin. So let us therefore come boldly 232 00:13:45,760 --> 00:13:48,320 to the throne of grace. And I pray that your attitude on 233 00:13:48,320 --> 00:13:51,440 Sundays when you take the supper, you come boldly to the 234 00:13:51,440 --> 00:13:54,840 throne of grace, knowing that you have a right to come before 235 00:13:54,840 --> 00:13:59,880 the throne of God, and you may obtain mercy and find grace to 236 00:13:59,880 --> 00:14:03,080 help in your time of need. And the Lord will always be 237 00:14:03,080 --> 00:14:09,080 faithful to gently shepherd you and to love you and to restore 238 00:14:09,080 --> 00:14:12,080 you to that place of communion and fellowship with him. 239 00:14:13,000 --> 00:14:15,800 And so then he refers to this aspect of feet burning his 240 00:14:15,800 --> 00:14:19,080 brass. And this represents a foundation 241 00:14:19,080 --> 00:14:21,400 that can't be broken. It's not like the feet of clay 242 00:14:21,400 --> 00:14:24,720 of the nations in the last days where they rise up and they act 243 00:14:24,720 --> 00:14:26,640 like they got it all together and they're mighty and they're 244 00:14:26,640 --> 00:14:29,160 strong. And as persecution and trials 245 00:14:29,160 --> 00:14:32,480 and tribulations begin to come, the nations of the earth begin 246 00:14:32,480 --> 00:14:35,440 to crumble. No, the feet of Christ, the 247 00:14:35,440 --> 00:14:40,000 burning brass represents again judgment that he's the judge of 248 00:14:40,000 --> 00:14:43,480 all the churches. In verse 15, it talks about his, 249 00:14:43,680 --> 00:14:47,360 his voice being the sound of many waters. 250 00:14:47,800 --> 00:14:50,640 I love to sit by the ocean when there's no one there and no 251 00:14:50,640 --> 00:14:52,880 distractions. And I love this to close my eyes 252 00:14:52,880 --> 00:14:56,200 and just hear the waves crashing this continual, There's no 253 00:14:56,200 --> 00:14:58,360 silence, It's just continual noise. 254 00:14:58,360 --> 00:15:02,720 And every wave seems to have a different sound effect in my 255 00:15:02,720 --> 00:15:05,120 ear. Every wave that flows in is not 256 00:15:05,120 --> 00:15:07,640 exactly the same as the wave that came before it. 257 00:15:07,920 --> 00:15:12,800 And it's just a continuation of this, an outpouring of the, the 258 00:15:12,800 --> 00:15:16,120 sound and crashing of, of the surf upon the sand. 259 00:15:16,680 --> 00:15:22,200 And God's sound, his voice is like the sound of everlasting 260 00:15:22,200 --> 00:15:24,280 waters. If you ever been to Niagara 261 00:15:24,280 --> 00:15:26,760 Falls and you stood at the base of the falls, you're in the Maid 262 00:15:26,760 --> 00:15:29,400 of the mist. You just hear the, the crushing 263 00:15:29,400 --> 00:15:33,320 sound of the water this relentlessly coming down off the 264 00:15:33,600 --> 00:15:38,280 the cliffs there into the into the pond or lake, a stream 265 00:15:38,280 --> 00:15:39,880 there. It's just continue. 266 00:15:39,880 --> 00:15:42,920 It's the sound of His absolute power and authority. 267 00:15:43,400 --> 00:15:46,680 I think of a storm at night, a thunderstorm or a lightning 268 00:15:46,680 --> 00:15:50,920 storm or a hailstorm, and just the sound of the Thunder is so 269 00:15:50,920 --> 00:15:53,400 crushing and at times it shakes you. 270 00:15:53,400 --> 00:15:56,440 It makes you fearful. The fact that God is so 271 00:15:56,440 --> 00:16:00,000 magnificent and so powerful that he could wipe any of us out in a 272 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:04,200 second, and it's just overwhelming. 273 00:16:04,200 --> 00:16:09,240 And then you think of the sound of earthquakes or tornadoes or 274 00:16:09,280 --> 00:16:13,520 hurricanes or typhoons, The tremendous power that God has in 275 00:16:13,520 --> 00:16:17,000 the midst of this universe, it would cause you to to fall on 276 00:16:17,000 --> 00:16:20,760 your face and be broken, as we will see John here in a few 277 00:16:20,760 --> 00:16:24,960 moments, falling on his face. But no one can stop these sounds 278 00:16:25,240 --> 00:16:28,000 but God. No one can stop the fury of the 279 00:16:28,040 --> 00:16:31,160 Thunder and the lightning and the hurricane and the 280 00:16:31,160 --> 00:16:34,400 earthquakes. But God, He has control over 281 00:16:34,400 --> 00:16:37,920 this whole universe. Nothing occurs outside of His 282 00:16:37,920 --> 00:16:40,760 will in His plan. Someone mentioned recently about 283 00:16:40,760 --> 00:16:44,280 the crisis in Haiti. How could a loving God allow 284 00:16:44,280 --> 00:16:46,440 such a horrible situation to occur there? 285 00:16:46,800 --> 00:16:49,960 God's judgment, and I'm not saying Haiti is God's judgment 286 00:16:49,960 --> 00:16:54,160 it but it says in the last days there will be birth pangs and a 287 00:16:54,160 --> 00:16:57,880 frequency of cataclysmic events occurring on the face of the 288 00:16:57,880 --> 00:17:03,640 earth to cause men and women and children to begin to look up and 289 00:17:03,640 --> 00:17:09,680 to wonder about is there a God? And if there is a God, am I 290 00:17:09,720 --> 00:17:13,480 ready to meet him? Am I ready to stand before him? 291 00:17:14,400 --> 00:17:19,040 This sound of the voice in heaven speaks with power and 292 00:17:19,040 --> 00:17:23,560 authority and it says in verse 16 that out of his mouth when a 293 00:17:23,560 --> 00:17:27,280 sharp 2 edged sword. We read in Hebrews that the word 294 00:17:27,280 --> 00:17:31,280 of God is sharper than any 2 edged sword, piercing, dividing 295 00:17:31,280 --> 00:17:35,400 asunder of soul and spirit and is a very discerner of the 296 00:17:35,400 --> 00:17:37,920 thoughts and intense of the heart. 297 00:17:38,640 --> 00:17:40,880 It's just so wonderful when you sit down, you're reading through 298 00:17:40,880 --> 00:17:45,000 the Bible this year and and as you read it, it's purifying you. 299 00:17:45,040 --> 00:17:47,960 It's it's convicting you. You see your own life and the 300 00:17:47,960 --> 00:17:51,680 life of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and Sarah and Hagar and 301 00:17:51,680 --> 00:17:53,560 all these people in the scripture. 302 00:17:53,560 --> 00:17:56,640 You say, boy, that person reminds me of me a little bit, 303 00:17:56,640 --> 00:18:01,120 you know, and it, it shows you God's action and intervention in 304 00:18:01,120 --> 00:18:03,880 their lives and his mercy and his grace and his forgiveness. 305 00:18:04,200 --> 00:18:06,960 And you're, you're encouraged, you know, the fact that God is 306 00:18:06,960 --> 00:18:10,520 such a compassionate, loving, merciful God in spite of the 307 00:18:10,880 --> 00:18:13,880 foolishness of the human race, in spite of the foolishness of 308 00:18:13,880 --> 00:18:16,640 the human heart. And this sword that's coming out 309 00:18:16,640 --> 00:18:18,640 of his mouth speaks with authority. 310 00:18:18,640 --> 00:18:22,440 It's the living word of God. Ephesians tells us that it's the 311 00:18:22,440 --> 00:18:26,200 sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 312 00:18:26,600 --> 00:18:31,680 He gives us a description also of the of the seven stars in 313 00:18:31,680 --> 00:18:37,720 verse 16, and these seven stars are descriptive of perhaps he 314 00:18:37,720 --> 00:18:40,760 refers to the name Angel. Angel means messenger. 315 00:18:41,040 --> 00:18:44,040 We prayed this morning before we came up here that God's angels 316 00:18:44,040 --> 00:18:48,160 would protect this place, surround it from the attacks of 317 00:18:48,160 --> 00:18:52,680 the evil. 1 And God has sent forth his army of angels in the 318 00:18:52,680 --> 00:18:54,320 midst of these days that we live. 319 00:18:54,320 --> 00:18:56,480 I love what it tells us in Hebrews, the beginning of 320 00:18:56,480 --> 00:18:59,560 Hebrews, about the angelic creatures, aren't they 321 00:18:59,560 --> 00:19:04,320 ministering spirits, sent forth to minister to them who are the 322 00:19:04,360 --> 00:19:06,560 heirs of salvation? You have a guardian Angel. 323 00:19:06,560 --> 00:19:08,560 Do you know that? Do you believe that? 324 00:19:08,760 --> 00:19:10,600 Well, the Scriptures declare that you do. 325 00:19:11,240 --> 00:19:13,320 And that poor Angel, what they've had to put up with, 326 00:19:13,320 --> 00:19:16,920 right with all of us. I'm sure my Angel would love to 327 00:19:17,080 --> 00:19:19,000 trade places with one of you guys. 328 00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:21,280 He's been with me for 58 years now. 329 00:19:21,800 --> 00:19:25,360 But even the angelic beings, whenever the word of God is 330 00:19:25,360 --> 00:19:27,760 proclaimed and preached, they like to hang around in the 331 00:19:27,760 --> 00:19:33,200 atmosphere because they never get tired of listening in and 332 00:19:33,200 --> 00:19:36,640 hearing the mystery that's revealed through the church, the 333 00:19:36,640 --> 00:19:40,760 gospel of God's salvation. The angels could also in some 334 00:19:40,760 --> 00:19:43,640 commentaries refer to the pastors of the churches because 335 00:19:43,640 --> 00:19:47,520 we're messengers, we're responsible to declare to the 336 00:19:47,720 --> 00:19:51,920 community, the body, the the message of the the word of God. 337 00:19:52,280 --> 00:19:56,440 In verse 16, it refers to his confidence. 338 00:19:56,440 --> 00:20:01,080 It says his countenance was like the sun shining in its strength, 339 00:20:01,520 --> 00:20:04,600 the sun SUN. When you look up in certain 340 00:20:04,600 --> 00:20:07,200 times of the day, you wouldn't dare gaze into the brightness of 341 00:20:07,200 --> 00:20:11,040 the sun, because you'd burn. Your retina, but in certain 342 00:20:11,040 --> 00:20:14,280 times a day you can sunset, you can look at it, look at the 343 00:20:14,280 --> 00:20:18,280 beauty, and it isn't as bright, but the continents of Christ is 344 00:20:18,280 --> 00:20:20,760 like the fullness of the brightness of the sun at its 345 00:20:20,920 --> 00:20:23,320 greatest point, at its fullest of strength. 346 00:20:24,080 --> 00:20:28,160 That was experienced by Peter, James, and John whenever they 347 00:20:28,400 --> 00:20:32,720 were at the base of the Mount of Transfiguration, when Christ 348 00:20:33,000 --> 00:20:37,520 appeared in his glorified state and the brightness of His glory 349 00:20:37,760 --> 00:20:43,280 was exceedingly manifest. And Peter and James and John, it 350 00:20:43,280 --> 00:20:45,800 was so bright they had to fall on their face. 351 00:20:46,960 --> 00:20:49,440 And this is the way our Savior is now. 352 00:20:50,240 --> 00:20:55,080 He's transfigured, He's changed, and John is actually able to 353 00:20:55,080 --> 00:20:58,680 experience this again. He's before them. 354 00:20:58,680 --> 00:21:03,120 His face shines like the sun. His clothes become white as the 355 00:21:03,120 --> 00:21:06,600 light. The ancient teachers of the Word 356 00:21:06,640 --> 00:21:09,040 described as light as uncreated light. 357 00:21:09,200 --> 00:21:13,000 You know when God said let there be light and he created the moon 358 00:21:13,120 --> 00:21:16,120 by night and the sun by day and the stars by night. 359 00:21:16,440 --> 00:21:20,240 The light that is manifest in the Holy Trinity is always 360 00:21:20,480 --> 00:21:24,280 existing, it's self existent. It never had a start and never 361 00:21:24,280 --> 00:21:26,920 had a beginning. And that's why the Word tells us 362 00:21:26,920 --> 00:21:31,920 that God is light and in Him is no darkness or shadow of 363 00:21:31,920 --> 00:21:35,200 turning. Psalm 8411 says, for the Lord 364 00:21:35,200 --> 00:21:40,960 God is a son, SUN, and a shield, a purifier and a protector. 365 00:21:41,360 --> 00:21:47,600 So it's a wonderful thing to know that God's brightness, the 366 00:21:47,600 --> 00:21:52,920 exceeding image of his glory and his perfection as it reveals to 367 00:21:52,920 --> 00:21:57,720 us our sin, convicts us that we can repent and be purified and 368 00:21:57,840 --> 00:22:02,560 be made as gold, pure gold. But he's also the protector that 369 00:22:02,560 --> 00:22:05,800 he knows how much we can deal with in any given moment. 370 00:22:06,400 --> 00:22:13,520 If he turned all the light on on me in one nanosecond, I would be 371 00:22:13,600 --> 00:22:16,280 completely pulverized and non existent. 372 00:22:17,200 --> 00:22:19,760 But God understands what we're able to deal with. 373 00:22:20,360 --> 00:22:24,040 And so he comes in the midst of his glory to John with a heart 374 00:22:24,040 --> 00:22:28,280 that is full and also heavy and broken because of the state of 375 00:22:28,280 --> 00:22:31,160 his church in the days that this was being written. 376 00:22:31,720 --> 00:22:34,640 And his heart is still heavy today for the state of the 377 00:22:34,640 --> 00:22:38,400 church today. Christ, we see in this 378 00:22:38,640 --> 00:22:41,640 revelation here is no longer the quiet Carpenter, is he? 379 00:22:42,560 --> 00:22:46,600 He's no longer the obscure and lowly servant. 380 00:22:47,520 --> 00:22:51,160 He's now risen, glorified, and manifest in His full authority 381 00:22:51,800 --> 00:22:55,600 to prepare to judge the nations first. 382 00:22:55,600 --> 00:23:00,680 Peter 417 says for the time has come for judgment to begin at 383 00:23:00,680 --> 00:23:03,040 the House of God. This is what's occurring here. 384 00:23:03,720 --> 00:23:09,560 Jesus is revealing to John the revelation of Himself in the 385 00:23:09,560 --> 00:23:12,960 midst of His church in the last days. 386 00:23:14,280 --> 00:23:17,440 Peter says for the time has come for judgment to begin at the 387 00:23:17,440 --> 00:23:20,120 House of God. It has to begin here, guys, with 388 00:23:20,120 --> 00:23:25,080 you and me, doesn't it? Our judgments, our concerns 389 00:23:25,080 --> 00:23:29,600 about those without Christ are important. 390 00:23:29,600 --> 00:23:33,880 To pray for God to save our families, our neighbors, our 391 00:23:33,880 --> 00:23:37,960 loved ones. But we must come clean before 392 00:23:37,960 --> 00:23:41,320 the Lord ourselves, not be living double ways, not be 393 00:23:41,320 --> 00:23:44,240 living one way in church and another way outside of church. 394 00:23:44,640 --> 00:23:48,520 We must realize that God has to deal with our hearts, the House 395 00:23:48,520 --> 00:23:52,080 of God. If it begins with us first, what 396 00:23:52,080 --> 00:23:55,360 will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? 397 00:23:57,120 --> 00:24:00,680 This has been Living Waters of Grace with Pastor Clark. 398 00:24:01,120 --> 00:24:04,080 We're going through the challenging and also intriguing 399 00:24:04,080 --> 00:24:07,120 Book of Revelation. Whether you're a fan of reading 400 00:24:07,120 --> 00:24:09,880 ahead in books of fiction, there's such a benefit to 401 00:24:09,880 --> 00:24:13,480 reading ahead in the Bible to read about how it all ends. 402 00:24:13,920 --> 00:24:17,400 But in an interesting turn of events, the Book of Revelation 403 00:24:17,400 --> 00:24:21,600 is not really the end, but rather the beginning. 404 00:24:22,200 --> 00:24:26,080 It's the end of life as we know it here on earth, but there's so 405 00:24:26,080 --> 00:24:29,200 much to look forward to. But what comes after all? 406 00:24:29,200 --> 00:24:32,200 The judgement of the earth and those who reject God? 407 00:24:32,760 --> 00:24:36,520 There's a lot to work through, and it can be heartbreaking to 408 00:24:36,520 --> 00:24:40,120 read through the intense judgements and wrath that will 409 00:24:40,120 --> 00:24:42,880 come on those who hate God with all their might. 410 00:24:43,600 --> 00:24:47,000 The thing is, God has given chance upon chance to these 411 00:24:47,000 --> 00:24:48,600 people. They don't want it. 412 00:24:49,160 --> 00:24:53,400 So the outcome is that there are judgments and consequences for 413 00:24:53,400 --> 00:24:57,720 those who've rejected the good news and the gift of salvation 414 00:24:57,720 --> 00:25:01,160 that's offered through Jesus's death and resurrection. 415 00:25:01,880 --> 00:25:05,400 Are you one who has heard about these things but doesn't really 416 00:25:05,400 --> 00:25:09,480 want it because you want to live life on your terms? 417 00:25:10,040 --> 00:25:13,840 Trust me, living for Jesus is so much better. 418 00:25:14,520 --> 00:25:16,480 That doesn't mean it will be easy. 419 00:25:16,840 --> 00:25:20,440 As you listen and read through Revelation with us, you'll come 420 00:25:20,440 --> 00:25:24,000 to a stark realization that you don't want to be on Earth when 421 00:25:24,000 --> 00:25:28,240 the apocalypse happens. So check out Calvary Chapel 422 00:25:28,240 --> 00:25:32,880 online.com to learn how to come to a saving grace through faith 423 00:25:33,200 --> 00:25:36,640 that will allow you to be with Jesus for eternity. 424 00:25:37,320 --> 00:25:40,160 We'd also love to meet you in person at Calvary Chapel 425 00:25:40,160 --> 00:25:44,000 Westmoreland. Come join us at 400 E Pittsburgh 426 00:25:44,000 --> 00:25:50,240 St. Ste. 6B in Greensburg, PA 15601. 427 00:25:50,840 --> 00:25:53,440 This has been living waters of Grace.