Down to Earth But Heavenly Minded

The Lamb and the 144,000

Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb, and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless.

The Messages of the Three Angels

Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”

Another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality.”

And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.”

Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.

And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”

The Harvest of the Earth

Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand. And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped.

Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, the angel who has authority over the fire, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Put in your sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, for its grapes are ripe.” So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as a horse’s bridle, for 1,600 stadia.

The Seal of the Father (Revelation 14:1-5) –

The chapter opens with a scene in Jerusalem. The Lord Jesus is standing in the city, surrounded by 144,000 who have the seal of the Father’s name on their foreheads (in contrast to the seal of the Antichrist). This is a look at the triumphant Christ at the beginning of His Millennial reign. These were sealed at the beginning of the Tribulation and, despite the fury of the devil, not one of them was lost. God’s omnipotent power or authority was behind the seal. Despite being hunted, imprisoned, hungry, naked, and thirsty, each one was preserved by God (Read John 10; it speaks of the believer’s security and him never perishing). The seal of the believer is the Holy Spirit. See Ephesians 1:13-14 [Sealed with the Holy Spirit until the day of redemption (the redemption of the body), the first resurrection]. See also Romans 8, “Nothing can separate us […]”.

The Everlasting Gospel (Revelation 14:6-8) –

The message of the gospel never changes; it is everlasting. There is only one gospel (Galatians 1). Different aspects of it have been stressed at different periods; here, judgment is stressed. God has used different means to proclaim the gospel. During the Church Age, He uses men (2 Corinthians 5:9). During the Tribulation, He will use the two witnesses. At this point, an angel is used. This angel preaches from the air, so everyone will hear it. Note that angels are indestructible, while thousands of preachers had lost their lives. [Stress the fundamentals of the Gospel as it applies to us today – 1 Corinthians 15, death, burial, and resurrection; this is the Gospel the Lord has commanded His servants to preach in the entire world]

The Doom of the Beast Worshipers (Revelation 14:9-13) –

The burden of the message that the angel preached was “the hour of judgment is come.” Revelation 14:9-11 tell us of the reality of Hell. Those who rescue the mark of the beast, seal their eternal doom. When Christ returns to the earth, He will destroy everyone who has the mark of the beast. Their bodies will go to the grave. Their soul and spirit will go to Hades (place of torment). What is true of them is also true of unbelievers. After the Millennium, death and Hades will deliver up the dead in them (Revelation 20:11-15). They will stand before the Great White Throne, and then be cast into the lake of fire. The wages of sin is death.

Note the blessedness of those who die in the Lord (Revelation 14:13). Of those who die during the Tribulation, the Spirit says, “they rest from their labors.” They will exchange, at death, persecutions and toils of earth for the blessedness and rest of heaven. Apply this concept to present day saints. The tribulation saints had the prospect of death continually before them. It is not necessarily so with present day believers; we have the hope of “the rapture.” The gift of God is eternal life.

A Preview of Armageddon (Revelation 14:14-20) –

Revelation 14:14 refers to the Lord Jesus’ return to the earth (Clouds – See Matthew 24:30, 26:64, Revelation 1:7. See also Revelation 19). An angel tells Him, in verse 15, to “thrust in His sickle, for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” In Revelation 14:16, “He that sat on the cloud thrust in His sickle on the earth, and the earth was reaped.” The angels gather the peoples of earth together for this great battle. See also Matthew 13:47-51. They have gathered the grapes of earth and cast them into the great winepress of the wrath of God. The words “winepress of the wrath of God” in Revelation 14:20 are symbolic [Describe a Palestinian winepress]. John uses this symbol to describe what will happen when the Lord treads the winepress of the wrath of God. This judgment will fall outside the city in the plains of Armageddon. As John looked at this carnage, it seemed to him that the whole area around Jerusalem was covered with the blood of the dead.