 Beginning with verse six, John writes, then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth, to every nation, tribe, tongue and people, saying with a loud voice, fear God and give glory to him. For the hour of his judgment has come and worship him who made heaven and earth the sea and springs of water. And another angel followed, saying, Babylon has fallen, is fallen that great city because she has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, if anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of his indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever. And they have no rest day or night who worship the beast and his image and whoever receives the mark of his name. Here is the patience of the saints. Here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, right, blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. Yes, says the spirit that they may rest from their labors and their works, follow them. And so as is my normal way of teaching in all, let me give to you an introduction, a reminder of some of the things that we've gone over recently and then we'll pick up at verse six and go through the passage before us. As we began chapter 14, I mentioned to you that this is a chapter that outlines for us what would be called the ultimate victory of Jesus Christ. I mentioned to you that it gives a panoramic view of the tribulation, but it does so from the standpoint of Jesus' victory. So as such, chapter 14 has been called, as I mentioned last week, a preview of coming attractions. Now the chapter contains a prophetic view of Jesus' ultimate triumph as well as his return to earth. And it reveals the start of what is called his millennial reign. The word millennial speaks of a thousand, his thousand year reign at the end of the tribulation and it speaks of his second coming. Now again, this material is not placed in chronological order. It is what is called a prophetic overview. So as we began chapter 14, well that chapter began with Jesus standing on Mount Zion with followers after his second coming. And as we'll see, the chapter ends with a series of announcements of judgments. We looked at verse one. Verse one reveals Jesus standing on Mount Zion with 144,000 and that would be a picture of Jesus standing victoriously after his return. And with him were the Jewish believers who were protected in the tribulation. These were mentioned to us in chapter seven as well as chapter nine. And John says to us that he heard the joyful praise coming from heaven because Jesus reigns. He said that he heard the 144,000 singing what was called a new song. The song they sang is a song that only the 144,000 can sing and they sing it because they were preserved during the most difficult time in human history. They went through the greatest persecution and greatest cataclysms and they were preserved. Now of course in one sense all redeemed sing a song of praise to God because we have been redeemed. We've been bought back at the expense of Jesus and his blood. But in their case they sing a song of redemption from a wellspring of different experiences. They had gone through and survived the tribulation. They were kept by God in a miraculous way. They like Noah had been kept from God's wrath on the earth by the grace of God. They saw others suffer, they saw others even die. But they had been protected from pain and death. These are the ones who remained pure undefiled throughout the tribulation. These are the ones who followed the Lord wherever he went. And in their mouth John said was found no deceit. John said that they were found to be without fault before the throne of God. Now when it says they were found without fault that doesn't mean that they were sinless but that they lived godly lives. And that's something that God did for them and that's something by the way that God will do for every believer, especially those who seek him and desire to be blameless. In 1 Peter chapter one, verses 15 and 16, the apostle wrote, as he who called you as holy, you also be holy in all your conduct because it is written be holy for I am holy. And so God desires us to live a life pursuing him living in a blameless fashion. When you read the book of Jude, the writer Jude reminded believers that God is the one who works within them and it's God who keeps them, it's God who guards them. And that's something that he gave praise to God for. As a matter of fact, he closes his book in that way in Jude verses 24 and 25. It says to him who was able to keep you from stumbling and to present you fallless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy to God our savior who alone is wise be glory and majesty, dominion and power both now and forever, amen. God is able to present you fallless. God is gonna present you fallless by the righteousness of Christ through the blood of Jesus that washed you and cleansed you from your sin. And he's able to keep you. When it says to him who is able to keep, that word keep is a Greek word that speaks not simply of holding, but it speaks of guarding. God preserve you, God guards you. He's the one who guards you from stumbling but you follow him and as you do so, he lifts you up. So we're gonna be presented fallless because we've been washed by the blood of Jesus Christ and we have been washed and sanctified. We're called fallless because he has established us. He's declared us to be fallless. And that has resulted to our holding fast to and believing in his word. So that brings us to verse six here. And in verse six, we begin our study and we need to remember that chronologically this occurs near the end of the tribulation. So in verse six, John said, again, I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth to every nation, tribe, tongue and people. I saw another angel. We have a lot of angels in this church. We also have a lot of guys named Chewie but these are real angels that he's speaking of. I'm sorry, that just comes to mind and it comes out. I don't, it's not in my notes, but it's there anyway. We've been seeing angels in the book of Revelation from chapter four all the way to chapter 12. Chapter five spoke of multitudes of angels. Chapter 11 spoke of the seventh angel. Chapter 12 spoke of Michael and his angels. Well, this angels in addition to the angels that we already mentioned, the another angels that were mentioned in chapter eight and chapter 10. And this angel is unnamed, but notice the angel is flying in the midst of heaven. When it speaks of the midst of heaven, the midst of heaven is referring to what we would refer to as high noon. It's where the sun reaches its highest point. It's where the angel can be seen most clearly by people. Now, at this time, the world has gone through great devastation. The people of the earth have been hit hard by judgments, the seal judgment, the trumpet judgments. And these judgments have rocked the world and the inhabitants have been traumatized. And so during these judgments, we need to remember the gospel has continued being proclaimed. We spoke of the 144,000 and they were Jewish evangelists. But we also saw what are called the two witnesses. There are those who were saved under their ministry and they've all been preaching and sharing about Christ. We know that the two witnesses preached a message. They performed miracles before the people. We know that the gospel has gone out powerfully and relentlessly and people are listening to it. They're hearing it, but in spite of this, the world continues to reject the message of the gospel. In Revelation nine, 2021, it says, the rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues did not repent of the works of their hands, nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot either see or hear or walk, nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their immorality or their thefts. So the world has been hearing a message that begins with the word repent, turn away from. When you repent, what you're doing is you're actually changing your mind. Repentance speaks of a change of mind, a change of mind that ultimately is going to result in a change of direction. It is what is called the first word of the gospel, repentance, change your mind, metanoia in Greek. Change your mind about these things. Change your mind about your righteousness. Change your mind about your good deeds. Change your mind about how to get to heaven. Change your mind about who Jesus Christ is. Change your mind and agree with God. And what has happened is the people are not repenting. They're hearing and they're even seeing, but they're still rejecting. It's interesting how it speaks of the fact that they did repent of their murders and sorceries or immoralities, they're thefts. These are sins that are very clearly outlined in the commandments of God. When he speaks of sorcery, well sorcery violates the spirit of the first commandment which says thou shalt have no false gods. Idolatry violates the second commandment. You are to have no graven image. Murder violates the sixth commandment. Thou shalt not murder. Immorality violates the seventh commandment. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thefts violate the eighth commandment. Thou shalt not steal. So these are people who are rejecting what God has said. They're rejecting his word. We see that the Antichrist in 2 Thessalonians chapter two, verse eight is called the lawless one. And his followers are also lawless. The Antichrist sets himself above the law of God and his followers do the same. They reject God's laws as they pursue him. And so this is taking place here as we look at this chapter. Well, what's going on again in verse six says, he says, I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth to every nation, tribe, tongue and people saying with a loud voice, fear God and give glory to him for the hour of his judgment and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water. So this angel is preaching what is being called the everlasting gospel. When you read your Bible, you read the word gospel and it's described or spoken of in various ways. The word gospel, when I first got saved, they said, you need to believe the gospel but I didn't even know what the word gospel means. The word gospel in the original language means good news. Great news, believe the good news. And that's called the gospel. The gospel is the good news and in various ways the word gospel is spoken of in the Bible. It's spoken of, for example, as the gospel of the kingdom. It's spoken of the gospel of God. The gospel of peace is called the gospel of grace. It's called the gospel of salvation. So the word gospel is attached to various aspects of what God will do. But here it's called the everlasting gospel. And it's called the everlasting gospel because we are offered everlasting life through the gospel. How does one live forever in the presence of God by receiving the everlasting gospel, the gospel that gives to us everlasting life? In John 5.24, Jesus said, most assuredly I say to you, he who hears my word and believes in him who sent me as everlasting life shall not come into judgment but has passed from death into life. I say to you, hear my word and believe his word and believe is what is called responding to the gospel. This is the everlasting gospel that presents to us everlasting life. And it's a message that doesn't change. It's the only message that God gave to mankind that we might believe in eternal life. It's the ageless, it's the unchanged message indicating the righteousness of God. And that's why this gospel is to be communicated clearly without alteration. There are people who take elements of the gospel and they preach it, but they're changing it. They make it different. They're making it acceptable to people. The gospel is not to be made acceptable to people. The gospel actually makes people acceptable to God. And when it's preached properly and it's believed, it's received, the effects are eternal. You go to heaven because of it. You receive it, you believe it and your life is transformed because of it. And it's to be communicated in a way that it's not altered. There are those who alter the words but God's word says, no, don't be altering. Don't be changing my word. In Deuteronomy 1232, whatever I commend you be careful to observe it. You shall not add to it nor take away from it. You don't add to the word of God and you don't take away from it. That's because the word of God is pure. In Proverbs 30 verses five and six, it says this, every word of God is pure. He's a shield to those who put their trust in Him. Do not add to His words, lest He rebuke you and you be found a liar. God's word is pure. The word pure speaks of being free of falsehood, free of error. It speaks of the truth that comes from the God of truth. And the gospel message is so important that those who twist it fall under great judgment. To take His word and to twist it to make it acceptable to others to hear, to remove elements of it because people get offended is not proper, it's not the right thing to do. God tells us to give it as it is because it's the truth that sets you free. Now, when Paul was writing to a church, the churches of Galatia, there were people who were creeping in, they were coming into the church and they were adding elements of law, elements of the Mosaic law to the gospel of Jesus and they were making it a hybrid message. They were saying that you really couldn't understand the gospel until you've been under the law of Moses. And so in order for you to be under the law of Moses and these are Gentiles, those who were filtering into the church were saying to the males who are Gentiles, you need to be circumcised and you need to come under the law. And in coming under the law, you're gonna understand the depth of grace. And Paul was greatly upset by that. And he actually wrote to the churches of Galatia. And in Galatians chapter one, verses six through nine, this is what he said. Paul said, I'm astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preach to you, let him be eternally condemned, as we have already said. So now I say again, if anybody is preaching to you, a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned. When people say, well, at least we believe in God, no, you may believe in a God. But remember, James said that the demons also believe in fear and tremble. Just because there's a belief involved in the reality of the other, of God, doesn't mean you're saved. And when people come in and they begin to alter the message of salvation, Paul said, may that person be anathema, may that person be eternally condemned. Why? Because it's the word of truth that sets you free. And in changing it, you're gonna end up stealing from people the joy of salvation. And so the message was delivered. And it hasn't been delivered many times after that. The message has been one time for all time, delivered. God doesn't have any new revelation that he's bringing. He didn't begin other religious faiths. In the book of Jude, verse three, it says, dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all and trusted to the saints. When Jude says, contend for the faith that was once for all, one time for all time. And he says to the church, contend for it. The word contend in the Greek language is where we get the word agonized from. It's speaking about striving to agonize and over this faith. The faith that he's speaking about isn't that faith that, oh, I believe it's deeper than that. The faith that he's speaking about is the gospel. It's the message of God, because the scriptures often are called the faith that has been delivered because faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. And so we're to strive, agonize to preserve this, to guard it, to keep it, and not to alter it, to believe it and to do it. And this is the gospel. But the antichrist and his false prophet are deceiving the world. The false prophet as we've been looking at him has performed signs and deceived the world through them. His false message, his false gospel has been for the world to worship the beast. In spite of all the sin and all the evil of the world, God is still giving people a chance to repent. And this chance, by the way, is not given to one nation, Israel. But this chance to repent and know him is for all people. It's a message designed to save any who receive it. Once again, notice in verse six, how it says, I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth to every nation, every tribe, every tongue, and every people. It's a message for any who would believe and receive. In the Old Testament, humanity is divided into Jew and Gentile. In the New Testament, you have Jew, you have Gentile, and you have the church. The church is made up of Jew and Gentile. We all come to faith in God through Jesus Christ, and it doesn't matter what continent your ancestors are originally from. It doesn't matter, does it? I say this every time. I'll say it again because I really believe that there's been so much said recently, so much pitting of people groups against people groups, so much of it, so much of it. The only color that matters to God is red, the blood of Jesus Christ. Never forget that. Never forget that. It doesn't matter, I have no problem. I'm not gonna preach long about this, but this is one of the things that really moves my heart, really moves my heart. I'm trying to find the right words. I always struggle. Do you mind if I'm gonna be real with you for a minute, maybe more real than some of you? Maybe you'll never come back again. I'll give you a reason not to right now. And those who are watching will see you turning off. I don't know how to say this. It bothers me so much. I don't know how to say it without coming off like I'm angry at somebody. And I'm not, I'm more angry at the spirit of this age. If you understand that in its context, you'll understand what I'm trying to say. I really, I was reading something recently and all of us probably have heard this at the Coca-Cola Company and the comment, be less white, I'm a Mexican-American, okay? So is my wife, my kids. I was offended on behalf of white people. Forgive me, I don't know how to say this, but it bothered me. Why are we dividing this nation in this way? Why are we keeping this anger stoking it and provoking it and causing people to feel bad about being who they are? Listen, who you are, if you're a child of God, that's who you are. And if you're black or if you're brown or if you're white or red or if you're yellow or if you're polka dot, you're my brother or my sister. That's a fact. That's a fact. We love each other. Isn't that what a Christian is supposed to? Didn't Jesus say by this, all men shall know you are my disciples? If you have love for one another, he didn't say, if you're white, you're out here, you stop being white, he didn't say that and it makes me sick, I'm angry about it. I really am. We need to be one in Christ, we need to be. That made me angry. It made me angry. I'm used to the world stinking, the world stinks. Let's face it, the mindset of the world stinks. They're lost. I don't hate them, but it sure bothers me. And when they make people feel bad for being who they are, that is wrong. And I pray to God, not one of us in this church or watching online ever treats somebody different because they're not of your ethnicity or your race. May we love one another the way Jesus love does. That's how it works. And the gospel goes out to the whole world. Every people, every nation, every tongue, all of them, white because we're all sinners. We've been created in the image of God. We have fallen by sin, we have sin natures. We shall be redeemed through the blood of Christ and we will go to heaven. And there's not gonna be a section over here that's real quiet for white people and over here a little louder for black people and over here a little salsa for Mexican people. It's not gonna be that way. I don't know, it's so simple. It is so simple. I don't get it. I really don't. I don't get it. Let's love one another. Let's take the gospel to the world. Let people hear that Jesus loves them and let's not fall for this garbage of Satan where he's trying to divide us over colors and languages. Let's love one another because that's the mark of a Christian. That's what we are. And it really bothers me. It's one of those things I told Maria. I said, this bothers me. Be less white. I'm gonna say, how stupid. How stupid that is. That is, anyway, I got it out and we'll keep going now. That is one of my pet peeps. It's one of the things that I think is so wrong to just keep saying racism, racism, racism. And minorities can't be racist, only whites. That's just wrong. People have their prejudices. We all think this is better than that. You don't think so. I was talking to a young man who's Puerto Rican and Mexican. And we're talking and I said, you know, Puerto Rican, Mexican. I said, what do you identify? We're a conversation, just a conversation. What do you identify with? He says, it doesn't matter to me. He said, it doesn't matter to me. I said, great, I said, okay, let me see if it matters to you. I said, there's a boxing match, a Puerto Rican's fighting with a Mexican. Who do you want to win? He says, a Puerto Rican. I said, you're Puerto Rican, you just don't know it. That's a fact, right? That's a fact. That's what we do. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay, well, in life, may we get to the point God would have us to be and understand all his sin and fall short of the glory of God, that the blood of Jesus Christ has sent cleanses us from all sin that were born again, brought into a family, a family that is an everlasting family, one that we didn't choose, but that he made possible. And so that person next to you right now, if they're from a different ethnicity, if they're from a different language, whatever it may be, if they're saved and you're saved, you are related. You did not select them anymore that I selected my brother and sisters. My dad didn't walk up to me and say, son, you know, I've got your brother and I got you. May I have permission to have two daughters? Nope. No, you may not and get rid of my brother. He's ugly. I didn't, they didn't ask permission. Jay just threw them into my family and I was happy without them, but he brought them anyway. You know, that's what they do. Families, you didn't choose. You didn't choose who you're related to. You just are. So what do you do? Fight with them or get along with them. They're your family. They belong to you. They belong to you. And like it or not, I belong to you, but you belong to me. We belong together. Kind of like that little purple dinosaur said, we're all one family. That's a fact. That's not in the gospel, but it's true. So anyway, let's get back to the last question. Let's get back to the Bible, shall we? God gives people a chance to repent. It's not given to one people group. It's given to all. And it's a message designed to save any who would receive it. That's what the apostle Peter said on the day of Pentecost as he was preaching in Acts chapter two, verses 38 and 39, it said, Peter said to them, repent and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. And you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit for the promise is to you and to your children and to all who are afar off as many as the Lord our God will call every nation, every tribe, every tongue, every people are given a clear call to come to God. And the message of salvation is for any and all who believe from every nation. Jesus gave the church the mission of sharing the gospel. He gave the message, he called the messengers and he empowered them to take the message to the world. In Mark 16, 15, he said to them, go into all the world, preach the gospel to every creature. And Acts one eight, you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria to the uttermost parts of the earth to the end of the earth. You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. I think quite a number of believers have failed to say to the Lord God, may your power overwhelm me. May your Holy Spirit come upon me and strengthen me. I believe in the baptism of the Holy Spirit. I believe that God wants to not save me alone but he also wants to fill me with his power. The scripture makes it clear I received power after that the Spirit has come upon me. And I remember when I got saved I was in a Bible study in Lehabra at a friend of mine's house and we were all praying and we were all saying, God fill us with your spirit. Fill us with your spirit. Baptize me in your power. I want everything you have for me. And I remember when I received what is called the baptism of the Holy Spirit and God emboldened my heart and he strengthened me and he gave me a courageous spirit to speak the truth in love. And I believe quite a number of people in the church are attempting to live spiritual lives while quenching the Holy Spirit at the same time. So we wake up and we say, God in Jesus' name today, fill me and use me for your glory. I want to be used by you. And God I want to take this message and share it because it's God's desire to save any who would believe in 1st Timothy 2 verse 4. God desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. And that's the task the church has been assigned. In Romans 10, 14 and 15, how then can they call on the one they have not believed in? How can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent as it is written? How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news? So we take this message and the power of the spirit and Jesus had said that before the end comes, the world is to hear the gospel. In Matthew 24 verse 14, he said, this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, then the end will come. Well, at this time, the gospel has been preached on every continent and within each nation, there remains those who have yet to hear the gospel. So the preaching of the angel reaches those who have not responded to the gospel yet and his message is clear and uncompromising. He's crying to the people of the world. Notice what he says again, verse seven, fear God, give glory to him for the hour of his judgment has come and worship him who made heaven and earth the sea and the springs of water. The message is cried out to the people on earth, bringing unbelievers worldwide to Christ. Notice he says in the message, fear God, give him glory and worship him. Fear God, change your allegiance from the beast, give it to God. The fear God is to live in the conscious awareness of his holiness and his power. It's to be aware of his righteous anger towards sin. It's to live avoiding the habit of sin. You see, the unbeliever has no fear of God within them. Romans 3 18 says of unbelievers that there's no fear of God before their eyes and because they have no fear of God, they yield themselves to all manner of sin. They don't see any reason to fear God. They see no reason to follow him and you see this attitude in the world, you see it all the time. There's no fear of God in them. In Job 21 14 and 15, it says the wicked say to God, depart from us, for we do not desire the knowledge of your ways. Who is the Almighty that we should serve him and what profit do we have if we pray to him? We don't want anything to do with you. We don't want to know your ways. That's what the wicked. There's no fear of God in them. But when you have the fear of the Lord, it leads us to honor and to respect, to love and to worship him. The fear of the Lord is what produces a life of holiness and wisdom as well as security. In 2 Corinthians 7 verse one, Paul said, therefore having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. In Proverbs 1 7, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. So fear the Lord, give him glory. Give him glory instead of giving glory and following the antichrist. To give glory is knowing the greatness of the majesty of God and responding properly. To give glory is the act of assigning dignity, honor, and praise to God. Like it says in Psalm 86 12, I will praise you, oh Lord my God, with all my heart, I will glorify your name forevermore. To worship the Lord is because we know that worshiping God comes because he alone is worthy of honor and praise. And the refusal to give glory to God is the heart of pride and rebellion. In the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon wrote 12 chapters. And in the book, he was speaking, all of us have read Ecclesiastes. He speaks of the vanity of life. He talks about things being vain, whether it was having a lot of money, whether it was having a lot of women drinking or whatever. He said, it's all vanity working hard and all of that. It's all at the end, he said vanity. So he goes through 11 solid chapters of telling us how vain life is. And then he concludes in chapter 12 verse 13 by saying, let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter. And this is it, fear God, keep his commandments. This is man's all. And all the things that I've done and all the things that I know, and this is a man when you read the Bible, you see that he had an ivory throne that was overlaid with gold. That gold during his day was like dust. That he had so much riches and he was known for all of his intelligence and wisdom. He was known for all of these things. But at the very end of his life, he says this is the conclusion of everything. Fear God, keep his commandments. That's all there is to it. Took him 12 chapters to conclude that. Well, why fear God? Because the hour of judgment has come. The opportunity of turning to God will soon no longer be possible. The bold judgments are about to fall upon the earth and after the bold judgments, the return of Christ. So he says, worship him. Worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water. Worship God, who created all things. Worship God, he deserves all glory. Psalm 19 verses one through three says it like this. The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows his hand to work. Day unto day utter speech, night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. Isaiah 40 verses 25 and 26. God says, to whom then will you liken me or to whom shall I be equal? Says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high. See who created these things, who brings out their hosts by number. He calls them all by name, by the greatness of his might and the strength of his power, not one is missing. So worship the judge and creator of all things, not the creation itself. Under such tribulation, people are not repenting, but they are concerned with daily needs. They're pursuing their food, their water, clean air, that they don't see God's hand as he brings judgment. And so now we have another angel, verse eight. Another angel followed saying Babylon is fallen, is fallen that great city because she has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. Now this angel is in preaching good news. This angel is bringing judgment. So that reveals that the first angel's message was ignored by the people. We're gonna see this verse here about Babylon. We'll see more about that when we enter into chapter 18. But as you look at this, people have a question about Babylon because some say that it represents Jerusalem. Others say, no, it's speaking of a literal city, Babylon. And there are others who say, no, Rome is being spoken of here. Well, Babylon most definitely speaks of anti-Christ political, economic, and religious empire. When you read your Bible, you read of Babylon. The first Babylon is mentioned in Genesis and was guilty of rebellion against God. This place was founded by Nimrod, and Nimrod established what is called an organized system of idolatry. When you read in Genesis chapter 10 verses eight through 10, it reads, kush begot Nimrod. The name Nimrod speaks of rebellion. Nimrod means rebellion. He began to be a mighty one on the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the Lord. Therefore, it is said like Nimrod, the mighty hunter before the Lord. The word before can also be in some commentators, would say is the proper translation could be translated against the mighty hunter who is really against the Lord. And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Eric, Akkad, and Colne in the land of China. And so when you read that, you read of Nimrod who established Babel. And you read Genesis chapter 11, and it speaks concerning a tower. And we all know the tower, the tower of Babel. The people built Babel and they built the tower to keep from being scattered over the whole earth. God had said, be fruitful, multiply, and replenish the earth. But a rebellion against that, they said, we need to do this, lest we be scattered. They rejected what God had said there in Babel. So they built a tower. And people when I was younger, especially, I remember hearing people say, how backwards the people were at that time. They thought that they could build a tower that would go all the way to heaven, the throne of God. That's not what this tower was. The tower that's being spoken of isn't a tower that they thought that they could climb stairs to get to heaven. It was a tower that is also translated a ziggurat. And the word ziggurat is speaking of what is called an astrological tower. What they were doing is they were using this astrological tower to chart the stars. And what they began to do is practice astrology. They began to worship the creation rather than the creator. And they rebelled against God. And that's what they did. And so you know the story, what did God do? God judged the people. He confounded their languages and scattered them. But the seeds of idolatry had already germinated in Babylon. And the seeds of idolatry, the fruit of idolatry spread around the world. That's why in Revelation 17, verse five, as we'll see when we get there, that's why Babylon is referred to as mystery. Babylon, mother of harlots. Babylon is called mother of harlots because from Babylon sprang all false religions. You see, in the beginning, man united to reject and rebel against God, but they do it also at the end. And the world will be intoxicated with the Babylonian false religion of antichrist. Revelation 17, two says, the kings of the earth committed fornication and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication. So verse eight, the angel says, Babylon is fallen, is fallen. You see, instead of the wine of the spirit, they drink deeply of her false wine and they're judged. Verse nine, the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, if anyone worships the beast and his image, receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which has poured out full strength into the cup of his indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever and they have no rest day or night who worship the beast and his image and whoever receives the mark of his name. Everyone, as we've already seen, will be required to receive a mark in order to buy or sell. Worshiping the beast and his image demonstrates loyalty and allegiance to the antichrist. So the scripture says those who drank the wine of the harlot will drink of the wrath of God. And the full fury of the wrath of God is expressed in full strength undiluted. They're gonna experience a full fury of God's wrath and it is poured out on them full strength. There'll be no mercy. There'll be no restraint given to those who rejected him. Psalm 75, seven and eight, it is God who judges. He brings one down, he exalts another. In the hand of the Lord is a cup full of foaming wine mixed with spices. He pours it out and all the wicked of the earth drink it down to its very dregs. Notice what happens in verse 10. He shall be tormented with fire and primstone in the presence of the holy angels. They're gonna experience continual and permanent torment in the lake of fire. Matthew 25, 41 says, he will say to those on his left, depart from me, you who are cursed into the eternal fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. Revelation 20 verse 15, if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. They will be banished from God's presence. They will have no fellowship with him. They will have nothing in terms of relationship because they rejected him. I don't know of this particular church. I don't know churches in general. All I know is when I got saved, I was told to share the gospel with people. I was told that the only hope that the world has is Jesus Christ. I haven't changed for 50 years. I still believe that, of course it's true. There's only one hope and that's Jesus Christ. There's only one way to God, that's Jesus Christ. If there's heaven awaiting us, Jesus went to prepare a place for us. And he said, I'll come again, receive you unto myself, that where I am there, you may be also. So I have a hope and I have my rewards. Everything is reserved in heaven. And one of these days, I will see him face to face. That's what I was taught at the beginning. And for 50 years, it's only become more and more certain. And I still remember that was what provoked me to share with my friends. That's why I told people about Jesus Christ. Because there's only two options, either eternal life or eternal judgment. There's only two options. There's not a multitude of options. No, there's no second chances. I've had people say, well, you know, if there's such a thing as reincarnation. Well, the Bible says it's appointed and demanded die once and after this, the judgment. There are no second chances. Well, I'll go into purgatory and then after a while. No, the Bible doesn't speak of any place called purgatory. That doesn't happen. You're not cleansed by fire. You are cleansed by the blood of Christ. And so that is not a true place. And so I'm not gonna give anybody any false hope. There's only Jesus or judgment. And see, I came to faith in Christ. And so I have been set free. That's what the gospel gave to me. Freedom in Christ and the power to live for him. And that's why I share the gospel the way I do. There are people say, oh, you know, you're so opinionated. No, I don't know that that's opinionated. I simply believe what God said. God said it, I believe it, that settles it. The word of God is what it is. It's the truth. He doesn't lie. And therefore, either you go to heaven, or you're gonna be in judgment. That's what he says. And the judgment that is awaiting is not pleasant. In Daniel 12, verse two, it says, many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake some to everlasting life, but some to shame and everlasting contempt. In Mark nine, verses 43 through 48, Jesus speaks of a hand, a foot, an eye that causes you to sin. And then he says, it's better to enter heaven maimed than to be cast into hell fire where the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched. In second Thessalonians one, eight and nine, Paul said, in flaming fire, take in vengeance on those who don't know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power. And that's why I told my dad, you're a good man. The best man I'll ever know, you'll be the best man in hell if you don't give your heart to Christ. Because I believed what God said and that provoked me to have the nerve to tell my father something like that. Why? Because it's true. If you don't have Jesus Christ, you're gonna be judged. Either you have Jesus who pays your price or you pay it yourself, but it will be paid. And this angel and the others are spoken of here. They're speaking concerning what is gonna take place. That everlasting gospel can be believed and Christ can be received. But when they reject him and receive the mark of the antichrist, they are doomed forever. And finally, he says in verses 12 and 13, here is the patience of the saints. Here are those who keep the commandments of God in the faith of Jesus. I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, right, blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. Yes, says the spirit, that they may rest from their labors and their works follow them. Those who have trusted Christ will hold fast to him. They live in obedience to him. The tribulation saints die with an assurance. They hold on to the promises of God. They believed the promise of eternal life and they're blessed. And in verse 13, it says their works follow them. The record of their service to God is honored with reward. Hebrews six, verse 10 says for God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward his name in that you have ministered to the saints and do minister. God doesn't forget the good that you've done and he rewards you accordingly. So heaven is not a reward to us for being good. It is a gift to us for believing in Christ. Rewards come because we have faithfully served him. And ultimately God says, I don't forget what you've done for me and I'll reward you accordingly. So those who don't believe end up being tormented eternally. We don't understand what the word eternity means. If we had a better understanding of it, maybe it would provoke us more. It's like if you went out and started counting all the grains of sand in the world, every beach, every desert, every grain of sand one at a time until you've finished the task of counting every grain of sand that we have on the face of the earth. And then you start again and then you start again. And then you start again, eternity never ends. You can go to heaven. The eternal gospel that gives to you eternal life at God's right hand, our pleasure is forevermore. And you worship him and you praise him and you glorify him. But your other option is to awaken into everlasting contempt. It's a decision you make. Somebody says, oh, God says, no, you chose, you choose. You're given an opportunity, choose life. Yes, Lord, I will follow you. Yes, Lord, I do believe you. And yes, Lord, I wanna be with you and I wanna behold your face and I wanna worship you. That's what we've done as believers, right? We have said yes to God. But even in the midst of all that's going on, there will be people at the end and to the end continue to reject. And we say, how can they do that? Well, they're doing it right now. Some of you are watching right now online and you're doing it right now. You need to get right with God today. And there are some in this room or perhaps in the overflow that aren't right with God. You need to get right with God today because today is the day of salvation.