The Big Show

January 24, 2016                        NOTES NOT EDITED

The Big Idea

The Big Show

Revelation 19:1-10; 1Thess. 4:13-18

SIS—The “Biggest Show” in history takes place when the Lord gathers His people to be with Him for eternity and it could happen at any moment—are you ready?

***In this sermon I am using the metaphor of the “Big Show” to include the entire process from the Rapture, through the tribulation and millennium and continuing into eternity.  My emphasis is not upon the chronology of the End Times, but upon the unimaginable, inexplicable, incredible glory and blessing of being with Jesus forever.*** Join me as we read about this “Big Show.” Rev. 19:1-10.

1.  There is an INVITATION to receive (v. 9; 1Thess. 4:13-18)

⁹ Then he  said to me,  “Write: Those invited
to the marriage feast  of the Lamb are fortunate!”

I’m sure that most of you have received an invitation to attend a wedding.  These are usually very formal and exquisite communications with pretty standard language. But, there are always those that want their invitation to be, well . . . , “special.”  Take Alison and Isaac’s special invitation that read:  “At our wedding we promise you won’t ever forget the parts that you remember!” Sometimes, the job of sending out wedding invitations falls upon the Mother of the Groom.  After reading the following wedding invitation, you might want to rethink whose in charge:  “You are regretfully invited to the wedding between my perfect son, The Doctor, and some Cheap, Two-bit Tramp, whose name escapes me right now.”  I sense a bit of tension at that wedding.  With most wedding invitations a RSVP card is enclosed so one can indicate whether they will attend.  This couple wanted to make sure every possible scenario was covered.  The RSVP card gave these options:  1. Gladly Attend; 2. Regretfully Decline; 3. Resentfully Attend; 4.  Enthusiastically Decline; 5. We Decline to Respond But Ultimately Will Attend.  I was sort of shocked by how many wedding invitations mentioned, “Booze.”  Most of them I cannot print because of language.  One of the most stylish of these invitations, as you would expect would come from Beverly Hills, CA.  It was a simple invitation that read—in big letters across the top—FREE BOOZE!  9.23.2012.  SEE YA THERE!  P.S.  Amanda and Charlie are getting hitched, so slap on a tie!  Now, isn’t that interesting?  The most important event in a couple’s lives, and FREE BOOZE gets top billing and the Bride and Groom are a “post script!”

I hope these wedding invitations assist any of you young folk considering the proper etiquette for announcing your nuptials.

Weddings involve invitations and the Wedding Supper of the Lamb is no different.  Let us read again what John records about this Special Wedding Super:

⁹ Then he  said to me,  “Write: Those invited to the marriage feast  of the Lamb are fortunate!”

This special, heavenly celebration is “By Invitation Only.”  One cannot pay for a ticket.  One cannot sneak in the back way.  One cannot “come because they had friends who were invited.”  Every one must have a “personal invitation from the Lord, the Groom, Himself.”  Well, when does one receive that invitation?  I’ll speak to that in just a moment, but first, let me show you how someone gets on the “Guest List” for this banquet.  Turn over to Revelation 20:12.  Here we have the mention of “God’s Books,” including “The Book of Life,” which is God’s guest list for the “Wedding Supper of the Lamb.”

Now, by the time we get to Revelation 20:12, no more names are being added to that Book.  Nobody else is going to get into heaven at this time or ever again.  This Book of Life will eventually contain all the names of every person ever saved:  all the O.T. saints, all the N.T. saints before the rapture, all those saved through tribulation and all those saved during the millennium.  It is “Heaven’s Guest List” and nobody gets to heaven unless his or her name has been recorded in it.  Some get in the Book sooner.  Some get in later.  Every one God has elected to save WILL get in this Book, or on Heaven’s Guest List.

First, let me explain “how” a person gets on that List.  Romans 8:14-16 describes the only way a person gets on this List:

Therefore, no condemnation  now exists for those in  Christ Jesus,  ^{a 2} because the Spirit’s law of life  in Christ Jesus has set you  free from the law of sin and of death.  ³ What the law could not do  since it was limited  by the flesh,  God did. He condemned sin in the flesh by sending His own Son in flesh like ours  under sin’s domain,  and as a sin offering,  ⁴ in order that the law’s requirement would be accomplished  in us who do not walk according to the flesh  but according to the Spirit. ⁵ For those who live  according to the flesh think about the things of the flesh,  but those who live  according to the Spirit, about the things of the Spirit. ⁶ For the mind-set of the flesh  is death,  but the mind-set of the Spirit is life and peace. ⁷ For the mind-set of the flesh is hostile  to God because it does not submit itself to God’s law, for it is unable to do so. ⁸ Those who are in the flesh  cannot please God. ⁹ You, however, are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, since  the Spirit of God lives in you.  But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ,  he does not belong to Him. ¹⁰ Now if Christ is in you,  the body is dead  because of sin, but the Spirit  is life because of righteousness. ¹¹ And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead  lives in you, then He who raised Christ from the dead will also bring your mortal bodies to life through  His Spirit who lives in you.

The Book of Life records every name of every person who has ever, or will ever, turn from their sins, accept the free gift of salvation offered to all when Jesus died on the cross.  At this moment of repentance, God seals a person’s soul with the Indwelling of the Holy Spirit, and records their name in the Book of Life—the Guest List for Heaven.

Second, let me explain “WHEN” this Invitation to the Wedding Supper of the Lamb will be formally delivered.  Turn to 1Thess. 4:13-18:

¹³ We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, concerning those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve like the rest, who have no hope.  ¹⁴ Since we believe that Jesus died and rose  again,  in the same way God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep through  Jesus.  ¹⁵ For we say this to you by a revelation from the Lord:  ^o We who are still alive at the Lord’s coming  will certainly have no advantage over  those who have fallen asleep.  ¹⁶ For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout,  ^t with the archangel’s  voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ  will rise first. ¹⁷ Then  we who are still alive will be caught up together with them in the clouds  to meet the Lord in the air and so we will always be with the Lord. ¹⁸ Therefore encourage  one another with these words.

This describes what has become known as, “the Rapture.”  Every Bible-believing Christian believes in the “rapture,” or the “Second Coming.”  True believers do NOT deny the rapture; they only disagree on “when” it takes place.  Some believe it takes place “after” the Great Tribulation.  Some believe it takes place “before” the Great Tribulation.  Some believe it takes place at some point during the Tribulation.  Others believe it takes place after the 1000 year reign of Christ on earth, or the millennium.  Some simply admit they have no idea, but are ready as if it could be any minute.  Some . . . just don’t care.

Let me show you why the “rapture” described here in Thessalonians takes place “before” the Great Tribulation, and could take place at any time.  There are some who make no distinction between the “Rapture” and the “Second Coming.”  Some scholars deny the teaching of the “Rapture” as a “Secret Coming.”  Let me dispel that myth.  The Rapture will certainly be no “secret.”  First, God has openly declared it, here in this text and other places.  Second, the removal of millions of people will not escape notice.  Without a doubt, the world will be fully aware the Church is missing.  Many scoffers who heard preaching about the Rapture will know it has happened.  Many will repent.

Now, here are five reasons why the “Rapture” will be the formal deliverance of God’s Invitation to Marriage Supper of the Lamb—before the Tribulation.  There are more evidences for a pretribulational rapture, but time permits mentioning only a few.

1.  Christ comes “in the air,” not to the earth.  At the Second Coming Jesus sets foot on the Mount of Olives (Zech. 14:4) to inaugurate the millennium, after the tribulation, not before as in 1Thess. 4. 

2.  At the Rapture, Jesus comes “for” His saints. 1Thess. 4:17 says we are “snatched away, caught up, or raptured” (harpazō).  At the Second Coming, Jesus comes “with” the saints (Rev. 19:14).  The “Rapture” precedes the tribulation (see 1Thess. 5).  The Second Coming is followed by the Millennium (see Rev. 20:1-3). 

3.  The “raptured” are saved from God’s “hour of wrath” (1Thess. 5:9; Rev. 3:10) (shorter period than the “day” of the Lord, 1Thess. 5).  Those left behind feel the full force of God’s wrath.  For the Church to endure the Great Tribulation would be like Christ beating up His Bride before the Wedding Feast.

4.  Before the Anti-Christ can be revealed a “restrainer must be removed” (2Thess. 2:6-7).  This refers to the Holy Spirit who empowers the Church by indwelling believers.  The Holy Spirit, as God is omnipotent, so this cannot refer to the Holy Spirit, but must refer to His empowering—hence, restraining—work through the Church.

5.  Here’s what I feel is the most important evidence for a “pretribulation rapture”:  it could happen at any time (imminence) without any further prophecies being fulfilled or signs being given.  The Rapture, which initiates the “Day of the Lord,” or the “Seven Years of Tribulation” (1Thess. 5:1-3) will come as a “thief in the night” (5:2).  When was the last time you received a notice from a “thief” that he would be robbing your house on a given day at a given time?  The “Rapture” could happen at any time without any further signs (see Lk. 21:11-28).  The Second Coming comes at the end of the “70^th Week” of Daniel, which represents seven years of tribulation (Dan. 9:20ff).  The Church since Pentecost has always held a belief in the “imminent” (anytime) coming of the Lord (Titus 2:13).  We know that Daniel, Ezekiel, Isaiah, Mark, and especially Revelation, among others, teach that certain signs must be fulfilled before the Second Coming.  Therefore, without a rapture, prophesies and signs must be ignored, or spiritualized.

I could give you more evidence that shows the “rapture” comes before the Great Tribulation, but my main point of this sermon, is:  don’t miss the invitation.  Even if you disagree with my timing of the “Rapture” or “Great Snatching Away,” or “Blessed Hope,” or whatever else you want to call it—DON’T MISS IT!  Accept God’s invitation of grace and get your name on the Guest List for the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.  I would like to add, however, that the “Wedding Feast” in chapter 19 precedes the record of Christ’s coming in Chapter 20.  We had to get there somehow.

Following our theme of “The Big Idea,” which we know will be accompanied by “Big Challenges,” and likely some “Big Failures,” I am referring to entering heaven as the “Big Show.”  This is where God provides an eternal banquet, or party for all eternity.  Notice in 1Thess. 4:17:  “and so we will always be with the Lord.”  The Rapture gets the party started, and God’s grace keeps it going for all eternity!  There’s an “invitation to receive,” but

2.  There is also, a CELEBRATION to enjoy

To be quite blunt and honest with you, I don’t think most church goers are excited about going to heaven—not if you judge by the enthusiasm they show for the things of God on earth.

Oh folks, human language does not have the power to even give a glimpse of the glory and bliss of heaven.  I’ve tried over the years to describe heaven, especially at funerals, but I always feel I miss the mark by a mile.  No human (save Paul, 1Cor. ***) has ever gone to heaven and returned with pictures describing its beauty.  The best I can do is tell you how a “cat” described heaven. 

A cat dies and goes to heaven.  God meets him at the gate and says, 'You have been a good cat all these years. You can have anything you desire, all you have to do is ask.' Well,' said the cat, 'I lived all my life on a farm and had to sleep on hardwood floors.' 'Say no more,' says God and instantly a fluffy pillow appears.  A few days later, six mice are killed in a tragic accident and they go to heaven. God meets them at the gate with the same offer he made to the cat. 'All our life,' the mice say, 'we've had to run. Cats, dogs, women with brooms have chased us. If we had roller skates, we wouldn't have to run any more.  'God says he can take care of it and, instantly, each mouse is fitted with a beautiful pair of tiny roller skates.  A week later God checks on the cat, which is asleep on its pillow. God gently nudges him awake and asks, 'How are you doing? Are you happy here?' 'Never been happier,' says the cat, stretching and yawning. 'And those meals on wheels you've been sending over are great.'

That’s a bad joke, but a bold truth—“heaven will exceed your wildest, grandest, most glorious expecations!” 

What exactly will one miss if they do not believe and are not “caught up” at the rapture?  Let me first tell you what people “will not” miss who miss the rapture—they will not miss the Great Tribulation.  They will not miss the rise of the Antichrist.  They will not miss the requirement to take the mark of the beast or risk starvation.  They will not miss Global War and Global catastrophes.  They will not miss the cataclysmic changes in the cosmos like the moon turning to blood.  They will not miss the death and disaster from world-wide disease, floods, famines, pestilences of all kind.  Those who miss the “rapture” land squarely in seven years of the most calamitous and horrible years on earth!

Human language failed John as he tried to describe the “celebration we will enjoy” at the Wedding Feast.  He saw with his eyes sights his lips could not describe.  In Rev. 19, John lacked a sufficient vocabulary to describe heaven so he used the same word four times:

V1:  Hallelujah!  Salvation, glory, and power belong to our God . . .

V3:  Hallelujah!  Her smoke ascends forever and ever! (Speaking of
        The Harlot (Evil in all its forms) defeated in chapters 17-18).

V4:  Then the 24 elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God, seated on the throne, saying: Amen! Hallelujah!

V 6:  Hallelujah, because our Lord God, the Almighty, has begun to reign!

One Bible scholar calls this the “Hallelujah Chorus” of the Bible.  We all know the power and majesty of the Hallelujah Chorus in Handel’s Messiah.  Here’s the inspiration for that.  It is hard for us as humans to get a grip on this heavenly seen—or more correctly, let this heavenly seen get a grip on us. 

Another N.T. scholar describes this “celebration” in these words:  In 18:20 the heavens and the saints are told to rejoice at God’s judgment of Babylon the Great. That call to celebration is now expanded into a series of “hallelujah” choruses . . . . Only here in the NT does the word Ἁλληλουϊά (Hallēlouia, Hallelujah = praise Yahweh) occur, and it governs 19:1–8. Yet this section, while a single whole, functions both to conclude the major section of the destruction of Babylon the Great (19:1–5) and to introduce the section on Jesus’ return (19:6–8).  Baker Exegetical Commentary.

The point of the “Four-fold Hallelujahs” seem clear to me:  the glorious celebration of the raptured saints is to spectacular to describe by any word but “Hallelujah!”—and that spoken over and over again by saints drunken on the ecstasy of grace!

As we think of “the celebration we will enjoy” at the “Big Show,” let me go back and pick up on how Paul concludes his teaching on the rapture.  In verses 17 and 18 Paul declares:  and so we will always be with the Lord. ¹⁸ Therefore encourage  one another with these words.

For the most part, people do not think much about heaven, until a loved one dies.  At that time, the open wounds of grief long for the soothing balm of hope.  Despair cries out for understanding.  When death pushes us down in distress, our eyes look up to heaven, the new home for our loved ones.  We do ourselves a great disservice as believers if we only think of heaven as a solution to death.  It is much, much, much more than that.  Yet, we cannot explain heaven or what it means to truly celebrate.  All we can do is “imagine.”

And, so it was with the singer and songwriter of the Christian rock band, Mercy Me, Bart Millard.  Regarding the song's meaning, Millard stated: "When my father died of cancer in 1991, he left me with the assurance that he was headed to a better place. For several years following his death, I would find myself writing the phrase 'I can only imagine' on anything I could find. That simple phrase would give me a peace thinking about what my dad was finally experiencing. Years later, in 1999, MercyMe was writing songs for an independent project. I remember coming home from a show and being wide awake on our bus at 2 o'clock in the morning. I was trying to write lyrics in an old notebook of mine, when all of a sudden, I stumbled across that phrase. About ten minutes later, the song was written. Some people say it's amazing that it was written in ten minutes, when really it had been on my heart for almost ten years."

For those of us who attend the Wedding Supper of the Lamb through death or rapture, we can “only imagine” what the celebration will be like.  Mercy Me describes this a lot better than I.  Let’s listen.

[PLAY SONG]

Dear friends, what a celebration there is going to be when we get to heaven.  Maybe it is a bit, “sacrilegious” to refer to God’s glorious heaven as the “Big Show,” or maybe not.  Whatever you call it—don’t miss it!  There’s an invitation to receive and a celebration to enjoy.

Hope to see ‘ya there.