His Perfect Love

Guest (Male): Pastor Matt Vandervan has us think for a moment about the glory of heaven and being with Jesus.

Matt VanderVen: Maybe you daydream of what you wanted to be when you were a big big boy, big girl, you know, older. You ever daydream what it's going to be like to never be separated from Jesus Christ again? Just just to have your hand uh literally intertwined with his and to be walking and strolling with him like it was originally in the garden when it's perfected and there's no more sin, there's no more uh deceit, there's no more masks, and it's just going to be pure and holy and it's going to be you and Jesus walking hand in hand.

Guest (Male): The book of Revelation describes 144,000 saved, divinely protected Jews that will be around during the great tribulation and used by God as evangelists. Not even the Antichrist can touch them. We'll hear more about them today on his perfect love as we go deeper into Revelation chapter 14, but we also get a good picture of what it's going to be like at the second coming of Jesus here, too. If you're a believer, you'll get to witness this firsthand. Here's Pastor Matt Vandervan with more.

Matt VanderVen: John sees on Mount Zion again a preview of the return of Christ. That's what we're supposed to see here in chapter 14, but again we as I mentioned, this doesn't happen until chapter 19 when Christ actually comes to the earth after the 7 years of tribulation are over and that's when the battle of Armageddon happens and Jesus then comes uh certainly to Mount Zion, specifically the Mount of Olives. Cuz remember, Mount Zion links what again? Over 160 times. When you see Mount Zion and you read it from now on other than the two distinctive times, what are you going to take Mount Zion as?

Jerusalem, very good. So you know that's exactly how it's used in the scriptures. So if you see that it says that basically it's going to happen directly in Israel and specifically we read in other passages that Jesus is going to physically touch down on what mount? The Mount of Olives, right? The Mount of Olives. And oh by the way, we'll see that firsthand because Revelation 19 says we, the bride of Christ who have been raptured out at that point, we will return with Jesus for the 1,000 year millennial reign. How many of you been to Israel?

Okay, 2 3 4 5 5 out of you know whatever, a couple hundred, whatever it is. Guess what? Every one of you is going to get to Israel. Had you ever think about that? We call it the rapture plan, right? You're going to go up, you're going to come back down. You're all going to get to go to Israel, you're all going to get to check it out uh and it's going to be and your tour guide's going to be none other than Jesus Christ himself. Amen? And for those that went to Israel already, what a blessing, huh?

That's a blessing of a lifetime to be able to go to Israel in this in the to be alive now and do that. I encourage everybody if you have the means and the the the ability and maybe even I've I've talked to Pastor Bill about this in years past. I've said maybe we ought to plan you know a trip and then with COVID they shut things down and now it looks like they're opening things back up for travel, so and they have been I think for the last year or two, so maybe we need to plan a trip to see how many people would want to go to Israel from the fellowship and take a trip over there.

Well, John sees 144,000 having his father's name written on their forehead standing with Jesus. Again, this isn't the first time we're introduced to this 144,000. We were introduced to them back in chapter 7 and just as a summary back in chapter 7, 144,000 we're told in verse 3 of chapter 7 that they were what? Sealed by God, right? They had some kind of seal on their forehead and now we're given additional information in this passage, verse 1 through 5 concerning the 144,000, right? They have their father's name, so we knew they were sealed on their forehead, we didn't know how.

Now chapter 14 gives us the deal. They actually have God. They have their father's name written on their foreheads. It may be Yahweh, it may be Yah, it may be Adonai. I don't know, but they have it written there. There's so many different names God uses. Maybe I am, but it's written on their foreheads and it's sealed meaning what? What is God telling us about this in chapter 14? They're divinely protected with the name of God written across their forehead. Why is that significant? Because we already read that the Antichrist wants to kill all of those in Jerusalem, Israel at that time.

He wants to slaughter all of the Jews, he wants to slaughter all of the people. Somehow supernaturally God seals it and they're untouchable by the enemy, by Satan himself, the dragon. He can't get to them. So something to remember, friends, God always leaves a what? Or always allows for a remnant. A remnant. You're never alone. Remember Remember Elijah? I am the only one and God said Elijah, you're not the only one. There's like 8 or 9,000 like you're not the only one. Well, back in chapter 7 verse 3 he also referred to them as servants of God and they were from all of the tribes of Israel, which means they're what?

Jewish. They're Jewish, right? So again, these are Jewish men while all the other men are fleeing Jerusalem and women and children and going to the rock city of Petra or to the wilderness. These 144,000, right? This is looking forward at the end of the 42 months they will be standing with Jesus. It says very clear, they follow Jesus wherever he goes, these 144,000 go with him. All right? And it's it's basically 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes and we again identified them as Jewish believers of Jesus, of of Messiah and um they're going to be there for the great tribulation and then when Jesus comes back they actually meet Jesus because remember they're there in chapter 7 and we don't read anything about them being removed.

They have survived the whole 7 year great tribulation, if you will, okay? And they're there with the 144,000 when Jesus comes and he comes down to touch down the Perusia, they meet him right at the Mount of Olives at the very same time. We're going to see that. We're going to see it as we're coming down. We I I don't know if we'll be able to register that or if it'll just be in like when we go up a twinkling of an eye as it says, but when we come down, whether we're able to process that or not and we're down, we're going to see Jesus.

Obviously we just been at the wedding feast of the Lamb with him and then all of a sudden we're going to put you and then we're going to see 144,000 and we're going to be on the Mount of Olives with him. This this is amazing. This is this will be so. It will be just like it's written. It's wonderful we have this kind of detail in our Bibles and and know exactly what's going to happen even though we're not going to be on earth for that great tribulation. So they're divinely protected by God. He sealed them, he's identified them as belonging to him and again, these seem to be Jews that get saved during the great tribulation.

They put their faith and trust in Jesus. God uses them as like evangelists proclaiming uh the good news of Jesus to a lost and dying world at that time in the great tribulation and he gives us additional detail in verse 4 here. These are the ones who were not the followed women, for they are virgins. They are the ones follow that follow them wherever he goes. These were redeemed. That's how we know where they were saved, okay? From among men being the first fruits to God and to the Lamb speaking obviously in the great tribulation.

We know Jesus Christ was the first fruits of the resurrection. We know that there are many people that have died and been resurrected since. It's been 2,000 years. This is talking about during the great tribulation. These men are going to get saved. That's what redeemed means. Right? So they're going to be redeemed. Redeemed explains or connotes a purchase price. What was the purchase price? The blood. The blood of Jesus Christ on Calvary that has bought them. Their blood bought. Right? It's it's an illegal term, too. It's illegal and you know redeeming. What does that mean?

It's it's originally I don't know if it's used today in legal courts, but it was a legal term, right? Just like justification is a legal term. And so well it can also be an accounting term, by the way. But that's what he 's telling us and now this is interesting cuz these details many will just take this flat out and say okay literally they're virgins, they they were not defiled by women, so that indicates to us that obviously these are what? Men. Every everybody with me on that? Cuz God would never say it's okay for a homosexual relationship that con- contradicts the word of God.

So we know that these are 144,000 men because they have not touched a woman. Everybody with me? So this is how we know gender, right? The God gives us gender, but there's been a debate especially in the last uh 5 to 10 years about whether they actually have ever uh had intercourse or sex or whether they you know idea of these virgins is speaking to the spiritual aspect more than the physical. Some have really tried to come back and say you know is this more figurative? You know I I can say we don't know. I I take it literal, but I think there's several examples.

Uh I always lean towards more of the literal unless I am told different like the communication like or as. Isaiah chapter 37 verse 22 is referred to as the virgin daughter of Zion. So I understand that I could use and look at scripture where I could take it more symbolic because I see it in scripture where God has used that very same term, my virgin, my virgin bride, and he used that for Israel. Certainly the nation of Israel all of them were not virgin, right? Without intercourse or sex or marital relationship. So I know that there's a possibility for that.

I just want to point that out to you because I don't want you to hear that somewhere else and be like oh you know apologetically I'd never been taught that or that's never been shared. I want you to see this in the word of God. I want you to consider it. I want you to look back at all of scripture and be able to say okay we have seen this and yes, it has been used in a figurative way and it has been used in a literal way. I can't tell you I tend to personally you be Bereans, I tend to lean towards the more literal because I think at that time there's no distraction that way.

I tend to lean more towards literal, but I can't discount and if somebody says well that was just in the Old Testament they don't know their Bibles because 2 Corinthians chapter 11 verse 2 Paul talks about he longs to be present with the church of Christ as a virgin daughter. Right? Uh you see the reference is both in the old in the Old Testament and the New Testament figuratively. So uh I just tend to believe it's more of literal, not figurative because I think it possibly either way we know it's talking about the purity of these 144 Jewish believers that are merely morally pure before God.

It doesn't mean that they were not um doesn't mean that they're all necessarily single either. It doesn't mean that they weren't married. It doesn't mean you know it could be the spiritual, but I just I take it literal because I don't see anyone here where it says these are the ones who were not defiled. There's no Greek or English that makes me take this construction as a like or as statement. Do you understand like a simile, a metaphor, or figuratively? I also want to just say I'm not you know Lord I don't want to ever misrepresent you.

I don't want to get it wrong. If I don't know I'm going to stand up before you and say I don't know. I'm taking this literal because it's written literal. It also tells us here in chapter 14 that they were redeemed from among men means they were saved, they were brought out of the you know uh through the great tribulation because of their faith in Jesus Christ. Verse 3 talked about that. Uh they were redeemed tells us there's no deceit was in their mouth, there was nothing about them that was compromised in their speech. Very important.

One of the things that is a distinctive of the purity or the morality of what they're saying is they're not liars. Their speech pattern is consistent. They say what they mean, they mean what they say. I think that's a good word for us today, right? We're being conformed into the image of Jesus Christ. There is no such thing as a I've heard it said as a shades of gray, a lie, a white lie, uh some kind of a lie that's good because sometimes you don't want to hurt other people's feelings. Sometimes the most loving thing you can do is look somebody directly in the eyes and tell them that's not true.

This person is fabricating or you're fabricating, be honest or you know whatever and a lot of times that is really hard, isn't it? When you've had to either deal with yourself right uh in that situation where you're like why did I say that? I didn't properly represent that whether it 's the sin of omission or commission, either way, right? And then there's the other aspect when you're sitting across from somebody that you know frankly is just lying to you, whether that's through their speech cuz God teaches us just like we see here, speech is a pattern and speech will betray.

Right? Speech always betray. Speech shows the true agenda of the what? He told us Jesus says you want to know the heart, you want to know the mind, what do you look at? The tongue. He says James says it's like a rudder that goes back and forth and can't find its bearing. In other words, I am paraphrasing, he's saying the point is is it just comes out. If you just give somebody the opportunity so often that's why there's laws in even our country and Europe and other places that you're not allowed to do what? Incriminate your self.

Because the the reality is given the opportunity most of the time if you allow somebody to talk long enough you will find out what they real what the real agenda is. And oh by the way, that's not a bad thing to understand what people really mean and what they're really saying to you. It's very helpful. Uh the point is is there should be purity, there should not be any lying. Uh some of your translations maybe somebody has a translation here. You may see in your translation it says blameless. Maybe you're using a translation. It doesn't mean when it says blameless just like other places in the scripture uh it it's not saying that they were sinless or without fault.

I mean to be blameless means as as if you look it up in a lexicon, it means to be living a life that is redeemed by Jesus and thus we stand before God without fault. That's what blameless means in our New Testament. It doesn't mean that you are not without blame, you have not sinned, you have not done any of these things. That that's never what it's meant. It means that now because you have been washed by the blood of the Lamb you are in fact blameless. Uh to say anything otherwise would be to misrepresent God and basically call him a liar because God said it was finished on the cross and 1 John chapter 1 9 he says anybody that comes to him he's he's faithful and he's just to forgive them of all unrighteousness, which means once there's repentance and that's the key then there is the washing and the cleansing and the removing of the sin and it's not it's never there again.

You can't see it, you can't find it, he can't see it, and he can't find it. And if God can't see it and can't find it, you certainly be able to see it or find it. Amen? That's that's the beauty of mercy and grace. That's the whole ministry. Now again we're not take advantage of that, but that's the reality is that every one of us in here that truly is born again we're going to stand before a Jesus faultless and again that doesn't mean we're sinless. It means that our sin is no longer held against us because of the work that Christ has done on the cross.

So we stand faultless before the throne because of Christ's righteousness. That's what he's saying of the 144,000. He's not saying that they have never ever sinned, they've never you know that that's it's not that they didn't need Jesus. See that's where you get into that. Remember I said the attacks always come into the church to the word of God when it either attacks the divinity or the humanity of Christ. Those are the throughout the ages. That's where the attacks come in on doctrine and or uh the the church is the body, right? Or even the nation of Israel.

It's to undermine first of all you don't need anybody else. You can be your own savior. That's ultimately what Satan is always trying to propagate, which is a flat out lie and leads people right to the pit of hell. When these 144,000 Jews got redeemed there's not one of them that are going to stand with Christ and go I did it my way or I did it on my own. No, they're going to realize they were washed by the blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ, and they realized their sin just like no different than you and I today.

You know everybody you know Billy Joel wrote a song about I think it was masks or the different things you know people put on. Every single human puts on something. Every human does and they do that through insecurity, they do that through pride, they do that through several motivations. When they were children there's a psychological aspect to why people would do that because maybe they were hurt, maybe they were embarrassed, maybe their family member, a teacher, somebody like that put them down. All kinds of things like that had trauma. Right? All of these things back into the fundamental development and the brain chemistry of who you are today.

And to pretend that 's not real defies science. It just defies science because I can hook any one of you up to an an MRI and scan your brain and I can show you visual cues or representations and if it's traumatic for you it will light up that part of your lobe and it's not a matter. Just like I can take someone that is homosexual and I can put that same scan on them and guess what it'll do. When I show them a picture of a male guess what doesn't light up? If it's a man.

It doesn't light up the cortex, it doesn't light up the temporal, it it doesn't light up the frontal, it doesn't light up any of that. Interestingly enough I take a picture of a woman and it will even for a man that can pass a polygraph test We're thankful for the listeners that come alongside of us with their prayers and financial support. If you're interested in supporting this radio ministry there's a place to do that at hisperfectlove.org. Together we can reach people with the love and truth of God in these last days. Pastor Matt loves to hear from his listeners.

Even just a quick hello telling him where you hear the program and how you're blessed by it means a lot. Email us there at the website hisperfectlove.org and whether you live in or around Mechanicsburg, PA or we'll be visiting the area soon we'd love to have you join us for a service at Calvary Chapel Harrisburg West Shore. Sunday morning services begin at 8:30 and 10:30. We have a midweek service, too, Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. You'll find us at 28 North Locust Point Road in Mechanicsburg, PA. Go to ccherisburg.org for more information. Well, that'll do it for today, but come back next time when Pastor Matt will again study the book of Revelation with us here on his perfect love.

Guest (Male): His perfect love is brought to you by Calvary Chapel Harrisburg West Shore.