Harvest Time - Revelation 14:14-20

[0:00] Turn to Revelation 14 if you want. We are in the second half of the seven years of Jacob's trouble.! Jacob's trouble of the last days when the 70th week of Daniel, the clock starts again.

[0:17] And once again, the Lord is dealing with the nation of Israel. Once again, He is continuing His plan that He paused because Israel rejected their Messiah.

[0:29] They rejected the spiritual kingdom. And so the physical kingdom did not come. And then the spiritual kingdom, the door was opened to all, to the Gentiles and all who would come in. And because of the long suffering of the Lord, it's been over 2,000 years now.

[0:43] But it doesn't mean that He will not fulfill His promise and continue it with that 70th week to bring about then the physical kingdom. Only after the nation of Israel says, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.

[0:57] And then they take part as well of that spiritual kingdom. More on that in a bit. But anyway, so we're in the second half of this. Chapter 14 is prelude to the harvest. Yeah, we're going to actually get to talk about that today and some of that.

[1:11] We're going to see that chapter 14 is pretty much the events of 15, 16, 17, 18, 19. So the events that will unfold through 15 through 19, 14 kind of gives us that overview, that snapshot of what we're going to see.

[1:25] You know, recently we had just gone through, was it 13? Well, I mean, yes, 13 comes before 14. But 13, yeah, where it's the mark of what we call the mark of the beast. Verse 16, He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand or their foreheads.

[1:42] And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark of the name of the beast or the number of his name. And hear his wisdom. Let him that has understanding count the number of the beast for his number 666, the number of a man.

[1:57] You know, 100 years ago or, well, 200 years ago, but in the 1800s, right, if you said to someone, hey, there's going to be a one-world system of a globalist system of economy and trade, you know, and the guy would be standing there with his beaver pelt and like, well, this thing's still good.

[2:12] I don't know what you're talking about. But today we live in a world where what we read in Scripture is happening right in front of our faces. I don't know if you saw this, but in the UK, the government announces a mandatory digital ID scheme.

[2:23] The UK government has today announced plans, and this was today, this was in September, the end of September, announced plans to roll out a free digital ID scheme branded brick card for all UK citizens and legal residents.

[2:37] The digital ID will become mandatory for right-to-work checks by the end of this parliament. While citizens will not be required to carry it or present it routinely, of course, that would never happen.

[2:49] The ID will reside within individuals' government, gov.uk wallets on their phones, alongside the upcoming digital driver's license.

[3:01] And so what we see in Scripture is not that far off and not that far-fetched as we move towards a time where the technology of the day matches the prophecy of the word as God is bringing his word to pass and as we witness it.

[3:17] It's just crazy when you read about these things. I remember when I was a kid, growing up in Calvary Chapel, going to the different pastors and prophecy conference evenings and stuff, and it was like, you know, well, the ideas they had then are so outdated now, you know, from the 1900s, guys, from the 90s, right?

[3:36] But they're so outdated now when you think of, like, what they said, well, this is what it might look like. The explosion of technology is crazy. But anyway, tonight we're going to look at the harvest. It is harvest time, and it's a very specific time in Scripture, and it'll be a very specific time in history as we read about the harvest here in Revelation 14.

[3:56] So last time we were looking at these 144,000 in Revelation 14 that were standing on the Mount of God with the Lamb there.

[4:08] They were God's marked men. They were undefiled men. They were immovable. They couldn't be bought. And they were essentially ready for a harvest because it says that they were the first fruits of the harvest.

[4:19] It would be the harvest of Israel when God ingathers Israel. And it said, Revelation 14, verses 9 through 10, and the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, if any man worship the beast and his image and receive his mark in their forehead or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation.

[4:46] And he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. We looked at the different cups there were and how Jesus drank the cup of wrath upon sin on our behalf.

[5:00] He drank that cup of God's wrath upon sin. God's wrath is not any longer being poured out upon sin. It was poured out once upon the cross. But we read in John how those that do not believe are already under condemnation.

[5:15] They're already in a position where they have put themselves or not removed themselves from God's wrath by putting their faith in Christ. How we appear before God, how we will appear and stand before God is determined by which cup we choose to drink from.

[5:33] We can choose to drink from the cup of communion, essentially, of the wrath of God poured out on Christ for my behalf. I can drink from that cup or I can refuse that cup. And then it will be a cup, as we read about here, it's a cup of indignation and wrath.

[5:46] Not that God is judging me because of my sin, but because I've rejected the one. I haven't really, but if I did. But if you reject the one that he did judge for sin, then you'll find yourself in a place where you are not able to be removed from God's wrath.

[6:02] 1 Corinthians 10, 16, the cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? Wrath is reserved for those who reject the cup of communion offered by the Lord.

[6:18] And that's where we left off here in 14. We saw where John said, back up in verse 12, he says, and here's the patience of the saints.

[6:31] Here are they that keep the commandments of God and of the faith of Jesus Christ. And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, right, blessed are the dead, which die in the Lord from henceforth.

[6:43] Yea, saith the spirit, that they may rest from their labors and their works do follow them. So man, even in the midst of the worst experience this world will ever have outside of the flood of God's wrath being poured out, even in the midst of that, those who will turn to Christ and will take essentially that cup of communion, even in the midst of that, he says, hey, there's a rest.

[7:04] There's a rest for you. If you remember in Revelation chapter one, it was quite a while ago, verse 19, God kind of lays out the outline for the book of Revelation.

[7:14] And it's good to jump back and just review that. So he said to John, write the things which you have seen. And what has he seen at this point? Revelation 119. We saw the vision of Christ walking among the seven candlesticks.

[7:26] Write what you have seen and the things which are. Well, what are the things which are? Well, those are the seven letters of the churches. It's the church that he's writing to and the things which shall be hereafter. And that's where we're right now.

[7:37] We're reading about things that shall be hereafter. They're not the things that were and which are, but are which are hereafter. And John continues now in verse 14 of Revelation 14.

[7:51] And he says, And then I looked and behold a white cloud. And upon the cloud, one sat like under the son of man, having on his head a golden crown and in his hand a sharp sickle.

[8:02] So Revelation 14 is kind of like the antithesis or the answer almost to Revelation 13. If you remember, Revelation 13 was just like dreary. It's like, oh my word. You know, it's the beast and the false prophet and their system.

[8:16] And it just seems like they're just winning and overcoming. And then Revelation 14, what do we see? We see those that can't be overcome. 144,000. We see that there's the gospel that will go forth into all the world because of the angel that will preach it.

[8:30] And then we see here that God is not indifferent to the wickedness that is taking place on the earth. He says, I behold no white cloud and him that sat on the cloud.

[8:44] The word cloud there and one that sat on the cloud makes you think of what? Well, it's where we are. I've been on Sunday, right? In Exodus. They're led by a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. The cloud will overshadow the cloud of God's presence.

[8:57] It'll overshadow the tabernacle. The cloud that's upon the mount of God when Moses goes up into God's presence. Kind of representing God's presence here. And one like unto the son of man.

[9:08] Well, remember back in Revelation 1 again, verse 13, it talks about, John says, I looked and saw in the midst of the candlesticks one like unto the son of man. Representing Jesus. Jesus referred to himself as the son of man.

[9:21] Is this Jesus? I don't know. Is it an angel? I don't know. I kind of been going back and forth on it and now you'll see why. I think it could very well be an angel.

[9:32] But then it says, like unto the son of man. And that's always seems to be referenced to Jesus. Either way, he seems to be the Lord of the harvest here. He seems to be the one that's brought forth first.

[9:45] First Corinthians 15, 25. It says, For he must reign, speaking of Jesus, till he's put all enemies under his feet. Verse 28. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him that God may be in all, all in all.

[10:06] One of the reasons I would say this might not be Jesus is because he gets his direction from an angel who's ordering about and telling him what to do. And it's like, well, Jesus is the one. He gives direction. But then here it says that when all things have been subdued, then he will subject himself.

[10:19] He will subdue himself unto the Lord, unto God. And so the same Jesus who took upon flesh became subject to a man and a woman couple between Mary and Joseph.

[10:32] I don't think he has any problem subjecting himself to direction from an angel. Either way, whoever this is, he is seated with authority. He has on his head a crown.

[10:43] He's seated with approval here. He's sitting upon the cloud. He's like unto the son of man. He has the approval of heaven in a sense. And he's seated with ability.

[10:54] He's got that sickle in his hand, whoever this is. We're seated, the scripture says. The scripture says that we have a place we're seated, that we have an authority to be seated there.

[11:07] In Ephesians chapter two, verse four says, but God who is rich in mercy for his great love wherewith he loved us. Don't you love the, just the extras that scripture adds.

[11:17] Could you say, but God who is rich in mercy for his love wherewith he loved us, where's great love wherewith he loved us. God loves you greatly, greatly.

[11:28] Not just like, well, God loves you. You know, I love you, right? Like my cat, you know? Yeah, I like you. We love our cat. My daughter loves my cat greatly, her cat greatly.

[11:40] God loves us greatly. Even when we are dead in sins, he loved us greatly. Has quickened us together with Christ. By grace, you're saved. And has raised us up together and made us sit together.

[11:53] Lots of togetherness, guys, in the body of Christ. A lot of togetherness. Sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Heaven is going to be full of people. There's going to be a lot of people there.

[12:05] We're going to be together. You're not going to be sitting up by yourself. Like, man, this is really nice. I was looking forward to some alone time. But whatever fulfillment alone time gives you here, all that heaven supplies there, will meet that need a hundred times more.

[12:23] Has raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus that in the ages to come, he might show the exceeding riches of his grace and his kindness towards us through Christ Jesus.

[12:34] He sits us down to show us his grace and his kindness. It's wonderful. We're not going to be running around in heaven. He's got a place for us. Seated with authority, approval, and ability.

[12:46] And another angel came out of the temple. We've had a bunch of angels here in Revelation 14. Here comes another one out of the temple that's in heaven. Crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud. Thrust in your sickle and reap.

[12:58] For the time has come for you to reap. For the harvest of the earth is ripe. What are some characteristics about a harvest? Harvest. Harvest must be planted.

[13:10] And a harvest must be reaped. Like, those are two very basic things. I mean, it has to grow. It has to mature. The very basic thing about a harvest is it has to be sown and it has to be reaped.

[13:24] And here we see there's no mistaking this message of God's timing. He says, The time. Thrust in your sickle and reap. For the time has come for you to reap.

[13:34] So for the harvester, there was a time to reap. There's a command to reap. So you see there's an ability to reap and he is ready to reap.

[13:44] I like this. I like how he's coming out of the temple. Ready to go. You know, he went to church and he came out equipped. Well, that's not exactly a one-to-one parallel, but he's ready.

[13:56] He's ready. He's coming from God's presence. He's ready. There's a time to reap. There's a command to reap. There's this ability to reap. And then he's ready. He's ready to reap. The thing about God's timing for us, I think, is it always seems too long.

[14:11] God's timing always seems too long for us. And God is doing a work and he's speaking into your life and he's giving you a promise. It's just too long. It's like, Lord, when are you going to move?

[14:23] When are you going to work? And then you look back after he works and you're like, wow, that was fast. God works fast. Lord, when are you going to do the next thing? It's taking so long. The word here for the time has come for you to reap for the harvest of the earth is ripe in verse 15.

[14:40] In the Greek, that word doesn't just mean like it's ready. It actually means it's beyond ripe. It means to be dried up or withered. Where we would look at it and go, God, it took too long.

[14:51] It's all dried up. It's all withered. It's too late. You just think of God's long suffering because this is not a harvest of blessing. This is a harvest of judgment. And God waited and waited until it's like, I can't wait any longer.

[15:06] I got to reap this now. Revelation 6, if you remember, the believers at this time that were being put to death for their faith.

[15:19] In verse 9, it says, and when he'd opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar, and that would be the altar of incense because there's not an altar where of sacrifice because the sacrifice was made. The altar, the souls of them that were slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held.

[15:36] And what did they cry? They crowded with a loud voice saying, how long, oh Lord? How long, oh Lord, holy and true, does thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? Well, here's the answer.

[15:47] How long, oh Lord? Well, God's answering it and saying, the time has come here in verse 15. In Genesis 49, Jacob is giving the prophecies and blessings.

[16:01] Some of them aren't quite great blessings if you're, some of those sons, upon his 12 sons. And in the middle of all that, in verse 18 of Genesis 49, he says, I've waited for your salvation, oh Lord.

[16:13] It's like, it just kind of breaks out with that as he's speaking this prophecy over his son's lives. And it's almost like he kind of sees in a distance like, oh God, you're going to work salvation and you're going to work it through my family.

[16:26] He says, I've waited for your salvation, oh God. Isaiah 40, 31, we all know that verse, they that wait on the Lord. Well, leading up to that, Isaiah 40, 27, God says, why do you say, oh Jacob, and speak, oh Israel, my way is hid from the Lord and my judgment's passed over from my God.

[16:46] Oh God, are you ever going to take care of this situation? Are you ever going to judge? How long, oh Lord? Verse 31, but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.

[16:57] They shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint. That's a lot of promise for one act, just waiting, just waiting, wait upon the Lord.

[17:12] God's timing almost always seems too long for us, but God's timing is just the right amount of time for his promises. God's promises are interesting in that they actually gain credibility and become more sure the longer they stand unfulfilled.

[17:31] The longer God's promise stands unfulfilled, it gains greater credibility and becomes even more sure. So how so? Because we have this history of God's promise. Look at the history of this promise of the Messiah.

[17:43] All of these impossibilities, all of the time the line should have been cut off and yet again and again and again the promise stands and it gains credibility and it becomes more sure. It's like, oh my word.

[17:54] I mean, they killed off everyone of the line of David and then the one dude, Jeconiah, maybe, he was cursed and said, you shall not, one of your seed shall not sit on the throne.

[18:04] Well, there you go. The Messiah can't sit on the throne. Oh, but guess what? God had this whole plan where the royal seed, the legal seed would come through Joseph and through Mary was the family line and it comes together and you have then Mary who, with the virgin birth, that Jesus is not part of that curse and yet he has the legal right to rule.

[18:26] It's crazy. God's promises gain credibility. Ours don't. If you say, hey, I need your help this weekend. Would you, would you, let's say not even this weekend. I need your help sometime.

[18:37] Would you come over and help me cut down a tree and I'll give it to you for your firewood. Say, oh yes, I will be there. I promise. I'll come soon. And a week goes by and another week and a month later you're not thinking, no, I bet his promise is even more sure now and more credible.

[18:54] No, you're like, well, he forgot. He totally forgot. Hebrews 10 36 says, for you have need of patience that after you've done the will of God, you might receive the promise.

[19:06] One of my favorite scriptures after you've done the will of God, we want it in reverse. After we receive the promise, we'll do God's will. God, give me a promise. Tell me how it's going to turn out. I'll do your will.

[19:18] You have need of patience that after you've done the will of God, you might receive the promise. For yet a little while and he that shall come will come. And will not tarry.

[19:29] God's promises gain credibility and are more sure the longer they stand unfulfilled. Second Peter, Peter writes in second Peter chapter three, and I've got a bunch of verses in second Peter.

[19:41] If you want to turn there, you can, I'll put some on the screen. But second Peter chapter three, Peter says, knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers walking after their own lusts, their own fleshly desires, their desires that they want fulfilled now in this life and at this time, saying, where is the promise of his coming?

[20:04] For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation. This world is just going to continue on. Jesus will make it better, but it's always just going to kind of be here.

[20:15] No, this world's going to end in fire and God's going to create a new heavens and a new earth wherein dwells righteousness. Where is the promise of his coming?

[20:26] I don't see it. It's taking long. It's too long. We jump down to verse eight in second Peter. Peter says, but beloved, don't be ignorant. What a message, right?

[20:40] I don't usually say that, right? Guys, don't be ignorant. You don't get a lot of returned people, but beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing that one day is with the Lord is a thousand years and a thousand years is one day.

[20:55] The Lord is not slack concerning his promise. He didn't forget. Like I would have forgot if you asked me to do something and I didn't do it for a month. He didn't forget as some men count slackness, but he is long suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

[21:13] God's promises, which seem delayed, they are for the purpose of his grace, his mercy, and his salvation in our own lives personally. When it seems like God has delayed a promise, he's like, yeah, because the long suffering of the Lord is salvation.

[21:27] Don't be ignorant of this. One day is with the Lord a thousand years and a thousand years is a day. Now, that does not mean that we take a thousand years and try and say, okay, well, there's been, there's seven days of creation and then there's six days and six thousand years because we don't do that in reverse, right?

[21:45] You don't say, well, it says Jesus is going to be in the grave three days and three nights. I bet that means three thousand years. We only ever do it in one direction, right? We say, well, I'm sure a thousand years is like a day and then we try and figure things out based on that.

[21:58] But we don't ever do it in reverse. And if it was true, we'd have to do it in reverse. We'd have to look at days and say, well, it must mean thousands of years. But we don't do that in scripture. So we can't do that in the other direction either.

[22:10] What is he saying here? He's simply saying, guys, what seems like a long time to you, it's not to the Lord. What seems like it's taken thousands of years for God to fulfill his promise and the return of Jesus for his bride to the Lord, he's like, guys, it's only been a couple days.

[22:26] And look at all the harvest I've gathered in in those few days. Nevertheless, 2 Peter 3.13, we, according to his promise, singular, look for a new heaven and a new earth wherein dwells righteousness.

[22:44] Oh, wherefore, my beloved, seeing that you look for such things, be diligent that you may be found of him in peace without spot and blameless. And account that the long suffering of our Lord is salvation, even as our beloved brother Paul, also according to the wisdom given unto him is written unto you.

[23:04] You, therefore, beloved, seeing you know these things before, beware, lest you also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own steadfastness.

[23:16] Your own steadfastness in what? Awaiting God's promise, recognizing that the long suffering of the Lord is salvation, and that as we await his promise, we don't become like those that say, well, where is the promise of his coming?

[23:28] Instead, what do we do? We account the long suffering of the Lord of salvation. We look for such things and in doing so, as another scripture says, we purify ourselves who have this hope in us.

[23:40] So God knows. God knows when his promises are ready to be harvested in his plan for the ages and in my life individually. God knows when his promise is ready to be harvested.

[23:53] Whether I'm looking to the scripture and what it says about his plan for the ages or whether in my own personal life I'm looking for his promise to be fulfilled. I don't look to the promise.

[24:03] I look to the promiser, right? I keep my eyes fixed upon him. And he that sat on the cloud, he thrust in his sickle on the earth and the earth was reaped.

[24:16] The harvest is an ingathering. It's a time of separation and it's finality, right? We don't, not many of us harvest anymore. I don't even have a garden.

[24:27] A few times I had it. It was an interesting experiment, but I didn't get much from it. Just cucumbers. But the harvest, if we were to go out and harvest and we were to take our sickles and we were to go out into the wheat fields, well, there's an ingathering.

[24:41] We're not leaving it there. We're gathering it to somewhere else. There's a separation. We're separating it from where it was and from where it was, who it was with. And it's a finality. Once you harvest it, you don't undo that.

[24:53] So we're going to go put it back. Participation in this harvest is not by choice. But participation in the type of harvest is. This harvest is not a harvest of blessing.

[25:07] It's a harvest of judgment. And it doesn't matter if they want to be a part of it or not. We can choose what type of harvest we want to be a part of. We can be a part of the harvest when Jesus will say, look unto the fields for they are white already to harvest.

[25:22] We can say, yes, Lord, I want to be a part of that harvest. The harvest that the cross has reaped. The harvest of blessing at this point in time in Revelation has already taken place.

[25:34] And because the harvest of blessing has already taken place, all that's left is the harvest of judgment. Second Thessalonians 2 verse 1. Now we beseech you, brethren, Paul writes to the Thessalonians, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and by our gathering together, our ingathering unto him.

[25:51] And he goes on in that chapter. So this time in Revelation 14, the harvest that remains is a harvest of judgment. And an earthly harvest has earthly results.

[26:03] If you would turn over to Matthew 13. Look there real quick. Look at one of the kingdom parables. Which time we got?

[26:14] Okay. We're going to sit here in a minute, Matthew 13. Because before we dive into this, I think it's worth doing some hermeneutics. The basis and structure by which we study scripture.

[26:32] What is our, how do we study scripture? We let the scripture speak for itself. We believe that God said what he meant, wrote what he meant, and that he's able to present that to us.

[26:44] Anybody can understand it in plain English or whatever language the scriptures translated in. But I think it's important that we understand just like on Sundays when we're studying the Old Testament, right? We're in the Old Covenant. We're looking at that through the lens of the New Covenant.

[26:57] We can't just pick out the Old Testament and say, well, God, this is God's word. True. God wrote it. True. True. So I'm only going to study the Old Testament because it's God's word. Well, no, because God has given us further revelation in the fulfillment of the Old Covenant with Jesus in the New Testament, right?

[27:15] So we look at it through the lens of the cross, through the lens of the New Covenant. Be the same thing if we come to the Gospels and we say, wow, look at, look at all the stuff that's in here that Jesus teaches.

[27:25] It's all about Jesus. I'm only going to read the Gospels. I'm just going to pull them out because it's just Jesus. It's all Jesus. Well, yes. But if we don't read the Epistles, many of the things Jesus said, we won't know how to apply them.

[27:40] There are many things that Paul will write about in the Epistles that are not in the Old Testament and they're not even in the Gospels. The church being one of them. Paul calls it a mystery. There's many mysteries.

[27:51] Mystery we think of is like, oh, I need to find clues and figure this out. And scripture just means a secret. Something that can only be known by revelation. So it can only be known if you tell the secret, right?

[28:02] Paul says, the mystery of the church to the Gentiles, that salvation would go to the Gentiles. It's a mystery that was revealed to Paul. Jesus doesn't teach about elders and deacons and he doesn't teach about the ordering of the church and the gifts of the spirit in the church.

[28:16] He doesn't. Paul does. Paul is the one who teaches on that. When we come to the Gospels and we read many of the teachings of Jesus, it's like, well, who are they to?

[28:28] What are they for? When Jesus speaks a parable, is it just to Israel? Is it just to the church? Who's it for?

[28:39] And we can make the mistake that we can look at everything in the Gospels and say, well, it's all the church. We can say, well, it's not kingdom parables, it's church parables. And we can think everything in the Gospels has to do with the church because Jesus is here to bring the new covenant.

[28:55] But Jesus, if you remember, John is going to preach, he's the forerunner to the kingdom. And then Jesus sends out his disciples to preach the gospel of the kingdom. He says, I go and preach the gospel of the kingdom. What does that mean?

[29:07] Well, it means that Jesus is the fulfillment of Daniel where he said that the Messiah will come. When Jesus rode in on that donkey in the triumphal entry, he was bringing the kingdom to Israel.

[29:17] What they did not understand at that time was the kingdom had two parts, had a spiritual aspect and a physical aspect. All Israel wanted at that time, the Jews and the ruling class of Israel, they just wanted the physical kingdom.

[29:29] That's all they wanted. They thought Messiah is only coming for this physical kingdom. They didn't look at the scriptures that said he would give you a new heart and take away your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh, that his word will be written on your heart.

[29:41] When Jesus says to Nicodemus, you must be born again, he's saying, if you want to be part of this kingdom, you've got to be born into it. It's a spiritual thing. Now, if Israel had accepted the spiritual kingdom, then yes, the physical kingdom would have come.

[29:55] They didn't. They rejected it. They rejected the spiritual kingdom. And so, then the physical kingdom didn't come. And then that opened the door, as many of the parables say, we go out into the highways and byways and compel them to come in, that my house might be filled as it opened the door to the Gentiles.

[30:10] Understand that the disciples didn't realize everything about the church right away. They knew on the day of Pentecost that, hey, the Holy Spirit's been given, just like Jesus promised. Yes. But if you look at Peter's sermon, he says, hey, repent, repent and believe that times of refreshing may come.

[30:28] The idea being that he's watching thousands of Jews responding to the gospel, to the good news that you can be part of the spiritual kingdom. And I think in Peter's mind, he thought, Jesus will come back and he'll set up his kingdom now.

[30:42] Wonderful. That's why he was so shocked when he goes and sees the Holy Spirit fall upon the Gentiles with the house of Cornelius. He's blown away and he goes back to the church there in Jerusalem and they're like, I don't know about this.

[30:54] And he's like, listen, salvation has come to the Gentiles. It's not until Paul and the revelation that God gives Paul that we understand, as he says in 1 Corinthians 15, I show you a mystery, a secret.

[31:08] I'm revealing something that you wouldn't know except by revelation. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. And Paul then tells, hey, here's how this resurrection works. Here's what it means when Jesus says, I go and prepare a place for you.

[31:20] And if I go, I'll come again and receive you to myself. The apostles didn't understand that fully until Paul's writing. So I love that section in Peter where Peter goes, hey, I get it now. I get it.

[31:32] I understand it. Paul's writings, they were kind of hard to figure out, but I get it. There's a promise. And there are those that are saying, hey, the Lord delays. You know, they're mocking that, but don't, just because we didn't understand it and see it.

[31:45] So when we read the gospels, and I hope that it helps you when you read the gospels, understand who Jesus is talking to. There's times where he's just teaching his disciples. Yes. And that will then be part of the doctrine that Paul elaborates on that makes the church.

[32:01] The church is not the kingdom of heaven or the kingdom of God. The church is part of the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God. The church has a specific role within the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God, but the church will be taken to the father's house as Jesus promised.

[32:19] But the kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven is still here during those seven years in revelation. It's not here in the presence of the church. The church isn't here as part of that, but anyone can still be part of the spiritual kingdom of God.

[32:33] Just like Jesus said to Nicodemus, you must be born again, Nicodemus, but there was no church at that time. In fact, Jesus doesn't speak of the church until he says, hey, Peter, when Peter says, you are the Christ, the son of the living God.

[32:45] And he says to him, you know, my father, this has not been revealed to you by flesh and blood, but my father, which is in heaven, has revealed this son to you. Upon this rock, I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

[32:58] It's the first time Jesus mentions the church. And then it's not until John 13 and 14 when Judas takes off that Jesus then begins to speak of all of these things of his going away, of his coming back, of the giving of the Holy Spirit.

[33:09] And they're like, what are you talking about? That's when Philip's like, okay, Lord, show us the father and it'll suffice us. Where are you going? Why can't we come?

[33:20] What's going on here? So Jesus, when he is throughout his ministry, he's preaching the gospel of the kingdom. Yes, it's a spiritual kingdom that anyone, Jew and Gentile, can be a part of.

[33:31] Now, because they have rejected that and rejected their Messiah and he was crucified because Israel rejected that kingdom. Yes, now it opens the door to any to come in and all today who are part of God's kingdom are part of the church because the church today in the world is all that is God's kingdom until God removes his church.

[33:52] But the spiritual kingdom will remain. It's not the church. It's not the kingdom. The church is a part of the kingdom. And today, the church is the only means by which God is operating in the kingdom and the spiritual kingdom.

[34:05] I hope that didn't confuse you too much. But who Jesus is speaking to and the purpose of why he's speaking matters greatly. That's why when you read Matthew 24, it's like, well, he's not speaking that to the church.

[34:18] There was no church yet at that time. Jesus hadn't even gone to speak to the church. He's speaking to who? He's speaking to those who will be at that time needing to know what Matthew 24 is talking about.

[34:29] He's answering those questions. What shall be your, what shall be the end of the world? When shall these things be? What shall be the end of the world? And what shall be the sign of your coming? He says, well, here it is. Okay. It's not until John 13, 14, and then the revelation of Paul that he says, oh, by the way, there's this whole interlude that's happening because of the rejection of the Messiah.

[34:48] Because Israel rejected their Messiah. Now there's this whole interlude that's happening within the kingdom of God before God wraps it all up. So here in Matthew 13, it says another parable in verse 24, another parable put he forth unto them saying, the kingdom of heaven.

[35:06] You can't replace that with the church. The church is like unto a man. No, the kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field. Now today, the kingdom of heaven on earth is not physical.

[35:19] It's spiritual. And the only way to be a part of it today is to be part of the church. The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field. But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.

[35:34] Like we said, harvest begins with sowing. And when the blade was sprung up and brought forth fruit, then appear the tares also. So you have the wheat and you have the tares.

[35:45] And I've never planted either. But researching it says that when tares come up, they look just like little baby wheat. And notice here, it's not until he says when they brought forth fruit.

[35:56] So when the wheat begins to bear fruit, we see, oh, the tares aren't. The tares aren't bearing fruit. So we can tell that they're not wheat. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, did you, did you not thou, did not thou sow good seed in your field?

[36:14] When came these tares? I like that. I like that question. Jesus, Lord, master, God, did you sow these evil ones? No, God's not the originator of sin.

[36:26] But God is able to contain and deal with sin. And he said unto them, an enemy has done this. The servants said unto him, will you then that we go and gather them up? And he said, no, lest while you gather up the tares, you root up the wheat with them.

[36:41] Let both grow together until when? Until the harvest. And in the time of harvest, harvest, I will say to the reapers, gather you together first the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barns.

[36:58] So he says, okay, there's a time of harvest and we're going to do this in an ordered way and we're going to clean it all up at that time. We jump down to verse 36. He does a few other parables in there.

[37:08] And then Jesus sent the multitude away. He's speaking this to the multitude. Remember, he's presenting to them the kingdom. They must receive the kingdom, the spiritual kingdom before they can receive the physical kingdom.

[37:19] And then Jesus sends the multitude away. And he went into the house and his disciples came unto him. And I love how it doesn't single them out. It always just says his disciples, but you wonder whose turn it was. Hey, you know what?

[37:31] Simon Zolotus, you don't get a lot of press in scripture. You go ask him. The disciples came unto him and said, declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. They're really stumped by that one.

[37:44] Like, well, Lord, I don't really want to be in a, in a field with a bunch of tares. Notice it doesn't say, and unfortunately it was applied this way many times. Oh, I'm sorry.

[37:55] He's saying it here. Jesus says, he answered and said unto them, he that sows the good seed is the son of man. And the field is what? The world. A lot of times you'll hear people apply that to, well, the field is the church and there'll be believers and unbelievers in the church and you can't tell them apart.

[38:09] No, the field's the world. The field is the world and the good seed are the children of the kingdom. But the tares are the children of the wicked one. The enemy that sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the world and the reapers are the angels.

[38:24] Just like we're reading about in Revelation 14. As therefore, the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in the end of this world. The son of man shall send forth his angels and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend and them which do iniquity.

[38:40] They shall cast them into a furnace of fire and there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their father who has ears to hear, let him hear.

[38:52] And you may say, well, Jared, we got a problem here. It says, I will gather first the tares and bind them to bundle and burn them and then the wheat into my barn.

[39:09] Well, does that mean at this time in Revelation 14 he's gathering the wicked and then he's gonna gather the wheat? Wouldn't that, that's like gathering the church? Is that putting the rapture at the end of the tribulation? Remember what we talked about?

[39:21] Jesus is presenting the gospel of the kingdom. He's not presenting the church. He's not presenting the body of Christ and he's not presenting this unique period once they reject. They have not yet rejected yet.

[39:33] He's saying, this is how the kingdom will work and it will because Jesus will send forth his angels and they will gather them as we're gonna see to the valley of Armageddon. Jesus will return and they will be thrown to the lake of fire and then he will gather his wheat into his barn and those that will shine forth, those that will go into the millennial will shine forth in the kingdom of their father.

[39:53] So it makes sense if we understand the difference between the kingdom and the church and if we understand the difference between Israel and the church. We can't muddy it.

[40:05] So I love the Bible because the Bible tells you what it means if you just read the words. So the kingdom parables and that's what we're reading about now.

[40:15] Jesus says this, he says, hey, there's gonna be a harvest and it's gonna be the reapers and they're gonna be at the end of the age and here we are reading about it, that God's timing, it may seem long, but it's perfect for his promises.

[40:28] Another angel came out of the temple, which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. Turn back to Revelation. So he comes out of heaven, he comes out of the temple, again, having a sharp sickle, sent from worship, sent from the place of worship, ready for work, right?

[40:53] That's what we're to be. Ephesians 4 tells us that we're to be equipped, that God brings us to a place for equipping. We come to the place of worship to go out equipped, till we all come to the unity of the faith, of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

[41:10] And another angel in verse 14 came out from the altar, which had power over fire, and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, thrust in your sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for her grapes are fully ripe.

[41:26] All right, so we had that first, the first angel, or as Jesus, with the sickle, and it says, he reaped, in verse 15, for the harvest of the earth is ripe, is withered, is dried.

[41:37] Now we have this angel coming out from the altar, and it's saying to the angel of verse 17, who came out of the temple with the sickle, the one coming from the altar says, okay, put in your sickle and reap, and now this is a harvest that seems to be different.

[41:50] It's a harvest of grapes, of the cluster of the vine. Another angel came out with power over fire and cried with a loud cry, thrust in your sharpsicle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for her grapes are fully ripe.

[42:07] I like this. It's coming from the altar. Again, what altar? Well, we saw what altar back in Revelation 6, verse 9. It says, when he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God for the testimony which they held.

[42:19] That's not the one where it tells us what the altar is. Revelation 8 tells us it's the altar of incense. So in Revelation 6, 9, it says, under this altar that there's the souls of those that were slain for the word of God and the testimony which they held.

[42:34] Revelation 8, 3-4 says that another angel came and he had a golden censer and then he took the incense from off the altar which were the prayers of the saints. And so here we have an angel coming out from the altar which I think is kind of cool.

[42:50] It means he was there with those slain souls that were waiting there. The altar of incense represents prayer. So we hear that prayer does not just equip the saints.

[43:01] I mean, we pray and God equips us but it also is instrumental in moving forward the plans and purposes of heaven. Here is this altar of incense where the prayers of the saints are being offered.

[43:12] We see it releases God's judgment and here we see this angel coming out with the authority there. I don't think we realize how instrumental our prayers will be in God's plan today and in the future.

[43:27] These prayers that we pray the prayers we pray essentially God's saying yeah, I got them all stored up. I got them all stored up and there's a time for them. Daniel 10 Daniel 10 Daniel's had a vision and he essentially takes time he wants to seek and he wants to know what this vision is.

[43:45] And he's praying and in the process of that he falls asleep because he sees this vision he sees this vision of Jesus that pretty much matches what we see in Revelation 1 and it says all those that were with him didn't see the vision but they trembled and fell down and I mean they trembled and fled and he alone is there.

[44:02] He sees this vision he wants to know what it is and in seeking he falls asleep. And one comes and touches him an angel and says to him fear not Daniel for from the first day that you did set your heart to understand and to chasten yourself before your God your words were heard and I am come for your words but the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one in twenty days would be the the spiritual entity that would be the one ruling over Persia in the powers of wickedness and darkness and wickedness in high places.

[44:39] But lo Michael one of the chief princes came to help me and I remained there with the kings of Persia. So little did Daniel know when he was just praying like God just give me understanding like he's moving things in the spiritual realm and the battles that are taking place he's totally moving them where he says hey from the first time from the day you began to pray I don't know how long was he praying?

[45:01] three days five days a week this was that first day it was determined to come to you but there was a battle to get here our prayers are instrumental in moving forward the plans and purposes of heaven and here it says at this time that this cluster of the earth is fully ripe that means it's bursting it means like these grapes are so ripe that any riper and they would burst they'd be rotten bursting with sin and with judgment you know the minor prophets speak in spades about this time that we're reading about in Revelation Joel chapter 3 verses 12 through 14 says let the heathen be wakened and come come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about put you in the sickle for the harvest is ripe come get you down for the press the wine press is full the fats overflow for their wickedness is great multitudes multitudes in the valley of decision for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision

[46:07] Revelation 16 6 elaborating on what we're reading about here it says he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon the valley of Megiddo as you stand up on Mount Hermon Carmel the one that Elijah went on I knew it was the one Elijah went on I can't remember the name he looked down over that valley again Revelation 14 is this wide angle lens and the events that follow in Revelation 15 through 19 will zoom in on God alone knows when the fruit of sin is ripe for a harvest God alone knows when it's time for judgment remember he said to Abraham when he put him to sleep and he he makes that covenant with him the unilateral covenant and he says hey I'm gonna take your people into a nation where they're gonna be under bondage I'm gonna bring them again he says but it's not time yet for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full God alone knows when it's the fruit of sin is ripe for judgment we can look around us and go God it is ripe for judgment the fruit of sin man

[47:11] God you need you need to put that sickle in and just swipe it and the angel in verse 19 thrust his sickle into the earth and he gathered the vine of the earth and he cast it in the great winepress of the wrath of God as we just read about in Joel there is a specific time and a specific place and a specific event where God's wrath is poured out upon this earth there was a time place and event where God's wrath was poured out upon sin it was the cross God poured out all of his wrath upon the cross Isaiah 53 6 we've turned everyone to our own way but the Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all the Lord poured out that wrath on that specific time that specific place that specific event when God knew it was time to reap a harvest harvest of our souls but there's also a specific time and place and event where God's wrath is poured out upon this earth for those who've rejected the cross those who have rejected the judgment that God poured upon sin and there will be a time a place and event where God says okay

[48:18] I'm going to wrap this whole thing up Psalm 2 why do the heathen rage and the people imagine vain things they say let us break their bands of sundown cast away the cords from us says he that sits in the heavens shall laugh the Lord shall have them in derision then shall he speak unto them in his wrath and vex them in his sore displeasure because there are those that say cast off this God cast this off God laughs so there's a time Psalm 58 verses 10 through 11 the righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked so that a man shall say verily there is a reward for the righteous verily there is a God that judges in the earth not probably not a verse we're going to turn into a worship song you know he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked probably not what's the idea here there is a reward for the righteous God is not slack concerning his promises there is a God that judges in the earth if there's not justice beyond this life there's not a judgment and a reckoning then we live in just frustration we live we have this idea within us of justice but there is no justice there is justice all will stand before

[49:37] God and answer those who've done atrocities in this world and have killed countless thousands millions people that have led regimes that have done that and then they just commit suicide you think they got away with it no they will be judged there is justice and the winepress verse 20 as we finish this it was trodden without the city and blood came out of the winepress even under the horse's bridles by the space of 1,600 furlongs 1,600 furlongs is 200 miles I don't know if that's in a straight line or if that's a radius around Jerusalem but they will be gathered to Jerusalem and when the Lord returns as we were going to like I said 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, each of these events will play out and when he comes it says that the blood will come out of the winepress all nations shall gather against Jerusalem not for their destruction but for their judgment not for Jerusalem's destruction and not for even the destruction of these people but for their judgment and there is no ability here to resist this he will gather them and say well I don't want to go

[50:43] I'm not going to go there no he will gather them he will draw them to the valley of decision no ability to resist and essentially if they will not be bathed by blood then they're going to be bathed in blood right Zechariah 12 verse 1 through 4 the burden of the word of the Lord for Israel saith the Lord which stretches forth the heavens and lays the foundation of the earth and forms the spirit of man within him behold I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem and in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it and though they make some everlasting peace!

[51:32] covenant and name it that in that day saith the Lord I will smite every horse with astonishment and his rider with madness and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah and I will smite every horse of the people with blindness man you want to understand Revelation read the minor prophets what about us what about us who are we what are we why are we here and we're part of God's kingdom we're part of the spiritual kingdom the kingdom of God comes not by observation for the kingdom of God is within you we are part of his kingdom but even greater than that we are part of his body part of his church and part of his bride is what we are God's kingdom will come and will be established physically yes at some point right now we are part of a kingdom and we are part of those that are sent out not to reap a harvest of judgment but to reap a harvest of grace the salvation Luke 21 28 Jesus is speaking about all those things we talked about in

[52:34] Matthew 24 what are the signs of the times of the end he's not speaking to the church he's speaking to those who will be here at this time who will see the abomination of desolation he says when these things the wars and the rumors of wars and the pestilence when they begin to come to pass then look up lift up your heads for your redemption draws nigh yes because Jesus is coming physically to the earth but if at that time Jesus is saying when these things begin to come to pass look up then how much more for us who are already seeing those things that are going to take place in that seven years how much more should we be looking up for our redemption which draws near as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15 I show you a mystery I give you a secret so in the meantime what harvest will we be reaping what harvest will be reaped from our lives he that sows of the flesh love the flesh reap corruption he that sows of the spirit shall love the spirit reap everlasting life and let us not be weary in well doing for in due season the time to reap we shall reap if we faint not but that's where that patience comes in

[53:39] God I've I've been sowing and sowing and waiting and Hebrews 10 35 cast not away therefore your confidence which has great recompense of reward for you have need of patience that after you've done the will of God you might receive the promise don't cast it away your confidence because you don't see what you would expect to see in the time frame you'd expect to see it for yet a little while and he that shall come will come and will not tarry and then in John 4 35 Jesus says say not that there are yet four months and then comes harvest behold I say and you lift up your eyes and look on the fields for they are white all ready to harvest I don't need to worry about God's harvest of judgment he didn't ask me to go out with his sickle he's got angels!

[54:33] that are going to do! it's not for me to determine when that tare is ready to be reaped it's not for me to decide you know squeezing those grapes of wrath is it time he knows that's not the harvest I'm to be a part of and he that reaps receives wages and gathers fruit unto life eternal that both he that sows and he that reaps may rejoice together I don't know what part we but let's go forth like that angel equipped right let's go forth with our sickles of salvation and be ready to reap the harvest that God has for us right amen Lord thank you so much for your word thank you for these promises Lord Lord where would we be without your promises where would we be without this promise Lord that Lord this world isn't all there is Lord as Paul says if in this world only we have faith then we are among most men among all men most miserable if only in this life we have salvation then we are among all men most miserable

[55:43] Lord you've promised us something so much greater as Peter said a new heavens and a new earth where indwells righteousness you've promised us a trip to the father's house you've promised us Lord the kingdom part of your kingdom Lord we want to do what we can to be part of that in gathering Lord we want as many as we can bring Lord with us that's why we're here that's why we're doing this church Lord Lord that's my heart I see it as a storehouse Lord to bring in as many as much fruit as we can Lord to your account not to ours Lord to be able to show up and say Lord look at all that we brought oh my word Lord they will not be part of the harvest of judgment because they've been part of this harvest unto life Lord thank you for that Lord we look forward to the day when we are seated with you Lord enjoying your presence and your kindness for eternity until then Lord let us be about your business patiently awaiting your promises and equipped to do your work and in

[56:46] Jesus name amen amen