Zephaniah chapter 3, as we continue going through this book. Josiah is the king. He became king at a very young age. I believe with many scholars that Zephaniah the prophet discipled young king Josiah because he was a very godly boy and became a very godly king. And he saw the wretchedness and the rebellion, the idolatry that was all throughout the southern kingdom of Judah where he was king.
And he instituted. And it was very successful. At reforming the nation spiritually and religiously, taking down all the high places and the shrines and the idol temples that had sprung up all over the place and purging the synagogues and the meeting places of the Baal worship. You see, that's always a challenge in Christendom and throughout the ages: that the world will bring false doctrines and false concepts into the true church. The scholars called it the Jehovah Baal cult because they tried to synchronize sensual, sinful, indulgent Baal worship with Orthodox Yahweh or Jehovah worship.
So Josiah's trying to clean all this up and did a great job. But one thing a king, despite all of his grand and noble efforts, cannot do is change the hearts of the people.
So though he did great reforms, a lot of the people were still in rebellion. Still in sin. And so it begi it became, it was too little, too late.
So, God has promised severe judgment on the southern kingdom of Judah. You remember there's two kingdoms now, they're split. Ten tribes went to the north. It's called Israel. Their capital is Sumeria.
Judah and Benjamin. They're the kingdom of the south called Judah. Their capital is still Jerusalem. Generally speaking, Judah was considered the godly remnant. But we find out.
The whole nation of Judah was not the godly remnant. There was a true godly remnant within the remnant of Judah. And that's what we're going to get to today. Pronouncements. these glorious pronouncements to the remnant the true godly believers within the professing nation of Judah.
Which again, what a parallel to our day. Is it not true that in professing Christendom there's a godly remnant? Of true converts, true believers. But then on the whole Brothers and sisters, most of the members of most of our churches are not God's children. There's no fruit.
There's no evidence of true conversion. Doesn't mean they're not nice folks and good neighbors. But they're not gods. But there is a godly remnant scattered out among So many Denominations and types of churches.
Well, here's the way the prophet speaks as we get to Zephaniah chapter 3. Verses one or fourteen rather through seventeen a. Zephaniah chapter 3. Verses 14 through 17a. And I have no idea how far I'll get this morning.
Boy, I got into the flow. I got up Saturday and thought, man, I'll have this wrapped up in another hour of study. And about six or seven hours later, I was still wrestling with this 900-pound gorilla called Zephaniah, chapter 3. But it was a good wrestling. It was a blessing.
Okay, here's what the prophet says, Zephaniah 3:14. Shout for joy, O daughter of Zion. Shout in triumph, O Israel. Rejoice and exalt with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. Why?
Verse 15. The Lord has taken away his judgments against you and has cleared away your enemies. The king of Israel. The Lord Yahweh is in your midst. You will fear disaster no more.
In that day, this is a coming future day, the prophet's talking about for the remnant of Judah. In that day, it will be said to Jerusalem: Do not be afraid, O Zion. Do not let your hands fall limp. The Lord your God is in your midst. A victorious Warrior.
Wow. I've entitled this exposition Unimaginable. Joy. Unimaginable. Joy.
Now You begin, Zephaniah. Was some of the most harsh. Terrible? Horrific pronouncements of judgment. For example, back in Zephaniah chapter 1, verses 2 and 3.
I will completely remove all things from the face of the earth, declares the Lord. That's pretty. Drastic, is it not? All things. I will remove man and beast.
I will remove the birds of the sky and the fish of the sea. and the ruins along with the wicked. And I will cut off man from the face of the earth, declares the Lord. Again, when you look at Old Testament prophecies, there's usually more than one prophetic destination for that prophecy. This was partially fulfilled.
in the day in which these people lived. particularly the Babylonian invasion and taking them into captivity. But the wording does not let us end there. Its ultimate fulfillment is way yet out in eschatology in times. Even before us, there's coming a global, devastating judgment.
Then you come to the end of Zephaniah, where we are now. And you have the most glorious, unimaginable descriptions of joy. What a contrast He says, Ephania was a faithful preacher. He didn't preach one thing to make the people happy. This makes the people happy.
Chapter 3. Chapter 1 did not make the people happy. What's the point? You preach the truth. You preach the truth.
Bailey quotes in his commentary another scholar by the name of Robertson and says this. One of the most awesome descriptions of wrath in all of the Bible is found. in the opening verses of Zephaniah. And then one of the most moving descriptions of the love of God for his people found anywhere in Scripture appears in the closing verses. Zephaniah.
So we've had choice. That in our God for his covenant children. The ones he's writing to here, the godly remnant within Judah. The last verse, the last word from God is never judgment. The Bible reminds us in Psalm 30, verse 5, For his anger is but for a moment, his favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may last for the night, but a shout of joy comes in the morning. Child of God, listen to me. It doesn't matter how dark the night season you're in, how difficult the trial you bear, there is joy coming in the morning. There's always a morning waiting for the child of God. You may go to your deathbed reeked with pain and the horrors of some terrible disease, but the moment you take your last breath here, you'll take it in inexpressible joy in the presence of God just a moment later.
You see, joy comes in the morning. It's a figure of speech, of course, but what a beautiful metaphor of a long, harsh, difficult night. Are you sometimes tormented in the watch hours of the night? I don't know. I think it may come along with being called to preach and being faithful in the things of the God and knowing that you're just mortal and imperfect.
But sometimes in the night watches, I have just difficult moments. But I cannot remember a time when I would just pray and seek the Lord. And it would get toward daybreak, my spirit would just lift. The darkness would just lift. And it's just another metaphorical reminder that child of God.
Joy comes in the morning. I know where you are. I know what you're going through. I'm here. I'll lift the darkness very soon.
And oh my goodness, when he on that last day finally lifts the darkness for one last time. You Episcopalians are going to have to loosen up. It's going to be some kind of hallelujah celebration time. You see, the Pentecostals and the Charismatics hadn't completely missed it. Almost completely, but they hadn't completely missed it.
There's a place for exuberance. praise and shouting. Crying out to God. Enjoy. And we see this parallel of this truth from Zephaniah throughout the scriptures.
This thing of dark judgment, wrath, condemnation, the world devolving into deeper, deeper error. Call it devolution, not evolution. And then the end of Zephaniah joy comes in the morning. For example, in Ephesians 1, or 2, rather, 1 through 4. Paul writes that the church at Ephesus says, You were dead in your trespasses and sins, which ye formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power, the heir of the spirit that's now working in the sons of disobedience.
Among them, we too all, that's every one of us, Paul included, me included, you included, among them, we too all formerly lived in the list of our flesh. Indulging in the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.
Now that's dark. Here's what he said so far. You're dead. You're demonic, you're disobedient, you're deranged, and you're damned. That's a good outline of those verses.
That's dark. Oh, but there's those conjunctions. Again, I love the conjunctions in the Bible, but God. Being rich in mercy, not but you did something, God did something despite your situation and your condition, and despite your helpless place that you could not do nothing for yourself. God did something, but God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us.
Caused you to be born again in Christ Jesus. Joy comes in the morning. So this parallel, this paradoxical truth of deep, dark judgment and glorious cleansing, redemption, and new joy is all through the Bible. In Romans chapter 5, for example, I have a sermon on this. I need to re-preach sometime.
But in Romans chapter 5, these are exact words out of the text where Paul says you were helpless. This is of yourself, in your own abilities, before holy God. You were helpless. You were ungodly. You were sinners, and you are the enemies of God.
That's dark. All of us were there. That's what you are naturally. When you're born into this world, you were helpless, ungodly, a sinner, and an enemy of God. But here comes the conjunctive.
But Romans 5:8, but God demonstrates his own love toward us. That is why we were helpless, sinners, ungodly, and enemies. While we were all of those things. Christ died for us. That's joy in the morning.
That's the lights coming on. The rejoicing is here.
So we find this beautiful truth, this parallel, if you will, of truths throughout the Old Testament into the New Testament.
So here we have these phrases in the New Testament. that correspond with the truth of old Zephaniah.
Now let's unpack the text this way. Roman number one. Notice the divine edict. Rejoice. This is the prophet speaking for God in verse 14.
And there's a heaping up of superlatives, if you will, of what we're to be about. Shout for joy, O daughter of Zion. Shout in triumph, O Israel. Rejoice and exalt with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. Now, the word shout here in the New American Standard is put there twice.
I think some scholars say one means more sing, but very. In essence, what the shouting here means is to break into a cry of joy. When is the last time you broke into a cry of joy? And the point is not that the divine edict is rejoiced, yes, but it's not that God's requiring you. It's that you can't help but do it.
You can't Help but rejoice when you see what God's got planned for you. Yeah. This is a common word used in the old Hebrew and Aramaic language. Of when a city crier would come through the town in the middle of the night because he heard some glorious, victorious news from the battlefront. And he cries out with joy that we were successful in battle.
By the way, that meant a lot in those days because the mamas and the babies stayed at home wondering when. the enemy might march in and rape and kill and destroy.
So that meant that was joy when you heard your troops won. The danger's over. That's what God's getting at here. There's four imperatives here: shout, and then shout again. Then, the third one, exalt, and then the fourth one, rejoice.
So the preserved, godly remnant of Judah. Is going to see a day. When they'll shout Shout some more. Exalt and rejoice in the fullness of the salvation that's been promised, that's about to be unfolded before them.
Now, understand, salvation doesn't just mean. Getting out from under judgment. Salvation includes the pleasures of God. You're saved from sin and Satan's dominion, where you don't know the goodness, the treasuring, the joying, and the blessings of God. When salvation comes in the full, you'll know it all in the full.
That's what he says is coming. You can't help. But praise God. You can't help but joy in God. Oh, I want to see some of you in that day.
Some of you barely smiled at me for 44 years. Do you understand that? That doesn't mean you don't love God. I don't mean that. It's just what you do.
I'm going to follow you now around when we get to this day. No, I won't follow anybody. You won't follow anybody.
Well, I'll follow Jesus. We'll see him face to face. The promises of the covenant of grace are now pouring out in full on God's precious covenant-elect people. You see, the greater the object over which you exalt, the greater the exaltation. Then he says in verse 14, as if he hadn't said enough already to build on this rejoice edict.
He said, Do it. Third phrase, with all your heart. That means all your passions and all your emotions. Literally. Just have a spell.
You ever seen somebody have a spell? Or she had a spell.
Now there's three vocatives. There's three Descriptives of the ones this is written to. And there's a particular reason why it's there. Except for Joyhu, O daughter of Jerusalem. That's one.
Shout in triumph, O Israel. That's two. O daughter of Jerusalem, that's three. And I think the point of that is. These give a familial, intimate, sweet tone if you will The idea is That there's coming a day when God's children.
will all be together with their Lord. And it's going to be the greatest, sweetest, most glorious, most loving family reunion ever. You know, when we get together, this is just a little warm-up. This just gets to be a little taste. of what we're going to have in the fall.
later on. Every member of the family will be present. And every member of the family will genuinely and deeply love every other member. We had a boy in our church one time. He was from rural southern Cajun country.
As far as he knew, he was the only saved guy in the whole extended family. He said, But my family gets together all the time, and then they start drinking, and they always start fighting. Men are always fighting. I mean fist fighting. I mean rolling in the mud fighting.
That's not the kind of family reunion God's going to have. The world has its reunions, but God's got one coming for us. That's very different.
So, all the members are there, all deeply, genuinely love one another. Here's another catch. If you want to get the context. They all just came through the most horrifying danger imaginable, but came out completely unscathed and are just thrilled to be back together. You've seen the videos.
And they are precious. of these men coming home from Service. They've been gone for months and months, maybe years sometimes. And they sneak up, maybe at school or something, on their little boy or girl that doesn't know their home. And that little boy or girl sees their daddy.
And turns and runs and just clutches him, both arms and legs, hugs onto him, and just weep.
sometimes wailing with joy. That's the picture here. It's going to be one wholehearted, passionate, emotionally drenched, wondrous rejoicing. That's what's coming. What did the New Testament writer say there?
You can take all the sufferings of this present age, and none to be compared with the. Joy that is waiting for us, the love that is waiting for us, and the presence of Christ Jesus. That's a loose paraphrase, but it's the idea.
So, Roman number one, we see the prophet shifting gears and saying, Oh, godly remnant of Judah, something's coming. We see the divine edict. Rejoice. Number two, Roman two. We see now the basis.
for this edict of rejoicing. And there's three sub-points here I want to point out, pretty much taken straight from the text. The first one is, verse 15, first part: the Lord has taken his judgments. are taken away rather his judgments against you.
So, my first sub-point is judgment is cleared. Because in the next line, he uses the word cleared, he has cleared away your enemies. And these are the same thing, because these enemies mentioned. Assyria Babylon, Egypt, Philistia. And others.
These enemies of ancient Judah Were often the instruments God would use to bring chastisement and punishment on Judah. for their sins. But God says there's a day coming. When those enemies of yours that I often use to break you and humble you, I'm going to clear them away. Judgment.
Your judgment. You know you deserve it, but your judgment and my love and grace is going to be cleared away. Colin Daledge, the eminent German scholars of the Hebrew and the Aramaic, tell us this. They said, The idea here is that you're coming into a disordered room and you're removing everything out of it that's disorderly. God said, It's not orderly for my children to have to live.
In the confines of an area where there's enemies that could just invade them at any time and badly hurt them. He said, that's not the way it's going to be in the future. I'm getting rid of all the disorderly things out of your life. Every single thing that troubles you one day is going to be gone. Are you listening?
A fellow told me last Sunday, he said, You know how close you came to the edge back there while you were preaching? Are you ready? Everything out of wax is going to be gone, including your old flesh. I'm getting rid of me. Hallelujah.
I'm getting rid of me. I get tired. Do you get tired of me? No, thanks to that. Do you get tired of you?
I mean, I'm the worst guy I know. I know why Paul said, I'm the chief of sinners, but one day that's going to be gone. And I'll finally love him. I'll finally treasure him. I will finally joy in him.
the way the new man in me always wanted to. That's why you need preaching on Sunday to get you realigned back into treasuring him again. Mm-hmm. Gets things back, gets the disorder out, gets things back ordered.
Well, God says, Your judgment's going to be cleared away. It's going to be cleared away. Let me see where we are. Of course, this would be different than past times when God would perhaps defeat the Philistines or the Canaanites or other. But at this time, the Canaanites and the Philistines, at this time in history, they were still kind of hovering around on the borders of Judah, ready to threaten to strike at any time against them.
So God says, in the past, I've held them at bay. In the past, I would judge an individual enemy, but there's coming today when I'm clearing it all out. I'm clearing them all out. Number two. The basis for this edict to rejoice.
Is the nearness of God is restored or renewed? The nearness of God be is restored or renewed. Notice what he says here in verse 15. Third phrase The king of Israel. Not David.
Not do Siah. Yahweh the Lord. That's what the word Lord means, Yahweh.
Sometimes call him Jehovah, but truly the translation would be Yahweh. The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst. Wow. God's saying, when I show up, everything's changing. Glory to God.
Old Vladimir Putin. Chairman in China. Kolmanian Iran. Trump in America. When he shows up, we'll fall on their knees.
God said, here's how you know. Everything's going to be all right. I'm showing up one day.
Now, God showed up in the past. Remember that back in chapter, verse 5 of this same chapter? God showed up. In their rebellion times, but God showed up as a witness. Against them and as a judge over them.
Now he says, things are going to change. I'm coming back in a new and real way, full of grace and loving kindness. And I'm going to show up not as a witness against you, not as your judge, but now as your advocate and your redeemer. I don't know about you, but that's good news if you're a sinner. That's great news if you're a sinner.
Brothers and sisters. Is it not? Mind-boggling that God would include you among the elect children that are going to receive these blessings. He said I hadn't been with you in this way. You know why?
He said, you hoard after the other gods of this earth. You became idolaters. You wanted to live like the pagan nations. You wanted the sensuous, sinful pleasures of Baal worship over me.
So I pulled myself back from being your king. But you're my people, the remnant who humbled themselves and strove to seek me and live for me and love me. I'm coming back to you. I'll be with you as your new. Advocate and save your king.
The nearness of God is going to be restored to them. The New Testament tells us that Christ Whom this is certainly pointing to, when you see the word Yahweh in the Old Testament, you're seeing Jesus. 1 Corinthians 10, 4 reminds us. And all, that's the Israelites, and all drank the same spiritual drink. That's their journeying out of Egypt.
into the promised land. For they are drinking from a spiritual rock. A metaphor, you know, Moses strikes the rock, the water comes out and provides the nourishment they needed. But Paul says there's a bigger truth here, there's a greater fulfillment of that metaphor. They were drinking from a spiritual rock, and the rock was Christ.
Christ. In the Old Testament, was there. Jesus was there. And there's coming a day. But he's got to be here.
which is all that this points to. And he will be our redeeming savior king.
Now there's a key truth. The presence of Jesus is the presence of salvation. Does he live in you? Then you're saved. Young person, does Jesus live in you?
Then you're not saved. All you have is wrath and destruction. As the enemy of God awaiting you. But if he lives in you, the presence of Jesus is the presence of salvation. You see, salvation is not a plan.
Salvation's about a man. Baptist came up with a plan of salvation years ago, and I appreciate good brothers who were trying to help, but they missed it. And a whole lot of people have done that plan. They're still lost. They're going straight to hell.
Cause they got the plan but missed the man. They got the plan, but missed the man. Salvation is not a procedure. I don't care what the Episcopalians and the Roman Catholic systems teach. You go through this system, you walk through this ritual, you go down to see the priest, the priest performs the priestcraft, et cetera, et cetera.
That's not salvation. Salvation is Jesus. You work a religious plan out to the nth degree. Never make it to heaven. It's not a ritual.
Salvation is not a ritual. It's not a work. It's not a system. It's not putting on of human goodness.
Well, I'm going to do better. I'm going to clean up my life. And yeah, you'll go to hell a little cleaner than you were before. Cleaning up your life cannot make you To have a right standing before the triune in Holy God. Only Jesus can get you there.
When Jesus shows up, salvation shows up. Remember when the angel spoke to Joseph? I said, Joseph, go ahead and take Mary. You know, she got pregnant. But she's pregnant of the Holy Spirit.
She hadn't been with another man. And so the angel told Joseph: look. She's going to bear a son. He's going to be with you. He's going to be among us.
And you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people. From their sins. Didn't say he'd save all people, he'll save his people. But what's the point? He came among us, and salvation came to us.
Zacharias, John the Baptist's father, was prophesying of John's ministry and the one John would be pointing to. And Zacharias said in Luke 1:68, for he has visited us, he's come among us. and accomplished salvation for his people. Simeon, the godly Simeon, the Lord had spoken to Simeon and said, You will not die until you see the Christ. The promised Savior.
Simeon, holding baby Jesus, says this. For my eyes have seen. your salvation. Salvation's a man, it's a person. When Jesus shows up, salvation shows up.
Pastor, how do you describe what that looks like? What does that feel like? I can't give you a better answer than Jesus gave Nicodemus. Nicodemus, the spirit moves where it wills. It's like the wind, it goes here and it goes there, but you've got to be born again of the Spirit.
That's when Jesus shows up.
So the Lord here, through the prophet, is promising this glorious redemption. This reunion of the godly remnant and all is centered in the phrase in verse 15: the Lord is in your midst. Not that you turned around and you started doing the old aspects of the covenantal law better. Nope. Not that you've got the sacrificial system back in order, not that you've got the bell worship out of the temple.
That's important, but that's not it. It's that the Lord is here. Mm-hmm. When it says the Lord is in their midst, it means he has now come. As Bailey says in his commentary, that this is a verification of God's just satisfaction in his people.
Oh, my goodness.
So, your brain's not big enough for this, and mine certainly isn't. God's going to come to us. In the infinite, unknowable justice of the one true holy God, he will fulfill all justice. in being with us and claiming us. as his own.
In other words, God will not put his arm around us and have to look at the rest of the sinners of the world and say, I know it stinks, and I know that they're not fit, but I'm going to justly. He makes us just. In accordance to his justice. Only Jesus can do that. Look, when you go to heaven.
And by the way, St. Peter won't be waiting for you there. And you say Jesus. The only thing you can see is You're my hope. You're my justice.
You're my righteousness. And if it's not all of you, Jesus, I ought to go straight to hell. But that'll be a sufficient answer. That'll be a securing answer in heaven.
Well, see in our outline, the third basis, if you will, we've talked about judgment is cleared, the nearness of God is restored, and thirdly, disaster is averted. Look what it says there, the final phrase of verse 15: you will fear disaster no more. And that day will be said, we're in verse 16 now to Jerusalem. Do not be afraid, O Zion. Do not let your hands fall limp.
What a vivid expression. In other words, there's becoming a unique and different day. It's coming, it's coming. When all of your enemies will forever be away from you, you will not fear disaster anymore. We know a little of that in the world we live in, but It's nothing compared to being tiny Judah.
With the Canaanites and the Philistines and the Assyrians and the Babylonians and the Egyptians with their war drums beating all the time, and you don't know what's going to happen tomorrow. They lived in the dread of disaster. And if you're not saved here this morning, and you're not a fool. You should feel the weight of the disaster of the position you're in before a holy God. But if you know Jesus.
He'll take all the disaster away.
Well God is present. He's pouring his blessings out to the full. As we get down into verse 16, continuing with the disaster being averted, he says, Do not be afraid. Here's what he's saying: I'm here now, and I'm here with. I'm here.
with a divine A mount of love and grace for you.
So everything's going to be fine. Just keep looking to me. Everything's good. Do not be afraid. In other words, there's no basis in reality for fear at this point.
And forevermore, as far as that goes, when Christ returns. He says, Do not let your hands fall limp. It was an expression of despondency, it was an outward expression of hopelessness. Uh uh of deep Hollow Useless Total disbelief. And that's the way that the Jews in Judah, even among the godly remnant, would walk around with their heads down and their hands open and just, oh, Oh, what's going to happen to us?
What's going to happen to us? He said, I'm coming back. That day's going to be over. Matter of fact, uh he he says um Shout for joy. Shout in triumph.
Rejoice and exalt with all your heart. You had those days of despair and total despondency, but they are now no more. Roman three. And I'll be quick because one of our two chillers is not working.
So it's a little bit warm in here, but the ladies would probably say, no, it's just right. And I get that. Roman 3, the victorious warrior that brings the joy. The victorious warrior that brings the joy. Again, he says it, the Lord your God.
Is in your midst. A victorious Warrior. Again, he was with them before, but as a witness and as a judge, he's with them now. As the mighty champion of salvation. In other words, he says, I'm coming back.
There have been a lot of tough guys on the earth, but Jesus said, nobody like me. Nobody like me. I'm coming back. And all that is against you. And all the sins, and all the failure, and all the weakness, and all the ways humanly.
You deserve to be lost in eternal divine wrath. All of that has been conquered by me for you. I am. Your victorious warrior. Actually the Greek and the uh and the Aramaic could be translated, I'm your hero.
Yeah. I am the great hero. What a truth. In his victorious might, he has vanquished the proud. and redeem the humble remnant of Judah.
I often say to you, there's only two types of people in the world: the saved and the lost. But you could also say there's only two types of people, the proud and the humbled. If you're not humbled, you're not saved. If you're full of yourself and know it all, you're not saved. When you realize what you are before Holy God.
You're humbled to the dirt. That doesn't mean you walk around with your head bowed down because you also have the confidence of Jesus' abundance of grace and love to forgive you and cleanse you and make you righteous. Psalm 99, one through three speaks of Jesus also. The Lord reigns, let the peoples tremble.
Now, the peoples means the unredeemed, the proud, those who wouldn't turn to Christ. He's enthroned above the cherubim. Let the earth shake. The Lord is great in Zion. I personally believe there's a future for Israel.
Even though everything ultimately climaxes in the church in the eternal age. He's exalted above the peoples. All of these proud, haughty, arrogant Assyrians and Babylonians and others who threatened you and ruled the earth at one time or the other. He's going to be greater than all them. Matter of fact.
He will so intimidate them. He will so crush them. Not into a godly humility, but a forced humility before his very powerful, holy presence. Look what he says. Psalm 99, verse 3.
Let them praise your great and awesome name. Holy is He. That means the actual unbelievers will say, He's to be praised. They don't even know him, but they'll see what he's doing for us. And they'll say, he is to be praised.
I've ever told you this before. I'm not sure if I have. God's all about his own glory. God loves being God. He just loves being God.
Because as God, he can only love what's perfect and righteous and holy. And he's the only one. God looks in the mirror and says, Perfect. And it's not arrogance, it's just true. He would be sinning if he didn't do it.
So he wants renown and praise from all the peoples. And by the way, he's going to get it. Every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. In this Warrior motif, but it's more than a motif. He's literally coming back as a warring savior, brothers and sisters.
Revelation 19:13 reminds us he comes back with a robe dipped in blood. Wow. Well, the Bible says the blood's gonna be up to the horses' bridles in that last Okay. It's going to be a vicious warring event. But the outcome is certain from the beginning.
You see, there is no saving and securing of the children without the judgment of the proud. Did you hear that? That's where a lot of people get off. They have this so-called compassion for people and they tell them a lie. The same Jesus that will save us to the uttermost with love and grace we can't comprehend is going to crush with absolute divine might.
Everything that opposed him. You don't get one without the other. You get the securing. of the elect children. And you get the crushing.
of the unbelieving and unhumbled. And you may be sitting there, friend, and say, I don't know about this kind of preaching.
Well, feel sorry for the people around you.
Some of them have been getting it for 40 years. But you see, it's the truth that sets you free. It's the truth that sets you free. He comes to wage war on behalf of his covenant children. He comes to redeem them so that he might reclaim them.
Oh my goodness, Jesus wants to be with us. And he wants us to be with him. And he and the Father planned that out from eternity past, and he will not fail to bring it to pass. He's coming as a victorious warrior to make sure. Not One that the Father gives him will perish.
I don't know that we need to wait to rejoice and shout. Until this day. This is worth shouting about now. But don't do it.
Some of these Baptists had died in their pew if you did it. He comes to redeem us so that he might reclaim us. He comes to protect us so that he might preserve us for his own. Good. And glory.
So I ask you very humbly, very directly, but with bold conviction: has your judgment been cleared? Jesus said in John chapter 3: if you've not believed, you're not going to be judged. That's true, but you're judged already. You're under the judgment, God, and you're awaiting the final judgment of God if you've not believed. Has your judgment been cleared?
Only Jesus can do that. Secondly. Has the nearness of God been restored to you? You were born without Him. Adam and Eve had it.
And they sinned and lost it for all of humanity. You're born without God, you live without God, you serve without God, you go to work without God, you go to school without God. You go play without God. Has the nearness of God come to you? Thirdly.
Not only has your judgment been cleared and has God's nearness been restored to you, but has disaster been averted for you? Because you're heading for ultimate. Severe Horrifying eternal disaster. You're just like those Jews. What's gonna happen?
What's going to happen? The Syrians. The Philistines, the Egyptians, it could happen any day. What's going to happen? Boom, Jesus takes it all away.
And you can know that you know that you know that it's averted for you. If you'll look to Jesus. Look to him as a sinner. Look to him as one who can't save yourself. Look to him as one who is desperately hopeless, a sinner.
An enemy. But yet in that condition What's the text say? Christ. Dod. For us.
And he died for you. And it is very true. You know my theology, but it is very true. Whosoever. What call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Isn't that good news? If you'll be one today, actually, it's a present tense emphasis there. You become one who calls on the name of the Lord, is what it means. Not just a little hoop jump one time in vacation Bible school. It means there was a point in time when you became one who calls on the Lord.
Calls on him as a sinner. Calls on him as an ungodly one. Calls on him as an enemy of one. Calls on him as one who is helpless, but calls on him saying, You're the only one that can do it for me. And starting now in the rest of my life, I want to live my life that from my very heart and being, I call on you to be my Savior and to be my Lord.
Have you ever done that? Has his judgment been cleared against you? Has his nearness been restored? Has the disaster been averted for you? Only Jesus can do that.
Yeah.
