From the Lips of Angels, Part 1

God created the heavens and the earth. What's the connection between creationism and the gospel? The gospel in the first century was already confronting Buddhism which had reached the Mediterranean world teaching their own theories of evolution.

The church was delivering Romans chapter 1 to a world of Stoics and Gnostics who disbelieved in a personal God and a special creation. So how important is creationism to the gospel? Creationism is the biblical teaching that God is responsible for this universe.

Is that true? Did God really create the universe? Is there some other explanation for how the universe came into existence?

Or could it be that the universe itself is eternal and didn't have a beginning? Some people think that your view on creation is really not that important. Even some Christians think that way.

Stephen Davey is going to challenge that perspective today. There are some far-reaching implications related to God being the creator and we're going to look at some of them here on Wisdom for the Heart. Open your Bible to Revelation 14 as we get started with this lesson called From the Lips of Angels. Has it ever occurred to you that every major religion believes in angels? Is it any wonder that scripture delivered a warning to the first century church that if an angel from heaven delivered a gospel contrary to the gospel delivered by the Apostles, that that church was to consider the messenger accursed? Galatians 1.9. It's interesting to me as I've read that text again that Paul does not rule out the possibility of an angel delivering the gospel.

He doesn't say, oh that'll never happen, don't worry about it. No, his point assumes the possibility and what he does do is warn the believer that if an angel comes and delivers a different gospel, don't listen. In other words, you would know that it is wrong not because an angel is delivering it, you know it's wrong because an angel is delivering another gospel and you evaluate the meaning of the gospel.

What a needed warning today. You study the major religions of the world and you'll discover many of them based their foundational beliefs on messages from angels. The history of Islam traces its roots to their great prophet Muhammad receiving his call from the angel Gabriel, receiving instruction from Gabriel about what to teach his followers as the prophet of God. He would follow what he received from Gabriel, this information he would recite to his followers, but it is a different gospel. The prophecies of Muhammad effectively demoted Jesus to being one of only six, merely six prophets, the last one of course being Muhammad. To further reveal the differences between Muhammad's gospel and the gospel of Christ, Muhammad taught that Christ did not die on the cross to atone for the sins of mankind.

In fact, it was Judas who died on the cross instead of Christ. According to Islam, your hope for heaven is in being a faithful Muslim following the articles of faith and the five pillars of faith which will allow you to earn your way into their version of heaven. The angel of Islam preaches a different, another gospel. Buddhism is another world religion in tune with voices from the spirit world, effectively teaching you to find salvation in yourself. It also is a different gospel. In one of his final messages, the dying Buddha was instructing a young monk and others as he gave his parting advice, which immediately would be understood as tragic by the believer in the gospel of Christ.

And I quote him, he said, I am old now, my journey nears its end, I've reached my sum of days, I'm 80 years old. You, speaking to his followers, must be your own lamp. You must be your own refuge. Take refuge in nothing outside yourselves. Hold firm to this truth as a lamp and a refuge and do not look to anything or anyone besides yourselves.

Conquer the cravings and depressions of ordinary men. Whoever among you, speaking specifically to my monks, does this either now or when I am dead, if he is anxious to learn this, he will reach the summit. Whatever you do, don't look for salvation anywhere else but within. This is another gospel, a different gospel. One of the world's fastest growing religions is Mormonism, although it's slowed down quite a bit in the last decade. They believe that Elohim and their gospel came to the planet, had relations with Mary so that Jesus could be given a physical body and the plan of salvation began. Jesus grew up, he married Mary Magdalene, Mary and Martha. After his death and resurrection, he came to the Americas and preached to the Indians, who Mormonism believes are the lost tribes of Israel. By the way, this particular belief has created quite a problem because of the discovery of DNA, which is having a bit of a problem connecting Native American Indians to Jewish people.

No matter, it's a minor point, they say. According to their gospel, the last living follower of Jesus recorded God's plan of salvation by writing it on golden plates in ancient Egyptian symbols. For 1400 years, they lay undiscovered until a direct descendant of Jesus and his wives, by the name of Joseph Smith, discovered the tablets and with the help of an angel from heaven, translated them, delivering this gospel, what they believe to be the completed gospel. And in the completed gospel, faithful Mormons will one day inhabit their own planets and live as polygamous gods, spawning races for all of eternity. Ladies and gentlemen, that is another gospel. So in just these three religions, angels are involved.

Spirit guides have influenced the lives of millions of people around the world. And evidently, these angels from heaven aren't really communicating very well with each other because they're delivering conflicting, contradictory versions of the gospel. Joseph Fielding Smith, one of the presidents of the church, Mormon Church in its past, named after its founder, wrote, and I quote, there is no salvation without accepting Joseph Smith. No man can reject his testimony without incurring the most dreadful consequences.

He cannot enter the kingdom of God. This is another gospel. Decide which gospel you will place your faith in believing it will take you to heaven.

Exercise faith, it will require faith with either angel that you listen to. The apostles taught there is salvation in no one else other than Christ, Acts 4-12. This is the gospel which we hold to and believe by faith. The word gospel comes from the Greek word euangelion. It's a simply, it means good news.

It can mean tidings. It's a word that references a message. The first century of the apostles knew well the use of the word gospel as good news. We have illustrations centuries old tying the word to religions. Even more than that, we can see throughout history how the enemy of the gospel of Christ counterfeits and deceives by using phraseology and terminology to deliver another gospel.

Archaeologists, as one illustration, found a white stone or a stell upon which was delivered a message, the gospel. In fact, the word gospel is used. It was in reference to Caesar Augustus. It was written about 27, 30, 32 years before the birth of Christ.

It was nothing more than political propaganda which celebrated the glory of the first emperor of the Roman Empire, Caesar Augustus. Listen to the phraseology written on this carved into this stone. The edict said, delivered this message that God had sent Caesar Augustus to earth to be a savior.

So tear, same word used of Christ. His coming to earth brought peace. His birth was said to be the beginning of life and breath. His honor, it said, was to last forever. And then the edict closed by saying that the birthday of Augustus, quote, was the beginning for the world of the gospel.

The good news. No wonder when Paul and John proclaimed the gospel of Jesus Christ, their message faced immediate conflict. Their gospel was different from the gospel of Rome.

And those who delivered it in those early centuries, especially would pay with their lives. The word gospel will appear one time in the book of Revelation. And right in the middle of that word, euangelion, we get our word evangelism.

Right in the middle of that word is the word angel. The gospel is a message and angels, the word simply means messenger delivering the tidings. In fact, the Greeks used the word evangel like we use the word evangelist.

They would talk about children who delivered a message. Women, slaves, animals, people, ambassadors were angels, and they would use the word for them because they carried a message. In fact, when the runner brought the good tidings that Athens had defeated the Persians and he ran from Marathon to Athens and delivered the tidings, they said that that he was an angel.

He was simply bearing a message. Angels are indeed messengers. Even angels who appear in the scriptures, obviously, just do a quick review. And Daniel, an angel delivers a message. Daniel eight to the priest and father of John the baptizer, Luke chapter one, an angel delivers a message. Angels brought messages to the shepherds in Luke two, to Philip in Acts eight, to the women outside Christ's empty tomb in Matthew 28, and to Paul in Acts chapter 27. And we discover, as we already have in our exposition through the book of Revelation, angels have a have a great part to play in end times. In the gospel account where Christ is talking about the end times, he informs us that angels will will gather the unbelieving world, corralling them all for judgment. Matthew 13. They will also gather the believers for glory. Matthew 24. They accompany the Lord Jesus when he returns to earth and triumph.

Matthew 25. And they initiate disasters upon the earth, as we've seen already in Revelation chapter eight. And now is John the apostle records this preview of even more things to come and gives us sort of an aerial view of things that will take us right into the kingdom. He delivers to us his his vision of three angels, a trio of angels who deliver a message. The first angel delivers the message of creationism. The second angel delivers the message or the gospel of consummation. And the third angel delivers the message of condemnation. And God is effectively graciously offering sinners worldwide one more opportunity to repent before the final judgment of his wrath. Let's discover where that word is used and why as we go back and rejoin our study in Revelation chapter 14, and we pick it up at verse six. And I saw another angel flying in mid heaven a stop.

Where's that? Well, the Greek word refers to that point in the sky where the sun stands, as it were at high noon. In other words, nobody can miss him. He's high enough, though, the Antichrist can't shoot him down.

Nobody can touch him. And I imagine in my mind is this angel. Now at high noon, literally circles the globe, millions of people will pour out of their homes and out of buildings into streets and fields to watch and to listen as this angel delivers a rather interesting message.

Now remember, and I know you want to get on with the text, but just for a moment, remember that by this time in the tribulation, the world has seen its share of travesties and disasters and miracles. The Antichrist has been brought back to life by this time. He is demanding now that the world take his mark, the sum of his name 666. All of the world won't. All of the world hasn't and won't have an opportunity to, but he's pushing for this agenda.

He's wanting all to bow and give him glory. God is also pouring one judgment after another upon Earth, tidal waves, earthquakes, pestilences. One out of every four people have already at this point died on the planet. The world has run out of coffins.

They can't keep up. If there was ever a time, and I say all that to say this, if there was ever a time when mankind would be ready to hear the gospel, it would be now. And so here comes an angel in the sky delivering the gospel.

The first of three appears. You'll notice in the text it tells us that this angel has an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the Earth. Now today, obviously the church is responsible for the proclamation of the gospel, but here in the tribulation period, the methods of God now shift. We have 144,000 Jewish evangelists that are uniquely gifted and enabled to preach the gospel. You have the two witnesses that can't be put to death until God so allows who deliver the gospel. You have those who certainly do believe the gospel message delivered by those evangelists who deliver the gospel to their friends and family.

And now here you have an angel. Now I know and I fully respect Oswald Chambers and his wonderful devotional that sort of began this idea that an angel can't and doesn't preach the gospel. The problem I have is with the text of scripture that says an angel will preach the gospel. It is an everlasting gospel. The word is used that is used throughout the New Testament. This gospel, however, is not unique and it is not altered in any way. In fact, there are just nuances of the gospel that are used throughout the New Testament. This one is called an eternal gospel. That means it's timeless. It's unchanged. It is the same gospel, in fact, that has been preached throughout human history.

The elements are unchanging. Man is sinful. Man is in need of atonement. Man is in trouble with God.

Man needs to be saved. In pre-Christ times, they look toward the cross and the one who would come to suffer from Adam to Isaiah. They were waiting for the suffering one upon whom the father would place the iniquity of us all. Isaiah 53 verse 6. They looked forward to having their sins fully atoned for by the Son of God. The ancient world looked forward to the cross and we look back to the cross of Christ where he bore our sin in his body on the tree that we being dead to sin could live in a righteousness.

1 Peter 2 24. Listen, no matter where you go in the world, the intuitive understanding of guilt and sin is there in every human heart. The need for the gospel is apparent and real. And no matter where you go in the world, you find mankind trying to deal with the reality of sin, the stain of sin.

I've watched people scrubbing themselves in the putrid water of the Ganges River. Hindu pilgrims believing that that river was a gift that dripped down from the locks of their god Shiva so that mortals could have their souls bathed and set free. Where do they come up with that desire? The Bible tells us that the law of God is written on their hearts. Mankind the world over intuitively understands the concept of some need for atonement. So the eternal gospel is not new and it is not somehow bound in one culture. It is the gospel of the lamb, the merits of atonement.

This one we believe is as the Bible tells us who paid in his death the sacrifice not only for our sins but the sins of the world. 1 John chapter 2 verse 2. This is the gospel and this is why we deliver the gospel to the world. The gospel has all sorts of nuances and viewpoints. It's called the gospel of the kingdom Matthew 4 23. It's called the gospel of Jesus Christ Mark 1 verse 1. The gospel of the grace of God Acts 20 24. The gospel of God Mark 1 14. The gospel of the glory of Christ.

That means now we're talking about the gospel and it happens to glorify Jesus Christ. 2nd Corinthians 4 4. The gospel of salvation Ephesians 1 13. The gospel of peace Ephesians 6 15 and the glorious gospel 1st Timothy 1 11. When you understand that the word means good tidings he is saying now this good tidings happens to be timeless.

It is eternal. This is then the eternally good news about Christ. The eternally good news about the grace of God. The eternally good news about the glory of Christ. The eternally good news about the true path to peace with God and on and on and on.

And here you have the gospel John writes being preached by an angel and it is consistent with the gospel preached by Paul and the apostles. Now notice verse 7 and he said with a loud voice fear God and give him glory because the hour of his judgment has come. He tells mankind to do a couple of things. Fear God. Remember this is in the middle of the tribulation where to turn to Christ would probably mean death. They would be afraid of the antichrist. He's saying oh yeah don't be afraid of him. Don't fear him. Fear God. Jesus Christ would say listen don't fear the one who is able to temporarily hurt your body. Fear the one that can bring great pain and torment to both body and soul in hell. Make your shift from fearing the antichrist to fearing this holy awesome God. Not only does the angel preach from the sky for mankind to fear God but also to glorify God. Give him glory that is elevate him.

The world for the most part is falling at the feet of the antichrist. They're deifying him. They're giving him honor. They're exalting his name.

They're wearing it many of them on their right hand or on their forehead. Glorify God instead the angel is saying. And what happens to be the one area where mankind throughout human history and in our generation has trouble glorifying God. Creation.

In fact that's the text. That's the theme so to speak of the angel. He happens to be worthy of worship.

Why? Because he made the heaven and the earth and the sea and the springs of water. This is the gospel of creationism. It is the gospel that is tied to the creator God. Without a creator God there is no gospel delivered to us. Anyone that will deliver a gospel outside of creationism is delivering a different gospel. And our generation is running after it like never before. There have always been theories of origins in our western world over the last 150 years. It has been that promoted by Darwin and his theory of origins his theory of evolution and now more than ever not only the world outside the church but the church is honoring and bringing glory to him. In a unique way it started and many of you missed it and I did too but in February 2006 they decided there should be a special sunday marked evolution sunday in honor of Darwin's birthday which is in february february 12th supporters said their religious services and sermons on evolution were designed can you imagine a sermon on evolution what text would you use I guess the reversed version well these services were playing that I quote to stand up to creationism which holds to a literal interpretation of the bible I mean somebody's just got to stand up to those people as if we're the majority voice somebody stand up to them in 2007 it was so wildly popular if you can imagine it they changed it from evolution sunday to evolution weekend so that more quote faith systems who don't care about sunday could play a part and a role in february in february 2009 they celebrated again we missed it I just went right over my head more than 12 000 ministers in america and churches participated and over 400 rabbis participated to do what to honor the work of darwin and his theory of origins over and against those who would take the scriptures literally and I guarantee you not one of those services had anything from romans chapter one in their bulletin that day let me read it again for the wrath of god is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth what truth are you talking about in this text poll well that which is known about god is evident for god made it evident to them how since the creation of the world his invisible attributes of power and divine nature have been clearly seen being understood through what has been made so that they are without excuse for even though they knew that is intuitively about god they did not glorify god they did not give god glory for creating the universe and all there is listen the apostle paul was writing this in the face of his culture which was filled with evolutionary pantheists this isn't new the gospel in the first century was already confronting buddhism which had reached the mediterranean world teaching their own theories of evolution the church was delivering romans delivering romans chapter one to a world of stoics and gnostics who disbelieved in a personal god and and a special creation they were the scholars of paul's generation so how important is creationism to the gospel so steven has much more to say in answer to the question he just posed but we need to stop here this lesson is too long to fit into one broadcast tomorrow we'll do a little bit of review and then bring you the conclusion to this lesson this is wisdom for the heart with steven davie we're in a series called a preview of things to come and this current lesson is entitled from the lips of angels before we leave you today i want to read a really short note that came from a listener in spring branch texas he said i'm a retired lieutenant in the army and it was listening to your broadcast that led me to go to seminary to be able to further study and understand god's word well that's exciting to hear and i wanted to share that because you should know that steven is the president of shepherd's theological seminary located right here in carrie north carolina we train pastors and church leaders for a life of ministry there are online and in-person options and various degrees offered so if you or someone you know is thinking about seminary consider sts well as i mentioned already steven will bring you the conclusion to this lesson tomorrow so join us here on wisdom for the heart you