The Church Victorious in the Midst of Strife

Heavenly Father, for thousands of years, the story of humanity is that though we think we know better than you,

though we kick and resist your ways, the story of the world reminds us again and again that you are God and we are not.

That you are great and just, that your ways are perfect and right, and that in trusting you we find life.

Father, we find freedom and wholeness, and our hearts find the rest and the peace which they long for.

Oh sovereign God, we confess that Lord, you are right and your word is always right.

Father, help us to trust you.

Father, we believe you, but oh help our unbelief.

We trust you, but forgive us and help us in our lack of trust.

Father, we desire to love you more, but oh forgive us for how cold and stingy our love towards you can often be.

Father, help us, we pray.

Father, as we come to your word now, we ask that you speak to us from your word.

We confess that revelation is confusing, it's difficult, it's difficult to understand, it's difficult to receive.

Father, we ask that you open up your word to us, even as it's read to us this morning, may it make sense to us.

May we see and understand what you want us to see and you want us to understand.

God, as we study it together, we pray that we will be truly blessed by your word and find life in your word, even as we are blessed in you and find life in you.

Lord, let your word lead us to you this morning.

As we look at our role as a church in the midst of a broken and difficult world, I pray God this morning speak to us.

That we will know with conviction and certainty what it looks like to be faithful men and women following Jesus in the city of Hong Kong in this day and age.

Speak to us today we pray.

Father, today we want to pray for our brothers and sisters across Asia.

For those who are following you in the midst of very difficult circumstances.

Father, we pray for followers of Jesus who are currently in North Korea, in South Korea, in Japan.

We pray for our brothers and sisters in Myanmar, in Laos, in Malaysia, in Thailand, in Singapore.

Father, right now we bring before you Christians in Bangladesh, in Nepal, in India, those in Pakistan, in Mongolia, in Japan, in Uzbekistan, in Kazakhstan.

God, we pray for Christians in Indonesia and Philippines.

We pray for our brothers and sisters in mainland China.

We pray for our brothers and sisters in Hong Kong.

God, we pray that your gospel will go forward in our great continent.

That all across Asia in the years and the decades to come, that hundreds of thousands and millions of people will come to know you.

That you are the one true God and they will find life and freedom in you, we pray, God.

God, we pray that we will be salt to our city and light to the cities, we pray.

We look forward to that day when we stand shoulder to shoulder with followers of Jesus from every culture and language and ethnicity worshipping you together.

Father, we want to see a lot of Asia represented there on that day in heaven.

We ask for the gospel to go forward and we pray, God, that you send many, many workers into the harvest.

We see that the fields are ready.

We see there are billions and billions of people in our continent who do not know you.

And we ask God, send out missionaries, send out businessmen and businesswomen, families and students and teachers and social workers all across Asia to take the gospel out.

Father, we hear you say, who will go for us?

And humbly, aware of our shortcomings, aware that you do not have much to give, with fear and trembling, we join with our Zion and say, here we are.

Send us, God.

Send us, Lord.

God, may your gospel not die with us.

We're so grateful for the missionaries that you sent to Asia all those years ago, who brought the good news of the gospel to us in Hong Kong.

May it not end with us.

Send us, we pray.

Empower us with your presence.

Give us your joy.

Cause your face to shine upon the nations that they may know you.

God, if you do not go with us, then do not send us out.

But if you go, send us in your name, we pray.

For the praise of your great and glorious name.

Amen.

Amen.

Let's listen to Janet and Victoria reading God's word to us.

Just as they come up, today we've got a long reading.

You might have thought last week was long.

Today is a little bit longer.

We're reading three chapters from Revelation chapter 8 to 10.

Revelation 8 · chapter mention

But in chapter 1, John says, blessed are those who hear this book read to them.

And so, let's listen to God's word.

And I pray that we will be blessed and encouraged as we do so.

So, thank you, Janet and Victoria.

The scripture reading comes from Revelation chapter 8 to 10.

Revelation 8 · chapter mention

Please follow along in your bulletin or on the screen.

Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them.

And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense

to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne.

And the smoke of the incense with the prayers of the saints arose before God from the hand of the angel.

Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth.

And there were pearls of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

Now, the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them.

The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed hail and fire mixed with blood.

And there were thrown upon the earth.

And a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.

The second angel blew his trumpet, and something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea,

and a third of the sea became blood.

A third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.

The third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch,

and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water.

The name of the star is warm wood.

A third of the waters became warm wood, and many people died from the water because it had been bitter.

The fourth angel blew his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, and a third of the moon, and a third of the stars,

so the third of their lights might be darkened, and a third of the day might be kept from shining,

and likewise a third of the night.

Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice as it flew directly overhead.

Woo! Woo! Woo to those who dwell on the earth!

At the blast of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow.

And the third angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star falling from heaven to earth,

and he was given the key of the shaft of the bottomless pit.

He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like a smoke of a great furnace.

The sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft.

Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like a power of scorpions of the earth.

They were told not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green plants, or any tree,

but only those people who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.

They were allowed to torment them for five months, but not to kill them.

And their torment was like a torment of a scorpion when it stings someone.

And in those days, people will seek death and will not find it.

It will long to die, but death will flee from them.

In appearance, the locusts were like horses prepared for battle.

On their heads were what looked like crowns of gold.

Their faces were like human faces, their hair like women's hair, and their teeth like lion's teeth.

They had breastplates like breastplates of iron,

and the noise of their wings was like the noise of many chariots with horses rushing into battle.

They have tails and stings like scorpions,

and their power to hurt people for five months is in their tails.

They have as king over them the angel of the bottleness pit.

His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek he is called Apollyon.

The first rule has passed.

Behold, two rules are still to come.

The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues,

did not repent of the works of their hands,

nor give up worshipping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood,

which cannot see or hear or walk,

nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

Then I saw an other mighty angel coming down from heaven,

wrapped in the cloud with a rainbow over his head,

and his face was like the sun and his legs like pillars of fire.

He had a little scroll open in his hand,

and he set his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land

and called out with a loud voice like a lion rolling.

When he called out, the seven thunders sounded,

and when the seven thunders had sounded,

I was about to write,

but I heard a voice from heaven saying,

Seal up what the seven thunders have said,

and do not write it down.

And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land

raised his right hand to heaven

and swore by him who lives forever and ever,

who created heaven and what is in it,

the earth and what is in it,

and the sea and what is in it,

that there would be no more delay.

But that in the days of the trumpet call

to be sounded by the seventh angel,

the mystery of God will be fulfilled,

just as he announced to his servants the prophets.

Then the voice that I had heard from heaven

spoke to me again, saying,

Go, take the scroll that is open in the hand of the angel

who is standing on the sea and on the land.

So I went to the angel and told him

to give me the little scroll.

And he said to me,

Take and eat it.

It will make your stomach bitter,

but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.

And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel

and ate it.

It was sweet as honey in my mouth.

But when I had eaten it,

my stomach was made bitter.

And I was told,

You must again prophesy about many peoples

and nations and languages and kings.

This is the word of God.

Okay.

Great.

Thank you, Janet and Victoria.

We skipped a little section in the middle.

If you were following on your phone or something

and you got lost,

we skipped a little section.

But primarily,

there were three long chapters there

in the book of Revelation.

And we are working our way through this book of Revelation.

And if you are new to church,

or I guess even if you are not that new to church,

we are in the middle stages of this book.

And Revelation is full of imagery and symbolism.

And we are working our way through it.

And as we do so,

we are hopefully seeing

that the gospel is far richer and deeper

than maybe we first experienced.

But also,

we are learning there is more to God

and who He is

and the way that He is leading

and ruling the world

than we first experienced.

And so in chapter 1,

John writes and he says,

blessed are those who read this book

and those who hear this book.

And so our hope is

as we work through this stuff,

as challenging as it is,

we will be blessed.

We won't just understand with our minds

the imagery and the symbolism.

We pray that our hearts

will be encouraged and strengthened

as we work through this.

Now,

last week we looked at chapter 6 and 7.

And in those chapters,

there was this picture

of this scroll

that is rolled up

and there are these seven seals,

wax seals,

on the scroll.

And each time a wax seal

is broken off,

some event in the story of the world

is portrayed or spoken of.

And then we saw

in between the sixth

and the seventh seal,

there's this interlude.

And in the interlude,

Jesus speaks to John

and He wants to give him a message.

And the message we saw last week was,

though there is chaos

and calamity in the world,

though the world is full

of all these strange things

and disaster,

God promises that His people

will be kept safe,

will be sealed,

will be guaranteed

to be kept in His hands

until they reach glory

on the other side.

And so God says,

yes, there is challenges,

and Christians aren't immune

from experiencing those challenges,

but God promises His people

will make it through

to the other side

to get to glory.

Okay?

And so what that meant for us

is that the Christian

gets to live with this

unbelievable hope

and confidence

because our security

and our assurance

and our confidence

aren't found

in the circumstances around us.

They're not found in ourselves.

They're found in Him

who is seated on the throne.

And so that's what we looked at last week.

Now in today's passage,

we get to the seven of the second,

sorry,

of these series of the seven events.

Last week was the seven wax seals

that are broken off this parchment.

Today we get to these seven trumpets

that are blown.

And as we said before,

this isn't meant to be

a chronological account.

It's not like this happened

and now we get to stage B

and then stage C.

Rather, this is a multi-layered,

multi-angled,

multi-perspectival approach

on the story of the world.

Okay?

I don't know how you translate

multi-perspectival into Cantonese,

but I'm sure there's a way of doing that.

Okay, so let's dive in

and see what's happening here.

In chapter six,

we saw last week,

John's vision of the story of the world.

Every time a seal is broken,

something happens

and the same thing happens here.

Look at chapter eight,

verses seven to 11 with me.

It says,

the first angel blew his trumpet

and there followed hail and fire

mixed with blood

and these were thrown upon the earth.

A third of the earth was burnt up

and a third of the trees were burnt up

and all the green grass was burnt up.

Verse eight,

the second seal blew his trumpet

and something like a great mountain

burning with fire

was thrown into the sea

and a third of the sea became like blood.

A third of the living creatures died

and the ships were destroyed.

The third angel blew his trumpet

and a great star fell from heaven

blazing like a torch,

et cetera, et cetera.

And on it goes on,

the fourth trumpet is blown,

the fifth trumpet,

the sixth trumpet is blown.

And each time,

some kind of disaster

is brought upon the earth.

Now as we read these,

a couple of things

should stand out to us straight away.

The first one,

same as last week,

is who is it

that's bringing this about?

It's God, right?

Remember last week,

it was Jesus

that was breaking off the seals

and unleashing this disaster

on the earth.

In chapter eight,

it's God,

it's his angels

who are blowing the trumpets.

And what's happening here

is that as a trumpet is blown,

these events signify

God's judgment on sin in the world.

Now it's not God's final judgment

on the world,

that's still to come later,

but these events signal

God's disciplinary judgment

on the world,

and it's his warning

to alert people

of the danger of sin

and of ultimate judgment

that's going to come.

So think of it this way,

when I discipline my kids,

there's a good way to do it

and there's a bad way to do it.

Now when I discipline my kids well,

which I don't always do,

when I do it well,

it's not out of a fit of anger

or rage,

it's not because

they've pushed my buttons so much

and now I just fly off the handle

and do something,

that's a really bad way

to discipline my kids.

When I'm feeling frustrated

or angry,

the best thing for me to do

is to not try

and discipline my kids, right?

But the way as a loving father

that I should discipline my kids,

and like I say,

I don't always get this right,

is to,

when they've done something

which I know is not good

for them or for the family,

is to calmly

take them to the bathroom,

to sit down with them,

and to explain to them

that because I love them

and because I'm for them

and because I want to help them

grow up to become

the kinds of people

that God is calling them to be,

I'm going to inflict

a little bit of pain on them

to help them get off the path

that is currently leading

towards destruction

and pain

and heartache

and to help them

get on the path

that is going to lead

to life and joy

and freedom and peace.

Does that make sense?

I would rather they experience

a little bit of pain

from me now

than one day

they get fired from their jobs

because they don't know

how to show respect to people

or they one day

their spouse walks out on them

because they don't know

how to love someone else

or they one day

get thrown in jail

because they've never been taught

something, right?

And so as a loving father

my job is to bring

a little bit of discipline

in the moment

to help them get on the path

that's going to lead

to life and freedom

and joy and flourishing.

Now, that's what's going on here.

God brings His judgment

upon the earth

and in this instance

it's a form of

disaster or world events

and its job is to make us

to sit up

and to think about our actions

and to come to Him

in repentance.

But notice something else here

and that's that

there's this growing intensity

in the judgments of God.

I don't know if you remember

from last week

we read in chapter 6

remember last week

every time a wax seal is broken

an angel calls forth

and there's this picture

of a rider that comes

and there's some kind of

disaster on the earth.

Well, in chapter 8

in verse 8

it says this

the fourth rider comes

he brings destruction

and chaos

and a quarter

of the earth

experienced this destruction.

Okay?

That was last week.

In this week

how many times

did it say

a third of the earth

experiences this heartache?

Did you notice that

when we read?

I think it's something

like 15 times.

It talks about

a third of

let me find it here

a third of the sea

becomes blood

a third of the living creatures

a third of the ships

are destroyed.

And later on

when we get to chapter 15

and 16

and there's this

next set of seven

events in the world

it says

not just a quarter

of the earth

not just a third

of the earth

not just a half

of the earth

but everyone

is affected

by the things

that come.

So what's happening here?

There's this growing

intensity

of the judgments

of God.

In other words

what John is showing us

is that

as things

that things

ramp up

as it were

towards the end

of the age

which tells us

that rather than

the popular belief

that the modern world

is going to get

better and better

and safer

and safer

and more secure

and more prosperous

and that as society

we are heading

for some kind

of social utopia

where everything

is just glorious

in the world

Revelation is actually

telling us

that things

are going to get

more difficult

as we experience

greater consequences

for our rejection

of God

and our rebellion

against God.

John is showing us

that the more humanity

believes

and acts

on the belief

that we are the center

of the world

the greater

the calamity

that comes

as a consequence

of it

and so the progressive

narrative

of our secular culture

that assumes

that the more

we unshackle ourselves

from the tentacles

of religion

and the more

we unshackle ourselves

from the chains

of belief in God

the more we will

experience freedom

and joy in life

that belief

John tells us

and the history

of the world

shows us

is simply not true

that actually

as a society

the further we drift

away from honoring God

and who he is

the more we drift

into the dangerous

waters

of God's judgment

does that make sense

now here's the question

why does God do this

why does God allow

these difficult things

to come upon the world

as a form

of his judgment

well look at what we read

in chapter 9

verse 20

Victoria read this for us

the rest of mankind

those who are not killed

by these plagues

did not repent

of the works

of their hands

nor give up

worshipping demons

and idols

of gold and silver

which cannot see

and hear and walk

nor did they repent

of their murder

their sorceries

their immorality

and their thefts

why does God allow

these disastrous things

to come upon

the earth

the reason

as we said earlier

is because

he is urging us

to wake up

from the trance

that we are in

to wake up

from our self-centeredness

and to turn to him

and repentance

repentance

is one of those things

that sounds

like such drudgery

you might have imagery

in your mind

of maybe as a child

if you went to

catholic school

or catholic church

you got to go

to the confession booth

and say

father I've sinned

this is what I've done

you might think

of repentance

as a form of

self-flagellation

where you beat yourself

and tell yourself

how terrible you are

but actually

the bible says

that confession

repentance

it can sometimes

feel like death

but actually

it always leads

to life

I don't know

if you remember

in Isaiah chapter 30

Isaiah 30 · chapter mention

God comes to his people

and this is what he says

in repentance

and in rest

you will be saved

you will find life

in quietness

in other words

in submission

and in trusting to me

you will find strength

God calls us

to repentance

because in coming

to God

we find rest

we find peace

we find the freedom

and the peace

that our hearts

are looking for

we found that

it's not found

in asserting ourselves

and in claiming

our rights

but actually surrendering

to the one

who knows us

and who loves us

repentance feels

like death

but it always

leads to life

except

in Isaiah 30

tragically

the people

don't listen to God

and so look

at what he says

he says

you were unwilling

you said

no

we will flee

on our own horses

and so I will cause

you to flee

you said

we will ride

upon swift stallions

and therefore

we will be safe

therefore I will cause

your enemies

to be swifter

than stallions

repentance

always leads

to life

I experienced this

in my household

last week

last weekend

I was a terrible

dad

and husband

on Saturday

I was just feeling

incredibly stressed out

about everything

that was going on

in Hong Kong

and the protests

and the fact

that live rounds

had been shot

during protests

the MTR station

everything was going on

and in addition to that

I was preaching

last Sunday

and I didn't feel ready

for preaching

and so on Saturday morning

I'm still trying to get

my head around

where we're going

and all that meant

that I was just

a terrible man

in the house

and my kids

asked me something

and I would snap

back at them

and Claire was

trying to give me space

and I just wasn't great

and so on Saturday night

we go to some

friends house

some new friends

that we met

this lady on the bus

and we've become

friends with her

we go to their house

for dinner

and our kids

I'm like stressed out

and our kids

are standing on things

and knocking things over

and I just lost it

right

and so I said

some things

I shouldn't have said

and I responded

the way I shouldn't

have responded

and I could see

I just crushed

my daughter

and so that night

they go to bed

Claire goes to bed

and I'm feeling

like an idiot

and so I wake up

on Sunday morning

trying to get my head

around preaching

and on the way

to church

I'm walking

and I'm holding

Sierra's hand

and I say

Sierra I've got to

tell you something

I've got to say

I'm so sorry

I haven't been a great dad

will you please

forgive me

and I could see

my seven year old's

heart

and her smile

just like

the ice just evaporated

and she holds my hand

and she says

it's okay dad

I understand

sometimes these things

happen

isn't that amazing

but the point

is this

the point is

acknowledging

our shortfall

acknowledging

our sin

confession

and repentance

always

always

always

leads to life

remember how Jesus

began his ministry

he doesn't start off

telling people

how he can improve

their lives

and give them jobs

and happy marriages

and bless them

with kids

Jesus starts off

and he says

there's a problem

in the world

and the problem

is sin

and I want to help

you deal with it

come and follow me

Jesus' words here

in Revelation

are the same thing

he's calling us

to turn

from the idols

that we look to

but which cannot

save us

they cannot

solve the deep

longings of our heart

because as verse 20

says

they are mute

they are deaf

they are lifeless

they cannot walk

or hear

they cannot hear

our prayers

and the freedom

and the life

that we long for

are found in him

but tragically

as Revelation 9

will show us

many people

do not heed

his call

and do not

humble themselves

and admit

their need

for God

and so God

says

there are these

plagues

coming upon

the world

and my

judgment

is coming

and this

would have

made sense

to John's

first century

audience

because they

would have

picked up

straight away

that so much

of the language

in chapter 8

and 9

resembles the

language

that God

spoke to

the people

of Egypt

back in the

Exodus

in Exodus

Exodus 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3

4 and 5

listen to

look and

notice how

in verse 7

he talks about

hail and fire

coming upon

the earth

in verse 8

and 9

he talks about

the sea

being turned

red

so that the

creatures die

in them

in verse 12

he talks about

how darkness

has come upon

the earth

and in chapter 9

he calls these

things plagues

and so

John's audience

straight away

would have realized

as they heard

these words

God is referencing

the plagues

of Egypt

and what happened

in the plagues

of Egypt

God brought

these disasters

on the earth

because he was

saying to

Pharaoh

Pharaoh

these are my

warning judgments

to you

sit up and

take notice

if you do not

listen to my

voice

finally my

full judgment

will come

these were

God's warnings

to Pharaoh

to listen

and to turn

and to trust

him

but Pharaoh

would not

listen

and so finally

God's judgment

came

not just the

plagues

but finally

the death

of the firstborn

son

and friends

this is history's

pattern

that all

human empires

all kingdoms

all movements

and causes

no matter

how well meaning

they begin

no matter

how well

intentioned

they are

in the beginning

all human

kingdoms

ultimately

become Egypt

become Babylon

become Rome

and ultimately

are brought

to their knees

by him

who is seated

on the throne

whose kingdom

is an eternal

one

I guess

it's worth

noticing

that at the

end of chapter

9

Jesus says

they would

not repent

maybe a question

for us to ask

in this time

is in the midst

of the difficulty

and the trauma

that our city

is going through

at the moment

what could it be

that God might be

asking us

to repent for

as a city

could it possibly

be that

where we as a city

have rejected

God's ways

and hoped

and trusted

in false gods

and idols

idols of gold

and silver

bronze

and wood

and stone

idols that cannot

hear

or walk

or see

could it be

Hong Kong

that with all

our success

that we've gained

and the prosperity

we've enjoyed

that maybe we haven't

loved the poor

and the marginalized

we haven't looked

after those

that are

underprivileged

like Jesus

would want us to

could it be

that God is

allowing challenges

to come to our city

to allow us

to wake up

and to turn

to love our city

like he does

something to

worth consider

and so the question

I want to ask

I want us to ask

is how do we

respond

last week we saw

between the sixth

and the seventh

event

there's this interlude

and God speaks

to his people

and saying

despite the challenges

I will save you

in chapter 10

and chapter 11

we come across

another interlude

between the sixth

and the seventh

of these trumpets

and in this interlude

Jesus wants to

show us something

he wants to show us

what does it mean

to be a Christian

to be a follower

of Jesus

in the midst

of the challenges

of the world

in which we live

how does this passage

call us to respond

and there are three ways

that it calls us

to respond

the first is

in chapter 10

verse 1 to 7

look at it with me

John sees this angel

and this angel

is standing

one foot in the sea

one foot on the earth

and this angel

speaks to John

and it says

that as he speaks

his voice

was like seven thunders

okay

and John

is about to write down

what the angel says

but he hears

another voice

from heaven

saying

don't write down

what you heard

seal it up

and don't tell anyone

what you heard

okay

look at what it says here

seal up

what the seven thunders

have said

do not write it down

the angel

whom I saw

standing on the sea

and the land

swore by him

who lives forever and ever

that there would be

no more delay

but that the days

of the trumpet

to be sounded

by the seventh angel

the mystery of God

would be fulfilled

now

commentators

and theologians

I read a lot of them

this week

don't know

what's going on here

in other words

why does God

speak to John

and then say

don't write it down

don't tell anyone

it could refer to

any number of things

but I think

at the very least

one of the things

we can say

it does mean

at the very least

it signifies

that there are many

things in God's plan

which he has chosen

not to reveal to us

but instead

to keep a mystery

and that as a Christian

our walk

is a walk of faith

you see

sometimes as Christians

we can think

if we obey the rules

we obey the ten commandments

we go to church

we tithe

and we go to CG

therefore we should be blessed

you follow the recipe

you do as God says

and life works out perfectly

and God says

actually there's a lot

of mysteries

you see a Christian

is not just somebody

who follows the rules

or follows the recipe

a Christian is someone

who's growing to love God

and trust him

and obey him

even in the midst

of the mysteries

and the challenges of life

a Christian is somebody

isn't just somebody

who does what God says

and suddenly receives

blessing in their life

a Christian is someone

who understands

that God's ways

are not our ways

and we follow him

and one of the dangers

of the book of Revelation

is to read too much into it

you can read this symbol

and say

okay that's Donald Trump

this thing here

that's Boris Johnson

this is the Apache helicopters

therefore

Jesus is coming this week

and John would say

no no no

there's a lot of mystery

involved still

there's things that God

wants us not to know

but to simply trust him

by the way

I wasn't going to say this

but in chapter 9

you know

there's all that stuff

about the locusts

and they've got teeth

like lions

and hair

and all this strange stuff

one commentator

seriously said

John is prophesying

the Apache helicopter

that is flying like locusts

to swarm upon the earth

that's not what John is saying

John is talking about something else

so the first thing is this

how do we live in the midst

of challenging times

to realize that we live by faith

not by recipes

there's some things

we don't understand

the second thing is this

and that leads to the second thing

the way that Christians

are called to live out our faith

in the midst of the chaos

and the calamity of the world

is found actually

in the beginning of chapter 8

in the beginning of chapter 8

we read it right in the beginning

John sees this angel

in verses 3 and 4

and this angel is holding

this golden bowl

and in this golden bowl

is incense

that's burning

and mixed up with the incense

are the prayers

of God's people

in other words

I don't know if you've ever

walked into a room

where there's incense burning

and you can smell it

straight away

right

what's he saying here

as the incense rises

to our nostrils

and we can smell it

straight away

John is telling us

that the prayers

of God's people

come before God's throne

they come before

God's throne

but what's clear

is that

from scripture

is that for some reason

God's sovereign purposes

in history

are shaped by our prayers

even when we can't see

what's happening

or how God

is responding

so what do we do

in the midst of this time

between the already

and the not yet

where Jesus has come

but he's coming again

in the midst of the challenges

and we don't know

how this world is going

when there's mystery

and we're unsure

about what God's doing

in the world

what do we do

we come before him

in prayer

John writes us

and he says

our prayers come before God

and just like incense

is burnt

and in the beginning

you can see it

but soon it disappears

sometimes we can feel

like our prayers disappear

sometimes we pray

these prayers before God

and we say

God are you even hearing

where are you

what's happened

to our prayers

do they just vanish

into thin air

and John is telling us

that though we do not know

what happens to our prayers

you can rest assured

that for some reason

God in his sovereign plan

has purposed

that history is shaped

by our prayers

even when we can't see

what's happening

and so you know

what that means

for us Watermark

it means we have to become

a church that gets better

at praying

we have to pray

because if we're going

to make it through

the challenges

and the calamity

and if we're going

to make it through

our faith being rocked

if we're going

to make it through

the difficulties

that we change

we have to be

a church that prays

friends if Hong Kong

if it's going to be

in Hong Kong

like it is in heaven

it's not going to be

through Watermark

organizing these

amazing programs

and plans

it's not going to be

through some

slick preacher

or some amazing

church service

it's going to happen

through the prayers

of his people

getting on their knees

and crying out to God

for the well-being

of our city

friends you know

what Hong Kong's

secret weapon is

it's men and women

all over the city

getting on their knees

and praying

and praying

and praying

friends when we pray

for the suffering church

and we don't see

direct immediate results

when we pray

for imprisoned Christians

it'll be advance

of the gospel

and nations

like we did this morning

and we don't know

how effective

those prayers

in this passage

John takes us

through the door

of heaven

and he shows us

it may just be

that our prayers

are somewhere

in one of those bowls

just waiting

for the right time

for God to tip it out

and to say

now is the day

for me to answer

your prayers

Watermark

we must become a church

that gets better

at praying

but then there's

one last third thing

so the first thing

is this

we understand

that life is a mystery

we don't know

how it all works

second thing

is we must get better

at praying

third thing

how do we live

in the midst

of the challenges

and the complexity

of life

what does it mean

to be a follower

of Jesus

even as God

allows these

the chaos

and the calamity

to come

we'll look at the end

of chapter 10

with me

this is the third

and final thing

here we see

the most important thing

that Jesus wants

to say to us

in this interlude

what does it mean

to be a Christian

in this age

what does it look like

to follow Jesus

between the cross

and the throne

of heaven

chapter 10

and chapter 11

give us the clearest picture

look at what John

says here

verse 8

then the voice

that I'd heard

from heaven

spoke to me again

saying go and take

the scroll

that is open

in the hand

of the angel

who is standing

on the sea

and on the land

so I went to the angel

and I told him

to give me the scroll

and he said to me

take it and eat

it will make

your stomach bitter

but your mouth

will be as sweet

as honey

in your mouth

so I took the scroll

from the hand

of the angel

and ate it

it was as sweet

as honey

in my mouth

but when I'd eaten it

my stomach

was made bitter

and I was told

you must again

prophesy

about many peoples

and nations

languages

and kings

friends

what it means

to be a follower

of Jesus

even in the midst

of challenging times

is that we don't

only receive

God's word

and enjoy it

ourselves

but that we'll

become agents

and ambassadors

of God's word

into our city

and the nations

of the world

look at what happens

here

John is given

the scroll

and the scroll

contains the words

of God

and as he eats it

it's beautiful

he tastes it

and it tastes

like honey

it's just the most

incredibly good news

but as he internalizes

as he swallows it

ah

it becomes difficult

it becomes challenging

friends

at first

the gospel

is the most

wonderfully

incredible news

God loves us

and he died

on the cross

for us

Jesus covered

our sins

by his blood

said you and I

don't need to

stand before him

with our own sin

where once

we were outcasts

now we are

welcomed as his family

where once

we were enemies

now we are sons

and daughters of God

no shame

no guilt

for those who are in Christ

Jesus washes us

by his blood

and now we stand

as white as snow

the gospel

is just incredible

but as we believe it

we soon come to see

that the gospel

doesn't only save us

it also changes us

and the gospel

starts to confront us

and it starts to challenge

some of the idols

in our heart

and it starts to challenge

some of our behavior

and our character

and the gospel

not only saves us

it starts to reform us

and to make us

more like Jesus

as the gospel

gets into us

it challenges us

to see the idols

in our lives

and it calls us

to live a life

of faith

and repentance

but then not only that

as we grow in Christ

and we become

more like him

we realize

we are his ambassadors

and he calls us

to share the gospel

to take it out

to the nations

of the world

to take it out

into the city

and as we do that

as we speak his word

what happens

we face persecution

we are rejected

and oppressed

look at verse 11

he says

when I had eaten it

my stomach was made bitter

I was told

you must still

speak God's word

to many nations

and peoples

and languages

and kings

friends

this is the reason

watermark was planted

nine years ago

this is the reason

watermark exists

this is the reason

we must plant

more churches

into Hong Kong

and into other cities

because the good news

of Jesus

cannot stay with us

it must go out

into our city

and so John

is telling us here

that as chaos

and calamity

and difficulty

comes to our city

the worst thing

that we can do

is to bunker down

and to sit back

and to think

let's just hope

the chaos passes over

so we can get back

to our lives

in the midst

of the challenges

that our city faces

God says

send the message out

go and tell everyone

wherever you can

about the astoundingly

wonderful good news

of Jesus

that he died

on the cross

for you

and for me

that in this life

you will face challenges

but take courage

Christ has overcome

that friends

one day

we will all face

the final judgment

of God

but Jesus has died

so that we can be

washed of our sin

friends

this is why

we exist

friends

this is why

as you sit

on the bus

and you sit

next to the same

person

day in

and day out

and you get

to know them

Christ has put you

in that place

to tell them

about the wonder

of Jesus

friends

as you go to work

and you face

challenges

and your colleagues

face challenges

you've been put there

to tell them

about the wonder

of Jesus

that he loves them

and he died

on the cross

for them

friends

as your kids

go to school

and they're overwhelmed

by the pressure

of grades

and will they get

into university

we tell them

that their life

does not consist

of their grades

and how well

they do

but their life

consists

that they are

in Christ

and that he loves

them

and he died

for them

and he saved

them

and that his

kingdom is coming

John

Jesus says to

John

John you're going

to proclaim

his word

you're going

to speak

the gospel

and that's

going to be

hard

and next week

we're going

to see in

chapter 11

for some of us

that may mean

death

friends

for some of us

here

if you're

obedient to

Jesus

and he calls

you to speak

his word

he may send

you into the

nations of the

world

and that may

mean a

premature death

for some of us

it may feel

like death

as we face

persecution

and opposition

for all of us

it will mean

our ego

and our pride

will have to

die

as we call

people everywhere

to faith in

Christ

and repentance

from sin

Tim Chester

says it like

this

like the

prophets of

old

the church

proclaims

the sweet

words

that are

met

with bitter

hostility

the message

of the scroll

is bittersweet

for it is a

message of

victory

through suffering

all Christians

know something

of John's

experience

the message

of Christ

is so sweet

to us

but this

sweetness

is matched

by pain

when family

and friends

reject the

message

leaving a

bitterness

in our

stomach

you see

in chapter

6 and 7

there are

these seven

scrolls

and we saw

how the church

is an invisible

kingdom

God's visible

kingdom on earth

it overcomes

the challenge

and the chaos

of life

it's protected

but the

message of

chapter 10

and 11

is that the

church doesn't

only survive

the church

thrives

and is victorious

and overcomes

the challenges

of this world

how

not by

hunkering

down

trying to

preserve

ourselves

and save

ourselves

but by

going out

and proclaiming

the message

of the gospel

friends

our city

faces the

greatest

challenge

it has

witnessed

for many

many years

maybe even

a couple

of generations

how are we

going to

respond

are we

going to

sit back

and hope

that it

passes

over

quickly

so we

can get

back

to our

lives

are we

going to

sharpen

our

arguments

and get

ready to

fight

and demonize

those that

disagree

with us

and tell

them that

they're

bad

and wrong

friends

this passage

calls us

to respond

very differently

to a more

difficult way

a more

challenging

way

it calls

us to

examine

our own