“Stop – Turn Aside”

Revelation 14

6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, 7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. 9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,

10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:

11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. 12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

The angel had the everlasting gospel, not just a gospel which flares up and dies down.

He who endures in the Gospel and is faithful will have everlasting life.

The angels have a great work. Here we read of the great things this angle proclaim. So often in the Bible we read that when God was about to do something great He told His angels about. The angels look forward to the wonderful things God will do among the children of men. (1Pet 1:12). In Hebrews we read that they are God’s messengers. So we see how they are continually involved in the affairs of men.

When just one sinner repents we read that the angels in Heaven rejoice. So when they see the gospel spreading to all the nations and tribes there is rejoicing in Heaven.

When He was sweating sweat drops of Blood we find an angel strengthening Him.

What if the angels have received the commission to preach the Gospel to all nations? Even on the very first day great things would’ve happened. They are not as lazy and lukewarm as we are. Are they perhaps disappointed when they look at you and see what you do?

The things of this world is temporary but God’s Gospel is everlasting.

We don’t believe in the good or bad fortune that comes from the ancestors. You will never get good fortune by worshipping the ancestors. But amazingly the moment you turn to the Lord, your fortunes also turn that very day.

The angel cried, “Babylon is fallen”. What does Babylon stand for? It stands for the world and the things of the world. It stands for the spirit of immorality in the world, prostitution, divorce, children bearing children out of wedlock, pornography, drugs, TV etc. You have an eternal soul, how can you sell it for R50?

The TV injects the spirit of Babylon into your family. The internet and cell phones also contain so much of Babylon and destroys souls.

Joel 2

28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.

Do your children receive visions and revelations from Heaven, or are they only concerned with the things of this world? If they only know the things of this world (money, fame and education), then they are of the world.

You should be troubled if your children do not come to you to share what the Lord has revealed to them. Then they are living like the world. If they are truly born again they would be full of God’s Word. God would speak to them and reveal heavenly mysteries to them, otherwise they are dead spiritually and live like the world.

Babylon intoxicates the nations with its wine. Start at home, see what videos your children watch, what books they read and what pictures are on their walls. Clean out your house from the things of Babylon.

The beast we read of here is a monster like the devil himself. He is filled with all manner of evil and revelry, drunkenness, immorality, pride etc.

The one who receives the mark of the beast will not be forgiven in this world or the world to come. Although the mark of the beast is something which is coming in the future, let us look at how it affects us even today. The mark on the forehead is the things that is implanted in your mind. Paul even says I wish to see your face to know where you stand spiritually. One can often see where a person stands spiritually in his face. When you look at a person you don’t see God’s glory but the dark face of the beast. Some even come like an angel of the light but if you look carefully at them you see through their façade that they are the offspring of the devil.

That mark is also put on the hand – what the person does. One sees the work of the beast in what such a person does.

You should turn to the Lord from your evil ways even now, before you leave. If you do not obey, hear what the Lord says, ” And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.”

Go to the Christians and tell them this. Do not go after money. People are heading for hell. Will you warn them? Warn even your own children that unless they know God and God knows them and speaks to them, they are lost.

There is a story of a missionary in China who was called John. After learning the Chinese language he one day gave a sermon and an old missionary listened to him. Afterwards the old missionary called him and said, “I am terribly disappointed today. Your Chinese has improved dramatically and that is good. However, when I last listened to you, you were filled with the Spirit of God and with His fire. Today you were eloquent but you have lost the fire of God”.

The man took the rebuke to heart and he and his wife searched their life. As they prayed God convicte them of their sins of slander, how they spoke critically about other children of God behind their backs. They repented of that, confessed it and sorted the matters out. Then God’s fire returned and people were saved once again. He said that he realised that criticism of another child of God behind his back is the worst sin which paralyses the working of God’s Spirit.

Unless you sharpen an axe regularly you will quickly struggle to fell trees effectively.

So too we need to sharpen our hearing when God’s Word is preached; we must be sharp like a razonblade and repent.