The Pursuit Of A Fading Kingdom
Sermon Notes
Today we’re continuing our teaching series on a book of the bible called Revelation. It’s a series about finding peace in our world of chaos, and the text we’re studying today is about seeking a fading kingdom. It's about seeking fading treasures, in a fading kingdom. Both skeptics and believers would agree that we’re living in a world that’s fading. Our bodies are fading, our clothes are fading, our cars are fading, our material possessions are fading, even the very atmosphere of the earth is fading. Yet even though we know our world is fading, we still find ourselves sometimes seeking fading treasures in this fading kingdom. What are some of those treasures for you?...What are some of the fading treasures you’ve been seeking?...The reality that everyone faces sooner or later, is all the fading treasures we’re working so hard to obtain in life are eventually coming to an end. Our material possessions, our successes, our achievements, our social status, it’s all fading treasures in a fading kingdom. It’s like a mist that appears only for a little while, but then it fades and vanishes.
Today’s text causes us to ask the question is it worth it?...Is it worth spending so much time and energy seeking things that are just fading treasures in a fading kingdom?...Is it possible we’ve been focusing too much on seeking fading treasures in a fading kingdom, and we need to shift our focus onto seeking eternal treasures in a forever kingdom?...This is what we’re talking about today, so let’s turn to Revelation 18 and get into it. You’ll find Revelation in the back of the bible, it’s the very last book of the bible. We’ll be in Revelation ch 18:1-24, and the title of the message is The Pursuit Of A Fading Kingdom. The big idea of the message is you can either seek a fading kingdom, or a forever kingdom...You can either seek a fading kingdom, or a forever kingdom...
Here’s your context. The book of Revelation is about the 2nd coming of Jesus, and what will happen at the end of history when he returns. We divided this entire book into four major sections based on the four major visions Jesus gave to John the author, and right now we’re in the 3rd major vision of Jesus Conquering. It’s a vision of Jesus returning to conquer sin and evil forever. Now last week we learned ch’s 17-18 gives us a little glimpse into the human heart, and in ch 17 we learned many people are being seduced by a world promising lasting pleasures it can’t produce. Ch 18 continues that theme because it’s about seeking fading treasures in a fading kingdom. It’s about how we can either seek fading treasures in a fading kingdom, or seek eternal treasures in a forever kingdom. Which of these two have you been seeking? Let’s check it out.
Revelation 18:1-24 states, “After this I saw another angel with great authority coming down from heaven, and the earth was illuminated by his splendor. 2 He called out in a mighty voice: ‘It has fallen, Babylon the Great has fallen! She has become a home for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, and a haunt for every unclean and despicable beast., 3 For all the nations have drunk the wine of her sexual immorality, which brings wrath. The kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown wealthy from her sensuality and excess.’” What this is describing is the collapse of Babylon, which represents more than a historical city. It represents the Antichrist’s corrupt global kingdom that’s coming in the future. So when it says Babylon the Great has fallen, it’s talking about the future collapse of the Antichrist’s corrupt global kingdom. In these verses we learn it’s full of wealth, immorality, and corruption. The sexual immorality that’s mentioned is a metaphor for people committing spiritual adultery by worshiping other things instead of the Lord. It's corrupt people, living in a corrupt global kingdom, so the Lord’s bringing destruction to end all this corruption. As we learned in previous chapters the Lord gives them many chances to repent and turn to him before this destruction, but they refuse to repent and turn to the Lord. So now all their wealth, power, prosperity, possessions, even their very own lives, are headed for destruction.
Vs. 4, “Then I heard another voice from heaven: ‘Come out of her my people, so that you will not share in her sins or receive any of her plagues.’” The Lord’s calling his people to come out, meaning to live different lifestyles than the corrupt lifestyles of the people in the Antichrist’s corrupt kingdom. The Lord doesn’t call us to live isolated from the world. He calls us to live in the world, but not as the world. We’re to live in the world, but not live as the world. We’re to come out of living for fading treasures in a fading kingdom, and live for Jesus and his forever kingdom.
Vs. 5, “For her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes. 6 Pay her back the way she also paid, and double it according to her works. In the cup in which she mixed, mix a double portion for her. 7 As much as she glorified herself and indulged her sensual and excessive ways, give her that much torment and grief. For she says in her heart, ‘I sit as a queen; I am not a widow, and I will never see grief.’ 8 For this reason her plagues will come in just one day—death and grief and famine. She will be burned up with fire, because the Lord God who judges her is mighty.”Notice in vs 4 it says their sins are piled up to heaven, meaning their sins aren’t unseen and forgotten. They might think their sinful corrupt lifestyles have been unseen and forgotten, but the Lord sees and knows everything they’ve been doing. In vs. 7 they arrogantly claim they’ll never see grief! They arrogantly think they can build their own kingdoms with treasures preventing them from seeing grief. But it’s all fading treasures in a fading kingdom because destruction is coming and they’re about to lose it all. What’s interesting is several years ago notorious horror filmmaker Stephen King realized it’s pointless seeking fading treasures we can’t take with us when we die. King said, “A couple of years ago I was lying in a ditch at the side of a country road. I was covered in mud and blood with the tibia of my right leg poking out of the side of my jeans, like a branch of a tree taken down in a thunderstorm…During that time I got a painful, but extremely valuable look at life’s simple backstage truths. We come in naked and broke, and we might be dressed when we go out, but we’re still just as broke. Warren Buffet? Going out broke. Bill gates? Going out broke. Tom Hanks? Going out broke. Stephen King? Broke. Not a crying dime…So I want you to consider making your life one long gift to others…All you have is on loan anyways.” I love the irony of a horror filmmaker talking about being generous to others. I mean there’s nothing generous about the movies Cujo and Children of the Corn...But it took King lying in a ditch, to finally realize how pointless it is to seek fading treasures in this fading kingdom.
Jesus mentions something similar to all this in the parable of the rich fool. He says in Luke 12:16-21, “A rich man’s land was very productive. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What should I do since I don’t have anywhere to store my crops? 18 I will do this! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and store all my grain and my goods there. 19 Then I’ll say to myself, ‘You have many goods stored up for many years. Take it easy; eat, drink, and enjoy yourself.’ 20 But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ That’s how it is with the one who stores up treasure for himself, and isn’t rich toward God.” Like the rich fool in the parable the people in this text are about to lose everything they have. The parable and Revelation 18 is teaching us to not seek fading treasures in a fading kingdom, but to seek Jesus and eternal treasures in his forever kingdom. Sadly the people in the text don’t learn that lesson, so destruction comes, and they grieve all their lost fading treasures.
Vs. 9, “The kings of the earth who have committed sexual immorality and shared her sensual and excessive ways, will weep and mourn over her when they see the smoke from her burning. 10 They will stand far off in fear of her torment, saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the mighty city! For in a single hour your judgment has come.’” We’re about to see three different groups of people grieving over the destruction of the Antichrist’s corrupt global kingdom. The first group that’s mentioned here is the kings of the earth, the leaders of this corrupt global kingdom. They’re grieving because they know whatever wealth and power they had, is now gone forever.
Vs. 11, “The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargo any longer—12 cargo of gold, silver, jewels, and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk, and scarlet; all kinds of fragrant wood products; objects of ivory; objects of expensive wood, brass, iron, and marble; 13 cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, and frankincense; wine, olive oil, fine flour, and grain; cattle and sheep; horses and carriages; and slaves—human lives. 14 ‘The fruit you craved has left you. All your splendid and glamorous things are gone; they will never find them again.’ 15 The merchants of these things, who became rich from her, will stand far off in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning, 16 saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, dressed in fine linen, purple, and scarlet, adorned with gold, jewels, and pearls; 17 for in a single hour such fabulous wealth was destroyed!’” So not only are the kings and leaders grieving, but the merchants of the earth are grieving too. Vs. 11 says they’re grieving because nobody buys their cargo or products anymore. The text mentions several products they profited from, but their profit margins decreased below sustainability, and so they have to put out-of-business signs on their doors. Vs. 14 says the fruit they craved from their labor is gone, meaning there’s no more profitable return on their investment. They’re grieving because they know whatever profit they had, is now gone forever.
Vs. 17 continues, “And every shipmaster, seafarer, the sailors, and all who do business by sea, stood far off 18 as they watched the smoke from her burning and kept crying out, ‘Who was like the great city?’ 19 They threw dust on their heads and kept crying out, weeping, and mourning, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, where all those who have ships on the sea became rich from her wealth; for in a single hour she was destroyed.’” So we have the kings and rulers grieving, we have the merchants grieving, and now we have all who do business by sea grieving. They’re grieving over the economic collapse of all imports and exports, which leads to the economic collapse of every nation, and the economic collapse of the Antichrist’s corrupt global kingdom. But what’s very interesting to me is none of these groups of people ever grieve over their sin. They grieve over their lost wealth, their lost power, their lost prosperity and possessions, but they never grieve over their sin or their lost opportunity to have a restored relationship with the Lord. It reveals what they were really treasuring was their fading treasures in this fading kingdom instead of the Lord. They were treasuring their fading treasures in this fading kingdom instead of Jesus and his forever kingdom.
But we have to be careful not to think this doesn’t sometimes happen to us because it does. I mean when we pray for something and the Lord doesn’t give us what we want, our bitter or angry response reveals we’ve been treasuring that thing we prayed for more than the Lord. If we treasured the Lord more, then we wouldn’t get so upset over not getting what we wanted. We wouldn’t get so upset because we trust the Lord knows what’s best for us, whether he gives us what we ask for or not. But when we shake our fist at the Lord for not giving us what we wanted, it’s a sign we’re treasuring that thing more than the Lord. This text is exposing what these people treasure more, and it’s their fading treasures instead of the Lord. What are you treasuring more?...Is it fading treasures in this fading kingdom, or are you treasuring Jesus and his eternal kingdom?...Like the people in the text do you grieve losing your fading treasures, more than you grieve your sin?...
Vs. 20, “‘Rejoice over her, heaven and you saints, apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced on her the judgment she passed on you!’ 21 Then a mighty angel picked up a stone like a large millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, ‘In this way Babylon the great city will be thrown down violently and never be found again. 22 The sound of harpists, musicians, flutists, and trumpeters will never be heard in you again; no craftsman of any trade will ever be found in you again; the sound of a mill will never be heard in you again; 23 the light of a lamp will never shine in you again; and the voice of a groom and bride will never be heard in you again. All this will happen because your merchants were the nobility of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery. 24 In her was found the blood of prophets and saints, and of all those slaughtered on the earth’” The sinking millstone thrown into the sea, symbolizes the Antichrist’s sinking corrupt kingdom. The Lord’s putting an end to this corrupt kingdom, and it's a reminder that the Lord’s justice against sin and evil sometimes seems delayed, but it’s never ignored. It’s a reminder that every fading treasure and fading kingdom is coming to an end, if it isn’t in alignment with Jesus and his forever kingdom. Jesus said in Matthew 6:19-21, “Don’t store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” So where is your treasure today, where is your heart?...What is it that you’re truly living for?...Are you living for fading treasures in a fading kingdom, or are you living for Jesus and his forever kingdom?...
Revelation 18 is a reality check teaching us that it’s only Jesus and his forever kingdom that’ll be left standing in the end. It’s an invitation for us to respond to the Lord calling us to come out of the metaphorical Babylonian life we’ve been living, and to seek Jesus above everything else knowing his kingdom is the only forever kingdom. It’s an invitation for us to reflect on some of the fading treasures we’ve been seeking, come out of that metaphorical Babylon, and start seeking Jesus as our greatest treasure. American author and poet Ella Wilcox does a great job describing the heart of a person who’s seeking and living for fading treasures in a fading kingdom. She does a great job describing a world that over-promises and underdelivers, in a poem called Vanity Fair.
“In Vanity Fair as we strive for place,
as we rush, jostle, crowd, and hurry.
We know the goal is not worth the race,
we know the prize is not worth the worry.
That all our gain means loss for another;
that in fighting for self we wound each other.
That the crown of success weighs hard and presses,
the brow of the victor, with thorns¾ not caresses.”
This is the life of the person who’s seeking and living for fading treasures in a fading kingdom. They’re living for a crown of success that ends with thorns, not caresses.
The big idea of the message is you can either seek a fading kingdom, or a forever kingdom... You can either seek a fading kingdom, or a forever kingdom...Revelation 18 confronts us with the sobering reality of how quickly things can crumble. It’s a reminder that our world's treasures are fading. Yet many of us are working so hard killing ourselves physically, emotionally, even spiritually, trying to obtain fading treasures that’ll never last. We’re working so hard trying to build fading kingdoms that’ll eventually sift away like sandcastles on a seashore. So the bad news is, we’re living in a fading kingdom. We’re living in a world where the human body is fading, the natural world is fading, all the treasures of this world are slowly fading and decaying.
In the beginning of creation humanity walked in the paradise of the garden, but because of sin we’re now walking in the land of the decaying. We’re now the walking dead, with bodies and treasures that are prone to decay and death. Both skeptics and believers know the bad news, is we’re living in a fading kingdom. But the good news, is Jesus offers us a forever kingdom. He offers us eternal pleasures in a forever kingdom with him. Jesus died for our sins on the cross, but then he rose again on the 3rd day to prove he has the power to give us eternal life with eternal treasures in his forever kingdom. His resurrection proves death isn’t the end of the story, it’s the beginning of our eternal story. If you put your faith in Jesus, then death isn’t the end of your story, it’s the beginning of your eternal story, with eternal treasures, in his forever kingdom. The question is which kingdom have you been living for? Which kingdom will you continue living for?...Let’s Pray.