Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - The Right Side of History | New Testament | Revelation 19

Episode Date: November 16, 2023

Are you willing to trust in Jesus's story for your life? What about for the world around you? Where are you tempting to succumb to the lies of culture around you? In today's episode, Patrick looks at Revelation 19 to unlock the key to the right side of history. Your support makes TMBT possible. Ten Minute Bible Talks is a crowd-funded project. Join the TMBTeam to reach more people with the Bible. Give now. Prepare your heart to celebrate Jesus. Sign up to have the 'I Am Your God' Advent Devotional delivered directly to your inbox starting Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023. Join the TMBT community in reading the entire New Testament in one year. Get your FREE reading plan here. Like this content? Make sure to leave us a rating and share it with others, so others can find it too. Use #asktmbt to connect with us, ask questions, and suggest topics. We'd love to hear from you! To learn more, visit our website and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter@TenMinuteBibleTalks. Don't forget to subscribe to the TMBT Newsletter here. Passages: Revelation 19

Welcome to 10 minute Bible talks, where we connect the Bible to your life. In the time it takes to get to work. I'm Patrick Miller. How do you know if you're on the right side of history? One of the most disturbing facts of history is that those who commit some of the worst atrocities often believed that they were in the right, that they were on the right side of history. Nazi Germany, here's one example. Most Nazis thought that they were justified, that they were on the right side of history.

You see, after World War I, the Treaty of Versailles cast a long shadow of shame over the German nation. It took away much of their political and military power. It even took away lands that they saw as their own. They thought that the Treaty of Versailles threatened the very possibility of a German nation and it thereby threatened the entire ethnic population of Germans. And so they thought that they were just, that they were on the right side of history to go to war with other Europeans who enacted that treaty. They thought it was right to exterminate Jews and foreigners who threatened their ethnic and national existence.

They thought that they were on the right side of history. But everybody knows that they weren't. Everyone knows that instigating a world war and slaughtering six million Jews was not only a terrible act of violence, but also an egregious evil that has almost no parallel in human history. The sad truth is that most Christians living in Germany sided with the Nazis. They thought it made perfect sense. The problem is that by cleaving to Nazi ideology, they were leaving what the Bible says about human dignity, violence, and God's vision for a multi-ethnic kingdom that doesn't just include Jews.

It's actually ruled by a Jewish Messiah, Jesus. You see, the Nazi Christians thought that they were on the right side of history, but they weren't because they were on the wrong side of God's word. And in the end, God's word is always vincent. indicated. The sobering thing is that we aren't all that different from those people. I know plenty of Christians who quietly break with what the Bible teaches because they think doing so will put them on the right side of history. In Revelation 18, John gives a shocking image of the powers in the world, what he calls the whore of Babylon. She's this hulking monstrosity that promises wealth and

gives wealth. She demands idolatry and she takes worship. She devours the good and celebrates the evil. She relishes in greed and sexual immorality and punishes righteousness. John wanted us to see that we all live in Babylon. And Babylon always promises that it's on the right side of history, that if you throw in your chips with Babylon, you'll win the whole pot. In Revelation 19, John wants us to see that this isn't the case. Babylon is actually on the wrong side of history. And when the king returns to reestablish justice on earth, the truth will be revealed. We'll pick up in chapter 19, verse one, just after the whore of Babylon is destroyed. After this, I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting.

Hallelujah, salvation and glory and power belong to our God. For true and just are his judgments. He has condemned the great prostitute Babylon, who corrupted the earth by her adulteries. He has avenged on her the blood of his servants. And again, they shout it, Hallelujah. The smoke from her goes up forever and ever. The 24 elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshipped God who was seated on the throne and they cried, Amen. Hallelujah. Then a voice came from the throne saying, praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, both great and small. Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder shouting. Hallelujah. For all.

Our God Almighty reigns, let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory. For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear. Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God's holy people. Then the angel said to me, write this, Blessed are those who are indeed invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb. And he added, these are the true words of God. So in this passage, John is giving us a stark, black and white, yes or no, either or option.

We will either side with Babylon or side with Jesus. We will either be devoured in Babylon or devour the wedding feast of the Lamb. We will either clothe ourselves in Babylon's ways or we will be clothed as the bride of Christ. And in the end, John wants you to choose Jesus because Jesus is on the right side of history. In the end, he will be revealed as the one who is just beautiful, good, and true. That is what will happen in the future. Where in your life are you tempted to stop trusting Jesus, to believe the lies of Babylon, that if you're on its side of history, you'll be on the right side of history?

Where are you tempted by Babylon's greed, nationalism, and sexual immorality? John wants us to be on the right side of history, and he shows us by giving us a pain, Anoramic view of history itself, Jesus reigns, Jesus wins, Jesus is king. And because that's true, and because he is lovely, and because he is good, and because he is trustworthy, you can trust his wisdom, even when the world calls it foolish, or bigoted, or unpatriotic, or says it's on the wrong side of history. We all have a choice. We can trust Babylon like the Germans did, and like humans have done in every civilization? Or we can trust our king. Trust the king. He's setting a banquet for you that you won't want to miss.