Have you ever heard anyone say that in eternity – time shall be no more? Please turn to Revelation 22:1-7 with its picture of Heaven – “And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more CURSE: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no NIGHT there; and they need no candle, neither light of the SUN; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.” After the Tribulation and following the Millennium, when the eternal plan of God takes its final form, the curse, which has plagued creation since the sin of Adam, shall be removed. There will be no more Satan to corrupt creation; no more sickness, no more poisons, thistles and weeds. This scripture tells us there will no longer be any night, and there will be no need of the sun, because creation will bask in the eternal presence and blessing of He who is “the light.”
Now turn back a page to Revelation 21:1-18 – “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first HEAVEN and the first EARTH were passed away; and there was no more SEA. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all TEARS from their eyes; and there shall be no more DEATH, neither SORROW, nor CRYING, neither shall there be any more PAIN: for the former things are passed away.” Again, after the thousand year reign of Christ on earth – after the Millennium – the cosmos as we know it will be gone. There will be no more earth and no more sea. Furthermore there will be no more pain and death, no more crying and sorrow. Many of the things surrounding us today will not exist in heaven or in eternity. BUT, in the last two chapters in God’s revelation there is no reference to “no more time.”
This morning, let’s begin with a short consideration of “TIME.”
This is the last Sunday of 2024. Many of us have new calendars ready to go up on our walls or on our desks. Some of us have made a review of the past year. Some of us are making big plans for 2025. Time is lurking in the back of many people’s minds – even if not in the forefront.
In the light of the mounting of our new calendars, here are some general principles that we might consider. For example, time is not eternal in the sense that it had no beginning. I say this reverently, the only “thing” which is literally and absolutely eternal is the triune God. God the Holy Spirit has always been, and will always be. He is called “the eternal spirit.” “The Second Person of the God-head,” is the eternal Son of God. He has always been the Son of God; He did not become God’s Son when He became Mary’s son. Beyond God, nothing existed prior to creation – absolutely nothing – not light, not life, not space, not time.
But then God created the universe and everything within it – including time. Jehovah created the atomic clock and pushed the ignition button after which He heard its first “tick, tick, tick.” And God is still above and beyond time. He is the “eternal NOW.” He says without beginning or ending, “I am.” He calls Himself “the alpha and the omega,” but only in the sense that He created everything beside Himself.
You and I, however, are not above time. We are trapped by it. We listen to a symphony note by note; our bodies decay moment by moment; we learn point by point. We look at the Spokane river, watching the water pass by, or we sit in our kayak floating down its current, watching the shore go by. But God, like a divine cartographer, sees the entire Columbia River system as a complete unit. It doesn’t move before His divine eye, because He is infinitely above it all.
I will let you discuss this more completely as you fellowship together over lunch… But I cannot picture how WE could possibly experience eternity without some sort of eternal time. For example, I doubt that upon our entrance into God’s presence we will have infinite knowledge. I have repeatedly said that we will be learning more and more about our Lord throughout eternity. If we are adding point to point, it means there will be some sort of chronology – passage of time. Revelation 22 says that the servants of the Lamb will serve Him, and they shall reign for ever and ever. In my mind, that service requires an ongoing series of acts of service. And “for ever and ever” also suggests the passing of time. We won’t, in one instance, render to the Saviour all the praise we owe Him for our salvation. No, I believe we will be praising Him constantly in some fresh fashion for ever and ever, which again demands the on-going of eternal time.
The subjects of time and eternity are deep – way too deep for my simple mind, so I’ll go on to my second point.
Doesn’t Revelation 16:6 tell us that TIME will be NO MORE?
John saw a mighty angel come down from heaven, holding an open book. That angel cried with a voice as loud as a roaring lion, and when it was heard seven thunders echoed their that roar. “And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven, And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer…” Doesn’t that verse tell us that time had come to an end or that time was soon to come to an end?
Actually, it does not. In the next chapter John foresees the ministry of the two witnesses, and they will preach and prophesy for one thousand two hundred and sixty days – three and one half years. That demands time. And later John describes the pouring out of the seven vials of God’s wrath. That also takes time. There are other events described in Revelation which require time. Obviously, time was not coming to an end at that poing, when we read, “There should be time no longer.” And it doesn’t sound like a prophecy of something coming up. So do we have found a contradiction in God’s Word. Of course not.
One possible explanation for this statement begins in Revelation 6:8 – “And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth. And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, HOW LONG, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, UNTIL their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.” One explanation “that time should be no longer,” refers to the waiting of these saints.
Other explanations might take us to several of the Psalms or perhaps to Daniel 12:5 – “Then I Daniel looked, and, behold, there stood other two, the one on this side of the bank of the river, and the other on that side of the bank of the river. And one said to the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, How long shall it be to the end of these wonders? And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.”
Going back to Revelation 10:6, we read – “And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven, And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer: But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.” The explanation of “there should, or shall, be time no longer,” is that the delay is over, the time has come. The judgments of God begin now. The conclusion of all things is now. The God who exists over and above all time, has determined that time, as man knows it, is reaching the stroke of twelve.
With that I come to the meat of this morning’s message – “LIFE shall be no longer.”
John’s statement in Revelation 10 declares: “All the PRELIMINARIES have been completed.” The preparatory and initiatory events have come to an end, and “the NEXT is next.” God’s will has not be thwarted; His power and authority have not abated or been diverted. Rather than “time is no more,” the meaning is – “the time has COME.” The year 2024 has come to an end, and 2025 is now ready to begin. But for the sake of an application, let’s not talk about years. Let’s talk about LIVES.
In the scripture we read earlier, Christ Jesus preached a short, pithy, power sermon. A man, wealthy in the things of the world, was planning on increasing his riches through good investments. He said, “I’ll put some money into larger barns, better farming equipment and more employees.” “I should be able to lean back, retire and live off the residue of my wisdom and self-sufficiency.” “But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee; then whose shall those things be, which thou has provided?” To put it another way, God said, “your time shall be NO LONGER. Your time is up.” “Now, who shall enjoy all those things you’ve gathered?”
Not only throughout history, but even in the pages of God’s Word there have been people who died – because their lives were at risk. There have been kings who went into battle, risking everything, and because they wore the royal robes they were targeted and died. The nation of Israel sent just over 2,000 men to capture and destory the undefendable community of Ai, but rather than a great victory, thirty-six Israelites unexpectedly lost their lives. But they were soldiers, and soldiers are always at risk. Various criminals in the Bible were executed for their crimes, but their deaths shouldn’t have surprised them. “One of the malefactors, which were hanged (with Christ) railed on Him, saying, if thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds….”
Risk-takers, dare-devils and show-offs shouldn’t be surprised when their lives end abruptly. But you are none of these. You are more like that secular, self-sufficient farmer, building your big portfolio. “But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee…”
In Daniel 5 – “Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords… In the same hour came forth fingers of a man’s hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king’s palace; and the king saw the part of the and that wrote. Then the kind’s countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against another. The king cried aloud… And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians. In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain.” God, the righteous Judge, came to that man saying, “Your time is up. For you time shall be no more.”
In Luke 16:19 – “There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments…” I can’t tell you with all certainty that this Lazarus knew that his death was coming, but it is likely. On the other hand, it appears to me that the rich man was not expecting to die at any time soon. He was unprepared; he was caught off guard. But the Lord’s death angel came to him and said, “Your time shall be no more.”
Even though Goliath was a soldier, and even though he had seen men die, and taken the lives of others… I think it is reasonable to say that he did not expect to die on that day when he faced diminutive David. “When the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance. And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.” Goliath expected to squash David like he would a little bug, but the God of David said, “YOUR time, Goliath, shall be no more.” A few minutes later the giant’s head was in the hand of the Israelite. It doesn’t matter how rich and powerful you are… it doesn’t matter how STRONG and powerful you are… There is a time appointed by God to bring your time to an end, and “then whose shall those things be, which thou has provided?”
Like Goliath, Pharaoh believed that he was invincible as he led his army into the ravine between those two solid walls of water, but he was mistaken. When he awoke earlier that morning, hearing the mournful screams of Egyptian mothers, his own death didn’t cross his mind. When he marshaled his army to run down those fleeing Israelites, he expected to live another fifty years. When he entered the Red Sea, he expected to cross to the other side just as Israel had done. But he was wrong. His time was up. The Lord’s gracious delay had run its course. He was a dead man riding his glorious war chariot into the valley of death. Amid the stories of righteous men who died unexpectedly, I could go on with other Biblical examples of ungodly men. Those stories are wretchedly sad, because they died without hope.
I’ll share only one more before I draw them all together. In Acts 12 we have a chapter dedicated to Herod Agrippa, one of the later wicked kings of Israel. We are told that he stretched out his hands to take certain of the Lord’s church, killing James. And because he saw that it pleased the Jews he took Peter as well. But because time – all time – is in the hand of the divine time-keeper, the life of Peter was miraculously delivered. But that was not the end of the chapter – or the end of Herod. Acts 12:20 tells us, “Herod was highly displeased with them of Tyre and Sidon: but they came with one accord to him, and, having made Blastus the king’s chamberlain their friend, desired peace; because their country was nourished by the king’s country. And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them. And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man. And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.”
The Lord God had patiently put up with Agrippa for about fifty-five years. God had taught that man the history of Jesus, and most likely, as king, he had been exposed to the gospel. Probably, James, Peter and other captives shared the good news of the grace of God with the man. But he was wealthy and powerful; he had already invested in bigger barns. He was strong and powerful, having just passed the prime of life. But little did he know that God had ordained worms to infest his gut, and they were working to kill him. At one of the highest and most prideful moments of his life, God’s angel said, “your time shall be no more.”
Conclusion:
Can you remember the last time you had a migraine, or can you remember how you suffered when you broke your foot? Some of you ladies might be able to remember those twelve hours of torture before you gave birth to your first baby. Or maybe it was a touch of food poisoning, and your belly felt like it was being devoured by worms. If it would help, close your eyes, and try to remember that most painful event in your life. 12 hours speaks of the passing of time; some of your headaches have extended more than 12 hours. Maybe you thought the pain of your broken arm, or that ear ache, would never stop, but they did. Maybe they are gone, and other pains have come along, but with medication even they have ceased.
Don’t take too much comfort from those opioids. Because, after you hear the words of the Lord Jesus, “Depart from me ye cursed into ever lasting punishment,” you will find that the time of your punishment will go on, and on, and on, and on, and on forever. Strictly speaking, time will not come to an end upon your death – but your time on earth will end. And the time which God is now graciously giving you to repent of your sin before Him – that time will end. There will be a moment in time when the Father will say to Christ, “Son you don’t have to wait any longer. Those who have spit on your face and those who have spit on your faith will now face our righteous judgment”
Don’t be one of those. You don’t have to hear the words, “Depart from me ye cursed.” You have an invitation to come and worship the Lord in faith and repentance. You have an invitation to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and enter His presence and family. You have an invitation to enjoy eternity as if there will never be time again. Oh, I plead with you to bow before the Saviour this morning in repentance and faith.