Pointing to Jesus (Revelation 15)

Summary:

In Revelation 15, John beholds a heavenly scene symbolizing God’s sovereign triumph over evil in the present age of the church. 

A sea of glass mingled with fire represents the purity and judgment of God, with victorious saints—those who have persevered through faith amid persecution by the beast—standing beside it, harps in hand, singing the song of Moses and the Lamb. 

This song celebrates God’s righteous deeds and kingship, echoing Israel’s exodus deliverance while pointing to ultimate redemption. 

Seven angels then emerge from the smoke-filled heavenly temple (signifying God’s unapproachable holiness and impending wrath), receiving golden bowls filled with the final plagues of divine judgment. 

This chapter depicts not a future literal millennium but the ongoing spiritual reality: the church’s conquest through Christ’s victory, God’s electing grace preserving His people, and the symbolic outpouring of wrath on unbelief, culminating in the consummation at Christ’s return without a premillennial earthly reign.

Pointing to Jesus:

Revelation 15 centers on Jesus as the fulfillment of God’s covenant promises, sovereign grace and substitutionary atonement. 

The “song of Moses and the Lamb” links the Old Testament exodus—God’s deliverance of Israel from bondage—to Christ’s greater exodus, where He, as the Lamb slain (Rev. 5:6), redeems His elect from sin’s slavery through His blood. 

The victorious saints stand not by their merit but by conquering “by the blood of the Lamb” (Rev. 12:11), emphasizing total depravity overcome by irresistible grace and perseverance secured by Christ’s intercession. 

The plagues in the bowls foreshadow the final judgment, but redemptively, they highlight Jesus as the one who bore God’s wrath on the cross (propitiation), shielding His chosen people from it. 

This underscores election: God sovereignly calls and preserves a multitude from every nation to worship the Lamb, fulfilling the Abrahamic promise in Christ alone, without human cooperation.

Reflection:

This chapter encourages Christians to live with unshakable confidence in God’s sovereignty amid trials, knowing our victory is already secured in Christ—not through personal strength but His atoning work and preserving grace. 

In daily life, it calls us to endure persecution or cultural hostility by singing praise like the saints, focusing on God’s holiness rather than worldly beasts. 

It relates practically by reminding us to rest in election (we’re chosen to conquer), pursue holiness (mirroring the pure sea), and evangelize urgently, aware of coming judgment yet assured that Christ’s kingdom advances now spiritually, motivating faithful witness until His return.