The Measure of a Man

Rev 21:9-17 And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife. 10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, 11 Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal; 12 And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: 13 On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates. 14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. 15 And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof. 16 And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal. 17 And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.

I. We base most of our observations and actions upon the things we see, know and recognize in the natural world.

A. Illustrate with oversize coat on an smaller man. (God’s ways are too big for us; our ways are too small for God.

B. The laws of nature either restrict us or challenge us.

1. Gravity did not keep Wilber and Orville Wright from their miracle at Kitty Hawk.
2. The popularity of kerosene lanterns did not stop Thomas Edison from discovering the incandescent light.
3. Letter writing, the Pony Express and the Telegraph did not keep Alexander Graham Bell from inventing the telephone.

C. The realms of human experience do not stop us; they only remind us of what hasn’t been done.

1. In 1492, Columbus proved that you could get east by going west.
2. In 1783, 55 delegates drafted a constitution that established the first complete democracy recorded in history.
3. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 gave rights to minorities that no other nation on earth had ever done.

D. The influence of others cannot stop you; you need only say “I will not longer allow negative, unbelieving faithless forces keep me from the will of God.

1. Joseph succeeded despite the wickedness of his brothers.
2. Daniel won over the scheming princes of the kingdom.
3. The early church survived persecution, hatred, martyrdom, exile, alienation, the tortures of Caligula, the rantings of Nero and the catacombs of Rome.

II. The tendency to be small in our vision is a gigantic barrier to spiritual understanding.

A. Jesus said, “O ye of little faith.”

B. We mentally try to force God into our tiny definitions, our disbelief and our restrictions.

III. Joash and Elijah.

2 Kings 13:14-19 Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died. And Joash the king of Israel came down unto him, and wept over his face, and said, O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. 15 And Elisha said unto him, Take bow and arrows. And he took unto him bow and arrows. 16 And he said to the king of Israel, Put thine hand upon the bow. And he put his hand upon it: and Elisha put his hands upon the king’s hands. 17 And he said, Open the window eastward. And he opened it. Then Elisha said, Shoot. And he shot. And he said, The arrow of the LORD’s deliverance, and the arrow of deliverance from Syria: for thou shalt smite the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have consumed them. 18 And he said, Take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, Smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice, and stayed. 19 And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.

A. The need of Joash.

B. The opportunity for a great victory.

C. Victory limited only by Joash’s vision.

IV. John’s vision.

A. He named himself among the inscriptions on the foundations of the Holy City.

B. According to the measure of a man.

1. Pace= 1 yard.
2. Cubit= length of forearm.
3. Span= distance between thumb and little finger.
4. Palm= handbreadth.
5. Finger= ¼ palm.
6. Reed= 6 cubits.

C. What determines the actual measurement in each case? The size of the man!

V. The new birth changes all our measurements.

A. 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

B. Not according to the old nature.

Eph 2:1-2 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:

C. Not according to our failures.

2 Cor 4:8-11 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; 10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. 11 For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.

D. Not according to our sins.

    Ps 103:10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

VI. Salvation is according to the measure of Christ.

A. According to’s of Ephesians:

• Eph 1:5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
• Eph 1:7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
• Eph 1:9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
• Eph 3:7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power.
• Eph 3:11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:
• Eph 3:16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
• Eph 3:17-20 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; 19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. 20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

B. God did not design salvation according to our blueprints.

1. Past failures.
2. Poor self-image.
3. Influence of others.
4. Lies of Satan.