·
chronological
order of Revelation's events (when they will happen),
·
meaning of
the symbolic figures (horses, beasts, etc), and what to accept as literal rather than symbolic.
I once asked the
late Herschel Hobbs, Southern Baptist's elder statesman and New Testament
scholar, about the Revelation problems. The
advice he gave has never failed me. Hobbs said: Well, if you find somebody who knows exactly how it all
fits together – and when it will happen – grab your hat, and head for the door, you're in the
presence of a fool or a very dangerous person.
I believe that's very good advice!
We do well to keep in mind several things here.
God’s Timing
Although we
cannot say with certainty when these events will take place –
we can say with unquestioned confidence that they will take place. God always chooses to perform His will
completely, and in line with His character and Word. We
often miss God’s timing! That is the
main problem the Jews had when they mis-read Jesus. They misunderstood Isaiah's Messiah was the
same as Isaiah's Suffering Servant.
As we study
the Revelation, we should prepare our hearts to be ready for His coming, and be
certain we are adequately and appropriately serving Him until He does
come. The parables of readiness Jesus
told (ten virgins, unworthy steward,
etc.) should leave no doubt in our minds that Jesus expects His church to
be ready, no matter when these events might begin.
God’s Purposes
The purpose
of the Book of Revelation is revelation – the unveiling of Jesus Christ. Whenever Christ is in view our primary
reaction should be obedience and humble worship.
God’s Wideness
It is right to
search the Scriptures and attempt to understand these
events. However, we should allow for
other viewpoints, and not become too dogmatic.
Remember, the test of fellowship among believers is not whether you are
a dispensationalist, having memorized Scofield's notes – or if you're a pre-tribulation
rapturist with an amillennial viewpoint.
The real test
of fellowship is Jesus Christ, and Him crucified, risen, and coming again!
I have many
friends who do not believe in the rapture.
They are dear sisters and brothers in Christ. They’re wrong about the rapture , but they’re my Forever
Family siblings, and I love them!
This book is
not about division – it is all about uniting around the throne and worshipping! Let’s look together at what we see around the
throne in heaven:
1. The Protection of the Jewish Remnant
Then I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds so they did not blow on the earth or the sea, or even on any tree. And I saw another angel coming up from the east, carrying the seal of the living God. And he shouted to those four angels, who had been given power to harm land and sea, “Wait! Don’t harm the land or the sea or the trees until we have placed the seal of God on the foreheads of his servants.” And I heard how many were marked with the seal of God—144,000 were sealed from all the tribes of Israel: from Judah 12,000, from Reuben 12,000, from Gad 12,000, from Asher 12,000, from Naphtali 12,000, from Manasseh 12,000, from Simeon 12,000, from Levi 12,000, from Issachar 12,000, from Zebulun 12,000, from Joseph 12,000, from Benjamin 12,000. Revelation 7:1-8
THE JUDGMENT WIND
The people
who received this Revelation letter would be very familiar with the concept of the
four winds as judgment in the hands of God's angels. The sirocco
is a devilish dry wind that blows from the southeast across Palestine. It comes in off the Arabian desert and
parches everything in its path.
Easterners consider the scirocco a judgment from God. Here the judgment is being held back until
God marks His people with His protective seal.
THE JEWISH SEAL
The seal (v.2),
or signet, is the mark of God. The word
means more than a visible mark. It has
the sense of transformation as well. In
ancient times a king took his signet ring and sealed a document to authenticate
it. The ring makes an impression in the
wax.
The seal of
God on these tribulation believers goes through and through. It changes their character. They were Jews, God's very special people
through the lineage of Abraham. But now
they are His in a spiritual sense by the blood of Jesus, transformed in
Christ. It is the same way you and I can
come to Christ now:
And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. Ephesians 1:13
There are,
sadly enough, even good Christian believers who have the mistaken belief that
God is through with the Jews; that their disobedience at times in history (especially
the crucifixion of Jesus), somehow annulled the promises God made to Abraham
concerning his descendants. It was this
kind of reasoning that drove the twisted mind of Adolph Hitler, to persecute
millions of Jews.
God is not
through with Israel. Remember God’s
promise to Abraham:
I am giving all this land, as far as you can see, to you and your descendants as a permanent possession. Genesis 13:15
Paul quoted Isaiah,
affirming the idea of God’s remnant:
And concerning Israel, Isaiah the prophet cried out, “Though the people of Israel are as numerous as the sand of the seashore, only a remnant will be saved. Romans 9:27
Ezekiel and
Zechariah[1] both prophesied
about God's dealing with the remnant of His people in those days.
God is not
through with His covenant people. After
the church departs planet earth to meet with Jesus, these Jews, 144,000 strong,
form the remnant of God's people who will turn to Jesus during the time of
Great Tribulation.
Dr. John
Phillips expresses it,
Those sealed will go unscathed through the Great
Tribulation. They will be a perpetual
thorn in the side of the Beast and a constant reminder to the devil that, while
millions may bow to his will, God still has him on a leash and says to him: Thus
far and no farther.[2]
During the
1996 Southern Baptist Convention, leadership of that denomination was severely
criticized for resolving to evangelize the Jewish peoples. What an incredible thing! Political correctness aside, the whole idea
of laying the foundation for some Jewish person to accept Christ during the
tribulation is an exciting thought.
Imagine, 144,000 thorns in Satan's side during the tribulation!
2. The Praise of the Tribulation Saints
After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands. And they were shouting with a great roar, “Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne and from the Lamb!” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living beings. And they fell before the throne with their faces to the ground and worshiped God. They sang, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and strength belong to our God forever and ever! Amen.” Then one of the twenty-four elders asked me, “Who are these who are clothed in white? Where did they come from?” And I said to him, “Sir, you are the one who knows.” Then he said to me, “These are the ones who died in the great tribulation. They have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and made them white. Revelation 7:9-14
GENTILE SONG OF PRAISE
The scene
shifts from the earth to heaven.
Suddenly, John's picture leaps ahead to a time when those Gentiles who came
to Christ during the tribulation are standing before the Lamb of God in
worship. What does this depict? The believers are giving praise to God for
their salvation. Followers of Christ are
clothed in white (indicating virtue, purity), and waving palms (indicating
victory). However, every one of them has
paid the ultimate price for their faith in Jesus. These are martyrs who came to Christ after the rapture. Believers will be persecuted and executed for
their faith before the second coming of Christ.
There are
those people who would note that both Jews and Gentiles are going to be saved
during the tribulation, and therefore they will wait until it begins, then
accept Christ. My friend, that may be possible,
but is sure isn't practical! Accepting
Christ then means going through persecution worse than
you've ever imagined, and then put to death! Accepting Christ now means a life of joy, and
a swift ride to glory when He comes. That
decision is a no-brainer! Everyone
with an ounce of sense ought to accept Christ today! To come to the cross and trust in what Jesus
did for you, taking upon himself the penalty for your sins and mine, is to have
your robes turned from covered in sin’s darkness to, as Isaiah wrote, clean as
a new snowfall…washed in the blood of divine virtue[3]!
GREAT SONG OF PRAISE
In this
passage the Gentiles are crying with a loud voice (v.10). These martyred saints, because they been
washed in the blood of the Lamb, sing a loud, thankful song of praise around
the throne of God. It is a great truth
that those who have been forgiven the most have the most for which to be
thankful.
As the
martyred tribulation saints bow and
worship God, the praise is so fervent and inspiring that it causes the angels,
elders, and beasts to also bow before God and join the song: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and
thanksgiving, and honor, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and
ever. Amen. !!!
Wow! What
a time of praise! The entire host of
heaven, hands raised in praise and adoration, lifting thunderous glory to the
King.
In a sense we
are going through tribulation today. It
is true that our tribulation is on a much smaller scale than the Great
Tribulation. However, there is a
principle about this Great Song of
Praise the Gentiles sing we can begin to use in our lives this
very day. And that principle
concerns putting worship of God on the first tier of our to-do list. Many who profess faith in Christ keep worship
at a low priority. We do not understand,
or remember that our worship can inspire others to also worship. In the same way having an attitude towards worship
of leave it or take it can have the opposite effect. We can neglect
worship and thereby help others ignore
God. The picture of these martyred
saints worshipping at the top of their lungs ought to inspire us to make
worship not just one of the many tasks on our busy schedules…it ought to make
worship a life ambition! This is
the essence of what Paul taught in his letter to the Hebrews:
And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. Hebrews 10:25
Beloved, the
day is approaching. Give your attention
to worship of almighty God.
3. Eternity with the King
“That is why they stand in front of God’s throne and serve him day and night in his Temple. And he who sits on the throne will give them shelter. They will never again be hungry or thirsty; they will never be scorched by the heat of the sun. For the Lamb on the throne will be their Shepherd. He will lead them to springs of life-giving water. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes.” Revelation 7:15-17
There are
three outstanding characteristics about being near Jesus, the King:
TO BE NEAR JESUS MEANS AN ETERNAL PRESENCE
The Bible
tells us in many places about eternal things – and yet we understand little
about it; our minds do not comprehend the idea of eternity.
·
Can you even now think of a universe that has no
end?
·
Can you imagine no such thing as time?
·
Can you imagine being everywhere at once, moving at
the speed of thought, not confined by circumstances or physical realms?
God is that
way. When Moses stood at the burning
bush, his knees knocking like a Chevy with a blown piston rod, he asked God to
identify Himself. God said it simply, I am
that I am. Roughly translated,
that means eternity. God always was,
without beginning or ending. He is
all-present, all-knowing, and all-powerful.
The reason
saints bow and serve God before the throne is He is God, and they are not. Beloved, that is the crunch result. Eternity is a long time. God is in control.
TO BE NEAR JESUS MEANS AN ETERNAL PROVISION
John says
that God gives them food, drink, and light so they never have those needs
again. That makes us think immediately
of those earthly comparisons Jesus used.
·
He said He was the Bread of Life, and we
could be filled.
·
He called Himself the Light of the world, and
told us we could see the way to the Father.
·
And he gives anyone who asks Living Water so that his
washed in the blood children will never thirst
again.
Who among us
has not run-out before? Either there is
an unexpected large bill, or just too much month left over at the end of the
money, or our energy reserves went AWOL.
Many things in life run out; Jesus offers eternal provision, and better
than anything this world ever dreamed about.
TO BE NEAR JESUS MEANS AN ETERNAL PEACE
J. Oswald
Sanders said:
Peace is not the absence of
trouble, but the presence of God.
Evangelist
Leighton Ford wrote about his son Sandy, who had died:
During the months
following Sandy's death, to cope with my grief and sense of loss, I kept a
journal. Through a series of
"conversations" with Sandy, I continued to express my grief and bring
our relationship to a close. In one of
those chats, I said, "Sandy, you've been dead two months earth-time."
"I feel as if I have been alive forever,
Dad. It's a lot like one big long
today."
"It's not a
matter of time, Sandy, except that time heals. It's more a matter of
nearness. I guess I'm concerned that as
our time goes on, we will lose any sense of nearness."
"But why, Dad? You're moving closer to eternity every day. You're no longer moving from, but to me! And besides, the 'Wall' between is so thin –
you would laugh if you could see it."
"I think
more of you than when you were at Chapel Hill."
"Sure!
I know you do. I hear those
thoughts."
"Night,
son! Enjoy the stars!"
"It's
morning here, Dad. Enjoy the
light!"
For anyone
wondering about if your loved ones you miss so much are still with you,
Leighton Ford hit it on the head; nothing is lost to a believer, because
nothing is lost to God, and God wants every bit of what He enjoys for you.
The Peace of Being Washed in the Blood
My friends,
only the nearness of Jesus can provide the kind of peace that can be called
"eternal."
The world is
looking for peace, talking of peace, imagining peace can be had on a worldwide
scale. They are wrong.
Peace is an
eternal thing that is offered by the Prince of Peace, one person, one human
heart at a time. And it is offered to
you.
It is for
those who have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb. And it means the eternal presence of
Jesus.
Are you
washed in the blood?
Title Image: Pixabay.com
Unless noted, Scripture from The New Living Translation
[2]John
Phillips, Exploring Revelation,
(Neptune, N.J., Loizeaux Bros, 1993), 110 (emphasis mine)
[3]
Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, let’s settle
this,” says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white
as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as
white as wool.
