Think of all
the amazing things John saw in his vision, what Jesus revealed to him on that
prison island of Patmos. He saw horsemen
and great beasts, a dragon, angels, the very throne room of God, and then the
Holy City of Jerusalem, with its golden streets and pearly gates. And much, much more.
But one of
the most precious pictures is here in Revelation 7, the Great Multitude Robed
in White. Imagine what John saw as he
looked into that crowd of faces:
They were so
many – no one could number them! Like
the sands of the seashore or the stars of the sky – like the descendants
promised to Abraham. Indeed, that’s
exactly who these people are! They are
the faithful, the believers, the children of God, the church. They are all the saints. A great and innumerable company.
They are from
every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages. They are Israelites and Gentiles. They are Americans and Pakistanis, Bulgarians
and Moroccans. They are Australians and
Peruvians. Texans and Yankees, too. But here, none of those differences
matter. Here they are one. Likewise their languages, oh the many
languages, once confused and dispersed at the Tower of Babel, now join in one
voice praising God and the Lamb.
In fact they
are right there, standing before the throne.
They are in God’s presence. Standing! Not obliterated, not cast out. Not quavering in judgment and fear,
either. For they are right with God, and
they belong to the Lamb.
They are
clothed in white robes, and we will get back to that in a moment. And they wave the palm branches of victory in
their hands! They are an eternal echo of
the crowd at Palm Sunday, who once hailed the arrival of the Son of David with
their hosannas (that is, “save us!”)
Now, all the Hosannas are fulfilled.
Now the king has come in all his glory, not to die, but to judge the
living and the dead, and to reign in victory forever. Now salvation has come in its fullest.
They cry
with a united voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb!” That is to say,
all the credit for working out our salvation goes to God and to the Lamb. We take none for ourselves. It’s all by grace.
And they
join in the eternal liturgy of heaven, worshipping with angels and archangels, living
creatures and elders, and they sing:
“Amen!
Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be
to our God forever and ever! Amen.” We sing those words
even today, in anticipation of singing them in eternity.
And if the
picture isn’t enough, then we get this little conversation between John and one
of the elders, who goes on to explain just who this glorious crowd is. “These are the ones coming out of the great
tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of
the Lamb.”
The great
tribulation. Not some particular time of
trouble, our day to come of which we must fear.
This is no prophecy of nuclear war, or death by an asteroid, or some
world-wide pandemic.
The Great
Tribulation – we are in the thick of it, even today. It is simply life in this sinful, fallen
world. Every day has enough trouble of
its own, said our Lord Jesus, and of course he’s right. We face trials and tribulations, temptations
and persecutions. We succumb to disease
and death. And we struggle not against
flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of evil.
And more
than that, we are under the tribulation of sin.
A life-and-death struggle with our flesh, a battle royale we would
surely lose if left to our own devices. But
it is a struggle that cannot, and will not go on forever. We are coming out of the great
tribulation. There is an end coming into
sight, just over the horizon. Stealing
on the ear is the distant triumph song. The
Revelation to John here gives us comfort.
The trials and tribulations and the battle with sin will end. And the victory party will be without
comparison.
Oh, but one
more hint of trouble here, the crowd here had to wash their robes. That’s because they were dirty. Stinky.
Filthy and soiled by sin. Our
best good works are like filthy rags. Jude
tells us to hate even the garment stained by the flesh. Oh, that we were as disgusted by our sins as
we are by foul smells and spoiled food.
Oh, that we were repulsed by our own corrupted heart as we are by sins
we see in others.
May we attain
to such repentance, by the power of God’s Spirit, convicting us and crushing us
by his holy law. And by that same
Spirit, then brought to the only remedy, the only help, the only Savior – the
Lamb, Jesus Christ.
Only the
blood of the Lamb can wash away the stain of sin. So pure is this blood, so powerful and holy,
that it cleanses us of every stain, within and without. The blood on our hands, the guilt of our sin,
has spoiled us. But the blood of the
Lamb, shed at the cross, brings healing, forgiveness, and life.
So – the
picture of the church in her glory – is a picture of all those who have washed
their robes and made them white in the blood of the lamb. It’s all of those, all of us, who have our
sins atoned for in Christ. Whose
transgressions are covered. Whose
trespasses are forgiven. We stand, now
and ever, clean and pure and holy and righteous before God, yes even before his
throne, and before the Lamb, our savior.
Who are
these, in white robes, and from where have they come? They are you and me. They are all Christians. They are sinners who have been made saints by
the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, who once was slain but now lives
forevermore. Who are they? They are his, and he is theirs. Who are they?
They are his people, his bride, his body. Connected to Christ, washed and purified in
him, by baptism and fed and nourished by his body and blood.
“Therefore
they are before the throne of God,
and
serve him day and night in his temple;
Only thus
cleansed can the multitude stand before the throne of God. Because they are in Christ, they have nothing
to fear. They are even honored with a
priestly role – to serve him in his temple – and no just here and there, but
continually, day and night. What could
be better!?
“and he who
sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.”
God the
Father is present with them, and not just a neutral presence. A gracious presence which gives them
shelter. They’re in his house, and under
the protection of his roof. That means
welcome. It means safety. It means all the comforts of our eternal
home.
They
shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore;
the
sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat.
Even the
physical discomforts of hunger and thirst, and unbearable heat – these will
give way and only comfort will remain.
For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will
be their shepherd,
and
he will guide them to springs of living water,
Not only
does the Lamb of God take away the sins of the world, and wash their robes by
his blood, to make them clean He also
becomes their shepherd, and they his sheep.
He cares for them in an ongoing relationship. And it gets even better…
"and God will
wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
There is
perhaps no more tender promise in all of Scripture than this. Like a child who has bumped her head, or is
terrified of a nightmare, and is comforted by a loving parent. God himself will, personally, wipe every tear
from their eyes.
We labor now
in this vale of tears, under the shadow of death. We face our daily tribulations. We have soiled our garments with sin, and we
bear the hunger, thirst and scorching heat of this broken world.
But our God,
and the Lamb, his Son Jesus Christ has washed us clean, brings us through all
trials, and has a place for us in that great multitude, with all the saints, in
his presence forever. Thanks be to God
for such a vision, and such a future in Christ.
Amen.
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