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46.
Revelation 7: “Great Horror, Greater Grace!”
Golden
Nursing Center in Mannington, NJ –Evening Service on 7/17/2014
(edited
July 2020)
Well, my weekly Bible study passage this week is in the Book of
Revelation. I’m not overly confident in teaching from this part of the Bible, and
I’m not sure anyone should be. I’m not gonna pretend I understand it all
tonight, just sort of plow ahead and hope the Lord will bless you as He blessed
me this week in studying it and thinking about these things.
For starters, back in chapters 5-6, the Apostle John “reveals”
that there is a book in Heaven that they were (or will be) trying to get opened,
but no man or being is found who can loosen those seals and open the book. But
then Christ, Our Savior, comes forth and begins opening each seal one by one.
This special book appears to be just bursting with important
information and by the time we get to Revelation chapter 7, our target chapter
for tonight’s study, six of those seals will have been opened. We will see that
chapter 7 represents a pause in the action between the breaking of the sixth
seal in chapter 6 and the seventh seal in chapter 8. But, be assured, there
will still be much to witness and learn from chapter 7!
First, however, let’s review the consequences of the opening of
each of the six seals in Revelation chapter 6. This book and these seals speak
of a prelude to the judgment of God upon our current world:
Seal # |
Subject |
Immediate Result of
Opening the Seal |
1 |
First Horseman of the Apocalypse comes to Earth on a white horse |
This rider has come to Conquer and Subdue on the Earth at will! |
2 |
Second Horseman of the Apocalypse comes to Earth on a red horse |
This rider can absorb peace and brotherhood from men so that
they turn on each other, probably as never before in history. |
3 |
Third Horseman of the Apocalypse comes to Earth on a black horse |
This rider carries a balance and appears to be ready to afflict
trade and commerce in some drastic ways. |
4 |
Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse comes to Earth on a pale horse |
This rider is named death and has come to slay and lay waste to
¼ of the Earth by various means. |
5 |
Souls of Martyrs cry out for justice in Heaven |
Not sure exactly to whom these souls belong, but they are
assured that justice will come soon for each of them as part of the final judgment
of this world. |
6 |
Earth, sun, moon, and stars all afflicted |
Things are happening now which have never been witnessed before.
This is an object lesson for everyone on the Earth, a great 3-dimensional
sermon which will reach to the core of everyone who observes it. At the
appearance of these signs people begin to scramble to hide not from “Jehovah”
or “Almighty God,” but specifically from “the wrath of the Lamb.” (I used to
think that maybe Jesus transforms Himself into some kind of frightful entity
at this point. Then I heard one commentator say that perhaps Christ doesn’t
change His personality at all, but rather that the men on earth at this time
would be those who always feared and avoided Jesus Christ even in good times.
This is all food for thought.) |
And that brings us to Revelation chapter 7. The grand pause in the
opening of the seven seals. Obvious to all who will be present, at this point,
the world as we now know it is, finally and forever, doomed. But the Lord does
not pause to gloat, taunt, or torment mankind. Look what He is doing:
Verses
1-4:
“And after these things I saw four angels standing on
the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the
wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. And
I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God:
and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt
the earth and the sea, Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the
sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their
foreheads. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were
sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children
of Israel.”
God is now holding back the destruction of Earth for precious
moments so that the Righteous can be marked BEFORE the annihilation comes.
Let’s go on:
Verses 5-8: “Of the tribe of Juda
were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve
thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Aser
were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nephthalim were sealed twelve
thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of
Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve
thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of
Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed twelve
thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand.”
What is all this, I wonder? A throwback to the Old Testament?
After all, true believers of that Covenant were promised eternal life just as
are believers in Jesus today. And so it will be, somehow. Maybe this is that
promise fulfilled, or a symbolic gesture, or something else altogether. I CAN
tell you this, whatever it is, it won’t prevent you and me, as New Covenant
believers, from being sealed right into eternal life!
Verses 9-14: “After this I beheld, and,
lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds,
and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed
with white robes, and palms in their hands; And cried with a loud voice,
saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. And
all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four
beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, Saying,
Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power,
and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen. And one of the elders
answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and
whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me,
These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”
Whoa! Men and Angels celebrating together, not celebrating the demise
of this world but the SAVING out of this mess of a place of all men, women and
children of faith from the Old and New Covenant times. And all by the Grace of
God! They will all now live together forever, with each other and with their
Lord in heavenly harmony. I’ll say it first, if you don’t beat me to it:
Hallelujah! 😊
Verse 15: “Therefore are they
before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he
that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.”
The vicious Spiritual War fare which flares and, at times, rages in
our day, will end in the times we are studying right here in the Book of
Revelation. All the rebellion of devils and men of every age and time shall be
forever extinguished. That Great and Terrible Day will suddenly come! But
notice that right here, just before the Final Trumpets begin to toll (that’s in
chapter 8, by the way), God’s People are given what I would call the most
wonderful Word of Promise ever spoken:
Verses 16-17: “They shall hunger no
more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any
heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and
shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all
tears from their eyes.”
Do I totally understand these things? Of course not. But that
shouldn’t keep any believer from being comforted by them. So much has been
revealed to us in the New Testament Era, so much about salvation, about Christ,
and Israel and the Church. But not everything. Not yet.
King David lived in a darker Covenant then ours, centuries before Jesus
was born in Bethlehem. But look at something he somehow “knew” to say in Psalm
37:11, “…the meek shall inherit the earth;
and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.” Even when
we aren’t given total understanding today, God is somehow able to get through
to each of us EVERYTHING we need to know to face life as it is right now with
assurance of our eternal destiny and faith in Him. Let’s pray.
_______________