The judgment of God is falling during the Great Tribulation period and yet in the midst of it all there is mercy in the midst of it. There are 144,000 witnesses who bring many to salvation. The Antichrist is fanning the flames of repression and God is fanning the flames of revival. Wherever the gospel is preached, people will be saved. Out of the preaching of these 144,000 many people will be saved. This passage tells us about these Tribulation saints.

1 – Their description (vs. 9)

Notice three things:-

• Their number – There is a great multitude. John can’t put a number on them. The good news is that many will be saved. The not so good news is that many of them will be martyred for their faith. The church will already have been raptured. It will be the greatest revival ever seen in the world.
• Their nationality – They are from every nationality. They are all standing before the throne and the Lamb. There will be diversity without sectarianism. There will be no bigots then! God loves and saves all who will believe.
• Their nature – They have white robes on and palms in their hands. How did they get white robes? See verse 14. The blood of the Lamb has washed their dirty robes white as snow. Our sin is ugly to God as God is so holy. You can see how dirty a robe is when you put it against a clean one. The blood of Jesus will remove the stain of sin away. Nothing else will work!

Man looks at sin and sees it as an accident, God calls it an abomination. Man looks at sin and calls it a blunder, God calls it blindness. Man looks at sin and calls it chance, God calls it choice. Man looks at sin and calls it a defect, God calls it a disaster. Man looks at sin and calls it an error, God calls it enmity. Man looks at sin and calls it fascination, God calls it fatality. Man looks at sin and calls it infirmity, God calls it iniquity. God is serious about our sin! The robes represent their virtue. The palm branches represent their victory. We can celebrate our victory right now!

2 – Their salvation (vs. 10-12)

They were praising God for their salvation. We don’t fully understand the consequences of our salvation. We will in heaven. They fell before the throne and worshipped God. Even the angels are getting excited! They are all worshipping God day and night.

• Worship is the central objective why you were redeemed. God wants you to worship the Lamb in spirit and truth.
• We are to worship God and no one or anything else.
• Worship is internal and not external. It is about what is going on in your heart. The external tears and raising of hands is nothing if you are not worshipping on the inside. Don’t judge by the outside appearance. Worship is about giving to God and not getting for ourselves.
• Worship is centred on the Word of God. God’s Word should always be preached. There is no worship without the Word of God.

3 – Their preservation (vs. 13-18)

Notice two things:-

• Their privilege of service in the Lord. They are serving the Lord day and night. In the Old Testament only the High Priest could serve the Lord. We can serve the Lord day and night.
• Their provision (vs. 16). God will take care of them. God will take care of us. God will wipe away all tears. There will be no more sadness in Heaven. The best is yet to come!

Categories: Revelation