Blessings Before the Throne

I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like to be blessed. We all like blessings in our lives. And once in a while it’s great to be showered with blessings. Like on my 70th birthday, it was just a blessing to have so many of you drop by and wish me a happy birthday. I was even blessed with a few unexpected gifts. I think my favorite came from Randall and Sally – a golf hat that says, “Golf Sucks.” That was an evening of blessings. Of course there are many kinds of blessings that touch my heart. On Tuesday this week, we went to Mesa to watch our grandkids while their parents went out to celebrate their 7th Wedding Anniversary. What a blessing to knock on their door and from the other side of the door we hear both grandsons screaming, “Gramma and papa, Gramma and Papa.” Having grandkids who love you to the moon and back is such an unexpected blessing. Then there are just little blessings that we so often take for granted. For example, I was talking to a fellow Christian while golfing Thursday, and he asked me about our church. And one of the things I got to tell him is how well all our ministries run. And the reason they run so well is they are led by such great and mature people. It’s a blessing to have so many great servants in our church. You know, when you start counting your blessings, it’s really good for you soul.

In fact, when you stop to think about it, we all enjoy so many blessings this side of heaven. Little blessings, big blessings, and ordinary blessings that much of the rest of the world never gets to enjoy simply because we live in America. But have you ever stopped to think of blessings that are yet to come? Well, that’s one of the blessings of going through a book like Revelation. Even though there’s some pretty strange days ahead for our world, we’ve already learned that no matter how bad things may get, God will always be in charge, God will always do good for His children, and Jesus will win!

But now, as we come to Revelation 7, we’re about to be given an insider’s view into blessings yet to come. The first has to do with a blessings on earth for the 144,000. Then we get to see some of the blessings that we will enjoy in heaven with the great multitude of nations. So, if you’ve brought your Bible with you today, I want to encourage you to open it to Revelation 7:1-17, where God’s future blessings are meant to give us hope while we endure the hardships and trials we face on earth. So, let’s dive right in and see what God has in store for the 144,000…

Blessings on Earth for the 144,000 After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow on earth or sea or against any tree. Then I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea, saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.”

This chapter begins with the arrival of four angels. They are holding back four winds of judgment that have the power “to harm earth and sea.” They are agents of righteous judgment and destruction, and they are ready to act. However, their hand of judgment is delayed. For now, another angel rises up from the east. He’s not a messenger of destruction and death but one of grace and mercy. He has with him, “the seal of the living God,” a seal with which he will mark the “servants of our God on their foreheads.” Revelation 14:1 tells us this seal is the name of the Lamb and the name of the Father.

What we are seeing here is that the final judgment, depicted under the sixth seal, is being suspended so that the whole number of God’s people may be gathered. This fits God’s answer to the martyrs of the fifth seal, saying that His vengeance would wait “until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete.”

But one question that has plagued Christians for centuries is this. Just who are the 144,000? Some interpret the 144,000 literally. A prominent example is the Jehovah’s Witnesses, who believe that only 144,000 people will spend eternity in heaven. They further teach that this number was reached in 1935, so that believers after that date will not enter heaven but will make up the blessed multitude on earth.

Another LITERAL approach is taken by dispensationalists, who make up the majority of evangelical Christians in America today. Dispensationalists begin with the premise that Israel and the Chirstian Church are separate bodies with different eternal destinies. They also interpret Revelation’s visions in an exclusively futurists sense, as pertaining only to the final sequence of years before Christ’s return. So then, dispensationalists see the 144,000 as the literal number of ethnic Jews who convert to Christ after the rapture and bear witness to the gospel in the final days. Many of you hold this view. This was the view that I was taught in Seminary.

However, there is a strong argument that suggests the 144,000 sealed servants are to be taken symbolically. Whereas dispensationalists eternally separate Israel and the church, Revelation consistently refers to Christians with the imagery of Israel. The number of Christ’s apostles corresponds to Israel’s tribes, and Jesus promised that they would “sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Matthew 19:28). Paul said that a believer in Christ is a true Jew (Romans 2:29). He taught that Gentile Christians are grafted into the olive tree of Israel, and he referred to the Christian church as “the Israel of God.” Revelation is filled with allusions to Israel, the Old Testament, and the ancient temple, all with reference to the identity and experience of John’s Christian readers. It is very natural, therefore, to see Israels’ tribes as referring to the church as a whole.

Now here’s the deal: Whether the 144,000 be literal Jews who are converted to Christ, or symbolic of the Church, the point isn’t so much about who they are. The point has to do with God protecting His servants, by marking them with His seal. For this sealing has Old Testament roots in Ezekiel 9:4, where the sealing was a sign, a promise of divine possession and protection. So, the point of this sealing is that our God in this day, and in every day, has faithful servants who are His possession and are under His protection.

This is the first blessing that comes from God’s throne. It’s a blessing of protection. Not, necessarily protection in the physical sense, but in a spiritual sense. A protection of the believer’s faith and salvation from the various sufferings and persecutions that are inflicted upon them, whether by Satan or his demonic and earthly agents.

Now, chances are that if this number is symbolic for the church as a whole, then this blessing is for us as well. After all, Scripture does say, In Him (Christ) you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of His glory. Ephesians 1:13-14 God seals everyone who believes. When you believe in Jesus, God marks you with His seal – the Holy Spirit. From that moment forward, you are His possession. You belong to Him. That means no matter what hardships you may face this side of heaven; you will always belong to Him. He will always protect your faith, and your salvation will remain secure in Him forever.
This is the blessing from heaven for those who are still on earth. It’s a blessing of protection on God’s people. But now let’s look at the blessings that are yet to come for us in heaven:

Blessings in Heaven for the Great Multitude of Nations After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” Revelation 7:9-10

What an image! A great multitude from every nation, all tribes, peoples and languages, are joined in giving praise to the Lamb. This echoes God’s promise to Abraham in Genesis 15:5 and 32:12, their number is like the stars of heaven and the sand of the sea. In this massive throng of the redeemed in heaven, there is not the slightest hint of bigotry, ethnocentrism, prejudice, or racism. Of the 11,243 people groups in the world, each is present and represented. Of the 3,056 people groups currently unengaged, each is represented. Four things are said about these people in heaven:

They are standing before the throne and the Lamb. Now, the question that was asked at the end of the previous chapter is answered: Who can stand? Now we have the answer. Only the redeemed of the Lamb can stand. And there is an immediate blessing of hope that we see in this standing. If you remember in Revelation 5, the image of the Lamb standing before the throne – was an image of His resurrection. I love this image for us, because it reveals to us that the redeemed in Christ will be resurrected. Death has been conquered. If you believe in Jesus, then one day you will stand in the presence of God and the Lamb forever as His resurrected child. This is our hope.

They are clothed in white robes: One day we will be clothed in the white robes of victory with the perfect righteousness of Christ. One day, there will be no more sin, no more guilt, no more shame. Just the purity of our new lives in Christ. This is our hope in Christ.
They carry palm branches: The palm branches are symbols of victory. One day we rejoice in the presence of Christ and share in the victory of Christ! We win with Jesus. This is our hope!

They are continually praising the Lamb: Every tribe, tongue and nation will be unified by our love for the Lamb: “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” One day we will worship alongside our African, Asian, European and South American brothers and sisters. Every tribe and tongue will be present. All of us will be united in our love of God, the blessings of our salvation and our joy of being with Jesus. This is our blessed hope. But there’s more. Let’s read on…

And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” Revelation 7:11-12

One of the great blessings of heaven is that we will worship God not only with all the nations but with ALL the angels. We will be on the same footing with angels in the presence of God. Our hearts will be filled with thanksgiving and wonder, and the angels will add their praises to ours. I have heard people ask, isn’t it going to be boring in heaven just praising God over and over again?

All I can say to that is this: On earth some subjects become less interesting over time. Others become more fascinating. But nothing is more fascinating than God. There is no end to what He knows, no end to what He can do, no end to who He is. Think of the most fascinating person you’ve ever met; they are just a drop in the bucket in comparison to the glory, power and wisdom of our eternal, almighty Creator.

I love how J.I. Packer speaks of worshiping God in heaven. He says, “Hearts on earth may say in the course of a joyful experience, “I don’t want this ever to end.” But invariably it does. The hearts of those in heaven say, “I want this to go on forever.” And one day it will. We will worship our majestic, glorious and infinite God with all the saints through the ages, with Martyn Luther, the Apostle Paul, King David, and even the Angel Gabriel. Think about standing there and worshiping with the myriad of angels around the throne. We will be so overwhelmed with joy, thanksgiving and wonder, that we can’t help but want to worship Him forever. Again, this is part of the hope of heaven. Worship of God will be beyond anything we’ve ever experienced here on earth.

But we’re not done. There are more blessings in store. The next comes from very curious exchange between John and one of the elders. He writes: Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “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. Revelation 7:13-14

There are definitely questions raised when the Elder questions John about those clothed in white robes. His question is given so that he can share his answer with John. He wants John to know something powerful and good that he doesn’t want him to miss. He says: “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.”

Obviously, this raises questions for us about the Great Tribulation, but that’s a discussion for another day. Instead, the elder wants us to take in the blessing described here. What is that?

The Lamb makes us clean. This is our great hope of heaven. The Lamb takes our filthy, soiled, ugly garments of sin and plunges them into His red, pure blood, and miraculously and supernaturally they come out white, pure and clean. Right now, we are clean in the eyes of God because of the shed blood of Jesus. But in heaven, we will experience the cleanliness of Christ like we’ve never experienced before. We will be completely pure, whole and alive without the stain of sin. Right now, sin has marred us in the image of God. We are not what we should be. But on that day, we will be more than we ever imagined, made clean, pure, and righteous by the blood of the Lamb. This is our hope!

But He doesn’t just make us clean, look now from verses 15-17 at the description of our life with God in heaven: “Therefore, they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and He who sits on the throne will shelter them with His presence. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” Revelation 7:15-17

God will let us serve: For all of eternity it will be our joyful privilege to serve in the worship of Him who saved us by washing us clean by His blood. As a kingdom of priests, we will fulfill the purpose for which we were created. And our privilege of serving Him will fill us with greater delight, joy and satisfaction than any service ever done on earth. We will get to do what God created us to do and it will be so soul satisfying.

God will give us His presence: God will be with us, and He will shelter us with His presence. He will shelter us with His love. There will be a security and peace in His presence that will never leave us. Never again will we be separated from God. It will be an intimacy of relationship greater than anything ever experienced on earth. We will experience a never-ending warm cocoon of love surrounding us in God’s presence.

God will provide all our needs: We will enjoy the rest of our salvation with God. Starvation, thirst and the burning heat of the sun will find no place in heaven. In heaven there will be no deprivation or hardship or loss. There will be no struggle or worry or fear, but only the gain of fullness and joy. David anticipated this bounty in the closing words of Psalm 23: You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Psalm 23:5-6

The Lamb will be our shepherd: In eternity, just as God makes His presence a shelter for us, the Lamb will shepherd us to the fullest experience of abundant life. He will guide us to springs of living water. Our thirst for God will always be satisfied by Him. And He will wipe away every tear from our eyes. We will look into the eyes of Jesus, and it will be His loving hand that wipes away every grief, hurt or loss we suffered on earth.

These are just some of the blessings yet to come: Blessings of Sovereign protection while still on earth, and blessings full of great joy, satisfaction and love in what is to come. Every earthly blessing will be magnified in the presence of God and the Lamb. This is our hope. And our hope is found in Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away to sins of the word.

And one day if you have trusted in the Lamb for the forgiveness of your sins, you will stand before Him fully alive, fully forgiven, fully righteous and fully loved. All so that you can fully give Him your praise for who He is and all He has done. This is our hope in Jesus. Our hope of heaven. The blessings that are yet to come from the very throne of God for us.