A Great Multitude
Scripture Reading: Psalm 149; Hosea 2-7; Revelation 7
And 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
I don’t have much to say about this text. But I think it is helpful to occasionally pause when we come to it and remind ourselves of where all of this is heading. The outcome is both enthralling and certain. It is wonderful beyond belief.
We aren’t disappearing into a chasm of blackness where our whole existence comes to nothing and is forgotten forever. We aren’t going to be absorbed into the Borg (Star Trek reference) where we our uniqueness and distinctiveness is absorbed into a colorless collective. We won’t be defeated by and enslaved to a devilish, Antichrist, dark world.
We will, in the end, stand in the glory and light of Jesus Christ; shoulder to shoulder with saints from every age, nation, tribe, and language and worship together our Savior and King. Will be there with Augustine of Hippo and Jimmy from over on 5th Street, worshiping Christ.
And the numbers...they’re massive – more than you could count. A sea of redeemed humanity as far as the eye can see.
So, when whenever you feel a little down about how things are going, and you worry about how everything is going to turn out, look up Revelation 7. Maybe, if you are a Bible-marking kind of person, highlight these verses. Put a pin in it, so to speak. Make it easy to find. Better yet, memorize it.
Then, every time you walk through a dark valley, have to climb a difficult hill, or just find yourself wandering aimlessly, revisit this and remind yourself where that road it actually leading to.
