Revelation Chapter 7

Today, Dr. J discusses Revelation 7.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:20

Welcome to Dr. J in the Bible. It's great to be back with you today. Looking forward to a great study on Revelation chapter seven. I think it's going to be good. The book of Revelation is such an awesome book. It really, once again, uh guarantees a blessing. Uh, and if you read it and if you read it out loud and study it, it's even a greater blessing because of that very fact. Hope everyone's doing well. It's a rainy day here in Lynchburg, Virginia. Uh, kind of nippy outside, but uh, but other than that, doing good. As we get into the study, I hope that you guys um are getting uh a lot from the study, and I hope you share it as well as the Grace in the Shadows podcast, too. Uh really appreciate it and uh review it, and uh looking forward to hearing from you guys. Revelation chapter seven, uh we're looking at the hundred and forty four thousand sealed. In verses one through three. After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree. Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land of the seas. Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of God. Then I heard the number of those who were sealed, and forty-four thousand from all the tribes of Israel, and then it goes under all the tribes of Israel. So Revelation seven serves kind of like a pause in the unfolding judgments of the seven seals, introduced in Revelation chapter six, and after seeing the chaos and the judgment in the first six seals, chapter seven emphasizes God's protection of his people. And as individuals, as we see this from a pre-trib, premillennial view, this chapter really highlights God's sovereign preservation of Israel and his faithfulness during the tribulation, for that matter. And while also pointing to his final salvation for believers. So looking at three, the four corners, the four angels at the four corners of the earth really represent God's control over the four directions of the earth and his authority over creation. Sealing of his servants marks God's protection over his chosen people during the tribulation. And it's really preventing them from the divine wrath that he is imputing to the earth on the judgment of the world. And then there's a sealed on their forehead, which really symbolizes ownership, protection, divine authority. It kind of echoes in on Ezekiel chapter 9, 4 through 6, and the marking of them as God's people. Um we also know that Jesus was sealed. John 6 27, that God the Father has set his seal on him. We are sealed as believers with the Holy Spirit. The seal is a down payment of our eventual total redemption. And so Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 1 21 through 22, God who has also sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee. And the seal, we know Ephesians 1.13. The sealing of the Holy Spirit belongs to every believer. When they are saved, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. So the picture is a protective shield being placed over God's faithful, making them totally untouchable by the judgment of God's appointed time. And so these 144,000, we're going to get here in a second, are really going to be evangelists. They're going to be Jewish men that are going to be dedicated at that time because we know that the church will have been raptured and that the focus will be more on the nation of Israel. And God is using the tribulation for one reason to bring Israel into salvation. And so that the Jews' hearts will be softened and receive in the one and believe the one that they have looked upon, the one they pierced. So the 144,000 sealed evangelists, so to speak, is comprised of 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel. That's 144,000. And this is their general identification. They are of all tribes. Ethnically, they're Jewish, and they are chosen by God and they are sealed by God, so that they will be going all over the world able to share the gospel. Now, this is also a possible indication that the gift of tongues, the way that the Bible says the gift of tongues is, not gibberish, may return in that these Jewish men won't know every language, that they will be able to speak or a language that they never spoke in order to communicate the gospel. That's just a little bit of a rabbit and a sanctified imagination. That could be true. I mean, it's kind of logical, I think. Of the tribe of Judah, 12,000 were sealed. We see of the tribe of Dan, Dan is left out, actually. And some think this is because Dan is the tribe of Antichrist, based on Daniel chapter 11, 37. You can check it out. Jeremiah 8, 16. And this may or may not be the case, but without doubt, Dan was the tribe that, you know, introduced idolatry to the nation of Israel. You can check out Genesis 49, 17 for that and Judges 18, 30. But interesting enough, in Ezekiel 48, there's a wonderful redemption for the tribe of Dan. Dan is the first tribe listed in Ezekiel's millennial role called of the tribes. And that's just like God, isn't it? Calling those that look like they have been thrown to the side, the black sheep, so to speak, the outcast, even the sinner. And the Lord does not call self-righteous. And I'm thankful he calls sinners. And so I'm thankful that Dan will be reinstituted, according to Ezekiel 48. And so the tribal listings here really emphasizes God's covenant, faithfulness, of continuity with the promise to Israel, and it reminds that God does not forget. The sun will rise, the sun will set, and everything that God does, the sun will cease to shine, the moon will cease to shine before Israel is forgotten by God. And so the ceiling shows that God's plan for Israel continues during the tribulation, despite global chaos, despite the Antichrist spirit persecution. And, you know, imagine a group of people clearly marked as God's own, untouched amidst war, famine, disaster. It really signifies divine protection and purpose. We could look at Israel now. Through the years, God promised that the Jews would not be destroyed. He did say they were going to get a whooping for 2,000 years, 2,000 plus years. And they've been scattered all over the world, persecuted. We had tried to, Adolf Hitler tried to wipe them off the map. And not only did it not work, but it actually brought the Jewish people back to the land, fulfilling promise that God already made. And so you really have to have a lot of faith not to believe God's promise stands true. In verses 9 through 12, the great multitude, which no one could number, all of all nations, tribes, and peoples. What a great, what a great picture here that we see. Beautiful picture. He looks and there's this great multitude, myriads of people. Uncountable. And they're standing before the throne, before the Lamb. They're wearing white robes, holding palm branches, symbolizing victory, purity, worship. And they're crying out in praise, salvation belongs to God, the Lamb forever. And standing before that throne, John saw everything in heaven reference to the throne of God. And they were clothed in white, covering the it's it's not only the covering of the righteousness of Jesus, but it represents the priestly service, the priesthood of believers. They're arrayed for holy service, arrayed at once for their white robes fitted for the priestly service. Palm branches, which quickly brings me back to Jesus' triumphal entry in Jerusalem, where Jesus also was praised as Savior and King, Hosanna, saved now. And the palm branches was the ensign of triumph, indicating the most certainly a conflict and conquest. And as on earth the palm branches would not be given, not one. We may conclude that the Lord would not have distributed the prize unless there had been preceding warfare and victory. The very fact that the glorified carry palms, we may infer they did not come from the beds of sloth or gardens of pleasure or palaces of peace, but they endured hardness, where men trained for war. Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the Lamb. It's an emblem of righteousness. They worship God for salvation. There's no other name under heaven whereby man can be saved. Salvation isn't something we earn, it's something God gives. Something believers on earth take their salvation, I think, for granted. And this isn't true in the great multitude in heaven. And it won't be true for us. We may take our salvation for granted at times, but in heaven we sure won't. Because we're going to see the glory of God. We will see him face to face. We will no longer see him through a veil or through what we imagine that to be. We will see him as he is. And then in 11 through 4, all angels stood around the throne. The elders, the living creatures, fell on their faces, the throne, and worship God, blessing and glory and wisdom, thanksgiving and honor, power, and might be to our God forever and ever. As these creatures, intelligent beings, hear the worship the great multitude brings to God, they see clearly the power and the wisdom and the majesty of King Jesus. Now, who are these people? You know, I believe this is a Gentile group because the Jews have not been saved yet. The nation of Israel has not. And I don't believe this is the church either. I believe these are gentile believers that have been martyred for their faith. And really, this really demonstrates God's grace extended beyond ethnic Israel. One of the issues with the nation of Israel, they did not, they did not focus and obey God's commands. God said in Deuteronomy, You obey me, I'll always be with you, you will have this, you will always be blessed. But if you worship idols, if you don't obey me, you'll be scattered around the world, and I will give you a spirit of stupor for a time. And so when you look at this, that's exactly what happened. One of the things they did not obey, they were supposed to tell the nations about Yahweh, the Jewish people. So the church is doing what Israel didn't do. And that's one of the issues to why they were scattered and chastised. But let me say this: according to Romans 11, God is not finished with the Jew. He's not finished with the nation of Israel. Every person, including the Jew, has to know Jesus. But but make no mention he's not finished with the ethnicity and the people of Israel. 13 through 14. One of the elders answered, saying to me, Where are who are these arrayed in white robes? And where did they come from? And I said, Sir, you know. So he said to me, These are the ones who came out of the great tribulation, washed their robes, like I just said, and they made them white in the blood of the Lamb. So this is a vast multitude from every nation, tongue, and tribe rescued for God's kingdom in the period of tribulation. Now, when I say rescued, um they were martyred. Uh, and so you know, whether you're martyred or not, you're still rescued. You're rescued from this world, you're rescued from hell, you're rescued from sin. We're rescued. And they're washed their robes with the blood of the Lamb. Even if they are martyred, and that their martyrdom does not save them. Only the work of Jesus. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool. And in 13 through 17, we see God's protection and comfort. The elders say, Who are these? Where do they come from? These are the ones that came out of the great tribulation, washed in the blood of the Lamb. They will not hunger or thirst. God will wipe away every tear. They will be protected from death, pain, suffering. Yeah. Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in this temple, and he who sits on the throne will dwell among them. They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore. Sun shall not strike them nor any heat, for the lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to the living fountains of water, and God will wipe away their tears from their eyes. Wow. You know, you see here he is the living water, eternal water. He is the bread of life, he is an ever-present help, he will never leave us or forsake us. We're seeing all this here. He is our rest. And so in heaven, we, the redeemed, including us, enjoy immediate presence of God. They can come right into the throne room of God and be with God. There's no barriers, no waiting lists, no appointments. These saints knew affliction on earth, and they triumphed over it because of the blood of the Lamb. Wasn't their affliction that saved them, it was the blood of Jesus, the relationship of their faith. And they serve him day and night. By the way, we need to be serving him day and night. We are a living sacrifice. It's not just about going to church, not just about going in the building. We serve him in our jobs, we serve him at our tables, we serve him in our house, we serve him with our family, we serve him, we serve him, we serve him. Just like when we pray, it's not just over our food. We pray in a constant state of prayer. We look at the Lord's prayer. You know, and what a beautiful thing. We actually studied this Wednesday at church, but the pastor uh did a great job. And how it's not the Lord's prayer, really. It's it's our prayer, it's it's a pattern of prayer, not just repeating and plagiarizing the Lord's words, it's you know, our Father. He's our Father, Daddy, who art in heaven, holy is his name, sovereign God, he's an awesome God. You know, thank you for our daily bread. Thank you for your blessings, gratitude. Lead us not into temptation. You know, help me with my sin, my struggle. You know, help me to love the unlovable, lead me not into temptation, for thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever and ever. And he sits on the throne and will dwell among them. This is the ultimate fulfillment of King David's great desire. Yeah. Psalm 27, 4, one thing I have desired, says King David, of the Lord, that will that will I seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple. Yeah. And he will wipe away every tear. Imagine the survivors of intense trials finally entering a safe haven. There's no need, no needs that need to be met, tears wiped away, no suffering. So all sufferings removed, heavenly comfort on earth. That's what we're waiting for as a church. That's what we're looking for. And you know, the kingdom starts now. The kingdom is now. When we receive Christ, we're not waiting for the kingdom. We're waiting for the visible kingdom, but we are already, kingdom is now in our hearts. Hope you guys have a great rest of the week. Be safe out there and remember. Remember, God can take your mass, turn to a message for his glory for your good.