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9 After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” ~ Revelation 7:9-10
We return to Revelation 7 and we find ourselves in a time when the restraining influence of the Holy Spirit has been taken away with the Rapture of the Church. And, sin runs absolutely unchecked and wild. We are now observing what it will be like on earth during the time of the rise of the Antichrist. For three and a half years the people of the earth will not know him as the Antichrist, but in the middle of this seven year period, he will reveal himself to be the opposite of what everyone was led to think of him.
At the end of Revelation 6 the question is asked, "Who will be able to stand during the wrath of the Lamb?" And, in our last blog and podcast, we considered the first group who will be able to do so, the 144,000 Jews who choose to believe in the Lord Jesus as their Messiah during the middle of the seventieth seven when they realize that this man whom they thought was their Messiah did not truly fit the bill.
Think of it, the world in the first century heard the gospel and were radically changed because of 12 Jewish apostles. They turned the world upside down. Imagine 144,000 sharing the gospel throughout the world. The group that we are introduced to today, will be the Gentiles who will trust in the Lord Jesus during the seventieth seven of Daniel 9:27 because of the witness of these 144,000. This was promised to Abram in Genesis 12. God has always placed His saving power on display through Israel in order that He might reach the nations of the world.
Israel was never ever called His people to be an end in themselves. They thought that but it wasn’t God’s plan. God didn’t save them as an end; He saved them as a means to reach the world. So, during the second half of the seventieth seven or the Tribulation, there will be worldwide preaching of the gospel. This is true for all of God's children, including you and me. He saved us to give us His message to give to others will listen with willing hearts.
In v.9 of today's text we read, "After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands."
And, notice that these described in today's text are standing. They are not seated. This indicates they are not the church. Because the 24 elders are seated in heaven. These are the ones who are washed with blood during the tribulation.
This is a group of people whose number could not be counted. This group is so big it is beyond counting. And, they come from every nation, and all tribes, and people, and language. Those four things speak about descent, language, and race. And, "They were wearing white robes, and were holding palm branches in their hands."
The only other people we see in the book of Revelation who are dressed like this are found way back in Revelation 6:9 which reads, “And when He broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the Word of God and because of the testimony which they had maintained.”
Like those in Revelation 6:9, these believers had been clothed in Christ's righteousness and they had been martyred, as well. And, they have palm branches in their hands. In their culture, palm branches were associated with celebrations. To the ancients, the palm tree was the perfect tree because it had so many uses. And whenever there was a time of joy or a time of triumph or a time of celebration, palm branches became prominent.
In v.10 we read, "And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb."
Note those two words “our God” which denotes that the God of the Bible has become their God, and they’re now worshiping Him. They have had a change of heart. This is quite encouraging because currently we live in a world which seems to be resoundingly rejecting God. And, notice that the action of heaven is that of praise.
The day is coming when by God’s grace and mercy the gospel will triumph across the world. And the promise of salvation to the nations of the earth will come to pass. It’ll be the best of times during the worst of times. But that’s just like God, who in the midst of wrath remembers mercy, in the midst of judgment remembers grace.
The Lord Jesus told us in Matthew 24 that during the tribulation "this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations. And then the end shall come." Of course, He is speaking of the tribulation period when in the midst o famine, destruction, death and persecution, the gospel will have its greatest impact. And then the end will come. When the worst of times are happening on this earth, the gospel will flourish. And, God uses yielded lives in all periods of time to take the gospel to those who are willing to listen. Let us not miss one of these appointments today. The power is in the gospel.
