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The Lamb Shall Be Their Shepherd: The Saints Victorious – Revelation 7:9-8:1

Jonathan Homesley

The Lamb Shall Be Their Shepherd: The Saints Victorious – Revelation 7:9-8:1

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THE LAMB SHALL BE THEIR SHEPHERD:

The Saints Victorious

Revelation: Every Eye Will See Him

Revelation 7:9-8:1

THE TEXT:

The text for the sermon today is Revelation 7:9-8:1. Our text can be found on page 1030. These are the words of God:

9 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, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 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, 12 saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”

13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” 14 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.

15 “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.

16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore;

the sun shall not strike them,

nor any scorching heat.

            17 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.”

8 When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.

GRAB THEIR ATTENTION

You have a little less than 8 hours to get your New Years resolutions in order. I don’t know if you’re a big “Resolutions” person, but many people are. A recent Forbes survey found some surprising and some not-so-surprising statistics on New Years resolutions.

Well, whether or not you make and keep resolutions, it’s fascinating that we as a species set goals and make future plans. Not just short term goals like: I want to eat this evening. We set goals that last for weeks, months and resolutions that last all year. Some of us have even set 5 or 10 or 30 year goals.

One of the most common goals we set is the goal of retirement. We want to put in our time at work, save enough money, pay off enough expenses, so that one day we can rest from our work and enjoy life.

Now, I have to admit that as a man in my late 30s with 4 children—that seems like an impossibility right now, but I know that some of you out there have done it.

Church, the passage we are studying today reminds us that one day when Christ returns, all those who are found in him will find a true rest—not simply from the toil of work in this age, they will find a rest from sin, from physical sickness, from mental and emotional strain, from broken relationships.

And in place of all of those, they will find wholeness, peace, and joy as they are united with their Maker, Redeemer, and Sustainer—the holy God.

But, before we study the passage, let me catch you up on where we are in Revelation. Maybe you were invited by a member of our congregation and you haven’t been with us for the entire study.

What we do each week when we gather is we hear the Bible preached systematically, or expositionally. We take a book of the Bible, break it into smaller chunks and work out way through it seeking to understand the message the author is trying to communicate. And the book we are currently studying is the last book of the Bible: Revelation. Contrary to what you may have heard or imagined about this book: it is not a scary book. Rather this book was written to first century Christians who were facing state-sponsored persecution. And Revelation encouraged those Christians to be faithful to Christ because in the end Christ will have the victory.

And Christians become victorious in this age—not by gaining influence over the halls of governmental or cultural power (though we ought to seek influence in those places)—but true victory is measured by simply obeying Jesus Christ, no matter the cost.

RAISE THE NEED, SIGNPOSTS, STATE THE DESTINATION

In the first three chapters, John addresses 7 first century churches in Asia Minor. They are the book’s original audience. Most of them needed correction and encouragement because increasing persecution was coming. What would anchor them for the coming storm?

Chapters 4 & 5 give us the anchor.  John receives a heavenly vision of God’s throne at the center of all things. In his right hand is a scroll representing all of his plans for the earth. Jesus Christ is the Lamb who is worthy to take the scroll, break the seals, and unfold all of God’s plans.

Chapter six is the breaking of the seven seals on the scroll:

Well, our passage today, Revelation 7, is the answer:

9 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,

The chapter divides neatly into 2 sections:

So, Revelation 7 is the story of God sealing his people, his people at war in this age against evil, his people victorious in heaven, and his people finally at rest in his eternal presence. Today we’ll consider the second half of the chapter under two headings:

  1. The Church Victorious in Heaven (7:9-12)
  2. The Church at Rest in God’s Presence. (7:13-8:1)

As we meet to worship Christ one final time in 2023, and as a new year begins tonight, I pray this passage sets your heart at ease. I pray it gives you a confidence to live for Christ in the coming year, knowing that your final victory is certain.

And, if you are not a Christian—I pray you will consider the message of Christianity more sincerely than you ever have; the message that God is holy, we are sinful, that Christ is the savior of sinners, and that you will believe in him today—maybe even as the sermon is being preached.

  1. THE CHURCH, VICTORIOUS IN HEAVEN (7:9-12)

If you look down at verse 9, John tells us the next vision he saw. Remember, he had just seen a vision of the church in this age, at war with evil. This is often refered to as the church militant: at war against sin, the world, the devil. The church was depicted like the tribes of Israel preparing for battle in the book of Numbers.

But in verse 9, the church is no longer fighting. They are no longer grabbing the shield of faith, or the sword of truth. They aren’t at battle. No enemies surround them. In fact, in verse 9, the church is no longer on the earth at all.

Verse 9 reads:

9 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

Church, this ought to remind us of two passages. First, God’s promise to Abraham in Genesis 17:4

4 “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.

God kept his promise to Abraham. But even more than Genesis 17, this passage ought to remind us of the Great Commission Jesus Christ gave to us after his resurrection. Matthew 28:18-20 record that commission:

18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matt. 28:18-20)

Friend, that’s how the gospel of Matthew ends. Christ, having conquered death, telling 11 disciples how had just recently denied Christ, “Now that I have all authority—even over death itself—I want you to preach the gospel and baptize the nations.”

And now in Revelation 7, notice who John sees standing before the throne. A great multitude, that no one could number, from all:

The Apostle John, who stood before the Risen Christ and was commissioned to preach the gospel to all people—was able to see the fruit of all the church’s labor.

Church, if Matthew 28 contains the Great Commission, then Revelation 7 contains the Great Culmination.

This is why Lake Wylie Baptist prioritizes the sending of missionaries and church planters to the nations. Over 10% of our annual operating budget goes right out the door to fund the spread of the gospel specifically through church planting efforts.

Beginning in 2024, Lake Wylie Baptist will directly supports missionaries on 5 of the continents. We don’t have anyone in Australia yet, and the only thing to evangelize in Antarctica are penguins—but let me tell you—if they could repent and be baptized… we’d send a missionary there too.

I don’t have time to tell you about all those missionaries one by one today. But let met tell you a little about our newest mission partner: Josue Lara in Monterrey Mexico.

For the last few years Josue has served with the Charles Simeon Trust, training preachers in Mexico and Central America. Last year he came to be a resident at Park Baptist in Rock Hill, one of our Pillar Network churches, with the intention of going back to plant Iglesia Bautista Piedra Angular in Monterrey Mexico. The city has over one million people—but very few faithful Baptist churches. In fact, the Baptist seminary in that city has dwindled for the last several decades.

So, Josue planted mid-2023 and has been meeting weekly for worship, gathering a crowd, holding discipleship courses and member seminars. In the midst of all this, Josue and his wife experienced a premature birth at the end of November. We just got word of it a few weeks ago. Thankfully, their daughter, Olivia, is doing well as she gains weight in the hospital.

Here are the prayer requests Josue shared with us:

  1. Please continue to pray for the establishment of the church and for families in the membership process.

  1. In the early next year, we will evaluate the possibility of staying in our current

rented space or seeking a new location. Pray for guidance from the Lord.

  1. Pray for the growth and maturity of Olivia. Ask the Lord to give us strength in this trial and transform us more into His image. Also, pray for our other children, that God would guard their emotions and thoughts in Christ.

  1. Lastly, please join us in praying for God’s provision to settle the hospital bill. We trust that the Lord is our provider and will sustain us as He has so far.

Church – that’s just one example of faithful gospel workers around the globe. There are thousands more that we’ll never know—right now—laboring for the sake of Christ. And we’re so thankful not just to pray for Josue—but to begin to financially support that ministry as a church in 2024.

Well, this great multitude, what are they doing? Look back at verse 9:

standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands,

If you think back to the end of Revelation 6, when God’s final day of judgment was being unleashed on the earth—that judgment ended with a question: “Who can stand?”

The answer, of course, is the Saints of God. They are the ones who are able to stand before the throne. They are wearing white robes and waving palms. Now, remember—Revelation is a picture book. This vision isn’t telling you that for all eternity, those who go to heaven will all wear the same white robe and wave branches. No, it’s picturing something. What is the picture: they are victorious.

God has protected them and delivered them through the tribulation and tumult of this age. The white robes signify that they have escaped the corruption of sin. The palms allude to the OT Feast of Tabernacles, when palms were waved and used to build booths in which the Jews lived during the feast. That feast celebrated God’s protection for Israel in their desert wanderings.

Now, these Palms celebrate God’s protection of his people through their sojourn through this world. And, as they wave their palms, they sing:

Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!

I love how John Bunyan describes the Celestial City in his book Pilgrim’s Progress. If you’ve never read it, you should make it a goal in 2024 to read that book. We don’t have them today, but next week we will have several copies just back there in the book stall. Listen to Bunyan:

Now just as the gates were opened to let the men in, I looked in after them—and, behold, the City shone like the sun! The streets also were paved with gold, and on them walked many men, with crowns on their heads, palms in their hands, and golden harps to sing praises with! There were also some angelic beings with wings, and they sang back and forth without intermission, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord!” After that, they closed up the gates. When I had seen all of this—I wished that I myself was among them.

Friend, do you wish that you were among them? Victorious over this life. Pardoned from all your sin? Free from condemnation?

The only way is through Jesus Christ, the Lamb. Salvation belongs to him. How do the saints receive these robes; these festal garments so that they may enter into the feast of heaven? Skip down to verse 14:

They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. (Rev. 7:14)

What does that mean? Well, the Bible teaches that God, who is holy, made us in his image to know him. But we cut ourselves off from him. The Son of God, in his great love, became a man, and lived a perfect life, fulfilling the law and in his death he took upon himself the sins of all those who would put their faith in him. He rose from the dead, proving that God accepted his sacrifice and that God’s wrath against us has been exhausted.

He calls us to repent of our sins and believe in what Jesus has done. And if we believe in Christ we are born again, into a new eternal life from God.

If you have more questions about what it means to believe in Jesus, come talk to me after the service, or talk to one of the people around you.

So, we see the church, victorious in heaven. As we consider verses 13 through the end of the chapter, we see:

  1. THE CHURCH, AT REST IN GOD’S PRESENCE (7:13-8:1)

There’s a slight transition in the passage at verse 13. The saints and the angels have been focusing on God and his salvation all the way through verse 12. But now, one of the elders in the great heavenly gathering asks John a question.

13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” 14 I said to him, “Sir, you know.”

John’s response sounds polite: “Sir, you know.” What he’s really saying is, “Listen mister, you’ve been here longer than I have.” And so the elder answers:

“These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation.”

What is this great tribulation? Many godly Christians hold differing interpretations, but I believe the great tribulation is all of the time between Christ’s sufferings and his return at the end of the age. Let me give you a few quick reasons why.

  1. John tells us that the book he is writing is primarily focused on things that are already happening. (1:1, 13, 19)

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. (Rev. 1:1)

  1. John tells us that the tribulation is already taking place.

9 I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. (Rev. 1:9)

9 “‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (Rev. 2:9)

  1. Jesus himself said that the tribulation is a present reality for his followers.

33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

  1. Of the 23 times Paul uses “tribulation,” 21 refer to present reality.

What does all this mean? Church, a very simple application is this: our life in this age will not be easy. If you are going to follow Jesus Christ faithfully, you should not expect it to go smoothly. Rather, your expectation should be tribulation. The Greek word is thlipsis, is translated elsewhere as trouble that inflicts distress, oppression, and affliction.

Contrary to what the TV preachers say, when you become a Christian… when you begin living life by faith in Christ, your problems don’t evaporate. We don’t live by the power of positive thinking. We don’t manifest or speak our future into existence. There’s a big theological word we use to describe all of that: hogwash.

No, the book of Revelation shows us that you absolutely cannot be living your best life now. If you are living your best life now, then you’re on your way to hell. Friend, I love the life God has given me. I love the people he has given me. The home he has given me. But I thank God that this isn’t my best life.

Revelation 7:15 tells us that, for the Christian, their best life is yet to come.

Last Monday we enjoyed another Christmas. And while the holiday will always have a sweetness connected with Christ, there may also be a bitterness that blemishes the day. Even as we rejoiced in the birth of Christ, many of us also wept because some we love were not with us to share in the joy.

The British poet, Adrian Plass, wrote a poem called Heaven, and it ends like this:

When I’m in heaven
Tell me there’ll be Christmases without the pain,

No memories that will not fade,
No chilled and sullen sense of loss
That cannot face the festive flame
Nor breathe excitement from the ice-cream air.
Tell me how the things that Christmas should have been

Will be there for eternity in one long, shining dawn
For all of us to share.
I love the promises of Christmas.

Revelation 7 says that if you belong to Christ Jesus, every tear will be wiped away. Every wound will be healed. Earth has no sorrow that Christ will not heal. Every loss will be made up for, in one long eternal dawn.

So, until that day comes, continue to faithfully pursue Christ this day.

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