Revelation 7:9-17 - After this I [John] 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!" 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." 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. 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."
I think of the book of Revelation as a picture book. Every time you turn the page, there's a new, interesting picture, full of meaning, but also full of symbols—and you have to puzzle out what is going on.
It's like that with this passage, too. John sees people, so many people no one could count them, standing before God's throne and celebrating. They are dressed in white and holding palm branches, a symbol for victory. And they are praising God.
Why? Not because they have to. This is not another boring church service carried out by people who are doing their imperfect best on earth. No, this is the day of God's final victory, and every one of the people in this picture is there for one reason only—because Jesus their Savior, the Lamb of God, has brought them there. Because He gave Himself into death for their sakes, now they are forgiven, clean, and happy.
And of course they are celebrating, because this is the day they've waited for all their lives—the day when Jesus raises all His people from the dead, and we are united with Him forever. By the time this picture is taken, all our hopes have come true, and there is no more grief or crying or evil or death. We will never be away from Jesus again.
I say "we," because if you trust in Jesus, you are in this picture, too. This is a family picture, the reunion of all God's children, come together for the first time in perfect joy and happiness. This is our picture.
And none of us who trusts Him will be left out.
WE PRAY: Dear Lord Jesus, thank You for making me part of Your family. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.
Reflection Questions:
1. What will you be happiest to leave behind when God makes everything new?
2. What do you look forward to the most about Jesus' coming?
3. Christ has made you part of His family. What does this mean to you? Pray about it privately if you wish.
Today's Bible Readings: Jeremiah 23-24 Hebrews 4
To Download Devotion MP3 to your computer, right click here and select "Save Link As" or "Save Target As" or "Download Linked File As"