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Praise and Prayer
Revelation 7 reminds us one more time that we may be the rapture generation - that last generation of the church age caught up into glory to meet the Lord in the air.
What a day that will be!
I want us to be ready.
But not so ready that our head is in the clouds of prophecy and not on the pavement of serving and soul winning.
The blessed hope for which we await is not an incentive to rest but to work.
Jesus said, in Luke 19:13
He didn’t mean for us to tale up space; He meant for us to get to work because we know the future.
Our occupation is our job, and we need to stay at it.
And because your future is secure, your present is something into which you can put all of your heart, soul, and energy.
As I read Revelation 7 over and over, one phrase keeps echoing in my mind.
It is a chorus entitled What a Mighty God We Serve!
What a Might God We Serve!
Chorus slide -
How do we know we serve a mighty God?
Because God made everything.
He created the universe.
He made the galaxies, the sun, the moon, and the stars.
He spoke the world into space.
Nothing is too difficult for Him.
The angel said to Abraham, in Genesis 18:14
And then Jeremiah said,
In Revelation 7 we learn more about what this great God can do.
Here we will learn about the greatest harvest of souls the world has ever known.
During the great tribulation God will save great multitudes - so many that we cannot count them all.
What a mighty God we serve!
There is no Promise too Hard for God to Keep!
There are thirty thousand promises in the Word of God.
Jesus told us in Matthew 5:18
There is no promise too hard for God to keep.
Let’s look at our main text tonight Revelation 7:1-8
Many years ago, God made a promise to Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3
God made this promise to Abraham two thousand years before John wrote the book of Revelation (and two thousand years have passed since then!).
Has God kept that promise?
Yes!
What does that mean?
It means that if God says it, you can bank on it.
Every family has been and will be blessed through Abraham.
They may have refused the blessing, but it has come.
In Revelation 7 we learn that God’s promise to Abraham will be consummated with a unique group of 144,000.
Various groups have claimed to be the 144,00 - the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventists, Sabbath Keepers, and one even called the Flying Roll.
Some others say this group is the New Testament church, which is spiritual Israel.
God has not cast away His chosen people - the Israelites.
The Bible teaches that this race of people will not pass away.
The Jew will be here until Jesus comes.
The nation of Israel cannot be obliterated.
God’s promise will stand.
You can bank on it.
So who are these 144,000?
They are a select group of actual Jews - God’s chosen people.
The Bible is clear that these are the tribes of Israel.
It is black print of white paper.
Let’s look at the 144,000.
They are Selected
Why does God select 144,00 out of the Jewish people?
To answer that question, let’s review what we learned back in week 3 of the study when we looked at the symbolic use of numbers in the book of Revelation.
Three numbers make up the figure 144,000.
they are three, four, and ten.
Four is the earth number, three is the divine number, and ten speaks of completeness.
Three times four is twelve.
Twelve times twelve gives us 144.
Ten times ten gives us 1,000.
Then 144 times 1,000 gives us 144,000.
God has taken His governmental number and intensified it.
He has said in essence, These are My chosen ones to do My will and to fulfill My purpose.
Many have asked if 144,000 is a literal number.
I see no reason it should not be a literal number.
But let’s focus on the main interpretation of this passage in God’s Word.
God has a plan with Israel, and He is going to complete that plan.
They are sealed
The angel is carrying a seal of the living God for these 144,000 souls.
This seal signifies a mark of ownership.
In the days when the Bible was written, a seal basically stood for three things: possession, protection, and preservation.
In the same way God has put a seal of possession, protection, and preservation upon these 144,000 souls.
Why?
Because God has a special job for them, and they must be kept safe.
Otherwise, the Antichrist would obliterate these people.
Did you know that we also are sealed?
Some people think the devil can take born-again believers out of the hand of God.
If you think that, it’s time you changed your view.
Thank God for His provision, protection, and preservation of His people.
The Holy Spirit seals every person who has placed his or her trust in the almighty power of God for salvation.
The reason we are kept saved is that we are sealed from the beginning.
This is a wonderful truth.
Will this seal be a literal mark on the foreheads of the saved?
Maybe and maybe not.
It could be an impression of truth in their minds that God is their Father.
I don’t know whether this means the name of the Father is in their mind, or whether it is a literal mark, but I do know the 144,000 are sealed.
They are Servants
Revelation 7:3 says that those who are sealed are the slaves of our God.
And they will serve the Lord by preaching the gospel of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Can you imagine what will happen during the great tribulation when God turns loose 144,000 evangelists?
It seems to me that Paul must have had these 144,000 in mind when he spoke of himself as an example to those who would later believe.
God made a promise to Abraham that all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you.
And you will never see that promise more greatly fulfilled than during the great tribulation, when the 144,000 preach the everlasting gospel to all the peoples on the face of this earth and there is a great harvest of souls.
Not one promise of God will fail.
And not only the promises of what God has said to Israel but what God has said to you.
There is No Person too Hard for God to Save
As a result of the great witness of the 144,000, there is a great harvest of souls.
Thousands and thousands have been saved and dressed in white robes signifying the righteousness of Christ.
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