White in the Blood of the Lamb

“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, 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.’” Revelation 7:9-14 ESV

What is this teaching us? First of all it is teaching us that God’s people today are people from all nations and languages who believe in Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God who was crucified on a cross to take away our sins and to give us eternal life with God. And we are those who are righteous in the eyes of God, not just by professions of faith in Christ, but by walks of obedience to his commands and by living righteously to the glory and praise of God, in the power of God (1 John 3:4-10). For white robes are a symbol of purity and righteousness. We are his holy nation, the people for his own possession.

And this is teaching us that these who believe in God – Father, Son Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit – are those who worship God. And what is worship? It is giving our lives to the Lord as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to him. And holy means separate (unlike, different) from the world because we are being made to be like Jesus in character, by God, as we cooperate fully with God’s work of grace in our lives. And it is us no longer conformed to the ways of this sinful world but transformed of God in heart and mind that we may, by how we live, prove what is the perfect will of God for our lives.

[Rom 1:6-7; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-29; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 1:9; 1 Co 3:17; 1 Co 6:19-20; 2 Co 5:15,21; Gal 5:13-21; Eph 1:3-4; Eph 2:10,21; Eph 5:27; Col 1:22; Col 3:12; 1 Thess 4:7; 2 Tim 1:8-9; 2 Tim 2:21; 1 Pet 1:13-16; 1 Pet 2:5-9,24; 2 Pet 1:3; Tit 2:11-14; Lu 9:23-26; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Jn 2:3-6]

And what else is this teaching us? That we are those who will go through the Tribulation along with the rest of the world, unless our Lord takes us out of this world before then. Now this could be speaking purely of those who believed in Jesus Christ during the time of Tribulation to come on the earth, but there are also many indicators that those believing in Jesus Christ prior to the time of Tribulation will be those during the time of Tribulation who are being persecuted and martyred for their walks of faith in the Lord Jesus. And Christians are the persecuted ones, not the Jews who deny Christ as Lord.

And, because of the severe persecution of Christians during the time of Tribulation, many who maybe were not walking with the Lord as they ought, or who were floundering in their walks of faith, who were wandering into places they should not go, will be forced into having to choose “hot” or “cold.” There will no longer be room for “lukewarm Christians” during the Tribulation. So, it is reasonable to assume that those who have “washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” may also be those who got their hearts right with Jesus Christ during the Tribulation.

Christian persecution: [Revelation 6:9-11; Revelation 7:9-17; Revelation 11:1-3; Revelation 12:17; Revelation 13:1-18; Revelation 14:1-13]

So, please don’t believe those who are telling you that the Jews who deny Jesus Christ as their Messiah and Lord are the persecuted people of God. They are not! The New Testament Scriptures do not support that notion at all! The New Testament Scriptures, in fact, make it clear that it is only those of genuine faith in Jesus Christ who are the persecuted people of God, and that the Jews who don’t believe in Jesus are among their persecutors, and so we are not to support them. Paul made that abundantly clear! So supporting the Jews could mean you supporting the persecution of Christians.

We who believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives do not live under the Old Covenant that God had with the nation of Israel. The Old Covenant has been replaced with the New Covenant, ever since Jesus died on that cross to save us from our sins and to give us eternal life with God. So, don’t let the Judaizers of today convince you that you must still follow the Old Covenant. Do we still have to obey God? Yes! Do we still have to obey his commandments? Yes, but under the New Covenant, not the old. And don’t let the Judaizers of today convince you to refuse the teachings under the New Covenant in favor of the teachings under the Old Covenant.

[Rom 9:4-8; Rom 11:17-25; 1 Co 3:16-17; 2 Co 6:14-18; Gal 3:16,26-29; 

Gal 4:22-31; Eph 2:11-22; Eph 3:6; Col 3:12-15; Tit 2:14; Heb 8:8-10; 

1 Pet 2:9-10; John 8:18-19,38-47; 1 John 2:22]

Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer 

Lyrics by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1897

Music by W. J. Kirkpatrick, 1897

Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,

This is my constant longing and prayer;

Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,

Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.

Oh, to be like Thee! full of compassion,

Loving, forgiving, tender and kind,

Helping the helpless, cheering the fainting,

Seeking the wandering sinner to find.

O to be like Thee! lowly in spirit,

Holy and harmless, patient and brave;

Meekly enduring cruel reproaches,

Willing to suffer others to save.

O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,

Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;

Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,

Fit me for life and Heaven above.

Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,

Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;

Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;

Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrYhiK2nQBg 

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