{"id":9690,"date":"2020-06-07T20:00:29","date_gmt":"2020-06-08T03:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/?p=9690"},"modified":"2020-06-07T16:11:20","modified_gmt":"2020-06-07T23:11:20","slug":"revelation7_1-17","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/revelation7_1-17\/","title":{"rendered":"The Power of Jesus\u2019 Blood"},"content":{"rendered":"

Revelation 7:1-17\u00a0 \u00a0Click here for Bible Verses<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Revelation 7:1-17.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Revelation 7:1 (NIV)\u00a0<\/strong>
\n1\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 1:\u00a0 After the sixth seal is broken, John sees four angels holding back \u201cthe four winds of the earth\u201d (v1), effectively stopping any wind from blowing on the earth.\u00a0 According to some scientists, if there was no more wind on the earth, much of the earth would become uninhabitable, temperatures on the earth would become either extremely hot or extremely cold, mass migration would lead to coastal regions being heavily populated, marine life would die, widespread famine would occur and many people would not be able to survive.<\/p>\n

Similarly,\u00a0we need the wind of the Holy Spirit in our lives.\u00a0 Without the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus likens to a wind (see John 3:8), our spiritual lives would dry out.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Revelation 7:2-3 (NIV)\u00a0<\/strong>
\n2\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea:
\n3\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 2-3:\u00a0 Before the four angels are allowed to continue holding back the wind and in so doing damage the earth, another angel bearing the seal of God calls out to them and tells them not to harm the earth this way until the foreheads of God\u2019s servants have been sealed.\u00a0 The seal, which might look like a stamp or an embossing, served as a symbol of God\u2019s ownership and approval, giving the sealed person access to God\u2019s special blessing and protection.<\/p>\n

Similarly, do you know that\u00a0when you place your faith in Jesus Christ, the Bible says that you are marked in Him with a seal<\/strong>, that is, the Holy Spirit?\u00a0 See Ephesians 1:13.\u00a0\u00a0The Holy Spirit in your life is the seal of God\u2019s ownership and approval over your life, giving you access to God\u2019s special blessing and protection.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Revelation 7:4-8 (NIV)\u00a0<\/strong>
\n4\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.
\n5\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0From the tribe of Judah 12,000 were sealed, from the tribe of Reuben 12,000, from the tribe of Gad 12,000,
\n6\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0from the tribe of Asher 12,000, from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000, from the tribe of Manasseh 12,000,
\n7\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0from the tribe of Simeon 12,000, from the tribe of Levi 12,000, from the tribe of Issachar 12,000,
\n8\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0from the tribe of Zebulun 12,000, from the tribe of Joseph 12,000, from the tribe of Benjamin 12,000.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 4-8:\u00a0 Here it is announced that 144,000 people have been sealed and who presumably gain access to some special blessing or protection from God.\u00a0 \u00a0Despite verse 4 saying that the 144,000 are \u201cfrom all the tribes of Israel\u201d, this list of tribes is peculiar in that it omits the tribe of Dan, includes the tribe of Joseph and his son Manasseh while omitting Joseph\u2019s other son Ephraim.\u00a0 Various scholars have speculated as to why, with some thinking that Dan was omitted because Dan was the first tribe to commit idolatry.\u00a0 Still, all of this is speculation.<\/p>\n

More importantly, who are the 144,000 listed here?\u00a0 Is the 144,000 number meant to be literal or symbolic?\u00a0 Are the 144,000 different from the \u201cgreat multitude that no one can count\u201d in verse 9?\u00a0 There are many interpretations out there.\u00a0 Some interpreters believe that the 144,000 is a figurative symbol for the Christian church (which in reality has many more than 144,000 people such that 144,000 is symbolic of perfection).\u00a0 Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses dangerously and falsely use this passage to teach that literally only 144,000 exactly will go to heaven and rule with Christ.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the best interpretation is that the 144,000 refers to Jewish Christians (\u201cfrom all the tribes of Israel\u201d) while the great multitude in verse 9 refers to Gentile Christians \u201cfrom every nation, tribe, people and language\u201d (v9).\u00a0 This interpretation is supported by the fact that John seems to distinguish the 144,000 in verse 4 from the great multitude in verse 9 both in terms of ethnic background and sheer number.\u00a0 This latter interpretation also brings to life for us a little more what Paul writes when he says, \u201cI am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes:\u00a0first for the Jew<\/em>,\u00a0then for the Gentile<\/em>\u201d (Romans 1:16), since the Jewish believers are counted first, and then the Gentile multitude appears in the verses that follow.<\/p>\n

Revelation 7:9-17 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n9\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0After 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 in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.
\n10\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”
\n11\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God,
\n12\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0saying: “Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”
\n13\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes–who are they, and where did they come from?”
\n14\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0I answered, “Sir, you know.” And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
\n15\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Therefore, “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.
\n16\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat.
\n17\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 9-17:\u00a0 Here we see a beautiful picture of \u201ca great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb\u201d (v9).\u00a0 Robed in white and holding palm branches (v9b), they worship God the Father and Jesus the Son in a loud voice (v10), with the angels, elders and four living creatures saying \u201cAmen!\u201d and giving God their praise as well (v11-12).<\/p>\n

Who is this great multitude?\u00a0 This great multitude most likely represents Gentile believers \u201cwho have come out of the great tribulation\u201d (v14a).\u00a0 What great tribulation is verse 14 referring to?\u00a0 It is the formidable period of suffering and judgment that Revelation 6 and the beginning of Revelation 7 describe.<\/p>\n

The elder also explains to John that the people in this great multitude \u201chave washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb\u201d (v14b).\u00a0 Now they serve day and night in the temple and the One on the throne spreads His tent over them (i.e. gives them His presence and protection) (v15), such that they will never suffer again (v16).\u00a0 Jesus the Lamb will be their shepherd, leading them to springs of living water while God the Father wipes away every tear from their eyes (v17).<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0It is only through the blood of Jesus that we can be washed and purified of sin and become acceptable before God (v14b).\u00a0 It is only through the blood of Jesus that we have access to God\u2019s presence and can serve Him (v15).\u00a0 In the presence of God the Father and Jesus the Son of God, there is no more suffering and sadness, only springs of living water (v16-17).<\/strong><\/p>\n

Heavenly Father, thank You for the wind of Your Holy Spirit who breathes new life in me.\u00a0 Jesus, thank You so much for Your blood that cleanses me of all unrighteousness.\u00a0 Holy Spirit, come and fill me today that I would live for Your glory.\u00a0 In Jesus\u2019 name, AMEN!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Revelation 7:1-17.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Revelation 7:1 (NIV)\u00a0
\n1\u00a0\u00a0After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree.<\/p>\n

On verse 1:\u00a0 After the sixth seal is broken, John sees four angels holding back \u201cthe four winds of the earth\u201d (v1), effectively stopping any wind from blowing on the earth.\u00a0 According to some scientists, if there was no more wind on the earth, much of the earth would become uninhabitable, temperatures on the earth would become either extremely hot or extremely cold, mass migration would lead to coastal regions being heavily populated, marine life would die, widespread famine would occur and many people would not be able to survive.<\/p>\n

Similarly,\u00a0we need the wind of the Holy Spirit in our lives.\u00a0 Without the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus likens to a wind (see John 3:8), our spiritual lives would dry out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9691,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9690","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gametime-sharing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9690","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9690"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9690\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9693,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9690\/revisions\/9693"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9691"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9690"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9690"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9690"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}