Revelation 7:1-17

The tribulation will not only be a time of great suffering, it will also be a time of great salvation.  Persecution is typically used of God to bring many people to Himself and this time of tribulation on the earth will be no exception.  This provides us with a perfect picture of God’s wrath on sin and God’s grace for sinners all at work at the same time.  This chapter seems to describe the activity of God’s saving grace during the entire tribulation and not just an event between the sixth and seventh seal.
GOD SEALS HIS SERVANTS: There are 144,000 servants of God that are sealed by God as His servants to carry the message of Christ to the nations of the world.  These are all Jewish missionaries who will truly recognize that Jesus was Messiah as a result of the New Testament prophecies being fulfilled.  The rapture of the church along with the beginning events of the tribulation will start a spiritual revival in the nation of Israel the likes of which has never before been seen.  God will once again use His chosen people, Israel, to bless all the nations of the earth as they spread the Gospel throughout the entire world.  Today the Jewish people are scattered throughout all of the world.  They speak the languages of their nations and they know the culture yet they are easily identified as Jews.  Once these people have their eyes opened to the truth of the New Testament, they will begin to place their faith in Christ and God, in turn, will use them to preach the Gospel to the nations.
GOD SAVES HIS SOCIETIES: The tribes and nations of the world provide a linguistic and cultural heritage that demonstrates the glory of God in a very unique way.  God loves the nations and He has always been calling His people, whether they be the nation of Israel or the church to spread the fame of Christ to the nations of the world so that He might be praised by every nation and in every language.  This goal is finally accomplished by the 144,000 servants of God who are sealed for this service during the tribulation period.  The Gospel will be spread to every tribe in all of the societies of the world.  Every tribe, tongue and nation will be represented in heaven and the glory of God’s grace will be made evident during the great spiritual revival that will take place during the very darkest days of the history of the world.
GOD SERVES HIS SAINTS: These believers are in heaven dressed in white robes and being comforted by Christ.  Christ has clothed them with His righteousness, given them eternal life and He wipes all tears from their eyes.  These tribulation saints have accomplished much for the cause of Christ but they have also suffered very much in the name of Christ.  Christ loves them deeply and leads them to streams of abundant water and gives them eternal rest in the comfort of heaven and the pleasure of His presence.  There is no doubt in my mind that these saints do not regret one little bit any sacrifice they made on earth for they are all forgotten in the glories of heaven and God’s grace.  The same is true of us today.  God may call on us to suffer in order that the fame of Christ might be spread throughout the nations of the world.  We must endure this suffering with joy and remain faithful to the calling of Christ not matter what the cost; for any suffering that we may face now will be richly rewarded in heaven and will fade in light of heaven’s glories.  We must learn to live now in light of that day.   

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