Here John is keeping a
picture of the eventual prize for those who endure to the very end. Among the
many passages of judgement, he has so often interwoven glimpses of eventual
outcome. Reading chapter 12 and 13, we are confronted by the dragon and his
beasts with a grim reminder of suffering and death that are within the upcoming
future. Yet within the message is the call to remain steadfast in the Christian
journey. In these verses, John shifted to the bright morning about to break in
the morning of eternity. The Lamb and His followers will stand on the heavenly
Mount Zion where the chorale of redemption will ring out like the sound of
mighty waterfalls and peals of thunder.
The 144,000 with the Lamb on Mount Zion bear the name of God. This is
opposed to the unbelieving world that bears the name or number of Satan’s beast.
Every person’s destiny is determined by the mark he or she bears. There will be
no ambiguity when judgment falls on the people. The mark will indicate who one
is serving. Joy and celebration before the throne of heaven await believers.
They will be singing the new song of the redeemed. In chapter 7, the 144,000
that were sealed against the woes now stand secure from the ordeal. We have
established that they represent the whole body of the redeemed company. The mention
of the number is to point out that not one has been lost. The mark of the name
of the Lamb and the name of his Father on their foreheads is an indication of their
allegiance.
Having experienced the
redemption, the 144,000 sang the song of the redeemed. It was not only melodic
but very loud like the roar of rushing waters. It is like the approaching glory
of God. On top of that melodic song are sounds of peals of thunder and the ensemble
of harpists. These 144,000, they are like virgins who have not defiled
themselves with women. They are followers of the Lamb. And they are the first fruits
purchased from among men. They are virgins in the sense that they kept
themselves pure and refused to engage in immoral sexual activity. These
redeemed prize chastity and purity highly. Furthermore, they are described as
virgins. In other words, they refused to be seduced by Rome into committing
fornication, i.e. worshipping or associating with idols. These are the
followers of the Lamb and would go wherever the Lamb goes. They emulate His
life while on earth. And the first fruit speaks of their sacrificial giving of
themselves to God and the Lamb. These three figures speak of fidelity,
discipleship and sacrificial giving of self to the Lord. They spoke truthfully and were blameless.
Are we people who demonstrate fidelity, discipleship and sacrificial
living? The embodiment of the whole redeemed company, figured by the 144,000, reminds
us of the kind of believers we ought to be. Let’s seek to make these the marks
of our life.
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