I need to begin today’s devotional with a confession: I am hesitant to write on passages from Revelation. This book is so dense with meaning, so obscure with its analogies, and so over-analyzed that it makes me hold my breath to try to write about it. I had a recent conversation with my editor at Cokesbury when she called to offer me a new contract to write an adult bible study. My first question wasn’t about deadlines or pay … it was, “Is it on Revelation?” She said no, so I told her to have legal send me the contract. I respect this book too much to risk botching it!

That being said, we’ll take a dip into Chapter 7 today as it has a fabulous message with a life-giving ending.

Revelation 7:9-17 (Common English Bible)

⁹ After this I looked, and there was a great crowd that no one could number. They were from every nation, tribe, people, and language. They were standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They wore white robes and held palm branches in their hands. ¹⁰ They cried out with a loud voice:

“Victory belongs to our God
        who sits on the throne,
            and to the Lamb.”

As John envisioned heaven, he continually focused his attention on the throne. He is purposeful and intentional as he directs our sight there. It gives the reader a set of binoculars for seeing the truth … Jesus will reign at the end of days, and every knee will bow before him. Notice that verse 9 talks about the great crowd standing before the Lamb. What do you see? People from every nation, tribe, people, and language. Does your church look like that? Does your community reflect the diversity of heaven? How about your work place and neighborhood? I like to joke that you may be surprised to see who is standing next to you when we gather before the throne. On the other hand, they may be surprised to see you, too!

If heaven is filled with diversity, why do we live in such separation? This is a great reminder that the throne of God is the great equalizer. God loves all his children equally. Shame on us that earth is filled with systems of oppression and discrimination that marginalize the ones he loves.

¹¹ All the angels stood in a circle around the throne, and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell facedown before the throne and worshipped God, ¹² saying,

“Amen! Blessing and glory
        and wisdom and thanksgiving
        and honor and power and might
            be to our God forever and always. Amen.”

¹³ Then one of the elders said to me, “Who are these people wearing white robes, and where did they come from?”

¹⁴ I said to him, “Sir, you know.”

Then he said to me, “These people have come out of great hardship. They have washed their robes and made them white in the Lamb’s blood. ¹⁵ This is the reason they are before God’s throne. They worship him day and night in his temple, and the one seated on the throne will shelter them. ¹⁶ They won’t hunger or thirst anymore. No sun or scorching heat will beat down on them, ¹⁷ because the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them. He will lead them to the springs of life-giving water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

It is a cold comfort to know that the hardships endured on earth will result in a place in heaven, but comfort it is. When we are persecuted for Jesus’ sake, when we are discriminated against, lied about, demeaned, rejected, and set aside, we need to remember that our displacement here is but a guarantee of a placement of honor there. If you have ever been ridiculed or put down for speaking God’s truth, get ready. You will wear the white robe of worship.

Read that last sentence again: He will lead them to the springs of life-giving water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. You see, just like in baseball, there is no crying in heaven. No pain, no mourning, no grief, no back-stabbing, no hunger, no loneliness. The Lamb will shepherd us and we will find joy in the flock. Thanks be to God!

And thanks be to Revelation for teaching us to hold on for now.

Almost Heaven by Michelle Robertson