God’s grace, peace
and mercy be with you. … My sermon is based on Revelation 7. Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to
me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” Now that our feet are
within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit
enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we
pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.
Today being
Mother’s Day, I would like you to know that like all mothers, my mother thought
I was an angel. Then I turned two. That said, we turn to another theme in
Revelation – angels. We know that no one can see God and live. Even Moses could
not see God in all his holy righteousness and glory. When he asked God to let
him see his glory, God answered that he would permit Moses to see his mercy. Then
God said that Moses could not see his face, for no one can see God and live.[1]
God used various
natural forms to speak to humans, such as a burning bush, a cloud and pillars
of fire. God appeared in the form of an angel or heavenly figure in human form
to Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, Gideon and others. He gave the Torah to Moses
on Mt. Sinai through angels.
Angelology (the
study of angels) developed in Judaism because of the belief in the remoteness
and transcendence of God, part of which was due to his terrifying and
overpowering majesty, which no human could approach.[2] All of this should lead us
to ask why Jesus used angels to communicate the bulk of Revelation’s prophetic
message. Is it because no human being could stand before him?
In chapter one,
when the exalted Son of Man appeared to John to commission him to write
Revelation, John said, “When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though
dead.”[3]
We find the same in the Transfiguration accounts. The disciples fell on
their faces and trembled with terror. Paul’s experience was similar when he
encountered the Risen Lord on the way to Damascus.[4]
If we look to
Revelation for an answer, we find none. The exalted Christ began mediating the
first part of the message directly to John before turning it over to angels,
but there is no explicit answer as to why. Scripture does not reveal the mind
of Christ regarding this action. The best we can do is to speculate that the
exalted Christ first wanted to establish beyond any doubt that this revelation
came from God and himself. Once this was established, he could turn the work
over to the angels. Given the mysterious character of Revelation’s message, if
this were not established, the early church may not have accepted the Letter
into the canon. But since the risen Lord directly commanded John to receive and
write this revelation, there is no doubt or question as to its origin and godly
purpose. Christ established the origin and authority of Revelation by mediating
the first part of it, then he safely turned the messaging over to angels.[5]
The point that
Jesus made (in chapter one) regarding this was that John could not continue to
stand face to face before the holy, majestic presence of the risen Lord because
of his earthly decay as a human and Christ’s exaltation as holy God. So, he
allowed and empowered John to stand before him until John knew for certain that
the message was of God. Just as God in the Old Testament had angels by whom and
through whom he spoke to Moses and others, so now Christ in his state of
heavenly glory has angels through whom he speaks to John, and they continue the
message.[6] That brings us to today’s
passage.
Chapter seven is a
comforting interlude between the openings of the sixth and seventh seals during
which John sees the 144,000 sealed and the saints before God’s throne in
heaven. The four winds refer to the whole earth and should not be associated
with the four horsemen. The four winds, however, are a symbol of suffering and
destruction, but are restrained so that God’s people may be sealed.
This sealing is
the work of the Holy Spirit through Word and Sacraments by which the Christian is
kept in faith and protected in hope through all the tribulations, sufferings
and persecutions executed by the four horsemen. No matter how dire dangers
become for the Christian, God keeps us in faith and hope regardless of what is
thrown at us, including death. With that in mind, St. Paul encouraged the
Philippians and Timothy to press on, to fight the good fight for the victorious
crown awaited the Christian. The victorious Lamb is our Good Shepherd.[7]
The 144,000 have
been thought to be faithful Jews who believed in Jesus, the nation of Israel or
Jewish Christians. Most scholars believe that the number is symbolic and refers
to all Christians on earth throughout the time period covered in Revelation.[8] Similarly, St. Paul used
the phrases “true Israel of God and true sons of Abraham” in his
Letters to the Romans and Galatians.[9]
The number
suggests total completeness and gives the reader an image of God’s people
marching in perfect step, fully equipped and ready to do God’s work. John drew
from Israel as an organized military camp in the wilderness ready to conquer
the promised land.[10] And so the church stands
ready to carry out its marching orders.
The saints arrayed
in white robes symbolize the purity and righteousness of Christ given to them
through his blood. Waving palm branches to celebrate Christ’s triumph, and
praising God through song shows the redemption of God’s people in Christ. They
came out of the great tribulation just as John did. Recall in chapter one, he
wrote that he was their “brother and partner in the tribulation and the
kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus.”[11]
We should also
remember as we read this that Christians have always suffered tribulation. In
Acts, we read how Jews from Antioch and Iconium stoned Paul and left him for
dead outside of Lystra, and how he then encouraged disciples “to continue
in the faith, and … that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of
God.”[12]
He referenced this in his Second Letter to Timothy when he wrote, “all
who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”[13] Jesus himself said, “If
they persecuted me, they will also persecute you.”[14]
But as John tells
us later, God permits tribulation to occur to show the Church’s faithfulness to
Christ. Wherever and whenever Christians experience tribulation, God is present
to shepherd them and remind them that Christ is coming to take them home. Jesus
himself described such terrifying days in Matthew when he said, “Immediately
after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will
not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the
heavens will be shaken. Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man,
and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of
Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”[15]
The picture of
eternal glory of Revelation 7:14 is for the comfort of all Christians of all
times as they experience whatever tribulations sorely test their faith and
patience.[16]
Folks, Christians continually emerge from tribulation because we live in
eternal communion with God. The final image of comfort for any believer is that
God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. God will wipe away every tear
from your eyes.
Friends, in nearly
150 countries, God wipes many tears of those imprisoned, displaced or killed
for being Christian. Stephen Rache, an American lawyer who works extensively in
persecuted Christian communities in Iraq and Nigeria, recently told an audience
that the Nigerian government has abdicated its responsibility to keep its
citizens safe, resulting in widespread religiously motivated violence and a
general lawlessness.[17]
What is even worse
is the U.S. State Department this year, for undisclosed reasons, no longer
lists Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” on a watchlist of countries
with the most egregious violations of religious freedom. The U.S. Commission on
International Religious Freedom has been recommending the designation of
Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” since 2009. Christians are out of
options in terms of getting governments to recognize the truth of what’s
happening. 60,000 Christians have been killed in Nigeria alone in the past two
decades. An estimated 3,462 Christians were killed in the first 200 days of
2021, or 17 per day. Islamist extremism is at the heart of the violence.
Christians face
tribulation even in countries like Finland. Its top prosecutor announced she
will appeal a unanimous court decision rejecting her allegations of “hate
speech” against a Christian politician who quoted the Bible on Twitter. Finland’s
identity privilege laws would effectively outlaw Christianity in that country.[18]
That said, I don’t
think the situation of John’s churches is vastly different than those of churches
throughout the world today. We don’t live in Country of Particular Concern, but
how many days until our tribulations are similar to those of Christians in Nigeria,
Finland or elsewhere? How will we remain faithful? As I pondered that, I came
across an article entitled, “Fire Upon the Earth.”[19]
It begins like
this, “Contempt for religious faith has been growing in America’s leadership
classes for many decades.” Later in the article, we read, “God’s grace is the
beginning of glory in us. It’s what paves the way for each of us to experience
the glory of God in our lives. This is the grace we were given when we were
baptized. As we build on this grace day by day, we start to experience the
heavenly life that the saints now enjoy fully.”
The author
continues, “Happiness is tied to wisdom, and wisdom grows out of risk and
suffering, the beauty and hard edges of experiencing the real world. … Happiness
requires other people. The joy of a young mother is linked to the gift of life
she makes to a new and unrepeatable soul in the act of birth—to the pain and
effort she experiences in bearing her child. Happiness is either created and
shared with others here and now, or remembered as moments shared with others in
the past. This is why, even as he was beaten and starved in a Nazi death camp,
the Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl could know happiness and the interior
freedom it brings when he remembered the love of his wife.”
Friends, reading
Revelation should remind us that we who love Christ will experience
tribulation. We who love Christ will also experience God’s grace, God’s love
and God’s hope through Word and Sacrament. That alone should suffice for us to
remain faithful to our beliefs. If Viktor Frankl could know happiness and
freedom by remembering his wife, imagine how much more happiness and freedom we
will experience recalling Christ.
Today, I ask you
to take time to pray for all the saints experiencing tribulation throughout the
world. Take a moment to thank God for grace, hope and love, and remind yourself
that our Good Shepherd gently wipes away all the tears in the world. When you
do, may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and
minds in Christ Jesus the Risen Lord. Amen. Alleluia!
[1]
Exodus 33:20.
[2]
Louis A. Brighton, Revelation. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House (1999), p.
207.
[3]
Revelation 1:17.
[4] The
section in Luther’s Small Catechism (Questions 126-152) regarding Christ’s
state of humiliation and his state of exaltation may help us understand why
John, the three disciples and Paul reacted as they did.
[5]
Brighton, pp. 208f.
[6]
Brighton, p. 209.
[7]
Brighton, p. 187. Se Philippians 3:12-14; 2 Timothy 4:6-8.
[8]
Brighton, p. 189.
[9]
Romans 4:1-12; 9:6-8; 11:11-27; Galatians 3;26-29.
[10]
Brighton, p. 190. See Numbers 1:1-46; 31:1-6; 26:1-64.
[11]
Revelation 1:9.
[12]
Acts 14:22.
[13] 2
Timothy 3:12.
[14]
John 15:20.
[15]
Matthew 24:29-30.
[16]
Brighton, p. 199.
[17]
Jonah McKeown, “Expert Urges Attention to Persecuted Christians as Bishops
Decry Islamist Violence in Nigeria,” National Catholic Register, January 29,
2022, www.ncregister.com.
[18]
Joy Pullmann, “Finnish Prosecutor Will Keep Prosecuting Christian Politician
For Quoting The Bible,” The Federalist, May 2, 2022, www.the federalist.com.
[19]
Charles J. Chaput, “Fire Upon the Earth,” First Things, May 2022,
www.firstthings.com.
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