Faith Baptist Church
4258 Botetourt Road
Fincastle, Virginia 24090
(540) 473-2325
All of the things we have studied thus far are things of faith. We believe that one day our faith will turn into sight. And our belief is based on the promises of God’s word, the Bible.
“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, (that is those things hoped for are real, that they have substance) it is the evidence of things not seen.” Heb.11:1. It is through the medium of faith that we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, and it is through the medium of faith that we believe in the things we have discovered in the book of Revelation as well as the rest of the Bible. Brethren we walk by faith, not by sight. We are destined for another place as are the Old Testament saints. God will get the believer in Christ there by his power alone. Until then we are called to gird up our minds with the truth, take on the whole armor of God and withstand all the wiles and distractions to spiritual maturity in this day of apostasy. Now let us resume with our study at this time.
Rev.22:4 And they shall see (future active) his face; and his name will be in their foreheads. He will have his mark upon us. As a believer, after death, you will see God, face to face in the heavenly city, the New Jerusalem, and throughout the eternal state.
In that day we will not fight for our independence as we do today. We want our time and our space now, but God will have our undivided attention in the next life. Getting to worship will not be a chore because there will not be a lazy bone in any of us. Our old sin nature will be absent forever after death. With all selfishness forever gone and all sickness gone think about how much our hearts will open up to God and others.
Human viewpoint says that we are only happy when we have our way, but the divine viewpoint is that we can only be happy when we share in the happiness of God; that is, we are really only happy when we loose ourselves in God. King David said in Ps.42:1
“As the dear pants after the water brooks, so pants my soul after thee O God.” Do you think it is possible for a saved sinner to be as passionate after God as explained in David’s words? I think it is, and I think we are only happy when we have this affectionate attitude toward God.
God is eternally happy, eternally creative, eternally comforting, eternally exciting, and more.
To be with God eternally guarantees we can never be disappointed. We will never say, yesterday was wonderful, but I am not sure about tomorrow. At death we enter into the eternal day, and though God’s program will take some time to come to complete on earth, our heaven will have already begun.
Resting from our labors and worries and sufferings, both of body and soul will finally come and worshipping God without the obstruction of human ignorance will be grand.
John also saw God’s name in their foreheads. The Greek text translates in as on or upon, (epi, the Greek preposition used here in the genitive case means, upon or on, his servant’s forehead.
In the Old Testament the high priest Aaron was instructed to wear an insignia; a mark on his head covering. This inscription read, “Holiness to Jehovah”. It was inscribed on a golden plate and worn for all to see. This inscription imprinted on the golden plate was fastened upon Aaron’s head-dress of brilliant white, the earthly reflection of holiness.
He was crowned as the sanctified of the Lord, Ex.28:36-38. He wore this to signify that he represented the holiness of God when he went up to offer sacrifices for the sins of the people.
We will not wear this inscription for the reasons Aaron wore it, but those who serve him will wear it to show the Lord’s holiness.
v.5
There will be no night there subsequently there is no need for the light of the sun, or lamps for the Lord God will give out all the light that is needed, and we shall reign into the aionas of the aionon, the ages into the ages, forever and ever.
We have spoken extensively concerning those who will reign, so I will not add to those thoughts anymore at this time. I will just say that faithfulness in time will not be forgotten ineternity as promised in God’s word. Heb.6:10 “For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labor of love, which ye have shown toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.” I Cor.15:58 “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” Please hear me on this; never underestimate your faithfulness to the Lord and his work. Faithfulness to the Lord, in even the smallest things, is never self-serving though some give up because the rewards are often tabulated only in heaven. Some believers define what is rewarding to them and they want their reward now. But it’s not really a reward unless the Lord presents it to us. Faithfulness is a rare commodity today, but those who are faithful to the Lord in time will reign with him forever, and as you must consider the act of reigning means some will reign over others in the eternal state, but in what capacity we do not know.
I know this is ignored too often in the church when and if it is taught, but great loss of reward for all eternity is not necessary. Rewards are there for us to gain or lose, and faithfulness will go a lot further toward receiving those divine rewards than spiritual gifts and talents and popularity.
In an age of apostasy as we have today in the church, there may not be a lot you and I can do, but doing is never as important as being. You can always be something for the Lord whether you are doing something or not. Some believers feel that if they aren’t doing something for the Lord in some sort of manifested activity that they are not spiritual, or that they are not fulfilled. Let me remind you that spirituality is never what you do for God, but what you allow God to do for and through you.
v.6 Now John is getting his final instructions in this book. The angel says all the things he has told and shown John has been faithful and true. Perhaps even John, as we today, find the things to come in this book to be overwhelming, nevertheless they are true. The timing of these events as noted in this book, in particular chapters 4-22 are yet to come. The Lord God still calls on his pastors, whom he places over his flocks of sheep to teach his word and urge faithfulness and godliness until the Lord comes. He calls on us to be built up in the faith through spiritual metamorphosis where resident biblical truth changes our character to be more like the Savior.
v.7 Then John is alerted to the imminence of our Lord’s return. The message now comes from Jesus Christ. He says, ( kai Idou, erchomai tachu ), and I am coming quickly. God’s time table for his creation, his offer of salvation, and his judgments has already been set. A day has been appointed in which all things will submit to the plan of God.