“After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out,
‘Hallelujah!
Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
for his judgments are true and just;
for he has judged the great prostitute
who corrupted the earth with her immorality,
and has avenged on her the blood of his servants.’
“Once more they cried out,
‘Hallelujah!
The smoke from her goes up forever and ever.’
“And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated on the throne, saying, ‘Amen. Hallelujah!’ And from the throne came a voice saying,
‘Praise our God,
all you his servants,
you who fear him,
small and great.’
“Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,
‘Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his Bride has made herself ready;
it was granted her to clothe herself
with fine linen, bright and pure’—
for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.”
My wife and I came to faith among saints that were considerably more voluble, more vocal, more vigorously expressive than are normally encountered among Canadian congregations. I do sometimes miss the enthusiasm, the evident zeal, the fervency, the obvious joy that was expressed through joyous shouts of God’s people that I recall from those earlier days. I assure you that this preacher is encouraged when he knows that he has spoken to the heart of those seated before him. Among the churches we frequented in that long past day, members of the assembly were prone to affirm their approval of what was preached with frequent shouts that revealed agreement with the message that was delivered. The loud exclamations of the worshippers gave evidence of an assembly that was united and one that openly agreed with what was being taught. Such expressions served to encourage the preacher. Hallelujah!
In each church there likely was an “Amen Corner” composed of a saint or several saints who were especially vocal in registering their agreement of what was said from the pulpit. Nevertheless, exclamations were heard at various times throughout the assembly at any given service. Among the shouts that would be heard was a shout of praise that predates even the Faith of Christ the Lord. The praise heard within those churches in which we came to faith are exclamations of praise that shall be heard before the emerald throne. And those exclamations of praise will be heard throughout eternity as men and angels express their agreement with all that the Lord our God has done. You who worship the Risen Saviour today, get ready to loudly praise Him. Hallelujah!
The vocal affirmations I heard in that earlier day was not mere exclamations shouted in such a way that the worshippers could hear their own voices; those shouting were active participants in the proclamation delivered from the pulpit. The preacher was not a performer presenting entertainment for the benefit of the audience; he was a part of the congregation, serving to give expression to the Faith they had received. And as he spoke the Word of God, those who listened weighed what he was saying and revealed their agreement with their voices. Hallelujah!
Without question, I do delight to hear the people of God as they praise the Lord. And undoubtedly, the people of God will join in praising God by shouting “Hallelujah!” If this is not done now among the faithful, we may be assured that there is coming a day when all the redeemed will unite in shouting “Hallelujah!” Hallelujah, indeed!
I am careful to caution that I am not speaking of interruptions of the service for the sake of interruptions; interrupting the delivery of the Word simply to appear pious does not honour the Lord. Neither am I speaking of noisy chaos during the services of the assembly. There is quite enough theatrics in some assemblies to suffice for years to come. Nevertheless, it should be noted that the assembled saints in Glory are witnessed praising the Saviour with loud shouts. And if the redeemed when they are gathered before the throne of God are shouting for joy and expressing their agreement with what is said from that throne, then we should be practising for that eventuality now. Hallelujah!
“AFTER THIS…” — What did John witness? He has just described the divine judgement poured out on Babylon, the religiopolitical entity that is prophesied as coming in the last days. Suddenly, without warning, the Apostle of Love heard a loud shout, and he lifted his eyes to see what would precipitate such a commotion in Heaven. John is turning from retribution to rejoicing, from affliction to adoration, from damnation to devotion. And he is bringing with him all who are reading and who believe what he writes. Hallelujah!
John witnessed a horrifying event, though I suspect that what John witnessed doesn’t appear all that horrific to many of his readers, even in this day late in the age of grace. That what John saw doesn’t appear terrifying to most is all the more horrific for us as Christians. The Revelator witnessed and described a vast worldwide religious movement that will absorb all religions, a great universal religious movement which will be revealed in the last days. If that religious monstrosity has not begun its inevitable rise at this time, it must shortly grow out of currents that are presently evident throughout the world. Everyone on earth will be touched by this universal monstrosity once it has been unleashed on the earth. People will either succumb to the demand that they give obeisance to a powerful ruler who will arise, or they shall pay a dreadful price.
According to the Word delivered by the Master, a powerful ruler will accomplish what appears to be impossible at this particular moment in history—he will bring peace to the Middle East, until he takes away that peace. At this point, it seems as if peace between Israel and the Arab nations, to say nothing of peace between Israel and almost every other nation in the world, can be described as one step forward and two steps back. Duplicity on the part of almost all the European nations and Israel and assuredly between Israel and the various Muslim nations, seems to be the standard. Honest brokerage of diplomatic relations between Israel and most of the nations of this world appears to be a rare exception rather than the norm.
However, in that day of which John writes, peace will apparently be secured. According to the Word of God, a state of peace will be announced between Israel and her neighbours. Even leaders of the European nations that make snide remarks against Israel at this time will acclaim the peace that this world leader brings. Things will not be as they seem on the surface. Swiftly, after accomplishing what seems impossible now, this world leader will set himself up as deserving of worship. He will demand to be worshipped by all the world, and he will receive that worship. Those who refuse to worship the great world leader—whether worshipping out of conviction or whether worshipping out of convenience—will experience unprecedented suffering. The choice for people in that day will be stark—people will either worship, or they will suffer.
The suffering which dissenters will experience is unprecedented; never before has such power been exerted to induce such widespread suffering. Those who submit to the power of this world dictator will be spared the pain he brings during the days of his reign. Therefore, it will appear that they were blessed by him because they are spared his wrath. The power possessed by this world leader has never been witnessed on earth to this time.
Elsewhere, the Revelator has written of the terrifying vision that he witnessed. “[The false prophet] exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name” [REVELATION 13:12-17].
At one time or another, you who hear me at this hour will almost assuredly have heard the old saw the states, “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Never has this world witnessed absolute power, though we have witnessed despots that have approached absolute power. Nevertheless, when the antichrist rises to power, absolute power of a universal nature will be witnessed for the first time in our world. And conditions will be awful for those who are compelled to live during those days, especially if they are disposed to think independently or if they fail to give honour to the ruler who will reign over almost all the earth at that time.
Dear people, we undoubtedly do live in dark days. No one can accurately predict what will take place in our world in the near future. Power seems to be concentrated in the hands of people who are not worthy to exercise that power, and the people do appear to want it to be so. In this day, morality appears to have been redefined so that what is good and noble is despised and that which is evil and perverted is esteemed. National leaders seem to have a rather distant relationship to truth—people can’t believe what these leaders tell them, and the news media have almost ceased telling us what has taken place in order to indoctrinate us into the preferred position of favoured political entities. As wicked as these present days seem, there is coming a time so horrendous that we could not believe the evil that will be unleashed on this world.
Jesus spoke of the days that will soon come upon the earth as He taught disciples, “Watch out that no one misleads you. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will mislead many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars. Make sure that you are not alarmed, for this must happen, but the end is still to come. For nation will rise up in arms against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these things are the beginning of birth pains.
“Then they will hand you over to be persecuted and will kill you. You will be hated by all the nations because of my name. Then many will be led into sin, and they will betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will appear and deceive many, and because lawlessness will increase so much, the love of many will grow cold. But the person who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole inhabited earth as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.
“So when you see the abomination of desolation—spoken about by Daniel the prophet—standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains. The one on the roof must not come down to take anything out of his house, and the one in the field must not turn back to get his cloak. Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing their babies in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. For then there will be great suffering unlike anything that has happened from the beginning of the world until now, or ever will happen. And if those days had not been cut short, no one would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short” [MATTHEW 24:4-22 NET BIBLE].
I do not grieve for myself. I live in the hope of the resurrection and in confidence that God cannot lie. And the Lord has promised that He will return to take me away before that awful day of wrath against the wickedness of this fallen world. I do, however, grieve for lost family members and friends who are unsaved. They shall face the untrammelled wrath of the Living God. I fear for the lost.
Nevertheless, the redeemed of God gathered to the Risen Saviour will be delivered from these terrible judgements. Before the Emerald circled Throne, the saints of God will worship and with the angels of Heaven, we who are saved shall praise Him, shouting “Hallelujah.” The voices of the redeemed will unite, shouting before the Lord GOD, “Hallelujah,” “Praise the LORD.” We will praise Him for all He has done for us. We will praise Him because He has delivered us. We will praise Him for the mercy He has showered upon us. But above all else, we will praise Him because He is worthy.
WHY SHOULD THE HOST OF HEAVEN WORSHIP? The passage before us informs us of the reasons God is joyfully worshipped. We witness all who are gathered in Heaven worship because God is just. We witness the all the host of Heaven—angels and redeemed people—worship because God’s judgement will have at last come. And we see all those gathered in Heaven worship because God reigns. Moreover, the worship that takes place in Heaven is joyous! The evidence of the joy is witnessed in the shout of “Hallelujah.” Let’s consider those acts in the order they are encountered as we continue in this segment of the message.
THOSE IN HEAVEN EXULT, SHOUTING “HALLELUJAH” BECAUSE GOD IS JUST!
“Hallelujah!
Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
for his judgments are true and just;
for he has judged the great prostitute
who corrupted the earth with her immorality,
and has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”
[REVELATION 19:1b-2]
Though it sometimes appears that in this day the wicked escape justice, know that there is a just God, and He shall not always delay justice. The corrupt who imagine that serving in the political world is a means for personal enrichment must one day give an account of their corrupt dealings. Though earthly courts appear to be incapable of restraining wickedness, those who have corrupted their souls for personal enrichment must one day stand before the bar of Heaven, and each shall give an account of the wickedness they have done.
God Who is just will hold to account those who have injured and even murdered the helpless. God Who is just will execute justice against those who have robbed the poor and laid waste the wealth of the nation. God Who is just will demand that the evil who have lied to promote themselves will at last be compelled to confess that He is just. What else is meant when James writes, “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you” [JAMES 5:1-6].
Our fallen hearts deceive us, and we imagine that God does not see what we do in secret. We imagine that we can feed our minds on evil thoughts and they will not be known. We need to remember that the Wise Man has cautioned all mankind as he wrote the words of that dark book we know as Ecclesiastes. Solomon counselled each of us, “Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgement, with every secret thing, whether good or evil” [ECCLESIASTES 12:13b-14]. These words echo others penned by the Psalmist, who has written, “[God] knows the secrets of the heart” [PSALM 44:21b].
Does not the revelation of the Apostle restrain us, for he has warned us, “All who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus” [ROMANS 2:12-16].
Even now, as we unite in assembly to worship and the Spirit of Christ is present, the secrets of the hearts of those coming in among us are exposed. Is that not what we are told as Paul writes to the Corinthian congregation? Recall that he instructed them, “But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you” [1 CORINTHIANS 14:24-25].
Though the wicked cower and cringe when they allow themselves to think that God is just, the saved, those who know their God, find comfort in the knowledge that God knows the heart. The righteous do not seek freedom to do as their fallen hearts may dictate; rather, they rejoice in the knowledge that God is just and that He cannot error. The Lord will not punish His own for that which they have not done, but He will hold them accountable when they harbour sin in their hearts. He disciplines us for our own good.
We are comforted as we consider His justice. As an unknown writer has taught us, “Have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons?
‘My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
nor be weary when reproved by him.
For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
and chastises every son whom he receives.’
It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” [HEBREWS 12:5-11].
THE HOST OF HEAVEN REJOICE AND WORSHIP BECAUSE GOD’S JUDGEMENT WILL HAVE BEEN EXERCISED AT LAST! As they worship, we see the redeemed of God and all the holy angels exulting in God’s justice,
“‘Hallelujah!
The smoke from her goes up forever and ever.’
And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated on the throne, saying, ‘Amen. Hallelujah’” [REVELATION 19:3b-4]!
The saints suffering because they believe Jesus is the Christ know that there will be justice at last. Now, the wicked seek to destroy the righteous. These evil people think that if they can only silence the godly they will be free to continue living in defiance of the Lord GOD. However, God’s justice does not wait forever. We are promised,
“The LORD loves justice;
he will not forsake his saints.
They are preserved forever,
but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.”
[PSALM 37:28]
I understand that the promise was originally given to Israel, but the promise surely accrues to the people of God in this day when the LORD says,
“I am bringing my deliverance near, it is not far away;
I am bringing my salvation near, it does not wait.”
[ISAIAH 46:13a NET BIBLE]
That this is the case becomes clear when we hear the Master speak, saying to His people, “Will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily” [LUKE 18:7-8a].
To our brothers and sisters who are slaughtered in this day in Afghanistan, your God loves you and He knows you are suffering. Know that He will bring justice, holding those wicked men to account who now torment you. To our brothers and sisters who are tormented and abused throughout the Muslim world at this time, your God hears your cries and He knows the evil that is done against you. Take comfort in the knowledge that at His return, our Saviour will hold every evil perpetuated against you against those who imagined they could act with impunity against the Lord’s holy people. To our brothers and sisters who are crushed by wicked Communist leaders in China, know that our God sees your pain, and He shall deliver you in His time. God will hold those wicked leaders and all their henchmen to account when their wicked acts at last are exposed before Him. Throughout India, brothers and sisters in this holy Faith are oppressed by those who hate the Lord and hate His holy people. To our brothers and sisters in that great nation, know that the Lord is just. And He shall deliver you even as He calls to account those wicked men and women who now seek your harm. We are comforted as the Master says, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven” [MATTHEW 5:10]. God will execute perfect justice. Hallelujah!
Paul wrote a letter to a church that was being tormented by persecutors. As he opened that letter, he sought to encourage the assembly met in Thessalonica. His words of encouragement to them encourage us as when suffer even to this day. And make no mistake, God’s people do suffer even to this day and throughout the entire world. The passage to which I would have you turn your attention is found in 2 THESSALONIANS 1:3-10. Listen to the words of comfort our Lord has given to our brother. The Apostle wrote, “We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring.
“This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are also suffering—since indeed God considers it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed.”
The wicked of this world, those who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ, imagine that they are powerful today. They think they can abuse the saints of the Most High God. However, a day is pending when the Lord GOD will call all mankind to account. Indeed, “No creature is hidden from His sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of Him to Whom we must give account” [HEBREWS 4:13].
The wicked of this world have reason to be concerned. In the quietness of their hearts they know, “The time that is past suffices for doing what the Gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry. With respect to this they are surprised when you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery, and they malign you; but they will give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead” [1 PETER 4:3-5]. Hallelujah.
THE ANGELS OF HEAVEN AND THE RAPTURED SAINTS GLORIFY GOD BECAUSE HE REIGNS! In the text before us, we witness the expressions of praise that will be spoken before the throne of the Living God. We should rejoice now, because we shall unite with all the saints of our God before His throne to praise His Name.
“‘Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his Bride has made herself ready;
it was granted her to clothe herself
with fine linen, bright and pure’—
for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints” [REVELATION 19:6b-8].
Chaos appears to reign in our world—the inmates are seemingly in charge of the asylum, but the Lord sits in the heavens. He sees the foolishness of mankind and He laughs. Did we never read the words of the Psalmist who has written,
“Why are the nations in an uproar,
and their people involved in a vain plot?
As the kings of the earth take their stand
and the rulers conspire together against the LORD
and his anointed one, they say,
‘Let us tear off their shackles from us,
and cast off their chains.’
“He who sits in the heavens laughs;
the Lord scoffs at them.
In his anger he rebukes them,
and in his wrath he terrifies them:
‘I have set my king on Zion,
my holy mountain.’”
[PSALM 2:1-6 ISV]
And because our God reigns, we rejoice. And in that day when we see Him seated on His throne and all the earth bow in terror before Him, we will praise Him, rejoicing in the knowledge that He is the Ruler, the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Hallelujah!
WHAT THE HOST OF HEAVEN TEACH US. “I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,
‘Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his Bride has made herself ready;
it was granted her to clothe herself
with fine linen, bright and pure’—
for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints” [REVELATION 19:6-8].
All heaven will ring with the mighty shouts of praise because God’s purpose in purifying the redeemed will at last be accomplished. Here is a truth that seems often to have been forgotten by God’s people. We were created for Him and to the praise of His glory. We who are the redeemed of God were created to know Him and to enjoy Him forever, just as the divines of another day have said. Spurgeon’s Catechism taught generations that “Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever.” [2]
Reading the text, we are permitted some understanding of what our heavenly situation will be. We have no information to describe the aspects of Heaven that relate to our five physical senses. Nothing is said of the smells associated with Heaven. Neither can we speak of the tastes we may experience in Heaven since God tells us nothing of this facet. Similarly, no hint is provided of what might stimulate our sense of touch. The sounds heard and which are described in the Word do reveal something of the excitement and the joy of Heaven, but it would be impossible to describe what will be heard. When the Word attempts to describe what we will see, it seems as if the divine revelation is incapable of going beyond the multihued colours and their brilliance.
Nevertheless, taking what we do see revealed, we are able to speak in a limited fashion of what will be discovered in Heaven. The text does point to the fact that in Heaven we will witness great and lasting confidence. The saints in glory shout praise because “our God the Almighty reigns.” Because our God reigns, we know that all threats will be forever eliminated. There will be nothing to disturb our peace, nothing to ever make us discomforted, nothing to leave us uneasy. Today, we worry whether we might somehow violate some obscure governmental regulation or another. We can’t possibly know all the rules created by bureaucrats intent on avoiding any threat to their position. No such fears will ever disquiet the people of God in Heaven. Hallelujah!
Heaven will be a place of cheer. We see this when we witness the saints of God shouting, “Let us rejoice!” There is joy in the presence of the Lord. God’s people are not a people at the mercy of the moment, but their lives are marked by joy—that deep, settled sense of cheer that reveals the grace of God, also witnessed as the Psalmist testifies,
“Let all who take refuge in You rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread Your protection over them,
that those who love Your name may exult in You.
For You bless the righteous, O LORD;
You cover him with favor as with a shield.”
[PSALM 5:11-12]
And again,
“You make known to me the path of life;
in Your presence there is fullness of joy;
at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
[PSALM 16:11]
Heaven will be a place of comfort. The people of God cry out, “Let us exult and give Him glory,” and we shall be comforted forever. Isaiah writes of the LORD,
“Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;
break forth, O mountains, into singing!
For the LORD has comforted his people
and will have compassion on his afflicted.”
[ISAIAH 49:13]
When the Lord instructs Isaiah to comfort His people, we may be assured that the comfort intended extends to us even in this day, and we are confident that we who are redeemed, we who are among the saints gathered to Christ shall be comforted forever. There is a gracious promise recorded in Isaiah’s prophecy. Listen to these words the LORD delivered to His servant.
“As one whom his mother comforts,
so I will comfort you;
you shall be comforted…”
[ISAIAH 66:13]
To be certain, it is wonderful to anticipate the comfort God intends for His people, but we are assured in our text that Heaven will also be characterised by contentment. At last, in the sacred precincts of Heaven, “the marriage of the Lamb” will have come. Fulfilment shall be accomplished. What we have longed for will at last be given. We were saved to know God and to enjoy Him forever. We were saved for His glory. Long centuries past Augustine testified, “Thou awakest us to delight in Thy praise; for Thou madest us for Thyself, and our heart is restless, until it repose in Thee.” [3] At last, that for which we were created will be accomplished, and we will be content.
Already, we who are saved have a foretaste of the contentment that is our heritage. The Saviour has promised, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him” [JOHN 14:18-21].
Again, recall the words Jesus spoke that point to this very issue. Jesus said, “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples” [JOHN 15:4-8].
I must hasten, for our study will yet reveal that Heaven will be a place of completion. We will at last be complete in Christ, we will have full understanding, we will be complete in knowledge, in faith, and in purity. We read,
“‘It was granted [the Bride of the Lamb] to clothe herself
with fine linen, bright and pure’—
for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints” [REVELATION 19:8].
The testimony of John complements the promise of God as given through the Apostle Paul. In the thirteenth chapter of his First Corinthian Letter, you will undoubtedly recall that Paul has written, “Love never fails. Now if there are prophecies, they will be done away with. If there are languages, they will cease. If there is knowledge, it will be done away with. For what we know is incomplete and what we prophesy is incomplete. But when what is complete comes, then what is incomplete will be done away with.
“When I was a child, I spoke like a child, thought like a child, and reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up my childish ways. Now we see only an indistinct image in a mirror, but then we will be face to face. Now what I know is incomplete, but then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known” [1 CORINTHIANS 13:8-12 ISV].
“When what is complete comes, then what is incomplete will be done away with.” This is the promise for the people of God—completeness. “Now, what I know is incomplete, but then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known.” I have so many questions concerning God and His work. It seems so mysterious and incomprehensible at times. How could He love me? Why should He save me and not another? And yet, I am confident that there is coming a day when I will know all things, for the full knowledge of the infinite God will be given to me, just as it will be given to all who look to Christ. Hallelujah!
The message is intended for the comfort of the people of God. All that is now taking place has no bearing on what we shall be when we are home at last with Christ in the presence of all the redeemed of God. It is to encourage us with the promise of the transformation as provided by Paul, who has written, “I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:
‘Death is swallowed up in victory.’
‘O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?’
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” [1 CORINTHIANS 15:50-57].
We are destined to be at home with the Lord. Never lose sight of the reality that we shall be changed into the image of Christ. We are being fitted for Heaven itself. May your work continue, O Lord. Hallelujah!
[1] Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
[2] C. H. Spurgeon, A Catechism, With Proofs (Logos Bible Software, Bellingham, WA 2009) 3
[3] Saint Augustine Bishop of Hippo, The Confessions of St. Augustine, E. B. Pusey (trans.) (Logos Research Systems, Inc., Oak Harbor, WA 1996)
