Jesus in the Book of Revelation (7)
Pray Psalm 47.1-4.
Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples!
Shout to God with the voice of triumph!
For the LORD Most High is awesome;
He is a great King over all the earth.
He will subdue the peoples under us,
And the nations under our feet.
He will choose our inheritance for us,
The excellence of Jacob whom He loves.
Selah
Sing Psalm 47.1-4.
(Truro: Shout, for the Blessed Jesus Reigns)
O clap your hands, you peoples all, with joy to God your songs intone!
Shout out to Him, and on Him call, He is the mighty, sovereign One!
High is the LORD, O, fear His Name! He rules, a King o’er all the earth.
Nations and peoples He has tamed, the heritage of His holy worth.
Read Rev. 5.6-14; 21.22-22.5; meditate on Rev. 22.1-5.
Preparation
1. What will come forth from the Lamb of God?
2. What is promised to those who serve Him?
Meditation
We come to the end of our study of Jesus throughout the Scriptures. The end of our study, but not of our devotion to Jesus. Hopefully, we are finding that to be increasing daily.
Yet Jesus is the end of our devotion in that, in the new heavens and new earth, we will at last know in Him what we long for even now, the fullness and culmination of all our hopes, desires, longings, love, worship, loyalty, and life.
The book of Revelation piles on glorious images to help us envision the life to come with Jesus. He will supply us full and abundant life as the aim of all His rule, refreshing us with the river of the water of life, which is His Spirit. We will be constantly bathed in Him so that all our desires will be pure, and all our pure desires will be satisfied (Ps. 37.4).
The tree of life will offer its low-hanging fruit day by day, that we may enjoy and find never-waning strength from its bounty. All nations and peoples will share in this heavenly food, so that there will no longer be any contention, strife, or hostility between them, but they shall be one whole and happy people.
And we will see Jesus face to face (1 Jn. 3.1-3). We will be His servants and will worship (Greek: λατρεύσουσιν, latreusousin) Him continually, and never grow weary. We will be His, as if His Name were branded onto our foreheads for all to see. When we see and talk with one another we will see Jesus in each other and rejoice together. He will be our Life and our Light, and we will dwell with, serve, and worship Him in the beauty of never-ending day. And we will reign with Him as life-giving, love-giving, light-giving emissaries of His grace and truth forever. As it was intended from the beginning, then it shall be forever and ever, world without end. Amen.
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
“The sun shall no longer be your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you;
but the LORD will be to you an everlasting light, and your God your glory.
Your sun shall no longer go down, nor shall your moon withdraw itself;
for the LORD will be your everlasting light,
and the days of your mourning shall be ended.
Also your people shall all be righteous;
they shall inherit the land forever,
the branch of My planting,
the work of My hands,
that I may be glorified” (Is. 60.19-21).
“The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it,
for the glory of God illuminated it.
The Lamb is its light” (Rev. 21.23).
Jesus throughout the Scriptures has taken us from beginning to end of the written word—Genesis to Revelation. From the Tree of Life once offered freely, that became unavailable because of sin (Gen. 2.9), to the Tree of Life now offered once again (Rev. 22.1-3) because the Worthy Lamb was slain for our sins, iniquities, and transgressions. The curse of unrighteousness has been undone by our glorious Savior. “There shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him” (Rev. 22.3).
We will let the old prophet Simeon—who was promised a glimpse of the Savior before his death—
sum up our love, hopes, dreams, and aspirations—our own joy in JESUS CHRIST, the beloved:
“Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your Word;
for my eyes have seen Your salvation which You have prepared before the face of all peoples,
a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel” (Lk. 2.29-32).
There He is! JESUS.
Love divine, all loves excelling, Joy of heav’n, to earth come down;
Fix in us Thy humble dwelling, All Thy faithful mercies crown.
Jesus, Thou art all compassion, Pure, unbounded love Thou art;
Visit us with Thy salvation; Enter every trembling heart.
Breathe, O breathe Thy loving Spirit Into every troubled breast!
Let us all in Thee inherit, Let us find the promised rest.
Take away the love of sinning, Alpha and Omega be;
End of faith, as its beginning, Set our hearts at liberty.
Come, Almighty to deliver, Let us all Thy life receive;
Suddenly return, and never, Nevermore Thy temples leave:
Thee we would be always blessing, Serve Thee as Thy hosts above,
Pray, and praise Thee without ceasing, Glory in Thy perfect love.
Finish then Thy new creation, Pure and spotless let us be;
Let us see Thy great salvation Perfectly restored in Thee:
Changed from glory into glory, Till in heav’n we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before Thee, Lost in wonder, love, and praise.
(Charles Wesley, 1747)
Eternally devoted to You—with all our love.
Reflection
1. How would you describe your devotion to Jesus at this time?
2. How would you counsel a new believer to begin developing a life of devotion to Jesus?
3. Whom will you encourage today in their devotion to Jesus?
All streams of earthly comfort are muddy; but these are clear, and refreshing. They give life, and preserve life, to those who drink of them, and thus they will flow for evermore. These point to the quickening and sanctifying influences of the Holy Spirit, as given to sinners through Christ. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Revelation 22.1-5
Pray Psalm 47.5-9.
Rejoice in Jesus by giving thanks for the gift of salvation, for His eternal throne, for your calling to serve Him, and for His daily refreshing and provision. Offer yourself as His servant for the day ahead.
Sing Psalm 47.5-9.
(Truro: Shout, for the Blessed Jesus Reigns)
God has ascended with a shout, the LORD with sound of trumpet bold!
Sing praise to Him, let praise ring out; let praise throughout the world be told!
God is the King of all the earth; sing praise to Him with glorious psalms!
He rules the nations by His worth, and on His throne receives their alms.
Princes of peoples gather all to Abraham and to our God.
Exalt the LORD, and on Him call. The earth is His, so praise our God!
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest this week: Our ReVision series on “The Kingdom Economy” turns to consider the work we’ve been given to do. In our Read Moore column, we continue working through the book, Understanding the Times. And I encourage you to follow our Corsfigell series on Brendan of Clonfert, nicknamed “The Navigator.” Join us and find out why. Click the Articles tab on the home page to see all the selections available to you.
And please prayerfully consider supporting The Fellowship of Ailbe with your prayers and gifts. You can contribute online, via PayPal or Anedot, or by sending a gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.
Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
