The Lamb and the 144,000 - Revelation 14:1-5 - Part 1

Welcome to God First with Brian C. Thomas, a program committed to encouraging you to put God first while viewing life through the window of the Bible. Now, in honor of the one and only true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, let's join Brian C. Thomas for today's message. It's time and scene of activity because the perspective that we have plays a huge role in how we interpret an event.

Perspective is very important. And as many of you know, just a few days ago, we heard the news of Daystar Television Network co-founder, president, and CEO Marcus Lamb, who passed away from complications related to COVID-19. And it was interesting when I saw the headlines come through. Here's the headline of the report from churchleaders.com, which is a Christian media outlet. It stated anti-vax Christian broadcaster Marcus Lamb dies of COVID-19.

And I thought to myself, that was very unflattering. To me, that was a mocking headline to refer to him as an anti-vaxxer. But you see, on the Daystar Network, they've ran numerous programs over the past year to give people information concerning COVID-19 vaccines so that people can make an informed decision. And so I expected there to be naysayers. I expected there to be mockers when the news broke of his passing. A matter of fact, he had already started even when the news came out of him being hospitalized with COVID-19. But to see it from, again, Christian outlets is troubling because with all that this man has done in fulfilling the Great Commission and starting this network that has carried the gospel throughout the world, I just felt they could have honored him.

But instead, we see the reference to him being an anti-vaxxer. And so it brought to mind Philippians chapter 1 verses 20 through 21, which tells us, So now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death, for to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. This text lets us know that Christ, for the believer, can be magnified through our life or through our death. And the apostle said to live means that he could continue to share the gospel with the world, but to die means he's going away to be with Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. And that's why he went on to say in verse 23, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. How many of us can honestly say that we look at death as far better?

Departing this life and being with Christ as far better than living in this sin darkened world. And that is why people can have a do not resuscitate requests when they're in the hospital because they know their mission is complete. And so they're ready to go be with Jesus Christ. That is why those in the early church could allow themselves to be fed to lions in theaters because they knew that in their death, Christ still would be magnified. And yet they would go to be with him. To live for eternity.

And as I was reading this report, I saw someone put in the comments section that my people perish for lack of knowledge. But we have to understand, folks, that Marcus Lamb is not perish. Marcus Lamb has eternal life.

He's in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ. But you see, carnal people are in love with life on this earth. But Marcus Lamb had convictions. He had concerns and he wanted to share with people the possible dangers of taking those shots. And see, you have to understand that he he had a pre-existing condition. He was diabetic.

And so there's no guarantee that the shot would have even saved his life. But you see, carnal people that are in love with this world. It reminds me of John Chapter 12, verse 25. He who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. And then First John 215 says, Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. And that is why a pastor friend of mine that I spoke with last week, he told me that covid-19 has really revealed how much people, even in the church, fear death. And I could not agree with him more because we see that people look at death as the worst thing that could be before the believer in Jesus Christ.

That is not so. And Marcus Lamb passed away at 4 a.m. And they had a program that was already scheduled to to air live just a few hours later at noon Eastern Time. And so they went on with the program and I was amazed at the strength. And when I say they, I mean, Marcus's wife, his his kids and their spouses, they all are are part of the host of the program.

And so they went on with the program. And the guest that was there for that day when he came on, he said, today, I am happy for Marcus, but I'm heartbroken for you all. And what he meant by that is he's happy for Marcus because Marcus has finished the race. Marcus is now in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ. Marcus is now fulfilled and reached the ultimate goal that should be for us all. And that is to be with our Lord and Savior for all of eternity.

But he was heartbroken for the family because he knows that they are grieving their mourning, not because of of Marcus being lost, but because simply there is a temporary separation in the relationship. But because we are believers in Jesus Christ, even for the family, they can find joy and happiness and have peace. That piece of the Bible says surpasses all understanding, even in light of the death of a loved one, because we know they've gone away to be with Jesus Christ. And so, folks, we as believers must have the right perspective. It doesn't mean that we just live our lives recklessly and we just aimlessly walk out into the street and say, well, I'm not afraid to die because I'm going away to be with the Lord. No, we are to live our lives to fulfill what Jesus has called us to do.

He said, occupy until he returns. And so we take care of our bodies and we we go to doctors and we do things to keep ourselves healthy. But when faced with something that you have a conviction about and you say, OK, my time is now up, then we should have the right perspective in knowing that we are going away to be with Jesus Christ. And so having the right perspective is what we need.

But again, folks, there are so many today that are so fearful of death. And as believers in Christ, that should not be the case. So as we come to Revelation Chapter 14, again, perspective is so important. And there are some that think the events of this chapter are taking place on Earth while others say the scene is in heaven. So this has a great impact on one's interpretation, one's perspective, because if this is a scene on Earth, the chapters in a flash forward to the end of the tribulation is like movies today.

They use flash forwards and flashbacks. Well, God was doing it long before they ever thought of it in Hollywood. Chapter 14 is what we call it a parenthetical chapter.

It is an explanation of things outside of the order of events. We saw the Antichrist and false prophet in Chapter 13. And here we see the lamb standing on Mount Zion. So turn your Bibles, if you will, to Revelation Chapter 14.

And today we're looking at verses one through five. Then I looked and behold, a lamb standing on Mount Zion and with him one hundred and forty four thousand having his father's name written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven like the voice of many waters and like the voice of loud thunder.

And I heard the sound of harpists playing their harps. They sang as they were a new song before the throne, before the four living creatures and the elders. And no one could learn that song except the hundred and forty four thousand who were redeemed from the earth. These are the ones who were not defiled with women for their virgins.

These are the ones who follow the lamb wherever he goes. These were redeemed from among me and being first fruits to God into the lamb. And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without fault before the throne of God. Heavenly Father, what an honor.

Lord, what a privilege it is that you have provided us with this word. And Lord, we come today to hear what it is that you have to say to us here in this 14th chapter of this great book, the Book of Revelation. It is my prayer that all things that are spoken, that it be nothing but sound doctrine. And may you be honored and glorified in all things in your name. Jesus, we pray. Amen.

We see a sharp contrast between Chapter 13 and Chapter 14. We go from seeing the depravity on earth to the glory of the lamb on Mount Zion. Our Lord Jesus Christ is the lamb. When we look in the Old Testament, we found that they had to provide sacrificial lambs that were needed to cover sin under the old covenant. But Jesus Christ came and he was and he is the ultimate fulfillment of the sacrificial lamb. That's why we refer to him as the lamb capital L. He was the perfect one.

He is the perfect one. He is God Almighty, God in the flesh, God the son. And so he came as the new covenant. And that is the way by which we now can have eternal life. And then as we look at the reference to Mount Zion, that is one of two places in scripture. It is either the earthly site in Jerusalem or it is the heavenly Jerusalem. Keep in mind that Jesus Christ will not be on earth during the tribulation. Therefore, we know again that this scene is either a flash forward to the end of the tribulation, when Jesus will come back to the earth or it is a scene in heaven. We find a description of the heavenly Mount Zion in Hebrews, Chapter 12, verses 22 through 24. But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the General Assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God, the judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus, the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel. So, again, the big question in this chapter is, is Jesus in heaven here or is he on the earth? Well, we are first introduced to a group of one hundred and forty four thousand in Revelation, Chapter seven. That purpose will be to minister during the tribulation and they have a special seal of God. And so the question is, are these the same?

This is a point of debate. Most assume that these are identical to the one hundred and forty four thousand of Revelation seven. But then some argue they are not the same as the one hundred and forty four thousand from Revelation, Chapter seven. But it's so important as again, I state that we need the right perspective because perspective helps us to understand what it is that God is trying to show us, what it is that he wants to convey with this picture of the one hundred and forty four thousand.

And they are rejoicing with our great Lord. You are listening to Brian C. Thomas on God First. For more of Brian's teachings, please visit God First dot org to browse our extensive library of material. There you will find devotionals, blogs, articles and audio messages available as MP3 downloads on various topics such as salvation, Bible prophecy, marriage and the significance of Lesson Israel.

Just to name a few. You can also sign up for our monthly newsletter and visit our Web store. So please visit us at God First dot org. Now, let's return to the conclusion of today's message. One thing I can say with one hundred percent certainty is that this one hundred and forty four thousand is not the Jehovah's Witnesses nor the Seventh Day Adventists. That claims to be the one hundred and forty four thousand is nothing but doctrines of demons.

So we can dismiss that right away. But in this book, Revelation Unveiled, Tim LaHaye argues that the one hundred and forty four thousand in Revelation 14 are a group of Gentile Christians who have been converted during the tribulation and who have served the Lord with distinction before experiencing martyrdom. Now, he admits that this interpretation puts him in the minority among commentators. The scene in Revelation 14, LaHaye says, portrays one hundred and forty four thousand men standing on Mount Zion with Jesus. He contends that since this scene takes place in the middle of the tribulation, meaning the way in which it is laid out in the Bible, in the book is midway through the book. And since Jesus would not be standing on Mount Zion in Jerusalem at that time, the reference to Mount Zion must be a symbolic reference to heaven. So he concludes that these are Gentiles who have died for their faith and who are now in heaven with Jesus.

Well, I admire and respect Dr. Tim LaHaye matter of fact, I had the privilege of meeting him several years ago, but as much as I admire him, I have to disagree with him on this one. I do not believe that these are Gentile Christians that we see here in this chapter. I do believe that these are the same one hundred and forty four thousand Jews that we see from Revelation Chapter seven. But in contrast to the view that Tim LaHaye holds, as I stated earlier, others believe this chapter is a flash forward to the end of the tribulation and not in the middle of the tribulation. We have to keep in mind that Revelation is not chronologically written. And I had someone ask the question, when am I going to teach it in chronological order? And to that I say, well, God is wiser than I am.

He is smarter than I am. He's all knowing he's the supreme being. And God laid it out this way in the Bible for a reason. Now, I don't know exactly what that reason is, but I go along with God. And so I am presenting it in the way in which it is laid out in the Bible. But it could be here to assure readers that after the introduction of the beast in Chapter 13 and how it details how how bad things are going to get when the Antichrist comes to power. It could be a reminder that Jesus Christ will still triumph in the end. Jesus Christ will still be victorious in the end because our Lord is going to return to reign in Jerusalem on Mount Zion. And he has preserved one hundred and forty four thousand through the tribulation and he is seen celebrating with them.

They will be like the Hebrew men who survived the fiery furnace in the Book of Daniel. And this one hundred and forty four thousand, we found that they were introduced at the beginning of the Great Tribulation, the last half in Revelation Chapter seven. But here are seen victorious at the end of the Great Tribulation. That is the contrasting view to this being a scene in the middle of the tribulation. But I think if this were a different one hundred and forty four thousand from those mentioned in Revelation seven, I think the text would tell us so. But what I find interesting is that when we look at scripture, Satan is the ultimate copycat because God placed his mark on the one hundred and forty four thousand in Chapter seven as protection and to display that they belong to him. And then what we find is Satan comes along in Chapter 13 with what his 666 mark for those who declare allegiance to him. And so we see that God places his mark on those that belong to him. But then we see Satan also again mimicking playing copycat to God. Now, as I look around at our churches today, we are caught up, many of us in denominations.

And I have the question of why is that? Because there are those who are of the the Baptist denomination and say they say that, well, the Baptists are the closest doctrinally speaking to the Bible. And then there are those that say, no, it's the Methodist. And then there are those that say, no, it's the Lutheran.

And so on and so forth. But, folks, these are not the names. These are not the marks that show that we belong to God. We should be only concerned about one name, and that is the name of the God of the Bible, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

We shouldn't get caught up in these things that really are not of the faith. And then as we look at verse two, John writes, And I heard a voice from heaven like the voice of many waters and like the voice of loud thunder. When we look at Revelation 115, we find his voice as the sound of many waters. And then Revelation four or five says, And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings and voices.

Now, I've never been to the Niagara Falls, but I have talked with people who have and they say the the sound of the rushing waters is is deafening and so loud that you can't hear the person next to you. And so that is the description here of our God's voice as the sound of of rushing waters. And then it says his his voice is like the sound of loud thunder. So it just shows his power, the power in the voice of God.

And the text doesn't tell us what it is that God says to this one hundred and forty four thousand. But I imagine maybe God is declaring well done, good and faithful servants. I don't know about you, but I look forward to that day when I will step into his presence and I will hear him say, well done, good and faithful servants.

Is that something that you are looking forward to? Is that something that you you can have an assurance that will take place because you are living in total fulfillment to what God has called you to do? Because he's given us all talents. No, maybe you can't seem like Andre Crouch and and maybe we can't preach like Billy Graham, but he's given us all gifts and talents. And he expects us to use those talents to to maximize those talents for his kingdom. And in doing so, we will hear those words, good and faithful servant.

So have you done that in your life? Can you say that you are totally maximizing the gifts, the talents, the abilities that God has given you so that you can hear those words when you step from this life into eternal life? But as we look at this scene again, I think that if this scene was in heaven, it does not seem that John would feel the need to say he heard a voice from heaven. And then we see the reference to harps. Harps have often been called the instrument of heaven, and it indicates that there are those who specialize in playing harps, just like we have in our churches today.

Those who specialize in playing the piano or or the guitar. And this is why so many falsely believe that we will float on clouds in heaven, play harps for eternity. But nowhere does the Bible say that that is the case. But what the Bible does say in Revelation five eight is that the elders have harps. And although the singing is on earth, perhaps the elders join in from heaven. And so as we come to verse three, we find before the throne, before the four living creatures and the elders. Now, this implies the scene is in heaven. Now, if it sounds like I'm sort of straddling defense as to whether this scene is in heaven or on earth. Well, I confess that I am because it is tough to decipher. I will admit that. But the key thing is that we get the understanding that Jesus Christ and the one hundred and forty four thousand are victorious and they are celebrating.

That is what really matters. But as we look at this text, some believe this points to a mid tribulation rapture, thinking the seventh trumpet of Revelation 11 is when all believers are caught up to heaven. And in light of that, Jesus is seen reaping believers from the earth later in this chapter in verses 14 through 16, which we will get to in the weeks to come. But, you see, the problem with this theory is that nonbelievers are seen being reaped and destroyed later in this chapter in verses 17 through 20, which we know does not occur until the end of the tribulation. So how do we explain this implication of the scene in heaven?

Well, the scene is on earth. Perhaps their praise takes them right up before God, before his throne. You see, when we come together and we give praise and worship to our Lord, it is taken right up to heaven. And that is why we have that saying when praises go up, blessings come down. And I want to encourage you today to learn to give praises to God.

And what I mean by that is start doing it if you're not already and let it come from your heart to give praise and worship to him. And, you know, folks, I hate to put labels on people because I think a lot of that has been done to the detriment of people in society because we tend to like to put labels and categorize people. But it is true that there are some people who are more outgoing than others. That is, there are those who who have a more expressive type of personality. And then there are those who are more reserved.

They don't don't talk a lot or they don't express themselves as much. And and I would tend to fall into that category. And early in my Christian walk, I did have some some trouble with outwardly expressing worship and praise to God in a public church setting.

I could do it privately, but publicly because I I struggled there because I was worried about what people might think, what people would say, and in that I didn't look right or I didn't sound right. But, you know, as I've matured in my walk with Christ and as my relationship with him has become more and more personal, more and more intimate. And as he's taking me through the storms, as he's taking me through trials, he's been there for me through the pain. And when I think about the fact that he died for my sins so that I could have eternal life, he stood in my place.

And now I can have eternal life because of what Jesus did for me. It is no longer difficult for me to lift my hands in adoration to my Lord. It is no longer difficult for me to clap my hands, to give him praise and to give him honor, to give him glory because he's deserving of it.

And so I want to encourage you today for anyone who has that struggle to just look at it as a personal relationship between you and him, block everything out that's around you. And and I heard someone say, you know, the Bible says we are to make a joyful noise unto the Lord. And although not all of us were given the gift of singing, including yours truly. And it reminds me of a time in which I was invited to to speak as a guest at a church a few years ago. And whenever I am invited to go somewhere, I have a mobile recording device that I use to record the sermon so that I can later upload it to our ministry site. And so during the sermon selection, I press the record button button with it in my pocket. And so it was recording and I'm singing along with the choir prior to going up to speak.

And so later that evening, I got home and I went back to review it and I heard myself singing and I thought, wow, I sound horrible, worse than I even thought. But, you know, as I thought about that, the thing that came to mind was for those of us that are parents, we have children and our children go off to school and they come home with a drawing of the family. And when you look at it, you can't tell whether the character is you or is the family pets. But because it came from your child, because it came from their heart, you love it. You adore it. You cherish it.

And you post it on your refrigerator or or maybe at your office, you post it on the wall for everybody to see because it came from the one that you love. And that is how it is when it comes to God. Maybe we're not the best singers in the world. Maybe we don't have the best rhythm to clap on beat. Maybe we can't do this.

Maybe we can't do that. But because we are given praise and worship and adoration to him and he loves us. He cherishes those those times he he honors that and he loves it. And so that is why we are to to give praise and worship and honor to our great Lord.

And so I want to encourage you today, just like this. One hundred and forty four thousand are doing. They are singing praises to our Lord. They are lifting their voices to him. They're giving adoration to him because he is worthy of all the glory. He's worthy of all the honor.

He is worthy of all the praise. And what we find is they are given a special recognition, a special reward. They have this special song that only they will know they are redeemed from the earth for all of us. Redemption by faith in Christ is the qualification of being in this group.

And so this one hundred and forty four thousand, they are redeemed from among the non-believing Jews. And so for us today, we should give praises to our Lord for his redemptive power. We should give praises to our Lord because he came and died for our sins. He is worthy of all the glory. He's worthy of all the praise.

He's worthy of all the honor. So, again, if you're one who does not like to give praise in corporate worship, something special happens when we all get together. And folks, it's just the foretaste of what's going to happen in eternity. Imagine when we all get together, when you talk about all the believers in Christ who have lived for all of eternity, and we all come together and we give praise and worship to our Lord.

How great a scene that will be. So let's start practicing now. But don't practice it as if it's a routine. We do it because it comes from our heart. We do it because we are thankful to him. We do it because we love him. So we are to lift our voices. We are to clap our hands.

We are to give praises and adoration to our great Lord for all the great and wonderful things that he has done. Because if it were not for him, we would be headed to eternal damnation. And therefore he is worthy of all the glory. He's worthy of all the honor.

He's worthy to be praised. You've been listening to the Bible teacher Brian C. Thomas, founder and president of God First. Brian and God First reserve all copyright protection under applicable law. Our copyright policy is available at our website, GodFirst.org. Until next time, remember to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Bless God's great nation of Israel and seek first the kingdom of God.