“After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, . . .” (Revelation 7:17)
As we commemorate the feast of All Saints this year, it is fitting that we read of the great vision of the Church Triumphant from the book of Revelation. This passage speaks about the solution to racial and cultural hatred and division, a solution that comes not by governmental fiat, educational programs, woke agendas, or social or media moral shaming. It comes by divine arrangement.
Saint John records a vision of a great gathering of the saints in heaven around the throne of God. These saints have endured suffering, persecution and death at the hands of our enemy Satan and his slaves. This vision reveals all those who have been redeemed by faith in Christ: a vast uncountable number of people from every tribe and nation. These have all faithfully suffered and endured through the great tribulation and now have received their reward. This number includes we who are still living as well since it is a vision of all that takes place at the end of time.
This great gathering of the saints reveals to us that the Kingdom that God has designed is made up of peoples of different races, nationalities, languages and cultures, many alien from our own here in America, types of people we may not like, people with whom we would not even want to associate. But because they are all in the Kingdom of God by His choice not ours, we must love them. There is no place in God’s church for prejudice or nationalism. We are all one in Christ. We are to love all of our brethren. We, therefore, are to accept our Lord’s choice of who will be in His heavenly Kingdom now on earth.
In keeping with the multiethnic and multicultural nature of the Kingdom of God, we must preach the gospel to everyone especially those who are in our neighborhood mission field. These the Lord desires to come to faith are unknown to us but all these He has placed at our doorstep. The Lord desires all to come to faith. And He will uses us to do His work. So let us be open to His direction and leading.