The Faithful are Rewarded
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Key Verse: “The Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.” Selected Scripture: |
IN TODAY’S LESSON we have presented to us the reward of the faithful overcomers of this present Gospel Age. These are those who will receive a heavenly inheritance, prior to the establishment of Christ’s kingdom on earth for the rest of mankind, all of whom have been purchased by Jesus’ blood. In Revelation 7 we have mentioned two distinct, yet related, classes of those who receive such a heavenly reward.
First, John says that the symbolic “four winds” (vs. 1) of trouble, that will bring about the end of this present evil order of things and usher in a new age of blessing for mankind (II Pet. 3:7,13), cannot be let loose until the servants of God are sealed “in their foreheads” (Rev. 7:3)—that is, until they have proven themselves faithful, even “unto death.” (chap. 2:10) Revelation 7, verse 4, states that this group of faithful servants will be a relatively small number of one hundred and forty-four thousand. Jesus also described this class of his faithful followers as a “little flock.” (Luke 12:32) These are those who have the indelible mark, or seal, of the character of Christ, and have proven loyal through trials and testings to be deemed worthy of “glory and honour and immortality.” (Rom. 2:7) Later, John refers to this small number of faithful ones, and the reason they are rewarded so highly, saying, “I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads. … These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.”—Rev. 14:1,4
In the scripture, John speaks of this small group as ‘firstfruits.’ This indicates that there are to be afterfruits, although on a lesser plane of life than the 144,000. One of these groups is the second class spoken of in our lesson. Revelation 7, verse 9, identifies this group as a “great multitude,” in contrast with the first group comprising only a ‘little flock.’ Also in contrast is the statement that this second class stood “before the Lamb,” whereas the first group is spoken of as being ‘with’ the Lamb. (chap. 14:1) Further, John says that this great multitude had “washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” (chap. 7:14) Thus is indicated that this group, while deemed worthy of heavenly life, were not as faithful as the class cited earlier. This group had, through a measure of willful sin, soiled their symbolic robes and through difficult experience were required to wash them in order to be found acceptable to God. Because of this, they fail to achieve the reward of immortality given to the little flock. However, they are promised a heavenly inheritance, to serve God before his throne, with their life sustenance graciously provided by the Lamb. “The Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.”—vs. 17