A Revelation Invitation

And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,

     “Great and amazing are your deeds,
          O Lord God the Almighty!
     Just and true are your ways,
          O King of the nations!
     Who will not fear, O Lord,
          and glorify your name?
     For you alone are holy.
          All nations will come
     and worship you,
          for your righteous acts have been revealed.” (Revelation 15:2-4 ESV)

Who is the most politically powerful person you have personally met? For me it was the mayor of Providence, Rhode Island. In the grand scheme of things he was hardly one of the more powerful people in world history. But he was a big deal in Providence for a few years. Many years ago a friend and I met with the mayor to discuss a service project that our church wanted to undertake in the city. We were there to request city services and to get permission to assemble at the central plaza by city hall. As I introduced ourselves and our aims, I nervously stumbled over my words (I’m not particularly articulate to begin with). My friend baled me out explaining what we hoped to accomplish and what we needed from him. Why was I intimidated by this man? Because I had forgotten that I served the Lord God the Almighty! I had forgotten that I came in the name of the King of the nations! Who is the mayor of Providence in the presence of the King of the nations? Whether he realized it or not, one day that mayor will fall in fear before the Lord and glorify his name. Similarly, Christians of all times and places live with great confidence in the sovereignty of their King knowing that all nations will bow to the glory of the holy and righteous Lord God the Almighty.

In the passage above the Christians are portrayed as those who have conquered the beast and its image. How could they be described as having conquered the beast (Rome) when the beast continued to persecute them? Because even under the beast’s threat of death they had remained faithful to the King. The beast had no power over them, at least no lasting power. The Christians knew God had made them victorious inspiring them to sing the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb. We read about the song of Moses in Exodus 15 on the occasion of Israel’s passing through the Red Sea and the destruction of the Egyptian army. Moses’ song was a celebration of Israel’s deliverance from their enemies. God’s salvation was purchased with the blood of the Passover lamb. Christians draw strength to endure tribulations through our redemption by the blood of the Lamb of God and God’s promises of deliverance from our enemies. Therefore, we sing the song of Moses and the Lamb. We too celebrate our deliverance from sin and death and our redemption through the blood of Jesus Christ.

O Lord God the Almighty, O King of the nations, who will not fear your name? You are a consuming fire. When I remember who you are, no one of importance in this world has power over me. Life and death are in your hands. Even the powerful will fall before you in worship. They are nothing before you. You free me from fearing them. I owe allegiance to no one but you. Only you can rescue. Only you can save. Amen.