After this I beheld, and lo, a great multitude which no man could number, of all nations and kindreds and people and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands. Revelation 7:9
Three of us sat around a small table in the lunch room of a large office building, and we all had our Bibles opened to discuss a portion that one of us had been enjoying. As we quietly chatted about the things of the Lord, and enjoyed a sweet time of fellowship, it struck me that we made a very good picture of how God has brought together a wide variety of people. In addition to myself, a lad from the hills of Nova Scotia, there was a huge giant of a man from one of the tribes of central Africa, and a tall, slender man from a city in southeastern China. We all had different mother tongues, we all had different skin colouring, we represented different cultures and lifestyles and backgrounds, and we all worked at very different jobs. But here we were, brought together by the Lord in a tiny foretaste of the wonderful togetherness that will be ours forever. Our text is speaking of such a gathering, although it is specifically referring to the Gentiles who will be saved during the great tribulation. In the verses just preceeding, we read of 144,000 of the children of Israel who will be the remnant who are sealed for God during the tribulation. Added to the Gentiles described in our text, those Jewish saints will help to make up a great number that will be gathered together to bring glory to God. This group does not include you and me, but only those who are saved during the tribulation. This great future reunion event will be wonderful to behold. It reminds us that there is another great reunion foretold in Scripture, one in which you and I will participate.
My daughter-in-law suggested that the food provided at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb will be dishes that come from every ethnic group in the world. Although she had no Scripture to state that as a fact, it is an interesting suggestion. We are told that the Gospel is to go to the uttermost parts of the earth, and that it is to be preached to every creature. Representatives from all of those groups will be present at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. Whether we will sample food from each of those many backgrounds is an interesting but irrelevant consideration. What is important is the total and unreserved unity of the great company that will gather to bring glory to the Lamb.
Unity marked the very first New Testament Assembly, as all the Christians in Jerusalem shared and enjoyed a wonderful fellowship. But since then, the devil has successfully placed many wedges and obstacles between different Christians and different groups of Christians. By leading some into false doctrines, he has separated them from those who follow the apostle’s doctrine. By injecting prejudices into our hearts, he has separated Christians along racial, cultural, and language lines, to name but a few. Such divisions are sad, because they were never God’s purpose for His people. And He will remove all of those barriers someday.
Bringing glory to the Lord will unite us forever; it should united us now. -Jim MacIntosh