They will not hunger anymore, neither will they thirst anymore.  The sun will not beat down on them, neither any heat, because the Lamb who is in the middle of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to the springs of living water.  And God will wipe every tear from their eyes.  Rev. 7:16, 17.
 
    I will never forget the Valley of the Kings!  I was visiting Egypt with a group of graduate students.  Since it rarely rains in Egypt, most parts of the country are lush and green within three to five miles of the Nile River, but beyond that stretches harsh desert.  The soil is a fine powder with hardly even a weed!
 
    To get to the Valley of the Kings we crossed to the west side of the Nile in a boat and then traveled several miles by bus until we were outside the irrigation zone.  It was a bout 50°C (122°F) in the valley and dry as a bone.  We visited the tomb of King Tut and several others that day.
 
    Since the tombs are artificial caves it was a relief to enter them for a while.  But we soon discovered that visitors bring their own humidity into the tombs.  The high humidity over whelms the cooler temperatures underground.  So over several hours the combination of high heat outside and high humidity inside wore us down, until we were tired and extremely thirsty.
 
    When we had gotten back onto our bus, we would have liked nothing better than to head straight back to our air-conditioned hotel.  But it was not to be.  The driver insisted on taking us to his favorite alabaster shop (no doubt for the kickbacks he would receive from every purchase we made).  Grumpily we entered the shop.
 
    Suddenly, in a dark corner of the shop, I spotted a small refrigerator with a Sprite sign on it.  The glass top revealed dozens of bottles inside!  I quickly purchased one and drank it down in an instant.  Then I purchased another, and another, and still another.  It seemed that I could not stop.  Our group cleaned out the entire refrigerator in a matter of minutes.
 
    Scholars have noticed that descriptions of heaven in the book of Revelation are mostly negative.  Rather than explaining what heaven will be like, it tells us what it won't be like.  It won't be a place where we will be tired, hungry, and thirsty.  Nor will it be a place like the Valley of the Kings, where oppressive heat bore down on us.  There won't be any more tears there.  The life of heaven means the absence of everything that harms or makes us miserable.  And if it doesn't have a Sprite machine in the corner when we need it, it will have something even better!
 
I pray, dear Lord, that You would keep my mind focused on the incredible future You have in store, and on the fact that my life can be different now in the light of that future.

       For this reason they are before the throne of God and serve Him day and night in His temple, and the One sitting on the throne will spread His tent over them.  Rev. 7:15.
 
    To truly appreciate what our passage today is saying you need a sense of the ancient setting.  For me, spending time in a tent is "roughing it."  I might do it for a change of pace, but I wouldn't want to live like that every day.  My youngest daughter is different.  As I mentioned in an earlier devotional, she recently spent eight straight days backpacking in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan--in February!  During that month in Michigan most of us stay outside just for a moment.  She was outside the whole time, sleeping in "tepees" at night with a small portable gas-burning stove.  For me that's a little too much adventure!  And I doubt that was the kind of tenting experience our text had in mind.
 
    I came close to understanding the passage, however, when I visited Petra in the country of Jordan.  It is a red rock area similar in appearance to the national parks of Utah.  The visit begins with about a two-mile hike that includes a twisting trail through a narrow canyon.  You come out of the canyon into a vast open space surrounded by cliffs with all kinds of ancient dwellings carved right out of them!  The view is exciting, but he sun beats down on you, and water is rather scarce back in there.  And visiting the sites involves some stiff up-and-down hiking.
 
    After climbing 1,000 feet to the "high place," we returned to the central valley around noon, hungry and thirsty and at least a two-mile walk from the last sign of civilization.  As we passed a Bedouin tent, a man at the front beckoned us in.  At first we were reluctant, not sure what we were getting into, but when we saw some of our colleagues already inside, my family and I went in too.  The tent itself consisted of black hides stretched over a frame, but beautiful carpets covered the ground, and we saw lovely cushions to lean on.  The man offered us lunch and cold drinks.  Believe it or not, I think I had a Sprite in the middle of nowhere!  In that heat and dryness it was a joy to come inside for a cold drink and delicious food.  But best of all was shade from the sun, and the most wonderful, soft cushions on which to rest aching muscles.
 
    Revelation 7 tells us that God will "spread His tent over us" in the intense noonday heat of the troubles we face both now and when the end-time comes.  This text offers us an image for hard times.  When life gets tough, God provides a cooling tent in the knowledge that nothing happens to us that cannot serve a purpose in the larger picture (Rom. 8:28).  And in the searing fires of the end, His cooling tent will be a comforting refuge.
 
Lord, at times I have thought that the hard things of my life meant that You didn't care.  Help me to experience Your cooling shade in the challenges that I will face today.

                        For this reason they are before the throne of God and serve Him day and night in His temple, and the One sitting on the throne will spread His tent over them.  Rev. 7:15.
 
    Many Americans have experienced the difference between shopping at Kmart and at Nordstrom.  Merchandise clutters the aisles of Kmart, and looking for an attendant can seem like an all-day affair.  On the other hand, Nordstrom is a store chain with a reputation for quality merchandise and exceptional service, even though its prices may not compare with other popular chains.  The attendants are polite and knowledgeable and carry you through the shopping experience with aplomb.
 
    A friend of mind recently moved from California, where Nordstrom and Kmart were two prominent choices, to the Philippines, where shopping is often a very different world than that of California.  Shortly after his arrival in the Philippines he discovered the limitations of even the legendary Nordstrom.  He described his experience in a very large Filipino department store called SM as almost "otherworldly."
 
    South Mall in Manila has an SM store twice the size of most Wal-Marts.  As Jim and his family entered the store they immediately noticed the extremely large number of uniformed attendants standing about every 20 feet throughout the store.  At one point he counted 14 in a 20-foot radius.  If you even dared to approach the extremely well-stocked and organized merchandise, two or three of them would immediately converge to help you in every way possible.  Such immediate attention was rather unsettling at first, but after recovering from the initial shock, Jim was able to purchase some much-needed items.
 
    The people of God will one day "serve" God day and night in the heavenly temple.  But the best place to practice for that heavenly status is right here and right now.  Scripture tells us that the acts of kindness and service that we bestow on others here and now God accepts as if done to Jesus Himself (Matt. 25:34-46).
 
    Finding the balance between genuine, helpful service and annoying intrusiveness requires much experience and a strong dose of the Spirit's guidance.  Does the person we wish to serve desire a Kmart, Wal-Mart, Nordstrom, or SM department store type of experience?  But when the love of Jesus genuinely drives our service, we can be confident that much good will be done.  And in the process of serving others we will learn how to serve God more fully.
 
Lord, I choose the attitude of a servant today.  May others find joy and help in my presence.

       And I said to him, "My Lord, you know."  And he said to me, "These are the ones who are coming out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made then white in the blood of the Lamb."  Rev. 7:14.
 
    In the original language the word for tribulation (thlipseos) refers to more than persecution and martyrdom.  It includes such concepts as "trouble," "stress," "difficult circumstances," and "suffering" in general.  Many have assumed that "the great tribulation" is a single event at the last days of earth's history.  But one of the heavenly elders tells John that the great multitude of Revelation 7:9 are the ones who "are coming" out of the great tribulation.  Whatever that text means by the phrase, it also pointed to something going on already in John's day, something that has continued throughout Christian history.
 
    The book of Revelation makes a lot of sense here.  No one ever gets through life without stress--without "great tribulation."  Yet we often do all we can to avoid it.  Because it looks like an enemy to us, we assume it can only hurt us.
 
    The fear of tribulation reminds me of something that happened at my best friend's place.  He lives in a hilltop house in the Iowa countryside.  From its front steps you can see for miles in three directions.  One day I drove up to the house for a visit and experienced quite a surprise.  Bounding out of the house to greet me was the largest animal I'd seen running free since an elephant or two crossed the road in front of my car in Africa.  Spotting it out of the corner of my eye, I thought a lion was heading for me!  The beast opened its mouth and let out an immense roar that scared me half out of my wits.  Upon closer inspection, however, I realized that I wasn't facing a lion--it was a 250-pound dog!  The beast was Ed's St. Bernard named Gabe.  Gabe turned out to be the sweetest, gentlest creature you would ever want to know.  His bark is a shade short of thunder, but it is all noise and no bite!
 
    That is what stress is like.  Although we may perceive it as an enemy, what really matters is how we respond to it.  An automobile is useful for taking us from place to place, but out of control it is extremely dangerous.  Stress out of control prematurely wears the body down and sets the stage for disease.  But managed stress is actually something quite useful to our lives.  Giving drive and energy to everything we do, it is the raw material that God uses to bring about His glory (John 11:2; 2 Cor. 3:18).  Growth happens in our lives as we respond positively to the stresses of life.  While we might prefer our existence to be more calm and peaceful, God knows that little growth and development will occur in the absence of stress and difficulty.
 
Lord, when my life seems out of control, I allow myself to get rushed and lose track of You.  Help me to see the difficulties of life as pathways that You can use to help me grow and become more useful in Your service.

 And I said to him, "My Lord, you know."  And he said to me, "These are the ones who are coming out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb."  Rev. 7:14.
 
    One night as a group of women met together they stumbled across the verse in Malachi 3:3 that declares that God "will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver" (NIV).  They were curious about what God and a refiner of silver would have in common.  After some discussion the women broke up for the evening, with one of them promising to find out more about the process of refining silver that week.
 
    The woman made an appointment to go to a silver workshop.  As she watched the silversmith hold the silver on the hottest part of the flame, she asked why he was doing it.  "It is because the heat of the flame takes away all impurities," the man explained.  "The hotter the flame, the purer the metal is when it comes out."
 
    She noticed that he carefully held the silver in exactly the right spot, and he didn't once take his eyes off it.
 
    The woman was still curious.  "But how do you know when the silver is ready to come out of the flame?"
 
    "Oh, that's easy," the refiner replied.  "I know it's ready when I can see my reflection in it."
 
    The basic meaning behind the word translated "tribulation" is "pressure" or "hard circumstances."  We can all relate to the idea of "great tribulation" since we have all experienced events in our lives that have brought us great stress, trauma, and pressure.  When we pass through such times of tribulation it is nearly impossible to believe that anything good could come out of intense suffering.  It is only with the perspective of time that we can often see God's refining hand reaching into our lives and using the pain of our hard experiences to purify us and bring us to a level of usefulness that could not have happened any other way.
 
    Whenever I feel that I am in an unbearably "hot spot," I take comfort in the fact that my "Refiner" is holding me very carefully.  Despite what it might feel like, I can be sure that He won't ever leave me alone, not even for a second.  And I can rejoice in the fact that if the suffering continues longer than I think necessary, it is because He has a goal for me.  By the time I am ready to be taken out of the "fire," He will be able to see His reflection in me!  I don't care how hard things may become--nothing is more thrilling than the thought that when all is said and done, I will be more like Jesus!
 
Lord, I am tempted to ask You to take away the problems that make my life difficult right now.  Instead, do whatever will best prepare the way for my future growth and usefulness.

  And one of the elders asked me, "Who are these dressed in white robes and where have they come from?"  And I said to him, "My lord, you know."  And he said to me, "These  are the ones who are coming out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb."  Rev. 7:13, 14.
 
    God's end-time believers overcome by the suffering and victory of the Lamb rather than by armed resistance.  Christ reveals His power more clearly through the broken than through the powerful and the talented.  The humility of a Saint Francis advances His kingdom further than the temporal power of the popes who promoted the Crusades.  A Christian faith that stands up for the weak and the powerless is far more effective than one that brandishes its wealth and political clout.
 
    Some homeless teenagers, who grew up on the streets of Philadelphia, beat a young Korean to death.  He was a Christian doing graduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania.  At the time of the crime the victim had just mailed a letter to his family at home in Korea.  The parents traveled to the United States for the trial and sat silently throughout.  As the trial drew to a close, they asked for one opportunity to speak.  The judge granted their request right after the reading of the guilty verdict and before the sentencing.
 
    The parents approached the judge's bench, and the the stunned amazement of the audience, they knelt down before the judge.  They begged the judge not to carry out the penalty he had in mind, but instead to release their son's murderers into their custody, so that they could give them the home and the care that they had never had.
 
    "We are Christians," they explained to the judge, "and we want to show something of the grace that we have received from God to those boys."  The ones who had done so much evil to them and their son would now be on the receiving end of a grace that only God could possibly inspire.
 
    The judge, whom newspaper reporters claimed had a reputation for being hard and unemotional, had tears in his eyes when he said, "I'm so sorry, but that is not how our system of justice works!"
 
    By their forgiveness, these parents offered a powerful testimony of a kingdom that is utterly different from those of our world.  It is a kingdom whose system of justice is radically unlike the ones we know, but a kingdom open to anyone who dares to believe in its existence and in its radical solution to life's problems.
 
Lord, this example of forgiving grace deeply challenges me.  Forgive my lack of forgiveness in far lesser situations.  Transform my heart through the example of the Lamb.

And all the angels standing around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures fell down upon their faces before the throne and worshipped God, saying, "Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength to our God for ever and ever.  Amen."   Rev. 7:11, 12.
 
    The seminary where I work has an annual retreat in which we head out to some country place, hear some things from a significant speaker, and just generally hang out and fellowship with each other.  A couple adults usually accompany us to care for the children.  Toward the close of one retreat a dozen years or so ago, the leader of the children's program came up to me and asked, "I understand that you are home-schooling your children?"
 
    "Yes," I replied.
 
    "Are you teaching at the graduate level?" he asked (our oldest was 10 years old at the time).
 
    "What do you mean?" I asked, somewhat flustered.
 
    "Well, your 10-year-old keeps giving graduate-level answers to biblical questions," he responded.  "I can't believe she's only 10."  Music to a father's heart.
 
    "Oh, and there's one more thing you need to know," he went on.  "I asked the kids who their hero was, the absolutely greatest person they knew, and different ones said athletes or movie stars.  Then your daughter said, 'My father.' "
 
    It hit like a bullet in my chest.  Do you think I was proud?  Hey, what a great father I am!  Not at all, I was humbled and felt so unworthy of such adoration.  But the great thing about it was the way that report bonded my heart to my daughter.  I love her so much.  I don't ever want to disappoint her.  Her adoration is food for my soul.  Nothing else could take its place.
 
    People sometimes wonder why God "demands" worship.  Is He full of pride?  Does He need constantly to hear praise in order to feel good about Himself?  No, I think He longs for our adoration the way any father seeks to have his children admire and love him.  God could be self-sufficient, but He has a tender heart.  His love makes Him vulnerable to those He loves.  He is like a mother delighted to receive her child's offering of dandelions.  A cleansed leper who returned to give thanks, for example, especially moved Jesus.
 
    Yes, God does want our worship, but not because of arrogance or pride.  He seeks it because He has chosen to put His heart in a place where he needs us.  He needs it because our love makes a difference within Him.  As Augustine put it, "God thirsts to be thirsted after."
 
Lord, I sense a bit of the joy You feel when I come to You in prayer and adoration.  I choose to place Your need at the top of my agenda today.

After these things I looked carefully, and a large multitude, which no one was able to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, was standing before the throne and before the Lamb, having dressed in white robes and having palm branches in their hands.   And they cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Salvation to our God, who is sitting on the throne, and to the Lamb."  Rev. 7:9, 10.
 
    Salvation is an issue Christians like to disagree about.  While the subject should be our greatest delight, we find ways to argue about it.  I recently wrote about the subject of forgiveness of sins in the Gospel of John.  Someone called to tell me that I was wrong.  Sins don't get forgiven--people do!  She pointed to the text: "Your sins are forgiven unto you" (Mark 2:9).  I pointed out that in another place (Matt. 26:28) Jesus did talk about the forgiveness of sins.  I have no problem with her point except that the biblical witness is richer than that.
 
    The word "salvation" in the Bible, for example, is not a precise term--it is a metaphor, an illustration.  In fact, it is one of many biblical metaphors about getting right with God.  Such metaphors usually describe a problem and a solution.  For example, "salvation" is a metaphor from the world of rescue missions.  Describing the sin problem in such terms as "lost" or "taken prisoner," it depicts the solution as being "rescued" or "saved."  Anyone who has ever been lost in the forest can relate to this metaphor.
 
    From the perspective of he medical world, if we speak of the human condition as being "sick" in sin, the solution is to find "healing" (Mark 5:34; Luke 7:50--in Greek the word for "healing" is the same as the verb for "salvation"!)   And using imagery from the banking world, we portray sin as a "debt" that we owe.  What we need, then, is "forgiveness."  In sanctuary terms, the sin problem has to do with "defilement,"  being dirty.  The solution, in that case, is "cleansing."  To portray the sin problem as the result of unfulfilled hunger calls for feeding on the Bread of Life.
 
    To state the problem in legal terms, sin is "condemnation"--a guilty verdict in court that requires "justification," a verdict of acquittal.  And looking at sin as enmity with God call for "reconciliation."  Spiritual "slavery" demands freedom.
 
    What God was doing in the Bible was not describing the matter of salvation in precise, Western, scientific terms.  Instead He was inspiring people to use language from everyday life to illustrate His plan of salvation.  The beauty of all this is that the Bible has a metaphor for every situation.  It would be a tragic thing if we required everyone to be satisfied with our pet metaphor.  The broader the biblical net, the greater the number of people that can find their way to God!
 
Lord, thank You for the wide variety of metaphors with which You reach out to us.  You express Your love in so many ways that I can't miss It!  I am so grateful

   After these things I looked carefully, and a large multitude, which no one was able to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, was standing before the throne and before the Lamb, having dressed in white robes and having palm branches in their hands.  Rev. 7:9.
 
    The people of God incorporate a wide variety of ethnic, racial, and national backgrounds.  The presence in eternity of people from so many different backgrounds will certainly be a challenge.  But this amazing melting pot will work because of the marvelous gospel of God's grace to all, without exception.
 
    His people will model how they relate to others on His treatment of them.  The redeemed will learn to appreciate the differences in others rather than feel threatened by them.  In eternity such characteristics will produce joy and excitement rather than conflict and irritation.  It is people who differ from me that bring unique and enriching things into my life.
 
    A story tells of a water bearer in India who had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole that he carried across his back.  One of the pots had a crack in it and always arrived only half full, while the other pot always delivered a full portion of water.  For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his house.  The perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments.  But the poor cracked pot felt miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.
 
    Finally the cracked pot spoke to the water bearer by the stream.  "I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you," it said.  "Because of my flaw the water leaks out along the path, I deliver only half a load, and you don't get full value from your efforts."
 
    "Did you notice that flowers grew only on your side of the path," the man said, "but not on the other pot's side?  That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I planted flower seeds on your side of the path.  Every day while we walk back, you've watered them.  For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table.  Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house."
 
    Each of us has our own unique flaws.  But God can use and even transform our cracks and imperfections to enrich others.  And we can learn to appreciate their flaws as well.  That's what heaven will be like.  And heaven will begin for us here to the extent that we value the difference that God's variety makes in our lives.  After all, if the Creator had made us all the same, how boring would that be?
 
Lord, may I recognize the beauty that you see in the incredible diversity of Your creation.  Help me to transform irritations into joy and differences into blessings.

 And I heard the number of those who were being sealed, 144,000, sealed from all the tribes of the sons of Israel.  From the tribe of Judah 12,000 were sealed, from the tribe of Reuben 12,000, for the tribe of Gad 12,000, from the tribe of Asher 12,000, from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000, from the tribe of Manasseh 12,000, from the tribe of Simeon 12,000, from the tribe of Levi 12,000, from the tribe of Issachar 12,000, from the tribe of Zebulun 12,000, from the tribe of Joseph 12,000, from the tribe of Benjamin 12,000.  Rev. 7:4-8.
 
    Richard Bauckham, a British New Testament scholar, has argued convincingly that this passage echoes the Old Testament idea of a military census.  Israel numbered its tribes to determine the nation's potential military strength.  The count was limited to males of military age (Num. 1:3, 19-46; 26:1-51; 2 Sam. 24:1-9, etc.).  The 144,000 in Revelation thus consist of males from the 12 tribes of Israel (Rev. 14:4).
 
    The repeated formula "from the tribe of..." particularly echoes the census of Numbers 1 as Israel organized for the conquest of the Promised Land.  That census provided the model for the eschatological war in the Dead Sea scrolls (1QM), as well as the book of Revelation.  The number of the Israelite army in Revelation 7 is clearly symbolic, as are the dimensions of the New Jerusalem.  The 144,000 represents the totality of Israel arrayed in opposition to the forces of evil (Rev. 9:16; 17:14; 19:11-21).  In other words, Revelation describes the spiritual issues of the end-time in military terms.
 
    The 2003 invasion of Iraq was the most technologically advanced military engagement in history.  With the wonder of stealth technology, cruise missiles, and GPS-guided munitions, it almost seemed as if one could wage battle with the push of a button.  But territory is not considered taken until occupied with the very low-tech presence of infantry.  They sleep on the ground, carry their own food, and find themselves closest to the fighting.  Without their presence land would not change hands--there would just be the destruction of distant targets.
 
    A similar principle appears in the spreading of the gospel today.  While mass media and the Internet can play a role in reaching people, it is still the infantry, God's faithful people making disciples one by one, that proves to be the decisive difference.   Just as no amount of bombardment can replace the soldier, so no amount of media can substitute for the faithful witness.  If you have enlisted in God's infantry, you are irreplaceable.  The Lord has commissioned you to go make disciples of the nations.  Television and radio can't do that for you.
 
Lord, I want to make a difference in the real world.  Touch my heart with someone's need today.