Jesus was followed as the lamb

JESUS WAS FOLLOWEDAS THE LAMB
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Revelation14:4 4Theseare those who did not defile
themselves with women, for they remained virgins.
They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were
purchasedfrom among mankind and offered as
firstfruits to God and the Lamb.
The Followers Of The Lamb BY SPURGEON
“These are they which follow the Lamb whereverHe goes. Thesewere
redeemedfrom among men, being the first fruits unto God and to the
Lamb. And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without
fault before the Throne of God.”
Revelation14:4, 5
WHATEVER the saints are in Heaven, they beganto be on earth. There is, no
doubt, a perfection of characterin the world to come, but the charactermust
be formed here. In the next world there will be no real change–wherethe tree
falls, there it will lie. He that is filthy will be filthy, still. He that is holy will be
holy, still. I am going to talk to you, tonight, about those who surround the
Lamb and are with Him in the blaze of His Glory, singing to His honor. I say
that what they are in Heaventhey were, in a measure, on earth. The life of
Glory is the life of Grace. Thatlife which men have in Heaven comes to them
in regenerationon earth. When they are born again, they are born for
Heaven–thenit is that they receive the life which lives on throughout the
eternal ages. Ifyou do not have that life, here, you will never have it. If you die

dead in sin, there is nothing for you, forever, but the abode of the dead,
“where their worm dies not and their fire is not quenched.” Today is the only
time which we have for forming our character. Earthis the greatplace for
making instruments of music–here they are tuned and prepared. Up there,
they play them! But they will never play them, there, unless they have had
them made and tuned here.
The subject of my discourse will be, first, a survey of the outline of character
of those who are to be with Christ hereafter. And then, secondly, a
contemplation of the perfectpicture of the saints with Christ in Glory, where I
trust we, too, shall be, in the Lord’s goodtime.
I do not know whether these verses describe all the saints in Heaven. If they
do, then you must be like they, or you cannever be among them. If, however,
they describe the electof the elect, the innermost circle of Heaven. If they
describe the bodyguard of Christ, the immortals that perpetually surround
Him, nearestto His Person, the most divinely like He. If they describe a kind
of aristocracyofthe skies, the nobility of Heaven–and it seems to me that they
do, for they are the first fruits and the rest of the righteous may be regarded
as the harvest afterwards reaped. If these words describe some specialsaints,
then we should seek to be like they. I would cultivate a holy ambition to be
among the brightest stars of God! Why should we not reachto the highest
prize of our high calling? If there is any specialtyamong the redeemed above,
should it not be our earnestdesire to attain to that standard?
1. So, first, here is AN OUTLINE OF THE CHARACTER OF THOSE
BLESSED ONES WHILE THEY ARE HERE.
And, first, notice their adherence to the Doctrine of Sacrifice while they are
here–“These are they which follow the Lamb.” There are some professing
Christians who talk much about the example of Christ, but deny the efficacy
of His atoning blood–they are not of those who will be in Heaven. There are
some who magnify the philosophy of Christ–allHis ethicalteaching is greatly
to their taste–but, as to His being a Substitute offered up as a Sacrifice on
accountof human guilt, they cannot agree with it. Very well–theycannot
enter Heaven, for, “these are they which follow the Lamb.” NotChrist, only,
mark you, but Christ as the Lamb of God’s Passover!Christ as the Lamb of
God slain before the foundation of the world, Christ as the Lamb of God
which takes awaythe sin of the world. You cannotbe of that blessednumber
if you rejectChrist as a Sacrifice.
As for me, and I trust for you, also, “Godforbid that I should glory, save in
the Cross ofour Lord Jesus Christ!” Christianity without the blood of Christ

is a dead Christianity–it has nothing to give life to it–“forthe blood is the life
thereof.” If you take awaythe Doctrine of Sacrifice, youhave takenaway the
core, the heart, the pith, the marrow of all Christianity. You have left bones
for dogs, but you have not left food for immortal spirits. Whoeverwill be
saved, before all things, it is necessarythat he should believe in Jesus Christ,
the Lamb of God who takes awaythe sin of the world! “ForGod so loved the
world, that He gave His only begottenSon: that whoeverbelieves in Him,
should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Look, look, look unto Him and be
you saved, all you ends of the earth, for He is God, even the bleeding Savior!
He is God and beside Him there is none else. Mayit be said of you all, dear
Friends, that you followedthe Lamb by your adherence to His atoning
Sacrifice!
Many have thus followedthe Lamb in spite of fierce persecution. Remember
that brave woman, Ann Askew? Whenthey had rackedher and pulled every
limb out of its place, so that she achedall over in her exquisitely delicate
frame, yet she sat on the stone floor of her celland still defended the Sacrifice
of Christ. When she had an opportunity to write her thoughts, she penned
that quaint verse–
“I am not she that list,
My anchorto let fall,
For every drizzling mist
My ship’s substantial.”
She thought that being vexed by Popish priests and torn to pieces onthe rack
was only a drizzling mist, for which it was not worth while to casther anchor!
She was more than a match for 50 priests. God raise us up a race of such men
and women! The devil seems to have takenthe backbone out of most people.
May we begin to know what we know and to believe what we believe, and to
put our foot down and say, “God helping me, I will not forsake my God, nor
turn awayfrom His Truth.” You remember how Martin Luther, when he
stoodat the Diet of Worms, closedwhathe had to say when they bade him
recant, and he would not? He said, “Here I stand; I can do no other, so help
me God,” and thus, invoking the help of his Divine Lord, he committed his
body to the flames, if need be, soonerthan he would renounce a single Word
of the MostHigh, or sin againstthe Light of God which he had received!
And, next, it is clearof these people that they followedthe Lamb by
practically imitating Christ’s example, for it is written, “These are they which
follow the Lamb wherever He goes.”Theyso believed in Him that–

“Theymarked the footsteps that He trod,
His zealinspired their breast,
And following their Incarnate God,
Possessthe promised rest.”
You cannot be with Christ unless you are like Christ. If you have really
trusted in Jesus, He will transform you, He will take awayfrom you those evil
tendencies and vile propensities which are contrary to holiness. He will work
in you to will and to do of His own goodpleasure. And the highest holiness for
you is to be like Christ! The very noblestcharacterto which you could ever
reachis to follow the Lamb whereverHe goes, in obedience to God, in love to
man, in self-sacrifice, in humility, in gentleness, in love! You must follow Him
whereverHe goes anddo what He did, so far as your position makes it fit for
you to do it. I mean that you cannotdo as He did as God, but you cando what
He did as Man. Try to put your feetdown in the footprints that He has left
you. Aim at complete conformity to Christ and wherein you fail to reachit,
mark that you come so far short of what you ought to be. To be like Christ is
that which God intends for you and unless you have some measure of it now,
you will never be with Him, for all they who are with Christ above are the
people who were made like to Christ here below. Note that very distinctly,
“These are they which follow the Lamb whereverHe goes.”
Will you, dear Friends, labor to take Christ for your pattern? Do not come
and take His name and then dishonor His Character. There are among you
some who are very much like your Master–youare the joy of the Church.
There are among all the Churches some who bear Christ’s name but are not
like He. My venerable predecessor, Dr. Rippon, used to sayof His Church,
that he had in it some of the best people in England–andthen he used to add
in a low voice, “and some of the worst.” I am afraid that I have to say the
same, but I am very sorry that I should have to sayit. The worstpeople in the
world are those who profess most and do least. Do not be among that unhappy
number, but do, I pray you, by the blessing of God, and the help of His Spirit,
be among those who at leastendeavor to “follow the Lamb whereverHe
goes.”
Now, notice in the sketchof these people, that they recognizeda special
redemption–“These were redeemedfrom among men.” Christ had done
something for them that He had not done for others. They were not redeemed,
“among men,” but, “from among men.” They recognizedthe specialtyof
Christ’s Sacrifice. Theycould read, for instance, a passagelike this and
understand its meaning, “Christ loved the church, and gave Himself for it,”
for His Church, for His body. “These were redeemedfrom among men.”

Come, Beloved, do you belong to this company of persons who have been
fetched out from the rest of mankind by the power of the Spirit of God, and
also by the merit of the precious blood? Do you feelthat you are markedwith
the blood as others are not? Do you belong to a people who are not of the
world, even as He that bought them was not of the world? Are you henceforth
not of the common multitude, but one who has been bought and paid for by
that redemptive price which was found in the veins and the heart of the
Redeemer? And are you so redeemed as no longerto be one of the greatmass
of mankind, but fetched out, calledout, chosen, “notyour own, but bought
with a price”? These are they that will be with Christ hereafter, as specially
redeemedones.
And as they recognizeda specialredemption, you will observe that they made
a full surrender of themselves to God and to the Lamb–“These were redeemed
from among men, being the first fruits unto God and to the Lamb.” On a
certain day, when the harvest was getting ripe, a man went down to the fields
and plucked an ear here, a handful there, and another handful further on.
And he passedalong the field and gathered ears here and ears there. And
when he had collectedenoughfor sheaves, he tied them up and took them to
the Temple of God and presented them to the Lord as an offering, to signify
that he owedall the harvest to God–and he brought Him the first ripe ears as
a sacrifice to Him.
Now, Beloved, has the Grace of God plucked you out from among the restof
mankind and do you feel that you now belong to Christ, that you belong to
God, that you are not to be gatheredwith the mass of men for the great
condemnation, but that you are presented unto God and belong to Him
altogether? It is a very easything for me to talk about this, but, believe me, it
is by no means an easything to carry it out. I see numbers of people who
profess to belong to God, but they live as much for making money as anybody
else!They live quite as much for self-seeking as the world does and it would be
difficult, even if you had microscopes onboth your eyes, to see any difference
betweenthem and worldlings. This will never do. “Come out from among
them, and be you separate, says the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing.” If
you are the first fruits unto God, be so. If you belong to yourself, serve
yourself. But if, by the redemption of Christ, you are not your own, but
bought with a price, then live as those who are the King’s own, who must
serve God, and cannotbe content unless their every actionshall tend to the
Divine Glory, and to the magnifying of Christ Jesus. Now this is what all of us
who are truly the Lord’s have in outline. Oh, that the sketchmight be

properly filled up, that we might become more and more the first fruits unto
God and to the Lamb!
I must take you a little further. These people who are to be with Christ, the
nearestto Him, are a people free from falsehood. “Intheir mouth was found
no guile.” Brothers and Sisters, if we profess to be Christians, we must have
done with all craft, policy, double-dealing and the like. The Christian man
should be a plain man who says what he means and means what he says. I
know of no worse suspicionagainstany man who professes to be a Christian
than the suspicionof not being transparent. It were better for us to be simple
as fools than to be cunning as hypocrites, eventhough our cunning should
place us in the front rank of the governors of mankind! The Christian man
should scornto tell a lie! Exaggerationand equivocationshould be strangers
to his lips. “In their mouth was found no guile.” The Lord Jesus Christ was a
greatSpeakerofthe plain Truth of God and those whom He chooses to be
near Him, to be His personalattendants in Heaven, must also be free from
guile. With many a mistake, with many a weakness,yet, Beloved, the saints
are free from falsehood!They are true, whatever may be their mistakes. Look
to yourselves and see whetherit is so. As I would look to my own soul, I
charge you to look to yours.
And then, once more, it is saidthat they are free from blemish. “They are
without fault before the Throne of God.” “Oh,” says one, “I am not without
fault!” No, but there is the outline of that characterin you if you are, indeed,
one of the Lord’s people. You have already got rid of many faults and you are
getting rid of more. You grieve over what remains and you will never rest till
every sin is conquered. Is it not so, Beloved? Saints are not only men of honor,
but men of holiness!We would not tolerate any known sin in ourselves.
Whenever we are carriedinto a fault by temptation or by inbred sin, we feel
unhappy. We bow low in the dust and we cry to God for Grace, that we may
not commit the same sin again. But God’s people are a blameless people, after
all. If you are to find pure and right characters, where will you find them but
among the followers of the Lamb? You know and I know many believers in
Christ whose lives are blameless–wewouldnot say that they are absolutely
without fault, but still, the Grace of God so works in them that we may safely
take them for examples and do as they have done.
It was so in the olden time and it is so now! And unless your characteris such
that your children may safelyimitate it, and your servants may tread in your
footsteps, and your neighbors may act as you do without going wrong, how
can you hope to be where Jesus is? Jesus Christ receives sinners, but He
makes them saints!The Gospelopens a greathospital, not for sick men to lie

in it and remain sick, but that there they may recoverhealth and may be
made strong! He that believes in Christ is saved–savedin this sense among
others, that He is savedfrom the power of sin, and turned from an unholy and
godless life into a life of purity, honesty, and uprightness! “Be not deceived,”
any of you, tonight, “Godis not mocked;for whatever a man sows that shall
he also reap.” If there is not about you a likeness to Christ. If there is not at
leastthe sketchwhichI have tried to depict, then, surely, you are not among
those who will be forever where Jesus is!
I have seenan artist make his crayon drawing. He takes a piece of charcoal
and marks out what he is going to draw. I am afraid that is about all that is
done with us, here. There is an outline made with the charcoal–allthe lines of
beauty and all the glory of characterare yet to be laid on as we grow in Grace
and in likeness to Christ. But, at least, there must be that sketch. If you have
not that, come humbly to the feet of Jesus and pray that He would begin in
you His goodwork which He will carry on and perfectin the day of His
appearing.
Thus much upon the outline of the characterofsaints while they are upon the
earth.
II. Now indulge me for just a few minutes while I try to give you A GLIMPSE
OF THE PERFECT PICTURE IN HEAVEN. I cannotreally show you the
picture–that is in the upper galleryin Glory and you must go up there to see
it. I canonly tell you my idea of what that picture is like when it is finished.
Well, first, those who are with Christ enjoy perfectfellowship with Him. Up
there they “follow the Lamb whereverHe goes.” Theyare always with Him.
There were certain young princes chosenin certain courts to attend upon the
king. Whereverthe king went, they went. Where the court was, there was
their abode. Their one business was to behold the king’s face and to abide
near him. That is the business of the glorified ones of whom I am speaking.
When will the day arrive that you and I shall enjoy this perfect fellowship
with our glorious King, never absentfrom Him, never doubting His love,
never cold in our affectiontowards Him, but being–
“Foreverwith the Lord”?
Shall I go on with the verse?
“Amen! So let it be!
Life from the dead is in that word,
‘Tis immortality!”

Some of you have dear children who have outstripped their mother and are
enjoying this felicity even now. Others of us have mothers, brothers, friends
who were very dear to us, who follow the Lamb in Glory. How many who once
satamong us, here, are now up there, following the Lamb, and He leads them
unto living fountains of waters and all tears are wiped awayfrom their eyes!
Oh, to think that wherevermy Lord shall go I shall go!When He shall
descendfrom Heaven with a shout, we shall come with Him! When He shall
sit upon His Throne to judge the world, His saints shall sit with Him! When
He shall reign gloriouslyamong His ancients for a thousand years, we shall
reign with Him on the earth! When He shall return to the Father’s Throne–
“All His work and warfare done,”
we shall partake of His triumph, following the Lamb wherever He goes. I vote
to castin my lot with my Lord in life and in death. What say you? My Master,
where You dwell, I will dwell. If men put You to shame, I will be put to shame
with You. If You die, I will die with You, that I may forever live with You in
Your Glory above. Sayyou not the same, Beloved? Sayit deep down in your
heart, tonight!
Well, now, notice in this complete picture, next, that up there they are
perfectly acceptedwith God–“Thesewere redeemedfrom among men, being
the first fruits unto God and to the Lamb.” Godalways accepts them. He
always looks upon them as His first fruits, bought with His Son’s blood, and
brought by His Son into His heavenly Temple, to be His forever! Sometimes,
here, we mar our service, but they never mar it there! Our songs getout of
tune, but theirs never
“No groans to mingle with the songs
Which warble from immortal tongues.”
We doubt. We fear. We grieve the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we getvery sadly
out of gearwith God. It is never so there–fully redeemedfrom sin–they are
acceptedin the Belovedand to the very top of their bent they know it, and
enjoy it. Happy day, happy day, when you and I shall be of them and among
them!
Observe, also, that they have perfect truth, there, in heart and soul–“In their
mouth was found no guile.” “No lie,” says the RevisedVersion. Here, dear
Friends, we inadvertently fall into error and, sometimes, I fear, negligently.
We say, not knowingly, more than the Truth of God. How often we say much
less than the Truth and almost necessarilyso when we speak ofDivine things–
but up there they are not only free from willful guile and deceit, but they are
free from all error and mistake. Happy day! Happy day! Do you not long to

be there to be rid of every false doctrine, every wrong opinion, every error,
every mistake, so that in your mouth there shall never againbe guile? This is
what they are above–made perfect. He who washedtheir hearts, here, has
washedtheir tongues, there! As they loved the Truth of God, here, they know
the Truth there! As they soughtit here, they have found it there! As they were
willing to die for it here, they live in the enjoyment of it there and shall do so
forever!
One more feature of that perfectpicture is this, they enjoy perfectsinlessness
before God–“Theyare without fault before the Throne of God.” That text
brings back to my recollectionthe secondsermonI preached to this Church,
one Sabbath evening, when we were but few–“Theyare without fault before
the Throne of God.” I had greatjoy, as a youth, in expatiating upon the
perfect blessing of being altogether, “without spot, or wrinkle, or any such
thing.” If there were any fault in them, there, they are where it would be seen,
for they are before the Throne of the all-seeing God!But even there, in that
matchless place of light in which there is no darkness at all, they are declared
to be without fault, without blemish. Can you think that you will be of that
happy number one day? I had to put it very mildly just now when I spoke of
saints being without blame, here, but you may put it as strongly as you please
when you speak of their being without sin there!
They were once, perhaps, before conversion, the very chief of sinners, but in
Heaven there shall be no trace of their sin. They will bless the Grace that
came to them when they were up to their neck in the filth of sin, but there will
be no trace of their filthiness left. There is no blood stain on Manasseh, there
is no brand of blasphemy on Saul of Tarsus, now–theyhave washedtheir
robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Some of these men were
by nature and by practice, too, so depraved that it lookedas if they could
never escape from their evil habits. We might have said of them, “Canthe
Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Thenmay these men, who
are accustomedto do evil, learn to do well.” Yet so has the Grace of God
changedthem that there is no trace of any evil tendency, no propensity to lust,
or lewdness, orblasphemy, or any kind of fault!
What a wonderful change it will be for those who were once greatsinners to
be found without fault–not only without greatcrime, not only without gross
vice, but without fault and that, too, as I have said, before the Throne of God,
where, if there were a fault, it would be seen!They are cleansedfrom all the
guilt of sin and from all the depravity which the addiction of sin brings to
men. “Theyare without fault before the Throne of God.” Truly, if you had
never heard this before, it might make you laugh for joy to think that it

should everbe possible that the very chief of sinners, through faith in Christ,
might be made so cleanas one day to be without fault before the Throne of
God! I think that when we getthere, part of the joy of Heavenwill be a long
surprise, an endless wonder–andif we are permitted to remember what we
used to be, some of you will recalla night of sin, and say, “And yet I am here!”
You will recall, perhaps, some dreadful passion, some atrocious outburst of
foul language, orsome terrible occasion ofsin and you will say, “Yet here I
am, cleanas the driven snow, washedin the blood of Jesus and renewedby the
Spirit of God.”
Although they always praise God, I think that they must, every now and then,
have a fresh outburst of hallelujahs when they begin to review the past. One
says, “I, even after conversion, was a poor, limping Christian. And I was
thrown back once or twice with terrible backslidings. My Christian friends
despairedof my ever holding on–and yet here I am, by God’s Grace, without
fault before the Throne of God. Hallelujah!” Will not a man be obliged to
break out like that and do you not think that all the saints around Him will
take up the Hallelujah, too, till it goes in swelling chorus all round the choirs
of Heaven, “Hallelujah to God and the Lamb”? And another one will say,
“And I, after I had long knownthe Lord, fell, oh, so sadly, so grievously! But
He would not give me up! He followedme and, by His mighty Grace, I was
restored, my broken bones were set againand I was made to sing of Free
Grace and forgiving love. He createdin me a new heart and reneweda right
spirit within me! And now I, even I, am here without fault, without a single
fault.” You can hardly imagine it, can you? You begin to think, “Well, surely
that cannot be,” for, if you look within, you see so many faults over which you
groan, but you will look without and look within, when you once getthere,
and neither without nor within, in any respectwhatever, will you have any
kind of fault, for, “they are without blemish before the Throne of God.”
I do not feel inclined to preachany more, but just to shout, “Hallelujah,”
againand again, at the very thought that I shall be there! Oh, it is hard to go
to Heaven from such a place as that which I occupy! Your eyes sometimes
startle me in my dreams, these thousands of eyes fixed upon one poor mortal
man, who has to try to lead you to Christ and lead you to Heaven. Your eyes,
at times, seemto pierce me like so many daggers. Ithink, sometimes, “Whatif
I am not faithful, if I do not preachplainly, if I do not warn them, if I do not
invite them earnestly, if I do not, with all my heart cry, ‘Come to Christ’?
What shall I do in eternity if 6,000 pairs of eyes are forever seeming to stick,
like daggers, into my heart?” Oh, but it will not be so! I believe in Him that

justifies the ungodly and I have fully preached Him to you, and all my great
congregation!
My hope is in the precious blood that cleansesfrom all sin and I have pointed
all my hearers to that precious blood! And the day will come when I, with all
who believe in Jesus, shallbe without fault before the Throne of God! The
very thought of it makes me cry, “Hallelujah!” And with that I finish.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Say “Hallelujah,” all of you! [“Hallelujah” from the
congregation.]Hallelujah! Hallelujah to God and the Lamb! The Lord bless
you, for Christ’s sake!Amen.
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
Pulpit Commentary Homiletics
The GreaterSalvation
Revelation14:4
S. Conway
Firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. From this and the many like
expressions whichare scatteredoverthe New Testament, we gatherthat there
is a salvationgreaterand less. Forhere it is said that these hundred and forty-
four thousand are "firstfruits." Therefore we learn -
I. WHAT THESE ARE NOT.
1. They are not all the saved. The very word indicates that there is much more
to follow. They are but the beginning. Nor:
2. Are these firstfruits the mass of the saved. True, a large number is named,
but what is that comparedwith the "greatmultitude that no man can
number, out of every," etc.?
II. WHAT THEY ARE. The word "firstfruits" teaches us that these thus
named are:
1. The pledge of all the rest. Thus Christ has "become the Firstfruits of them
that slept" (1 Corinthians 15:20). He is the pledge and guarantee that in him
"all shall be made alive." And so the natural firstfruits of corn guaranteedthe
rest of the harvest. For the same sun, and all other nurturing forces whichhad

ripened the firstfruits, were there ready to do the same kindly office for all the
rest. And so we are told, "The Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the
dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies." The same poweris presentfor
both the first and after fruits.
2. The pattern and representative of all the rest. Compare the first and after
fruits. In the main they were alike;and so in the spiritual world also. But:
3. The firstfruits were pre-eminent over the rest. They were specially
presentedto God, and held in honour; so was it with the natural grain. But,
without question, there is pre-eminence implied in being the firstfruits of the
heavenly harvest.
(1) In time. Theirs is "the first resurrection," ofwhich we read in Revelation
20. - that resurrectionof the dead which St. Paul calls "the resurrection," and
"the mark" towards which he pressed, if by any means he might attain unto it
(Philippians 3.). "The rest of the dead lived not againuntil the thousand
years," etc. (cf. Revelation20.).
(2) In honour. St. Paul called it "the prize of our high calling of God in Christ
Jesus." Now,a prize implies specialhonour. And our Lord tells us that there
is a "first" and "last" in the kingdom of heaven; "a least" and "a greatest."
"One star differeth from another star in glory." There is "an entrance
administered abundantly," and there is a "being savedso as by fire." As here
there is no dead level of reward, so we might believe, and we are taught, that
there is none such in heaven. Infinite mischief is done by the belief that all will
be equally blessed, equally honoured, equally like God. It is as if we had
adopted the creedof Ecclesiastes, where we are told, "One end comethalike to
all," instead of St. Paul's, who tells us, "What a man soweththat" - not
something else - "shall he also reap," in quantity and quality too.
(3) In service. Thatthey were pre-eminent here, who that knows their history
on earth, or reads even this book, will question?
(4) In character. See how they are describedas to their spiritual purity, their
unreserved consecration, their separateness fromthe world, their
guilelessness andfreedom from all deceit.
(5) In the approval of God. Of them it is written, "Blessedand holy is he that
hath part in the first resurrection" (Revelation20.). How could it be otherwise
than that such as they should stand highest upon the steps of the everlasting
throne, and nearestGod and the Lamb?
4. They are the electof God. In another part of this book they are spokenof as
"the called, and chosen, and faithful." They answerto the description of

God's chosen, and so we learn that "whilst all the electare saved, all the saved
are not. elect" (Alford). All are not firstfruits, greatest, first, in the kingdom of
heaven. The very words imply order, gradation, rank. But it is for us to take
heed as to -
III. WHAT WE SHOULD STRIVE TO BE. There are some who say that they
will be content if they can only "getjust inside the door of heaven " - such is
the phrase. This sounds very humble minded, and if it be so, then those who
thus speak are just those who would not be content with any such place. For,
and to their credit be it said, they are such as desire to be like their Lord - to
resemble him, to possesshis Spirit, and to please him in all things. But if they
desire, or will be content with, the lowestplace in heaven, they must getrid of
all these beautiful and blessedqualities. But rather than this they would die.
Too often, however, the phrase is but a substitute for diligence and faithful
following of Christ. They are content to be but little like their Lord; they do
not follow after holiness in the fear of God; they are the worldly hearted, those
the leastworthy of the Christian name. But who would be content to be as
these? Who would not be in full sympathy with St. Paul, who said, "I labour...
to be acceptedofhim" (2 Corinthians 5:9)? Ours, then, is to be not contented
with any lowestplace - if we be, there is grave doubt whether we ever attain to
that - but to "press towardthe mark for the prize of our high calling of Godin
Christ Jesus."- S.C.
The Followers ofthe Lamb
C. H. Spurgeon.
Revelation14:1-13
And I looked, and, see, a Lamb stoodon the mount Sion, and with him an
hundred forty and four thousand…
I. AN OUTLINE OF THE CHARACTER OF THOSE BLESSED ONES
WHILE THEY ARE HERE.
1. First, notice their adherence to the doctrine of sacrifice while they are here:
"These are they which follow the Lamb."

2. And, next, it is clearof these people that they followedthe Lamb by
practically imitating Christ's example, for it is written, "These are they which
follow the Lamb whithersoeverHe goeth." Try to put your feetdown in the
footprints that He has left you. Do aim at complete conformity to Christ; and
wherein you fail, mark that.
3. Now, notice in the sketchofthese people that they recogniseda special
redemption: "These were redeemedfrom among men." Christ had done
something for them that He had not done for others.
4. And as they recognizeda specialredemption, they made a full surrender of
themselves to God and to the Lamb: "These were redeemedfrom among men,
being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb." If you are the firstfruits unto
God, be so;if you belong to yourself, serve yourself; but if, by the redemption
of Christ, you are not your own, but bought with a price, then live as those
who are the King's own, who must serve God, and cannotbe contentunless
their every action shall tend to the Divine glory, and to the magnifying of
Christ Jesus.
5. These people who are to be with Christ, the nearestto Him, are a people
free from falsehood. "In their mouth was found no guile." If we profess to be
Christians, we must have done with all craft, policy, double-dealing, and the
like. The Christian man should be a plain man, who says what he means, and
means what he says.
6. And then, once more, it is said that they are free from blemish; "they are
without fault before the throne of God."
II. A GLIMPSE OF THE PERFECT PICTUREIN HEAVEN.
1. Well, first, those who are with Christ enjoy perfect fellowshipwith Him. Up
there, they "follow the Lamb whithersoeverHe goeth." Theyare always with
Him.

2. Well, now, notice in this complete picture, next, that up there they are
perfectly acceptedwith God: "These were redeemedfrom among men, being
the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb." God always accepts them; He
always looks upon them as His firstfruits, bought with His Son's blood, and
brought by His Son into His heavenly temple, to be His for ever. Sometimes
here we mar our service;but they never mar it there.
3. Observe, also, that they have perfecttruth there in heart and soul: " In
their mouth was found no guile." "No lie," says the RevisedVersion. Here, we
do fail into error inadvertently, and sometimes, I fear me, negligently.
4. One more feature of that perfect picture is this, they enjoy perfect
sinlessnessbefore God:"They are without fault before the throne of God."
(C. H. Spurgeon.)
The Followers ofthe Lamb
W. Dyer.
Revelation14:1-13
And I looked, and, see, a Lamb stoodon the mount Sion, and with him an
hundred forty and four thousand…
I. WHAT IT IS to follow the Lamb whithersoeverHe goeth. In His
commandments — teaching — providences — example. Truly, without
hypocrisy; constantly, without apostasy. Speedily, truly, undividedly,
zealously, humbly, cheerfully, diligently, constantly, faithfully, transcendently.
II. WHY they follow the Lamb. Because theyare redeemedby His blood —
enlightened by Him — loving Him — possessingHis spirit, etc.

III. THE EXCELLENCY of following the Lamb. They have His presence —
shall know His mind — may come boldly to Him — shall be protectedby
Him, etc.
IV. HOW THEY MAY BE KNOWN who follow the Lamb. By their character
— spirit — name — graces — associates— language.
(W. Dyer.)
COMMENTARIES
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(4, 5) These are they . . .—The characteristicsofthe servants of the Lamb are
given in this verse and the following. The first is purity: they are virgins. The
expressioncanhardly be limited to the unmarried, as the 144,000 represent
the wide societyofthe choice ones of God. They are those whose hearts have
been made as the hearts of little children (Matthew 18:1-4), who have that
purity of heart which Christ declaredto be blessed, and which St. James
declaredto be the first mark of heavenly wisdom (Matthew 5:8, and James
3:17). The next is implicit obedience:they follow the Lamb whithersoeverHe
goeth. Some, indeed, take this to be a kind of heavenly reward: they shall be
the nearercompanions of the Lamb. But it is better to take it as describing
their complete consecrationto Christ. They are those who are with Christ,
who have tastedthe cup that their Lord tasted, and have taken up their cross
and followedHim (Matthew 20:22; Luke 14:27;John 12:24-26). It is well to
weighthese words; it is in the “wheresoever”that we may test the reality of
our Christian life. Here lies the cross that Christ bids us take up. Here is the
echo of Christ’s words, “Whosoeverforsakethnot all he hath cannot be My
disciple.” The third mark is separation, or unworldliness: they were
purchased from among men, as a firstfruit to God and to the Lamb. They
were a chosengeneration, a peculiar people (Titus 2:14; 1Peter2:9), as the
Israelof God(Deuteronomy 7:6). The fourth feature is utter truthfulness: in
their mouth no guile or no falsehood. (Comp. Psalms 14 and Deuteronomy
32:1-2.)The verse emphatically ends with “Theyare blameless.”The words
“before the throne of God” must be omitted. (Comp. Revelation7:14-15;
Ephesians 5:27; and Colossians 1:22.)

We have seenthe servants of God; we have marked their character;we are
now to see the weaponwhich is to be employed in the conflict againstthe
enemies of Christ.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
14:1-5 Mount Sion is the gospelchurch. Christ is with his church, and in the
midst of her in all her troubles, therefore she is not consumed. His presence
secures perseverance. His people appear honourably. They have the name of
God written in their foreheads;they make a bold and open professionoftheir
faith in God and Christ, and this is followedby suitable actings. There were
persons in the darkesttimes, who ventured and laid down their lives for the
worship and truth of the gospelofChrist. They kept themselves cleanfrom
the wickedabominations of the followers ofantichrist. Their hearts were right
with God; and they were freely pardoned in Christ; he is glorified in them,
and they in him. May it be our prayer, our endeavour, our ambition, to be
found in this honourable company. Those who are really sanctifiedand
justified are meant here, for no hypocrite, howeverplausible, canbe
accountedto be without fault before God.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible
These are they - In this verse, and in the following verse, the writer states the
leading characteristicsofthose who are saved. The generalidea is, that they
are chaste;that they are the followers of the Lamb; that they are redeemed
from among people;and that they are without guile.
Which were not defiled with women - Who were chaste. The word "defiled"
here determines the meaning of the passage, as denoting that they were not
guilty of illicit sexualintercourse with women. It is unnecessaryto show that
this is a virtue everywhere required in the Bible, and everywhere statedas
among the characteristicsofthe redeemed. On no point are there more
frequent exhortations in the Scriptures than on this; on no point is there more
solicitude manifested that the professedfriends of the Saviourshould be
without blame. Compare the Acts 15:20 note; Romans 1:24-32 notes;1
Corinthians 6:18 note; Hebrews 13:4 note. See also 1 Corinthians 5:1; 1
Corinthians 6:13; Galatians 5:19; Ephesians 5:3; Colossians3:5; 1
Thessalonians 4:3. This passagecannotbe adduced in favor of celibacy,
whether among the clergy or laity, or in favor of monastic principles in any
form; for the thing that is specifiedis, that they were not "defiled with
women," and a lawful connectionof the sexes, suchas marriage, is not
defilement. See the notes on Hebrews 13:4. The word rendered here "defiled"

- ἐμολύνθησανemolunthēsan, from μολύνω molunō - is a word that cannotbe
applied to the marriage relation. It means properly to "soil, to stain, to
defile." 1 Corinthians 8:7; "their conscience being weak, is defiled."
Revelation3:4; "whichhave not defiled their garments." The word does not
elsewhere occurin the New Testament, exceptin the passagebefore us, and it
will be seenat once that it cannot be applied to that which is lawful and
proper, and consequently that it cannot be construed as an expressionagainst
marriage and in favor of celibacy. It is a word that is properly expressive of
illicit sexual intercourse - of impurity and unchastity of life - and the
statementis, that they who are saved are not impure and unchaste.
For they are virgins - παρθένοι parthenoi. This is the masculine form, but this
form is found in the later Greek and in the Christian fathers. See Suidas and
Suicer, Thes. The meaning of the word, when found in the feminine form, is
well understood. It denotes a virgin, a maiden, and thence it is used to denote
what is chaste and pure: virgin modesty; virgin gold; virgin soil; virgin blush;
virgin shame. The word in the masculine form must have a similar meaning as
applied to men, and may denote:
(a) those who are unmarried;
(b) those who are chaste and pure in general.
The word is applied by Suidas to Abel and Melchizedek. "The sense," says
DeWette, in loco, "cannotbe that all these 144,000hadlived an unmarried
life; for how could the apostle Peter, and others who were married, have been
excluded? But the reference must be to those who held themselves from all
impurity - "unkeuschheitund hurerei" - which, in the view of the apostles,
was closelyconnectedwith idolatry." Compare Bleek, Beitr. i. 185. Prof.
Stuart supposes that the main reference here is to those who had kept
themselves from idolatry, and who were thus pure. It seems to me, however,
that the most obvious meaning is the correctone, that it refers to the
redeemedas chaste, and thus brings into view one of the prominent things in
which Christians are distinguished from the devotees ofnearly every other
form of religion, and, indeed, exclusivelyfrom the world at large. This
passage, also,cannotbe adduced in favor of the monastic system, because:
(a) whatever may be said anywhere of the purity of virgins, there is no such
commendation of it as to imply that the married life is impure;
(b) it cannotbe supposedthat God meant in any way to reflect on the married
life as in itself impure or dishonorable;
(c) the language does not demand such an interpretation; and,

(d) the facts in regard to the monastic life have shownthat it has had very
little pretensions to a claim of virgin purity.
These are they which follow the Lamb - This is another characteristicofthose
who are redeemed - that they are followers of the Lamb of God. That is, they
are his disciples;they imitate his example; they obey his instructions; they
yield to his laws;they receive him as their counselorand their guide. See the
notes on John 10:3, John 10:27.
Whithersoeverhe goeth- As sheepfollow the shepherd. Compare Psalm 23:1-
2. It is one characteristic oftrue Christians that they follow the Saviour
whereverhe leads them. Be it into trouble, into danger, into difficult duty; be
it in Christian or paganlands; be it in pleasantpaths, or in roads rough and
difficult, they commit themselves wholly to his guidance, and submit
themselves wholly to his will.
These were redeemedfrom among men - This is another characteristic of
those who are seenon Mount Zion. They are there because they are redeemed,
and they have the characterof the redeemed. They are not there in virtue of
rank or blood John 1:13; not on the ground of their own works Titus 3:5; but
because they are redeemed unto God by the blood of his Son. See the notes on
Revelation5:9-10. None will be there of whom it cannot be said that they are
"redeemed";none will be absentwho have been truly redeemed from sin.
Being the first-fruits unto God- On the meaning of the word "first-fruits," see
the notes on 1 Corinthians 15:20. The meaning here would seemto be, that the
hundred and forty-four thousand were not to be regardedas the whole of the
number that was saved, but that they were representatives ofthe redeemed.
They had the same characteristics whichall the redeemedmust have; they
were a pledge that all the redeemed would be there. Prof. Stuart supposes that
the sense is, that they were, as it were, "an offering especiallyacceptable to
God." The former explanation, however, meets all the circumstances ofthe
case, andis more in accordancewith the usual meaning of the word.
continued...
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
4. virgins—spiritually (Mt 25:1); in contrastto the apostate Church, Babylon
(Re 14:8), spiritually "a harlot" (Re 17:1-5; Isa 1:21; contrast2Co 11:2; Eph
5:25-27). Their not being defiled with women means they were not led astray
from Christian faithfulness by the tempters who jointly constitute the
spiritual "harlot."

follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth—in glory, being especiallynearHis
person; the fitting reward of their following Him so fully on earth.
redeemed—"purchased."
being the—rather, "as a first-fruit." Not merely a "first-fruit" in the sense in
which all believers are so, but Israel's 144,000 electare the first-fruit, the
Jewishand Gentile electChurch is the harvest; in a further sense, the whole of
the transfigured and translatedChurch which reigns with Christ at His
coming, is the first-fruit, and the consequentgeneralingathering of Israel and
the nations, ending in the last judgment, is the full and final harvest.
Matthew Poole's Commentary
These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins; that
is, that would not comply with antichristian idolatry and superstition; for
idolatry is all along in holy writ comparedto whoredomand fornication.
Which follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth; that follow the Lord Christ
fully, in all things keeping close to the rules of worship and life which he hath
given.
These were redeemedfrom among men; these show themselves to be
redeemedby the blood of Christ from the vain conversationof men, whether
towards God, in matters of worship, or towards men.
Being the first-fruits unto Godand to the Lamb; that are consecratedto, and
acceptedofGod, as the first-fruits were, being the only part of the world that
are not profane.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
These are they which were not defiled with women,.... With the whore of
Rome, and her harlots, she is the mother of; while the kings and inhabitants of
the earth were drunk with the wine of their fornication, or committed idolatry
with them, which is spiritual fornication, and is here meant by being defiled
with them, these were free from such pollutions, or idolatrous practices:
for they are virgins; for their beauty and comeliness in Christ, chastity,
sincerity of their love, uncorruptness in doctrine and worship, and for the
uprightness of conversation;See Gill on Matthew 25:1;

these are they which follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth; as the sheep
follow the shepherd of the flock, and which is a characterof Christ's sheep,
John 10:4. These follow Christ in the exercise ofthe graces ofhumility,
patience, and love; and in the performance of the severalduties of religion,
and subjectionto ordinances, and in the path of sufferings; and in every way
in which Christ the Lamb has gone before them, or in his word and
providence leads and directs them to, whether it be grateful to the flesh or
not; particularly they follow where he is preached, and his Word and
ordinances are faithfully administered; and they follow him to heaven, where
he is: it was part of the oath takenby the Roman soldiers, ' , "to follow the
generals whereverthey should lead" (n), to which it is thought there is an
allusion here; see 2 Samuel15:21;
these were redeemed from among men; "by Jesus", as the Syriac and Arabic
versions add, and so the Complutensian edition; by the blood of Christ, for all
men are not redeemed by it; and in consequence ofthis they were called, and
delivered from this present evil world, and the men of it, and from a vain,
wicked, and idolatrous conversationwith it:
being the firstfruits unto God, and to the Lamb; in allusion to the firstfruits
under the law, which representedand sanctifiedthe lump, and showedthat
harvest was coming; so these persons are called the firstfruits to God, and to
the Lamb, being calledby grace, andconsecratedto their worship and service,
with reference to the harvest of souls, or that large number of them which will
be gathered in during the spiritual reign of Christ, which these persons will be
at the beginning of; and as those who are first called and converted in a
country or nation are said to be the firstfruits of it, Romans 16:5; so these
being the first, in the period of time to which respectis had, bear this name;
and as the convertedJews receivedthe firstfruits of the Spirit, on the day of
Pentecost, and at other times, so these will receive the firstfruits of the far
greaterpouring forth of the Spirit in the latter day, which will begin, and
usher in the kingdom of Christ; see Romans 8:23.
(n) Vid. Lydii Dissert. de Jurament. c. 2. p. 258.
Geneva Study Bible
And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb {1} stoodon the mount Sion, and with him {2}
an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's {3} name written in
their foreheads.
(1) The history of the Church of Christ being finished for more than a 1300
years at which time Boniface the eighth lived as has been said: there remains
the restof the history of the conflicting or militant church, from there to the

time of the lastvictory in three chapters. For first of all, as the foundation of
the whole history, is described the standing of the Lamb with his army and
retinue in five verses, afterhis worthy acts which he has done and yet does in
most mighty manner, while he overthrows Antichrist with the spirit of his
mouth, in the rest of this chapter and in the two following. To the description
of the Lamb, are propounded three things: his situation, place and
attendance:for the rest are expounded in the former visions, especiallyin the
fifth chapter.
(2) Prepared to do his office see Ac 7:56, in the midst of the church, which
mount Zion pictured before.
(3) This retinue of the Lamb is described first by divine mark
(as before in) Re 7:2 in this verse. Then by divine occupation, in that every one
in his retinue most earnestlyand sweetlyRe 14:2 glorify the Lamb with a
specialsong before God and his electangels. Fleshand blood cannothear this
song, nor understand, Re 14:3. Lastly by their deeds done before, and their
sanctificationin that they were virgins, pure from spiritual and bodily
fornication, that is, from impiety and unrighteousness. Theyfollowedthe
Lamb as a guide to all goodness, cleavedto him and are holy to him, as by
grace redeemedby him. In truth and simplicity of Christ they have exercised
all these things, sanctimony of life, the guidance of the Lamb, a thankful
remembrance of redemption by him and finally (to conclude in a word) they
are blameless before the Lord, Re 14:4,5.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Meyer's NT Commentary
Revelation14:4-5. John describes the one hundred and forty-four thousand as
a selectnumber surpassing all other believers in moral perfection. The
understanding of this description depends principally upon the proper
arrangementand framing of the individual expressions. At the beginning and
at the close two specialpoints stand (Revelation14:4 : οὑτοι εἰσιν οῖ μετὰ
γυναικῶνοὐκ ἐμολύνθησαν;Revelation14:5 : καὶ ἐν τῷ στόματι αὐτῶνοὐχ
εὑρέθη ψεῦδος);here, where the subject pertains to the past earthly life of
those who have died, the aor. necessarilystands. In both casesthe conclusion
is by formulæ framed precisely in like manner (Revelation14:4 : παρθένοι
γάρ εἰσιν; Revelation14:5 : ἄμωμοι γάρεἰσιν); but here, where an advance is
made from the definite actualpreservationof the deceased, to their proper
nature and permanent condition, the present necessarilyoccurs. Betweenthe
two double-membered sentences, in the beginning and at the close, there are
besides two sentences, whichare thereby exhibited as independent of one

another and the beginning and closing sentences, in that they both commence
with the specialdesignationofthe subject (οὖτοι), and that the first expresses
something present(οὖτ. εἰσιν οἱ ἀκολ.), but the secondsomething past,
completed in the earthly life (οὖτ. ἠγοράσθησαν, cf. Revelation14:3).
Hofmann[3445]is the first expositorwho keeps in view the disposition of
Revelation14:4-5;but he misjudges it by regarding the παρθένοι γάρ εἰσιν as
immediately attractedto the succeeding words. The disposition attempted
now also by Ew. ii., whereby three members appear (1. οὐτοί εἰσ., κ.τ.λ.;2.
οὖτ. εἰσ., κ.τ.λ.;3. καὶ ἐν τ. στόμ., κ.τ.λ.), is in violation of the context.
οἱ μετὰ γυναικῶνοὑκ ἐμολύνθησαν. According to Leviticus 15:18, the sexual
union in itself, even that in wedlock, was regardedas defiling.[3446]
ΠΑΡΘΈΝΟΙ. This predicate was not seldom ascribedalso to men.[3447]In
order to avoid the thoughts forcedfrom the word, and not seldom made the
best of by Catholic interpreters in the sense of monastic asceticism,[3448] it is
regardedeither directly as figurative,[3449]andreferring to spiritual purity,
especiallyto abstaining from the worship of idols,[3450]or, if we abide by the
proper sense ofthe words, to sexualpurity, as an example of all virtues.[3451]
Hofm. attempts to remove the difficulty by saying that the declarationis
concerning believers of the last time,[3452]to whom celibacywill become a
moral necessity, becauseofthe specialcircumstances ofthose times. But
nothing is said here concerning Christians of that time. The expedient of
Bleek[3453]and De Wette, who regard it as referring to abstinence from all
lewdness, as it was ordinarily combined with the worship of idols, is forbidden
by the expressionμετὰ τ. γυναικῶν, which is altogethergeneral.
Nothing else seems to remain than with Augustine,[3454]Jerome,[3455]Beda,
Andr., to explain it in the proper sense, and to acknowledge the idea, to which
also other points in the text lead,[3456]that entire abstinence from all sexual
intercourse belongs to the distinguished holiness of that one hundred and
forty-four thousand,[3457]because ofwhich they enjoy also distinguished
blessedness. [See Note LXXV., p. 404.]This is declaredby the words
immediately following: οὖτοι εἰσιν οἱ ἀκολουθοῦντες τῷ ἀρνίῳ ὅπου ἂν
ὑπάγει. There is generallyfound here a description of the obedience of
believers who follow the Lamb even to the cross and to death;[3458] but
because ofthe present tense, which here expressesthe presentcondition,—
while the holy manifestationin the earthly life is designatedby the aor.,—

there can be meant only a descriptionof the blessedreward which those who
have died are enjoying[3459]withthe Lamb.[3460]It is meant that
everywhere whither the Lamb goes, there that chosenone hundred and forty-
four thousand accompanyhim; whether it be that a certainspace in heaven
remain inaccessible to other saints, or that the latter do not form the constant
retinue of the Lamb, at leastnot in the same way as the former.
ΟὙΤΟΙ ἨΓΟΡΆΣΘΗΣΑΝ Ἀ̓ΠῸ ΤῶΝ ἈΝΘΡΏΠΩΝ ἈΠΑΡΧῊ Τῷ Θ.,
Κ.Τ.Λ. What applies to all the redeemed, viz., that they have been bought unto
God by the blood of the Lamb, from among men, of the earth (Revelation
14:3), or from all nations and kindreds (Revelation5:9), applies in an eminent
sense to the one hundred and forty-four thousand: they are bought as an
ἈΠΑΡΧΉ. They appear, therefore, not as the selectfirst fruits from the entire
world,[3461]but from believers, or, at any rate, from the blessed. The
correlate to the ἀπαρχή is afforded by the context: τῶν ἠγορασμένων. As such
selectfirst fruits the one hundred and forty-four thousand appear, with
respectboth to their peculiar holiness (παρθένοι), and also their peculiar
blessedness(ἀκολ. τ. ἀρν., κ.τ.λ.).
Besides distinguishedvirginity, in Revelation14:5 another peculiar perfection
is mentioned, which that multitude had manifested in their earthly life
(εὑρέθη, aor.);viz., perfect truthfulness never clouded by a lie. The expression
ψεῦδος[3462]is to be takenin its generalsense, and not to be limited to the
lies of idolatry,[3463]heresy, or denial of Christ.[3464]A contrastis easily
conceivable to the sphere of falsehoodin which the seducing false
prophet[3465]moves, with the worshippers of the beast accepting his
lies.[3466]Cf. also, in Revelation9:21, in an enumeration of the characteristic
sins of the inhabitants of the earth, the juxtaposition of πορνεία and
κλέμματα.[3467]
ἄμωμοι γάρεἰσιν. The conclusionwhich stands especiallyin analogous
relation to the immediately preceding specialpoint, as the παρθ. γ. εἰσ.,
Revelation14:4, to the immediately preceding clause,[3468]is, nevertheless,
because ofthe comprehensive meaning of the predicate ἄμωμοι,[3469]
especiallysuitable for rounding the entire description (Revelation14:4-5).
[3445]Schriftbew, II. 2, p. 392.

[3446]On the expressionἐμολυνθ., cf. Isaiah59:3; 1 Corinthians 8:7; 2
Corinthians 7:1.
[3447]Cf. Fabricius, Cod. apocr. Vet. Test., II., pp. 92, 98 (where Josephis
calledan ἀνήρ παρθένος); Kypke, Observ. sacr. adh. l. (παρθένοννἰα from
Nonnus, on John 19:26); Suidas, see on Αβελ.
[3448]N. de Lyra, Stern.
[3449]Cf. 2 Corinthians 11:2.
[3450]Victorin., Zeger, Coccejus, Grot., Vitr., Wolf; cf. also Züll.
[3451]Eichh., Beng., Hengstenb., who says that sexual intercourse, as legally
defiling, is a figurative designationof sinful defilement in general.
[3452]Cf. also C. a Lap.
[3453]Beitr., p. 185.
[3454]De s. virg., c. 27. Opp. Antw., 1701, T. VI., p. 258.
[3455]Adv. Jovin., I. c. 40. Opp. Franeof, 1684, T. II., p. 34.
[3456]See above.
[3457]So also Neander, p. 543, who, from this mode of contemplation,
properly recognizes a mark that the writer of the Apoc. is not identical with
the EvangelistJohn.—Ifthe expositionabove given be acknowledged, it must
also be maintained (againstEw. ii.) that the view, which, to the writer of the
Apoc., is fundamental, of the impurity of all sexual intercourse, is significantly
distinguished from what is said in Matthew 19:11 sqq., 1 Corinthians 7:32; 1

Corinthians 7:34, since here, under the express presumption that sexual
intercourse in marriage is an ordinance which is divine, and by no means in
itself impure, it is assertedthat certaincircumstances canmake a complete
abstinence from marriage possible and necessary. Possiblythe too far-
reaching statement of the writer of the Apocalypse is occasionedby the fact
that he wishes to emphasize in the highest degree the contrastwith the
worshippers of the beast, i.e., the Gentiles, with their sexual abominations.
[3458]Cf. Matthew 10:38. Coccej., Grot., Vitr., Wolf, who recallthe factthat
the soldiers were accustomedto swear:ἀκολουθεῖντοῖς στρατηγοῖς ὅποι ποτʼ
ἅν ἅγωσιν [“to follow the generals whithersoeverthey would go”]. Beng., De
Wette, Hengstenb., Ebrard, Ew. ii.
[3459]Cf. Revelation7:17.
[3460]Augustine, l. c., but he is not consistent;Andr., Züll., Stern.
[3461]AgainstDe Wette, Hengstenb., who improperly appealto Jam1:18,
where the express designationἀπαρχ. τῶν αὐτοῦ κτισμάτωνis given; cf. also
Jeremiah2:3.
[3462]Cf. Revelation21:27.
[3463]Grot.:“They did not invoke the gods, which are not gods;” Beng.
[3464]Cf. Hengstenb.
[3465]Revelation13:14.
[3466]Cf. Ewald, Ebrard.
[3467]Cf., besides, 1 Thessalonians 4:4 sq., and Revelation14:6.

[3468]See above.
[3469]Cf. Ephesians 1:4;
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
4. for they are virgins] The first instance of the use of the word as a masculine.
It was adopted in ecclesiasticallanguage, andapplied e.g. to St John himself.
It is best to understand the word literally. St Matthew 19:12; 1 Corinthians 7
prove, on any fair interpretation, that a devout and unselfish celibacygives
specialmeans for serving God, and so we need not be surprised to learn here
that it has a specialrewardfrom Him. No disparagementof holy matrimony
is implied. Marriage is loweredby the Fall from what God meant it to be
(Genesis 3:16), and so, like other things which God made very good, has its
own evils and dangers;but it does not follow that it is here conceivedas in any
sense defilement—they who are virgins à fortiori are “not defiled with
women.” It is noticeable that we owe to the two celibate apostles the highest
consecrationof marriage, see Ephesians 5:23-33,and the last two chapters of
this Book.
being the firstfruits] This seems to imply, as is required by the view that
“virgins” strictly speaking are meant, that the 144,000 do not representthe
whole number of the Elect, but a speciallysanctifiednumber from among
them. See on Revelation7:4.
Pulpit Commentary
Verse 4. - These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are
virgins. There is little doubt that these words are intended in a spiritual sense.
In the Old Testamentthe employment of the figure of adultery and
fornication to denote spiritual unfaithfulness is common (cf. 2 Chronicles
21:11;Jeremiah 3:9, etc.). St. John elsewhere in the Apocalypse makes use of
the same symbolism (cf. Revelation2:20," Thatwoman Jezebel, which calleth
herself a prophetess, to teachand to seduce my servants to commit
fornication, and to eatthings sacrificedunto idols;" also Revelation17:5, 6).
Similarly, also, St. John pictures the faithful Church as the bride adorned for
her Husband the Lamb (Revelation19:7, 8). So also St. Paul(2 Corinthians
11:2), "I espousedyou as a chaste virgin to one Husband, Christ." Παρθένοι,
"virgins," is a word equally applicable to men or women. This verse,
therefore, seems to describe those who are free from spiritual impurity and
unfaithfulness; those who have not worshipped the beast and his image.

Alford, however, thinks the words should be understood literally. These are
they which follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth. These words describe the
greatsource of the bliss of the redeemed, viz. that they are continually in the
presence ofChrist. This is their rewardfor following him on earth; but the
words must not be taken as referring to the earthly course of the saints (as
Bengel, De Wette, Hengstenberg, and others). These were redeemedfrom
among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb; these were
purchased from among men, the firstfruits unto God and unto the Lamb.
Some have erroneouslyconcluded that a reference is made to a portion of the
redeemedto whom specialhonour is conceded;or to some who attain to glory
before the rest. The firstfruits were the best of their kind (Numbers 18:12),
selectedfrom the rest, and consecratedto the service ofGod. So the redeemed
are the best of their kind; they who have proved themselves faithful to God,
who voluntarily separatedthemselves from the world, and consecrated
themselves to the service ofGod while in the world, and who are thus
afterwards separatedby him and consecratedto his service forever.
Vincent's Word Studies
Were not defiled (οὐκ ἐμολύνθησαν)
The verb means properly to besmearor besmirch, and is never used in a good
sense, as μιαίνειν(John 18:28; Jde 1:8), which in classicalGreekis sometimes
applied to staining with color. See on 1 Peter1:4.
Virgins (παρθένοι)
Either celibate or living in chastity whether in married or single life. See 1
Corinthians 7:1-7, 1 Corinthians 7:29; 2 Corinthians 11:2.
First-fruits (ἀπαρχὴ)
See on James 1:18.
PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
BRUCE HURT MD
Revelation14:4
not defiled with women

Defiled is Ἐμολύνθησαν[Emolynthēsan]: “Causing something to be dirty soil,
smear, stain; metaphorically, as keeping the life spotless.”22The same word
describes those in the church at Sardis who “had not defiled their garments”
(Rev. 3:4‣ ). Their faithful service of the Lamb was exemplary and motivated
by their consuming obedience to His will, because they “follow the Lamb
whereverHe goes.”This does not indicate that they were sinless, for they are
among those needing redemption. This verse does not negate the divine
institution and blessing upon married sexualrelations for “marriage is
honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers
God will judge” (Heb. 13:4). Perhaps these minister at a time when the
institution of marriage has all but fallen by the wayside (not inconceivable if
present trends continue) and relations with womenare almostexclusively
outside of the bounds of marriage in their time? Theirs is a time characterized
by fornication (Rev. 9:21‣ ), perhaps pagan rites of old are flourishing once
again, but on a globalbasis:
We have more than once, in the Epistles to the Assemblies, and on Revelation
9:20‣ , 21‣ , saidthat Fornicationwill be part of the greatreligious system of
Anti-Christ in the coming time of trouble and temptation; as it formed an
obligatory part of the greatpagan systems of idolatry. Idolatry was not a mere
sin into which people gradually sunk; but it was a Satanic device into which
people rose in order to gratify the lusts of the flesh under the cloak of
religion.23
The worship of Antichrist during the Tribulation will be unspeakablyvile and
perverse. As it did in the fertility cults of ancient times, sexual sin will
apparently run rampant. Even in the current grosslyimmoral day, we can
hardly imagine what the deviant sexual perversionof the Tribulation will be
like. With all divine restraint removed (2Th. 2:6-7) and the unbelieving world
judgmentally abandonedby God (cf. Rom. 1:24, 26, 28), sin will be released
like a flood, inundating the world.24
But in the fearful days of abandonment “as in the days of Noah”—whenlust
and violence will again fill the whole earth (as we see beginning now!) how
wonderful to behold this company of 144,000who have chosento be entirely
separatedunto the Lamb and unto His Father, and who are thus, despite the
days!25
In their complete dedicationto the service of the Lamb, they voluntarily chose
to forgo relations with womenin order to focus completely on their unique
God-given task during the Tribulation.
they are virgins

These are physical virgins, for why else would it be said of this particular
group of saints that they are virgins? All the saints are virgins in the spiritual
sense ofbeing setaside and dedicatedto God. “I have betrothed you to one
husband, that I may presentyou as a chaste virgin to Christ” (2Cor. 11:2).
Jesus explained, “there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother’s
womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are
eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s
sake. He who is able to acceptit, let him acceptit” (Mat. 19:12) “Notonly is
there virgin purity of life, but there is also virgin love—undivided heart
affectionfor the Lamb.”26 These are eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s
sake. Byboth choice and gifting, they were enabled to give their full focus to
ministry at the time of the end.
Do not deprive one another exceptwith consentfor a time, that you may give
yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come togetheragainso that Satan does
not tempt you because ofyour lack of self-control. But I say this as a
concession, notas a commandment. For I wish that all men were even as I
myself. But eachone has his own gift from God, one in this manner and
another in that. . . . But as God has distributed to eachone, as the Lord has
calledeachone, so let him walk. And so I ordain in all the churches. . . . But I
want you to be without care. He who is unmarried cares for the things of the
Lord—how he may please the Lord. (1Cor. 7:5-7, 17, 32)
who follow the Lamb wherever He goes
This speaks oftheir complete obedience to do the will of the Lamb. In the
same way that the Lamb followedthe Father (John 4:34), so these followed
the Lamb. Those who fully follow God are blessed. Joshua and Calebwere
allowedinto the Promised Land because they followedGod fully (Num.
14:24). A scribe claimed he would follow Jesus “whereverYou go,” but there
is always a costto such discipleship (Mat. 8:19-22;Luke 9:57-62). Those who
would know and serve the Mastermust first of all be followers, “My sheep
hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:27). “If
anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am there My servant will
be also” (John 12:26).
These are among the rest of the woman’s offspring who kept the commands of
God. See commentaryon Revelation12:17. If this scene is in heaven (see
commentary on Revelation14:1), then their obedience had ultimately cost

them their lives. Unlike Peter, they had not denied their Lord, but had
followedthe Lamb even through the portal of death and into eternal life:
Simon Petersaid to Him, “Lord, where are You going?” Jesus answeredhim,
“Where I am going you cannot follow Me now, but you shall follow Me
afterward.” Petersaid to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will
lay down my life for Your sake.”Jesus answeredhim, “Will you lay down
your life for My sake?Mostassuredly, I say to you, the roostershall not crow
till you have denied Me three times.” (John 13:36-38)
These were redeemed
ἠγοράσθησαν[ēgorasthēsan]:“Literally buy, purchase, do business in the
marketplace”27 (1Cor. 6:20;Eph. 1:14). The purchase price was the Lamb’s
blood (Acts 20:28; Rev. 1:5‣ ; 5:9‣ ; 12:11‣ ). See commentary on Revelation
1:5.
firstfruits
Ἀπαρχὴ [Aparchē]: “In Mosaic ceremoniallaw, a technical term for the first
portion of grain and fruit harvests and flocks offeredto God . . . figuratively,
of persons as the first of a setor categoryfirst: as the first converts in an area
(Rom. 16.5).”28 The firstfruits was the first portion of a harvestwhich was
dedicatedto God. It demonstrated the priority which was given to God
because the first of that which had been long awaitedwas bypassedby the
harvesterand given to God (Lev. 23:10-14). By honoring God with one’s
firstfruits, the resulting blessing would provide a greateryield. The nation of
Israelis said to be the firstfruits of God’s increase which would eventually
include multitudes of redeemedGentiles (Jer. 2:3). James indicated that the
early church was “a kind of firstfruits of His creatures” (Jas. 1:18). In the
time since, the harvest has spreadto multitudes around the world. Here, after
the Church Age and the fullness of the Gentiles has come in (Rom. 11:25),
these representthe firstfruits of the spiritual awakening ofIsrael in
preparation for the Millennial Kingdom to follow (Eze. 37).29
For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest
you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened
to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israelwill be
saved, as it is written: “The Delivererwill come out of Zion, and He will turn
awayungodliness from Jacob.” (Rom. 11:25-26)
They may also be consideredfirstfruits from the perspective of their unique
preservationthrough the Tribulation enabling them to contribute to the initial
Jewishpopulation which enters the Millennial Kingdom in their natural
bodies and subsequently populates the kingdom (Isa. 65:20, 23).

These sealedJews[Rev. 7:4-8‣ ]are those who come to faith in Jesus as
Messiahduring the Tribulation period. They are further describedas “first
fruits unto God and to the Lamb” (Rev. 14:4‣ ), indicating that they compose
the first stage of a final harvest of Jewishsouls to be gatheredlater at the
Lord’s coming in glory. . . . These comprise the “remnant” of Jews “who keep
the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ” (Rev.
12:17‣ b).30
See commentary on Revelation7:4, Revelation11:13, and Revelation20:4.
3.14.5 -Revelation14:5
in their mouth
Scripture implicates the mouth as the organwhich speaks forththe heart:
“Broodof vipers! How canyou, being evil, speak goodthings? Forout of the
abundance of the heart the mouth speaks”(Mat. 12:34);“These people draw
near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is
far from Me” (Mat. 15:8); “But those things which proceedout of the mouth
come from the heart, and they defile a man” (Mat. 15:18);“Forwith the heart
one believes unto righteousness,and with the mouth confessionis made unto
salvation” (Rom. 10:10). The tendency of the tongue toward evil, and the
immense difficulty with which it is harnessedis a frequent theme of
Scripture.31
These are standing upon Mount Zion, God’s holy hill:
LORD, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy hill?
He who walks uprightly, and works righteousness, andspeaks the truth in his
heart; He who does not backbite with his tongue, nor does evil to his neighbor,
nor does he take up a reproach againsthis friend. (Ps. 15:1-3) [emphasis
added]
May their obedient and dedicatedstate before the Lamb be ever before us as
motivation in our walk during the present age!
was found no deceit
Their mouths are to be contrastedwith the blasphemous mouth of the Beast.
See commentary on Revelation13:5. Unlike the masses upon the earth at the
time of their ministry, they do not mouth the lie (2Th. 2:11). Their mouths are
like that of wisdom and of the Lamb:
Listen, for I will speak of excellentthings, and from the opening of my lips will
come right things; for my mouth will speak truth; wickednessis an

abomination to my lips. All the words of my mouth are with righteousness;
nothing crookedorperverse is in them. (Pr. 8:6-8)
And they made His grave with the wicked-Butwith the rich at His death,
because He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth. (Isa. 53:9)
They are firstfruits in at leasttwo ways: they are the first among many
redeemedJews during the Tribulation and they are the first among a purified
Israelwhich will result from the time of Jacob’s Trouble:
I will leave in your midst a meek and humble people, and they shall trust in
the name of the LORD. The remnant of Israelshall do no unrighteousness
and speak no lies, nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth; for
they shall feed their flocks and lie down, and no one shall make them afraid.
(Zep. 3:12-13)
They represent the early stages ofthe glorious promise made to Israelas part
of her New Covenant:
But this is the covenantthat I will make with the house of Israel after those
days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their
hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall
every man teachhis neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the
LORD,’ for they all shall know Me, from the leastof them to the greatestof
them, says the LORD. ForI will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will
remember no more. (Jer. 31:33-34)
without fault
Ἄμωμοι [Amōmoi], used “ofthe absence ofdefects in sacrificialanimals,”32
spotless. Applied to these, it denotes being blameless.33“Inthe Septuagint,
amōmos is used as an ethicalterm and consistentlyrefers to the holy behavior
of the faithful (Ps. 119:1;Pr. 11:5) and, on occasion, is even applied as a title
of honor to God himself (Ps. 18:30). . . . Christ was amōmos because there was
no spot or blemish in him. Thus he could ask:‘Which of you convicts Me of
sin?’ (John 8:46).”34 As exemplary as their conduct has been during their
ministry, this speaksofsomething far beyond what they themselves were able
to exhibit.
before the throne of God
This phrase does not appear in the NU or MT texts, but only in the TR text. It
may have been added in an attempt to equate the 144,000with those who sing
before the throne, the living creatures, and the elders (Rev. 14:3‣ ). However,
the singers may be the harpists. See commentary on Revelation14:1.

The phrase “without fault before the throne of God” canbe seenin terms of a
heavenly scale ofperfection. On one end is fault. On the other end is God.
How can these two be found together? Only because the central mechanism of
the scale is the cross of Christ, the “tree of life!” Having been redeemedand
washedby His blood (Rev. 1:5‣ ), they stand clothed in the perfectionof the
Son before the Father. All their sins are castbehind them (Isa. 38:17) and they
are without spot or wrinkle (Eph. 5:27). They are holy and blameless in His
sight (Col. 1:22). They are “faultless before the presence ofGod” (Jude 1:24).
CHRIS BENFIELD
A Glorious Victory Celebration(Message# 32)
Revelation14:1-5
We have spent severalweeksstudying the dark, disturbing passagesthat
have dealt with Satan, the Antichrist, the False Prophet, and the mark of the
Beast. We have seenhow the world will be deceivedand commit them-selves
to the worship of Satan. Tonight we come to a passageofhope amidst the
darkness as we see the 144,000 aroundthe throne.
The Bible must deal with the deceitof Satan and the depravity of man, but
that isn’t its central theme. The Bible is the HIM Book;Jesus is the theme and
focus of the Bible. Among the tragedies and wickednessofa sin cursedworld
blooms the Lilly of the Valley, the Rose ofSharon. Once againwe find a scene
of rejoicing and triumph in the midst of greatTribulation. We are dealing
with literal future events, but we can draw encouragementfrom the pages of
Revelation. Our world is dark, but we are not without hope! Let’s take some
time to rejoice as we consider: A Glorious Victory Celebration.
I. The Identification of the 144,000(1) – And 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. We 1stencounteredthese men in
Chp.7:3-4. They were sealedof Godto carry the gospelof Christ to those who
would receive Him during the Tribulation.
 We have now come to the end of their ministry. They have kept the faith and
finished the course, finally being martyred by the Antichrist, and now their

faith has ended in sight. There are a couple of things we need to consider
concerning them.
A. Their Association(1a) – Keep in mind that the vast majority of mankind
has bought into the lies of Satanand have chosento follow Antichrist and
receive his mark. They have aligned themselves with the counterfeit of Christ.
These on the other hand, have given themselves to the Lord and His work. At
the end of life they are found standing with the Lamb. All of the suffering and
hardship they’ve facedhas ended and they have been receivedby the Lamb of
God.
 What hope that gives to every child of God! There is much that we must
endure in this life. We are often ridiculed and rejectedbecause ofour
associationwith the Lord, but there is coming a day when we shall be
welcomedinto that heavenly city. The trials of this life won’t evenbegin to
compare with the glory that we shall behold. Rom.8:18 – For I reckonthat the
sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be comparedwith the glory
which shall be revealedin us. All the mockery, tragedy, and suffering ended
with the wonderful privilege of standing with the One they had endured so
much to see. We will also see Him as He is.
B. Their Assurance (1b) – The world had given in to acceptthe mark of the
Beast. Theyare now identified with Satanand will spend eternity with him in
torments. These have found a much different destiny. They were sealedwith
God the Father’s name written in their foreheads. Theywere identified as
belonging to the Lord.
 As they stand before the host of heaven, His name still remains. Satanhas
marked those who belong to him and God has sealedthe 144,000 withHis
name. They had put their faith in the Lord and He hadn’t failed them. There
were 144,000 thatwere sent out to preach the gospeland here we find 144,000,
all present and accountedfor, standing before the Lord. There had not been a
one of them lost during the Tribulation; there wasn’t a one of them that God
could not keep.
 That ought to make you rejoice tonight. We will not endure the Tribulation,
but we have that same assurance. Ifyou have been savedtonight, you are
secure in the Lord. He hasn’t lost a one who has come to Him and He isn’t
about to lose you! Jn.10:28-29 – And I give unto them eternallife; and they

shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My
Father, which gave them me, is greaterthan all; and no man is able to pluck
them out of my Father's hand. Satan may not like it, but we are safe and
secure in the hands of our blessedLord! We are gonna’ make it!
I. The Identification of the 144,000(1)
II. The Celebrationof the 144,000 – As the faithful of God find themselves in
the land of their dreams, a greatcelebrationbegins. Let me saythat heaven
will not be a place of sorrow and depression;it won’t be a gloomy place where
hearts are heavy, loaded with care. Heavenwill resound with the rejoicing
and praise of God’s people. Notice this celebration. It is:
A. An Unending Celebration – We find in V.1 that these have been ushered
into Mount Sion. In the Bible Zion always refers to the city of Jerusalem.
There is a difference in opinion as to where these men actually are. Some
believe that the text is referring to Jerusalemin the time of the Millennial
Reign. Others believe that this is referring to the New Jerusalem, the heavenly
city. This seems to be what the text supports. They are found before the
throne among the four beasts and the elders.
 Consider the joy that these now have found. They have endured the famines,
the droughts, the persecution, and death while preaching to a lostworld. They
have spent their time witnessing the entire world rejectGod and follow the
Antichrist. Theirs was not an easyexistence. Butnow all of that is a distant
memory; they have been delivered to worship the Lord they were faithful to
for all of eternity.
 That sounds like my kind of place, a celebrationthat I look forward to
experiencing. I rejoice in the fact that this world is not all there is. We have
the promise of a home in heaven where we’ll have the privilege of worshipping
our blessedLord throughout eternity!
B. A United Choir (2) – And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many
waters, and as the voice of a greatthunder: and I heard the voice of harpers
harping with their harps: These sing the song of the redeemed, praising the
Lamb who delivered and purchased their redemption.

 John described a voice, (singular) as the sound of many waters, the sound of
greatthunder. Imagine the scene that we shall behold, 144,000servants of
God will lift their voices in praise to the Redeemer in perfectharmony. We
can’t begin to imagine the beauty of heaven’s sights and sounds. There will be
no sweetersound than the redeemed singing praises to God.
C. An Unknown Chorus (3) – And they sung as it were a new song before the
throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn
that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed
from the earth. They will sing a new song that no man can sing but these
144,000.It will be a song that is unique unto them. They alone have endured
these trials; they alone will know the words to this glorious song. The church
will be able to enjoy this wonderful chorus, but we won’t be able to sing it
with them.
 We maybe can’t sing that song, but every child of God has a song to sing!
Ps.40:2-3. Ihave a song within my heart for the Lord. I know what it is to be
brought out of the miry clay of sin. I know what it is to have been placed upon
the Rock ofmy salvation. I know what it is to feel His presence nearme. That
certainly puts a song in my heart!
 We are really the only ones who have a song in our day. There are many
who earn large sums of money as music artists, but they can’t sing our song.
Our song is sung from the heart to the glory of our Redeemer!
I. The Identification of the 144,000(1)
II. The Celebrationof the 144,000
III. The Presentationofthe 144,000 (4-5)– There will be many saints that
receive greatrewards in heaven. Consider the crowns of Abraham, Moses,
David, the prophets, and the apostles. Greatwill be the rewards of many, but
these will receive a great rewardas well. These have stoodthe test during the
difficulties of Tribulation and emergedvictorious. As they are presentedto
God Himself, there characteris revealed. May their stand serve as a challenge
to us today! Notice:

A. Their Spiritual Purity (4a) – These are they which were not defiled with
women; for they are virgins. The word defiled means “polluted, stained, or
contaminated.” They have kept themselves pure of the defilement of sin
through fornication. There is much sexual perversion in the world today and
it will be rampant in the Tribulation. These have kept their lives pure before
God.
 There is more than what we see on the surface to their purity. Spiritually
they are pure before the Lord. They haven’t defiled themselves with the
seductive greatwhore of Tribulation. They have kept themselves committed to
the bridegroom who purchasedthem.
 I know our world is filled with perversion, but we as God’s people must
keepourselves pure, physically and spiritually. Young people keepyourselves
pure. Christian keepyourselves pure from seductionand this world’s religion.
We are the bride of Christ and should behave as such!
B. Their SacrificialPersistence(4b) – These were wholly surrendered to the
ways of God, they which follow the Lamb withersoeverhe goeth. They would
not compromise the truth due to the pressures they faced. They were
consistentin serving the Lord and going at His command. Their lives were
lived entirely for the Lord, come what may. The persistence ofthese has
spokento my heart. They servedGod in the midst of greatTribulation.
 We often find it hard to serve Him in a Christian environment. We have
fellow believers and the church to lean on. God expects us to live committed to
Him and His purpose for our lives. The word follow means to be in the same
way as someone else. We are to live our lives as Jesus did.
C. Their Symbolic Prophecy (4c) – These were redeemedfrom among men,
being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. In the OT days of sacrifice,
the people brought what was known as a “wave offering.” Theywould bring
the first sheaves ofgrain from the new harvest into the Temple, waving it
before the Lord as a testimony to the harvest that would follow. These men
were calledto carry the gospelmessage. Theyhave been faithful to the task
and are receiving their reward, but their work hasn’t ceasedto exist. There
will be countless more that will be saved because oftheir labor in the harvest.

 This ought to encourage us to continue in the harvest. You might think you
have been of little value, that your life hasn’t been very fruitful. Listen it isn’t
our job to save them; we are calledto scatterthe seed. I’m sure it will be
amazing to see the harvest that has been produced from seemingly
insignificant lives. Just keepsowing the gospelseed!
D. Their Sanctified Position(5) – And in their mouth was found no guile: for
they are without fault before the throne of God. These have been examined as
they stand before God. They are without fault. There is no guile found in their
mouths. Guile literally means “a decoyor a deceitful image.” It has the idea
of “one who isn’t what he appears.” Theseare not decoys;they are not
counterfeits;these are the “realdeal.” They have professedthe name of Christ
and have been found worthy!
 This dark, sinful world needs to see men who have no guile. They need to see
the genuine article. We need not be found as hypocrites. Our lives ought to
reflectwhat we proclaim. We need to be people of character, living in private
the same as we do in public.
 The fact is this world knows who we are. We have a personalrelationship
with Christ and the world needs to see and recognize our faithfulness to Him.
Anyone can talk the talk; let’s walk the walk!
I hope you have been encouragedand challengedby these verses. The one
thing that kept coming to my mind is that a Christian’s life is never lived in
vain. You may not always enjoy the trip, but God is keeping a record. We
have a precious opportunity to live life to the fullest for Jesus. Are you
satisfiedwith your life as it is? If not, come and seek the Lord.
ALAN CARR
Revelation14:1-5
AFTER THE STORMS HAVE PASSED

Intro: If you have been studying along with us as we have moved through this
amazing book, you know that the last two chapters have been dark,
depressing and discouraging. We have been talking about the devil, the
Antichrist and the False Prophet. We have witnessedthe depths of depravity
as man abandons his Creatorto worship the devil through his false Christ.
Now, the scene changes!Chapter 14 is like a glorious rainbow after and
fierce storm. God takes the brush of His grace and repaints the landscape of
the Revelation. He gives us a breath of heavenly air in these verses. Only God
can do that! Only God can take that which is horrible beyond words and turn
it into a thing of glory. That is just what He does in these verses.
In this passagewe are allowedto get a little glimpse of heavenly glory. We
are allowedto see the Lamb of God. He is the theme of the book and He is
centerstage in these verses. It would be a blessing if we could figure out how
to keepJesus at the center of everything we do in our lives as individuals and
in the life of the church.
In these verses we meet again the 144,000Jewishevangelistswho were
selectedand sealedin chapter 7. These men have preachedthe Gospelof the
Kingdom during the darkestdays of the Tribulation. They were persecutedby
the Antichrist, but they were preserved by God. At some point during the
Tribulation, when they have servedtheir purpose, God will allow the 144,000
to be killed by Antichrist. These men will then join their Redeemer, the Lamb
of God, in His glory in Heaven.
That is the scene we are going to investigate today. These men have
weathereda terrible storm here on the earth. Now, for them at least, the
storm is over and they are home with the Lamb. I want to show you the facts
revealedin these verses concerning the 144,000. Iwant to preachon the
though After The Storms Have Passed.
I. v. 1 THEY ARE A RESCUED ARMY
A. They Are ProtectedBy God – When we first met this group of men, it was
in Rev. 7:3-4. There the Bible says, “Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the
sea, nor the trees, till we have sealedthe servants of our God in their
foreheads. And I heard the number of them which were sealed:and there
were sealedan hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the
children of Israel.”
These men have been sealedby God and have been protectedby Him
through the darkestdays of the Tribulation. Hundreds of millions, perhaps

even billions of people have die, but these men have been protected through it
all because they have been sealedby God. The earth will be stainedred with
the blood of holy martyrs, but these men will be protected through it all!
Satanwill hunt them and harass them, but he will be powerless to kill them
because they have been sealedby God. They have His Name in their foreheads
and they are untouchable! Satanmarked His people and they are headed to
Hell, GodsealedHis servants and they are bound for glory!
(Note:I would just remind you that Satanmarks his people, Rev. 13:16. In the
Tribulation he will mark them with the Mark of the Beast. Today, he marks
their bodies, their hearts and their minds with the scars oftheir sins. Satan
marks all those who follow him.
God, on the other hand, seals His people. He places His sealupon them
and labels them as His Own possession, Titus 2:14; 2 Cor. 1:22; Eph. 1:13;
4:30. The Spirit of God took up residence in our hearts and He sealedHimself
in and He sealedSatanout!)
B. They Are PreservedBy God – When these men arrive on Mount Zion
there are just as many there were when they were sealedback in chapter 7.
God sealed144,000andnow 144,000standwith the Lamb in glory. There are
not 143,999;there are 144,000.He brought in just as many as He calledout!
(Note:The same is true for all of God’s saints!According to His Word, we
have been “sealedunto the day of redemption”, Eph. 4:30. We are also told
that Jesus will not lose a single on of those given to Him by His Father, John
6:37-40. Those who are saved are as sure for Heaven as if they were already
there, Rom. 8:28-30;Eph. 2:6. Jesus gives eternallife and eternalsecurity to
every single personwho trusts Him for their salvation.
When the roll is calledin glory, not a single person will be missing. When
the family gathers for the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, there will not be an
empty seatat the table! God will bring ALL His children home!)
C. They Are PresentedTo God – We are t old that these men meet the Lamb
on “Mt. Zion”. This is an ancient name for the city of Jerusalem, 2 Sam. 5:7;
Psalm48:2. Jerusalemis referred to as Mount Zion at least21 times in the
Word of God.

Some commentators believe that John is referring to the earthly city of
Jerusalem. Theythink we are seeing a vision of the coming Millennium, when
Jesus will rule on the earth for 1,000 years.
I just happen to believe that we are seeing a heavenly scene!These men
have served their time. They have fulfilled their mission and they have been
brought in the presence ofthe Almighty. Verse 3 talks about heavenly singing.
Verse 5 shows them standing before the throne of God in glory. These men
have been rescuedout of a world gone mad and they are home in the presence
of the Fatherand the Lamb of God.
(Note:I praise the Lord that there is a better place waiting on the people
of God! If this world was Heavenas some groups claim, I would want it. No,
there is a better place waiting on the children of God when we leave this
world! Jesus told us a little bit about it, John 14:1-3. John told us a lot about
it, Rev. 21-22. My mind has tried to think about that place. But, one day, these
eyes will see its glory! These feetwill walk its endless streets. These earswill
hear the sweetsongs ofZion and they will hear the sweetestsound to ever fall
upon them. They will hear the Savior say, “Enter thou in to the joy of thy
Lord!” Praise God!One day, we are going home!)
I. They Are A RescuedArmy
II. v. 2-3 THEY ARE A REJOICING ARMY
A. v. 2 A New Setting – These men have been rescuedfrom the terrors of the
Tribulation. They have witnesseddeath and destruction on an unprecedented
level. They have watchedthe world turn its back on Godand embrace the
devil as their new god. They have seenthis world fall at the feet of the
Antichrist and worship him as god. They have seenthings more horrible than
anything you and I could ever imagine. But, this verse finds them home, in
Heaven, in the presence of the Lord Jesus. Theyare home! And Heaven is
filled with the sounds of their worship and their praises. Heaven is filled with
joy because ofthe presence of the Lamb.
(Note:What a contrastthere is betweenthis world and Heaven. This world is
a world filled with pain sorrow and tears;none of those things will be allowed
over there, Rev. 21:4. This world is marred by disease and death; they will not
be found over there. This world is in the grip of sin and Satan; both will be

banned in Heaven, Rev. 21:28. This world is perishing; that world will endure
for all eternity!
They are rejoicing in Heaven today. We will join them one day soon!One
day, we will take our last steps in this wicked, harsh world. We will leave here
and we will fly away to be with the One Who died for us on Calvary’s cross.
We will see the One Who took loved in spite of our sins. We will see Jesus and
the will be Heaven! We are headed to a city, and one day we will be home!)
B. v. 3 A New Song – The 144,000 are overcome withjoy because they are in
the presence ofGod and the Lamb. They are overwhelmed and they burst into
song. They sing a song that is unique to them. It is a new song and no one is
qualified to sing it but them! The word “learn” means “to understand”. No
one canunderstand their song because no one has had their experiences.
(Note:A new song is mentioned some seven times in the Old Testament. It is
always used as a means to praise the Lord for some great, amazing thing He
has done, Ill. Psa. 98:1.
Ill. There was a day when the Lord savedmy soul. When He did, He
placed a “new song” within my heart! The only songs my soul knew were the
songs ofthe world. All my soul knew were the laments and dirges of a life of
sin and sorrow. But, when He savedme, He gave me a brand new song, Psa.
40:1-3. If you are saved, you know what I am talking about!
I went down that day singing the song of the broken hearted lostsinner. I
came up singing “Amazing grace, how sweetthe sound, that saved a wretch
like me. I once was lostbut now I’m found, was blind but now I see.” Since
that glorious day, God has been adding verses to my song of praise! That day,
I knew that He had saved me and that was about all. Now, I can sing of His
faithfulness, His blessings, His glory, His goodness, His grace, His presence,
and His provisions. I cansing because He has changedmy life and given me a
new song. He has given me a song that is as unique as I am. If you are saved,
He has done the same for you!
I can’t put every word of my song into verse down here, but when I get
home to glory, I will sing the new, new song with glory in my soul. I will have
the vocabularyand the means with which to praise Him in glory!
While I may not be able to sing the whole song now, I do want to lift my
voice ad share the parts I can put into words. I want to praise Him for saving
my soul! He is worthy of our love and praise!)

I. They Are A RescuedArmy
II. They Are a Rejoicing Army
III. v. 4-5 THEY ARE A REDEEMED ARMY
(Ill. These 144,000are a specialgroup of people. They representthe choicest
of God’s servants down through the ages.There have been many men and
women who have made their mark for Jesus, but these men stand a little taller
than the rest.
These next two verses describe these men. What the Bible says about them
should be true of every saint of God. These men have not even been savedyet,
but their dedicationto the Lord Jesus alreadyserves as a model for every
believer.)
A. v. 4a TheyAre Spotless – We are told that these men have maintained
their physical purity. They have not fallen prey to the sins of the flesh that will
mark the lastdays.
Beyond that, they have not succumbed to the spiritual fornication that will
run rampant in the world during the Tribulation days. The world will go after
the “greatwhore”, Rev. 14:8;Rev. 17:1, but these men will state separated
and holy during an apostate age.
(Note:God expects the same from His children in all ages. His command is for
us to stayseparate from this wickedworld, 2 Cor. 6:17. We are to hate “even
the garment spottedby the flesh”, Jude 23.)
B. v. 4b They Are Surrendered – These 144,000preachers hadfollowed the
Lord Jesus whereverHe lad them. They did not turn back through fear. They
did not turn awayfrom their task, even though it was dangerous and costly.
They stayed the course. They followedthe Lamb. The word “follow” means
“to be in the same way as”. These menwalkedin the ways of the Lord. They
made His way their way and they stayed the course for the glory of God.
(Note:Again, this is just what God expects from eachone of us. He saved us to
walk in His will and to follow His ways. He wants us to be obedient,
surrendered followers. He wants us to make His way our way! Of course, this

means that we have to see things the wayHe sees them and do things the way
He does them, Ill. Amos 3:3. The Lord wants us to follow Him whereverHe
leads us with no regrets, no refusals and no reservation. He is looking for
obedient servants!)
(Ill. William Borden was born into wealthas an heir to the Bordendairy
fortune, but he soonrecognizedtrue wealth was to be found in a different
inheritance—being a child of Godand an heir with Christ. Bordenlived a
short but high-impact life. He graduatedhigh schoolat age 16 and quickly
decided to become a missionary after seeing the globalneed for Christ on a
trip through Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. He memorialized this
decisionby writing “no reserves” inthe back of his Bible.
After revolutionizing the campus of Yale University by starting a weekly
prayer and Bible study group attended by three-fourths of the student body,
Borden could have started his careerwith any corporationhe desired. Rather,
he stood firm in his decisionto become a missionary and enrolled at Princeton
Seminary. Once again, he made a recordof his decisionin the back of his
Bible: “no retreats” was his entry.
After finishing Princeton Seminary, Borden studied Arabic in Egypt to reach
Muslims in China. He died from spinal meningitis shortly thereafter. Though
he never reachedhis intended mission field, Borden impacted many people
during his life. The last entry in the back of his Bible was “no regrets.”
God wants all of His children to live lives of greatimpact, and He gave us the
example of William Borden as inspiration.
No reserves—Sacrificeyourself, Rom. 12:1. Offer your entire being (body,
mind, and soul) to God as a living sacrifice. Allow Him to use you as He
desires, and discoverHis perfectwill for your life.
No retreats—PressonPhil. 3:14. After totally surrendering to God, you will
face distraction and discouragementthat will make you want to revoke your
sacrifice and not follow God’s will. Stay focusedon God and rely on His
resurrectionpower to reachforward for what lies ahead.
No regrets—Finishthe course 2 Tim. 4:7. Offering yourself unreservedly and
unrelentingly requires greatfaith. But God honors your faith, and He will
help you fight the goodfight so that you can live without regrets and hear Him
say: “Welldone, thou goodand faithful servant”, Matt. 25:21.[1])

C. v 4c They Are Symbolic – These 144,000 were chosen, savedand sealedat
the beginning of the Tribulation. They went out and preached the Gospelto
the ends of the earth.
Just as the first sheaves ofgrain were takeninto the Temple and waved
before the Lord as a symbol of the harvest that was to follow, these men are
symbolic of all those who will be savedthrough their ministry, Lev. 23:10-11.
They were the first, and they were the guarantee ofmore to follow!(Ill. Rev.
7:9-17.)
I cannot imagine how hard the ministry of these men is going to be. It is
hard in these days, but it will be far harder then. What a comfort it is to know
that God is going to use them to reap a vast harvest of souls during the
Tribulation. Only in Heaven will they know the impact of their ministry.
(Note:By the way, the same is true of us! We will not know until we arrive
home in glory just how the Lord has used our lives. Therefore, letis staythe
course for His glory and allow Him to use us when and where He sees fit. Until
He calls us home, may we “do the will of God from the heart”, Eph. 6:6.)
D. v. 5 They Are Sanctified – These men stand in the presence ofGod
complete and perfect. The Bible says that there was no “guile” found in them.
The word “guile” means “deceit”. The word was used to speak ofsomething
that was “a decoy”. Something that gave the appearance of being real but
wasn’t. These men claimedto be the servants of Almighty God and their walk
matched their words. They were not fakes;they were the real deal!
The word “fault” means “blemish”. These men had no flaws in their lives that
could be pointed out by men. Now, even in the presence of God, they are
declaredfaultless by Him!
(Note:Again, there is a word here for saints living in this day and age. Like
the 144,000our walk is to match our words. We should live out before men
what we claim to be before God, 1 John 2:6. We should live lives that are
without blemish so that we might stand in His presence with confidence one
day, 1 John 2:28.
You and I are faulty at best. We all fail and fall short of the glory of God
down here. There is coming a day when this evil flesh will drop awayforever
and we will stand perfect and without fault in His presence!What a day that
will be!)

ALAN CARR
Rev. 14:1-5 WITH THE LAMB ON MOUNT ZION
Intro: After the turmoil and death of chapter thirteen, we need something
like this to
encourage andrefresh our hearts. Only God canfollow a black storm with a
beautiful
rainbow! Only God can take somehting so black and dark and make it turn
out all
right. He does this in our lives daily, and He will do it in the tribulation also.
Ill. The
blessednessofthe Lamb! He is THE theme of the Book! Ill. Here we see
againthe
144,000 ofchapter7. What can be said about these men can be applied to
every true
believer in Jesus. Let's gleanfrom the Book.
I. v.1 A HEAVENLY COMPANY (Ill. Mt. Zion in Jerusalem,
the

king's residence. It also stands as a type of Heaven.)
A. Divinely Protected- (Ill. The protectionof the 144,000 -13:15; Ill The
killing
of Antichrist's enemies, but not the 144,000 - 7:3. They are God's
Untouchables!
(Ill. the Christian is immortal until God is through with him, Ill. No
waepons -
Isa. 54:17)
B. Divinely Preserved- Ill. 144,000sealedand 144,000takenhome, not
143,999!
(Ill. Eternal Security!) (Ill. Business and Loss)(Ill. Not the perseverance
of the
saints, it is the Preservationofthe Savior! - John 17:12;1 Pet. 1:5!) (Ill.
All who
get savedgo home!) (Ill. Roll CallIn Glory!)
II. v.2-3 A HAPPY COMPANY(Ill. v.2 - Heaven's Orchestra is
playing the overature.) (Ill. Happiness and singing in Heaven!) (We need to be
happy and sing to the Lord down here! - Psa. 100:1-5!) (Ill. People who will
not

sing!) (Ill. Crows and Nightingales!)
A. A New Song - A fresh song - A song no one else cansing. (Ill. Everyone
has a
song, a testimony a praise that is unique to them! It is up to use to make
use of
very opportunity to use them for the glory of God!)
III. v.4-5 A HOLY COMPANY(All these should be true of us!)
A. v.4a They Ae Detached - (Ill. Sins of trib.) (Ill. Seperation - 2 Cor. 6:17)
B. v.4b They Are Dedicated - They followedJesus and did all He wanted!
(Ill.
John 14:15; 21) (Ill. Some areas where we need to be dedicatedto the
Lord!)
C. v.4c They Are Devoted - The Firstfruits are the guarantee of a full
harvest!
D. v.5a They Are Dependable - Jesus cantrust the holy - Luke 16:10
E. v.5b They Are Displayed - No Fault at all! (Ill. Fault now, but no
charges in
Heaven - Col. 2:13-14) (Ill. Believers are faultless - Jude 24) (Ill. God's

inability to remember forgiven sin - GLORY!!)
THE ONE HUNDRED FORTY-FOUR THOUSAND ON MOUNT ZION
Dr. W. A. Criswell
Revelation14:1-5
12-16-62 10:50 a.m.
Now we turn to chapter14. On the radio you are listening to the services of
the First BaptistChurch in Dallas, and this is the pastorbringing the eleven
o’clock morning messageentitled The One Hundred Forty-four Thousand on
Mount Zion. In our preaching through the Bible after these many years, we
have come to the last and climactic book, the Apocalypse. And in our
preaching through the Revelation, lastSunday we closedwith the thirteenth
chapter, and today we begin with chapter 14. And the message this morning
is an expositionof the first five verses of Revelation14:
And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stoodon Mount Zion, and with Him a hundred
forty and four thousand, having His Father’s name written in their foreheads.
And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the
voice of a greatthunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their
harps:
And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four
living creatures, and before the elders: and no man could learn that song but
the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemedand
purchased from the earth.
These were they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins.
These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoeverHe goeth. These were
redeemedfrom among men, being the first fruits unto God and to the Lamb.
And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are blameless—Period.
[Revelation14:1-4]

A scribe added that last clause, “And in their mouth was found no guile: for
they are without fault, they are blameless” [Revelation14:5]. Now this
beautiful vision is inserted in the goodnessofGod, as so often in the
Apocalypse when terrible, and tragic, and dark, and black days are
delineated, almost always there will follow immediately a vision of a light and
a glory and the peace and the hope and the beauty of God. And it is so in this
vision of chapter14 containing this glorious scene with the Lamb on Mount
Zion and the one hundred forty-four thousand [Revelation14:1]. That
chapter immediately follows chapter 13, which describes the incomparable
and sickening horror of the beast[Revelation13:1-10, 11-18]. Chapters 12
and 13 delineate the malice of Satanand the rage of the evil one who is cast
down to the earth [Revelation12:3-13:18]. And in chapter13 is described
those two terrible monsters who are God’s symbols of the ministers of Satan,
that ultimate and final Antichrist [Revelation13:1-10], and the false prophet
[Revelation13:11-18], who delude and deceive the people of the earth and lead
them into damnation and perdition.
And this beautiful chapter immediately follows the horror of those darkening
days. It is the same kind of a thing as after a storm and the rage of the
tempest is over, then in the quiet and in the beauty and the calm, God over-
arches the heavens with the rainbow of promise. The clouds have emptied
themselves and break. The storm and the raging tempest has spent itself, and
the thunders no longer roar, and the lightning no longer flashes. And beyond
and back of the cloud, break the beautiful rays of a goldenlight.
That is this situation here in the Revelation[Revelation13:1-18]. Forin those
dark, terrible, and trying times, the Lord says:“Forthe elect’s sake, those
days are going to be shortened. Theycannot last” [Matthew 24:22]. God
would not permit it. And before the time of the destruction of those two
terrible monstrous instruments of Satan[Revelation1:1-8], the detail of their
destruction describedin Revelation17 and 18 [Revelation17:8-18:24], before
the time, God gives us this beautiful picture of Mount Zion and the Lamb of
God, the King of Israel and of the nations of the earth and of glory and of all
forever; the Lamb on Mount Zion and these one hundred forty-four thousand
faithful who stand before Him and sing a new song in the land of a new and
glorious beginning again[Revelation14:1-3].
You see chapter14 is nothing but the other side of chapter 13. They are
contemporaneous in history. These things all happened together, and 14 is
but the counterpart of 13. One side is the dark description of the beast and of
Satan[Revelation13:1-7] and of the judgment of God upon those who

worship his image [Revelation13:10]. And at the same time, incongruent, is
this beautiful scene ofthese glorious ones who serve Godand Him alone
[Revelation14:1-5].
In chapter 13 is the beast[Revelation13:1-8].
In chapter 14 is the Lamb, gentle and precious on Mt. Zion [Revelation14:1].
In chapter 13 is the spurious and the counterfeit and the false [Revelation
13:5-6].
And in chapter 14 is the real and the genuine and the lovely [Revelation14:2-
5].
Chapter 13 is the mark of the beast[Revelation13:16-17].
And chapter 14 is the mark of the children of God [Revelation14:1].
In chapter 13 is the worship and idolatry and the corruption of the earth
[Revelation13:5-7].
And in chapter 14 is the worship of the true Lamb of God and their
disassociationfrom the corruption of the earth [Revelation14:5].
In chapter [14] are these that go with the beast and the idolaters down into
damnation and perdition [Revelation14:5].
And in chapter 14 are these who are redeemedfrom the earth [Revelation
14:3].
In chapter 13 those that follow the beastin all of his ways [Revelation13:7-8].
And in chapter 14 these who follow the Lamb whithersoeverHe goeth
[Revelation14:4].
In chapter 13, the number of the beast, 666, sixhundred threescore and six
[Revelation13:18].
And in chapter 14, the one hundred forty-four thousand [Revelation14:1].
The fullness and the plenitude and the glory of the grace and beauty of God.
The two, side by side.
Now who are these one hundred forty-four thousand who stand with the
Lamb on Mt. Zion? Well, there are some who say the one hundred forty-four
thousand are no other than a symbol of all of the sanctifiedhosts of God
through all generations and all times. That, they say, the one hundred forty-
four thousand is the greatand ultimate and final gathering togetherof the
congregationof the Lord, and this symbolizes that congregation. Thenthere

are those who saythe one hundred forty-four thousand representthose
preeminent Christians. Above the common, ordinary Christians, these are the
remarkable and the unique testifiers, and witnesses, andpreachers, and
servants, and missionaries, andevangelists ofGod. And you can continue that
on and on almostwithout end. As many interpreters as there are, so there are
those many identifications of the one hundred forty-four thousand.
Now, what your pastordoes this morning is following the text here to see if,
reading in the Book, we canfind the identification of these one hundred forty-
four thousand who sing a new song with the Lamb on Mt. Zion. All right,
let’s look at the text. First of all, I notice here that these one hundred forty-
four thousand sing their new song in the presence ofthe elders [Revelation
14:3]. So, there is a difference betweenthe elders, whoeverthey represent,
and the one thousand forty-four thousand, for they are together. And in the
presence ofthe elders, this one hundred forty-four thousand is worshiping
God and singing their new and remarkable song [Revelation14:3].
All right, a secondthing in the text; just the number themselves is remarkable
and unique. “I saw and behold, a Lamb stood on Mount Zion, and with Him
an hundred forty and four thousand” [Revelation14:1]. Now that’s not the
first time I have met this throng or at leastthat number. And it is so unique
and it’s so remarkable and it’s so separate, that I would suppose that the one
hundred forty-four thousand I have been introduced to in the seventh chapter
of the Book ofthe Revelation[Revelation7:4], is the same as the one hundred
forty-four thousand I meet here in the chapter14 [Revelation14:1], for they
are introduced here just as though I had met them before. And there’s no
thing about them to separate them as being distinct from the one hundred
forty-four thousand that I have met here before in the Revelation[Revelation
7:4]. And the number is so unusual, and the whole situation is so remarkable,
that I would suppose they are the same. So when I turn back to the seventh
chapter of the Book ofthe Revelation, I see there that before the greatstorm
broke and the terrible tribulation began, the Lord God said to the four angels
that held the four greatjudgments that were to fall upon this earth, those
greatmighty winds of the judging of God, before those four angels let loose
those winds, the Lord said from heaven, “Wait, wait, until you sealthe
servants, the ministers of God in their foreheads [Revelation7:1-3]. And I
heard the number of those that were sealed, and there were sealeda hundred
and forty and four thousand; twelve thousand from the tribe of Judah, twelve
thousand from the tribe of Reuben, twelve thousand from the tribe of Gad, of
Asher, of Simeon, all of the way through: twelve thousand sealedfrom eachof

the twelve tribes of Israel, making up the one hundred forty-four thousand
[Revelation7:4-8].
Another thing I noticed here as I read in the Apocalypse, all of these people,
these separate groups, are togetherin the same vision. Here are the elders
[Revelation7:11], and here are the one hundred forty-four thousand sealedby
God [Revelation7:4]. And here, and this is the passageI had you read this
morning for this purpose, and here in the same vision, at the same time, are
the greatthrongs of the Gentiles, who stoodbefore God and the Lamb,
clothed with white robes, out of every nation and kindred and people and
tongue under the sun [Revelation7:9-14]. And they are all there together.
Here are the elders, and here is the one hundred forty-four thousand
[Revelation7:4], and here are the greatmultitude of the Gentiles who are
coming out of the greattribulation with their robes washedwhite in the blood
of the Lamb, and here are the four living creatures, allof them are there
together[Revelation7:1-14].
Now for me, to identify all of those as being the same thing, makes the vision a
jumbled, impossible, unacceptable revelation. It doesn’thave any meaning at
all. If the elders representthe church, and the one hundred forty-four
thousand represent the church, and the greatmultitudes coming out of the
greattribulation representthe church, and if the cherubim representthe
church, and the temple represents the church, and the author represents the
church, and the angels representthe church; if that is what it is, then it is
impossible to me to understand why God sets these things in such contrastand
in such difference and describes them as being different.
So, seeking to find what God means by these marvelous revelations, to me,
this is a very simple explanation. First of all, the elders, they are twenty-four
in number [Revelation4:4]; they representthe resurrected, glorified saints of
God, the twelve of the patriarchs, the twelve of the apostles, andthere they are
before God [Revelation4:10]. Just like the beautiful city of Jerusalem, it had
twelve gates. And eachone of those gates represents one of the twelve
patriarchs, the twelve tribes of Israel[Revelation21:12]. And it has twelve
foundations, and eachone of those foundations, the Apocalypse says,
represents the name of an apostle [Revelation21:14]. It represents the old
and the new, all of the saints of God—the old dispensation, the old
government, the old era, savedby looking to the cross [Psalm130:8]; and the
new dispensation, the new era, the age of grace in which we live, looking back
to the cross [Ephesians 1:7]. The elders representall of the savedof God, the
twelve of the old, the twelve of the new, the twenty-four—the four and twenty
elders in the presence of the Lord [Revelation7:11; 11:16].

Then, the great multitude coming out of every nation and language and tribe
are those who have been won to Christ by these one hundred forty-four
thousand sealedmessengers ofGod [Revelation7:4, 9-10]. There never has
been nor will there everbe againany revival meeting like is coming to pass in
those dark days, when men lay down their lives as martyrs, just in the
confessionofChrist, for “the blood of the martyrs is the seedof the church”
[Tertullian]. And in those days of terrible and dark and indescribable
martyrdom and blood and sickening horror, we’re going to have our greatest
and incomparable revival. And it is going to be led by these messengers of
God, sealedby the Holy Spirit of the Lord, the one hundred forty-four
thousand [Revelation7:4-8]; a select, elect, separate,unique, remarkable
group who pour out, in those dark and terrible days, their testimony to the
saving grace ofthe blessedLord Jesus [Revelation7:9-17].
Then I read another thing about them. It says here that these are the first
fruits unto God and to the Lamb [Revelation14:4]. “The first fruits”—now I
must pause there because the elders, after Christ, represent the first fruits.
And they are already in heaven. They have already been translated. The
Lord has already come to them, and they have been resurrectedand glorified,
and the elders sit there in the presence ofGod on their throne, gold-crowned,
victorious! [Revelation4:4]. After Christ, “Christ, the first fruits: and
afterward, they that are Christ’s at His coming” [1 Corinthians 15:23]—these
are representedby the elders. Yet these also are called the first fruits unto
God and the Lamb [Revelation14:4].
Then I can see. Theseare the first fruits unto God of this new beginning, of
this new era, of this new time, of this new period, after the translation of the
church [1 Thessalonians 4:16-17], afterthe rapture of the people of God [John
14:3] representedby the elders, gold-crownedand enthroned in heaven
[Revelation4:4], then comes these dark and terrible days of the judgment of
God! [Revelation7:2-3]. And before those dark days begin, God said, “First
sealout for Me this one hundred forty-four thousand” [Revelation7:2-4].
And they are the first, calledhere the “first fruits unto God and unto the
Lamb” [Revelation14:3-4]. And then after that, he saw the greatmultitude of
the Gentiles that no man could number coming out of that dark tribulation,
having their robes washedand made white in the blood of the Lamb
[Revelation7:9-14].
So these are the first fruits unto God of the new beginning, of the time after
the days of the Gentiles, when our present history has run its course, and
when the church service is done, and the age of grace is past[2 Thessalonians
2:7]; and God has taken His people out of the earth, and we are raptured and

translated [1 Thessalonians 4:14-17];and in a moment, in a twinkling of an
eye, we see Godas Jesus is Himself, made like Him [1 Corinthians 15:52].
When that day is past, then comes this greatand final and ultimate day, which
is described here in the Apocalypse, in the unveiling, in the days of the
judgment of God and the final and ultimate appearing of Christ at the battle
of Armageddon, when Godintervenes in humanity [Revelation16:15-16,
19:11-21]. In that period and in that day, these are the first fruits unto God
[Revelation14:4].
You have adumbrations of that many times here in the Bible. Forexample, in
the first Corinthians letter and in the fifteenth chapter, Paul, is describing our
blessedLord Jesus, crucified, buried, and the third day raised for our
justification [1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Romans 4:25]; then he says, “He appeared
to Cephas, then to the twelve, then to about five hundred brethren at once,
then to James, then to all of the apostles, andlast of all He was seenof me.”
He appeared unto me, hōspereitō ektrōmati.” What an unusual phrase!
“And last of all He appearedto me, as to one out of an abortion, before the
time for me to be born, as an abortion as of one born out of due time” [1
Corinthians 15:5-8]. What does that mean? Paulis referring to the factthat
there is coming a time when our Lord will appearto His brethren, to Israel,
for: “There shall come the Delivererout of Mount Zion,” and ungodliness
shall be turned awayfrom Israel, from Jacob, and so all Israelwill be saved
[Romans 11:26]. “And a nation will be born in a day” [Isaiah 66:8]. And
Israel,” according to the prophet Zechariah, “shalllook upon Him whom they
have pierced” [Zechariah 12:10]. And they will mourn and repent and receive
their Lord Christ and Messiahand be saved;“And so all Israelshall be
saved” [Romans 11:26], as Paul says. But before that time, which is at the end
of this tribulation period [Matthew 24:30], before that time, Paul says:“He
appearedto me as one in an abortion. Before the time, before that greatand
ultimate hour, He appeared unto me” [1 Corinthians 15:8].
These are those days, and these are those of a new era and a new dispensation,
when God shall deal with apostate and unbelieving Israel[Romans 11:26],
and when God shall take up the promises He has made to Abraham, to Isaac,
and to Jacob[Genesis 15:18-21, 26:3, 28:13], and when God shall win back to
Himself His brethren [Romans 11:26], just like He appearedto James and to
Josephand to Jude and to Simeon [1 Corinthians 15:7]. And before He went
back to heaven [Acts 1:9-10], the first time after His crucifixion [Matthew
27:30-50], He wonHis brethren to Himself [Acts 1:14]. He is going to do that
for Israelsome of these days [Romans 11:26]. Now, there is a veil over their
hearts. And when they read Moses andwhen they read the Prophets, they

don’t see Jesus, andthey don’t accepttheir Messiah. There’s a veil over their
hearts [2 Corinthians 3:15], but somedaythat veil is going to be takenaway[2
Corinthians 3:16], and the Lord is going to appear to Israelthemselves, and
they are going to be saved, and they are going to accepttheir Lord [Romans
11:26]. And these are the first fruits of that new dispensation, of that new day
and that new era [Revelation14:4]. This is the mercy and the grace and the
goodness ofGodto the lost sheepof the house of Israel[Matthew 10:6, 15:24].
Then another thing about them, it says: “I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stoodon
Mount Zion, and with Him a hundred and forty and four thousand”
[Revelation14:1]. Mount Zion. What is Mount Zion? Ah, just to name it,
just to name it is to callto mind the almost innumerable promises of God that
on Mount Zion His King shall reign Lord forever and ever and ever. I do not
know of a more rewarding reading of the Word of Godthan just take a
commentary and look up all of the passagesonMount Zion. I haven’t time
but just to refer to a few of them. One of the greatand messianic psalms of
the hymnal is Psalmnumber 2. The nations of the earth, the nations of the
earth, they say, “Let us break God’s bands, and castHis cords away” [Psalm
2:3]. But He that sits in the heavens has spokenand said, “I have setMy King
upon My holy hill of Zion” [Psalm 2:6]. Listen to the decaying nations of the
earth. “I will give Him the heathen for an inheritance, and the uttermost
parts of the earth for a possessionas He reigns on Mount Zion” [Psalm 2:8].
Then, of course, this glorious anthem that they have just sung:
Greatis the Lord, and greatlyto be praised . . . Beautiful for situation, the joy
of the whole earth, is Mount Zion . . . God is known in her palaces . . . As we
have heard, so we have seenin the city of the Lord of hosts in the city of our
God: God will establishit forever . . . Let Mount Zion rejoice, and the
daughters of Judah be glad . . . Walk about Zion, go around her. Look over
her towers, mark her bulwarks, considerher palaces;that ye may tell it to
generationfollowing. For this Godis our God forever and ever; and He will
guide us and keepus even unto death.
[Psalm 48:1-14]
Another like beautiful psalm is Psalm132:
The Lord hath swornin truth unto David; He will not turn from it; Of the
fruit of thy body will I setupon thy throne, thy throne . . .
For the Lord hath chosenZion; He hath desired it for His habitation.

This is My restforever: and here will I dwell; for I have desiredit . . .
There will I make the horn of David to bud: I have ordained a lamp for Mine
anointed—in Mount Zion!
[Psalm 132:11-17]
And this beautiful and incomparable passage inIsaiah which describes the
millennial earth with its capital in Mount Zion:
And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s
house shall be establishedin the top of the mountains, and all nations shall
flow unto it.
And people shall say, Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord… and
He will teachus His ways… for out of Zion shall go forth… the word of the
Lord and from Jerusalem.
And He shall judge among the nations, and… they shall beat their swords into
plowshares, andtheir spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword
againstnation, neither shall they learn war any more.
O, house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord.
[Isaiah 2:2-5]
This is that Mount Zion. It was the capital city of David. It was the home of
the royal palace and king. And it was the place chosenof God that there
should He reign forever and ever [Psalm132:13-14]. And this is a scene in
that heavenly and millennial day when the Lord Christ shall reign from
Mount Zion [Micah4:2; Zechariah 14:9]; and this is the reward of the one
hundred forty-four thousand when their task is finished and their assignment
is done; in chapter 7 therefore, you have the one hundred forty-four thousand
in their ministry in the earth [Revelation7:4-17]. This is what they are doing
in the earth: they are preaching the gospel;they are calling men to
repentance and faith, and men will by millions and the thousands are coming
out of those greatand dark days of the tribulation, having washedtheir robes
and made them white in the blood of the Lamb [Revelation7:14].
There the one hundred forty-four thousand are seenin their work in the earth
[Revelation7:4, 9-14]. Here in the fourteenth chapter of the Revelation, the
one hundred forty-four thousand are seenon Mount Zion [Romans 14:1].
Their task is finished, their work is done, and they are being rewardedby the
Lord God for their devotion and for their faithfulness [Revelation7:4-17].

Now, looking at the passagein the little time that remains, let us see some
marks and characteristicsofthese unusual preachers of Christ, the one
hundred forty-four thousand. Firstof all, in a day when it was death to have
the mark of God, for confessionis made unto salvation[Romans 10:10], in the
day when these men were confessing Christas their Lord, in that day, these
have the name of their Father, of our God, written in their foreheads
[Revelation14:1], and they are preserved from martyrdom and death by the
Spirit of God[Revelation14:1-3]. Any man is like that that preaches the
gospelof the Son of God. His life is invincible and infallible until his task is
done! He may be flying through the air in a plane; or he may be going down
the Amazon river on a boat; or he may be crossing the ocean;or he may be
out where the vile and vicious enemies of Christ assailhim on every hand; if
he’s in the will of God and if he’s doing the work of God, until his task is
finished, his life is invulnerable and invincible—so with these one hundred
forty-four thousand.
All right, another thing about them; I read in the seventh chapter of the
Revelationwhere God seals one hundred forty-four thousand [Revelation
7:4]. And here at the end, when they finish their ministries and they are
numbered before God, there’s not one hundred thirty-nine thousand, nine
hundred and ninety-nine! There are still one hundred forty-four thousand
[Revelation14:1]. Nota one is lost. Not one. Notone is lost! As Christ said:
“I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish” [John 10:28].
And as the Lord says in the high priestly prayer in the seventeenthchapter of
the Book ofJohn: “Of all those Thou hast given Me, there is not one lost,
exceptthe son of perdition; that the Scriptures might be fulfilled” [John
17:12]. When our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life [Revelation
20:12, 15, 21:27], they are there forever—foreverand forever! And when a
man is saved, he is savedforever. He’s kept by the powerof God forever and
ever and ever [1 Peter1:5]; one hundred forty-four thousand, God sealedat
the beginning of this terrible tribulation [Revelation7:4, 13-14], and when the
roll was calledup there in heavenand they assembledon Mount Zion to
receive their rewardof their faithfulness, there were one hundred forty-four
thousand there in the presence of the Lord God [Revelation14:1]. Nota one
had been lost. Not one! Not one! And the man who puts his destiny and his
life and his soul in the hands of God is savedforever and ever [John 10:27-30].
For when the roll is called up there, you’ll be there. God will see you through.
That is the guarding, keeping care of the Almighty.
Another thing about them I read; they sang a new song that nobody else in the
earth could sing [Revelation14:3]. That is, they have a separate ministry.

They are unique. That’s foolish for all of us to try to be alike in our separate
ministries. God doesn’t want us alike. He didn’t even want our noses alike.
He didn’t even want our ears alike. He didn’t want anything alike. God likes
differences. Godlikes ramification. He doesn’t even make two leaves alike.
He doesn’t even make two snowflakesalike. And that’s the way with God in
His ministry. God calls me to be a preacher. And Godcalls Lee Roy to be a
singer. And God calls Mrs. Cox to be a Minister of Education. God calls Mel
here to be a minister, a pastoralminister, a shepherd of the sheepand an
assistantpastorto help us in the work. And God calls Deanover here to be a
business administrator. And God calls you. And God calls other people. And
for all of us to do God’s work in our place is to glorify the Lord. And for us to
be jealous of one another or for us to be envious of one another, and for us not
to be happy where God has placed us, why, it is impossible.
Once in a while I meet a girl who wishes she was a boy. She’s crazy. She’s
crazy. BecauseI’ve been a boy! I don’t know whether I ever wished I was a
girl or not, but that’s life! The Lord made us these different ways. And let’s
exalt in it. If you are a businessman, be a marvelous businessman for God! If
you are an organist, be a marvelous organistfor God. If you are going to be a
teacher, be a greatteacherfor God. If you are going to be a physician, be a
marvelous physician for the Lord. God made us in these different ways, and
these were a unique ministry unto the Lord. Nobody could sing that song but
the one hundred forty-four thousand [Revelation14:3].
That doesn’t mean anybody else was denied. Look at them. These elders are
there [Revelation14:3]. Now, I know from that that there are degrees in
heaven, just like there are degrees in the angelic orders. There are some
angels that are archangels. And there are some that are seraphim. And there
are some that are cherubim. And there are some that are judgment angels.
And I don’t know how many orders God has in heaven. But I know there are
greatorders in heaven. And that’s the way it is going to be when we get up
there. These elders are crowned, and they are enthroned, and they are seated
[Revelation4:4]. These one hundred forty-four thousand are not crowned,
and they are not seated[Revelation14:1]. There are different orders. And I
don’t know what the one hundred forty-four thousand are, they are not
exalted like the elders are [Revelation4:4], like you’re going to be [2 Timothy
2:12]. But there are different administrations, and there are different
governments, and there are different orders in heaven. And just like it is
down here, we differ here in this earth. We’re going to differ up there in
glory. You are going to be you with your reward and your assignment, and
I’m going to be me with my rewardand my assignment[1 Corinthians 3:11-

15; 2 Corinthians 5:10]. That’s what heaven is like. They’re going to be like
that.
Then it says here that these are virgins, and they “follow the Lamb
whithersoeverHe goeth, redeemed out of the earth” [Revelation14:4]. Now a
lot of people think that means they never were married. Well, that has
nothing to do with it whatsoever. Forexample, over here in the eleventh
chapter of the secondCorinthians letter, the secondverse, Paulsays to the
church at Corinth: “I have espousedyou to Christ that I may present you as a
chaste virgin to our Lord” [2 Corinthians 11:2]. Now does that mean that all
of those folks there in the church in Corinth were unmarried? All the men
were bachelors and all of the women were maids, young maids? Now,
wouldn’t that be a fix now? What in earth would you do for the generations
that were following, as Psalm 48 says? [Psalm48:13].
Why, it is impossible. I know what He means. It says here that church is
going to be presentedto Christ as a chaste virgin! [2 Corinthians 11:2]. And
when it describes these men over here as virgins [Revelation14:4], it refers to
the factthat they separatedthemselves from the pollutions and the
corruptions of the earth! [Revelation14:4]. They didn’t like it. Where they
were carousing, and rioting, and drunkenness, and blaspheming, and orgying,
they separatedthemselves from the corruptions of the earth. They were
virgins unto God [Revelation14:4]. They had given themselves in a pure
devotion unto the Lord.
And it says “in their mouth was no guile: for they are without fault”
[Revelation14:5]. That’s the same thing as when Jesus lookedupon
Nathanael. “Look,”says Jesus, whenPhilip brought him to the Lord.
“Look,” says Jesus, “look, anIsraelite in whom is no guile!” [John 1:47].
That’s God’s people. That’s the Lord’s people. You don’t have to have a
Christian put his hand on the Bible and swearthat what he said is true. No!
If he’s a man of God and if he’s a true Christian, if he tells you something,
that’s the way it is. That’s the way it is. His word is better than his bond.
You don’t have to have him sign when he says that’s what it is. “An Israelite
in whom is no guile.” And “in their mouth is no guile” [Revelation14:5];
God’s people, single-hearted, simple, plain, humble. We have to close. Ah,
these things that the Lord presents to us of the glory of His children that are
yet to come!
Now while we sing our song of appeal, somebodyyou give his heart to the
Lord this day, “Today, preacher, I want to give my heart to Jesus, andhere I
come. I’m hiding my life with Him. I’m trusting Him as my Saviorand here I
am. I don’t have any strength in myself, but He has strength for us both.

May not have all of the answers in myself, but He knows enough for us both. I
may not know all of the way, but He sees the end from the beginning. And
I’m trusting Him and here I come.” Or a family you to put your life with us
in the church, “Pastor, this is my wife and these are our precious children.
We are all coming today. Here we are.”
I can’t say the word. The Spirit of the Lord must do that. If the Lord bids
you here, trust Him enough, trust Him enough to come. “I gotbattles to fight.
He will help us. I gota war to win. He will be there to see us through. I’m
giving Him the destiny of my soul and the foreverthat is to come, both now
and then. Here I am, preacher, I’ve given you my hand. I’ve given my heart
to the Lord.” Would you do it? Would you do it now? Coming by baptism,
or by letter, or by promise of letter, or by statement, these things are the
mechanics, the greatthing is, “Lord, here I am. My heart and my soul I open
to the callof Jesus. And here I come.” While we stand and while we sing.
The Rewardof the 144,000
The turmoil of conflict is over, and the people of God, 144,000 strong, now
stand triumphantly with the Lamb on Mount Zion. They have his name and
his Father's name written on their foreheads (v. 1), most emphatically not
"the mark of the beast" (13:17). The two beasts of the preceding chapter are
nowhere to be seen. We are not told just how the conflict was resolved, but
John gives us a momentary glimpse of its outcome. Mount Zion (occurring
only here in the book of Revelation)is a place on earth, not in heaven, for the
voice heard next is a voice from heaven(v. 2). Zion was the name of the
mountain on which David built the earthly Jerusalemcenturies before, and
wheneverJohn refers to "the holy city" or "the new Jerusalem" in the
Revelation(3:12; 21:2, 10), it is always "coming down out of heaven from
God," and therefore locatedon earth. Up to this point in the visions,
"mountains" have been pictured as either threatened (6:14-16)or threatening
(8:8), but Mount Zion is a place of victory and rest for the 144,000.
This group of the redeemed includes both the 144,000Israelitesfrom 7:1-8
and the "greatmultitude that no one could count" from 7:9-17. Just as "the
Lion of the tribe of Judah" (5:5) remained in some sense a lion even after he
had been transformed into the Lamb (5:6), so the 144,000continue to be the
144,000 evenaftertheir transformation into an unnumbered crowd. They

have lost their explicit identification with the twelve Jewishtribes listed in 7:5-
8, but they have gained other distinguishing features.
They are identified first as those redeemed from the earth, and their reward is
the privilege of learning a new song (v. 3). Becausethey are redeemed, there is
reasonto believe that redemption will be the theme of their song. The only
"new song" mentioned before in Revelationwas that of the living creatures
and elders in heaven (5:9), and it was a song of redemption: "becauseyou
were slain, and with your blood you purchasedmen for God from every tribe
and language and people and nation." It was accompaniedby the music of
harps (5:8), and the word for "purchased" in its lyrics was the same word
used here of the 144,000in the phrase redeemedfrom the earth (v. 4). This
time the song comes not from the living creatures and elders themselves, but
from an anonymous voice from heavenin their presence, like the roar of
rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder, and like that of harpists
playing their harps (v. 2). Both the words and the music are left to our
imaginations.
The Firstfruits and the Harvest
The two parts of this chapter (vv. 1-5 and 6-20)are unified by the fact that
firstfruits (14:4) imply a harvest (14:15-16). In the Hebrew Bible every
firstborn, human or animal, belonged to the Lord (Ex 13:2), so the
"firstfruits," or initial yield of every crop, were setaside as a sacrificial
offering (for example, Lev 2:9-14; Neh 10:35-37). God's portion of the harvest
was given to God up front, as it were. In the New Testament, "firstfruits" is
used as a metaphor for something given in advance, anticipating a greater
benefit or "harvest" to come. This can be the resurrectionof Jesus
anticipating the resurrectionof believers (1 Cor15:23), the Spirit as a gift
from God pointing to future resurrection(Rom 8:23), the first converts in a
particular regionholding out the promise of more converts to come (Rom
16:5; 1 Cor 16:15)or reborn Christians offering hope for the rebirth of God's
creation(Jas 1:18).
Our passageis unique within the New Testamentin that the 144,000 as
sacrificial"firstfruits" anticipate a "harvest" seennot as blessing or salvation,
but as judgment, a harvest rather like John the Baptist's, in which the
Harvester was to "clearhis threshing floor" and "gatherthe wheatinto his
barn," but "burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire" (Lk 3:17). John's
glimpse of the 144,000onMount Zion is but a brief respite betweenthe wrath

of the beasts againstthem in the preceding chapter and the wrath of God on
their behalf in the harvest that follows.
Their Identity and Qualifications
In keeping with his practice of identifying certainfigures he has seenby
explaining who or what they "are" (1:19-20;4:5; 5:6, 8; 7:14; 11:4), John now
becomes more specific about the 144,000:These are those who did not defile
themselves with women, for they keptthemselves pure. They follow the Lamb
whereverhe goes (v. 4). He defines the phrase redeemedfrom the earth more
carefully by adding, "Theyhave been redeemed from humankind as first
fruits for God and the Lamb, and in their mouth no lie was found; they are
blameless" (v. 4 NRSV;the NIV has purchasedfrom among men). Such are
their qualifications for learning the new song.
The phrase follow the Lamb whereverhe goes confirms the impression of
chapter 7 that the 144,000are Christian martyrs, and that the "number" of
the martyrs is now "complete" (6:11). The Lamb was first seenas if "slain" or
"slaughtered" (5:6), and to follow the Lamb whereverhe goes is to be "slain"
as he was and for his sake (6:9). The martyrs' death, moreover, is viewed as
sacrificial, like the death of the Lamb. Forthis reason, they are describedas
blameless (Greek amomos), a term referring to moral purity that also means
"unblemished" when applied to an animal chosenfor sacrifice (as in 1 Pet
1:19, where Christ is comparedto "a lamb without blemish or defect"). Two
specific aspects oftheir moral purity are singled out: the first is that they did
not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure (v. 4; literally
"for they are virgins"); the secondis that no lie was found in their moutes (v.
5).
The most problematic feature of the vision for most readers today is that these
144,000 who are redeemedfrom the earth are male and celibate (Yarbro
Collins 1984:129-31). According to one kind of feminist reading, "Womenin
the Apocalypse are victims--victims of warand patriarchy. The Apocalypse is
not a safe space forwomen" (Pippin 1992:80). But this passage includes
something to offend almost everyone, not just feminists and not just those who
are "sexuallyactive" (to use the modern euphemism), but womenin general,
men in general(they, after all, are the martyrs), married men in particular,
married clergyof both sexes and all who have not taken vows of lifelong
celibacy!
We canavoid such sweeping literalismby keeping two key factors in mind.
First, a likely reasonwhy the 144,000 are male is that they were male when

first introduced in 7:4 as "sons ofIsrael" (RSV). The enumeration of twelve
thousand from eachtribe (7:4-8) sounds very much like the mustering of a
male army, and military imagery is common enough in connectionwith the
prospectof martyrdom (see, for example, 1 Pet 5:6-9). Ritual sexual purity
was considereda necessaryqualificationfor going into battle (see Deut 23:9-
10; 1 Sam 21:5; 2 Sam 11:11). Second, the ideal of sexual purity is thoroughly
in keeping with the value system of the book of Revelationas a whole.
Negatively, the congregations to which the book is written are warned against
sexualimmorality as wellas idolatry (2:14, 20). The reference here to avoiding
defilement with womencan be read as an implicit warning (in advance)
against"Babylonthe Great, the Mother of Prostitutes" (17:5), who "made all
the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries" (14:8; compare 17:1-
6). Certainly this "defilement with women" has nothing to do with marriage,
and the text should not be read as commanding literal, lifelong celibacy.
Marriage, in fact, is a positive image for salvationin the book of Revelation,
for the redeemed become in John's final visions the "bride" or "wife" ofthe
Lamb (19:7-8; 21:2, 9; 22:17). The ideal of virginity or celibacyin a spiritual
sense is essentialto such imagery. As Paul put it, "I am jealous for you with a
godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might
present you as a pure virgin to him" (2 Cor 11:2).
Individually, then, the redeemed are seenhere as male because they are
martyrs, and in that sense soldiers. To callthese men "virgins" is the same as
saying that they follow the Lamb whereverhe goes, a phrase combining the
ideals of martyrdom and military allegiance. The otherside of the coin,
however, is that corporatelythey are female preciselybecause they will be
wedded as "bride" or "wife" to Christ the Lamb. They will be seenas "the
new Jerusalem. . . prepared as a bride beautifully dressedfor her husband"
(21:2). All corporate communities, in fact, are personified as women in this
book, whether as mother (chap. 12), prostitute (chap. 17) or bride (chap. 21).
To personify the redeemed individually as male and corporatelyas female,
while confusing to us, says nothing about their actualgender. In its own
strange way, and without conscious intent, the book of Revelationechoes the
principle that there is neither "male nor female, for you are all one in Christ
Jesus" (Gal3:28).
As for the claim that no lie was found in their moutes (v. 5), this too reflects
the values of the book as a whole. There is nothing more abhorrent to John
than those who pretend to be something they are not, whether Jews (2:9; 3:9),
apostles (2:2) or prophets (2:20; also 16:13;19:20; 20:10). Nearthe end of the
book the list of those consignedto the lake of fire ends with "allliars" (21:8),

while the list of those excluded from the new Jerusalemends with "everyone
who loves and practices falsehood" (22:15). PossiblyJohn's words are
influenced by the early Christian image of Jesus as unblemished Lamb or
suffering Servant, who "committed no sin, and no deceitwas found in his
mouth" (1 Pet 2:22 NRSV;compare Is 53:7-9), implying that Christians are
those who follow his example. But the primary characteristic ofthe 144,000is
their sacrifice, as made explicit in the phrase offered as firstfruits to God and
the Lamb (v. 4).
J RAMSEY MICHAELS
https://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/IVP-NT/Rev/Reward-
144000
The Lamb and the Redeemedon Mount Zion
Dr. S. Lewis Johnsonexpounds the passage ofRevelationthat names the
remnant of Christ's followers who will stand againstthe antichrist.
SLJ Institute > Revelation> The Lamb and the Redeemedon Mount Zion
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[Message]We have finished Revelationchapter 13 in our exposition of the
Apocalypse. The chapter in which John has outlined the ministry of the beast
out of the sea and the beastout of the earth, or coming up out of the earth.
And chapter 14 follows in, it would seem, remarkable relationship to chapter
13 and so we are reading the first five verses of chapter 14 which will be the
subject that we will attempt to expound.
So if you have your New Testaments turn to chapter 14 of the Book of
Revelation. We’ll read verses 1 through 5. The apostle writes, “And I looked,
and behold the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000
having his name and the name of his Fatherwritten on their foreheads.”Now,
you may remember that in chapter 7 of the Book ofthe RevelationJohn
describes the 144,000.He writes, and I’m turning to chapter 7 and reading
verse 1 through verse 4,
“After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding
back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind should blow on the earth, or
on the sea, oron any tree. And I saw another angelascending from the rising
of the sun, having the sealof the living God. And he cried out with a loud
voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea,
saying, ‘Do not harm the earth, or the sea, or the trees until we have sealedthe
bond servants of our God on their foreheads.’And I heard the number of
those who were sealed. One hundred and forty-four thousand sealedfrom
every tribe of the sons of Israel.”
And then John goes onto recordtwelve thousand from eachof the tribes
sealedas the servants of God.
Now it seems very plain that in chapter14 when he mentions the one hundred
and forty-four thousand who have his name, that is the Lord’s name or the
Lamb’s name, and the name of his father written on their foreheads that he’s
speaking ofthe same group. And verse 2 continues, “And I heard a voice from
heaven like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder, and
the voice which I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps.”
Now if you’re a student of the Bible in the sense that you’re a regular reader
of the Bible, you’ll notice again that John is drawing phrases from the Old
Testamentin constructing the picture of the vision that he received. He
mentions, for example, the sound of many waters. And at leasttwice in the
Old Testamentthe voice of God is likened to the sound of many waters. He

mentions the sound of loud thunder. And the voice that he heard was like the
sound of harpists playing on their harps.
And in verse 3 we read, “And they sang a new song before the throne and
before the four living creatures and the elders (who had gatheredaround the
throne from chapters 4 and 5). And no one could learn the song except the
144,000 who had been purchased from the earth. (That is, they were the
objects of redemption). These are the ones who have not been defiled with
women, for they are celibates.”
Literally the original text has the term, the common term, virgins, which is a
term that may be used of other than feminine individuals. So he says they are
celibates. We’llsay something about that later but just in case I forgetin the
exposition in 2 Corinthians chapter 11 in verse 2 the apostle referring to the
church says, “ForI am jealous for you with godly jealousyfor I have
betrothed you to one husband, that to Christ I might present you as a pure
virgin.”
So the figure of the virgin as representing that which is pure is probably in the
apostle’s mind and in our Lord’s mind here in Revelationchapter 14. Now
verses 4 and 5 of chapter 14,
“These are the ones who have not been defiled with women for they are
celibates. Theseare the ones who follow the Lamb whereverhe goes. These
have been purchased from among men as firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.
And no lie was found in their mouth; they are blameless.”
May the Lord bless this reading of his word and let’s bow togetherin a
moment of prayer.
[Prayer] Father, we thank Thee for the word of God and for the ministry that
it has towardus through the Holy Spirit. We know from the study of the
Scriptures that the word and the Spirit are the means by which Thou hast
dained to work in our midst. And we are grateful that by Thy grace, Thou
hast spokento us through the word of God and through the ministry of the
Holy Spirit who brings regenerationand faith. And we thank Thee Lord for
those in this audience who have by Thy grace beenregeneratedand who have
faith in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and in the revelation that concerns
him. And if there, Lord, should be some others in our audience who have not
yet come to that experience we pray that by Thy grace, through the preaching
of the word of God, they too may come to have the hope that we have through
our Lord Jesus, groundedin the satisfaction, the saving death that he has
accomplishedon Calvary’s cross.

We acknowledge, Lord, our need of redemption. We surely are sinners before
Thee and we thank Thee that a wayhas been made for us by our
representative, the Lamb of God, who has takenour sins upon himself and
born them that we might not have to bare them eternally.
We thank Thee that Thou hast causeda need upon him, the penalty that we
all were responsible to pay for our sin. We are grateful Lord for all that Thou
hast done. We express our worship to Thee and praise that Thou hast
delivered us through grace. We pray for the whole church of Jesus Christ
today and ask, Lord, Thy blessing upon eachmember of that body scattered
all over the face of the globe. And we pray also for this localbody, for its
leaders, the elders, for the deacons, forthe members, and for the friends, and
especiallyfor the visitors who are here with us today. May the ministry of the
word of God be helpful and fruitful in all of our lives.
We pray particularly for the sick. We thank Thee for our country. We pray
for our President, for others in our national government, and our state
government, and in our city government. We thank Thee that the word of
God has made plain to us that they are ministers of God, serving by virtue of
the divine determination, the divine will, we pray for them. We ask Thy
blessing upon them in the giving to them of the wisdom and guidance that
they need.
And Father, bless the ministry in this hour, bless our time together, the
singing of the hymn that follows, and the word of God that we consider. We
pray in Jesus name. Amen.
[Message]Thatsong that we have just sung always calls to my mind the
PatriarchJacob, who near the end of his existence after a remarkable life of
ups and downs and ups and downs the object of God’s elective concernand
care but who nevertheless gaineda reputation, perhaps somewhatrightly, as a
supplanter and a crook, but by God’s grace ultimately came to the place
where he stands out in the word of God as a man of faith who near the end of
his life said with reference to the Lord God, “The God who fed me all the days
of my life.” Remarkable confessionofGod’s hand in the life of that sinner, a
sinner just as eachone of us is.
The subject for today as we continue our expositionof Revelationis The
Lamb and the Redeemeron Mount Zion. Among the solemn warnings of
judgment through this greatbook the author of the book who is our Lord in
Heaven intersperses glimpse of final blessedness. And following the awful
revelation of the beasts of chapter 13, the beast out of the sea and the beastout
of the earth one the anti-Messiahand the other the false prophet.

There comes a picture of the lamb and one hundred and forty-four thousand
on Mount Zion and they’re not only on Mount Zion as something of an
assurance ofthe future but they have an anthem of redemption. And that
anthem of redemption resounds everywhere like the roar of a mighty
waterfallagainstthe backgroundof mighty thunder. Anyone who has lived
very long in our world knows that in the midst of storms when you see the
dark clouds, the black clouds, the flashing of the lightning, the roaring of the
thunder, and the sheets of rain, and then after it has spent itself then sees
something like a freshened universe with everything washedby the water, the
sun now shining, though some of the dark clouds may remain, gets a picture
that is very similar to Revelationchapter 14. Because whatwe have in chapter
13 is a storm but in chapter 14 we have a sunset, beautiful, reminding us of
the ultimate consummation of the divine program. We do not have horrid
beasts in chapter 14 but we have the lamb and the one hundred and forty-four
thousand on Mount Zion in John’s greatvision.
Now I think anyone who reads chapter 14 in the light of chapter 13 would
agree that this scene that we have in chapter14 is an obviously intended
contrastwith chapter 13. Let me just spell out some of the contrasts. In
chapter 13 we have the beasts. The first beastwe’ve called him the Anti-
Messiahorthe Anti-Christ, and the secondbeastthe false prophet. He’s the
beastthat comes out of the earth and he has two horns like a lamb and so the
two beasts, including that lamb with the dragons accentbecausehe’s
motivated by the dragon, Satan, over againstthe beasts we have in chapter 14,
the Lamb of God.
In chapter 13 we have the beast’s followers.Theyhave the mark of the beast
upon them, the 666. And in chapter 14 we have the lamb’s followers, the one
hundred and forty-four thousand, and they have the names of the son and the
father upon them. In chapter 13 we have the beast’s moral system of spiritual
and literal harlotry, but in chapter 14 we have the lamb’s moral system
composedof purity and truth. There is no lie in those who follow the lamb.
In chapter 13 we have the beasts enslaving system, and in chapter 14 we have
the lamb’s system of ransom from earth and from men, redemption. In
chapter 13 we have the beasts new age order, but in chapter 14 we have the
lamb’s ancientlaw of God togetherwith the new song of redemption that
meets the needs of individuals. In chapter 13 we have the beastovercoming
the saints, we read in chapter 13 in verse 7 for example, “And it was given to
him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them; an authority over
every tribe, and people, and tongue, and nation was given to him.”

That lies before us in the near future, according to John’s way of putting
things for he regards the end as near. But in chapter 14 we have the lamb
victorious. Victorious then, that is in the future. So we know that while the
struggles existand while men and women are persecutedon accountof their
testimony for Christ by the beast and those who stand with him the ultimate
victory lies with the lamb and those who are identified with him. In chapter 13
we have the beasts then and their dupes and we have suggestionsthat they
also will head into perdition, not spelled out in chapter13 but later on in this
book for they shall be ultimately fond in the Lake of Fire, whereas in chapter
14 we have the lamb and those who follow him and they are before the throne
in Heaven following him whether so everhe goes. It’s a remarkable picture in
14 obviously intended to contrastwith that which we have in chapter 13.
Now when you read chapter 14 you will notice that this is a chapter composed
of three visions but six scenes. Now I’ll just point out the three visions, it
seems to me that this is so, we have the expression, “And I saw” in the original
text [unintelligible16:49] three times.
Verse 1 we read, “And I looked, and behold the Lamb was standing on Mount
Zion.” And in verse 6 the same expressionin the originaltext but here we
have, “And I saw another angelflying in mid heaven.” And in verse 14, “And
I looked, and behold a white cloud, and sitting on the cloud was one like a son
of man.”
So six scenes but three distinct visions markedout by the apostle as he writes.
So now we’re going to look at 14, verse 1 through verse 5 and we begin by
paying a little attention to the 1stverse where we have the vision of the lamb
and the one hundred and forty-four thousand.
Now this is a kind of anticipatory vision. And I must admit I’m speaking down
to you a little bit there because youprobably have alreadygraspedthat but all
of the commentators use the term proleptic. But not too many of us are really
familiar with the term proleptic. So anticipatory, I think, is a proper way to
speak of this. In other words, what John is doing is he’s looking into the future
and he’s seeing whatwill take place in the future but he is describing it now as
a vision which he has received. So this is an anticipatory or proleptic vision of
the destiny of the one hundred and forty-four thousand mentioned in chapter
7.
Now they are one hundred and forty-four thousand, as John has said, from
every tribe of the sons of Israel. Now it is very common for commentators to
speak of this as a round number and thus to say the one hundred and forty-
four thousand represent simply the church of Jesus Christ. I can be

sympathetic with some of that because this book contains a greatdeal of
symbolism. But it seems to me that a better wayto approachthe word of God
is to take words in their ordinary meaning if at all possible. We do not deny
that there are figures of speechin the Bible that there is symbolism. We do not
have a kind of literalistic interpretation in which words even in figures of
speechare takenliterally. That to my mind is a wrong way to approachan
apocalypse.
This book has a greatdeal of symbolism but nevertheless it also has a lot of
plain speech. And furthermore in the symbols and the figures of speech
they’re usually references to events and things that canbe calledultimately
historical. That is the things that are spokenof in symbolic or figurative ways
are realevents or things and therefore we want to be sure to catchthat.
So when we turn here in verse 1 to the vision of the lamb on Mount Zion and
the one hundred and forty-four thousand, we’re going to take them as one
hundred and forty-four thousand of the sons of Israel, as John has told us in
chapter 7. We take this to be the same number. As far as this being a round
number I do not know of anyone who would think of one hundred and forty-
four thousand as a round number. But it is true that when it is spelledout
there are twelve thousand from eachtribe, one gets the impression there
maybe something that is roundish about that. But that belongs to a sphere of
understanding that is beyond me and I think beyond most of us human
beings. We’re going to attempt to take the word as John has written it.
Now he describes the lamb on Mount Zion and I think it’s rather striking he’s
just talkedabout the raging of the nations. Remember, one of the great
chapters of the Old Testamentthat lies back of the Book ofRevelationis
Psalm2. In fact, some have even suggestedthat the Book ofRevelationis
simply an exposition of all that is found in Psalm2. That’s the Psalmwhich
begins,
“Why do the nations rage, why do the peoples devise vain things, the kings of
the earth take their stand and the rulers take counseltogetheragainstthe
Lord and againsthis Messiah. Let us tare their fetters apart and castaway
their cords from us.”
So the Book ofRevelationis a symbolic picture of how God deals with those
who seek to destroy the Lord God, the Messiah, andthose who are associated
with them. So the heathen may rage but the lamb will be victorious. That’s the
major point. And so when we read, “I saw the lamb standing on Mount Zion”
that’s John’s way of saying that this is divine assurancegiventhat God will
ultimately accomplishthe purposes that he intends to accomplishthrough the

Lamb of God who will offer himself an atoning sacrifice for sinners and be the
means by which we who are sinners may be delivered from our sin and
establishedbefore God with a righteousness that is acceptable to him.
Justified, is the biblical term.
The scene, as I take it, is a heavenly scene. And it gives assurance ofthat final
victory. The one hundred and forty-four thousand, we’ve said, are the saints
of Israel. They are marked servants of God. Sealedby God for a special
service in the tribulation period, that last part of the greattime of trouble on
the earth that is to come called“Jacob’s Trouble” by Jeremiah in his
prophecy.
Now one thing you will notice about the one hundred and forty-four thousand
is this; they are individuals who are characterizedby a particular confession.
That is, they’re not individuals who do not have a doctrine or viewpoint. They
have a doctrinal viewpoint. They are the servants of the Lamb of God. And so
they have a confessionandtheir confessionis the Lamb of God has redeemed
us, as we shall see. Theyhave a specific confession. Every Christian, every
true Christian, has to have a confession. In other words, at the heart of
Christianity is a doctrinal confessionoftruth. There canbe no Christianity if
there is not a doctrinal confessionoftruth. They have a confession. And it’s a
confessionofredemption and ransomfrom men and from the earth, put in the
words of our 5 verses.
They are also characterizedby an unworldliness. They are not individuals
who considerthe world to be the place where they ought to live and by which
they should move in their experience of life. The world’s principles, the
world’s goals, the world’s ambitions are not the principles, goals, and
ambitions of the Saint of God. They are unworldly. They are pure. They are
guided by the principle of purity. There is no lie in them. That is, they do not
follow the Anti-Christ. They do not follow the Anti-Messiahin his viewpoint.
They are individuals who have purity as one of their principles. And finally
from a something – saysomething along the same lines, they are individuals
who are guided by truth, truthfulness.
Christians, of all people, should be truthful. Unfortunately, it is not always
true. And in fact, when a Christian is not truthful it’s pathetic. Becausehe’s
supposedto stand for truth but when he of all people is not truthful it is, I say,
pathetic. And in many of our Christian institutions the presidents and the
faculty often carry on their duties with a bit of untruthfulness. I just heard
this past week in Anaheim, California when I was meeting with the Council on
Biblical Manhoodand Womanhood, an accountof untruthfulness in the
leadership of one of our individual – one of our evangelicalinstitutions. It’s

pathetic when we have that in our institutions. The followers ofthe lamb are
those in whom there is no lie. No lie was found in their mouth. They are
blameless.
So, my Christian friend, you name the name of Christ. You are to be guided
by truth and truthfulness. You are to be guided by purity. You are not to be a
worldly individual. The principles of the world are not the principles by which
you operate. Your principles are relatedto the Lamb of God and how he
stands for the word of God.
Now I should mention that these individuals, the one hundred and forty-four
thousand, have the name of the lamb and the name of his father written on
their foreheads. In other words, they have a specific mark. Now the mark in
the ancientworld, a commentator has pointed out, could stand for five things.
Ownership, as in the case ofa slave who was branded by the name of his
owner. Loyalty, as when a soldier branded his hand with his beloved general’s
name. Security, dependence, as for example when Arab sheikhs branded their
dependents, not simply their family, but those who were in their extended
relationships with the name of their camels in order, the brand of their camels
in order to indicate dependence on the sheikhand safety. Devilties of the false
gods often stamped the name of their own god or the sign of the god upon
them. And in our case we have a different kind of branding, like the one
hundred and forty-four thousand have the brand of the name of the lamb and
the name of the father written on their foreheads, Christians today are those
who possessas the mark of their Christianity the presence ofthe Holy Spirit.
You remember the Apostle Paul said in Romans chapter 8, “He that hath not
the Spirit of Christ is none of his.” That’s the thing that marks out a
Christian, the presence ofthe Holy Spirit. In fact, Paul also said you
remember in Galatians in chapter4 and verse and 6 and 7 that, “Because
individuals are sons God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts,
crying, “Abba, Father.”
So the characteristic ofa Christian is the presence ofthe Holy Spirit. And that
should be evident in our lives. In other words, there should be clearevidence
of the fact that we belong to the Lord God and the presence ofthe Spirit is the
mark. If we do not have the Spirit of Christ, we do not belong to him. That’s
plainly what Paul says.
So they have his name and the name of his father written on their foreheads.
Now in the 2nd and 3rd verses he writes of the mighty anthem of the
redeemed. Now I’m going to take and use the expressionof, as he puts it, the
sound of many waters, put it togetherin a statement. “Like the sound of the

cherubim in flight,” as Ezekielputs it in chapter 1, “Like God’s glory coming
from the wayof the East,” as he puts it in chapter 43 in verse 2. “Like the roar
of a mighty cataract, the melodious anthem of the one hundred and forty-four
thousand is heard.” I love that expressionlike the sound of many waters. It
creates so many meanings in my mind, reading it in the Old Testamentin
Ezekiel, twice at leastreading it in the New Testamentin this book already in
the vision of our Lord and it speaks ofthe might and the powerof our great
triune God.
So like a mighty cataractthis melodious anthem is heard by the apostle. He
says, “I heard a voice from Heaven like the sound of many waters, like the
sound of loud thunder, and the voice which I heard was like the sound of
harpists playing on their harps.” Now I would take this to be something said
with reference to the redeemed. That is, the one hundred and forty-four
thousand. Not the angels but the redeemedin a chorus of exultation singing a
new song of themselves. In fact, they are the only ones that can sing this
because in the third verse he says, “No one could learn the song except the
hundred and forty-four thousand who had been purchasedfrom the earth.”
Only they who have experiencedthe truth that they have experienced are able
to understand it. That’s one of the reasons whenthe Christian messageis set
forth and individuals say, “I do not understand it, I cannot follow it,” we
should not be surprised. The natural man receivethnot the things of the Spirit
of God, they are foolishness to him, neither canhe know them unless they are
discernedthrough the Spirit.
So we should not expect the man who sits in our pew who does not know
anything about Christianity to understand what we are talking about unless
the Holy Spirit of God who gives light upon the word should enlighten him.
Show him his need. And show him Christ’s sacrifice for sinners. And call him
effectually to trust in him.
Now the theme of this song of the one hundred and forty-four thousand, as
you might expect, is his deliverance of them. After all, isn’t that what we all
particularly respond to? The deliverance, the redemption that we have
experienced.
One man whose sermons I used to like to read was Vance Havner. He has a
little comment that he makes in one of his books, I think it’s really a book just
of little sayings, but in the course of it he says, “The most common place
things have a way of suggesting spiritual realities and the one who loves the
Bible doubtless has been reminded more than once of Isaiah’s words, Isaiah
chapter 28 I think about verse 20 where Isaiahwrites, “Forthe bed is shorter
than a man can stretchhimself in it, and the covering narrower than that he

can wrap himself in it.” I’ve always felt like that incidentally when I go to
Germany and try to be contented with that thing that the Germans put on the
bed; I’ve never been able to handle that too well. I put it on my back and my
front is chilly, I put it on my front and my back is chilly, I put it down on my
feet and my head is chilly, I put it near my head and my feetare cold, which is
the worstof all things. But at any rate, Havner goes onto say, “The prophet
has in mind the self-righteous rulers in Jerusalemwho scorn the judgment of
God.” And then he went on to saythat, “Many Evangelicalshave made an
application of this to those who trust in schemes of their own devising, plans of
salvationinstead of the sufficiency of the Messiah’s death, the Lord Jesus
Christ.”
Matthew Henry, one of the older commentators, put it this way, “Those who
do not build upon Christ as their foundation but restin a righteousness of
their own, will prove in the end thus to have deceivedthemselves. They can
never be easy, safe, orwarm. The bed is too short, the covering is too narrow,
like our first parent’s fig leaves the shame of their nakedness will still
appear.”
Then Mr. Havner goes on to express his own experience, he says, “Any man
who’s wrestledwith an inadequate sheetor covers until he has ended up with
both head and feet exposedfor all the world like a map of the earth with both
north and south frigid and the rest only temperate will understand with fresh
appreciationthe homely word of the prophet,” which is as he has put it that if
one is in a bed that’s shorter than he can stretch himself on or he has covering
that’s too narrow, he will not be too happy about it.
Gypsy Smith used to say some things that resound I think in my own heart, he
used to say, “Above all let me never getused to being a Christian.” And then
he once said something that I certainly think was a greatstatement, “I have
never lost the wonder.” And those, the one hundred and forty-four thousand
and any other genuine Christian like the one hundred and forty-four
thousand who knows what redemption from his sin is deliverance from the
guilt and penalty of it should, my Christian friend, never lose the wonder of
what God has done for us in Jesus Christ.
I’m not surprised that these individuals sing a new song before the throne and
before the four living creatures and elders and no one canlearn the song
exceptthe one hundred and forty-four thousand who have been purchased
from the earth. This kind of song of redemption can only be sung by those
who have been purchased. That word, incidentally, is in when it refers to
redemption refers always to an effectualredemption. Not simply something
that’s conditional or provisional. But always refers to something that is

effectual. They have been purchased and they now belong to the lamb and to
his father, separatedfrom the evil ways of the world and the tyranny of its
pernicious philosophies and particularly from the apostasyof the beasts
referred to in the preceding chapter.
And finally the sectionclosesin verses 4 and 5 with a description of these
redeemedone hundred and forty-four thousand and they’re described under
three figures. First of all, they are undefiled virgins. Now the word “they” is
masculine in eachof the three occurrencesin which it occurs here in verse 4,
“These are the ones who have not been defiled, these are the ones who follow
the lamb, these have been purchasedfrom among men.” That particular
pronoun, demonstrative pronoun, is masculine. So we’re looking at masculine
individuals, it would seem. And they are called virgins so that raises some
questions. It is also said they are not defiled with women. So we ask the
question, is John talking about an elite, celibate body? And is he suggesting
that an elite, celibate body is preferred by God? Well, one might make a case
for that if he looks only at a passagelike this.
In fact, Marcianwho lived the earlier part of the Christian centuries formed a
church of only celibates becausehe thought that that representeda higher
form of spiritual life. Origen, the first Christian theologiannot a greatone in
my opinion, but the first to write a theology, whatcould be calleda theology,
Origen it is said had himself castratedin order to more fully serve the Lord as
his God.
But it’s more likely in spite of the factthat one might make something of a
case forthat position that when the apostle writes, “Theyare celibates,”that
he is using the term in the figurative sense. Now Ireferred to 2 Corinthians
chapter 11 in verse 2 but in the Old Testamentif you’ll remember when
Israel’s apostasyis referred to, God frequently refers to their apostasyunder
the form, under the figure of spiritual adultery. When Israelwent after the
false gods, God calledthat adultery.
Now it so happens that the false gods of many of the nations also in their
temples had temple prostitutes with whom one would commit fornication,
kind of fertility rites, commit fornication in order to fulfill what they regarded
as both a spiritual activity as well as an activity by which they could secure the
blessing of their god for fertile flocks and fertile fields. So the term celibate,
the term adultery, the term fornication, is used both literally and figuratively
in the Old Testament. Figuratively, however, it seems to me as the waywe are
to take this. It’s figuratively used of those who have kept themselves, that is
they are celibates, they have kept themselves from spiritual adultery, spiritual
fornication, and of course becausehe mentions purity from physical

fornication and physical adultery as well. In other words, to be more specific
and down to earth for them they have resistedthe seductions of the beast.
They have not worshipedhim, they have not allowedhis mark to be placed
upon them, they have servedour Lord Jesus Christ.
Now we live in, of course, a pornographic society, it seems to me, and one that
is religiously pornographic as well. In the sense that many Christians are
engagedin activities that are contrary to their Christian faith. They are
supporting churches, religious institutions that are opposedto the doctrines of
the word of God. Many times they do it out of what they feel are proper
motives. That is, we can reachpeople by making these identifications. We will
ultimately fail, in my opinion. Because truthfulness, purity, the confessionof
the truth and the holding to the doctrines of the word of God is the only
means to ultimate spiritual blessing and fruitfulness.
Now he says secondlythat they are not simply spiritual celibates but they
follow the lamb. Here he stressesdiscipleshipjust as our Lord when he spoke
to the rich, young ruler and dealt with him with his particular needs you
remember that Jesus finally said to him that he was to sell what he had and
then come follow me. It’s characteristic ofa Christian in his Christian life to
follow the Lord as we have an accountof him, his principals, his activities, his
teaching, in the New Testament.
And finally, we read they are sacrificiallyacceptable to the Lord. They have
been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the lamb. In
other words, that expressionincidentally would mean in our language they
are speciallythe Lord’s. The first fruits is a sacrificialmetaphor because at
the time of the barley harvest the children of Israel went out into the field,
took a sheafof the barley harvest, brought in a sheafand waved it before the
Lord in an offering to him of the bestof their grain, the best of the produce of
the land, the best of the crop for him. And in the Old Testamentthat term is
used occasionallyin that sense, the bestof the crop for him, or that which was
regardedas blameless in the proper sense.
So here they have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and
to the lamb and no lie was found in their mouth, they are blameless. Theyare
ceremoniallyblameless. I would understand this also to mean that since when
a person went out in a harvestand he took a sheaf of the harvest and he
waved it before the Lord that indicated also just by simple reasoning that
there was more of that out in the field. And it was like that which was waved
before the Lord. And if Christ is the first fruits, as Paul says, that means there
are others out in the field who are to be brought into the Lord and they will be

like him as Scripture says. Here, however, I think that reference is simply to
the bestof the crop for him, the first fruits to God and to the lamb.
Now if one were to ask, if they are the first fruits what is the harvest? I would
only make this suggestion;we are told in the Bible that in the future Israel
should expecta restorationto the blessing of God by virtue of the ancient
covenants that were given to them. The covenant to Abraham included
references to the land and ultimate settlement upon it. The covenant made
with David suggestedthat David’s sonwould rule forever upon a throne. And
the new covenant that Jeremiah describes, describesthe redemption that is
the ground of all of God’s blessings. So I would suggestto you that if the one
hundred and forty-four thousand are the first fruits then the harvestis the
restorationof ethnic Israel to the blessing of God describedby the Apostle
Paul in Romans chapter 11, verse 26 and verse 27 in these word,
“And thus all Israelwill be saved:Just as it is written, the deliverer will come
from Zion, he will remove ungodliness from Jacob:And this is my covenant
with them, when I take awaytheir sins.”
So I look forward to the restorationof ethnic Israeland I look forward to the
day when Israel, ethnic Israel, shall enter into the blessings promised by a
God who makes unconditional promises to that nation. I’m so thankful that in
those covenants there is a place made for gentiles and they are also grafted
into the olive tree and enjoy the blessings that are Israel’s blessings, their
ancient covenantedblessings. Scripture, in my opinion, teaches that plainly.
The one hundred and forty-four thousand, however, are first fruits of what
will be an even greaterin gathering of harvest at the time our Lord returns to
the earth the secondtime.
If I were to sum up the message ofthese five verses it would be that the one
hundred and forty-four thousand have arrived safelyand faultless by reason
of the Lamb of God who has offered himself an atonementfor sins.
Ian Blakelock wasprofessorof classics atthe University of Auckland in New
Zealand. In a very interesting little testimony he tells how he came to faith in
Christ. He said he became a Christian as a student through an encounter with
Christ. “I met Christ as one might meet a friend, through another’s
introduction,” he said. Let me illustrate, in 1964 ProfessorBlakelock wasin
Bristol, England and was delivering the Rendell Short memorial lecture and
on a rainy afternoonhe walked out to look over the city of Bristol. He came to
the old meeting house where Wesleytrained his first preachers and it stands
in a yard betweensome busy streets. On one side facing one of the streets
John Wesleysits on horseback ona bronze horse in the forecourt. And then

facing the other streetis Charles Wesleystanding with his hands outstretched
toward the passing crowd and underneath the statue is a line from Charles
Wesley’s hymn, “O let me commend my Saviorto you.”
Somedaywhen you’re in Bristol look it up and see the statues and see Charles
Wesleywith his hands outstretched, “O let me commend my Savior to you.”
He said, “It was in just such a fashion as a student, an ardent manly minister
of Christ commended his master to me. I stopped like one of the passing
crowdand looked. I was young, life was opening up to me, I had found the
portrait of Virgil, I had found Racine in Shakespeare,and I found Christ,” he
said. “I was groping for some purpose in life, some loyalty, some basis for my
feet,” ProfessorBlakelocksaid. “The man who’s testimony I heeded callme
only to experiment to test the Christian faith by living it,” and he said, “That’s
forty-five years ago. The response of1920 might be dismissedas a boy’s
idealism, youth’s sudden rapture without relevance. Were it not for the fact
that that choice is still the core of my experience after a lifetime in
scholarship, authorship, journalism, travel, and public life. All that I value
through all those years flows from that experience, that choice of a faith to live
by.”
I commend the Christian faith to you. I commend the song of the one hundred
and forty-four thousand who sing of how they have been purchased from the
earth by the saving ministry of our Lord Jesus the Messiah. MayGodin his
wonderful grace touchyour heart and may you respond to the invitation that
comes first and foremostas we shall see lateron in this very book from God,
the Holy Spirit.
Come to Christ. Believe in him. Trust in him. Give yourself to him. Found
your life upon the word of God. And I surely cansay from my ownexperience
you’ll never regretthe decisionthat you make. We invite you to believe in him
who saves sinners by the blood that was shed on Calvary’s cross. Come to
him. Trust in him. Don’t leave this auditorium with that decisionnot made.
Let’s stand for the Benediction.
[Prayer] Father, we are indeed grateful to Thee for these pictures, visions,
that the apostle has given us. We know they come from Thee, Lord, through
the Sonof Godand his apostle. Oh Father, if there are any here who do not
have a place upon which to stand by Thy grace touch their minds and hearts.
May the commendationof the savior that the Holy Spirit issues as an
invitation be receivedand respondedto by the decisionof our minds and
hearts. Go with us as we leave. ForJesus’sake. Amen.

JOHN MACARTHUR
Triumphant Saints, Part 2
Sermons Revelation14:2–5 66-50 Nov14, 1993
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Let’s open our Bibles to Revelationchapter14. We have before us a
wonderful text, the opening five verses of this chapter, which we beganto
peruse lastLord’s Day. Let me read it to you.
Revelation14:1, “I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mount
Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name
and the name of His Father written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice
from heaven, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud
thunder, and the voice which I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on
their harps. And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four
living creatures and the elders, and no one could learn the song exceptthe
hundred and forty-four thousand who had been purchasedfrom the earth.
“These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they have kept
themselves chaste. These are the ones who follow the Lamb whereverHe goes.
These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the
Lamb. And no lie was found in their mouth; they are blameless.”
Scripture has some marvelous descriptive terms for Christians with which all
of us are familiar. It calls us children of God, sometimes translatedsons of
God. It calls us new creations. It calls us the elect. It calls us Christians. It
calls us kings and priests unto God. It calls us saints and all of those terms
have some specialnuance of richness. And they indicate to us the elevated
identity that we, as Christians, enjoy.
But Scripture also calls us, in another category, some terms that speak of the
triumphant nature of the Christian experience. We are called overcomers. We
are calledvictors. We are called super conquerors. Scripture even says that

we are always triumphant in Christ. We who know the Lord Jesus Christare
the winners. We are the conquerors. We are the victors, and we are the
triumphant. There’s a certainlevel of invincibility to us because ofGod’s
grace and powerin Christ.
In spite of this identity as overcomers and winners and conquerors and super
conquerors, we still lose the battle to the world, the flesh, and the devil. We
don’t have to, but sadly we do. The question really, then, is how can we live up
to our identity? If we are overcomers;if we have overcome the world; if our
faith is that which overcomes the world; if in the knowledge ofthe truth of
God we have overcome the evil one; if we are no longer in bondage, slave to
sin in the flesh, why do we lose? Whatis the key? How can we be triumphant?
What are the components that produce triumphant Christians?
I really think in a wonderful way that question is answeredright here in this
text. Here we meet an amazing group of men. And this amazing group of
144,000 mendemonstrate to us the components of triumphant Christianity.
They are 144,000Daniels, if you will, on compromising, unflinching,
undaunted, and undefeated. And we ask the question, “What made them so
uniquely triumphant?” And the answerwe shall find right here in this text.
First of all, we’ve been asking the question already lastweek who are they?
And I don’t want to beg the issue, but just to remind you, and also for those
who weren’t here, to bring you up to speed. The 144,000 are a group of men
chosenby God to preach the gospelto the world during the time of the great
tribulation. At the end of the age, prior to the return of Jesus Christ, there
will be a period of time calledthe greattribulation. The Lord will identify
144,000 menwho will preach the gospelall over the world. That is about three
times the world missionary force for Christianity right now. This is a very
large force and a very potent and powerful one.
As you remember, we first met them back in chapter 7, and I would invite you
to just briefly remind yourself of that. We met them in chapter 7, down in
verse 4. And there we see the number of the bondservants of our God,
mentioned in verse 3, who are sealed, being 144,000. And they were sealed
from every tribe of the sons of Israel. That is 12,000 from every tribe. And
there were 12 tribes listed there, therefore making 144,000.
Now, they are introduced in chapter 7 in answerto the question at the end of
chapter 6. The question in chapter 6, at the very end, is who is able to stand,
“When the greatday of the wrath of God and the wrath of the Lamb comes,
when the day of the Lord hits, who is able to stand?” And immediately we
meet some people who are able to stand. They are sealedand protectedby the

living God Himself so that they could go through their period of time, survive
the fury of forthcoming judgment described by the sixth and seventh seal,
even surviving what is describedin the seventrumpets and the sevenbowl
judgments all the wayto the end until the Lord returns.
And during the time of their life and the time of their survival, they will
preach the gospel. And we know the effectof their ministry, chapter 7 and
verse 9, “A greatmultitude which no one could count from every nation and
all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the
Lamb, clothed in white robes and palm branches were in their hands.” In
greatmeasure, that redeemedcommunity that has been martyred and taken
to heaven is the fruit of the labor of these 144,000 as wellas others – namely
the 2 witnesses, the angelpreaching the everlasting gospel, and others who
proclaimed the gospelof Christ.
Now remember that judgment has come to the earth. It’s been going on, on
the earth, for a long time, by now coming nearer to the end. We must be near
to the seventh year of this kind of thing. There have been wars and famines
and earthquakes and plagues and death, and sin is now running rampant over
the world without restraint. People are deceivedinto false religion by the false
prophet, deceivedinto following the Antichrist. And then the false prophet
gives up his world religion in favor of worshiping only the Antichrist who
blasphemes God through all of this time.
Jews will be being massacredas will Christians. It’s going to be a fearsome
time of judgment. By the time you come to the sixth seal, mentioned at the end
of chapter 6, the Antichrist will have already abominated the temple. The
world religion will have died, and only the worship of Antichrist as God will
be tolerated. The whole world will be deceivedby the false prophet through a
false resurrectionand lying signs and wonders. The slaughterof Jews and
Christians will escalate.
And during this time, the sealed144,000 willpreach the gospelright up to the
end. And I believe they will survive. That’s the whole point of their being
sealed. Theyare being protectedso that they cannot be killed. And they will
be the instruments, in greatmeasure, by which God redeems a multitude of
Gentiles who are described in Matthew, for example, chapter 25, where they
are describedas the sheepwho enter the kingdom and Jews who will also
enter the kingdom as indicated in Revelationchapter12. So, we’ve just
reviewedthat briefly.

Now, among those who survive, there will be Gentiles who survive and are
going into the kingdom alive, and there will be Jews, ofcourse, who survive
and go into the kingdom alive. And among the survivors will be the 144,000.
You can go back now to chapter 14. You saw them in chapter 7 being sealed.
At the time of the sixth seal, just before the day of the Lord, which is the last
series ofterrible judgments now in chapter 14, you see them again, and
they’re standing on Mount Zion with the Lamb. That is a picture of Christ
having come back, and they are there at His return, ready to go with Him into
the kingdom, which means they have survived through the holocaustof that
judgment.
I believe, as I said lat time, it is most likely the 144,000 who will then go into
the kingdom and proclaim the gospelof Jesus Christ all over the world during
the kingdom period. They will no doubt continue to be the preachers in the
millennium as they were uniquely in the time of great tribulation. They are
the greatestpreaching force the world will ever see.
I don’t want to beg the issue, but I would like to mention to you that they are
men. They are all men, all 144,000ofthem, because Godhas always setapart
men for the preaching ministry. And we’ll say more about that in a moment.
There they are, in chapter 14, triumphant. Hey have survived the world’s
worsttime of disasterand death. They have lived through things that we’ve
seenalready in the book of Revelationfrom even before the time they were
sealed. And then after the time they were sealed, when things escalated, they
survived even that. And you can be sure the world tried to kill as many of
them as possible but couldn’t do it. They are all intact, all 144,000ofthem, at
the end. God protectedthem and allowedthem to preach through that time,
and I believe will allow them to preachthe gospelto the people who are born
during the kingdom, who will need to be saved.
Now, what was the source of their victory? How did they triumph? What was
the secretoftheir invincibility? And that’s what we see in the text. First of all,
we lookedat this last time, power. Power. You will note there in verse 1 that
they had the name of the Son of God, the Lamb, and the name of His Father
written on their foreheads. In other words, they were identified as belong to
God. And that identification was not only an identification of possession, but it
was an identification of protection.
In other words, they were sealedso that nothing could touch them; nothing
could harm them. And they were, to borrow another Scripture, kept by the
powerof God. And herein lies the real key, the sovereign, divine, transcendent
side of this. The God who promised and the God who possessedis the God

who keeps. That’s the divine side of triumphant Christianity; the one who
makes a promise has the powerto perfect it. They are standing there with the
Lamb in His coming glory, on Mount Zion, intact because the power of God
sustainedthem.
The rest of the world, you remember, bears a mark calledthe mark of the
beast. That mark is in the foreheads or the hands of all those who rejectthe
gospeland worship the beast. But this triumphant group also is marked with
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, the name of the Lamb, and the name of the
Father. And because they belong to Him, He is their protector. “Notby might
nor by power, but by My Spirit,” says the Lord.
This is the foremostmatter of their protection. It again reminds us that God
keeps His own. Back to Philippians 1:6, which I have mentioned so many
times to you, but it’s such an important Scripture. There Paul says, “I am
confident of this very thing, that He who began a goodwork in you will
perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”Godhas the keeping power. It
reminds me also of Jude and that wonderful testimony at the end of Jude,
which says, “Now to Him who is able to keepyou from stumbling and to make
you stand in the presence ofHis glory blameless and with greatjoy.” And the
words of our Lord, in John 6, that He would lose none who belong to Him.
And in John 10, “No one is able to pluck them out of His hand. His Father is
greaterthan all.”
And all of those testimonies to God’s keeping power come into play in
triumphant Christianity. If we triumph, if we stand blameless in the end, if we
are victorious, if we are overcomers, we cancredit the powerof God who is
able to keepus from falling. And we lookedinto that last time.
Let’s go to a secondpoint tonight and work our way through these. There is a
secondcharacteristic oftriumphant saints. Characteristic number 1 is power.
They experiencedthe powerof God. Number 2 is praise. Praise. You’ll notice
how praise comes from them very, very quickly in the scene. Verse 2, “I heard
a voice from heaven like the sound of man waters, like the sound of loud
thunder. And the voice which I heard was like the sound of harpists playing
on their harps. And they sang a new song before the throne and before the
four living creatures and the elders;and no one could learn the song except
the hundred and forty-four thousands who had been purchased from the
earth.”
Here we see that immediately, when the 144,000are on the mountain with the
Lamb, they begin to join in the heavenly song of redemption. With all the
devastation, with all the trouble, with all the rejection, all the hostility, the

hatred and the animosity they’ve had to endure, you might think they might
be a bit on the haggardside, a bit on the sorrowfulside like Israelin captivity
in Babylon. It says, of course, in Psalm 137, that they hung their harps on the
willow trees because there was nothing to sing about. But not this group; they
praised the Lord with joy for their protectionand their triumph. And they are
actually joining into a heavenly chorus.
Let’s follow it, starting in verse 2, “I heard a voice from heaven.” Now, that is
not something new to the readerof the book of Revelationthat occurs
numerous times. We find it back in chapter 10 a couple of times, chapter 14,
and also in chapter 18. A familiar thing to hear a voice from heaven. And it
tells us the voice was like the sound of many waters. And you remember that I
describedto you, in the past, that that is to indicate that it was loud. It was
continuous. It was very loud, and he adds, to let us know that’s what he’s
saying, “Like the voice” – or the sound – “ofloud thunder.” Now, that
description may fit chapter 1 and verse 15, where the voice of the Lord Jesus
Christ is describedas a voice like the sound of many waters. It could well be
the voice of God, but I think it’s even more than that. The voice of God and all
the hosts of heaven singing God’s glorious praise for redemption. I think
that’s the song of redemption.
We ask, “Who in heavenis doing this? Who in heaven would be singing this?”
Chapter 5. Chapter 5 and verse 8. Here we meet 24 elders who we have
endeavoredin this study of Revelationto point out that they are most likely
representatives ofthe Church. They would be symbolic of those saints who are
in the presence ofthe Lord from the Church. They fall down before the
Lamb. They have harps and bowls full of incense, and they sang a new song.
Here’s their song, “Worthy art Thou to take the book and break its seals;for
Thou wastslain and didst purchase for God with Thy blood men from every
tribe and tongue and people and nation. And Thou hast made them to be a
kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.”
And then He looks and “the voice of many angels around the throne and the
living creatures and elders; and the number is” - murion of murias –
“thousands upon thousands and tens of thousands times tens of thousands.
And they’re all saying, ‘Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power
and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.’And
then every createdthing in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on
the sea, and all that is in them again says, ‘To Him who sits on the throne, and
to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion foreverand
ever.’”

And so, this escalating chorus goes. Overin chapter 7, we see those who were
savedout of the tribulation added to it. In verse 10, “They cry out with a loud
voice, ‘Salvationto our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.’ And all
the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the
four living creatures, and fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped
God, saying, ‘Amen, blessing and glory, wisdom and thanksgiving and honor
and powerand might be to our God foreverand ever. Amen.’”
And this is all of the greattribute of heaven to the God of redemption.
Thunderous praise coming out of heaven. And John hears this thunderous
heavenly praise.
And then he also adds, “The voice which I heard was like the sound of
harpists playing on their harps.” Now, this greatvoice takes on a musical
tone. Here we find musical instruments. We don’t find them in Revelation
chapter 4 in the praise, or in revelation chapter 5 in the praise, or as I just
read you in Revelationchapter 7. But now, all of a sudden, music. Somebody
as suggestedthat there was music before the fall, and there won’t be music
until the Lord Jesus returns and removes the curse and sets up His kingdom.
Maybe this is when the music starts again. The harpists playing on their
harps. This is not thunderous judgment. That mitigates the tone of it all: the
harps. This is thunderous joy because the Lamb has returned and is standing
victorious.
Harps are mentioned, by the way, about 40 times in the Old Testament, and
they are associatedwith joy. As I noted earlier, when the Israelites in Babylon
had no joy, they hung their harps on the willow trees and didn’t play them.
Here, at the glorious return of Jesus Christ to earth to setup His kingdom
from Zion, all heaven bursts into the music of praise. And there is a
marvelous time of praise.
By the way, back in chapter 5, verse 8, it does say that the 24 elders had a
harp, and it may be that this is the same harping from the 24 elders in heaven.
And as I suggestedto you, however, it seems to be a louder and more forceful
and dominant kind of harping here; the sound of harpists playing on their
harps. That may be – I don’t want to overstate the case – it may be simply a
reference back to the 24 elders playing their harps.
But here, we do know this; the Lamb has come to the throne. He stands on the
mount, and heaven bursts into the praise and the music that they’ve been
waiting to offer to the Lamb for a long, long time. And it’s so grand and so
great, that it finds its way all the way to Mount Zion.

Look at verse 3. It tells us the nature of the song. “They sang a new song
before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders; and no
one could learn the song exceptthe one hundred and forty-four thousand who
had been purchasedfrom the earth.” Nobody could sing the song exceptthe
hundred and forty-four thousand who had been purchasedfrom the earth.
Why? Well, let’s work our way through this and see if we can’t answerthe
question. I don’t think it’s intending to be too complicated.
We know this: heaven canrejoice over redemption. Angels can rejoice over
someone else’s redemption. How do we know that? Because in Luke chapter
15, we have three illustrations of that. Back in Luke 15, which is a familiar
passageofScripture, you have, in that chapter, the very familiar story of the
prodigal son. But you have a couple of other stories that our Lord tells. The
first is about a man who loses one of his sheep. He brings it home, says to his
friends and neighbors, “Rejoicewith me.” And then it says, “There will be
more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous
persons.”
Then a lady lost a coin. She found it. She calls her friends and neighbors again
in the same way. She calls them togetherto rejoice. And the Lord says, “There
is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” And
then the story of the prodigal, the whole celebrationis meant to be a
celebrationof God and the holy angels. It is not to saythat the holy angels
cannot rejoice in redemption. They can’t experience it, but they can certainly
rejoice in it.
Here is heaven overflowing again, not over one sinner who repents, but over
the factthat the whole redemptive work, up until the return of Christ, is
accomplished. Church is certainly leading out in the song of redemption. The
elders are playing their harps. The tribulation saints are singing their new
song of redemption, as chapter 7, verses 9 and 10. All of the redeemed can
sing the song of redemption firsthand.
And by the way, the song of redemption is first mentioned back in the Psalms.
In Psalm 33, “Sing for joy in the Lord, O you righteous ones;praise is
becoming to the upright. Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre; sing praises to
Him with a harp of ten strings. Sing to Him a new song;play skillfully with a
shout of joy.” And the new song is always the song of redemption, the song of
salvation.
You find that new song numerous psalms. Psalm 40, verse 3, “He has put a
new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.” Much later in the
Psalms, in Psalm96, I think it’s verse 1 – just be sure about that. Similarly it

says, “Sing to the Lord” – yes – “a new song;sing to the Lord, all the earth.”
Psalm144, Psalm149. So, the new song in the Old TestamentPsalms was the
song of redemption, the song of a soul made new.
And so they sang, it says, a new song. Not just the 24 elders. Certainly the 24
elders, of course they were singing it, but it isn’t limited to them. “Theysang a
new song before the throne” probably refers to the redeemed – the “they.”
But the four living creatures are there, the elders as well. So, the scene is just a
conglomeration. Very hard to sort it out. Some people get kind of picky here,
trying to pick and choose exactlywho’s doing what.
But I think the best thing to understand is you have all the heavenly voices
joining in on the new song, some who have personally experienced
redemption, that is saints, and some who are rejoicing in God’s glorious
redemption, namely angels - all the redeemedaround the throne. They’ve
waited for this moment, and they’ve waited for the Lamb to stand on Zion.
And now the song begins to cascadeoverthe walls of heaven and comes all the
way down to earth. And he says, “The only ones who can learn the song on the
earth are the 144,000who have been purchasedfrom the earth.” Only the
redeemed, only those purchased by Christ’s blood. Only those who have
experiencedredemption.
Henry Morris writes an interesting note about this. He says, “Although the
words of the song of the 144,000 are not recorded, it surely dwells in part, at
least, on the greattruth that they had been redeemed from the earth, because
that’s what it says there. Although in one sense allsavedpeople have been
redeemedfrom the earth, these could know the meaning of such a theme in a
more profound waythan others. They had been saved after the rapture at
that time in history when man’s greatestpersecutions andGod’s greatest
judgments were on the earth. It was sucha time that they, like Noah, had
found grace in the eyes of the Lord and had been separatedfrom all that dwell
on the earth. Not only had they been redeemed spiritually but, pre-cursively
as it were, they had been redeemedfrom the very curse on the earth, being
protectedfrom pain and death by the guarding seal.”
So, it says there, in verse 3, “No one could learn the song except the hundred
and forty-four thousand who had been purchased from the earth.” Now,
there’s a technicalproblem there. What about the rest of the living saints who
are going to go into the kingdom? Jews and Gentiles who weren’t among those
144,000,couldthey also learn the song?
Well, it’s not necessaryto exclude those others. I don’t think the intention
here is to say that only the 144,000couldlearn the song and not any other

believer, but rather any other unbeliever. It’s somewhatofa difficulty. The
point is this: heaven is singing about God’s redemption. Now here are the
144,000 standing on the mountain, exuberant with joy. They have come
through all of this. They have literally been redeemed from the earth – that is
spared from the judgment – and they are there to sing the new song.
Some of that song, by the way, is given in chapter 15. It says in verse 3, “They
sang the song of Moses,the bond servantof God, and the song of the Lamb” –
and here’s part of it - “‘Greatand marvelous are Thy works, O Lord God, the
Almighty; righteous and true are Thy ways, Thy King of the nations! Who
will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Thy name? ForThou alone art holy; for all
the nations will come and worship before Thee, for Thy righteous acts have
been revealed.’” And they encompassedthe song of Moses in with the song of
the Lamb, and it’s all about God’s majesty, God’s power, God’s redemption,
and God’s kingdom.
Now again, this is a somewhatdifficult passage to try to dissectevery little
piece. And I don’t know that the Spirit of God expects us to be able to
comprehend that. We do know that all of heavenis cascading with a song of
praise to the redeeming God, and that the 144,000now join that. And it’s not
really a song that anyone can sing except those who have been redeemed,
those who have been purchased from the earth. And it may well be that it’s
only the 144,000, as I said earlier – read from Morris – because they were the
ones uniquely purchased because they were delivered through all of the time
of tribulation when they were the targetfor deadly destruction by the
Antichrist and his empire.
Now, praise then and powermark those who are triumphant. And I’ll just
extrapolate off of this for a moment, if I can – and I’m trying to hurry a little
bit to getthrough this – to extrapolate a little off of that and say this: the
principle I want you to draw from this is one that is really not explicit but
implicit. If we are to be triumphant believers, if we are to have the kind of
characterand the kind of staying power, the kind of triumphant experience
that the 144,000willhave, in just a small way, I think it must be through the
powerof God that we do that, and we must do it with hearts that are filled
with praise. I really believe triumphant Christians are Christians who praise
God, whose hearts are immediately ready to burst forth in praise when God
shows Himself powerful. And I would venture to saythat these 144,000have
experienceda praising heart through all of the time of their trials because
that’s the nature of triumphant believers.

Now, let’s look at a third principal, and that is the principle of purity. And
this is kind of getting us now into the heart of it. I want to bring you to verse 4
and 5 because I think that’s what’s most helpful to us.
The third component here is purity. And you see it at the beginning of verse 4,
“These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they have kept
themselves chaste.” The religionof the beast, the worship of Antichrist I really
believe will be a retrogression – I guess you could call it a retrogressionor
maybe not, because its perhaps common even today – to times when religion
was sensual, whenreligion was sexual, when religion was perverse, when
religion pandered to every evil lust. Like the fertility cults of old, like the
prostitutes who supposedly could by prostitution and sexual involvement with
an individual draw them to the deity Himself, I believe in Antichrist’s world
sexualsin will run rampant. Certainly with the restraints off, with the furious
judgment of God on, and God abandoning societyto its sins, it will be a gross
and immoral and evil time. If you think it’s bad now, you can’t even conceive
of what the onslaughtof deviation sexually might be like in that period of
time. But these 144,000who triumph have not been defiled with women. They
provide an illustration for us, nothing more. They are an illustration of God’s
keeping power. They are an illustration of praise in the midst of tremendous
difficulty. And they are an illustration of purity. They will not defile
themselves with women. Now, that is the reasonwe know they are men. And
that’s just a goodreminder that God has designedthat men representhim as
the proclaimers of His truth.
These men will not be defiled. The word for defilement simply means to soilor
to stain or to desecrate. The phrase “with women” leads to the conclusionthat
the issue here is sexualpurity. And that’s going to be some remarkable kind of
behavior given the world of that day. Frankly, it’s pretty remarkable behavior
given the world of today, isn’t it? IF you try to find a 144,000pastors today
who hadn’t defiled themselves with women, you might have to look for a long
time. A hundred and forty-four thousand, 12,000 outof every tribe who have
not defiled themselves with women. Some people have made this a more
generalsort of idea that it means they will detachthemselves from the corrupt
system. That’s possible as a meaning. But I think the idea here is simply stated
as sexual purity because it’s repeated. They have kept themselves chaste.
Obviously, they will not be corrupted by the system; that kind of goes along
with it all. Obviously, they’re not going to be polluted by the Antichrist
Satanic system. But beyond that, they will not even be defiled in the sexual
area. Surely they’re not going to have intercourse with the Antichrist’s
system. That’s obvious. They’ve already, like many other believers, denied the

mark of the beast. Of course they’re not going to engage inintercourse with
the Antichrist’s system, but I think they’re going to go beyond that, and
they’re going to be pure.
Some have suggestedthis means that they’re 144,000single men who’ve never
been married. Sexwithin marriage doesn’t defile anybody. Hebrews is very
clear– isn’t it? – in chapter 13, “The bed is undefiled.” Now, what it means is
there are 144,000morally pure preachers without the moral defilement of the
culture around them; they will stand apart. It literally says they’re parthenoi;
they’re chaste. Theyhave resistedthe seduction of harlots as well as the harlot
system, and they have maintained purity. God has tremendous, tremendous
plans for these men. Triumphant men. And I really believe that the standard
for us is the same. If one is to be a triumphant Christian, they must experience
the keeping powerof God, and they must live a life of praise no matter how
difficult it is, and they must maintain purity.
Whenever I hear some – of someone in the in who falls into sin and impurity
and in so doing say, “Well, you know, it’s very difficult in this culture. We
have to be understanding. I want to think about the 144,000who, living in the
middle of Satan’s empire, will not fall. You canimagine what a force they’ll
be; can’t you?
The fourth point about being a victor here – power, praise, purity, -
partisanship. It’s hard to find that word with a P, by the way. Partisanship. In
verse 4, “These are the ones who follow the Lamb whereverHe goes.”These
are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. They’re partisans to the
party of the Lamb. They’re the ones who follow the Lamb whereverHe goes.
The Oxford dictionary defines “partisan” this way, “An adherent, a
supporter, one who supports his cause through thick and thin; a blind,
unreasoning, prejudicial, and fanaticaladherent.” And that is them. They are
partisans. “Partisanship” - says the dictionary - “is the practice of being
completely loyal.” These triumphant 144,000are partisans. At any cost, they
are loyal to the Lamb. They allow no rivals, no refusals, no restraint to mar
their dedication to Him.
Does He need somebodyto stand on the steps of the Vatican and cry out
againstthe marriage of Christendom to the beast? They’ll do it. Does the
Lord need somebody to confront the Antichrist himself or the false prophet or
any of his henchmen at any function and roundly denounce him and denounce
his policy and denounce his witchcraft? They’ll do it. Does the Lamb need an
evangelistto go to the corners of the world and proclaim the gospel, they’ll do
it. To climb the highest mountain, to cross the desertsands, to blaze

evangelistic trails through steaming jungles – they’ll do it. It doesn’t matter
what the beastdoes. It doesn’tmatter how he goes afterthem. It doesn’t
matter how he sends his forces to kill them. None of it matters. They are
undaunted; they are undeterred.
They follow the Lamb whereverHe goes. Devotion. And that kind of
partisanship is exactly what Jesus asks us to do. I heard it twice in the
testimonies in baptism tonight, that people said, “I want to obey whateverthe
Lord asks me to do.” I mean that’s just basic. You find that all throughout the
New TestamentScriptures. I don’t need to beg the issue;it’s repeated over
and over again. You heard it from the gospelofJohn in chapter 15, “If you” –
or chapter 14, verse 15, “If you love Me, you’ll keepMy commandments.” It’s
just common knowledge to any Christian.
And Jesus saidto His disciples, “If you want to be My disciple, take up your
cross and follow Me.” He said to the rich young ruler, “Come follow Me.” He
said to the apostle Peter, afterhis reinstatementin the end of the Gospelof
John, “Follow Me.” The same thing it saidat the very beginning. He had to
say it years later because ofPeter’s wavering.
Paul even said, “Be ye followers ofme as I am of Christ.” This makes for real
winners who will follow the Lord at any price, at any cost, no matter what it
means.
And in John 21, Jesus saidto Peter, “Somebody’s going to take you where you
don’t want to go, an somebody’s going to tie you up and bind you, and you’re
going to lose your life for My sake.”
And Peter’s question was immediately, “Well, what’s going to happen to
John?”
And Jesus said, “That’s none of your business;you follow Me.”
The winner, the one who triumphs – and Peter eventually did – the one who is
standing when the smoke clears is the one who is so partisan to the Lord Jesus
Christ that nothing deters.
And then a fifth thought here that certainly illustrates what is necessaryto be
a winner in the spiritual life: purpose. Purpose. This is marvelous. “These
have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the
Lamb.” They have been purchased – there’s that redemptive language again –
bought with a price. First Peter1, “Boughtwith a price not of silver and gold,
but of the precious blood of Christ, a Lamb without spotand without
blemish.” They were redeemed, but notice this; they were redeemed,
purchased out from among men as first fruits to God.

Now, what is “first fruits?” Well, if you go back in the Old Testament, you
find that first fruits is just a term for offerings. When you grew a crop, when
the crop was harvested, you took the first fruits that came in, the first part
harvested, gave it to God as an offering. Consecrated, devotedto the service of
God. And what he is saying is these people are like first fruits offerings. They
are given to God in specialdedication. All the rest of it should be used to the
honor of God. All of us should be used to the honor of God. All of us should
serve God, but some of us are unique in our service rendered. Some of us are
consecrateduniquely and especiallyto divine duty. And I think that’s the
intent here first of all. That’s the primary intent, that they are setapart.
You can go back into the Old Testamentand you can read about how God
designedthat the first fruits be setapart unto Him as a specialsacrifice anda
specialoffering, Deuteronomy chapter 26 – I won’t take the time to read it,
but you can read it in the first 11 verses there. And I think he sees the 144,000
as a specialgroup of men out from all the rest of savedpeople, offeredto God
for unique service. Notlike all the rest. After all, there were only 144,000of
them. Not everybody fit into that at all.
So, as those who had been given to God in a unique way, they’re like an
offering; they’re like a specialsacrifice dedicatedto God and offeredto Him
for divine service. This is not just a normal group of folks, but a group offered
in specialconsecratedservice to the Lamb. That’s the purpose of their life.
They have one purpose for their life. They will serve the Lord and they will
proclaim the gospelout of a pure life to a perishing and hating world. That
kind of focus and that kind of purpose, that kind of decisiveness, that kind of
clarity of life goalI think is so much the part of one who is to be a winner.
Now, you may not be selectedfor that specialservice, but the pattern is still
the same. Whateverlevel of service you render to God should so consume you
that it becomes your life purpose and nothing could deter you from it. The
thing that keeps you going, the thing that keeps you from falling into sin, the
thing that keeps you disciplined and moving toward your goalis the factthat
you know that this is why you live and breathe. And that’s true of all of us, not
just the speciallycalled like the 144,000.So, they illustrate a certain level of
devotion and dedication to us that may be helpful in helping us to look at what
makes people winners.
Now, there’s one other possible not here, and again, this chapter has so many
options, it’s – I haven’t sharedthem all with you because youcan’t be profited
by going into every conceivable option. But there’s a lot of very sort of
challenging issues here in interpreting this.

Some would suggestthis, and I’ll give it to you because you may want to think
it through, that the idea of first fruits is not so much just the offering, but the
idea of representation. Representationin this sense:the first fruits given to
God were indication that there was more to follow. Sometimes the idea of first
fruits has that.
For example, 1 Corinthians chapter16 – I’ll give you an illustration of that –
verse 15, “I urge you, brethren (you know the householdof Stephanas), that
they were the first fruits of Achaia” – now what he means there, most likely, is
that they were the first people convertedin Achaia, but there would be more
to come, the first fruits being representative of more to come. Some – a similar
note – I think it’s found at the end of the book of Romans – yes, it talks about
“Epenetus, my because, who is the first fruits” – or the first convert to Christ
– “from Asia.” Now, there would be, then, more to follow. And some would
suggestto us, then, that the 144,000 are the first fruits of Israel. They’re there,
and that’s only a beginning indication of the redemption of all of Israel.
The problem with that particular viewpoint is that the redeemed Israelwould
have already been redeemedby this time. But then you could argue the
144,000 hadbeen redeemed a lot earlier and before they were sealed. And at
that time, they were the first fruits of what would come. And that may be
legitimate. In either case, whetheryou see them purely as the first fruits
because they are uniquely devoted to God, or the first fruits because they are
an indication of what is to follow, it is very clearthat the heart of their life was
one thing, one purpose, and that was to toil on behalf of the living Lord no
matter what the cost. They were winners because they had purpose. They
lived for one greatconsuming purpose. They were given to God for service.
They were given to the Lamb to preachas gospel.
To add another P to our little list, and you are definitely getting the abridged
version tonight – to add anotherP to our list, “precision.” Precision. Verse 5
says, “No lie was found in their mouth.” That is to say they were precise.
There was precisionin what they said. There was no sloppiness;there was no
exaggeration;there was no overstatement;there was no understatement. They
spoke preciselyGod’s truth.
Now, there’s an interesting Old Testamentverse that ties in with this,
Zephaniah 3:13. Looking ahead at the time of Israel’s restoration, it says this,
“The remnant of Israel will do no wrong and tell no lies, nor will a deceitful
tongue be found in their mouths.” There the prophet Zephaniah saw the very
same thing: that there would be a greatgroup of Jews, in the end, who would
be known for their precisionin speaking the truth of God. They will never fall

over into lies. Certainly it means they will never propagate Satan’s lie
obviously.
The whole world will be head deep in lies and head deep in deception. Second
Thessalonians 2, verses 9 to 11, where we have gone numbers of time, points
that out. The whole world will be deceivedwith lying wonders, but these men
will not; they will speak the truth; they will speak preciselythe Word of God;
they will be accurate, appropriate without wavering, without equivocating, or
without altering the Word of God. That’s another mark on their lives that
makes them triumphant. And certainly that’s a wonderful example to us the
Bible is repeatedly warning us about lies and about our conversation.
And there’s one last point, and I’ll close with this. Let’s callit perfection. Lets’
call it perfection. They triumphed because ofpower, praise, purity,
partisanship, purpose, precision, perfection. This is amazing; they’re
blameless.
I read one writer this week, among many, who suggestedthat they are sinless.
I mentioned to you lastSunday night that some among the SeventhDay
Adventists have suggestedthat it’ll be sinless people. There’s no reasonto
assume that, because there’s nobody who canbe sinless. If they’re people,
they’re not sinless. And they are people; they’re 12,000 Jewsoutof every
tribe. And if they are human beings – and they are – they cannotbe sinless.
But they are sanctified. And when it says they are blameless, it is the kind of
blamelessnessthatthe apostle Paul affirmed that he had even before he was a
Christian, when he says in Philippians 3, “Blameless.”
In other words, they will have such impeccable reputations that there is
nothing in their lives of a sin for which they could be held culpable and
responsible publically. Not sinless, but sanctified, living holy lives, godly lives.
You know, when we were saved, it was because Godwantedus to be holy and
blameless before Him. So says Ephesians chapter1, “We were savedto be
made holy.” Petertold us, “Be holy, even as your Fatherin heavenis holy.”
The Lord wants to presentto Himself as a bride a Church that is without spot
or wrinkle or any such thing, that is holy and blameless.
Paul said to the Corinthians he wanted to present them to Christ as a chaste
virgin. It’s talking about sanctification. It’s talking about the perfection of
holiness, not absolute, ultimate, and complete sinlessness,but maturity, virtue,
and godliness.
“All Scripture is inspired by God,” says Paul to Timothy, “profitable for
teaching, reproof, correction, training, and righteousness thatthe man of God
may be perfect.” What kind of perfect does he mean? Mature, blameless.

They’ll not be sinless, but they’ll be sanctified, godly, Christlike men. And
they stand triumphant.
You know, they’re really not the only people who’ve ever lived like that.
There were some other conquerors. Listen to Hebrews 11, “What more shall I
say” – verse 32 – about Gideon, Barak, SamsonJephthah, David, Samuel, the
prophets who by faith conqueredkingdoms, performed acts of righteousness,
obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire,
escapedthe edge of the sword, from weaknesswere made strong, became
mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight?” There have been some
triumphant believers through the centuries, and these men are the most
unique of all.
What I’ve tried to do - and I hope it’s been a little bit successful - is to see this
as more than just a prophetic scenario. Butto recognize that these are
actually human beings and that they came by God’s grace and His power and
His plan to a place in their lives where they could triumph over the most
wicked, vile culture in the history of the world. Becausethey calledon God’s
power, they were filled with God’s praise. They pursued purity. They were
partisans to Jesus Christ, their divine leader. They lived for one purpose, to
sacrifice their lives as an offering to God. They were precise in always
speaking the truth, and they grew to spiritual maturity. What exemplary men
they are. And I believe they provide for us a most unique and a most
interesting pattern for what being – what is really – what it is like, I should
say, to be a spiritual super conqueror or overcomer.
In conclusion, I’ll say this: no wonder they bring the world’s greatestspiritual
awakening. Ibelieve that the indication of chapter 7, verses 9 to 12, is that
during the tribulation time, under the ministry of these men, there will be the
greatestrevival the world has ever known. No wonder. The force and the
powerof their lives is unequaled in all of human history. And I hope they can
serve, though they are so unique, as a model for all of us, to enter into the
triumph that is really ours in Christ if we chooseto follow their path.
Father, we thank You for tonight. It’s been a wonderful service. We thank
You for the testimonies and music. We thank You for the fellowshipwe’ve
enjoyed. And, Father, there’s so much in this text that is prophetic and future
and distant. And it has a certainfascination, and it speaks to us of your great
power, but Lord, we want to make it practical, too. And these are people. And
what gave them triumph, and what gave them victory, and what causedthem
to stand when the smoke cleared - and still, they were in the presence of the
Lamb – was the factthat they followeda path that has been laid out for all of

us. Help us to walk in it and to experience in some way a kind of triumph that
will belong to them.
Help us, Lord, to be able to sing the song of redemption maybe just a little bit
like they sing it, because we know what it is to live againstthe grain of the
culture and to see Your power delivering us from it. Help us, Lord, to see
ourselves as offerings to You with the purpose of proclaiming Your truth. And
though we may not be calledas preachers, we certainlyare calledto be living
sacrifices,holy and acceptable unto You, which is our act of spiritual worship.
And I pray, in this generation, Lord, if it can’t be 144,000, pleasecouldit be
some who would be faithful; who would not be defiled with women, but
chaste;who would follow the Lamb wherever He leads; who would be willing
to speak only the truth and never lies?
RICH CATHERS
Revelation14:1-5
Sunday Morning Bible Study
March 25, 2012
Introduction
The apostle John found himself caughtup into heavenbefore the throne of
God.
He saw Jesus take a scroll from the hand of God that had been sealedwith
sevenseals.
As Jesus broke eachsealand unrolled the scrolla little further, events begin
to take place on the earth and the time that we call the Tribulation begins to
unfold.
The Tribulation is a time when God’s wrath is poured out on an unbelieving
world and God begins to make right all the things that have been so wrong.
We are somewhere in the middle of the Tribulation period, when the
antichrist is unmaskedas pure evil and turns to kill the Jews, specifically
those who have come to believe in Jesus as their Messiah.
14:1-5 Lamb’s Men

:1 Then I looked, and behold, a Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him
one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His Father’s name written on
their foreheads.
:1 one hundred and forty-four thousand
We saw these individuals back in Revelation7.
They were called “the servants of our God” (Rev. 7:3)
They will all be Jewishmen, twelve thousand from eachtribe of Israel(Rev.
7:5-8).
The main people that God will be working through in the Tribulation will be
these Jewishmen who have come to believe in Jesus as their Messiah.
This week I came across aninteresting clip about a revered Jewishrabbi.
Play clip about Rabbi Yitzhak Kaduri
To be fair, one Jewishresponse to this is that Rabbi Kaduri was not talking
about Jesus, but about someone named Yehoshua, though this is a form of the
name Joshua, the Hebrew name for Jesus.
Also note – Ariel Sharon is still alive in a comatose state inan Israelihospital.
He has been in a coma since 2006. Interesting stuff. Worth considering.
:1 Mount Zion
Play Mount Zion map clip
One of the hills that the city of Jerusalemin Israelsits upon is called“Mount
Zion”.
There is also a heavenly versionof Mount Zion.
The writer of Hebrews reminds his readers that as believers their goalisn’t to
come to an earthly Mount Sinai, …
(Heb 12:22 NKJV) But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the
living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels,
We’re going to see that the 144,000 are going to be singing before the throne
of God. They are in heaven.
That means that by this time in the Tribulation, they’ve all been martyred
and now they are in heaven.
:1 name written on their foreheads

The 144,000have God’s name on their foreheads.
It could be that they have the actual name “Yahweh” written on their
foreheads.
Or possibly, the four Hebrew letters of God’s name, YHWH, ‫י‬ ְ‫ה‬‫ו‬‫י‬ָ֞‫ה‬
We considerthis God’s name because that’s what God told Moses (Ex. 3:14)
(Ex 3:14–15 NKJV)—14 And God said to Moses, “IAM WHO I AM.” And
He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sentme to
you.’ ” 15 MoreoverGodsaid to Moses, “Thus you shall sayto the children of
Israel: ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,
and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is
My memorial to all generations.’
The phrase “I AM” is related in Hebrew to the name Yahweh. It’s in verse 15
that the actual name “Yahweh” is used. In our English Bibles, the translators
will use the word “LORD” in all capital letters to let you know that the
Hebrew text is actually using the name of God, Yahweh.
We saw at the beginning of the Tribulation that the 144,000 hada special
“seal” ontheir foreheads (Rev. 7:3)
Perhaps the “seal”is the name of God on their foreheads.
Their “seal” was symbolic of God’s protection over them during the
Tribulation, in particular protectionfrom being harmed by the demonic
locustcreatures that came out of the bottomless pit (Rev. 9)
(Re 9:4 NKJV) They were commanded not to harm the grass ofthe earth, or
any greenthing, or any tree, but only those men who do not have the sealof
God on their foreheads.
If their “seal” was actuallyGod’s name, that fits another verse:
(Pr 18:10 NKJV) The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run
to it and are safe.
The name of “Yahweh” is a strong tower.
Here’s a wild idea – we talkedlast week aboutthe false prophet requiring
everyone to have a “mark” on their right hand or forehead in order to
conduct financial transactions.
We talkedabout how this might be a type of “counterfeit”, copying what the
Orthodox Jews do in wearing phylacteries on their foreheads and right arms.
Could it also be an “imitation” of the sealof these 144,000?

Their “mark” protected them from the demon locusts. Couldit be that the
false prophet will markethis “mark” as some sort of protection or benefit to
the world? Something like, “Those crazyJews think their mark keeps them
safe, but we have a new and improved mark!”
:2 And I heard a voice from heaven, like the voice of many waters, and like
the voice of loud thunder. And I heard the sound of harpists playing their
harps.
:2 harps – kithara – a harp
Our word “guitar” comes from this word.
The Greek text is literally, “the sound of harpists harping on their harps”
:3 They sang as it were a new song before the throne, before the four living
creatures, and the elders; and no one could learn that song except the
hundred and forty-four thousand who were redeemedfrom the earth.
:3 They sang … before the throne
When I was in high schooland college, I sang in a bunch of schoolchoirs.
And sometimes if you are in a fairly decent choir, you are invited to sing in
some pretty coolplaces, andto sing before some important audiences.
I always used to getpretty nervous when we sang in front of specialaudiences.
This group of the 144,000is allowedto sing before the very throne of God in
heaven.
I wonder if any of them will be just a tad bit nervous.
To be honest, we sing in front of the same audience.

Whether you realized it or not, today you too were singing before the very
same throne of God.
:3 no one could learn that song except…
No one else was able to pick up that “tune” because the tune was unique to
this group of individuals.
Lesson
Your song
Sometimes we make the mistake of thinking that we want to be like such and
such a person. We wish our life was like their life. We want to learn their
“song”.
There is value in learning from others and imitating the goodthings about
their lives.
This is what “discipleship” is all about – learning from another person,
observing their life, listening to what they say.
Yet you will get a lot farther in life if you learn to find out what plan or
“song” that Godhas for you.
Though we can learn from others, we can’t live their life.
This was the problem that Peterhad with John.
After the resurrection, Jesus was speaking with Peterand telling him about
the suffering that was up aheadof him.
(Jn 21:18–22NKJV) —18 Mostassuredly, I sayto you, when you were
younger, you girded yourself and walkedwhere you wished; but when you are
old, you will stretchout your hands, and another will gird you and carry you
where you do not wish.” 19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would
glorify God. And when He had spokenthis, He said to him, “Follow Me.”
Those are some pretty difficult things to hear about your future. Not many of
us would be too excitedto hear that we have a life of difficulty aheadof us.
Peterturns to look at John the apostle …
20 Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following,
who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the
one who betrays You?” 21 Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “ButLord, what

about this man?” 22 Jesus saidto him, “If I will that he remain till I come,
what is that to you? You follow Me.”
Peterand John were buddies, but they would eventually walk very different
paths.
Peterhad to learn that he had to walk the path that Jesus had for him. He
couldn’t worry about the path that Jesus had for John.
This was the lessonthat Estherhad to embrace – that God had a specialplan
for her life, designed just for her.
She might have not liked the idea that she was raisedby her cousinMordecai
instead of her parents.
She might not have like the idea that she was entered into the beauty contest
of King Ahasuerus.
Other people may have envied her winning the beauty contestand becoming
the Queenof Persia.
But all of this was to lead up to the time when her people, the Jews, faced
extermination at the hand of Haman the Agagite.
It was her cousinMordecaithat pointed out her unique call in life:
(Es 4:14 NKJV) For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and
deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your
father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whetheryou have come to the
kingdom for such a time as this?”
Esther’s path was speciallydesignedfor her. No one could live her life for
her.
What is your “song”?
Your song is who you are. It’s the experiences you’ve had. It’s the strengths
and weaknessesyoubring to the table. It’s your education(or lack of). It’s
your gifting. It’s your personality. It’s your calling.
Only you can sing your song.
:4 These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins.
These are the ones who follow the Lamb whereverHe goes.These were
redeemedfrom among men, being firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.

:5 And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without fault before
the throne of God.
:4 These are the ones
Lesson
Being Useful
These are the guys who are going to be used by God in a big way during the
darkestdays on our planet. What makes them so “useful” to God? 4 things…
1. Useful: Pure
These men were not “defiled” by womenbecause they were virgins.
It’s important to understand that the defilement that comes from sexonly
comes when you take sex outside of the boundaries that God designedit for.
There is no defilement when sexis with your spouse.
(Heb 13:4 NKJV) Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled;
but fornicators and adulterers God will judge.
It’s sexoutside of marriage that “defiles” you.
Becausethese men will be “virgins” and won’t have had sex, then the
defilement that comes from sex outside of marriage isn’t going to be a
problem for them.
Purity is an important trait in being useful to God.
(2 Ti 2:20–22 NKJV)—20 But in a greathouse there are not only vessels of
gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for

dishonor. 21 Therefore if anyone cleanseshimselffrom the latter, he will be a
vesselfor honor, sanctifiedand useful for the Master, preparedfor every good
work. 22 Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace
with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.
We all have various kinds of “vessels”thatwe use at home.
You might use a certain bucketfor mopping the floors, or even bailing water
out of a stopped up toilet.
But you probably won’t use that same bucketto serve orange juice to your
kids for breakfast. Right?
You use a “clean” vesselto serve your kids.
The same works in how we serve the Lord. God prefers to use a “clean”
vessel.
2. Useful: Follower
:4 They follow the Lamb whereverHe goes.
It’s not that God isn’t looking for “leaders”, but the leaders that God is
looking for are men and womenwho learn to follow the True Leader, Jesus
Christ.
To get your directions from Jesus, youneed to be able to hear His voice.
The prophet Elijah learned that God doesn’t always speak witha loud voice.
Sometimes God speaks witha “still, small voice”.
The problem is, sometimes our lives are too noisy to be able to hear God’s
voice.
Illustration
The Cricket
A Native American and his friend were in downtown New York City, walking
near Times Square in Manhattan. It was during the noon lunch hour and the
streets were filled with people. Cars were honking their horns, taxicabs were
squealing around corners, sirens were wailing, and the sounds of the city were
almost deafening. Suddenly, the Native American said, “I hear a cricket.” His
friend said, “What? You must be crazy. You couldn’t possibly hear a cricket
in all of this noise!” “No, I’m sure of it,” the Native American said, “I heard a

cricket.” “That’s crazy,” saidthe friend. The Native American listened
carefully for a moment, and then walkedacross the streetto a big cement
planter where some shrubs were growing. He lookedinto the bushes, beneath
the branches, and sure enough, he locateda small cricket. His friend was
utterly amazed. “That’s incredible,” saidhis friend. “You must have
superhuman ears.” “No,”saidthe Native American. “My ears are no different
from yours. It all depends on what you’re listening for.” “But that can’t be!”
said the friend. “I could never hear a cricketin this noise.” “Yes, it’s true,”
came the reply. “It depends on what is really important to you. Here, let me
show you.” He reachedinto his pocket, pulled out a few coins, and discreetly
dropped them on the sidewalk. And then, with the noise of the crowdedstreet
still blaring in their ears, they noticed every head within twenty feet turn and
look to see if the money that tinkled on the pavement was theirs. “See whatI
mean?” askedthe Native American. “It all depends on what’s important to
you.”
Do you spend time listening to Jesus? Do youspend time in God’s Word? If
God spoke to you, would you be able to hearHim?
3. Useful: Honest
:5 “in their mouth was found no deceit”
The language indicates that someone is looking for something (deceit), and
can’t find it.
These are men who hold up under scrutiny.
You can look for dishonesty, but you won’t find it.
Play “Purse” video.
Isaiahprophesied this about Jesus:
(Is 53:9 NKJV) And they made His grave with the wicked— But with the rich
at His death, BecauseHe had done no violence, Norwas any deceit in His
mouth.
The Lamb that these men follow, was not deceitful.
4. Useful: Cleansed
They are “without fault” (vs.5)
This might be speaking ofthem being perfect, but I think it indicates that
they’ve been forgiven.

without fault – amomos (“not” + “blemish”) – as a sacrifice without spot;
faultless, unblameable
This was one of the concepts behind an acceptable sacrifice – you don’t offer
to God an animal that’s sick and about to die, or one that’s got a brokenleg.
You give God your bestto sacrifice. Look athow “amomos” is used …
This was the kind of sacrifice Jesus was.
(Heb 9:14 NKJV) how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the
eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience
from dead works to serve the living God?
God desires that we all would be without fault, perfect.
(Eph 1:4 NKJV) just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the
world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
Yet the only way we can be “without fault” is through Jesus’sacrifice forus.
(1 Pe 1:17–19 NKJV)—17 And if you call on the Father, who without
partiality judges according to eachone’s work, conduct yourselves throughout
the time of your stay here in fear; 18 knowing that you were not redeemed
with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received
by tradition from your fathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of
a lamb without blemish and without spot.
He gave up His perfect, sinless life, to pay for our sins, so that we could be
washedand made “faultless”.
How do we become forgiven and “spotless”whenwe’ve gotso many faults?
(1 Jn 1:9 NKJV) If we confess oursins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our
sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
When we come to Jesus and confess our sins, He cleansesus, He removes
every spot and wrinkle.
Once He cleansesyou, He is also able to keepus “faultless”
(Jud 24 NKJV) Now to Him who is able to keepyou from stumbling, And to
present you faultless Before the presence ofHis glory with exceeding joy,
This is where usefulness reallystarts, by allowing Jesus to forgive you and
cleanse you, and keepyou from sin.
Jesus died on the cross to pay for all of your sins. He offers to you complete
forgiveness foreverything you’ve ever done if you will simply turn to Him and
ask for His help.

You may have failed terribly in some of the things that we’ve talkedabout
today, but God offers a secondchance.
Standing with the Lamb
By Johnny L. Sanders
Bible Book:Revelation 14 : 1-8
Subject: Lamb of God; Tribulation, The Great
Series:Revelation
INTRODUCTION
I once heard someone referto the Book of Revelationas a tract for hard
times. Trials and tribulations come to every generation. The amazing thing is
that we cannot pass on our experience to our children and our grandchildren.
If fact, we try to do that, only to find our advice and instructions often, but not
always fall on deaf ears. One might assume that civilizations would
continually evolve upwards until most socialand ethicalproblems would be
eliminated. Sadly, the opposite is the case. Leftto drift, individuals and
cultures always drift awayfrom God, never towardHim. The prince of the
world, Satanis there to influence this rebellion againstGod in every
generation. Any time you see a catastrophe or a tragedy, please remember
that the Fall brought death, suffering, and pain. We do not live in a fair world,
we live in a fallen world. When we are born againwe still live in a fallen
world, a world whose prince is the master deceiver, father of liars, and
murderer from the beginning. Nowhere is his characterseenmore vividly
than in Islamic terrorism today.
Whether the saints are living through the persecutions ofNero or Domitian,
the Inquisition, Nazism. Communism, or Islamic terrorism, the Book of
Revelationspeaks to believers, not to discourage them, but to encourage them;
not to cause them to run for the hills, but to wage spiritual warfare;not to
silence them, but to embolden them. Briefly, let me review with you once
againwhat we have seenin Revelation:
In Chapter 1, we see that the Son of God is the Alpha and the Omega, the first
and the last, beginning and the end.
In Chapters 2-3, we have the letters to the 7 churches of Asia Minor.

In Chapter 4, we are introduced to the throne room of Heaven.
In Chapter 5, The One on the throne has a scrollwith sevenseals in His hand,
a sealno one could open until the Lamb of God, Jesus, undertook the task of
breaking the seals and opening the scroll.
In Chapter 6, the first six seals are broken, eachwith its own dramatic
revelation.
In Chapter 7, God’s judgment is held back until a mighty angelwith the seal
of the Lord seals those who are redeemed.
In Chapter 8, the seventhsealis broken, followedby 7 trumpet judgments.
In Chapter 9, the angelfrom bottomless pit unleashes plagues againstthose
who are not saved.
In Chapter 10, John is told to take the little book, and eatit: it would be sweet
in the mouth, but bitter in the stomach.
In Chapter 11, verses 1-10, we see the Two Witnesses Godsends to proclaim
His messagewith awesome power, and supernatural results. In 11:1, God told
John to take a reed and measure the sanctuary, excluding the court of the
Gentiles. He stressedthat Gentiles will trample under foot the streets of that
greatcity for forty-two months, three and one half years.
In Chapter 12, we see Satan’s vicious attack on Israel, and God’s protectionof
His ChosenPeople.
In Chapter 13, we are introduced to the two beasts, the beast out of the sea
and the beast our of the earth. Through these two beasts, Satanwagesanevil
war againstGodand all who honor Him. The first beastis hideous, ugly,
frightening, and seemingly irresistible. When he comes out againstthe saints
one wonders if anyone canstand againsthim. We know there will be many
martyrs. Then the secondbeastspeaks up and offers a compromise.
On Valentine’s Day, 2005, a radio host offereda free divorce to the winners of
a contest, or to a lucky caller. He appearedon Fox network with someone to
explain what the program was trying to do. A Catholic Priest was given an
opportunity to express opposition to what the radio host was doing. He made
some goodpoints about the effects ofdivorce on children, but what I seemed
to hear has more to do with “thus reasoneththe mind of the church” than
“thus saith the Word of the Lord.” The priest said something that surprised
me: “Sometimes divorce is necessarybecauseofirreconcilable differences.” I
have some news for you: Jesus does notrecognize that irreconcilable
differences as grounds for divorce. Jesus is in the business of reconciliation!

Let me ask you something. If when television first came out, if you parents or
grandparents had hear people using God’s name in vain, shouting obscene
words, or chatting about body parts and body functions, what would they
have done? The media knew what would have happened, so they took a half a
century to break down the barriers - slowly but relentlesslythey changedour
culture. The first beastdeclares there is not God and there are no absolute
values and standards. The secondbeaststeps up and softens the message,
encouraging diversity, encouraging compromise. When he has done his work
masses willwearthe mark of the beaston their foreheads and in their lives.
Fearnot! The beasthas not won. The dragon is not winning. Now we come to
Chapter 14 and here we will see that the Lamb of God has never relinquished
control and He has never yielded controlto Satan. When your day is dark and
dreary, look the heavens and see the heavenly Son-light; when health,
finances, oppression, evenpersecutioncomes, look to Mount Zion. Stand with
the Lamb!
I. JOHN SEES THE LAMB STANDING ON MOUNT ZION, 14:1-3.
A. Keep Your Eyes on the Lamb, 1a.
“Then I looked, and there on Mount Zion stoodthe Lamb.”
1. Jesus is the Lamb of God.
2. He is the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
3. In Hebrews, Jesus is the preeminent High Priest.
4. In Hebrews, He is the supreme sacrifice, the Lamb without spot or blemish.
5. Jesus is standing on Mount Zion.
Mount Zion is probably the same as the heavenly Jerusalem(Gal. 4:26; Heb.
12:22-24). Believers
will be encouragedwhenthey see the Lamb of God on Mount Zion, the place
of His greatestvictoryon earth.
When Jesus came to the disciples in the storm on the Sea of Galilee, He was
walking on the water. Peteraskedto go to Him and was given permission.
Peterwas walking on the wateruntil he took his eyes off Jesus and then he
beganto sink. If you will remember, Petercould not prevent his sinking, and
he could inflate himself to ascendback to the surface. Jesus hadto lift him
back up and set him on top of the water. If you take your eyes off the Lamb of
God, you are going to sink - and you have takenyour eyes off the Lamb, and

you have sunk. Now if you have been there you know that once you sink in sin
you cannotrestore yourself. You must look to the Lamb of God.
The image of a lamb may not cause the world to tremble, or Satan to flee. It
may not eveninspire faith and trust in a backsliddensinner. However, we
must never forget that the Lamb of God is also the Lion of the tribe of Judah.
The Balm of Gilead is also the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Keep
your eyes on Him and He will protect you, He will defend you, He will comfort
you.
I grew up on a farm sevenmiles westof Sledge, Mississippi, just over the line
in Tunica County. I well remember when we got mercury lights in out
community - hey, I remember when the MississippiPowerand Light people
ran the power lines through our community. As a matter of fact, a lineman
named Perry Lambert stopped by one day and told my grandfather an
amusing story. As they dug the lastholes in the delta and ran the lines right
up to the edge of the hills, an elderly man came out to watchthem. He spend
the day watching them approachthe first steephill leading from the
Mississippidelta to the hills. When they stopped for lunch he went home.
When they began work againhe was there, standing off the side without
saying a word. Finally, as they reachedthe end of the flat land and lookedup
the long, steephill, the elderly man easedoverto a lineman and said, “Say,
mister, do you really believe that stuff is going to climb that hill?”
With the mercury lights on utility poles we could see around the house, barn,
shop, tractors and implements. Before that, if there was a problem one had to
depend upon a lantern or flashlight. There were time when we heard a noise
near the house and my father would get up and take a flash light and his
shotgun and ease outand circle the house, checking to see whether the noise
was made by a man or some animal. There were people who lived in fear
under the circumstances. Fortunately, I was not one of those people. When
there was threat or crisis I lookedto my father. He might stay out for some
time, but I watchedfor him and when I saw him I knew everything was all
right.
I was not the only one who lookedto my father for protection. There were
times when someone on our place would come to our house to tell us about the
drunk who had loaded his gun and threatened to kill anyone who tried to get
to him. On a number of occasions, my father went out across those fields or to
the house and relieved the drunk of his gun and took him home and settled
him down. There were many times when I could have lost my father because

someone else’s drunken father had become violent. The nearestlaw
enforcementofficer was 25 miles awayand the man who owned the farm had
to maintain order until a deputy could getthere. That meant someone would
have to drive over into Quitman County and call the Tunica County Sheriff’s
office and ask for help - if the store was open. By the time a deputy gotthere it
might be too late. My daddy symbolized security, protection, and at times,
provisions for a number of people.
My father was also a role model for his sons. One evening when I was in my
teens I was sitting in the small study I had helped Daddy add on to the house
when he was adding a bedroom, making some notes for a sermon. As I recall,
it was very quiet, possibly because Iwas home alone. I was totally absorbedin
my studies - at leastas absorbedas a sixteen years old farm boy might be.
Suddenly there was a noise like a shotgun shot, only I knew it was not a gun
shot. It sounded like someone hadtaken a plank and hit the side of the house
right by the window where I was sitting. I jumped, recoveredfrom the start,
then beganto fume. The very thought that someone wouldslip up againstthe
house and look through the window and hit the side of the house with a board
to scare me irritated me more than a little. I slipped outside and carefully
searchedthe whole area but found no one. I mean, I seriouslysearchedthe
whole place, but found no trace of anyone.
Still, the audacity of someone pulling that stunt went againstthe grain. Then
one day at schoolsomeone asked, “Didyou hear those sonic booms the other
night?” I was thinking, “What is a sonic boom?” Pilots had flown jets down
from Millington NavalAir Station, just north of Memphis on maneuvers.
That was the first time I had ever heard what happens when a plane breaks
the sound barrier. I not only learned about the sound barrier, I also learned
that though I was my father’s son, I was not my father. I was relieved when I
did not find a prowler and he would have been disappointed if one was there
and he didn’t find him.
As I grew up I came to understand that my father had his limitations. He was
without a doubt the most courageousman I have ever known, but he had his
limitations and he knew it. Today, I thank God that when there is a threat I
can look to Mount Zion and see the Lamb of God. I know that whatevermay
come He will be victorious and I will share in the victory. My heavenly Father
is without fear and without limitations.
B. With Jesus on Mount Zion Were the 144,000 Saints, 1:b-3.
1. With the Lamb were the 144,000believers, 1b.

This gets interesting here. The New Commentary on the Whole Bible states
that:
“These saints who are to reign with Christ will first suffer with him. The
144,000 couldrepresentspiritual Israeland/or literal Israel. This encouraging
vision follows the discouraging reports of the lasttwo chapters. Just as certain
ones were marked in chapter 13 by the number “666,” evenso the individuals
of this multitude are marked. However, the mark on their foreheads is not an
evil mark but rather the Lamb’s name and his Father’s name” [NCWB].
The Bible Knowledge Commentary offers the following comments:
“It is reasonable to conclude that this is the same group mentioned in 7:4-8,
exceptthat here they are in a later period of the Tribulation. Chronologically
the vision anticipates the triumph of the 144,000stillintact at the time of Jesus
Christ’s return from heavento earth. In contrastwith many others who
become martyrs, these people live through the period. But they are not the
only ones to survive, as many Gentiles and Jews will turn to Christ in the end
time and somehow escape martyrdom and be honored to welcome Christ at
His return” [BKC].
According to the Believer’s Study Bible Notes, “The 144,000first pictured in
chapter 7 are now presented in heaven in the presence ofthe elders and the
four living creatures. Theyare redeemedfrom the earth but are distinct from
the 24 redeemedelders” [BSB]. This seems like a valid conclusion.
2. The 144,000“hadHis name and His Father’s name written on their
foreheads”, 1c.
Satanmarks his followers with a mark on their foreheads. It is the number
666 as we saw in chapter 13. The mark on the foreheads of the saints, in
contrastto the evil mark of Satan, is the name of the Lamb - and the name of
the Father. We wear his seal, His brand. We belong to Him.
Since in this series of sermons my stated purpose is to skim the surface in
searchof the blessings promised to all who read or hear this prophecy (see
1:3), I want to do a little skimming, just as my mother did when she skimmed
the creamoff the milk to prepare a dessert. I would like to know how many
people have believed that they had nailed down “the mark of the beast.” The
ownerof a Christian televisionstation once told me he had finally figured it
our - it will be a microchip which could be implanted in one’s wrist. Others
picture millions - shall we say billions - walking around with a bold seal
stamped or tattooedon their forehead.

Will you permit me to leave the conjecturing to those who are better at such
conjecturing than I? Will you permit me to make a point that an
Amillennialist might make here? The simple fact is that right now you are
bearing in you life the marks of your master. You are either bearing in your
body, in your mind, in your heart the sealof your master. Your actions as
your words testify to the factthat you either belong to the prince of this world,
or to the Lord of the universe. You bear in your life the mark of the beast,
Satan, the dragonof chapter13, of you bear the mark of the Son of God and
of the Father. Now, let me ask you this: Does your neighbor know to whom
you belong? What about the people you meet in your work during the week?
Please letme repeat this. You are, right now, bearing the marks of you master
in your life. Have you ever seenanyone whose brained has been pickled with
alcoholor fried with some hallucinogenic drug? Al Capone walkedaround
Chicago like a king, but when he died with the venerealdisease that destroyed
his brain, whose mark was he wearing? Would you like a contrast? Try Billy
Graham. Try JoniEricksonTada. I was attending a nation wide Bible
conference atBellevue Baptist Church in Memphis when I heard Ron Dunn
say that Adrian Rodgers was the finest Christian gentleman he had ever met.
On what did he base that assessment? Don’tget me wrong, I can understand
whey he saidthat. In fact, I could not disagree with him. Like so many other
people, I have seenhim on television and listen often to him on AFR radio. I
have heard him in person at Bellevue Baptist Church. When I met Adrian
Rodgers he shook my hand, clamped my hand betweenhis hands, lookedme
in the eye, smiled, and spoke with a graciousnessone does not often see. There
is a warmth to the man one does not easilyforget. Adrian Rodgers bears in his
life the sealof Jesus Christ. That, however, is not restrictedto pastors of the
mega-churches. Everybeliever is a testimony to the name of the Father and
the Son, the Holy Spirit bearing witness through that individual.
There was a Brother Storey, who encouragedme right after I graduatedfrom
seminary. I mentioned it to Dr. H. R. Herrington, the pastorwith whom I
workedas a youth minister, and he assuredme that if you want anyone
praying for you it is Brother Storey. When he retired, a Jackson, Mississippi
church gave him an office and a telephone so he could call people as the Lord
led and have prayer with them over the phone. When I lookedinto his eyes
and listened to his voice I was aware of the fact that they marked him as a
child of the King.
3. John heard a sound from heaven, 14:2.

“I heard a sound from heaven like the sound of cascading waters and like the
rumbling of loud thunder. The sound I heard was also like harpists playing on
their harps.”
The sound John heard was loud and clear, and filled with majesty. It was
unmistakable. The source of the sound was irrefutable as far as John was
concerned. It came from heaven. It was clearand melodious, beautiful.
4. The 144,000sang before the throne, 14:3.
“Theysang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures
and the elders, but no one could learn the song except the 144,000who had
been redeemedfrom the earth.”
This new song is a song of victory after conflict with the dragon, beast, and
false prophet. It is a song that has never been sung before, for such a conflict
had never before been fought; therefore, it is described as “new”.
“Until now the kingdom of Christ on earth had been usurped; now a new song
is sung in anticipation of his taking possessionof his blood-bought kingdom
with his saints (cf. 15:2, 3). no man could learn that song but the hundred and
forty four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth—The term
translated “redeemed” literally means “purchased.” It follows that not even
the angels canlearn that song, for they have not experienced what it is to have
been washedin the blood of the Lamb (7:14). Thus, the song certainly
concerns redemption (Morris)” [NCWB].
II. THE 144,000 STAND BEFORETHE LAMB CLOTHED IN
RIGHTEOUSNESS, 14:4-5.
A. These Saints Are Pure and Holy, 14:4a.
“These are the ones not defiled with women, for they have kept their virginity.
These are the ones who follow the Lamb whereverHe goes.”
The 144,000who sang the new song were saints who were not defiled with
women. They have kept their virginity. Commentaries will disagree here.
Some may say that there is a specialplace for those who have not known
marital relations and who had abstained from immorality. Other believe this
refers to spiritual fornication, that is, forsaking one’s union with Christ by
joining oneselfto idolatry and/or any kind of heresy. In the first place, the
New Testamentnever presents sexualrelations in
marriage as defiling or unclean. Some have noted that sexualsins of the world
eventually became prevalent in the church (See 1 Cor. 7:4-6). Whether this
denotes those who are guilty of literal or spiritual fornication, considerthe

sharp contrastbetweenthose who have committed such sins and the 144,000
“who follow the Lamb whereverHe goes.”
On February 15 (2005), there was a discussionon Hannity and Colmbs about
the latestSports Illustrated Swim Suit Edition. The question was, have they
gone too far? Let me state right here that I cancelledmy subscription to
Sports Illustrated many years ago because oftheir swim suit edition. I am
serious!As far as I am concerned, they are peddling porn. It may not be hard
core pornography, but it is still pornographic because it has such a strong
potential for causing lust, the precursorto adultery. There is a tidal wave of
immorality sweeping this country right now and it is getting worse every year,
thanks to the movie industry, the television industry, books and magazines,
and the music industry. Make no mistake, what God condemns in His Word,
our so-calledChristiannation honors, glorifies, and rewards. The vile
language, pictures, and scenes portrayedin movies and on TV are bearing
fruit in the minds of children acrossAmerica. I am not talking about high
schoolstudents, I am talking about middle schoolchildren. When early
elementary children begin talking about oral sex we are in real trouble!
America is reaping a harvest of STDs, unwanted pregnancies, brokenhomes,
and of course, 44 million murdered babies. The world may swim in sins that
defile, but all born-again Christians should so commit themselves to Jesus
Christ as to stand in sharp contrastto the world.
B. They are calledfirstfruits for God, 14:4b.
“Theywere redeemedfrom the human race as the firstfruits for God and the
Lamb.”
To under the significance of the emphasis on firstfruits we need to go back to
the Old Testamentand see whatpart firstfruits played in the sacrificial
system. According to Leviticus 23:9-14, the first sheaf of the new crop of
barley was presented as a wave offering before the Lord. This took place on
the day after the PassoverSabbathand was a public acknowledgmentthat all
the harvestcame from Godand belonged to Him (Num. 28:26;compare Ex.
23:16;34:22).
Not only were the Israelites to be mindful that the land of Canaanwas the
Lord’s possessionand that they had only the rights of tenants (Lev. 25:23),
but they were also to be aware that the fertility of Canaan’s soilwas not due
to one of the Baals but rather to the Lord’s gift of grace. The Holman Bible
Dictionary offers a brief summary:
“Israelwas describedas God’s “firstfruits” (Jer. 2:3). Christ in His
resurrectionis described as the ‘firstfruits’ of them that slept (1 Cor. 15:20,

23). The Holy Spirit is spokenofas a ‘firstfruits’ (Rom. 8:23), and believers
are also spokenofas ‘a kind of firstfruits’ (Jas. 1:18). The savedremnant
within Israelis describedas ‘firstfruits’ (Rom. 11:16), as are the 144,000 of
the tribulation period (Rev. 14:4). The first converts of an area were
designated‘firstfruits’ (Rom. 16:5; 1 Cor. 16:15). In eachcase the emphasis
was on specialdedicationand blessing” [HBD].
The Believer’s Study Bible Notes may help relate this to our passage:“They
are the firstfruits of the new era which began with the translation of the
church. The description accordedto them, “virgins,” probably means that
these had abstainedfrom the pollutions of earth, and not necessarilythat they
had never married” [BSB].
According to the Bible Knowledge Commentary, “The word “firstfruits”
suggeststhat these convertedIsraelites precede many others who at the
Lord’s secondcoming will turn to Him (Zech. 12:10;Rom. 11:15, 26-27). They
were also describedas blameless (amoômoi, a word used of sacrificialanimals
without defect)and as those who, living in a period of greatsatanic deception,
were free from lying. The passage as a whole is a prophetic foreview of the
triumph of the 144,000 whenChrist returns.”
A couple of years ago, the AssociatedPressreleaseda study done by an
agricultural schoolin Iowa.
“It reported that production of 100 bushels of corn from one acre of land, in
addition to the many hours of the farmer's labor, required 4,000,000pounds
of water, 6,800 pounds of oxygen, 5,200 pounds of carbon, 160 pounds of
nitrogen, 125 pounds of potassium, 75 pounds of yellow sulphur, and other
elements too numerous to list. In addition to these things, which no man can
produce, rain and sunshine at the right time are critical. It was estimated that
only 5% of the produce of a farm canbe attributed to the efforts of man. If we
were honest, we'd have to admit that the same is true in producing spiritual
fruit [BI].
Jesus is the True Vine (John 15) and all who are in Him bear fruit. He is the
source of everything and should receive full credit for the fruit. Yet, He holds
you accountable forbearing the fruit of the spirit. How can that be?
I believe it was the late C. RoyAngell who told the story many years ago
about the man who invited his pastorto go home with him for Sunday dinner.
While the farmer’s wife entertained the pastor’s wife, the pastorsat on the
front porch with the farmer, talking about the farm, the farmer, and his
family. Off to the side of the house there was a beautiful garden, planted in a
new-ground, clearedonly the year before by the farmer and his family. The

pastor observed, “You and the Lord certainly have a beautiful garden.” To
which the farmer replied, “You should have seenit last yearwhen the Lord
had it to Himself.”
C. They Were Holy and Righteous Before the Throne, 14:5.
“No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.”
Those who stand with the Lamb are those who value honesty and integrity.
My mother and father placedgreatvalue on honesty and the sought to instill
it in their children. I might add, that I thank the Lord that I can trust my
brothers and my sister explicitly and unreservedly. I wish everyone could say
that The saints are blameless in respectto other sins but the specific emphasis
here is on the words of their mouth.
A friend and fellow pastormet John, my older son, and me for lunch one day
severalyears ago. I do not remember why he brought it up, but my friend
made the statementthat all his marriages from that point on would be
covenantmarriages. John surprised him when he said that he did not approve
of it for himself. The shockedpastoraskedwhy and John said, “BecauseIam
a Christian and my word is sufficient.” I am not opposedto covenant
marriages but I applaud what John said. God’s people must tell the truth. I
wish all attorneys had that reputation! Satan is the father of liars, Jesus is the
Way, the Truth, and the Life.
One is never more satanic than when he lies. He is never more godly when he
places a high value on truth. Satanis the father of liars, Jesus is the Truth.
Years ago I jotted down in the front of my favorite Bible at the time
something I heard someone sayat some conference. It goes something like
this: “It is not enough to say that God says it because it is true (we can do
that); it is true because Godsays it” (when God speaks eternaltruth is either
expressedor established).
In his powerful book, The Holiness of God, R.C. Sproul observedthat
unbelievers often feel uneasyin the presence of an obedient Christian. The
holiness of God reflectedin a believer's life makes the non-Christian
uncomfortable. Sproul then told the following true incident to illustrate his
point.
A well-knownprofessionalgolferwas playing in a tournament with President
Gerald Ford, fellow pro Jack Nicklaus, andBilly Graham. After the round
was over, one of the other pros on the tour asked, "Hey, what was it like
playing with the President and Billy Graham?" The pro said with disgust, "I

don't need Billy Graham stuffing religion down my throat!" With that he
headed for the practice tee. His friend followed, and after the golferhad
pounded out his fury on a bucketof golfballs, he asked, "Was Billy a little
rough on you out there?" The pro sighed and said with embarrassment, "No,
he didn't even mention religion."
Sproul commented, "Astonishingly, Billy Graham had said nothing about
God, Jesus, orreligion, yet the pro stomped awayafter the game accusing
Billy of trying to ram religion down his throat." What had happened? Simply
this: The evangelisthad so reflectedChristlikeness that his presence made the
pro feeluncomfortable.
I wonder, do unbelievers sense our godly influence? If we are identified with
Christ and walk in holiness, they will -- before we even mention religion [Bible
Illustrator].
CONCLUSION
We will have more to sayabout the fall of Babylon later, but for the presentI
would like for us to remember the title of this message:STANDING WITH
JESUS. The next messageis FALLING WITH THE BEAST.
Here may questions about what is meant by the 144,000andtheir standing
with the Lamb, but let me assure you that God has made a point to reveal how
we may stand with the Lamb. Now this is very simple, but I need your
undivided attention for a few minutes.
“Therefore, since we have been declaredrighteous by faith, we have peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Also through Him, we have
obtained accessby faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in
the hope of the glory of God” (Romans 5:1-2, HCSB, emphasis added).
If you have been born againby the grace of God, this Scripture tells us that
you have been justified (once for all time) by faith (literally, by grace through
faith, Eph. 2:8). This denotes completedaction from which we receive
continuing benefits. One benefit is “peace with God.” Another is the privilege
of standing with God (in and through His grace - He receives allthe credit). If
you know Jesus as Savior, you have grounds for “hope of the glory of God.” If
you have never receivedJesus as Savior, let me urge you to pray with me right
now, asking Godto forgive your sins, and come into your life, giving you new
life, peace that passes allunderstanding, and the privilege of standing in the
presence ofthe Lord of eternity - for eternity.

Revelation14:1-5
by Grant Richison| Jan 1, 1999 | Revelation| 17 comments
ReadIntroduction to Revelation
“Then I looked, and behold, a Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him
their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, like the voice of many
waters, and like the voice of loud thunder. And I heard the sound of harpists
playing their harps. They sang as it were a new song before the throne, before
the four living creatures, and the elders; and no one could learn that song
exceptthe hundred and forty-four thousand who were redeemedfrom the
earth. These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are
virgins. These are the ones who follow the Lamb whereverHe goes. These
were redeemedfrom among men, being firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.
And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without fault before the
throne of God“
Chapters 14 and 15 introduce three scenes ofvictory of the Lamb with his
144,000.These scenesin heaven and earth lay the groundwork for the seven
bowl judgments.
The first five verses introduce what will transpire with the 144,000 people
(7:4-8) during the GreatTribulation.
14:1
Then I looked, and behold, a Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him
their foreheads.
This verse anticipates the triumph of the Lamb and the 144,000 evangelists at
the end of the Tribulation.
Mount Zion is a place of worship (Psalm 2:6; Isaiah24:23; 28:16;Joel3:5;
Hebrews 12:22) in Jerusalem.
John sets forth six characteristics ofthe 144,000.First, God separatesthem to
Himself. They have the name of the “Father” written on their foreheads in

contrastto the mark of the beast(13:16;14:11). These are those whom God set
apart as His own. They march to the step of the Father.
14:2
And I heard a voice from heaven, like the voice of many waters, and like the
voice of loud thunder. And I heard the sound of harpists playing their harps.
The 144,000heard a voice like a thundering majestic waterfall.
There will be instrumental music in heaven. When we getthere, God will
delight us to the best music in the world. We have heard the saying, “Music
charms the savage beast.”There will be greatlatitude for different tastes in
music. I doubt that we will all have the same personality, the same physical
looks orthe same interests in heaven. Some people falselyassume that there
will be nothing but classicalmusic in heaven!! Not only will we listen to music,
we will also make music.
14:3
They sang as it were a new song before the throne, before the four living
Second, they constantly [Greek]sing a new song. The 144,000 evangelistssing
a song on Mount Zion in Jerusalem. They have a different song than their
generation.
14:4
These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins.
Third, they lived celibate lives. The evangelists couldnot live in a normal
married state. This is only for a few and only for those under specialduress.
Unmarried people can devote themselves more fully to the Lord (1
Corinthians 7:1-7).
These are the ones who follow the Lamb whereverHe goes.
Fourth, they followedthe Lamb where He goes.
These were redeemedfrom among men, being firstfruits to God and to the
Lamb.
Fifth, they are the “firstfruits” to God and to the Lamb. The term “firstfruits”
may indicate that the 144,000willprecede others of a greatharvest who
become believers just before the SecondComing (Zechariah12:10). This is an
earnestof the triumph of the SecondComing.
14:5

And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without fault before the
throne of God.
Sixth, they did not deceive in their communication. The 144,000did not
deceive with their mouth. As God sees them, they were without fault before
God’s presence (throne). They had nothing to hide. They were who they were.
The New Testamentuses the Greek wordtranslated “without fault” for
sacrificialanimals that do not have defect. These witnesseshad no soul kinks
or unconfessedsins.
Principle:
God wants us to sellout to Him and His plan for this world.
Application:
John Wesleysaid, “Give me a hundred men who love nothing but God and
hate nothing but sin, and I will save the whole world for Christ.” Jesus said,
“Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19).
ROB SALVATO
Rev. 14.1-5 Burning Bright for Jesus
TopicalCat. # 5 & # 28
Chapter 14 brings to the end the parentheticalsectionthat beganin Chapter
10. Details in the Trib.
A) Now this whole parenthetical sectionsets up & prepares the way for the
climax which BEGINS in Chapter 15.
B) what we have here in Ch.14 is a series of pronouncements and visions that
assure us of 2 things
1.) The ultimate triumph of Jesus Christ / 2.) The judgement of the wicked.
C) The Chapt. Begins by jumping ahead to the 2nd coming where Jesus is
seenstanding Triumphantly on Mt. Zion w/ the 144,000 READ V.1-5

Now we first met this group in ch.7 where we were clearly told that they were
144,000 Jews –12,000from eachof the 12 tribes
A) They were setapart by the Lord w/ a SpecialsealofProtection – Set
apart for a Specialassignmentduring the Tribulation
B) Mostbelieve that they are going to be used as Evangelist – 144,000
apostle Paul’s – telling Israelto Repent !!!!
C) What is AWESOME TO note is John sees them here appearing w/ Jesus
at the end of the trib. / but note the NUMBER –
1) Not 142,000/ or even 143,999 – No it’s 144,000– THEY ALL
MADE IT THRU –
D) Testimony to the Faithfulness of the Father – He Keeps His Promises
So here is this specialgroup that makes it through the Tribulation time – they
Stand – Strong for the Lord in the Mist of Difficulties
A) They go through the most Morally Dark time in the History of the World
& the most Spiritually Difficult time & Come out –Winners / Stoodground
B) Now we as the Church will not be here during the Trib. – because we are
going to be Raptured ahead of time
C) But we Presentlygo through Tribulations & difficulties – Jesus promised
in this world we will have Tribulation – But We are to Stand Strong
1) And We are currently living in a dark world that is againstGod
And Yet we are calledto shine as lights
A) So What can we learn from this group of People about Standing Strong &
Shinning Bright in the mist of these type of Circumstances
1) That is what I think the Lord would have us –Considerthis
morning as we examine the Lives of the 144,000

A) 6 Things we want to Consider: Their Seal/ Their Symphony / Steps/
Their Speech& their Standing w/ God !!!!
I. THEIR SEAL – V.1 Father's name written on their foreheads.
A) The name of "YAWEH" was written in their foreheads and protected
them from many of the judgements that took place during the Trib. Period
B) You could say that the Lord was always ontheir minds
Isa.26:3 You will keephim in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayedon You,
Becausehe trusts in You.
C)Now Paul declaredin Eph.1: 13 that when You put your Trust in Christ
after you heard the word of truth, the gospelof your salvation;
1) when You believed, you were sealedwith the Holy Spirit of
promise,
D)At that moment The Fatherplaced His sealin us – And the work that the
H.S. is seeking to do is to always keepour minds on the Lord Jesus
1) He exist to testify of Jesus – to give Glory to Jesus / to Point us to
Jesus - & Help us walk w/ Jesus
The significance of this sealing of the Holy Spirit- speaksofmany things For
one thing, it speaks ofa finished transaction.
A) Even today, when important legaldocuments are processed, they are
stamped with the officialsealto signify the completion of the transaction.
B) This sealing also implies ownership: In Bible days shipping was big
Business/

C) Once goods were packedatone port & ready to be shipped to another
they would SEAL them by putting a wax sealon the merchandise
1) and putting the imprint of their signet ring upon the wax. This
was their mark of ownership.
A) When the ships would arrive at the port the servants of these merchants
would go to the docks and identify their masters goods by means of the SEAL
that was upon them.
The Holy Spirit is God’s Sealupon our lives to prove His ownership.
A) You see, Jesus purchasedyou from the slave market. You were once a
slave to sin & in the bondage of corruption, but now you belong to Him.
1 Cor 6:19-20 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy
Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20
For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in
your spirit, which are God's.
B) POINT:We are really NOT OUR OWN to live as we please. It is NOT
for me to order my own life or to chose the way that I want to go.
1) I belong to HIM.... He purchased me and has sealedme... He has
put His mark of ownership upon me. Now I live according to HIS will.
A) Another use for the sealis as a mark of AUTHENTICITY Just as a
signature on a letter attests to the genuineness ofthe document,
1) So too the presence of sealon a Documentproves that it is Authentic
Like Wise the Presence ofSpirit proves the believer is genuine. ( Fruit)
D) So It is not simply our lip profession, our religious activity, or our good
works, but the witness of the Spirit that makes our professionauthentic.
E) We are like purchased merchandise on the ship headed for the home port.
1) When we arrive He is going to say: “This one is Mine... He has my
seal
upon him.”

So first their seal – We have been sealed-
II. Their Symphony :
3 They sang as it were a new song before the throne, before the four living
A) The 144,000hadan exclusive song to sing – because they alone went
through the testing & the tribulations & maintained their integrity
1) They kept their Purity – Continued walking w/ the Lord – until
He redeemed them from the Earth
A) They ALONE could sing because of what they were able to observe
what the Fatherwas doing in that time of trib. As he was faithful to them
1) The ways in which he Protectedthem in the midst of the Trib
A) Now Everyone of us goes through trials & tribulations . God’s intention
is that those times might produce in us – a New Song – A Symphony
1) A Declarationof – How His grace was Sufficient/ Powerin
weakness
Of how He ALONE – pulled us through –
We see an Illustration of this in the Story found in Acts 16:25 of Paul & Silas
put in Prison–
A) This was not your prison w/ colort.v. Work out facility / rec. yard
We are talking dark Dungeon( -Cold w/ Rats crawling around)
B) Yet we find these 2 men in the Darkness ofthe Dungeonin the Midnight
hour Singing Praise songs to the Lord –Why?
1) Was it because they knew an Earthquake was going to Shake the
Prison & open up the Doors – NO – Hadn’t read Acts 16

A) Was it because they wanted to Experience the power of Praise – Maybe
if we sing – the Lord will getus out of here – NO
B) They sang because they knew that the Lord was w/ them/ See He had
already Shakentheir hearts & for that reason – they sang
1) They knew that God was still on the throne / Their Hope was in
God
Their Peace was in God-
E) For that reasona SYMPHONY WAS IN THEIR HEARTS
And that is the Lord’s INTENTION/He wants to Produce a SYMPHONY
IN OUR HEARTS in the times of Trial
A) He wants to give us a New song – a Symphony of Praise ( BecauseHe
is Still on the Throne & He is w/ us / Sealis upon us )
B) But there is one thing that will Stand in the way of that song being birthed
in our hearts – what is it
C) The Sympathy of others – You see whenI go through trials & Difficulties
& hard times
1) I can either go through the Challenges & the Hard times w/ a
Symphony in my heart because : I KNOW
A) The Lord has not only Promisedto Strengthen me & help me / but He
also promises to walk w/ me through the Fire
Isa. 41: 10 Fearnot, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I
will strengthenyou, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous
right hand.'

Now I can either TAP INTO the reality of that Truth WHICH can Produce a
Symphony in my heart
A) Or I can Choose to get sympathy from People
B) See when we are going through difficulties & hard times there are always
wellmeaning people who come along – with words of Sympathy
1) And I am referring to is that Type of Sympathy that says things like
I can’t believe that this is happening to you
C)This doesn’tmake any sense – you are such a goodperson / Oh you poor
thing this is just so horrible
1) I don’t understand why such a goodChristian – would suffer so
much
D)Now that type of Sympathy will HAVE two negative affects on Me
1) First it puts a Messagein my mind that what is happening in my
life is out of God’s Control ( He is not on the Throne )
A) And 2nd it puts My focus on me & my Situation & takes my eyes & mind
off of the Lord
Listen God is totally & absolutely faithful to meet us in every Situation in each
Tribulation & Difficulty
A) And in eachSituation He reveals a new aspectof his Person/His Power&
His Provision
B) And what He wants to do in us is what He did in Paul & Silas & the
144,000 – He wants to write in our Hearts a symphony of Praise
1) He wants to put a new song in our hearts – Because we know that
He is w/ us in that time of tribulation

C)What we have to do is to not let that get short circuited by wellmeaning
people – who will seek to put the focus on us & our pain / our loss
1) And who in doing so will be questioning – Where was the Lord in
this
Or You don’t deserve this Etc
D)And what we must fall back on & remind ourselves of is the truth
that Godis Good– He is faithful / He Promises to be w/ us
1) He will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we are able
E)And that He is going to meet us in the mist of that Situation in some way –
Proving once again that He is exactly who He claimed to be !!!!
1) What ends up Happening is that our Lives become a
Symphony of Praise to the Power& Faithfulness of God – others are Blessed
A) Comfort = to Strengthen & to raise up
Sympathy merely identifies w/ the Pain
Amy Carmicheal – God’s Comfort is never weakening – He leaves the Soul He
comforts Strongerto fight /Braverto suffer/ grateful/ not sorry for itself but
keento go on / to Strive /to seek/to find & not to Yield
So we see their Symphony – Song in their hearts
III. Their Separatenessv.4
4 These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins.
A) This speaks ofmany things : 1st They have kept themselves pure from
the defilements of this world and it's moral filth.
B) They kept themselves from anything that would compromise their purity
before Jesus.

1) In the Old Testamentand the New Testament, unfaithfulness to
the
Lord is described as spiritual "fornication" or Spiritual Adultery
D) These were faithful to Jesus...Theydid not love the world, nor the things of
this world for it would have been like committing spiritual "fornication".
1) Their love belongedto Jesus and to Jesus only
Unfortunately There are MANY Christians who don't think to seriouslyabout
flirting with the world and with sin...
A) I saw on the News the Other day – this competition they were having in
Africa – where these guys get in a Ring –Square off w/ a King Cobra snake
B) Object is they have to try to catchthe Snake by the Back ofthe head w/
out getting Bit !!! -
1) Many Christians have the tendency to approachsin in that same
way –I am just going to play around a little – it is not going to getme
A) FOOLISH – those little bites can be DEADLY !!!!
1John2: 15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves
the world, the love of the Fatheris not in him.
16 For all that is in the world; the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the
pride of life; is not of the Fatherbut is of the world.
B) Anything that has to do with "the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes,
and the pride of life" is being in love with the world.
1) These things make us fornicators in a spiritual sense.
Now It is a very unsettling thing to think of any unfaithfulness to Jesus in that
light

A) To think that IF you given your affection, which belongs to Jesus, to the
world.... You have gone to bed with the world....
B) Listen We are the "bride of Christ"
1) And As His "bride" we should be keeping ourselves forHim and
Him
alone We should be avoiding anything that would defile us
C) What bride in her wedding gown/ would lay down in a pig pen
1)Shows up for the wedding – Dress coveredin Pig Slop & smelling like
a Pig -
2)( What happened honey – where you been – hanging out w/ the Pigs)
D) Ladies how is your spiritual Wedding gown doing ? Guys how is Your
Tuxedo looking Spiritually
A) The next time you are thinking about doing something that is
questionable,
1) ask yourselfif the situation will cause you to get your wedding
gowndirty. Will it Defile Your Tux
A) The next time you think that compromise is an innocent thing and
that the Lord will understand....
1) Think of it as committing spiritual fornication... as being unfaithful to
Jesus....The chances are that you will change your mind about it
But there is also an encouragementto the Single Bro. & sisterhere
A) The factthat they were virgins – indicates that they were single
B) They used their singlenessfor the Lord – Great encouragementto any
who are single here
1 Cor.7:32-34

32 In everything you do, I want you to be free from the concerns ofthis life.
An unmarried man can spend his time doing the Lord's work and thinking
how to please him.
33 But a married man can't do that so well. He has to think about his earthly
responsibilities and how to please his wife.
34 His interests are divided. In the same way, a woman who is no longer
married or has never been married can be more devoted to the Lord in body
and in spirit, while the married womanmust be concernedabout her earthly
responsibilities and how to please her husband.
C) You who are single have a certain Mobility & Freedom that those of us
who are not single don’t have
1) Use it for the Lord !!!!! Rob Nash& the Missiontrips
IV. Their Steps : v.4
These are the ones who follow the Lamb whereverHe goes.
A) NOTE:Following Jesus is the simplest way to being all that Godwould
have you to be
1) and enjoying all that God would have you enjoy as a Christian.
B) Following Jesus is the simplest explanation of Christianity.
1) Jesus said:"Follow Me"
C) He also said that there were 2 ways to go in this life: Two Roads
Matt. 7:13-14 13 "Enterby the narrow gate;for wide is the gate and broad is
the waythat leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.14
"Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and
there are few who find it.
D) Now It is obvious that the two paths have nothing in common.
1) The "broadpath" is the wayof the world.

E) Following Jesus means entering in at the "straitgate" and walking on the
"narrow path". The two paths will never meet.
NOTE:If I'm following Jesus,
A) then I will keepmy life from being defiled...& I will avoid anything
that will stealmy affections.
Thou art the way, the truth and the life.
Without the way, there is no going.
Without the truth, there is no knowing.
Without the life, there is no living.
Thomas a Kempis,
These people follow the Lamb where-everHe goes
A) Some people follow the Lamb as long as He takes them where they want
to go ( Blue skies & Sunny days )
B) But the minute there are storm clouds over head – I think I will sit this one
out Lord
C)We love the greenpastures & the Still waters – but don’t take me through
that Valley of the Shadow of death thing – ( Notinto that )
The true Christian is one who follow the Lord where-everHe leads them
A) Jesus said: You are my friends if you do what ever I command you
B) He didn’t sayYou are my friends if you do whateveryou personally agree
w/ / Or what ever You find Convenient & Comfortable

V. – Their speechv. 5
5 And in their mouth was found no deceit,- they spoke the Truth
A) Think about the Truth that they were to Share – Theirs was not an easy
message: Turn from sin / Turn to God
1) Don’t take the mark of the Beast – although it is probably going to
costyou Your Life – it is the best thing
A) That was their message – It was a tough message
B) Contrast that w/ the message we getto Share : We get to tell people that
God Loved them so much – Sent His only Son– die for their sins
1) To take the punishment that was meant for them – And if they
would simply turn from their sin & turn to Christ – put trust in Him
A) God would forgive their sins / Cleanse them of their guilt / Give them the
Hope of eternal life / Plus experience real living now – Quality of life
1) Emptiness filled / Void Quenched & Instant Peace - All they have to do is
believe – Turn to Christ - GREAT MESSAGE
E) What if they don’t Believe ? TOUGH PART – We have to tell them
the
truth – Going to Hell – Can’t candy coatit or shrink back from it
F)These 144,000 SPOKE THE TRUTH – even when it was difficult to do
so ( Maywe do the same )
VI. Their Standing before God !!! v.5
for they are without fault before the throne of God.

A) Guys this is one of the Key aspects ofour Standing in the times of
Tribulation ( It is Knowing who you are in God/ Your place in Christ)
B) Heb.3:1 Holy Brethren / Partakersofa Heavenly Calling
C) Not because ofwhat You have done / or who You are / But Who’s you
are –God’s / Where You have been placed – IN CHRIST
1) Cookies – In Me - Sin – doesn’t see – In Christ
D) That is why Paul spends 3 Chapters in the book of Eph. Talking about
our PositionIN CHRIST
1) Blessedw/ Every Spiritual blessing / Made sons / Inheritance /
Abundance of Power/ Accessto the throne /
Now when I realize those truth’s it impacts my life in a radical way – I’m no
longerworrying – Is God happy w/ me ?
A) No longer striving to earn his favor / Instead I am resting in & moving in
the Reality– I have His favor / I have His love / Because Iam IN CHRIST
B) Suddenly I have this spiritual confidence that I can face any situation / I
have a Boldness to approachthe Father – Knowing I am Welcome
1) I have a FREEDOM – to take steps of Faith in Life & Ministry / It
completely Impacts my life in all areas !!!!!
Illustrate it this way: Friday – my wife Surprised me for my B.day – by taking
me awayfor the day – ( We had a greattime - )
A) During one of our meals she told me how much she loved me – how she
thought I was a greatHusband & Father/ how she loves being married to me
A) Now I am not Perfect – Denise knows that – Sees allmy faults / all My
short comings – all my imperfections/ but she Loves me still

1) But she also sees the man that God is making me / she is
committed to our Relationshipfor KEEPS – FOREVER
A) How do you think that affectedme ? – Did that inspire me to be a Flake –
did I view it as a Ticketto slack off
1) Was it a License to go mess around –
A) Not even – It merely INCREASED MYDESIRE TO PLEASE HER –
TO LOVE HER – TO BE W/ HER – MAKE HER HAPPY
1) It made me even more Comfortable w/ her / More secure in our
Relationship
A) Confidence that no matter what this life throws at us we are going to go
through it together!!!!!
About the 144,000 people
Revelation14:4
At the time of the Bible, it was very unusual for a man to choose notto marry.
However, Jeremiahdid not marry because ofGod’s instructions to him in
Jeremiah16:2. Certain royal officials could not marry because ofa medical
operation; God made promises to them in Isaiah56:3-5. In Matthew 19:12,
Christ saidthat some people would choose not to marry, in order to serve God
better. Paul made that decision, as 1 Corinthians 7:7 shows;1 Corinthians
7:32-34 explains his reason.
Perhaps these 144,000people actuallyare unmarried, or perhaps it is a word-
picture. Whether actualor not, the meaning is that they have chosento be
completely loyal to God. They love him with their whole hearts. They have left
everything to follow him (Mark 10:29-30).
Revelation7:17 contains the wonderful promise that Christ (here called the
Lamb) will guide his people. Christ’s loyal people never want to be separate
from him. They follow him whereverhe goes.Theyhave chosenhim to be
both their leaderand their guide. They gladly accepthis direction for their
lives.

Christ purchasedthem by his death (1 Peter1:18-19), as he did for all God’s
people. That is, he saved (rescued)them from this world, and from the evil
forces that control it. His death was the costso that they would be free to serve
God.
The firstfruit means the first part of the harvest. In ancient Israel, people
consideredthe first part of the harvest to be very special. They gave it to God
as a specialgift (Leviticus 23:9-14;Deuteronomy 26:1-11;2 Kings 4:42). That
gift expressesthe idea that the whole harvest belongs to God (Romans 11:16).
These 144,000people are only a small part of all God’s people (7:4-9).
However, their return to God will show that all God’s people really do belong
to him (Romans 11:11-16). © 2016, Keith Simons.
THE LAMB OUR LEADER NO. 2456
A SERMON INTENDEDFOR READING ON LORD’S-DAY, MARCH 15,
1896 DELIVERED BYC. H. SPURGEON AT THE METROPOLITAN
TABERNACLE, NEWINGTONON LORD’S-DAY EVENING, MARCH7,
1886
“These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth.” Revelation
14:4
YOU, dear friends who belong to the Tabernacle, are wellacquainted with
our venerable friend, George Rogers. Itwas a greatjoy to me to find him alive
when I came home from the Continent, he said that he must keepon living till
he had seenme once more, and then he hoped that he should go home. That
was a month ago, but yesterday I saw him again, and he seemedto be greatly
revived and refreshed. He has attained an extremely advancedage, and it is
only natural that he should soongo to his restand reward. He remarkedto
me, yesterday, that he had bidden farewellto the world entirely, and he did
not wish to renew the acquaintance, he did not know why he should linger
here any longer, for everything was finished, and he was ready to depart, and
then he said to me, in his cheery way, “I wonderwhether I shall see that new
Baptist Chapelcompleted.” You know that he is not a Baptist, but a

Congregationalist, yethe has been with us so many years that we always claim
him. He added, “Whenit is built, I hope they will send a regular old-
fashionedBaptist to preach in it.” I askedhim, “What sort of old-fashioned
Baptist do you mean?” “Why,” he replied, “the oldest-fashionedBaptistwas
the man that cried, ‘Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh awaythe sin of
the world.’ That is the old-fashionedsort of Baptist I mean—Johnthe Baptist,
and that is the sort I hope will come there.” “Yes,” I said, “and I wish that was
the sortof preacherwho would go everywhere, for that is the truth which still
needs to be preached.” “Ah, yes!” said Mr. Rogers, “there is nothing like the
doctrine of the atoning sacrifice, itis the doctrine for this world, and it is the
doctrine for the next.” “Do you not think,” said he, “that this passagewould
make you a goodtext for tomorrow, ‘These are they which follow the Lamb
whithersoeverHe goeth’?” “Yes,” Ianswered, “that will make me a goodtext,
may God send me the sermon!” That is why I have takenthis text, it really
comes to you from that venerable man who is so far advanced in years, and so
close to the border of the eternal state. He feels that the old-fashioned Baptist
doctrine that ought to be continually preachedis this, “Beholdthe Lamb of
God, which taketh awaythe sin of the world,” and that the best characterthat
can be ascribedto Christians in any age is this, “These are they which follow
the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth.” Upon that theme I am now going to speak
to you as the Holy Spirit shall enable me. I. And, first, I would make this
observation, that THIS IS CHARACTERISTIC OF SAINTS, “These are they
which follow the Lamb whithersoeverHe goeth.” This has always beenthe
way of the saints, this is the way the holy prophets went, the way of the
martyrs, the way of the reformers and confessors, the way of all who shall
meet above around the throne of Godand of the Lamb. Beginat the
beginning. When do you see Abel at his best? It is when he brings of the
firstlings of his flock, and stands beside the altar of sacrifice whereonlies the
God-acceptedlamb. The first of the martyrs is a martyr to the doctrine of
sacrifice by Blood, he, being dead, yet speaks, bearing his testimony that there
is no wayof accessto God except by the sacrifice ofa lamb.
2 The Lamb Our Leader Sermon #2456
2 Volume 42
Pass onto Abraham. What is one of the most memorable sayings of the father
of the faithful? “My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt
offering.” Did not Abraham then, by faith, see Christ’s day? Yea, he saw it
afar off, and was glad, he knew that the greatJEHOVAH-JIREH would
provide a wondrous Substitute, who would die in the place of His people, even
as the ram took the place of Isaac, andAbraham saw in his own offering of his

son whom he so dearly loved, a faint image of that greateroffering of the
Eternal Fatherwhen He would give His only-begotten and well-beloved Sonto
die that His people might live. Again I say that it is always characteristicof
God’s people that they follow the Lamb, for look at Israel in Egypt. They are
slaves at the brick kilns. They are building treasure cities and pyramids, but
they cannot stir out of Egypt till first of all they have slain and eatenthe
paschallamb, and sprinkled his blood upon their dwelling places. Thenthey
go out singing the song of Mosesthe servantof Godand of the Lamb. All
through their marching in the wilderness, there was the offering of the
morning lamb and the evening lamb. The people of God were known by their
trust in a greatsacrifice, that sacrifice being prefigured by “the blood of bulls
and of goats, and the sprinkling of the ashes ofan heifer,” and especiallyby
the passoverlamb and the morning and the evening lamb. I do not know any
clearercharacteristic ofthe saints throughout the ages that are past than this,
“These are they which follow the Lamb.” Think of the prophet Isaiah, and as
you remember him, and his prophecy, does not the thought of the Lamb of
God rise up to your mind at once? “He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheepbefore her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.”
Then, when the new saints come into the world in the brighter day, the clearer
dispensationof the Gospel, does not John the Baptistpoint all who hear him
to the Lamb of God? That morning star of the Christian solarsystem throws
its bright beams upon Jesus, the one greatsacrifice. Johncried, “Beholdthe
Lamb of God, which takethawaythe sin of the world,” and that other John,
who heard Him speak, startedfollowing the Lamb, and all through his life he
kept close companywith that blessedLamb of God till, in his extreme old age,
on the island of Patmos, he saw visions of God, and wrote that wonderful
Book ofthe Revelationout of which we were reading just now, and one of the
noteworthy points in that Book is that John continually speaks ofthe Lord
Jesus as the Lamb. The one sacrifice has been offered, the redemption price
has been fully paid, the sins of the redeemed have been all put away, and now
one might have thought that the Lord Jesus wouldassume some other form,
for instance, that of the Lion of the tribe of Judah would always be
predominant in the apocalyptic vision, yet it is not so. John says, “Ilooked,
and, lo, a Lamb stoodon the Mount Sion.” Sacrifice is ever first—first before
the angels, first before the elders who representthe church, first in the very
centerof the throne of God Himself, for it is the throne of God, and of Him
who offered Himself as the sacrifice, that is, the Lamb. This, then, is the
emblem on the escutcheonofthe church triumphant as well as the church
militant, “a lamb as it had been slain.” For the wilderness and for Canaan, for
the battlefield and for the palace, for the cross and for the throne, it is ever the

Lamb, the Lamb that was slain, and that lives again, and lives to die no more.
God forbid that this matchless figure should ever be dim to our eyes, but may
we gaze upon it with ever-increasing delight! Saints in all ages have followed
the Lamb, and I do not wonder that they have done so, for it was the Lamb
that made them saints. They have “washedtheir robes, and made them white
in the blood of the Lamb.” Sainthood begins at Calvary. There is no
possibility of being holy till first there has been remission of sin, and there is
no remission of sin without the shedding of the blood of the Lamb. No, dear
friends, we have no hope of being cleanin God’s sight unless we have been
washed, and there is no fountain of cleansing for the house of David, and the
inhabitants of Jerusalem, but that which was opened when Christ hung on the
cross. Wellmay they follow Christ who have been made saints by Him. They
follow the Lamb, again, because it is He who keeps them saints. “He keepeth
the feetof his saints.” If we walk in the light, as God is in the light, and so
have fellowship one with another, it is still “the blood of Jesus Christ, his
Son,” which, “cleansethus from all sin.” We need perpetual cleansing,
Sermon #2456 The Lamb Our Leader 3
Volume 42 3
and we get that perpetual cleansing in the ever-flowing stream from the
wounds of Christ which, in effect, perpetually do bleed for those who put their
trust in Him. Well may the saints follow the Lamb, for to Him they owe, not
only the beginning, but the continuance of their spiritual life and saintship.
And brothers and sisters, whatother leader could they follow? What model,
exceptChrist, is there for a saint to copy? How can we attain to holiness if we
work not after this pattern? Where shall any manhood be seenas fit for
imitation, exceptwhere it is linked with the Godhead, in the Divine Son of
God? Where shall we see the law written out in living characters, but in the
life of this glorious Man, this blessedSonof God? Beloved, it is not possible
for saints, in all respects, to follow any other leader, and it is characteristic of
them that they follow the Lamb. Ask yourselves, my dear hearers, whether
you are among these followers of the Lamb. II. The secondpart of our subject
shows us that THIS EXPRESSIONIS INSTRUCTIVE TO THOSE WHO
DESIRE TO BE SAINTS. Those of us who have already the commencement
of sanctification, should remember that we can only be saints in the fullest
sense by following the Lamb whithersoeverHe goes. First, then, we are to
follow the Lamb. Some men spurn the idea of following anybody, they have
very capacious brains, and they like to think and to excogitate. Theywill have
nothing but what is beatenout on their own anvils. To acceptthe Word of
God as a little child receives it, is altogetherbeneath their dignity. They think

that the Word of God itself is mistakenwhen it says, “Mythoughts are not
your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the
heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and
my thoughts than your thoughts.” They fancy that their thoughts are even a
little higher than the thoughts of God. They are followers ofnobody, they are
leaders, or at any rate, they are “self-contained.”Theyhave their own
revelation, and eachman of them is a god to himself. Very well, you may
stand there by yourselves, you learned people, you may have your degrees,
M.A., D.D., or whateverelse you like, for you are those who follow nobody,
but of the true people of God, it is written, “These are they which follow the
Lamb.” These are not they who follow their own leading, striking out a path
of their own, these are not the greateccentrics,orthe wonderful originals, but
these are they which follow, they are contentto be merely followers, theydo
not aspire to be anything more than followers, but they are glad, however, to
add that they are followers of the Lamb, “These are they which follow the
Lamb.” There are other persons in the world who follow some one of their
fellow men. Whateverhe says is Gospelto them, whatever he has written is, of
course, infallible. “Be ye followers of me,” says the apostle Paul, but then he
adds directly, “evenas I also am of Christ.” While we are children, we are
necessarilyunder instructors, but we must take heed, as we grow in grace,
that we never follow an instructor so blindly as to follow him where he goes
wrong. No, “to the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to
this Word, it is because there is no light in them.” Every true instructor will
beg you to see that, when he errs, you are not to err with him, but to keepa
conscienceandan understanding of your own, so that it will not be said,
“These are they who follow this or that eminent preacher or divine,” but
“These are they which follow the Lamb.” Mind that, dear friends, for it is
most important. I know another company of people who follow “the church.”
That is a wonderful thing, you know, “the historic church.” This is the great
door of entrance into the church of Rome, and many have been attractedto it,
and have gone through it down into the abyss. There are certain persons who
think that “the church” cannot err, but I do not know a more erring
community than that which is commonly called“the church.” Yet there are
certain people who must follow the church whithersoevershe goes, and as she
has gone to Rome, there they will also go. Or if they think she has gone to
Oxford, there they will abide, or if she has gone to Canterbury, there they will
dwell. Well, I have greatrespectfor these brethren, but I prefer to be
numbered with those of whom it is written, “These are they which follow the
Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth.” Whether He goes to Rome, or

4 Volume 42
to Geneva, or to Wittenberg, or to Canterbury, or to Smithfield amidst the
martyrs’ burning stakes, oramong the misnamed Anabaptists, or the
Methodists, follow the Lamb whereverHe goes. Ihave been sometimes called
to book for saying—yetI will venture to sayit again—thatif I lived in a
village, or if I lived in any other place where I knew there was a Baptist or
other Dissenting Chapel, before I decided to attend it, I would want to know,
first, “Is the Gospelpreachedthere?” I am not so blindly weddedto any
denomination whateverthat I should cling to the denomination if it did not
cling to Christ. “Follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth.” If you canhear
sound doctrine concerning Christ preachedanywhere, go and hear it, if it is in
connectionwith those who also follow the Lamb in the waters of baptism,
show your preference for that form of worship, but do not cling merely to an
old name and an old flag when Christ has gone from them. The first thing for
your soul is to get near to Christ, to feed upon His truth, and so to let it be said
of you, dear friends, “‘These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever
he goeth,’and if they do not hear the Gospelin one place, they will go to
another, for they are not going to listen to false doctrine. They have, as sheep
of Christ, receiveda taste by which they know what is truth and what is error.
‘A strangerwill they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the
voice of strangers,’but when they hear their Shepherd’s voice, they will follow
that. ‘These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth.’” The
church is all very well in its place, but the church has often lost her Lord. In
the Song of Solomonwe read how she went about the streets seeking Him, so I
should not like to have to follow her whithersoevershe goes, but it is safe and
right to follow the Bridegroomwherever He goes. So let us keepto that, and
be amongstthose that “follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth.” A further
instruction is this. We may always follow the leadof the Lamb of the atoning
sacrifice. We cannever follow it too closelyin our thought. You know that you
may getsome one thought into your head, and it may rule your whole being
till you hardly know where it may lead you. Few men know the consequences
of introducing any single doctrine into their minds, for it is pretty sure to
bring another and another in its train. This is especiallytrue about the
doctrine of the atonement offeredby Christ the Lamb of God, yet you may
acceptit without fear, whateverits consequencesmay be, and never be at all
afraid to follow it whithersoeverit goes. Forinstance, whenyou think of
Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, dying in unutterable pain to redeem men, it
gives you the true idea of the terrible blackness ofsin. Well, follow out that

thought, and if you begin to be greatly depressedunder a sense ofsin, if
conscienceshouldsting and scourge your heart, if it should almostdrive you
to despair to think that sin could not be put awayexceptby the death of the
Son of God, still follow out the thought, for the process willnot hurt you.
“Follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth.” ThoughHe should lead you into a
very trying experience, and a very humbling sense ofyour own guilt, go on
still further with Him, for He who leads you into that gloom will leadyou out
of it in the most efficient manner, and you need not be afraid to “follow the
Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth.” “If it be so,” says one, “that the Sonof God
must die before sin canbe put away, then it follows that there is no salvation
out of Christ.” Just so, follow up that thought. Go on with it to its ultimate
issues, do not be afraid, even though the consequences shouldstartle you. Rest
assuredthat, where the doctrine of the cross may lead you, you may follow it
quite safely. One thing I know, the doctrine of the cross will never make you
trifle with sin, it will never let you imagine that the death of the wickedis a
slight matter, it will never make you indifferent as to the state of men when
they pass into another world. “Follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth,” and
you will hate sin more and more, you will love souls more and more, you will
have an intense awe of the law of God, and you will have an intense love for
the personof your Redeemer. You cannotpush this thought too far, it is a
truth about which you cannever go to an extreme. Nay, I wish that you would
go to any extreme that lies along this route, “These are they which follow the
Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth,” as a matter of thought.
Sermon #2456 The Lamb Our Leader 5
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But now, once more, you may also very safely follow the Lord Jesus Christ, as
the atoning sacrifice, in matters of fact, that is to say, you may be in this
world, as far as you can in your measure, as Christ was. The man who
believes in the doctrine of the Lamb of God that takes awaythe sin of the
world, will feelthat sin is bitter, and he will become very intolerant of it. He
will seek to put it down, he will try to purge it out of his own conduct, and he
will not endure it in his own family. Go on with that line of conduct, and
follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goes. How can you tolerate that which cost
the Sonof Godthe bloody sweatofGethsemane? How canyou play with the
daggerwhich pierced His heart? No, you must practically, in your life, hate
the sins that made Him mourn, and nailed Him to the tree. Alas! nowadays, I
see many who are trifling with sin. We Puritans, they say, are much too
precise and too strict. Ah, sirs! it is that precisenessand that strictness that
are wantedmore and more, and we shall never know how to live thus except

we abide hard by the cross ofChrist. Unless we believe that sin costChrist His
life, we shall never have that holy enmity towards sin which we ought to have,
that blessedintolerance of sin which ought to take possessionofevery
Christian’s heart and mind. “Follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth.” If
you do, you will have to go outside the camp, just as He did, bearing His cross.
He went forth beyond the gates ofJerusalem, you will have to do the same,
you will find people saying of you that they cannot endure you, you have
become too religious, too strait-laced, and so on. Blessedare they who are not
afraid of hard names, who indeed feel that, if it be wrong in the judgment of
the world to follow Christ so closely, they intend to be more wrong, even as
David said to Michal, “I will yet be more vile.” Godhelp us so to do! “Follow
the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth,” into the place of separationwithout the
camp. If you follow the Lamb, you may be calledto suffer, you may have to
lose friends, you may come under the cruel lash of slander, you may, perhaps,
have to lose this world’s gains, for righteousness’sakeandholiness’ sake, but
whateverthe costmay be, follow the Lamb, sayto yourself—
“Through floods and flames, if Jesus lead, I’ll follow where He goes.”
“The blood-bespatteredfootprints of my Mastershall receive mine. Not with
equal strides, but still with gladsome footsteps,I will follow in His track, let
that track lead where it may. What He did, I will do, after my measure.” This
is what we ought to do, brothers and sisters. How different our lives would be
if we always wroughtthem out by this rule—“What would Christ do in such a
case?”Ihave sometimes got into a greatfix of consciencewhenI have put to
myself the question, “What would Christ do in such a case as this?” And once
or twice I have not been able to answer. And then I have had to hark back a
little, and say, “Would Christ ever have been in circumstances similar to mine
just now? Is there not some mistake farther back, and had I not better go
right back, and begin again, somewhere orother, rather than keepon a track
in which I cannotsuppose my Lord to be?” Oh, that we might feel,
henceforth, that we will follow the Lamb whithersoeverHe goeth, whatever
the consequencesmay be! Young Christian, I should recommend you, in
starting out in the Christian life, to aim at obeying your Lord’s commands in
every particular. If you have believed in Him, the first thing that you ought to
do is to be baptized. “Follow the Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth,” and I am
sure that He went down into the waters of Jordan, and was baptized by John,
and then the Holy Spirit restedupon Him, and His Father said, “This is my
beloved Son, in whom I am wellpleased.” Whenyou have done that, go and
give yourself to the Church of Christ, for the Lord Jesus Christ, from the very

first, beganto gather round about Him those who feared God, and He had a
company of disciples who constitutedHis church. Still keepon following the
Lamb whithersoeverHe goeth, and if you do, you will be a very amiable,
loving, generous, hearty, self-denying, laborious Christian. If you follow the
Lamb whithersoeverHe goeth, you will go about doing good, you will lay
yourself out in service for the Master. Perhaps you will teach little children,
for He said, “Sufferthe little children to come unto me, and forbid them not.”
Perhaps you will stand and preachin the streets, for He, by the
6 Volume 42
hillside, and on the mountain, and by the sea, spoke everthe things of God.
But if you follow Him, you will do goodin one way or another, and not be a
lazy lie-a-bed in the kingdom of Christ, expecting to be honored and rewarded
for doing nothing at all. “These are they which follow the Lamb
whithersoeverhe goeth.” Brothers and sisters, are we not happy that we may
follow Him? His track leads to rest, for He sits at the right hand of God. His
track leads to victory, for the Lamb is enthroned, and He will give us to
overcome, and to sit with Him upon His throne, even as He has overcome, and
sits with the Father upon His throne. Oh! then, by that sweetending, let us
make a goodbeginning, and a blessed, persevering continuance, in following
the Lamb whithersoeverHe goeth. III. I close with this remark—ourtext IS
SUGGESTIVE TO ALL WHO WOULD BE SAINTS. You perceive that if
you are to be true saints, first of all, you must trust Christ. A man does not
follow another unless he has faith in him. Brethren, your wayto heavenlies in
trusting yourself with Christ as a sacrifice forsin—as the Lamb of God. Trust
yourself with Him, and you have begun the new life, you have started as a
saint. But, next, this trust must be of a practicalkind. It is not saidin our text,
“These are they which trust the Lamb,” merely, but “These are they which
follow the Lamb.” You must do what He bids you, as He bids you, because He
bids you, and because you trust Him. You must begin, from this day forth, to
show by your lives that your faith in Christ is no mere sentiment, but a vital
active principle within your minds. In that way you shall find eternal life in
trusting the Lamb and following Him. But, if you follow Him, recollectthat
you must make no terms with Him. “These are they which follow the Lamb
whithersoeverhe goeth.” “Lord,” sayyou, “I will follow You across the grassy
lawn, or over the smoothly rolled road.” No, no, you must make no conditions,
you must follow Him up the crags and down into the marshes, you must follow
Christ everywhere, with no picking and choosing of the road. Where He bids
you, you must go, where He leads you, you must follow. Will you do that? If

so, you shall be His in the day of His appearing, but you must take that
“whithersoever” into the contract. “These are they which follow the Lamb
whithersoeverhe goeth.” O sir, will you follow Christ at this rate? If you will,
you are Christ’s man, this is the sort of soldier that He would enlist in His
army, the man who is ready to follow Him whithersoeverHe goes. I heard of
a young man who wanted to be an officer in Napoleon’s army, and he came to
get a commissionwearing a fine new hat, and a suit of clothes of the very
neatestcut possible, and the officer askedhim, “Sir, if you were in a defile,
with mountains on either side of you which you could not ascend, and there
was no possibility of going back, and the enemy in front was at leastten times
your number, what would you do in such a case as that?” He answered, “I
should resignmy commission.” Theydid not make an officerof him, you may
be sure, but there are plenty of that kind who, as soonas ever they come to a
difficulty in the Christian faith, say, “Take my name off the roll, I did not
bargain for this.” Now, if you mean to be a Christian, you must “follow the
Lamb whithersoever— whithersoever—whithersoeverhe goeth.” And if you
do this, you must be like Him. Christ and His followers must be of one mind.
Christ the Lamb is not to be followedby the devil’s lions. If you follow the
Lamb, you must grow more and more lamb-like, and that means being more
gentle, more meek, more self-sacrificing, more ready to submit to the divine
will. The Lord make us so, and may we be among the blessed people who shall
have this for their epitaph—nay, not for their epitaph, for they are not dead,
but who shall have this for their motto, “These are they which follow the
Lamb whithersoeverhe goeth”! Lastly, remember that Jesus came to the
communion table, and His followers should be like Him in this respectalso. If
there is any child of God who has forgottenthis truth hitherto, let him no
longerforsake the assembling of himself with God’s people in the keeping of
this sacredfeast. Godbless you all, for Christ’s sake!Amen.

Jesus was followed as the lamb

Jesus was followed as the lamb

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Jesus was followed as the lamb