Prayer Focus: Zimbabwe

Bible Reading: Revelation 6-10

Scripture

After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.  And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying:

“Amen!  Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever.  Amen!”

Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”

I answered, “Sir, you know.”

And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.  Therefore, “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple;  and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them. Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”  Revelation 7:9-17 NIV

Observation

Revelation 6 starts with the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse  and is followed by disaster after disaster; conquest, war, economic collapse, death.  Natural disasters on a global scale follow, unnatural beasts bent on destroying humanity, all the while hearts do not repent.

But in the midst of it all is this great multitude.  They are already in heaven and they are praising God.

Application

This is what the end of the world looks like.  Regardless of what you’ve heard from crazy prophets trying to predict a date for the end of the world, or ancient calendars running out of days, nobody knows when this will actually happen.  Nobody except God.

This great multitude seems to have escaped all that, but how?  “They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the lamb.”  Meaning they repented of their sins and put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ.  Jesus Christ, through his death and resurrection, took the penalty for our sin and by rising from the dead made good on the promise to give us new life.

The end of the world is not a scary thing for the Christian because for us means being with Christ.  However, it should drive us to share the message of grace, mercy, and forgiveness through Jesus Christ with the unbelieving world.  Without Christ the end of the world means an eternity in hell for them.

Prayer

Lord, I thank you for saving me so I can be one of those in the great multitude.  Give me the opportunity, the courage, and the words to speak, and the actions to take, so that those that need to know you will be reached.  Rekindle your Church, Lord, and start a revival.  Amen.