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The 144,000 of Revelation


Introduction – The 144,000

Chapter One – By Beholding We Become Changed!

Chapter Two – Who Are the 144,000?

Chapter Three – The Twelve Tribes

Chapter Four – I Heard the Number

Chapter Five – The Time of the Sealing

Chapter Six – Context of Revelation Seven

Chapter Seven – Strive to be One of the 144,000

Introduction

It is not until one reaches the seventh chapter of the book of Revelation that we hear of a group called the 144,000.  Being the last book of the Bible this number and group must be of little significance.  If they were important and critical to God’s plan of Salvation they would surely have been introduced before this time.  In fact we could even ask, what impact has this group had on Christianity at all?  What is their purpose, why are they even mentioned in the book of Revelation?  The fact is that there is nothing in God’s word that is arbitrary or useless, and what we will discover is that this group in particular, more than any other, is of utmost importance, for they become the ultimate answer to the conflict of the ages, vindicating the character of God.  The Drama ends with a stellar performance directed by God Himself.

Scripture reveals that this controversy began in heaven itself, “And war broke out in heaven: Michael and His angels fought with the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer.  So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; and he was cast to the earth” (Rev. 12:7-9).  Sin and rebellion began in heaven with Lucifer, once the covering cherub, and then at some time after, he spread its chaos throughout our fair planet as a result of Eve’s folly and Adam’s choice. They both made the wrong choices, disregarding God’s command, and the result brought condemnation and death upon themselves and their descendants.  The entire world was taken captive in the devil’s snare.

As soon as there was sin though, there was the promise of the Saviour, for Christ is presented as “the lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Rev. 13:8).  God had made provision for such an emergency and immediately Christ stepped into the gap, had He not done so, Adam and Eve would have immediately been slain.  “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it, you shall surely die” (Gen. 2:16-17).

Our first parents’ lives were spared through the mercy of God.  And God gave the repentant couple a promise, that one day sin would be destroyed and He would restore what they had lost.  Genesis 3:14-15 states this promise: “And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.”

Eventually this promise would become reality and the Messiah would come in the fullness of time, not just “for” us, but as one “of” us, the second Adam.  His mission was to buy us back, to reconcile us unto God and restore the broken face-to-face relationship man enjoyed in the Garden.  This would involve at least four distinct considerations, as the problem became four dimensional.   These specific answers to the sin problem would eventually be illustrated through what is called the sanctuary service; detailed instructions for this service was given to Moses on Mount Sinai.  They can be described as the Required Penalty, the Reigning Power, the Remaining Presence, and the Restored Perfection.  Theologians call these aspects of the plan of Salvation: Justification, Sanctification, Glorification, and Final Redemption.

The success of each component was made possible by Christ alone, and through the power of His Spirit potentially made manifest in the lives of believers, “let this mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus, for it is God that worketh in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:5,13).

Throughout history precious souls have repented, made commitments to God and accepted the free gift of Salvation, their lives have been a testimony to the power of the indwelling Spirit, “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Pe. 1:4)

“For this is the will of God even your Sanctification, that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God… for God did not call us to uncleanness, but to holiness” (1 thes. 4:3-7)

This growth in grace extends over a lifetime as believers struggle with the reigning power of sin and the carnal nature (one born with).  There have been just a few mentioned in Scripture that reached this full measure of the power of the indwelling Christ:  Enoch and Elijah are Old Testament examples, both translated to Heaven never tasting physical death.  Also some that were resurrected such as Moses and the many that were risen after Christ’s resurrection: “And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many” (Matt. 27:52-53) Both from the Old and New Testaments there are examples of mature Christian victory.

At the end of time when the tares have come to the full ”As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world” (Matt. 13:40), so also the wheat will have come to full maturity, “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure” (1 John 3:2-3).  This is the time mentioned in Scripture as a time of trouble such as never was, a time when full light meets full darkness!

When Christ comes He is not to flip some kind of character switch and cleanse us of our sins, to remove from us the defects in our character, or to cure us of the infirmities of our tempers and dispositions.  He isn’t a righteous Mr. Clean that steps beyond our willingness to utilize His Grace, setting aside our freedom of choice.  If there is going to be a change in us, this work must all be accomplished before that time. When the Lord comes, those who are holy will be holy still. Those who have preserved their bodies and spirits in holiness, in sanctification and honor, will then receive the finishing touch of immortality.  But those who are unjust, unsanctified, and filthy, will have no further probation for change (Rev. 22:11).  Those who receive this finishing touch, who are changed in a moment in the twinkling of an eye at the last trump, are the 144,000.  What is their mission? How can they possess so much conviction to the truth?  Why such a small group? Their story is eye-opening, compelling, inspiring, and not often told – until now!