Revelation 22

Revelation 22:4

A May-Day Sermon His name shall be on their foreheads.—Revelation 22:4.The first of May—May-day! I wonder if you boys and girls like the sound of that word “May-day” as well as some of us older people do.We like it because the May-days of long ago seem very beautiful to us now. I remember one specially, as it was spent by a quaint little girl of seven years old. She had rather a dull home. Her father was a very strict man, and her mother never thought of playing with her little boy and girl. But Louie woke very, very happy on May-day morning. “Louie, Lou—ie!” she heard her mother calling, “it is six o’clock; rise and wash your face with the May dew.” Louie jumped out of bed very willingly indeed, for she remembered—how could she forget it?—that she had been chosen to be the May Queen.

Her crown of sweet spring flowers was ready. It lay covered up on the top of a chest of drawers in her room. She was a clever little girl, and had learnt quite a number of pieces of poetry. You will hardly believe it, but as she dressed herself she kept reciting in a childish voice:You have waked and called me early, called me early, mother dear; This is the, most lovely day of all the glad New-year; Of all the glad New-year, mother, the maddest, merriest day; For I’m to be Queen o’ the May, mother, I’m to be Queen o’ the May. As soon as she was dressed she trotted out to the garden, and, gathering the dew from the grass, wiped her face all over with it. “Heckie!” she asked softly, for her wee brother had followed her, “is my face beautiful?” “Yes, Louie; yes, it’s like—it’s like one of the little angels in father’s big Bible.”Later, dressed in a simple white dress, and wearing a crown of spring flowers, Louie walked in front of a long procession of school children. Her king was a little fellow whose first name was “Phelim,” and her maids were girls very much bigger than herself. They kept saying, “Walk faster, walk faster”; but Louie was too happy to mind; for although “Phelim” did not speak to her, he wore a crown like a real king’s crown, and it was made of golden lilies. The walk ended in marching round part of a fine old garden, curtseying’ as they passed an old lady—the gentle duchess who owned the place—and then viewing a collection of work that was ready to be sent to a missionary somewhere.“Mother, I was very, very happy,” Louie said afterwards (little girls did not use the word “awfully” then); “I won’t dirty my dresses any more.”The few of those children who are alive now are elderly men and women. Just about a year ago I had a letter from the little May Queen. “I can almost smell the flowers,” she wrote—“the flowers that formed my crown on that May morning, long ago.”Boys and girls, the May dew and the spring flowers are still here. In Edinburgh, as early as six o’clock on the first of May, one can see numbers of young people hiking up “Arthur’s Seat” (peak of hills) to wash their faces with dew from its grassy slopes or its summit.The idea that the fresh dew of a May morning can make our faces beautiful is an old-fashioned one.

But some of us like it. It makes us think backward.

Better still, our thoughts go forward too—away to the beauty that is spoken of in the Bible, the beauty that comes from being in God’s presence. The Bible is full of stories about beautiful people. They had the beauty that comes from doing kind actions, from being true, from having noble thoughts.A little girl was one day reading the Bible, and she came upon some verses that spoke of Heaven. “Grandpa,” she said, “my Bible says that those who are in heaven shall never hunger or thirst. I understand that; but it says that ‘ His name shall be on their foreheads! What does that mean, grandpa? Who will write the name of Jesus on their foreheads?”“Why, they will write it themselves, of course, girlie.”“Write it themselves, grandpa!

But how?”“Why, Margery, we are every day writing the names of our masters on our foreheads. Some people make a sad mistake and serve sin, and sin stamps its seal upon their faces.

Some serve care, and care brands their foreheads with deep wrinkles. But those who love the Lord Jesus, Margery, and walk with Him, and do His will, write the name of their dear Master on their forehead. They cannot help it.”Margery looked up wonderingly into her grandfather’s face. She glanced at the grey hair that, like a crown of glory, circled the old man’s brow. She noticed more than that; she looked into his kind eyes. She flung her arms round the old man’s neck, and cried, “I think I understand now, grandpa.”That is a little American story I read the other day. And let me tell you something else that is very interesting. An eminent London photographer wrote an article for a educated paper.

In the course of it he said that “one of the best evidences for religion is the type of face that the religious life produces.” “His name shall he on their foreheadsGetting into God’s presence is like bathing your face with dew. It will give you such a feeling of happiness that you will never want to do a mean action. You will always want to be true, and you will be constantly trying to make everybody round you as happy as you are yourself.

Revelation 22:21

Amen Amen.—Revelation 22:21.This is one of the words you hear most frequently in church. It comes at the end of the hymns and prayers and sometimes the minister says it at the end of his sermon. Did you ever stop to think what the word means? It is not just a sign that we may open our eyes and raise our heads if we have been praying, or sit down if we have been singing. The word has been put there for a purpose. It means that you really mean and believe all that you have been praying or singing, that you are in earnest.“Amen” is a very old word. Originally it was an adjective and meant firm, true, steadfast. It was in use in very early times among the Hebrews.

When they wished to give their assent to any very solemn statement or command they answered “Amen.” You remember when King David was dying he sent for Zadok the high priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah captain of his bodyguard, and told them that he wished Solomon to be made king in his stead. Then he gave orders that these three men were to bring Solomon down to Gihon and there crown him king. And Benaiah answered, “Amen: the Lord God of my lord the king say so too.” That just meant “Yea, verily, may the God of David grant that this may be so.” But Benaiah didn’t stop at saying “Amen.” That “Amen” meant that he had pledged his word to carry out the king’s commands. And not only did he carry them out to the letter, but afterwards he stood by Solomon to defend and deliver him from his enemies.In later times the word “Amen” was taken into the worship of the Jewish synagogues. It was used by the congregation as a solemn response to the prayers or hymns of praise of the minister. By answering “Amen,” they made, as it were, all that the minister had said their own, just as if they had prayed the prayers or sung the hymns themselves.

Then from the synagogue it was taken into the worship of the Early Christian Church, and so we have it in our church worship today.Do you know that this word “Amen” was a very frequent word on the lips of Jesus? Unfortunately the men who translated our Bible have tried to turn it into English.

When Jesus was about to say something very solemn or very, very important, something that He wanted to assure His hearers was very true, He began by saying, “Verily I say unto you.” If you had a Greek New Testament, you would see that the word translated “verily” is just “Amen.” And when Jesus said, “Amen, I say unto you,” He meant that because He said it they could count on its being true.There was once a small boy who was trying to describe his baby sister to a lady. He wanted to say something specially nice about her and so he ended, “She is just an ‘ Amen ’ baby!” “And what kind of baby may that be?” asked the lady. “Well, you see, she holds up her hands so: like the minister does at the blessing”Now we want all the boys and girls to be “Amen” boys and girls. We want them all to be blessings to the world and to God. How can they be that?1. By “being steadfast and faithful and true as Jesus was.There is a fine story told of William, Prince of Orange, who became William III. of England. When he was invited to come to England he gave written pledges to some of his friends that he would appoint them to office.

When he was handing out these pledges, one man who was to hold a very high position refused the paper. “Your Majesty’s word is sufficient,” he said, “I would not serve a king whose word I could not trust!”That was fine, wasn’t it? And we want people to be able to say the same of you.

We want them to be able to say, “John’s word is sufficient. If he has promised to do anything you may count on its being done,” or “It must be true, because Mary said so, and you can always trust her word.”David Livingstone used to say, “Jesus is a gentleman, and He keeps His word as a gentleman should.” There is nothing grander than to be a follower of Jesus and to be absolutely true and straight in word and deed.2. And, second, we want you to be “Amen” boys and girls by making your lives a response to God’s will.Away on the shores of the Adriatic there is a beautiful custom practiced among the fisher folk.When the boats have put out to sea in the evening and are lying far out beside the nets, the wives and friends of the fishermen steal down to the seashore and sing the first verse of one of their favorite hymns. The music of their voices is carried far across the still waters till it reaches the fishermen at their work. Then the men take up the words of the second verse and back across the water steals the sound of the melody. And the women, hearing the echo of their own song, go home satisfied that their friends are safe.Boys and girls, are you responding to the music of God’s voice?

Are your lives in tune with His? They will never produce the true melody until they are.

He is calling you now. Will you answer with a glad “Amen”?