In this sermon, the speaker discusses various scenes from the book of Revelation. The first scene described is the vision of Christ as the Lion of the tribe of Judah and the Lamb standing before the throne. The second scene is the vision of Christ as the Son of Man walking among the seven golden candlesticks, symbolizing His presence in His own church. The speaker then introduces another scene from Revelation chapter 7, where a great multitude from every nation and tribe stands before the throne and the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palms in their hands. The angels and elders also worship God, giving Him blessings, glory, wisdom, thanksgiving, honor, power, and might.

May we look to the Lord in prayer. Our Heavenly Father, we do pray that the vision of Christ the victor may ever be before us. When we are surrounded by things, by happenings, that seem to be depressing, confusing, and oppressing, we pray that in the very innermost of our heart, we can see Christ the conqueror. Oh, how we praise and thank Thee that we can claim Him as our overcomer. How we praise and thank Thee by Him, we too shall overcome. So we do pray that this vision may ever be before our eyes, no matter what happens. We do commit this hour into Thy hand, and we claim Thy victory over this hour. We pray that the enemy may not in any way interfere with Thy work. We ask Thee that Thou will claim Thy victory over us, over the whole gathering for tonight. We commit this hour into Thy hand. Oh, how we desire to worship Thee, because Thou art the changeless One. We ask in the precious name of our Lord Jesus. During the past two evenings, we have seen two glorious scenes. First, we see the glory of our Redeemer, the Lion of the tribe of Judah. The Lamb slain, standing before the throne. Christ the overcomer. Then last night, we see the vision of Christ as the Son of Man, walking in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks. And there He is looking for Himself in His own church. And for this reason, the call to overcome comes. Now this evening, we would like to see another wonderful scene. And it is also in Revelation. Will you please turn to Revelation chapter 7. Revelation chapter 7. We'll read from verse 9. After these things I saw, and behold, a great multitude, which no man could number, out of every nation and of all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, arrayed in white robes and palms in their hands. And they cried with a great voice, saying, Salvation unto our God, who sitteth on the throne and unto the Lamb. And all the angels were standing round about the throne, and about the elders and the four living creatures. And they fell before the throne on their faces and worshipped God, saying, Amen. Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be unto our God forever and ever. Amen. And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, These that are arrayed in the white robes, who are they, and whence came they? And I said unto him, My Lord, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they that come out of the great tribulation, and they wash their robes and make them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and they serve him day and night in his temple. And he that sitteth on the throne shall spread his tabernacle over them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more, neither shall the sun strike them, nor any heat. For the Lamb that is in the midst of the throne shall be their shepherd and shall guide them unto fountains of waters of life. And God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes. In this seventh chapter of the book of Revelation, actually there is more than one scene. Before that portion, which we have just read, we find another scene. The sealing of the 144,000 of the tribes of Israel. We find that in between the sixth seal, after the Lamb has opened the sixth seal, and before he opens the seventh seal, we find this seventh chapter is placed between these two seals. Now in the sixth seal, we find in the preceding chapter, the last verse, For the great day of their wrath is come, and who is able to stand? There you'll find the great day of the wrath of God and of the Lamb is coming. And who is able to stand that day? But before the seventh seal is opened, we find these two wonderful scenes. On the one hand you'll find out of the twelve tribes of Israel, there are 144,000 being sealed with the seal of God. I'm afraid I have to do a little interpretation. I hope you won't mind that. And if you do not see eye to eye with me, I'm quite willing to be corrected. And I do not intend to force you to see my way. Again I will say interpretation is interpretation. Interpretation is not the Bible. We believe the word of God, even sometimes we interpret a little different. But what I would like to say is this, the interpretation is not important. What is important is, we desire to see something that is very significant on this matter of overcomers. Now, if you can get that, you can forget all the interpretation. But anyway, I will try to interpret a little bit. Before, the four angels who hold the four wings of the earth to blow upon the earth. Symbolically it means that before greater tribulation, greater destruction comes upon the earth. Now the great day of the wrath of God and of the Lamb is come. There will be great destruction coming. But before it comes, God stays the hands of these angels and said, wait a minute, let me do something first. And another angel descending, ascending from the sun rising, having the seal of the living God. And he said, do not hurt the earth and the sea until I have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads. So here you will find this angel is sealing the foreheads of the born servants of our God. And those who are sealed belong to the twelve tribes of Israel. I personally believe this is Israel. Of the twelve tribes of Israel, before the greater destruction comes upon the earth, God has sealed 144,000 around number. Now of course, the twelve tribes of Israel or Israel as a nation must have much more people than 144,000. In other words, not every Israelite is sealed. Only 144,000 out of the tribes of Israel are being sealed with a seal. We know what sealing means. When God puts his seal, it means that God claims that which is sealed as his own. God claims his ownership. God acknowledges that this is mine. It belongs to me. And because it belongs to him, therefore it is under his protection. You remember even in the Old Testament, in the book of Ezekiel, the ninth chapter, the prophet Ezekiel experienced something of this. Even at his time. He was taken by the Spirit of God back into the temple in Jerusalem. And there he was shown all the abominations and abominable things that the people of God were doing in the temple. And then he saw six men with destroying weapons. They came. They stood by the altar. And then another man who was clothed in linen, in white linen, with a righteous ink on by his side. And this man came too. And God said, Before the six men with destroying weapons went forth to destroy, this man with the ink on, righteous ink on, he will first put a mark upon those who are moaning and groaning for the abominations in the city. He will put a mark atop like a cross upon the foreheads of those who moan, of those who groan with a groaning. And after the sealing was finished, the six men followed. Starting from the temple, judgment began at the house of God. And these six men were struck down, were smite everyone who did not have the seal upon his forehead. And the prophet Ezekiel. So there you'll find in the Old Testament the same picture. And you can take the picture now to the book of Revelation. Here you'll find again God is sealing his people. The whole tribe, all the tribes, the twelve tribes of the nation nominally belong to God. Every Israelite belongs to God. Every Israelite is supposed to be God's born servant. What else can they be? But in actuality, when you come down to reality, you'll find that out of the twelve tribes of Israel, only 144,000 are sealed. In other words, God acknowledges them. God acknowledges them as His. The Lord knows those that are His. They are sealed. Usually we say this is a Jewish remnant. At the end of this age. At the end, when the end of this age is approaching there will be a Jewish remnant. We call it a remnant because it is just a very small part of the whole nation. And yet this remnant is faithful unto God. And God owns them as His. And God protects them from hurt. Now this is the first scene that we have seen. And in parallel with this scene we have what we have before us. The Apostle John said, After these things I saw and behold a great multitude which no man could number out of every nation and of all tribes and peoples and tongues. Now whenever in the scripture you come to such description out of every nation and tribe and peoples and tongues immediately you know that it refers to the church of God. The church of God is composed of those whom God has chosen out of every nation and tribe and people and tongue. And gather them unto one name the name of our Lord Jesus. That's the church. If I may put it in a term that our brother Mr. Sparks has used in the morning this is the new Israel. We find in the first part the old Israel. Israel according to the flesh. And here you'll find in the second part the new Israel. That is the church. But when you read on you will find there are further descriptions. And these further descriptions do not seem to fit in with the church in general. You'll find they are standing before the throne and before the Lamb. Now this is a part of interpretation. This great crowd numberless I do thank God for this numberless crowd. They are standing before the throne and before the Lamb. And according to the order of the book of Revelation according to the time factor of the book of Revelation you'll find that this happened between this scene is seen between the sixth and the seventh seal. This is seen before the blowing of the seven tempests. Not to say the blowing of the last tempest. We know from 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 the Lord shall descend from heaven. And there will be the voice of the archangel. And the voice of the trumpet. And the shout. And then those who are dead in Christ shall be raised from the dead. And those who remain and alive they shall be transformed. And we shall all be taken up to the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And then in 1 Corinthians chapter 15 you'll find when the last trumpet is sound the dead shall be raised. And those who live shall be transformed. So you put these two places together and you'll find the day will come when the last trumpet shall be sounded. And then you'll find all those who are dead in Christ throughout the centuries shall be raised from the dead. And those who remain living shall be transformed. And we shall all be caught up into the air and meet our Lord there. Because He has descended. Here you'll find the seventh seal has not been opened yet. None of the trumpets have been sounded. The last trumpet certainly has not been sounded. And you'll find these men are standing not in the cloud not in the air but they are standing before the throne and of the Lamb. Where is the throne? And where is the Lamb? Revelation chapter 4 I see I saw the heaven open and I was taken up in the spirit and I saw a throne. The throne is in heaven. And in chapter 5 where is the Lamb? The Lamb slain, standing before the throne. In other words it is in heaven. Not in the cloud not in the air but way up in heaven. And here you'll find these men are already standing before the throne and even before he descends I feel this is almost like what we read in Luke chapter 21 verse 36 Watch he there praying at all seasons that he may escape all these things and stand before the Son or you may refer back to Revelation chapter 12 verse 5 And the woman in travail gives birth to a male son and he is caught up to the throne. So you'll find here a countless crowd is standing before the throne as if they are there to welcome the Lord back. They are clothed in white robes. Now we read in Revelation chapter 3 the letter to the church in Sardis The Lord says But thou hast a few names in Sardis that did not defile their garments and they shall walk with me in white for they are not worthy he that overcometh shall thus be arrayed in white garments. This is a promise to the overcomers in the church at Sardis. Clothed with white garments and then as you go on you'll find these garments are made white because they have been washed in the blood. Now dear brothers and sisters as we come to God God put a robe over us use that parable of the prodigal son when the son comes back he is in rags and the father say now take away the rags but put the best robe upon him. In other words we are clothed with Christ as we come to God we are clothed with Christ Christ is our righteousness this is the best robe but may I ask a question does that white robe need to be washed can that robe be defiled we are clothed with Christ Christ our righteousness can that righteousness be defiled does that righteousness need to be washed certainly not Jesus Christ the same yesterday today and forever he is righteous forever he does not need to be washed it never changes so you find that the robe that we are clothed with by God Christ our righteousness need not be washed it is forever white pure but the Bible tells us we believers are clothed with two garments instead of one we are clothed with Christ but there is another robe that we must be clothed if you turn to Psalm 45 you find that it is a psalm which speaks of the King the psalm begins my heart overflows with a goodly matter I speak the things which I have made touching the King when we think of the King Christ our King it is a pen of a ready writer oh how his heart swells as he writes of the King how glorious how righteous how majestic how gracious but as he is writing concerning the King you find naturally he turns to the King the Queen so there you'll find in verse 13 the King's daughter within the palace is all glorious her clothing is in rot with gold here you'll find the Queen is clothed with a dress in rot gold a golden garment symbolically gold speaks of God the nature of God it never changes in other words you'll find this woman is clothed with all righteousness but then in verse 14 she shall be led unto the King in blood upon this dress of rot gold she is also dressed with a dress of embroidered work that's another garment the second garment the first garment speaks of Christ all righteousness but this second garment being of embroidered work the sisters know better when you're making a dress of embroidered work oh you have to have patience one stitch after another and there you'll find it is done with great patience and according to a pattern and after it is done it is most good after we are clothed with Christ then the Holy Spirit will begin to use his needle he begins to work one stitch after another he begins to incorporate Christ into our very life that is a very patient work the Holy Spirit is most patient he is there working one stitch after another according to Christ that Christ may not only be clothed but Christ may be incorporated into our very being it is an embroidered and the book of Revelation chapter 19 says this is the righteousness not only Christ our righteousness but Christ is so in wrought incorporated into us that it comes out as if it is our righteousness the righteousness and this is the second I personally believe this is what is meant here not the first row because it can never be defiled but the second row so far as our practical life is concerned so far as our standing before God is concerned Christ is our righteousness it never changes but when it comes down to our daily life you find that our daily conduct our daily conversation our daily behavior our daily life it is the will of God that by the patient working of the Holy Spirit with the washing of the blood there might come forth a beautiful embroidered robe but we have to say very often we defile very often we do not listen to the voice very often we allow our garments defiled by the world and because of that it needs to be washed if we walk in the light as he is in the light we have fellowship one with another and the blood of Jesus Christ God's Son cleanses us from all our unrighteousness if we walk in the light the blood this is how we have this white garment washed and then thirdly you find they have palms in their hands I think we all know that palms always dance when the Lord Jesus entered into Jerusalem for the last time you remember the people there they took branches of palms they went forth to meet Him and they cried Hosanna Hosanna blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord the King of Israel they wave the palms in other words they are in the victory well you know that the house of God for Solomon built built you find all around the walls there were carved cherubim and palm trees and half open flowers all around the walls the cherubim speaks of the holiness of God the cry of the cherubim is holy holy holy Lord God the palm tree speaks of victory half open the glory of life it is half open why because it is still open so there you find from these descriptions if you try to see the parallel between the first part of chapter seven and the second part of chapter seven it is logical to conclude that as the one I wonder if this group represents all the overcomers in the church from the first century down I believe it is here you find this great crowd of overcomers standing and you know they lead the song they cry salvation unto our God who sits on the throne and unto the land they lead the singing and their song is taken up their singing is followed by the angels and there is a great worship great worship it is a beautiful thing then one of the elders asked the apostle John do you know who they are and where do they come from John said you know I think John is very wise very often we are like Peter we do not know what to say but we have to say something and in doing that we always say the wrong thing I think John is very wise because he said oh how we like to guess but John said you tell me where do they come from and this is the point that we want to found and he said to me these are they that come out of the great tribulation and they washed their robes and made them white in the blood they come out of great forgive me for my little interpretation personally I do not think this points to the great tribulation of three years and a half which will come at the end personally I believe this great tribulation is a general term a general term where do these overcomers come from they come out of the dear brothers and sisters when we think of overcomers we are always thinking in terms of superiority high up ascendancy the outcome is ascendancy but do you know that to reach this ascendancy you have to go through deep it is easy to pray oh lord make me an overcomer but when the lord try to make you an overcomer you will cry out and say stop your hand how are these overcomers made where do they come from they come out of great oh brothers and sisters look at our lord jesus the overcomer does god prepare an easy and smooth and prosperous way for our lord while he was on earth quite on the contrary we find that because our lord so pleased the father therefore he was beset with he was oppressed afflicted a man of sorrow acquainted he was as a lamb sheared of his womb of all his beauty and glory he was to be crucified cross of shame that's where he come you read the life of the apostles and you find the same thing once a dear sister in the lord i believe if you don't know her you must know her miss a.j. flint this dear sister in the lord once she wrote it says god pressing on wrestling to the very end it is not a picture of one who is sitting in a sedan and carried to heaven it is a picture of one who is fighting his way through dropping his blood that is an overcomer i am very touched by what paul says in first corinthians chapter four you know he is writing to the saints at corinth and there he says in verse eight already are ye filled already ye are become rich ye have come to reign without us yea and i would that ye did reign that we might also reign with you for i think god has set forth us the apostles last of all as men doomed to death for we are made as spectacle unto the world both to angels and man we are fools for christ's sake but ye are wise in christ we are weak but ye are strong even until this present hour we both hunger and thirst and are naked and are buffeted and have no certain dwelling place and we toil working with our own hands being reviled we bless being persecuted we endure being defamed we entreat we are made as the filth of the world the offscoring of all things even you'll find two types of christians the corinthian type and the apostolic type you'll find these corinthian believers they are already filled they need not be emptied they are already filled they are already become rich they do not need to be poor in order to be rich like our lord they have already come to reign they get to the throne without the cross they are wise very wise they are very strong i suppose if you do not know god if you do not know god's way you will say this is for me certainly to be a christian is to be strong to be a christian is to be wise to be a christian is to be filled to be a christian is to become rich to be a christian is to reign now this is for me well if you want to be the corinthian type of christian you may have it but apostles say not so with apostles they must be emptied in order to be filled they must be poor in order to be they must endure with christ in order to reign they are as man does and this is not just an exaggerated description this is fact as man don't to death as spectacle unto the world weak and he said even unto the present hour the situation does not improve even unto the present hour now we will say it's alright to be hungry for in the beginning but he said even unto the present hour we are still in hunger naked buffeted no certain dwelling place wanderers torn reviled angry blessed persecuted we endure defamed we entreat we are made of filth even until dear brothers and sisters do you want to be an overcomer it is are you willing to be emptied are you willing to be reduced to poverty are you willing to be a fool are you willing to be a weak are you willing to be the obscuring you remember our lord jesus when he calls for his disciples he said unless a man denies himself takes up his cross and follows he cannot be you may substitute the word disciple to another word overcomer the lord is calling for overcomer but where does an overcomer come out deny yourself take up your cross he that loves his life shall lose it but he who loses his life for my sake shall gain it this is what is meant by these men come out of great are you waiting for the great tribulation to come your tribulation is great enough and this means not only the things around us it is true that if we love the lord and trust all there will be tribulation coming upon us no doubt about that but this great tribulation includes much there will be trial paul says in second corinthians i have the sentence of death i am oppressed beyond my measure but it is out of this experience he knows the god who delivers paul's experience is the grace of the lord is sufficient he said when i am weak dear brothers and sisters who are the overcome they come out of great oh as you follow the lord you will find you will meet crisis there will be tribulation on all sides and when you enter into these things in a sense it will reveal where you stand and what you you know you do not we do not know until we are put under pressure then we know what is in us out in the tribulation we realize how we need the blood of the land under tribulation sometimes we are overwhelmed we need to repent and ask for if there is anyone who thinks that he does not need the blood of the land because he is so strong he never fails beware all those who know god all those who live very close to god if you read their biographies you will find invariably one thing the closer they draw near to god in their life experience the more they feel the need their garments are made whole this is the righteousness without tribulation we will not realize the need but with tribulation we know how much we need the blood dear brothers and sisters as we follow the lord you will find that his way as our brother says is the way of the cross not only the passions and the lust of our flesh needs to be but you will find our whole soul needs to be our emotional life needs to be washed with the blood it is only when we are faced with crisis we realize how our emotional life is impure that is the reason why the lord said if anyone loves me more loves your father and mother and so on and so forth more than loving me cannot be my disciple and even putting a stronger term if anyone does not hate he cannot be my disciple in other words our emotional life needs to be washed in the blood you do not realize how impure is your love you think you love the lord like Peter even if I go and die with you I am quite ready all the others may fall away but I will not and sometimes we hope they do fall away so that you may prove your point but you find Peter fail oh it is only when there is a conflict when there is a crisis when there is a contradiction a contrast a cross a tribulation oh as a sword entering into your soul it divides it and makes clear it washes it creates that white garment made white not only our emotional life needs to be purified you remember that occasion when the lord Jesus began to reveal to Peter and other disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and there he will be rejected and he will die but he will be raised up on the third day and Peter lay hold of the lord and said not so lord be kind to yourself and the lord turned around and said Satan get me behind because you are not minding the mind you are minding the flesh how often we find our thought needs to be to be purified and of course our volitional life too our will but is that all no in 2nd Corinthians chapter 7 verse 1 it says even our spirit not only our flesh needs to be purified our spirit needs to be purified oh it needs to be purified of that a haughty spirit before a thought it needs to be purified from a different spirit the lord said to John and James you do not know what kind of spirit you have you do not have the spirit of the lamb because you want fire to come down dear brothers and sisters it is only when we enter into trial tribulation and all these things then we begin to realize we need a blood that's how this embroidered work of the Holy Spirit is made it is through the daily patient working of the Holy Spirit in our lives as we are facing with things events together with the washing of the blood that makes up this beautiful so dear brothers and sisters we should not expect to be overcomers without paying the price of following the lamb whither so ever he go but thank God if you read on you will find therefore are they before the throne of God and they serve him day and night in his temple and he that sits on the throne shall spread his tabernacle over them they shall hunger no more neither thirst any more neither shall the sun strike them nor any heat for the lamb that is in the midst of the throne shall be their shepherd and shall guide them unto fountains of waters of life and God shall wipe away every tear they shall stand before the throne because they are clothes they are clothes with these two garments the garment of gold and a garment of they are worthy to stand they shall serve him day and night in his temple it reminds me of Ezekiel chapter 44 you remember God spoke to the sons of Zedek and said at the time when the people of Israel fall away fell away from God even the Levites fell away from God how they kept the charge and because of that they were able to minister unto the Lord not minister they serve God day and night day and night in the temple because they have been in the days of tribulation and he that sits on the throne shall spread his tabernacle over them he will shout they have been wandering and now they shall hunger no more nor thirst they have been hungry have suffered thirst and God shall wipe away oh this is the day of humiliation not the day glory is before us but we have to follow the Lamb inhuman and this is how overcomers our Heavenly Father we do praise and worship thee that it is not just a limited number but a countless crowd that stands before the throne oh how we praise and thank thee that the wife of the Lamb has made herself ready and he is given a robe of linen white pure and shiny we have to acknowledge that it is all of grace if there is anything that we can lay down it is the result Lord we do pray that we may be those who on earth will follow the Lamb with us wherever he goes if it means the way of the cross let it be so we praise and worship thee because out of great tribulation the rain shall be washed oh Lord do speak to us do show us how overcomers