Revelation 7:2–17
1 John 3:1–3
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| The Adoration of the Lamb - Van Eyck - St. Bavo Cathedral, Ghent, Belgium |
In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
In the Song of Solomon, the Bride sings of her Bridegroom: My beloved is white and ruddy (5:10)—white in the brightness of his eyes, red in the healthy glow of his skin. The Song of Solomon is not only the love poem of a husband and wife. It is also an allegory for the most glorious of marriages: Christ the Bridegroom and the Church, His Bride. And our Beloved, Christ, is also white and red—white for His perfect purity, and red for His holy suffering.
As you look around our sanctuary today you will see both of those colors: white and red. The color for All Saints’ Day is white, but we’ve left up our red banners from our Reformation celebration last week. Because just as our Beloved Bridegroom is white and red, the Church, His holy Bride, is also white and red. The Church is like Christ because she is redeemed by Him. He gave Himself up for her, that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that He might present the Church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish (Ephesians 5:25–27). So, the Church is white with the purity and righteousness of Christ. And the Church is red with His holy blood, and with her own blood as well. The Elder in Revelation 7 describes the Church with these two colors: These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
I know it sounds strange to wash with blood, and then even stranger for the garment to come out of the red blood, not stained, but brilliantly white. But that is the precious power of Jesus’ blood. The blood of Jesus God’s Son cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7). The holy blood of the Lamb of God was shed to pay the price for all sin. And now that holy blood is sprinkled and poured out on us to purify us and make us acceptable to God. We are both red and white, like our Bridegroom.
The Church on earth is decked in red, like Christ in His suffering. We call her the Church Militant, the fighting Church, because by the power of the Spirit she is engaged in spiritual warfare against sin and the devil. She does not fight with physical weapons but with Word of God, the sword of the Spirit. And so she also does not gain victory by conquering territory or punishing her enemies or winning elections. But she gains the victor’s palm branch of triumph by suffering like Jesus, and even dying like Jesus. The Church on earth is the Church of the martyrs, those who give witness to Christ with their very own blood. And even if we are not forced to shed our blood for the sake of Christ, we still share in the martyrs’ witness and in their suffering, which is so despised by the world.
The Church on earth is certainly despised by the world. Her heroes don’t look like winners. Her power looks terribly weak. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know Him. Jesus didn’t look like a winner when He was nailed to a cross, but it was there that He accomplished His greatest victory. And this is why it doesn’t matter much to the Church who holds worldly power for a few years or even for a lifetime on this failing earth. The great tribulation, the great conflict between the forces of darkness and the kingdom of God, began when Christ ascended into heaven, and it won’t come to an end until He returns.
So there will be tribulation and the church will suffer no matter who the president is. And this will be to her glory. The Church doesn’t track with the glory of this world. Her beloved Bridegroom dresses her in the red of His own holy blood, so she is only too happy to shed a few drops of her own out of love for Him in return. Besides, she is not diminished by shedding her blood. The Church is not weakened when her members are martyred or die of old age. By dying, the Church enters her rest. By spending their lives for Christ, they come out of the great tribulation and they come into God’s nearer presence so that they may rest in His blissful peace forever.
And that is where we see those white robes. The church in heaven is clothed in white, like Christ in His glory. Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when Christ appears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who thus hopes in Him purifies himself as He is pure. The Christian life means looking more and more like Christ, until we reach that final perfect purity like Him. On earth, we get more and more red like Him, following the example of His suffering—dying to self, and finally, dying for good. But in heaven, we will finally see ourselves pure white like Him. We will see ourselves the way He sees us—the way He has made us by the forgiveness of our sin. In that blessed place, He will present the Church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. And then the Church will no longer be fighting. Then we finally experience the peace of God. Then we feel only His joy.
These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Until we get to join that happy multitude, we are decked in both the red and the white: red with holy blood and suffering, white with faith in the mercy and forgiveness He offers to us in His Word. Make no mistake, those robes don’t just get washed at death. In Holy Baptism, you washed your robe and made it white in the blood of the Lamb. And the cleansing continues as you eat the body and drink the blood of the Lamb in the Holy Communion. In this way, you remain united with our beloved Bridegroom and with all the saints at rest with Him even now.
Behold a host, arrayed in white,
Like thousand snowclad mountains bright!
With palms they stand;
Who is this band
Before the throne of light?
These are the saints of glorious fame,
Who from the great affliction came
And in the flood
Of Jesus’ blood
Are cleansed from guilt and shame.
They now serve God both day and night;
They sing their songs in endless light.
Their anthems ring
As they all sing
With angels shining bright.
O blessed saints in bright array
Now safely home in endless day,
Extol the Lord,
Who with His Word
Sustained you on the way.
The steep and narrow path you trod;
You toiled and sowed the Word abroad;
Rejoice and bring
Your fruits and sing
Before the throne of God.
The myriad angels raise their song;
O saints, sing with that happy throng!
Lift up one voice;
Let heav’n rejoice
In our Redeemer’s song!
(LSB 676:1&3)
In the Holy + Name of Jesus. Amen.
