Scripture
1Then I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds so they did not blow on the earth or the sea, or even on any tree. 2And I saw another angel coming up from the east, carrying the seal of the living God. And he shouted to those four angels, who had been given power to harm land and sea, 3“Wait! Don’t harm the land or the sea or the trees until we have placed the seal of God on the foreheads of his servants.” Revelation 7:1-3
Observation
These four angels had one job and they were ready to do it! The four winds representing the judgment of God about to be released on the world was all of a sudden put on hold. You can sense the dramatic tension in the vision as John describes the angel rising from the East shouting “Wait!” This whiplash moment leads to an incredible promise and reveals the heart of God for His people. Jesus has taken the judgement of God upon Himself, thus, all who believe are sealed. “13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.” (Ephesians. 1:13-14). We may not like to wait, but His protection, the seal of the Holy Spirit, is worth waiting for. Whether we are talking about the 144,000 here in Revelation 7 or the 120 believers waiting in the Upper Room of Acts 2 or the Jesus followers of the 21st Century we must realize that waiting is a part of the process. We won’t see the fullness of this guarantee until we are face to face with the Lamb. We see that being sealed does prevent us from God’s judgement but doesn’t prevent us from the pain of this life. For it won’t be until Heaven that God will “wipe every tear”, from eyes. (Rev. 7:17)
Application
I’ll just admit it. I hate waiting. I hate waiting rooms. Yet, this is exactly where I’m supposed to be as I wait with Pop while Mom is in back surgery. We have been waiting since 7 this morning. Five hours later we are still here. Still praying. Still waiting. We go up to the digital board over and over to see if Mom has switched categories from “surgery in progress” to “recovery” to “all done!” We look with expectancy at any doctor or nurse walking out and as they walk by our hearts sink just a little. I appreciate the exclamation point they include in the “all done!” status. It reminds me of the exclamation point when the angel yells, “Wait!” While we wait I find comfort in the fact that the God who paused the angels in Heaven who were about to destroy earth so He could set a seal upon His saints is the same God who is filling that operating room with His presence. While my Mom is under the knife she is under His watchful care. Though there will be tears of pain in the recovery process ahead, they will be mingled with tears of joy at how God has healed her through this surgical procedure. We still have to wait until we have received our heavenly bodies, but we don’t have to wait to know His abiding presence now. The question for me right now is whether I will worry or trust while waiting?
Prayer
Even now, Holy Spirit, You speak straight to my heart and remind me that You’ve got this covered. I choose to wait on You, not the doctor, not the nurses, but You. I enter the rest even before the resolve. I choose to praise You even before the procedure is complete. I thank You in advance for Your care for my Mom, my Pop, for me. I put my trust in You!
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