"Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."

         A recent newsletter from a County Jail ministry in Washington had an account of some of the inmates' coming to faith in Christ:

         The Bible study read Acts 5 one evening, where the high priest tells Peter and John not to proclaim Jesus anymore. Their response is, "We must obey God rather than any human authority."

         "So who are we to obey first and foremost according to this scripture?" I ask the inmates.

         "God," everyone responds enthusiastically. I tell them that it is important to obey the laws too whenever they don't go against what God is calling us into. The men smile and appear to agree.

         "What is God like and what does God do according to verse 30?" I ask.

         "He raises Jesus from the dead," someone says.

         "What about human authorities, what do they do?" I ask.

         "They killed Jesus by nailing him to a cross," someone reads.

         "So who would you rather obey, a God who raises you from the dead or authorities who can kill you by giving you the death penalty?" I ask.

         At first everyone says, "God," until Rickie, a young veteran of gangs and the prison system, says something very true and sobering.

         "It's not that easy. God did raise Jesus, but you have to believe in him enough to trust your life to him, because you have to die before you can be raised, and you can't know for sure you'll be resurrected. And nobody wants to die. You might obey men to avoid getting killed."

         The chaplain was speaking to people who needed to consider the meaning, and the cost, of their commitment to Christ.

         Both John and the churches he wrote to in Asia had experienced a cost to their commitment to Christ. They had been persecuted for their faith. Things were not easy for them. They might have been discouraged. Some may have given up on their faith.

         John writes from his exile on the island of Patmos. A number of years ago, we visited Patmos. I had assumed all these years that it was a miserable desert island filled with snakes and scorpions. But it is a very beautiful place, with lots of flowers and trees, and many people live there today. In ancient times nobody wanted to live there because of a lack of a fresh water source, so the Romans made a penal colony out of it. It was not for John a place of suffering, but it was a place of isolation. His closest friends in Christ had mostly been killed for their faith. The churches he knew best were suffering. He was alone. He could have become discouraged, given up, even become bitter in his last years. Instead, in his vision, he sees something he scarcely could have imagined. The number of followers of Christ some day in heaven will number in the millions, coming from every nation, tribe, people and language.

         The churches who first received this letter, also could have felt defeated, or believed that their task in the Great Commission had been made impossible by the brutal persecution of Rome. Yet here they read of a new perspective, a heavenly reality. The Lamb is on the throne. That Lamb is the shepherd, their shepherd. So the churches that received this letter joined in the songs of heaven, and were encouraged and strengthened to remain faithful, and to live actively in hope, doing God's will despite all obstacles.

         In the first section of the text, the great multitude of every nation cries out in a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God." People seek salvation in many ways and from many sources. But salvation belongs to God, and we receive it from him.

         I spent a few days this week on the team that interviews pastors seeking licensing credentials for our Central Conference. I want to tell you about a few of the people we met.

         We talked to an African-American minister from Gary, Indiana, a wise and gentle minister, now 74 years old, who also had a 30-year career in the steel mills, and a handshake to prove it. He said he found salvation when he was 40 years old. He had been in church all his life, but had never turned his life over to Jesus Christ, until one day when he was walking home from the hospital where his wife was a patient with a very serious condition. He stopped along the way, and prayed to receive Christ. After 40 years in the church, he decided to turn to the one he knew well, to God to whom salvation belongs. That led to a remarkable journey of ministry in that church, 34 years of teaching and praying and reaching people for Christ.

And now, the steel mills are gone, the economy is depressed, the young families have moved elsewhere in search of jobs. His wife has had multiple brain surgeries. He could be disappointed, even bitter. But this man is not old and bitter, defeated or discouraged. He is a faithful minister, joyful and committed, looking for ways to serve the Lord. He is sustained by the victory of the risen Lord. It is like he sees past his immediate surroundings to the victory in heaven.

         In the second part of the text, the angels worship God and sing, "Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever."

         We talked to a youth pastor, a young and energetic man who serves in one of our historic churches. He said of this church of long tradition, "I'm learning to slow down and I'm teaching them to speed up."

         When their NCD profile showed "need-oriented evangelism" as their low point, and so their focus for the year, he got excited. "I'm all over need-oriented evangelism," he said. His mind is full of ideas on how to reach out to people who are hurt, who struggle, who are broken. He is ready to jump in at 100 miles an hour. But then he realized that his church is not really geared that way. And so, rather than getting angry or charging ahead into conflict, or maybe resigning in frustration, he has come to love and understand the church. He made a commitment to that group of people, knowing things won't go as fast as he wants them to go. Instead, he has learned, as he said, "They need lots of information and detail." And he is willing to serve them in that way. He is patient and mature, and he is committed to be an evangelist, especially in reaching out to young people in his community who are troubled. And God gets the praise and the honor and the glory. Wisdom and strength come from God.

         Then there is the last section, about those who have been through the tribulation and have washed their robes in the blood of the lamb. They experience now the comfort and healing from God. Craig Keener writes that "this is a picture of blessedness for those who have suffered this world's hostility. These people refused to deify the enthroned emperor; now they are before God's throne. They resisted the temples of Caesar and other false gods; now they serve continually in God's temple."

         We remember with thanks those who have lived through persecution and tribulation.

         We also are encouraged by people who live for Christ and face difficulties, and yet have a vision of what is to come in the Kingdom of God.

         I think of some of our Hispanic pastors. They normally are bi-vocational, holding a full-time job in addition to pastoral work. They serve in neighborhoods filled with recent immigrants, filled with young people and children. Often they receive little pay from these churches. The buildings they meet in are old and in need of major repairs. They do not have enough space, and yet land is very expensive, and renting buildings for a church is very difficult.

One pastoral couple we interviewed are in their 60's. Their congregation is about 80% undocumented, and young. You could understand if they pulled back and got ready to retire. But this pastor has been taking a counseling course, so he can help victims of domestic abuse in their community. And they are trying to open a shelter for battered women. They have vision for ministry that goes far beyond the financial resources of their church. But the Lamb is their shepherd, and he will lead them to springs of living water. They have in mind to take the neighborhood with them.

         The worship of heaven inspires us to dream and plan and live with faith. The song of the multitude challenges us to continue in faithful ministry despite all obstacles. We all have a ministry in Christ. The vision of the countless believers at the throne causes us to see past our momentary discouragements and losses to the true victory of God. So we live in the light of God's victory as resurrection people.

         Amen.