On Mission with God: To the Nations and the Neighbors (Rev 5:8-10)
• Matt, Mark, & Luke all have the same basic command from Jesus to be on mission and take the Gospel to all nations.
• These passages are generally referred to as the Great Commission.
Acts 2:5 God saw fit to have every nation under heaven in Jerusalem on the day the Holy Spirit was sent.
o This was confirmation that the Gospel and mission was to go to every nation.
• All these people, from all these nations, would now leave Jerusalem and carry the message back home to their nations.
Rev 5:9 It says that they sang a new song. This means it was a song that had never been song before.
• Because Jesus has taken the scroll to open it, it represents a new era in God’s redemptive history.
o Because this is a new era, there must be a new song of worship.
But what’s new about this era?
• The Lamb’s death on the cross has never happened before, nor will it happen again.
• But what is equally important to see here is that it is all mankind that is set free.
o Now with Jesus, His redemptive work applies to all people, all nations.
First it says every tribe. This would have been reminiscent of the 12 tribes of Israel.
• But now includes people of every tribe throughout the world.
Then it says language.
• There approximately 6909 living languages in the world. (Not to mention dead languages)
o And all of them will be in heaven.
Then it says people
• The word people has already been used by implication in the text.
o The word used here could also mean nation.
Then it ends with nation
o This world could also mean race or peoples
• The redundancies in the song are really driving home the point, the Kingdom is for all people groups.
Verse 10 All of those people just mentioned are to be a kingdom.
o A kingdom united under one king, …King Jesus.
• And, that kingdom is the church on earth, now!!
o Because it says that they will be priests. We won’t need persist in heaven.
o Priests are to minister before the Lord now, while we are on earth.
o And those priests will be from every tribe, tongue, people and nation.
• Then to drive home the point about this being for now the song says they will reign on earth.
• There is no group of people we get to single out and say they cannot minister before the Lord.
On Mission with God: To the Nations and the Neighbors
