Revelation 1:4-8 (New International Version)

4John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia:

Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits[ a ] before his throne, 5and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, 6and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen. 7Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen.

8"I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty."

Revelation 1:4b-8

What Song Will You Sing?

Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead,

and the ruler of the kings of the earth.

These greetings and blessings are yours from the Triune God in the name of Jesus Christ (†), Amen.

Some years ago I attended the funeral of a young high school student who was a member of the congregation I was serving. He had been in a car full of three of his friends on their way back from an amusement park. Their car was involved in an accident which claimed all four lives. The funerals of all four boys were held on the same day. It was a sad and mournful day for the city, which in one tragic moment lost four of its sons.

After the service of our member, many of us went to the city cemetery for the committal. Two of the boys were being laid to rest in the same cemetery just a short distance one another. At that graveside I witnessed something I will never forget. Across the cemetery was the burial of one of the boys. He was not a believer. His funeral had been a memorial service – remembering his short life. Now his family was at his graveside with nothing. They had no hope for the future. They had nothing or no one in whom they could put their trust. How did I know that? All I needed to do was listen. The sounds of their hopeless wailing and screaming drifted across the cemetery. Their sadness and despair flowed from their hearts in ways words could not have possible expressed at that moment.

Then there was what I was a part of at the graveside of the young man who died in the Lord. To be sure, there was mourning, but it was not without hope. There was crying but it was not in despair. Even amid the sadness of death there was rejoicing. At that graveside on that day, we laid to rest one of Jesus’ little lambs. He had been brought to faith by the Holy Spirit in the waters of his baptism. He had grown up knowing his Savior Jesus from his faithful parents and from his pastors and teachers in the Christian classrooms in which he was taught. On the early morning of his death, Jesus took him home to his eternal reward. His body was laid to rest to await the return of Christ the King on the Last Day.

That day in that cemetery we were all given a glimpse of things to come. Tears were being shed by everyone. In a way, two songs were being sung…one of fear and despair and another of confident hope. Today we get another glimpse of the sights and sounds of things to come on the Last Day. On that day, there will be mourning, and tears will be shed. There will be fear and there will be rejoicing. Songs will be sung by every voice. As we consider these things that are most certainly to come, as we contemplate the return of Jesus Christ the King on the Last Day, let me ask you this question: What song will you sing?

The glimpse of the return of Christ the King is provided us through the eyes, ears, and pen of the apostle John. At one time, John had been among the youngest of the disciples. He had been with Jesus from the beginning. He trained as an apostle for three years. He had followed Jesus to his trial. He had stood at the foot of the cross. He had been the first of the disciples to see the empty tomb on Easter Sunday. Now many years had passed. All of his fellow apostles had been killed. In his time, he had witnessed the infant Christian Church attacked from foes on the outside and from within. The Church was under assault by false teachers. John who had been a relative youngster compared to his fellow disciples was now an old man. He had been exiled to the island of Patmos as punishment for his faith, left alone to await his death. But he was not alone. There on his island he was given a revelation-this glimpse of the things that are to come. It was as if he walked through the streets of heaven and was given the absolute assurance that it was all true. The things for which he was suffering were real! John stood in the presence of God!

Listen to Jesus own words as he reintroduced himself to John, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” This personal introduction at the end of this lesson had to have rung a bell with John. This was not the first time John heard Jesus say “I am.” More than any of the other gospel writers, John recorded Jesus’ powerful “I am” descriptions of himself. “I am the bread of life. I am the Good Shepherd. I am the vine. I am the way, the truth, and the life.” John knew exactly who this was speaking to him. “I am the alpha and the omega.” The first and the last letters of the Greek alphabet the beginning and the end the first and the last. Jesus is the beginning of all things-the creator of the whole universe. He is the last. He will come again on the Last Day. It is on the Last Day that we will hear songs…songs sung by all people. It is to these songs that John’s revelation now takes us.

John heard song of those who are not joyful at Jesus’ return. He wrote, Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. This song is not a happy one. This song rings with despair, fear, and dread. This is the song of the “peoples of the earth.” It is they who did not know Jesus as King. For them, the coming of Christ the King means doom. This is the song that will be sung by all who did not believe in Jesus as the eternal Son of God who came to save sinners. Even those who knew Jesus will sing this song.

They will mourn because they did know Jesus, but rejected him in unbelief. They refused to see the truth in Christ. They denied him or worshiped other gods in their hearts. This is the king they didn’t want. They will sing begging to hide from this dreadful sight. Jesus said that they will plead for the mountains to fall on them and for the hills to cover them. They will shed tears, and no one will wipe them away. They will wail and mourn. They will sing the song of the damned. This will happen… So shall it be! Amen.

Pilate’s eyes saw Jesus. There stood Jesus before Pilate. Pilate could not believe that in that beaten, bloody, quiet man stood a King. He rejected Jesus’ invitation to come to the side of the truth. Rather he cynically questioned if there could be any such thing as truth on this earth. “What is truth?” Right before his eyes stood the Truth in the flesh, Jesus Christ, the King of kings. Pilate, too, will join in this dreadful song.

No eye will be spared the sight. Every eye will see him. Shouldn’t our voices join in the song of the damned? Yes they should. There really should only be one song. Admit it. There is a part of you that is afraid of the Last Day. Our sins have condemned us. We have been ashamed of the King of kings. We have denied the truth. We stand guilty before God. Our conscience still speaks. God’s law is clear. We have sinned.

Open your ears again. Do you hear another song in this lesson from Revelation? Listen again. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen. How could there possibly such a beautiful song sung on such a dreadful day? For the singers of this song, the Last Day is anything but dreadful. Why two songs? Why the song of joy and peace? Remember the words I opened the sermon with? It was yet another song…a song of greeting and blessing from your Triune God. Listen again. Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven[-fold] Spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.

The first verse of this song comes down to just one word: grace. In this verse God reminds you of his love for you. He is the beginning of your life with him. He chose you from eternity to be his own. He wrote your name in the Book of Life. He is the eternal Son of God who is and was and is to come. His love for you is unchanging and eternal. John tells us in his gospel that he was God and was present in the beginning. He saw our sins from eternity.

It was pure grace-undeserved love-that moved him to save you. It was grace that moved Christ the King to set aside his heavenly glory to become one of us. It was grace in which he stood before Pilate looking anything but like the King of kings. In that room before Pilate stood the greatest glory. The Son of God - covered in spit. Christ the King bleeding from the wounds we deserve…dripping the blood that saved you and me. This is why the song sings of freedom!

This song has a second verse. Verse two is peace. Peace is God’s gift to you. Peace is the result of God’s “Not Guilty!” verdict to you. You have been freed from the guilt of your sin by the blood of Christ the King. Now there is just peace. It is in peace that you serve God as kings and priests, serving him with your lives every day. Peace is the confident hope that eagerly awaits the return of Christ the King.

Why two songs on the Last Day? The answer is found in that one word…Peace! It is peace that moves the heart of the believer to sing the song of joy when Jesus comes back. When Jesus returns it will not be as babe in a manger. It will not be in battered bloody silence. Absolutely not! It will be at the sound of the archangel’s trumpet. It will be in glory, might, and strength. Every eye will look upon Christ the King! Songs will be sung…songs of dread and songs of joy…songs of mourning and songs of praise.

The question I ask you again is this, “When all this happens, what song will you sing?” You know the answer. You are already singing it. Your voices rise with all the saints on earth and the hosts of heaven before the throne of the King. So, until that day, let this be our song:

To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.