All Nations Heritage Week: Begin the Praise Even Now

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.”

(Revelation 7:9-10)

Even a very surface level look at the news today will show you that the world is troubled. Wars and conflicts are raging on several continents, divisions between people are causing stress and chaos around the world. Millions of people have been displaced by violence or natural disasters, and there is no clear path to anything resembling peace and order. 

Phrases from the Bible come to mind when I watch or read the news: “wars and rumors of wars” (Matthew 24:6), “nations are in uproar; kingdoms fall” (Psalm 46:6).

Interestingly, both of those phrases come from larger passages urging us not to fear. The first was spoken by Jesus as he taught his disciples about what was to come at the end of the age. The full verse reads, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.” He promises a lot of trouble, but he also assures us that he is victorious and will return, and elsewhere he promises that he is with us always.

The other line, from Psalm 46, also comes from a reminder that God is in control. The next verse reminds us that God is our fortress, and a few verses after that is an assurance that God makes wars cease to the ends of the earth, and destroys the weapons used to wage them. 

Earlier in Psalm 46 the writer gives an interesting picture: “There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day” (Psalm 46:4-5).

To me, this calls to mind another city with a river, a place where God lives and reigns – the city described in Revelation. Like Jesus’s talk with his disciples, like Psalm 46, Revelation is filled with descriptions and predictions of tough times, conflict, famine, disasters, upheaval, but also with promises that God is with us and is victorious, and that one day wars will cease forever because he has redeemed all things to himself. 

Part of that coming peace is the joy and celebration of “every nation, tribe, people and language” joining in praise of their Redeemer and Lord. People will no longer be divided by culture, ethnicity, or ideas, but will bring their unique gifts and blessings to the great body of believers, each one saved by the grace and love of God and rejoicing together in his praise. 

As we celebrate All Nations Heritage Week from today to Sunday, the celebration that Revelation promises is something we can anticipate with certain hope, and begin the praise even now.