It’s Not About Becoming More Like Us
After this, in my vision, I saw a vast throng which no one could number, of people from every nation and of all tribes, and peoples, and languages. They stood in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb, robed in white, holding palm branches in their hands. And they are crying in a loud voice –
‘Salvation be ascribed to our God who is seated on his throne and to the Lamb.’
Revelation 7:9-10, Open English Bible
Anyone involved in multilingual church knows those verses. They are preached around the world as a sign of the truth that God's kingdom spans every culture, language and nation of the world. And it is true - they do tell us that. But there is often something missing. These people were not gathered in their own rooms, praising God as separate cultures. No, they were praising together in one space!
That much might seem obvious but one additional observation can be made. This is heaven. These people have lived and died. They are praising God forever and yet they have kept all the signs of belonging to different cultures - so much so that John can see that they belong to “every nation and of all tribes, and peoples, and languages”. Heaven does not wipe away cultural differences; it is where these differences are used in praise and worship. As people called to bring Heaven to Earth, our churches just might be called to do the same. But what does that look like each week?
Who are we trying to become like?
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