Follow the Signs
Follow the Lamb Now
The elite company of elect believers
They were ‘rapture-ready’ looking to the Signs of Christ’s Return
Taking all the advice of their espoused husband to be prepared
"And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps: And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth. These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God." (Rev. 14.1‑5)
The above company of believers pictured in chapter 14 of Revelation is a snapshot of the Bride and the special rewards of brideship she will enjoy. Immediately we see the central character of Revelation, Jesus, appearing once again as a Lamb, the very same way He had appeared in chapters 5‑7 of Revelation. This time we see a different group of people with Him, however. He stands on the heavenly Mt. Zion. Surrounding Him are 144,000 people who have been redeemed from the earth. Our first challenge is to identify who these redeemed people are and what connection they have with Christ. Many students speculate that these must be the Jews that we have already encountered in chapter seven. The number is the same and they have the name of Jesus' Father written in their foreheads. At first glance this seems to be the right answer, but nothing in the rest of the description supports that interpretation. These are men and women who had made themselves rapture-ready according to the prerequisites laid down in the Holy Scriptures and in particular in the words spoken by Jesus on the Mount of Olives a few days before accomplishing His mission on the cross at Calvary. It is in the warnings, directives, instructions and promises of the prophecies of the end times and the signs of Christ’s return that the faithful end-times believer is made aware of how to become rapture-ready and one of the select group that is the bride which we now see standing in glory on heavenly Mt. Zion with their bridegroom. As with any intimate mate, this group is declared to be the ones who shall follow the Lamb wherever He goes. Even into all eternity.
After we look at all the aspects of this company of believers it is much more plausible that this is an elite part of even the elite raptured saints. Here we are given clues about the characteristics that made them ‘rapture ready’. They are a company of faithful believers, who, by a walk of spiritual character and through obedience of faith have attained the "prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus". Phil. 3:14 Upon further inspection we find that it is certain that the two Revelation groups of 144,000 are not the same. One group is on earth, the other is in heaven. The Jews who are sealed and given supernatural protection from the judgments of the Tribulation are on earth during the entire Tribulation preaching the Gospel. This is why they were sealed and given supernatural protection by God. They cannot be stopped from preaching on earth and they remain on earth. But the 144,000 which we see with the Lamb are ensconced in heaven. They are redeemed from among men. ‘Redeemed’ people do not dwell on earth during the Tribulation. Also it can be noted that Jesus is seen at this juncture of time as a lamb only when seen in heaven. On earth He is a mighty angel, a lion, a judge, a tour de’ force. The Mount Zion upon which He and His select group of followers stand is the heavenly Mount Zion spoken of in the book of Hebrews.
"But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect," (Heb. 12.22‑24)
It makes sense that these people are raptured saints because we are told they are redeemed from among men. We are told they are the ‘firstfruits’ unto God and the Lamb. The ‘firstfruits’ always and only refers to the raptured saints. They, along with the group of elders, are among the charter members of the ‘Church of the firstborn’. We must ask ourselves, would Jews at this point of the Tribulation be said to be firstfruits unto the Lamb? Israel, as a nation, will be saved but not until the end of the Tribulation when they ‘look upon me (says Jesus) whom they have pierced’. This epic happening will not occur until Jesus returns from heaven with "ten thousands of his saints". If this group on heavenly Mt. Zion were intended to be a picture of saved Jews at the end of the Tribulation then there is no order in the events of chapter fourteen. But we may honestly ask then, why the name of the Father in their foreheads if these people are not Jews which we have already seen in a previous passage in Revelation? This is because they are God's counterpart to the Mark of the Beast. God will seal 144,000 Jews in their forehead for protection on earth, this is true, but He also seals the forehead of 144,000 raptured saints with glory in heaven for eternity. This is the fulfillment of two promises that Jesus made to the Philadelphia Church back in chapter three. He promised to anyone who stayed obedient, overcoming temptations to deny His name and keeping the word of His patience that He in turn would "keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth" and He promised, "I will write upon him the name of my God."
It should not be that hard to accept that God would have two sets of 144,000 people, one for the Jews and one for the Church. The number 144,000 is a multiple of the number twelve which has great spiritual significance. God will use it at the end, just as He has used the number twelve in the past for both Israel and the Church. The number 144,000 is 12 x 12,000. Twelve is the number of leadership in God's kingdom. Twelve patriarchs headed up the twelve tribes upon which the foundation of the nation Israel was laid. The Church was led by twelve men called apostles, all of whom Jesus handpicked (Judas being replaced). Later in Scripture God associated the number twelve with the baptism of the Holy Ghost. It was Paul who came upon "about twelve men" outside of Ephesus and baptized them in the Holy Ghost, the mark of leadership and endowment of power in the Church. The name of God written in the foreheads of the 144,000 is emblematic of authority and power in god’s name.
If we conclude that this must be a group of raptured Christians we now have some new and engaging information about the Rapture and those who will be "accounted worthy" to be part of it. This is the Bride. There will be other companies of believers saved and invited to the "marriage supper of the Lamb". But this is Christ's most intimate love. As noted above, these folk have heeded the warnings, instructions and words of Jesus who solemnly warned them to watch and wait upon the signs of His return. Now God reveals a glorious gathering in heaven. This is the glorious Church without spot or wrinkle being presented to Jesus which was spoken of in the book of Ephesians. The elders, also a part of the raptured saints, are there as the bride sings a new song and celebrates her espousal and wedding promises given her by Christ.
Notice that these 144,000 are virgins, without fault and with no guile in their mouths. We are getting a picture now of the spiritual makeup, the character of the bride. They are without fault. Scripturally speaking they are "perfect", not perfect in a worldly or fleshly sense, because that is not possible in this life, but perfect by obedience of faith and walking in the Spirit to the best of each individual’s capabilities. They stand before the throne of God having pleased God because they were unwavering disciples of Christ and true to His word. They picked up their cross and followed after Him. They put their hands to the plow and did not look back. They believed that there would be two together, in one bed, that one person would be taken and the other left, and more than anything they wanted to be the one who was chosen and taken. They never took it for granted that they deserved to be or had a right to be taken. Because they picked up their cross, denied their will and followed Jesus, they will now have the eternal honor of following "the Lamb whithersoever He goeth". Who else but a man's wife can go everywhere he does?
She is called a virgin because they stayed true to Christ. They were His chaste spouse waiting for their wedding day. They have not committed spiritual fornication or adultery by chasing after or flirting with idols. There is no guile found in their mouth. They are not hypocrites, saying one thing and doing another. They do not want to simply be hearers of the Word; they must be doers of the Word. They were not double‑minded in their faith, but they believed God's Word and kept His commandments. Because of this they sing a new song that no other being or creature in all of creation can learn to sing or ever will learn. They lived the life that made them candidates for the Rapture; they not only believed they should, they lived ‘rapture-ready’. The Jews do not sing this song (although a Christian Jew could be found among this number) because, as we shall learn, they join together with the Tribulation martyrs in singing the Song of Moses and the song of the Lamb when they are redeemed together at the close of the seventh year of the Tribulation. (ch. 15.1‑3). But chapter fourteen's group of 144,000 sing a song that no man can learn except their exclusive company. This is a picture of the people who captured the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. They kept a close eye peeled on the ‘Signs of Christ’s Return’ and all of the advice and counsel that accompanies the revelations of Scripture about the Rapture.
ThePhiladelphiaFaith.org encourages each and every person having a mind to do so to follow the course of the Signs of Christ’s Return as laid out in this major section of our site, so that they may be fully vested in brideship so they will be counted worthy to ‘follow the lamb whithersoever He goeth’ for all of eternity. …
> On to - 1. The Olivet Discourse