The Blessings Of The Great Crowd

Though the divine channel, John receives further information regarding this great crowd: "And he [the elder] said to me:'These are the ones that come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. That is why they are before the throne of God; and they are rendering to him sacred service day and night in his temple; and the One seated on the throne will spread his tent over them.' " -Revelation 7:14b, 15.

On an earlier occasion, Jesus had said that his presence in Kingdom glory would culminate in "great tribulation such as has not occurred since the world's beginning until now, no, nor will occur again." (Matthew 24:21, 22) In fulfillment of that prophecy, the angels will unleash the four winds of the earth to devastate Satan's world system. First to go will be Babylon the Great, the world empire of false religion. Then, at the peak of the tribulation, Jesus will deliver the remaining ones of the 144,000 on earth, together with the multitudinous great crowd. -Revelation 7:1; 8:2.

How do individuals of the great crowd qualify for survival? The elder tells John that they have "washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb." In other words, they have exercise faith in Jesus as their Ransomer, have made a dedication to Jehovah, have symbolized their dedication by water baptism, and "hold a good conscience" by their upright conduct. (1Peter 3:16, 21; Matthew 20:28) Thus, they are clean and righteous in Jehovah's eyes. And they keep themselves "without spot from the world." -James 1:27.

Further, they have become zealous witnesses of Jehovah-"rendering him sacred service day and night in his temple." Are you one of this dedicated great crowd? If so, it is your privilege to serve Jehovah without let-up in the earthly courtyard of his great spiritual temple. Today, under the direction of the anointed ones, the great crowd is performing by far the greater part of the witness work. Despite secular responsibilities, hundreds of thousands of them have made room for the full-time ministry as pioneers. But whether you are in that group or not, as a dedicated member of the great crowd, you can rejoice that because of your faith and works you are declared righteous as a friend of God and are welcomed as a guest in his tent. (Psalm 15:1-5; James 2:21-26) Jehovah thus 'spreads his tent' over those who love him and, as a good host, protects them. -Proverbs 18:10.

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