Revelation 15:1-2 Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished. 2 And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands.
The terrifying word in this passage that is “finished.” Finished means there is no more opportunity. The time of judgment has come. We do not want to be found not ready. The seven plagues will be described in chapter 16. Before these are poured out as bowls of wrath, there is a note of victory for those who made it through the troubling times of the control of the beast. These believers did not give up but stayed true. The sea of glass recalls the throne of God in Ezekiel 1. Fire is often the symbol in the Bible for purity and God’s presence (Pentecost and the burning bush). This was a time of praise and thanksgiving for the faithful, but soon it would also be a time of gloom for the unrepentant.
This passage, like many others in Revelation, calls the reader to be one of those who are faithful, even to the point of suffering or even death. Sometimes in our lives we grow lax and lazy in our walk with God. The affairs of life crowd out God and the things of God, especially how we love God by loving others. It is too easy to become passive in our faith, even defensive. The power of shame and the fear of ridicule are powerful forces that limit our witness. We must be found faithful in what we do. After Jesus told about his coming again in Matthew 24, he went on to give several parables in chapter 25 about the importance of being ready for his return. We must remain faithful.
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