A Gathering of Nations

One of the best bits of the Olympic opening ceremony was seeing all the national teams assembling in the arena for the first times. I loved seeing all the different faces from around the world – so many beautiful faces lit up with the joy of being there. As a peaceful gathering of nations the Olympic Games are unique. Sadly they have been marred over the years as the Games have on occasions been  hijacked by repressive regimes or athletes have been excluded for political or racial reasons. But there have been wonderful moments too, when an athlete has become the first to win a medal for a tiny nation, or when the Games have been able to break through barriers of discrimination. These London Games have been such an instance, as every team included women athletes for the first time in the Games’ history.

It all made me think of that great gathering of nations that will take place at the end of time. From the time when God promised the blessing of all nations through Abraham’s offspring, God has been gathering together a people for himself from all nations on earth who will one day gather to worship him. The book of Revelation pictures that vast, glorious multitude made up of people from every corner of the earth. I imagine it will be an extraordinarily colourful and diverse scene.  I can tell you that the joy there will far exceed the happiness on the faces of those athletes. There will be none of the problems that characterise relations between people groups in this life – no fighting or war, no more of the weak exploiting the strong, no more hatred or racism. We will be one in heart and mind, united in one purpose which is the praise and worship of the Lamb on the Throne, Jesus Christ.

Perhaps that seems impossible but when all things are made new, when God is once more the centre of all human affections and his glory the motivation of all human activity, there will be no place for these things any more. On that day, when he sees his providential workings throughout history finally bringing about what has purposed for so long, no one in that vast multitude will be more joyful than the LORD himself. What it will be to behold the joy of the Almighty God!