11 Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed.
Our culture teaches that death is the worst thing that can happen, that if we don’t choose the moment of our death then we are being deprived of a basic human right! Have you noticed that slowly additional rights have been added to our Constitution. It started “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Now it is life on my terms, liberty following my definition of liberty, and the attainment happiness. If there is any impingement on this new definition then there is a lawsuit and media outcry. In this part of the book of Revelation we get a glimpse of some happenings in heaven. There is a scroll with multiple wax seals that get opened. When the fifth seal is opened we get a glimpse very close to the center of action in heaven. We see and hear the souls of those who have been killed because of their faith in Jesus. They have that age old question, “how long?” on their lips. They desperately want justice. They want those who did this to them to receive their due punishment. And each one of them is told to wait a little longer. Isn’t that infuriating when someone tells you to wait a little longer for justice! Doesn’t it boil your blood! If God saw that there were going to be more killed, and He must have since He said the number was not complete yet, why did He not step in right then and stop the killing? These were His chosen and loved people asking God for help. Why didn’t He spare them? They were doing God’s will. Didn’t they deserve an extra measure of His protection? From our perspective these questions get an affirmative answer. But God’s perspective sees that these few moments we have here on earth are nothing compared to eternity in heaven. A few moments of suffering will fade into non-importance when we experience the fullness of heaven, a few moments demonstrating the glory of God to His creation and to us. It is easy to be a Jesus-follower when things are going along easy street, but when trials come, that is when the real believers stand up and are counted, some with their deaths.
The Arnold Journey 