Eat and Do Laundry

The book of Revelation has been a puzzle to the church since John first recorded it. His visions contain many images and symbols about God and creation, and people over the years have offered different interpretations of the book's most difficult passages. For example: What are Gog and Magog, exactly? (Rev. 20:8) When is the thousand-year break from Satan going to happen -- or did it already come and go? (Rev. 20:3) What will the mark of the beast look like? (Rev 13:16-18) Who are the two witnesses described in chapter 11? Then there are questions about end-times events that don't even come up in the book, such as the rapture and the Antichrist.

John knew that the images from his prophecies would be hard to understand. So all throughout Revelation he places short reminders and wake-up calls about his main points, such as:

"This means that God's holy people must endure persecution patiently, obeying his commands and maintaining their faith in Jesus" (Rev. 14:12).

"Worship only God" (Rev. 19:10 and 22:9).

As we try to read Revelation today we too can get caught up in the meanings of current events, searching the scriptures for how they might fit into predictions about the end of days. But when it comes down to it, God's requirements are not that difficult to understand. The final chapter of Revelation describes the Christian life in terms of two main activities: doing laundry and eating.

All throughout Revelation John mentions the importance of keeping one's clothing pure and spotless: "Blessed are all who are watching for me, who keep their clothing ready" (Rev 16:15). The countless number of worshippers before the throne are wearing white robes (Rev. 7:9). In the book's final verses John sums up faithfulness in this way: "Blessed are those who wash their robes" (Rev. 22:14). This is clearly a call for purity and holiness. Each one of us knows there are certain activities, people, and places we should not be tied up with. But how do we resist these daily temptations? We do our laundry. That is, we stay busy with the tasks at hand. God has given you a job, or a role in your family, or a position in your church. If you pour yourself into these roles, then you won't have time left over to chase after temptations. You also won't have much energy to fret or worry about the circumstances of life.

The second activity listed in Revelation 22 is eating. To those who stay busy and keep their robes clean, God says: "They will be permitted to enter through the gates of the city and eat the fruit from the tree of life" (Rev. 22:14). God has always described fellowship in terms of food. The Garden of Eden was designed to be a place where humans could eat in God's presence and in fellowship with one another (Genesis 2:15-16). Eating together is one of the most holy aspects of our earthly existence, and it foreshadows the kind of relationship God intends to have with each one of us. Do you eat regularly with others? Does your family sit down to share meals on a regular basis? Does your church congregation? Do you invite other people to come and eat a meal that you have prepared?

Do you want to fulfill God's plans for your life and be ready for the next life? Then be faithful to do your laundry -- that is, what God places before you -- and invite others to eat with you.