So you're born again... But will you walk with Jesus in white? Part 2

In our first installment we saw how easily the consistent Free Grace position fits the parabolic stucture of the Parable of the Wedding Feast (Matthew 22:1-14). We also saw the superiority of such an interpretation, as it alone fits the data the best. Part two of this series seeks to corroborate the idea there are significant rewards to be won by preparation in this life, and great loss to be suffered in failure to do such. Will you walk with Jesus in white?

The Church of Sardis and the prospect of the white garment (Rev 3:4-5)
In the parable of the Wedding Feast, we have given the interpretation of the wedding garment as thus: “the preparation for conditional, superlative eternal glories consisting of a faithful and consecrated life, stedfast until the end.” Such an idea is found on the lips of the Lord Jesus Christ in His address to the church in Sardis.

You have a few names even in Sardis who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy. He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.

We do not have here a picture of the free gift of eternal life and righteousness bestowed upon the Christian. Those in the church of Sardis have the potential to “walk with” Jesus (expressing intimate fellowship) clothed in “white garments” if they fulfill the conditions of “not defil[ing] their garments,” being victorious in their lives through works (“He who overcomes”: Gk = ‘nike,’ the victorious one), and being “worthy.” Such is not the language of imputed righteousness! It takes the hard works of keeping oneself unspotted, overcoming sin and evil, and exercising oneself unto rewardable integrity until the end in order to merit this superlative reward of being clothed in white and walking with Jesus.

Notice that the one who fulfills the conditions listed here will also have his name confessed before the Father and the holy angels. Of course, this is a tremendous reward! To be honored and receive glory before the Father and His angelic ministers by the Lord Jesus Christ! Such hearkens back to Jesus’ statements when He was on earth: “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven” (Matt 10:32-33). So many people understand these verses to mean that confessing Jesus before men is a condition for eternal salvation. But such are in grievous error! To proclaim this is to add works to the requirements for eternal life, thus fatally marring the saving message of Christ. Standing up for Christ and confessing His name can be a hard work. Hostilities often ensue with one’s identification with Jesus. But to those who endure such in a faithful confession come honor and glory in the presence of God the Father and His angels.

Corroboration for such an interpretation as this is found in the words of Paul to Timothy: “If we endure [in our confession of Christ] we shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him [by failing to identify with Him and confess Him], He also will deny us [in this context, reigning with Him]” (2 Tim 2:12). These two conditional clauses are found in a chiastic literary structure, in which they are parallel to each other. On one hand, the Christian who confesses Jesus Christ will be honored and co-glorified with Christ. On the other, the Christian who denies Christ, by failing to identify with Him in a faithful confession, will be denied such privilege.

Thus, in the admonition of Jesus Christ to the church in Sardis, we see that the privilege of walking with Christ in intimacy, at a future time in His kingdom, is dependent upon preparing oneself for such, illustrated by an unsoiled, bright white garment, worn by virtue of the fact that one is an overcoming, and worthy Christian! Yet this is not the extent of this vital thread of revelatory material permeating John’s Apocalypse.


Admonition to the church in Laodicea to buy white garments (Rev 3:18)
Throughout my Christian years I have often heard that the man without a wedding gown in the parable of the Wedding Feast lacked the imputed righteousness of Christ, which is parabolically identified for us as the garment itself. But is that the best interpretation, or is it merely the one that fits our theology best, doing the least damage to it? It is the contention of this paper that the latter is the case.

Continuing on in our excursion through the book of Revelation, we touch down on Jesus Christ’s admonition to the lukewarm church in Laodicea. Thinking that they were rich, this church was actually “wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked” (Rev 3:17). Jesus’ advice for them was given in the following manner:

I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.

Whatever it means to “buy” from Jesus “white garments,” one thing can be certainly said: this language does not (and indeed cannot!) denote the free gift of eternal life that brings complete judicial justification and imputed righteousness. The answer to their lukewarm condition is to do works. The purchase price for the white garment has already been discussed above: being “worthy” of it by keeping from defilement and succeeding in victory over our spiritual enemies. In order to walk with Jesus in white, one must prepare for that honor, being capacitated for such by faithful endurance until death or rapture.

One cannot help but note the promise of Jesus Christ to the born again members of the church of Laodicea. (Are they saved? Of course. Jesus’ exhortation to them was not, “get saved” but, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.) “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne” (Rev 3:21). The one who overcomes will “walk with” Jesus in “white” and “sit with” Him on His throne. Make note of the fact; thus far, that the language we are taking consideration of is that of merit and not of gift or imputation.


The twenty-four elders wearing victory wreaths (Gk: stephanos) and clothed in white robes (Rev 4:4)
As most know, the book of Revelation can be separated into three parts: 1) the things which John had seen, 2) the things which are, and 3) the things which will take place after this (Rev 1:19). At the beginning of the last section the readers become privy to a great heavenly scene. It is none other than the throne room of God. Round God’s throne are twenty-four other thrones, at which sat twenty-four elders (Rev 4:1-4). The text says:

Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white robes; and they had crowns of gold on their heads.

Who are these twenty-four elders? John Walvoord states, “Only the church which is raptured before chapter 4 is properly complete in heaven and eligible for reward at the judgment seat of Christ” (The Revelation of Jesus Christ p 106). As Rev 4:1 states, this begins the section of those things which are to come. They are not angels, as their song certainly shows in 5:9, “… You… have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation.” (I am aware of the textual problem here. This is the Majority Text reading, which I always favor. But other factors corroborate this reading as we shall see).

This scene in heaven occurs in the future from the perspective of John’s writings. They occur subsequent to his time and prior to the Great Tribulation narratives which are to follow. Such considerations narrow the identity of these elders down to a representative collection of church age overcomers who have been raptured and rewarded at the Judgment Seat of Christ.

These elders are arrayed in the manner of those who overcome in their Christian testimonies until the end. They are clothed in white robes, which we have already determined are only granted to those who by the testimony of their lives are found worthy of such. It is by triumphant, victorious endurance in their confession for Christ that such honor is won. Furthermore, they are pictured wearing victory crowns (Gk: stephanos). This is indeed the crown that Paul himself strove for and should be a focus of our every endeavor:

Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown [Gk: stephanos]. Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified. (1 Cor 9:24-27)

Paul was under no illusion that he indeed would attain to this glory. Therefore, he exercised unto godliness, strictly disciplining himself so as not to forfeit the prize. Lastly, we note that these elders sat on thrones. The privilege to such has already been seen to be conditioned on the overcoming life that Paul sought to develop in himself and encourage in the church (cf 1 Cor 9-24-27 with Rev 3:21).

In Rev 4:4, the passage under consideration, we fast forward to the glory of the reigning servant kings who won their glory by participating in the sufferings of Christ. Reader, what is keeping you from aspiring to such?

(to be continued)