Rev 7:15-17, "For this reason, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His temple; and He who sits on the throne shall spread His tabernacle over them. "They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; neither shall the sun beat down on them, nor any heat; for the Lamb in the center of the throne shall be their shepherd, and shall guide them to springs of the water of life; and God shall wipe every tear from their eyes." Amen.
We are in the process of considering what is involved in terms of our effective prayer life as the Body and Bride of Christ Jesus. As well, we are continuing our reading together through the scripture in the corporate heart of feasting upon the Word of God. In both aspects, we now find ourselves with this morning’s passage. It is a very concise and precise statement of what God’s heart for His people entails. It is a promise that can be traced throughout the scriptures. There is God’s great pledge of sorrow banished forevermore, set for us in Jesus Christ. We will only understand this as we come to the place of the effective prayer life of His Beloved Bride. This is a cornucopia of God’s Grace that is lavished upon us. The key aspect is that in it, He will receive all the glory and honor and majesty. We will be fully and absolutely blessed beyond measure. However, the focal point is not set in us, but in Him and in His faithfulness. He cannot but banish sorrow in the joy that is ours in Jesus Christ. 
This is something that needs to be fundamentally understood in our hearts, as does the full truth of prayer. Yes, we do benefit, we do see the fruit of our prayer, we do experience the satisfaction of God’s movement of heaven and earth in response to the prayer of the Church, but it is always, always in measure to His plan and purpose. We are enormously and completely and perfectly the recipients of all God’s Grace and Mercy and Lovingkindness, but that should not be our goal, or our desire, or our motivation. Rather, as we pray, the single heart that needs to be expressed is that His will be done, no matter what it involves in our lives. Even if it means the utter annihilation of everything in this world that we hold near and dear, we must be willing to forgo all for His sake. This is the heart of the effective prayer life. When this is in place, when God takes us up on the sacrifice of everything of ourselves to His glory, then He is free to banish all sorrow in the fulfillment of His so great promise. 
This is not logical to our mindset of this earth. This does not make sense to our human understanding. This is not the way to fulfillment according to the dictates of this realm. But, it is the way that God works and responds to hearts that seek Him in all His glory. It is the truth of heaven and it will be seen as the reality of even this earth in the course of God’s working. It is in this manner that God does banish all sorrow and mourning because it is the accomplishment of the very life of Jesus Christ as our life on this earth.
The prophets of the Old Testament were given a glimpse into this reality of life as we read in Isa 25:6-9. And the Lord of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain; A banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow, And refined, aged wine. And on this mountain He will swallow up the covering which is over all peoples, Even the veil which is stretched over all nations. He will swallow up death for all time, And the Lord God will wipe tears away from all faces, And He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth; For the Lord has spoken. And it will be said in that day, "Behold, this is our God for whom we have waited that He might save us. This is the Lord for whom we have waited; Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation." 
In Jesus Christ, the covering over the eyes of the people has been lifted to see the glory of God. The mystery of the ages has come into focus. Death has been swallowed up and our salvation has been accomplished. In the revelation of God’s plan and purpose, His working of Grace and Mercy, where is there any room for sorrow? We should be rejoicing and singing the praises of God for His perfect plan of salvation.
The prophet continues his encouragement to us in Isa 35:4-10. Say to those with anxious heart, "Take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you." Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped. Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the dumb will shout for joy. For waters will break forth in the wilderness And streams in the Arabah. And the scorched land will become a pool, And the thirsty ground springs of water; In the haunt of jackals, its resting place, Grass becomes reeds and rushes. And a highway will be there, a roadway, And it will be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean will not travel on it, But it will be for him who walks that way, And fools will not wander on it. No lion will be there, Nor will any vicious beast go up on it; These will not be found there. But the redeemed will walk there, And the ransomed of the Lord will return, And come with joyful shouting to Zion, With everlasting joy upon their heads. They will find gladness and joy, And sorrow and sighing will flee away. 
Notice that They will find gladness and joy, And sorrow and sighing will flee away. There is a joy in the Lord that pushes out and banishes sorrow and sighing. This is because the things that would cause this sorrow are no longer part of our lives in Jesus Christ. We are not worried about how we are being treated. We are not concerned about the things that we do or do not get. We are no longer focused on our rights and our position and our privileges in comparison to others. No, we are settled in the fact that Jesus Christ and His place is all that is of paramount concern and dedication in our lives. We live for and unto Him, and in Him is no sorrow. In Him, we find joy, even in the midst of the most ferocious and violent storms and situations. It is a joy that passes all earthly understanding and wisdom because it rules our hearts and minds, no matter what takes place.
The prophet Isaiah understood this and desired to open the eyes of his readers to the truth and to push all of us on into this life set in God’s promise. Isa 51:7-16, "Listen to Me, you who know righteousness, A people in whose heart is My law; Do not fear the reproach of man, Neither be dismayed at their revilings. "For the moth will eat them like a garment, And the grub will eat them like wool. But My righteousness shall be forever, And My salvation to all generations." Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord; Awake as in the days of old, the generations of long ago. Was it not Thou who cut Rahab in pieces, Who pierced the dragon? Was it not Thou who dried up the sea, The waters of the great deep; Who made the depths of the sea a pathway For the redeemed to cross over? So the ransomed of the Lord will return, And come with joyful shouting to Zion; And everlasting joy will be on their heads. They will obtain gladness and joy, And sorrow and sighing will flee away. "I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you are afraid of man who dies, And of the son of man who is made like grass; That you have forgotten the Lord your Maker, Who stretched out the heavens, And laid the foundations of the earth; That you fear continually all day long because of the fury of the oppressor, As he makes ready to destroy? But where is the fury of the oppressor? "The exile will soon be set free, and will not die in the dungeon, nor will his bread be lacking. "For I am the Lord your God, who stirs up the sea and its waves roar (the Lord of hosts is His name). "And I have put My words in your mouth, and have covered you with the shadow of My hand, to establish the heavens, to found the earth, and to say to Zion, 'You are My people.'" 
	Isaiah maintains the supremacy of the Lord over all that we would consider to be detrimental in our lives on this earth. The entire focal point of our relationship with God is set in Him and in His hand of operation. The sooner that we recognize, accept, and pray in accord with Christ’s heart, the sooner we will be living in the reality that God is our every sustenance for life. In His keeping power, we will come to know the assurance that there is no avenue of sorrow or mourning in the light of His countenance. 
Isa 60:19-21, "No longer will you have the sun for light by day, Nor for brightness will the moon give you light; But you will have the Lord for an everlasting light, And your God for your glory. "Your sun will set no more, Neither will your moon wane; For you will have the Lord for an everlasting light, And the days of your mourning will be finished. "Then all your people will be righteous; They will possess the land forever, The branch of My planting, The work of My hands, That I may be glorified. 
	This is completely in line with the reason for which we were created by God Almighty. We have been ordained from the heart of God’s love for rejoicing and for gladness. But the rejoicing and the gladness are set in Jesus Christ and not in ourselves. That is where many of us become discouraged and sorrow, because we feel that our needs are not being met. But eternal joy and rejoicing and gladness are set in Christ, not in our paltry ideas of what will be a blessing to us. We live for Him and not for ourselves. We find our joy in Him, in serving Him, and in pleasing Him with every fabric of our beings. Isa 65:16-19, "Because he who is blessed in the earth Shall be blessed by the God of truth; And he who swears in the earth Shall swear by the God of truth; Because the former troubles are forgotten, And because they are hidden from My sight! "For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; And the former things shall not be remembered or come to mind. "But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; For behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing, And her people for gladness. "I will also rejoice in Jerusalem, and be glad in My people; And there will no longer be heard in her The voice of weeping and the sound of crying. 
	The prophet Jeremiah picks up the chorus of the promise of God in this vein. The Church finds her complete satisfaction, not in the things of this earth, but in the fulfilled heart of God. He is our portion and, in Him Alone, do we have the full abundance of life everlasting. We do not look for possessions and stuff to be our accomplishment. We look to God. He will satisfy us with all the bounty of His Grace and Mercy and Love. But, beyond those measureless benefits, we enjoy Him. We celebrate Him. We worship Him. We honor Him. He is our rejoicing. He is our salvation. He is our enjoyment of life. He, Alone, is the center of our attention. 
Jer 31:10-14, Hear the word of the Lord, O nations, And declare in the coastlands afar off, And say, "He who scattered Israel will gather him, And keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock." For the Lord has ransomed Jacob, And redeemed him from the hand of him who was stronger than he. "And they shall come and shout for joy on the height of Zion, And they shall be radiant over the bounty of the Lord — Over the grain, and the new wine, and the oil, And over the young of the flock and the herd; And their life shall be like a watered garden, And they shall never languish again. "Then the virgin shall rejoice in the dance, And the young men and the old, together, For I will turn their mourning into joy, And will comfort them, and give them joy for their sorrow. "And I will fill the soul of the priests with abundance, And My people shall be satisfied with My goodness," declares the Lord. 
	In this letter of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, John picks up the chorus, as he echoes the voices of the prophets. We are encouraged in the place of the Church in the heart of God throughout this letter. Especially concerning the removal of sorrow, as we read in this morning’s passage, as well as in Chapter 21:1-7. And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them, and He shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there shall no longer be any death; there shall no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away." And He who sits on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." And He said, "Write, for these words are faithful and true." And He said to me, "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. "He who overcomes shall inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son. 
	We are brought back to one of the main themes of this letter, the Church as the overcomers.  As effective prayer warriors, we touch the very heart of God in our zeal for His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. This is the cry of the Body of Christ, setting aside all personal interests and motivations. We seek after only that which will satisfy the heart of Our Lord, Our Savior, Our Redeemer, Our Head, and Our Beloved Husband. So be it!
"For this reason, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His temple; and He who sits on the throne shall spread His tabernacle over them. "They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; neither shall the sun beat down on them, nor any heat; for the Lamb in the center of the throne shall be their shepherd, and shall guide them to springs of the water of life; and God shall wipe every tear from their eyes." Amen.

This morning’s benediction is Rev 7:9-12. After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, "Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb." And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, "Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen."