24 ELDERS: THE RAPTURED, RESURRECTED, AND GLORIFIED CHURCH

 24 ELDERS: THE RAPTURED, RESURRECTED, AND GLORIFIED CHURCH
By Alan Yusko

Have you ever read Revelation 4 and wondered who the 24 elders are? Here we will show they are the saved and glorified church in heaven after the rapture.

To do that we look at 5 charistics of the 24 elders proving that they are the saved church. In Rev 2,3 the Lord Jesus gives the saved several promises. We will see that the 24 elders have those promises. Here are the 5 promises given and received by the 24 elders in Rev 4, 5.

1. ELDERS, KINGS, PRIESTS

In Rev 4,5 we can see the 24 elders are called elders, kings, and priests before God. First they are called elders in this verse:
 
Revelation 4:
4 And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.

Next we see they are also called kings and priests before God. See this verse:

Revelation 5:
10 “And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.”
 
This verse is a great promise. The saved will be ruling on the earth after the Lord Jesus returns.

2 THRONE

The saved are overcomers and they have a great promise from the Lord Jesus. They are given the privilidge to sit beside the Lord Jesus on His throne. See this verse:
 
Revelation 3:21
“To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.”

3 WHITE RAINMMENT

In the bible the saved church is promised to be clothed in white rainment. See these verses:
   
Revelation 3
5  “He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.”

Revelation 3
18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.

Revelation 4
4 And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.

As you can see the saved church is promised white rainmnet in Rev 3 and the 24 elders have that promise in Rev 4.

4 CROWNS OF GOLD ON THEIR HEADS

Again only one people is promised crowns of gold to wear. This is not for Old Testament saints or angels. This promise is for the saved church. See these verses about the crowns promised to the saved church:

Revelation 2:10
“Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.”

Revelation 3:
11 “Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.”

Revelation 4:
10 The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

The promise was made for crowns in Rev 2,3 and the 24 elders have those crowns on their heads in Rev 4. They use them for worship as they cast them down before the Lord.

5 SING THE SONG OF THE REDEEMED

The final sign that the 24 elders is the saved church is that they sing the song of the redeemed. You see they were once lost but were redeemed by the Lord Jesus and His shed blood on the cross. Only the saved can sing the song of redemption. This is what the saved do here on earth. And they will continue to do that in heaven. We will be forever grateful for the great salvation given us by the Lord Jesus on the cross.

Here is the verse

Revelation 5:
9 “And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;”

To be redeemed means one was once lost but then was saved by the Lord Jesus and His death on the cross providing the free gift of eternal salvation.  The above verse shows the 24 elders singing the song of the redeemed.

As you can see the 24 elders have the promises given to the saved church. Here is how prophecy flows. The saved church is currently living in this evil world in these very last of days. Next comes the rapture of the saved. They meet the Lord Jesus in the clouds and are taken to heaven for the Bema seat judgment. This is the judgment of rewards. Here the saved receive white rainment and crowns for their heads. Next we see them in Rev 4 in heaven praising the Lord.

Tod be saved first admit you are a lost sinner. Next trust in the Lord Jesus alone for eternal life. It is not hard to be saved but you must want the Lord Jesus with all your heart.