The Lamb and the Nations

God’s desire has always been for the nations—the ethnos—to gather together around the Lamb.

As an Evangelical Free church, we are rightly described as “people of the Book.” That means the Bible is foundational for everything we believe and practice. When it comes to matters of reconciliation, harmony, justice, and human dignity, we do not look primarily to cultural theories, political philosophies, or academic frameworks. We look first to Scripture.

The Bible was written thousands of years before Karl Marx, modern Western academia, and the various ideologies that shape today’s conversations. Our foundation remains what the psalmist declared:

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
Psalm 119:105

This Light, this Book, this Word of God reveals Jesus teaching us to pray:

“Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
Matthew 6:10

When I think about this prayer, I think about the scenes of heaven revealed throughout Scripture—the beautiful pictures of what God intends and what we, as his people, are called to pursue here on earth.

Including within the New Hope Church family.

Two things come to mind.

First, the vision of all peoples gathered around the Lamb is profoundly gospel-centered.

There is a common accusation that conversations about an all-peoples church somehow distract from the gospel.

That is simply not true.

The vision of Revelation 5 and Revelation 7 is saturated with gospel blood, gospel promise, and gospel glory.

At the center of this gathering is Jesus—the Lamb of God. John the Baptist declared:

“Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”
John 1:29

This is the One before whom every tribe, language, people, and nation gathers. Revelation tells us that the Lamb has “ransomed people for God” through his sacrificial death.

The scene in Revelation 7 is not a celebration of human achievement. It is a celebration of divine rescue:

“Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”
Revelation 7:10

The gospel is not minimized when we pursue reconciliation among all peoples. The gospel is magnified.

The Apostle John writes:

“Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation...”
Revelation 5:9

Because of the shed blood of Christ, people are reconciled to God and to one another.

So when someone says, “Just stick to the gospel,” we must remember that the gospel itself includes the blood-bought reality of tribes and tongues gathered together as one redeemed humanity before the Lamb.

Second, pursuing this reality here and now is a gospel demand.

In Luke 4, Jesus enters a synagogue and announces his mission:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor...to set at liberty those who are oppressed.”
Luke 4:18

Jesus connected the gospel with liberation, restoration, and justice. He also connected the gospel with ethnic reconciliation.

This is why the response of those listening is so striking. They celebrated the idea of good news for those on the margins, but they rejected the implication that this good news extended to Gentiles—the very people they had been taught to despise.

Their response?

They attempted to kill him.

That tells us something important. Reconciliation and harmony among peoples are not merely political or philosophical issues. They are deeply spiritual issues.

And this is why being a multicultural and multiethnic church matters.

Paul writes:

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility...that he might create in himself one new humanity...”
Ephesians 2:13–15

The pursuit of an all-peoples community is rooted in the gospel itself. It is the fruit of Jesus’ reconciling work.

God is bringing the nations to us

Traditionally, churches like ours have sent the gospel to the nations.

Praise God!

New Hope Church has 52 global workers scattered throughout the world. That matters deeply. It is another reason why your prayers and faithful generosity are so vital.

But Scripture also reveals something beautiful:

God is bringing the nations to us.

Our Latino brothers and sisters represent this reality. So do our friends from Africa, Europe, and throughout Asia.

This requires humility. It requires us to develop emotional and spiritual maturity so we do not dismiss the experiences, stories, and realities of those who differ from us.

This is part of understanding God’s justice.

I define God’s justice this way:

God’s rightness manifested in our relationships, systems, structures, hopes, and dreams.

Such justice allows for genuine relationships—not forced relationships. It enables us to stand together as redeemed people before the Lamb, honoring one another, seeing one another, speaking truthfully, weeping together, and rejoicing together.

This is the essence of mature, healthy community.

Our world is desperate for answers to broken and traumatized ethnic relationships. There is no better entity to offer hope than the church of the bloodied and risen Lamb.

That means you.

It means me.

This is why being a multicultural and multiethnic church matters.

It is true.

It is real.

It is good.

It is beautiful.

We are better together.

“Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples! Say among the nations, ‘The LORD reigns!’”
Psalm 96:3, 10

A spiritual battle

We must also recognize that this is a spiritual battle.

Satan would love nothing more than to distract the church, divide the church, and cause the church to consume itself in endless conflict.

Conversations about Critical Race Theory, wokeism, and other cultural issues have often become distractions that prevent meaningful gospel-shaped conversations about reconciliation and human dignity. Thoughtful evangelicals can and should wrestle with ideas carefully, but we must not allow secondary debates to keep us from the clear commands of Jesus.

Meanwhile, the world continues searching for answers.

And too often, the church is absent.

Jesus’ final words remind us of both our calling and our confidence:

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations...And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:19–20

He is with us.

Therefore, let us be humble kingdom ambassadors.

Let us see—really see—the people around us: their humanity, their stories, their experiences.

Let us engage—really engage—with the tender love of our bloodied and risen Lamb.

Let us act according to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, trusting him to accomplish the Father’s will on earth as it is in heaven.

Praise God!

“Worthy are you...for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.”
Revelation 5:9