In Revelation 119, the Lord Jesus Christ instructed the
apostle to write down three main things.
The first are the things that you have seen, the things that
you have seen, John, which he faithfully records in chapter 1.
Following that, he said write down the things that are, the
things that are, which he covers in chapters 2 and 3, addressing
the spiritual condition of seven ancient churches.
And lastly, Jesus asked John and commanded John really to write
down those things that will take place after this.
And those things surely begin to unfold in chapter 4 and beyond.
And many have observed that Jesus instruction in that verse
divide the Book of Revelation into three main sections.
And where we are today will be the beginning of the final and
longest part of this marvelous book.
So I invite you now to turn with me to the Book of Revelation
chapter 4. And we are going to read this
chapter in its entirety. Now listen as you do this with
me, do not allow yourself to get distracted.
I know it's a little warm in here.
It might be like this for a little bit, but focus.
Do you know why we must focus? Because we've been told in the
beginning of this book that there is a special blessing for
those who read aloud the words of this prophecy and who hear
them. So don't allow anything to
interfere with your hearing at this moment.
Revelation chapter 4, beginning in verse one.
After this I looked and behold a door standing open in heaven.
And the first voice which I heard speaking to me like a
trumpet said, Come up here and I will show you what must take
place after this. At once I was in the spirit and
behold the throne stood in heaven with one seated on the
throne and he was sat there had the appearance of Jasper and
carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the
appearance of an emerald. Around the throne were 24
Thrones and seated on the Thrones were 24 elders clothed
in white garments with golden crowns on their heads.
From the throne came flashes of lightning and rumblings and
peals of Thunder. And before the throne were
burning 7 torches of fire which are the seven spirits of God.
And before the throne there was, as it were, a sea of glass like
crystal. And around the throne, on each
side of the throne, are four living creatures full of eyes in
front and behind. The first living creature like a
lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living
creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature
like an eagle in flight. And the four living creatures,
each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and
within, and day and night they never cease to say Holy, holy,
holy is the Lord God Almighty who was and is and is to come.
And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor
and thanks to them, who is seated on the throne, who lives
forever and ever? The 24 elders fall down before
him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives
forever and ever. They cast their crowns before
the throne, saying, Worthy are you, O Lord our Lord and God, to
receive glory, honor, and honor and power.
For you created all things, and by your will they existed and
were created. Revelation chapter 4 is a
theological bridge that connects the condition of the church and
the calamities that are prepared to be unleashed on the earth in
preparation for the return of Jesus Christ.
Now in these 11 verses that we just read, the word throne
appears a total of 14 times and 12 of those times referenced
directly the throne of God. So it's so obvious what the Holy
Spirit wants to bring into our focus, isn't it?
As much as we might be tempted to examine and decode the
details, the text continually draws our attention back to 1
main thing, the throne of God. Now, it's no mystery to us to
know what a throne symbolizes. It speaks of authority,
sovereignty, power, kingship, and judgment.
And that is exactly what the Holy Spirit wants to bring into
our vision at this time. The divine authority, God's
unmatched power, His unstoppable rule, His holy justice.
And when you think about it, it makes perfect sense why this is
taking place here. Why mention this now?
Why this vision right here? Remember, Chapter 4 is a hinge
point. It's a bridge of the description
of the generally discouraging state of the Church and the
series of judgments that will be poured out upon the earth
leading up to the culmination of the age.
It's as though the Lord wants us to be reminded so strongly and
vividly about His sovereignty, no matter which direction you
look, lest you and I become fatigued by the faithlessness of
Christians in some ministries. Unless we might fall into the
temptation of being paralyzed by fear as we consider the
apocalyptic events and the rising evil that will intensify
as we approach the end, we are called to remember how God is
enthroned above it all. He is seated on the throne.
And when I was meditating on this yesterday, I believe that
there are at least six truths concerning the throne of God
that will strengthen your faith and mine if we wholeheartedly
embrace these truths and apply them to our lives.
The overarching point of the passage is no matter which
direction you look, you look at the church, you go, what's going
on there? You look at the world, you say,
what's going on here, Look up at the sovereignty of God above
everything. But more specifically, what is
it about the throne of God that should move us and anchor us and
make us immovable, make us Worshipful, even though
everything around us seems to give us reasons not to worship?
Let's consider 6 things, shall we?
The first thing that I want us to consider about the throne of
God. And remember, when I'm talking
about the throne, I'm not talking about the actual seat.
What the seat represents His authority, His sovereignty, His
power, His judgement, His Holiness.
Oh, if you're a note taker, this will be helpful.
The first thing that we must consider about the throne of God
is that the throne of God is in heaven.
Look again at verse one and two with me.
After this I looked, and behold the door standing open in
heaven, and the first voice which I heard speaking to me
like a trumpet, said, Come up here, and I will show you what
must take place after this. At once I was in the spirit.
And behold, in other words, look at this, a throne stood in
heaven, with one seated on the throne.
Now there are some who would interpret the words of John and
his experience of a heavenly session ascension to define a
symbolic representation of a pre tribulation rapture.
That John here represents a church.
And noting here that this invitation that come up came
after the description of the condition of the churches and
before the wrath of God was poured out on the earth, a case
is often made. It's also worth noting that the
word church will never appear from this point forward until
the very end of the Book of Revelation.
And with that somewhat add that it's quite telling that the
voice that called John upward was like that of a trumpet,
echoing the imagery that Paul gives in First Thessalonians 4
when he describes the swift events of the catching away of
the church in the air to meet our Lord above.
I'm sure we're all very much willing to debate the timing of
the rapture. But again, that's not the point
of the passage, is it? Our our eyes are drawn back to
the throne of God, and we'll have plenty time in Revelation
to discuss the timing of certain things.
The throne of God is what's in view.
And the first thing that he sees about this throne is that it
stands in heaven. Now that might seem like an
obvious truth. God's throne is where God lives,
or at least he is most obvious, His abode in heaven.
So why are we even being told this?
Well, because when you understand God's throne being in
heaven, the implications are absolutely massive.
Let me read this verse to you. In Psalm one O 3, verse 19, the
Lord has established His throne in the heavens and His Kingdom
rules over all. So what are you to make of this?
The reality of God's throne being established in heaven
declares that there is not one corner in all of the universe
that is untouched by His sovereign rule.
That's what the psalmist says. His throne is in the heavens,
which implies what His Kingdom rules over all.
So his governance sits above the galaxies.
It stretches beyond the countless stars.
It extends even to planets yet to be discovered.
It scans from sky to sky. It watches over every mountain
peak. It hovers over the oceans.
And there is not one major city or hidden village that can
escape His decree. Fact.
There is not one throne in all of human history that is not
stood in the transcendent shadow of this one supreme, eternal
throne. God's throne is in heaven.
You know, as I was looking at this early yesterday morning, I
couldn't help but think of another throne that's mentioned
earlier in the Book of Revelation.
Do you remember where we are told Satan's throne was located
at this time? Let's refresh our memories.
Go to chapter 2 and look at verse 12.
And to the Angel, the church in Pergamum, right?
The words of him who has the sharp 2 edged sword.
I know where you dwell, where Satan's throne is.
Isn't that interesting? So Satan's throne is in
Pergamum, while God's throne is in the heaven of heavens.
What are we to make of this? It's so obvious, is it not?
It's a staggering illustration of just how much greater our God
is than the devil himself and all his hordes of demons.
Don't you dare make the mistake of thinking that the devil is
just a little less powerful than God.
He is significantly less powerful than God.
God's throne is in the heavens, and at this time Satan made his
headquarters in a particular city.
How pathetic to even dare to compare the devil to our God.
And while you and I may be overwhelmed by the injustice
carried out by evil men who sit on powerful Thrones, you can
never afford to lose sight of the fact that God ultimately
supervises the affairs of our world.
His Kingdom rules over all from the beginning to the end of
human history. And we do, you and I good to
remember that God can never be voted out.
He can never be replaced. No one can ever usurp his
position. The fact that it's in heaven
means it's eternal. He remains the King forever and
ever. Well, how does that work for you
and I? Well, Isaiah had a similar
experience in Isaiah 6-1, in the year that King Uzziah died.
What happened? I saw the Lord sitting upon a
throne. So with all this shifts, how
relevant is this in governments and geopolitics and laws and all
these things that seem to be wreaking havoc around us?
Both John and Isaiah tell us, look up and realize who sits
upon the throne in heaven. Interpret every news headline,
every shock, every conspiracy that you hear with this glorious
picture. God sits upon a heavenly throne.
Number one. God's throne is in heaven #2 #2
the second truth about God's throne.
God's throne is gloriously grand.
Gloriously grand. Look at verse 3, the beginning
part at least. And he who sat there had the
appearance of Jasper and carnelian, and around the throne
was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald.
Isn't it remarkable that the only way that John could
describe the beauty of God and where he sat was to attribute to
it precious stones, valuable stones.
Now, as you can imagine, there are many who try to help us
understand what these jewels represent, some aspects of His
attributes and His character and nature.
I'm sure you can do that, but I'd like to take all these
jewels as a unit. When considering the combination
of what we have, Jasper and carnelian and emerald.
You're supposed to understand that what's being highlighted
here is the abundance of God's riches, and now He is the owner
of everything. How opulent, how rich, how
abundant. And it's not difficult to
recognize in your Bible that these authors, inspired by the
Holy Spirit, often associate God's power, God's majesty,
God's sovereignty, with the fact that everything in heaven and
under heaven is owned by him. He owns it all.
So let me give you an example of the words that David chose to
give to the Lord when blessing him in the preparation of the
building of the temple. Listen to these words.
You don't have to turn there unless you'd like to.
In First Chronicles, 2911 to 12. First Chronicles 2911 to 12.
Notice what David says. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness
and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty.
Pause. Isn't that what we're looking at
in Revelation 4? Yes, but it continues.
For all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours.
Yours is the Kingdom, O Lord, and you were exalted as Head
above all. Both riches and honor come from
you, and you rule over all. In Your hand our power and
might, and in Your hand it is to make great and to give strength
to all. In case you didn't get it,
listen to what God Himself says about Himself in Job 4111.
Listen to this Who has first given to me that I should repay
Him Translation. Can you imagine anybody that's
ever I've ever borrowed from. Can you imagine at any time in
history where I took a loan? No, of course not.
Why? Look at the last part of the
verse. Whatever is under the whole
heaven is mine. It's all mine, everything.
And so you see, the radiance of of God's throne communicates
that he is not only incomparably beautiful, that he's also
inexhaustibly resourceful. He owns everything and the
source of all blessings, material or spiritual, come from
him. OK, preacher, I have a question.
How does that help me? I'll tell you how helps you.
The same God who sits on this glamorous, luxurious throne is
your Father. And I'm reminded of the promise
that Paul made to the Philippians when he said in that
famous verse in Philippians 419, My God will supply every need of
yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
He will supply. He will do it.
Have you seen his throne? Have you seen the decoration?
Have you seen the light? Have you seen the beauty and the
context of Paul's words specifically addresses material
needs? If you ever find yourself
doubting God's ability to provide for you practically or
physically, have you ever thought about his throne, What
he sits upon? He's your father.
God's throne is gloriously grand.
I'm sure more can be said about these jewels.
Well, let's just leave it at that and come to number 3 point
#3 truth #3 about God's throne. God's throne is faithful.
Look at the second part of verse 3.
What does He say? That around the throne was a
rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald.
A rainbow, of all things. A rainbow.
And you are a careful student of the Old Testament.
You know that in Genesis 9, God created the rainbow and
established it as a sign of a covenant of His mercy and
compassion toward all humanity, namely in the promise that He
would never destroy mankind by way of a flood.
And that symbol, for whatever reason, does not only appear in
the clouds after it rains, but is found surrounding the throne
of God. And I thought to myself, why is
that? And I think the answer is quite
obvious, to provide an eternal reminder of God's mercy even as
He executes judgment. That though He is perfectly just
and perfectly holy, anything that He decrees is always guided
by His faithful promises. In other words, you and I have
no reason to ever worry that the fury of God's wrath will ever
cancel any of His promises, especially those promises that
assure our preservation and our protection and our status before
God. As God sits on this glorious
throne, it is surrounded by a visual reminder of His
faithfulness, A faithfulness pertaining to His mercy and
grace and long-suffering. Imagine the kind of fear you and
I would have to try to manage if we were given even the slightest
impression that this God, who is all powerful and owns all
things, can at any moment forget His promise or break a vow.
What kind of terror would you and I live in?
All hope would be lost. Instead, our hope is
strengthened because we come up with John to the throne room of
God and we realize that there's a rainbow around it, realizing
that God's covenant that he made listen to this in Genesis is
upheld even in Revelation. What God said in the beginning
of the book, he still remembered at the end of his book.
Anything that he has ever promised, anything that he's
ever pledged, he keeps. He holds on to his trustworthy
is ever alive, ever alive and well.
And I wonder if that's the reason why this rainbow, Did you
notice that I had a hue of green?
The appearance of a rainbow, yes, which also had the
appearance of an emerald. Now, an emerald is a precious
gemstone that is known for its deep, rich green color.
And I can't help but wonder if this color is used.
It was highlighted by God in order to emphasize the
liveliness of His faithfulness. It's fresh, it's there, it never
grows stale. It's ever true, ever present.
God's throne is faithful because the one who sits upon it is
faithful. We come to the 4th reality of
God's throne. This one excites me.
Let's read it together in Revelation 4 and verse 4.
Around the throne were 24 Thrones, and seated on the
Thrones were 24 elders clothed in white garments with the
golden crowns on their heads. The 4th truth about God's throne
is that it is accessible. It is accessible.
So God's throne is in heaven. We know that God's throne is
gloriously grand. We know that God's throne is
faithful. But fourthly, God's throne is
accessible. Naturally, we are inclined to
wonder, who are these 24 elders? And there is no little debate
about who they are. And the center of the debate is
on whether these elders are angels or if they are human
beings. I think you can answer that
quite easily. Why?
For a few reasons #1 Elders in the Bible are never attributed
to angels. There is never an Angel who is
given the description of an elder.
Moreover, these elders all possess their own crown, and
there is not a hint in the Bible that would suggest that an
angel's ever promised or granted a crown.
Ever. You might make a case that they
wear white or they have dazzling clothes, sure.
But here's what we make of this. The only created beings who
fully match the description in this verse, elders clothed in
white garments and wearing crowns, are the redeemed.
The redeemed. Now you remember we've been
together for a few weeks, looking at the churches in
chapters 2 and three. And with each of those churches,
God gave them a reward, at least promised them a reward if they
would become overcomers included in those rewards.
Do you remember? Some of them were promised a
throne, others a crown, and even more so white garments.
And so when you look at the wider context, when you honor
the flow of the text, then the identity of these beings becomes
clear. What you have before us, you are
a select group who have been redeemed and rewarded in the
eternal presence of God. These are people.
But the debate is not quite over.
If we have concluded that these 24 elders are indeed those, at
least a select few, who have been saved and secured in the
presence of God, then who are they exactly?
And that's where things get a little fun.
There's the fact that there are 24 of them mean that there are a
number that represents the church that will be taken up to
heaven before the tribulation begins.
Some who don't regard the chronology of the Book of
Revelation will say that you have 24 here.
So you have 12 and 12. You have the 12 tribes of Israel
and also the 12 holy apostles. And they'll get that from
chapter 21 where you see the New Jerusalem coming down, and on
the gates of the city, the names of the sons of Israel are
inscribed. And on the foundations of that
city you have the names of the 12 apostles.
I remember what the focus of this text really is.
It's the throne of God. We can debate over lunch.
And if we're just to take the throne of God as the hub and how
everything else orbits around it, then we have this
fascinating truth presented to us.
God, in His infinite glory and majesty, has graciously granted
us the privilege to draw near to His throne.
Not just at a future time when He will literally reward some
with authority and unique responsibilities, but even now,
God in His throne in heaven invites us who are undeserving
to come into any close proximity of His glory and to actually
come there with our weakness and our brokenness and our
neediness, and we'll have His full attention.
That's what I take from this. You're allowing 24 people to not
just, I would understand if they're standing around your
throne with a Butler outfit ready to do whatever you ask of
them. No, no, no, no.
Lesser Thrones, yes, but still positions of dignity and honor.
Crowned. Who is this God?
And the same God who sits on this throne tells us in Hebrews
416. Let us then, with confidence
draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy
and find grace to help in a time of need.
Let us draw near to the throne of grace with confidence.
Can I ask you something? How frequently do you make your
way to the throne of grace? Understanding that it's in
heaven, Understanding that the one who sits on that throne owns
everything, that he is incredibly faithful, and that He
has made a way into it for you and I How?
How much do you take advantage of that?
How frequently do you find yourself rushing into the
presence of the Lord in your time of need, realizing that
there is one here who delights to establish and station
forgiven sinners to sit around His throne?
Do you think that He will be indifferent as you approach him
in your weakness and lack? Never, never.
His throne is accessible and He can make commands from that
throne on your behalf. That would blow your mind if you
just knew how to make your home there and to call upon Him.
Do you realize that you can close the door of one of your
bedrooms at home and you can enter into the throne room of
God? It's accessible not just at a
future time, even now, and as accessible as it is number 5,
God's throne is righteous. Look at verse 5 again.
From the throne came flashes of lightning and rumblings and
peals of Thunder. And before the throne were
burning 7 torches of fire which are the seven spirits of God.
And before the throne there was as it were a sea of glass like
crystal. And around the throne, on each
side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes
and front and behind. So the same throne that forgiven
sinners may approach freely is also the same throne that will
consume unrepented sinners. Where do we get that from?
This imagery of flashes of lightning, rumblings, and peals
of Thunder is consistently used in the Book of Revelation in
connection to a manifestation of God's intense indignation.
Let me give you an example. Look at Revelation 6/1.
Now I watch when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals and I
heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like
Thunder, come, there is Thunder. There's other things to consider
with this as well. You have this consistent picture
that when something was about to manifest pertaining to God's
wrath, it would be accompanied by these sights and these
sounds, as well as the four living creatures in some
instances as we just read. So what we're supposed to take
from this year is that there is a day coming.
Please pay attention to this when everyone, including Satan
himself, will be held accountable by a holy God who
has kept a perfect record of every wrong that has been
committed. And that accounting is
accomplished in part by the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
Go back to our main text. Did you notice who was before
the throne? We read here that before the
throne are 7 torches of fire in the latter part of verse 5,
which are the seven spirits of God.
So John, he sees these thunderings and the rumblings
and the clapping of the the skies, and he's getting a
preview of what's about to be launched on the earth.
God's wrath is about to be unleashed and he also sees that
the Holy Spirit symbolize with these 7 torches, 7 spirits of
God is before the throne. What's the connection?
Here's the connection. The Holy Spirit, the omniscience
of God, who is everywhere all times, who sees and hears
everything in private or in public, who knows what is in the
heart, whether it's expressed or hidden, will bring all
disobedience before the throne of God.
And the same Holy Spirit who has convicted the hearts of men and
was given them a taste of the beauty of the gospel and has
been rejected by men, will hold such individuals to account and
bring them to trial before the throne of God.
And even the Holy Spirit, who has issued unique miracles or
made incredible supernatural interventions a reality before
some, will hold those individuals accountable for the
special advantages that they had and rejected the Gospel.
The Holy Spirit who is before the throne, accompanied by the
sights and sounds of judgement, shows us that as much as he is a
comforter, one day He will expose those who have denied his
ministry. And he's not the only powerful
being that grips John. He looks around the throne and
he sees these four living creatures and we read the
description of them. Is this the first time that they
appear in our Bibles? No, they are prevalent in the
book of Ezekiel and Ezekiel calls them the cherubim.
The cherubim. The cherubim are a high-ranking
order of heavenly creatures, and in the Book of Revelation, as we
read in chapter 6, verse one, they are often found as
instruments of God's judgement that will be realized in the
tribulation. They are in some measure the
means of God executing his vengeance on the earth.
And that is quite remarkable because when you look at these
creatures, you can't help but feel like this is the heart of
the matter. You and I listen carefully here.
If you're a curious attender or visitor, or maybe just a blatant
blasphemer, listen to this. Each of us have a choice.
We all have the choice to face the fierce wrath of God
performed by these heavenly creatures in some measure or not
to face them, but to stand alongside them and face the
throne of God with them and give worship to the one who sits on
the throne. And the determining factor that
will establish whether we are facing these fierce creatures or
an extension of God's holy wrath or to be in the choir with them
in heaven is one thing. Faith and allegiance to the
person of Jesus Christ. Which brings me to my final
point about God's throne. The 5th is that God's throne is
righteous. But lastly, and this is my
favorite. So if you've made it to the end,
welcome to what I think is the most exciting point about God's
throne. God's throne is the center of
worship. Look at verse 8 and the four
living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes
all around and within and day and night.
They never cease to say holy, holy, holy is the Lord God
Almighty who was and is and is to come.
I find it amazing that these magnificent creatures are not
just agents of justice, but they are primarily preoccupied with
worshipping the one who sits on the throne.
Doesn't that move you? It moves me.
And there are many things to make of this observation, but
one of the main points that John wants us to see, and ultimately
Jesus wants John to see so he can share with us, is that one
of the activities that will preoccupy us in heaven is giving
God endless praise. And I've heard some people who
innocently, maybe even fearfully, have inquired when
trying to make sense of the eternality of everlasting life,
are we just going to sing all the time?
Have you been asked that? Maybe you've wondered that as
though heaven is going to be this mundane, boring eternal
church service. Church shouldn't be boring
anyway, and these four living creatures along with the 24
elders would answer you if you have that question.
That is absolutely not the case, although praise will be
prevalent in the world to come. There'll be other things that we
will do that, surely. I mean, we're going to get an
idea of that in this book as we study it.
But I find it amazing again, that the same living creatures,
though they are, the cherubim, resemble the seraphim in some
measure. And when you go to Isaiah 6, you
realize that they are singing holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of
hosts. The whole earth is full of His
glory. And Isaiah was centuries before
the Book of Revelation was penned.
And yet now you come to the final text of divine revelation,
and you discover that these heavenly creatures are still
singing the same song. That's a very long time and our
difficulty in imagining ourselves participating.
And that kind of adoration often stems from one main thing.
You ready for this? Failing to understand our wiring
to praise and why we praise to begin with?
Let me elaborate. Men and women, religious or non
religious, truly Christian or nominal Christian, offer praise
on this side of heaven more than you think, just toward different
objects. You and I actually praise more
than you realize. Some of you rightfully praise
the the beauty of your spouse. Others praise the achievement of
their children. Some of you can't just whisper
Wow under your breath when you are standing before a glorious
sunset. You capture it with your phone
and you send it to others. That's praise.
Look at this, and some of you, and I know some of you.
You love to visit the newest restaurant in town, and you love
to introduce your taste buds to new blending of flavors as they
explode in your mouth. And guess what you do?
You become an evangelist after that.
Because you go to friends and family and after church on
Sunday, you got to try this place.
Every single one of us effortlessly praises what we
enjoy, and CS Lewis brilliantly said the following.
We delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not
merely expresses it, but completes the enjoyment.
Isn't that a deep thought? In other words, all of us can
testify that one of the reasons why we verbally or even
physically express praise toward anything that we delight in is
because there is pleasure in the very act of expressing it.
Nobody twists your arm or forces you to acknowledge something.
It's the overflow of your experience of something that you
enjoy. And the psalmist says that there
is a limit to all perfection, which then would apply that
there would be a limit to our praise.
And here's what John's vision is teaching us.
Endless praise is not going to be a forced chore in heaven.
It is going to be spontaneous and satisfying overflow of
encountering the limitless beauty of the sight and sound
and sensation of God's unveiling glory that will be ever before
us. So it's not are we going to
actually do this for like millions of years?
You won't be able to help yourself and in your mind and in
mind, you think that what's going to happen.
And I think what's going to happen in heaven is that it's
just going to be a little better of a church service with a with
a more functioning screen and better lights.
Dead wrong. The throne of God will be before
us, and you won't be able to help but give spontaneous and
satisfying praise, not just because the sight and the sounds
and the sensation demands it, but because you will delight to
give it. To which someone may respond, Is
there really that much to take in about God?
And my answer would be, did you notice how many eyes these four
living creatures have? Go back to verse 8 and the four
living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes
all around and within. Now notice what follows.
And day and night they never cease to say, and they worship.
I like to think that what's happening here, the reason why
God created these cherubim to have these eyes everywhere, to
signify that two eyes are not enough to register all that God
is, these gigantic, blazing holy beings, even them, they need
eyes all around and within to take in all that God is.
Two eyes aren't enough. And notice it's what they saw
that led them to say. So what you have here is really
a model for how heavenly worship can inform and guide our worship
here on earth. What do I mean by that?
The strength of your worship and mind will be in proportion to
the depth of your understanding in mind.
What they saw, what they perceived, what they understood
was the means by which they were able to say and not stop saying,
holy, holy, holy. So in the same way that these
four living creatures first beheld God and then as a result
offered genuine and lasting worship to God, means that you
and I can only give the same from a clear and complete vision
of who God is. Let me put it this way.
If you and I find ourselves struggling to truly praise God
and worship it with our words and with song, with music and
with poetry and with with intentional prayers, that can
stem from only one main thing, a lack of insight of who He is and
a vision that is poor of His glory.
And so the way to fix it is to invest your energy in seeing Him
with the eyes of your heart. And you may say, well, I don't
have the advantage of these four living creatures.
I'm not one of the 24 elders who have a direct access to the
unfiltered presence and power majesty of God.
Sure. But it wasn't just the sight
that moved them in this way. There were certain truths that
move them as well. Here's what we're ending.
Did you notice what they sang at the end of our chapter?
Look at verse 11 of chapter 4, because we're learning here that
we're not left without any heavenly material to help us.
Worthy are you, our Lord and God to receive glory and honor and
power, for you created all things, and by your will they
existed and were created. What are they singing about
here? God is the creator and
sustainer. And when you come to chapter 5,
which is a continuation of the vision here in chapter 4, notice
what they sing about as well. Go to chapter 5, verse 8.
And when he had taken the scroll, the four living
creatures and the 24 elders fell down before the Lamb, each
holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the
prayers of the Saints. And they sang a new song,
saying, Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its
seals. For you were slain.
And by your blood you ransom people for God from every tribe
and language and people and nation, and you have made them a
Kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the
earth. What do they sing about in
chapter 5? God as savior and Redeemer.
So the theme of these hymns, which are the first hymns really
of the Book of Revelation in chapter 4, you created
everything. You're the brilliant mind behind
all of this, every part of the universe, all the systems that
we take for granted. You're the one who created all
things. And then they come to chapter 5.
And you also redeemed man. You shed your blood.
You delivered us. Can we not see the same?
Oh yes, I know. Not to the level and to the
degree that they know it, but we still have access to God's
creation and the revelation of salvation.
And I encourage you and I today to ask God for the eyes to see,
because your eyes are not just here.
You have eyes here. Lord, I want to know your
wisdom. I want to the breadth of your
power of all the things that are around me.
Isn't it funny how lately in our age, I mean, I think it's dying
out a little bit now, but there was a, there was a time where
there was a tsunami of arguments and philosophies of how all of
this that we know of our created universe just came about.
I've mentioned this before, many, many months ago.
Let me say it again, that is not scientific advancement.
That's a satanic strategy to take glory away from God.
Satan doesn't want God to receive worship and clearly in
heaven one of the things that he has adored for is how he created
all things. So take God out of the picture.
Let's give credit to a big explosion and goo.
Not a God whose throne sits in heaven and the cross.
Oh, how Satan hates the cross. Oh, he hates a church that makes
Christ preeminent and central. And that's why I praise God for
this church. Because we do sing about his
creation and we do sing about his salvation.
And the more we see it and understand it and develop
greater perception of it all, the stronger and the longer our
praise will be. And I invite you to prepare for
the endless praise that we will give to God, which would be our
satisfaction, and to His glory forever and ever.
Let's pray. What man can do, O God has been
done, but only you can open the eyes of the heart.
So we ask that in this place on this Sunday afternoon, give us a
glimpse of the throne of God. Thank you that you reign from
heaven. Thank you that you own
everything. Thank you, Lord, that you are
faithful on that throne. Thank you that you've made it
accessible. Thank you that it is righteous.
No sin will go unpunished. No injustice will.
We'll just go Scott free. You will.
You will perform justice and thank you.
It is a center of worship and we will delight in your presence
and you will place before us a sight and sounds and a sensation
that will secure our joy for eternity.
And for this we want to join the Cherubim and the Seraphim and
anything or anyone else that is in your presence and give you
your due. We praise you today in Jesus
name, Amen. It would be very appropriate for
us to, at this moment, as a praising comes to help us, to
call every faculty of our being and to give God what he
deserves. Because as we had this church
service, he has been sitting on a throne and He is our Father.
Let's stand and sing to Him, shall we?