I want you to take God's Word,
and I want you to turn with me to the book of Revelation. I
want to take you to the top. I want you to turn to Revelation
chapter 4. And in our session here today,
I want to take us to heaven. I want to take us into the throne
room of God, and I want to behold the God-centeredness of heaven. What will strike us upon our
first entrance into heaven is not streets of gold, neither
will it be pearly gates. It will not be who is there,
who is not there. What will first strike our hearts
five seconds after entering into heaven, and it will take all
eternity for it to settle in, is the presence of the glory
of God in heaven. I want to begin by reading the
first several verses of this chapter, Revelation 4. After these things I looked,
and behold, a door was standing open in heaven. And the first
voice which I heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with
me, said, Come up here, and I will show you what must take place
after these things. Immediately I was in the Spirit,
and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and one sitting on
the throne. And he who was sitting was like
a jasper stone, and a sardius in appearance. And there was
a rainbow around the throne, like an emerald in appearance. Around the throne were twenty-four
thrones, and upon the thrones I saw twenty-four elders. sitting
clothed in white garments and golden crowns on their heads.
Out from the throne came flashes of lightning and sounds and peals
of thunder. And there were seven lamps of
fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of
God. And before their throne, there
was something like like a sea of glass, like crystal, and in
the center and around the throne, four living creatures full of
eyes in front and behind. The first creature was like a
lion, and the second creature like a calf, and the third creature
had a face like that of a man, and the fourth creature was like
a flying eagle. And the four living creatures,
each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within,
and day and night, and day and night, and day and night, they
do not cease to say, holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty,
who was and who is, and who is to come. When Jonathan Edwards was 18
and 19 years old, He took pen in hand and wrote
70 resolutions that would guide his life for the rest of his
life. These resolutions forged a personal
mission statement that targeted holy living in the here and now. But in order to pursue holiness
in this life, Jonathan Edwards knew something that you and I
must grasp. that he must always keep one
eye on heaven while he lives upon this earth. In the 22nd
Resolution, Edward's purpose, quote, resolved, to endeavor
to obtain for myself as much happiness in the other world
as I possibly can with all the power, might, vigor, vehemence,
yet, yea, violence. I am capable of." In other words,
Edwards determined as long as he was upon this earth to secure
as much happiness from heaven as he possibly could. It would
be the happiness of heaven within his soul as he lived upon this
earth, that would be the engine in his car that would drive him
through life. He resolved to set His mind on
things above and not on things of this earth. He purposed to
dwell on things eternal, not things temporal. He determined
to look always to things unseen, not things that are seen. He
chose to fix Himself upon the invisible world of heaven and
to desire as much happiness as He possibly could in heaven while
here upon the earth. In other words, while He lived
here, He wanted heaven in His soul and the joy and the happiness
of heaven in His soul long before He ever went to heaven. Edward's
purpose not to be casual about this heavenly obsession, but
to do so, he writes in this resolution, with all power, with all might,
with all vigor, with all vehemence, with all violence that he could
possibly muster. Edwards intensely set his gaze
upon the unseen glories of heaven, and it electrified his soul,
and that is why God used him so mightily upon this earth.
Understand this. Jonathan Edwards did not just
stumble into greatness. Jonathan Edwards is the greatest
pastor, the greatest preacher, the greatest author, the greatest
theologian, and the greatest philosopher ever to grace American
soil, period, paragraph. And that did not just happen. When he was 18 years old, he
charted a course for his life, and he was resolved with bulldogged
resolution to follow that path. And at the apex of it, he purposed
that he would set his heart on heaven while he lived here upon
the earth. And it revolutionized his life.
I know from my own life, When I was in my 20s, I sensed the
call of God upon my life to go into the ministry. I quit my
job at the bank, I was a finance major. I remember resigning with
the president of the bank, putting every possession that I owned
into the back of a Volkswagen Bug, and driving to seminary. And I remember while I was there
in seminary, really with a healthy desire to be trained to preach
the Word of God for the rest of my life, for the first time
in my life, I came in contact with the awesomeness and the
majesty and the transcendence of Almighty God through the study
of the Scripture, and it absolutely blew me out of the water. I have
never been the same since. And what I would desire for us
this morning is that God in some way, as we look at this text,
would pull back the veil and that we would be allowed to see
the infinite, awesome majesty of our God in heaven. That's
the thing about heaven. It is the theater upon which
the glory of God is put on display. And you and I, when we go to
heaven, what will make heaven heaven is not its climate nor
its company. but the one who is seated upon
his throne, and to live in his presence, and to worship him,
and to serve him the rest of our lives, and our understanding
of God will be on steroids, and we will see the height, the depth,
the breadth, and the length of the awesome glory of God. I want us to see what we will
see when we enter into the throne room of God. There are five truths
about God that I want you to note in verses 1 and following,
and I want you to jot these down, and may God write them upon the
tablet of your hearts, and may you be living epistles of these
truths. The first thing that captures
John's mind as he goes immediately into the throne room of God is,
number one, the sovereignty of God. I want to begin reading
in verse 1. After these things I looked,
and behold, a door standing open in heaven. What a door this was
that opened for John. His body is on the island of
Patmos in the midst of the Mediterranean Sea, and in this prophetic vision,
in this spiritual experience, this door opens that will allow
him to see into the invisible world of heaven. He was allowed
to see what you and I have never seen. He was allowed to see the
other side of the veil. He was allowed to see into glory. What a rare insight this is. So this door opened in heaven
that would provide him access into the very throne room of
God. And the first voice, which I heard, like the sound of a
trumpet." Oh, John recognizes that voice. He heard it in chapter
1. It is the voice of none other
than the King of kings and the Lord of lords, heaven's Lamb,
the Lord Jesus Christ. It is an authoritative voice.
And it spoke like a trumpet. And it said to John, come up
here. and I will show you what must take place after these things."
Notice the word must. God has already scripted the
future. All of human history is His history,
His story. before the foundation of the
world, God wrote His eternal decree and all of history is
now the unfolding of the eternal purpose of God. No wonder Jesus
said, come up here and I will show you what must take place
after these things. And immediately, verse 2, I was
in the Spirit. I would take this to say His
body remained on the island of Patmos and the Holy Spirit laid
hold of His Spirit and He was brought and ushered into the
very throne room of God. It is an out-of-body experience,
much like Isaiah going into the temple in Isaiah 6 or Immediately I was in the Spirit,
and behold, and John now opens his eyes in heaven, and as he
looks and peers, what instantly captures his attention, note,
a throne was standing in heaven. What first struck John upon entering
into heaven, as I told you earlier, it was not the architecture of
the buildings. It was not the tree of life or
the rivers of life. It was not the streets of gold.
It wasn't the gates. It wasn't the dimensions of heaven. It wasn't who's there, who's
not there. That is not what struck John's mind first. It was the
throne. This throne of God represents
the government of God, the absolute sovereignty of God over all the
universe, over all human history, over every human life, over every
human destiny, over every molecule that He has spoken into being
out of nothing. There is this throne, and immediately
it captures John's attention, and this is great news for John. Because at this moment, as John
has been upon the earth, all of history seems to be in chaos. Everything seems to be out in
convulsions. The Roman Empire seems to be
upon the throne. The church at Ephesus has left
its first love. The church at Sardis has a name,
but it's dead. The church at Laodicea is lukewarm
and Christ is ready to spew it out of His mouth. All of the
other apostles have been martyred and are dead, and John alone
remains alive. And he is a political prisoner
of the Roman Empire. If ever there was a time in which
it looked like the church was on the short end of the stick
and was in difficult times, it was at this very moment. And
John is now given this vision for him to see that even in the
darkest hours of human history, there remains a throne in heaven
over which the one who is seated upon it is actively and daily
governing with perfect administration every detail. Note in verse 2,
this throne is standing, which is to say it is fixed, it is
permanent, it is unshakable, it is immovable, it is unswayed
by human events, it is unmoved by human leaders. Roman Caesars
come and they go, but this throne in heaven remains standing. Human
history ebbs and it flows, but this throne remains fixed in
the heavens, towering over every earthly event and over every
human circumstance. A throne was standing in heaven. And would you please note, and
one sitting on the throne. My friend, the throne is occupied
That is to say that God has permanently assumed this posture of reigning,
and He will never abdicate His throne. He has ruled from ages
past. He is ruling throughout all of
human history, and He will reign throughout all the ages to come.
It's not as if God once reigned back in the days of extraordinary
miracles with Moses and Elijah and Elisha. And it's not as if
we must wait for the second coming before God begins to reign over
human history. No, every moment of every day,
the throne is occupied and there is one who is sitting upon it,
who but speaks and it comes to pass, who but acts and it holds
fast, who but wills and it is done. Heaven is not governed
by a democracy, but by a theocracy. There are no checks and balances
in His administration. There is only His pure, absolute
sovereignty. Psalm 115, verse 3 says, but
our God is in the heavens. He does whatever He pleases. That is what it is to be God.
It is to do whatever you please. God does not need permission,
He gives it. And so John is allowed to see
that it is not Caesar upon this throne, neither is Satan, neither
are demons, neither is man, neither is blind fate, neither are random
occurrences. Instead, upon entering into heaven,
John sees God upon His throne over all world events, over all
human rulers, everything serving His greater purposes. Beloved,
this is the foundational truth of all Christian theology, that
God is and that God reigns. A God who does not reign is no
God at all, is but an imposter. This is the bedrock doctrine
of all doctrines, the sovereignty of God. This is the immovable
mount and the towers over all that we believe, the Mount Everest
of all truth, God's undisputed throne rights to govern and to
dispose all that He has created. For Jonathan Edwards, This brought
unspeakable joy and full of glory. Jonathan Edwards wrote, "'Absolute
sovereignty is what I love to ascribe to God.'" It thrilled
Jonathan Edwards. That God's throne in heaven dominates
over the entire global world scene, and that God is every
moment of every day continually working for His glory and for
our good. That He is always building His
church and edifying His saints, and that even in history's darkest
hours, such as John faced at the end of the first century.
Though the outlook may be bleak, the uplook is always extraordinary
because God is upon His throne. I point you this very moment
up to heaven and for you to behold in pages of Scripture that there
is a throne that is standing in heaven And God is seated upon
His throne, and as Psalm 93, verse 1 says, the Lord reigns. This is the first truth that
we see in Revelation 4, the sovereignty of God. I trust that this will
be a mighty foundation for your faith and bring immense joy to
your heart. Now second, I want you to note
in verses 3 and 4, not only the sovereignty of God, but this
scene continues to unfold now. And I want you to see the splendor
of God because what John sees next is no inconsequential reign. but it is one that is attended
with regal majesty and royal splendor." Note verse 3, "'And
he who was sitting was like a jasper stone.'" This does not say God
is a jasper stone. It says God is like a jasper
stone. John can't even describe to us
the beauty of the holiness and the glory of God that he beholds
in heaven, and he searches for a comparison, and he paints this
metaphor for us that what I saw coming forth from the throne,
that God is like a jasper stone. A jasper stone is like a diamond. It is used later in the book
of Revelation in chapter 21. as that which becomes an expression
of the outshining of the blinding, blazing glory of God. As light shines through a diamond
that is a perfect diamond, multifaceted in its cuts, the light is magnified,
and it is reflected, and it becomes infulgent light that shines intensely
in all the the more brighter, and this is what John sees. John beholds this perfect, flawless,
jasper stone-like image that is bright, that is brilliant,
that is blazing, that is beautiful, that is stunning, that is spectacular. Even the seraphim around the
throne of God with two wings, they have to cover their face
because they cannot even look directly into this magnified
glory of God. This is what John sees. And then
he says, and a Sardius in appearance, as he continues to describe God
and the outshining manifestation of the perfect attributes of
God in His glory. And a sardius in appearance,
a sardius stone is fiery red, deep red-blooded ruby, bursting
forth with majestic color, perhaps representing the wrath and the
severity of God, or perhaps really communicating the pomp and the
the regal nobility of the one who is seated upon the throne.
And so, heaven is like this light show that is emitting from the
throne of God, where God is like this diamond and a sardius in
appearance. And there was a rainbow around
the throne, like an emerald in appearance. This rainbow overarching
the throne, really making a full circle all the way around the
throne, not as we see with half of a circumference, but entirely
encircling the throne, this emerald green rainbow that is dazzling
in its appearance. You recall in Genesis 9 how the
rainbow is a sign of God's covenant faithfulness to His people and
that He will show mercy and He will show grace to His people. And this too, this rainbow is
a part of the visual display of the shining greatness of God
in heaven. Heaven is not a drab place. It's
not muted, and it's not in dull tones to behold. It is bright. It is brilliant. It is blazing. It's shining forth from God's
throne. In fact, we read later in Revelation
chapter 21 that God will snuff out the sun and it will be His
own dazzling glory that will light up the entire universe. He Himself projecting all of
His divine attributes and His character, His greatness, His
grandeur and glory, literally illuminating all of the galaxies. And then in verse 4, around the
throne were 24 thrones. Great kings in the ancient used
to surround their own thrones with other lower thrones in a
display of power for those who would come before the throne
of the sovereign. And we see something like that
here as there are now 24 lesser thrones around the throne of
God. These lower thrones receive a
delegated authority that comes from God, for all authority and
all sovereignty belongs to the one who is upon this central
throne. But He has chosen to share His
reign with those who have been faithful with Him, and He distributes
responsibility and the authority to carry that out. And we see
here these 24 thrones, I believe, as representative leaders of
all of the redeemed, of all of the ages, down through the corridors
of time. Perhaps 12 from the Old Testament
and 12 from the New Testament. Perhaps 12 from the 12 tribes
of Israel and 12 representing the 12 apostles. And they are
around the centrality of God's throne, and they exist to carry
out God's bidding and to carry out God's will. And upon the
thrones, I saw 24 elders sitting Now watch this, clothed in white
garments. They are white because they have
been washed in the blood of the Lamb. They are pure and clean
and spotless. And they make these elders and
all whom they represent, these white robes make them acceptable
to find entrance into the very presence of God, because God
is an infinitely holy God. And only those who have been
washed clean and pure in the blood of the Lamb may enter into
God's presence. God says, come, let us reason
together, says the Lord. Though your sins be as scarlet,
they shall be white as snow. Though they be red like crimson,
they shall be white as snow. These have been washed in the
blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, and they are now presented faultless
before the throne of God, and golden crowns on their heads."
This, too, adds to the stately majesty of this regal scene in
heaven. It is a throne room that holds
the King of kings and the Lord of lords and those on thrones
around Him with golden crowns, stephanos. There is only one
diadem, and it is upon the head of the Lord Jesus Christ. But
all of these lesser ones have golden crowns because they have
been faithful in their service to God. Beloved, you and I will
want to one day take our place in this scene. We will one day
want to have our robes washed, and I trust that yours have already
been washed by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no
way to enter heaven and come before the throne of God except
you be given one of these white robes. And then to the degree
that we have faithfully served God here, He will reward us in
that day and bestow a golden crown, which we will then take
and cast back at the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ." What
a scene this is, the sovereignty of God, God upon His throne,
the splendor of God, all of this light, these beautiful colors,
these 24 thrones and the elders upon them. This is no casual
scene. This is God high and lifted up
upon His throne in the heavens. I want you to note third, in
verse 5, continue to look at this with me, for this is shocking
and this is stunning what we see in verse 5. Here is the severity
of God. Verse 5, out from the throne,
meaning projecting out from the throne, originating from the
throne and proceeding out from the one who sits upon the throne,
come flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder. There is a brewing storm in heaven. Around the throne of God it is
darkening, it is boiling, it is blackening, and there are
flashes of lightning and peals of thunder, and there is an angry
thunderstorm that is brewing and building up in its force
around the throne of God. This is the divine wrath of God
upon a Christ-rejecting world. It is building and it is intensifying
as this holy God upon His throne who cannot look upon sin with
approval, as He beholds the happenings here upon the earth, the desecration
of His Son, the breaking of His Word, And infinitely holy God
is angry with the wicked every day, the Bible says. Romans 1
verse 18, for the wrath of God is present tense, is revealed
from heaven against all unrighteousness and ungodliness of men. Do not
think that God is indifferent to the sin and the licentiousness
of this world. Do not think that God is unaffected
by the depravity of the immorality around us. No, there is a brewing
storm in heaven. that will be unleashed upon this
earth at the end of time. That is what we see here, my
friend. It is what Jonathan Edwards saw
when he preached, sinners in the hands of an angry God. The
divine vengeance of God and the fury of God is building and it
is building. Jonathan Edwards put it this
way, the wrath of God is like a river that is flowing. And
at this moment, it is damned up by God's mercy. And the mercy
of God is holding back His wrath that is rightly flowing from
His throne. as God is giving opportunity
now for people to come to Christ. But at the end of this age, the
dam of His mercy, Edwards said, will be withdrawn, and that wrath
has been building, and it has been building, and it has been
building. It will be unleashed in the last day, and sinners
will be swept into the very bowels of hell. That is what is pictured here.
And it is the fury of God building in heaven that will be unleashed
upon this wicked world at the end of this age. And would you
please note at the end of verse 5 what it is that is projecting,
really who it is that is projecting this lightning and this thunder? It is coming from God Himself. It is God's own thunder. It is
God's own lightning that is coming from the throne. And there were
seven lamps of fire. Here is the source of the thunder
and the lightning. seven lamps of fire burning before
the throne which are the seven spirits of God. There is only one Spirit of God.
He is represented here as seven to speak of the fullness and
the completeness and the perfection of the Holy Spirit of God. And
it is the righteous anger of the Holy Spirit from before the
throne that is shining forth and projected out in this brewing,
gathering storm around the throne of God. You and I this morning
have no comprehension, the thunder and the lightning of His wrath. These lamps are really like war
torches. They're not like little lamps
that would be used on the inside to light up a room. This word
for lamps is used in the Bible as God's armies would go into
battle and into war. Judges 7, Nahum, verse 2. And what we see here is the Holy
Spirit blazing in fiery wrath. ready to erupt upon this world
in divine vengeance. This is a shocking picture. And
in Revelation chapter 6, the unfolding of this storm, we read
about it in chapter 6 verse 1. Then I saw when the Lamb broke
one of the seven seals. And I heard one of the four living
creatures saying, as with a loud voice, come, all of heaven saying,
bring it on, let it come. I looked, and behold, a white
horse, and he who sat upon it had a bow, and a crown was given
him, and he went out conquering and to conquer." And in successive
fashion in Revelation 6, we read of the seven seal judgments that
flash out from this brewing storm. And then in Revelation 8 and
9 are the seven trumpet judgments. And then in Revelation 16 are
the seven bowl judgments. And in staccato fashion, there
will come upon this world in the time of the Great Tribulation,
at the end of this age, war and famine, death, martyrdom, cosmic
disturbances, the sun becoming black, the moon like blood, the
stars falling, the sky splitting apart, every mountain and every
island moved upon the earth. on and on until finally at the
end of Revelation 16, the great earthquake of all earthquakes
that will split open cities upon the earth, and it is all coming
from the severity of God around His throne. Let us not kid ourselves
this morning. God is a God of holiness and
righteousness. Understand this, Every sin in
the history of the world will be directly and personally punished
by God. Every sin in your life, past,
present, and future, every sin of every human being who has
ever walked this planet will be personally and directly punished
by the holy, righteous God of heaven and earth. No sin will
ever be swept under the carpet. No sin will ever go unattended
by God, not one. If a judge ever knowingly and
willingly acquits the guilty, he becomes a participant in the
crime. If God ever looked over one sin, God would topple from
His throne of holiness and to cease to be the righteous God
of heaven and earth. Every sin will either be pardoned
in Christ or punished in hell, but every sin will be directly
dealt with by Almighty God. And right now in heaven, if you
and I were to be catapulted up into the throne room like John
was, we would see this throne standing and we would see the
splendor of His reign and the pomp of His majesty, but we would
also see the thunder and the lightning of the building wrath
of God ready to be poured out upon the earth. Jonathan Edwards says that this
is cause of great happiness for every believer. The wrath of
God is a cause of immense joy for every believer. It causes
us to treasure our salvation, does it not? It causes us to
glory that God will vindicate His name, does it not? It causes
us to rejoice that God will have the final say in history, does
it not? Do you know that around the throne
of God in Revelation 6, there are martyrs who are before the
throne of God and they are calling out imprecatory psalms to God,
saying, God, would You pour out Your wrath upon those who took
our blood? And God does not correct their
prayers as being improper, because they are glorified saints before
the throne of God, and the only response is, just a little while
longer, and I will avenge your blood. In Revelation chapter
19 we read of the hallelujah chorus, and He shall reign forever
and ever and ever and all of heaven bursting forth with greatest
happiness and greatest joy. And what is the cause of it? Because God has judged the whore
of Babylon and her smoke is bellowing up and God has vindicated His
glory and vindicated His righteousness and all of heaven is rejoicing
that God is pouring out His wrath upon the earth. The sovereignty of God, a throne
standing. the splendor of God, light, lower
thrones, the severity of God, flashing thunder and lightning. I want you to see, fourth, the
sinlessness of God. Revelation 4, beginning now in
verse 6, the sinlessness of God, the holiness of God. Oh, how we need to see this and
for our hearts to rejoice before the throne. And would you note
just the centrality of the throne? Literally, everything in heaven
is found in its proximity to the throne. Everything is either
on the throne, before the throne, over the throne, under the throne,
around the throne. Everything in heaven is measured
by its location to the throne. And before the throne, there
was something like a sea of glass-like crystal. You see, even in heaven
there is this separation of God from His creatures. There is
this sea of glass-like crystal that is surrounding the throne
of God, that is fencing off God, that is as a moat or a border
around the throne of God. That even in heaven, when we
are glorified, we are not like God. He remains a cut above us. He remains wholly other than
us. We're not one like Him. Even
in heaven as glorified saints, there still is this sea of glass
that surrounds the throne of God, that marks off God as God
in heaven. You won't be going up and high-fiving
God. You will be falling on your face
before Him. And in the center and around
the throne were four living creatures, literally four living ones. And
these are four angelic beings whose ministry is to be guardians
of the glory of God. No one proceeds without their
permission. And these four living ones are
no doubt cherubim mentioned in Ezekiel chapter 10. They were
the ones positioned in Genesis 3 after Adam and Eve were driven
out of the garden of paradise that they might not come back.
They are protectors and guardians of the glory of God. full of
eyes in front and behind, constant surveillance, looking around
in every direction, no one able to approach the throne without
their observation. They are supernatural. Look at
verse 7. One is like a lion, meaning strong
and serving God. The other is like a calf, meaning
sacrificial and tireless in serving God. The other is like a man,
meaning smart and intelligent in reasoning and serving God.
And the other is like an eagle, meaning swift and ready to serve
God, to carry out God's every command. Verse 8, and the four
living creatures, each one of them having six wings. We read
of this in Isaiah chapter 6 for the seraphim. With two they cover
their feet, signifying that they are unworthy to be before this
throne. It's like Moses taking off his
sandals because he stepped onto holy ground. These living ones
now, they cover their feet with two of their wings to signify
Unworthy, unworthy, unworthy we are to be in the presence
of Him who is infinitely holy. With two they cover their eyes
because they cannot look upon this blazing glory of God. And
with two they fly, sitting on ready to do whatever God would
indicate needs to be done to carry out His administration
throughout the universe. and full of eyes around and within. They are brilliant. They are
intelligent. They see, they know, they understand
with heightened sense of sensitivity. And day and night, they do not
cease to say, holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty. Holiness
is singled out of all of God's attributes. in this worship in
heaven. Holiness is the summation of
all that God is. It is the alpha and the omega
of all of the divine perfections bundled up in this theological
word of holiness. Holiness is God's utter and complete
separation from His creation. He is a cut above all of us,
holy other than, transcendent. He is majestic. He is separated
from all evil. He is sinless. He is pure. He
is without blemish. He is blameless. To put this
in the superlative degree, holy, holier, holiest. When we enter into the presence
of heaven washed in the blood of the Lamb, we will be holy. But only God is holy, holier,
holiest. 1 Samuel 2, there is no one holy
like the Lord. Exodus 15, God alone is majestic
in holiness. Psalm 47, 8, God sits on His
holy throne. Leviticus 11, verse 44, I am
the Lord your God, I am holy. This is what will strike us as
we enter into heaven. And it is a cause of great rejoicing
for us that God is utterly unlike this foul, polluted stream in
which we swim. God is unlike this corrupt cistern
out of which we drink day by day. that God is infinitely pure
and infinitely perfect in all of His ways and in His character. This alone is our God. And He says, they say, is the
Lord God the Almighty. Ponder that for a moment. The
Almighty. He is omnipotent. He has all
power. What little power you and I have
to do to pick up a coffee cup or to write something down is
a delegated power that has been given to us from the One who
is almighty and all-powerful. It is in Him that we live and
move and have our being. God alone is all-powerful. Was that good news for the Apostle
John at the end of the first century? that all of the chariots
and all of the military might of Rome is but nothing under
the one who is the Almighty? And even as we now in this moment
in history, as we turn on television, as we read the newspapers, and
we read of nations in an uproar and continents trembling and
rulers being raised and all of the chaos around us, What joy
and what happiness fills our hearts to know that our God is
the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to
come. The God who was means He is the
eternal God without beginning, uncaused, The initial cause of
which everything else is a subsequent effect. All things from Him and
through Him and to Him. He is the God who was, who is
the God who is. Presently now, unchanging, immutable,
forever the same, generation to generation, from everlasting
to everlasting, Thou art God. Unchanging forever. His Word
is unchanging. His judgments are unchanging.
His standard of holiness is unchanging. His plan for history is unchanging. Everything about God totally
different from us, sinless, separated, set apart. And finally, I want
you to note, He is supreme. the supremacy of God. In verse
9, this final aspect of this heavenly scene is this intense
exaltation of the supreme worthiness of God, every eye in heaven fixed
upon the one who is upon the throne, every knee bowing before
the one upon the throne, every tongue employed to give praise
to the one who is upon the throne, every line intersecting at the
throne of God above, none looking in another direction, none talking
about anything else, none absorbed in any other occupation, everyone
with preeminence focused upon the supremacy of God in heaven. To behold Him is to behold everything. So, verse 9, and when the living creatures,
referring to the four living runs, these four seraphim, probably
one on each of the four corners of the throne, guarding the glory
of God, protecting any who would approach the throne. And when
the four living ones, now remember, because they're right next to
the throne, they are seen as they are right before God. As
they give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the
throne, to Him who lives forever and ever, it is their worship
that sets off a chain reaction in heaven. There's a cause and
effect here. And as these perfect supernatural
beings now worship God and give glory and honor to God, That
causes what we see in verse 10. And it speaks to how when we
worship God, it has an effect on others who are around us.
And it stimulates and it provokes in a good way the worship of
others when we are intense in our worship towards God. When
we are lukewarm, we pull others down to our level. But when we
are zealous, we lift others up. Fire spreads and it becomes contagious. and the zeal of these four living
ones in verse 9. Their fire and their intensity,
and by the way, the word seraphim means the burning ones. They
are on fire for God. They are intense in their love
and devotion for God. They are zealous with single-mindedness
towards God. They are fervent in their praise
for God. That fire then spreads in heaven. And in verse 10, the 24 elders
in response fall down before Him. They fall down like cut
timber as they realize they are in the presence of Him who is
infinitely holy and absolutely sovereign. They fall down before
Him who sits on the throne. They lower themselves and prostrate
themselves before God. They must decrease. God must
increase, as they are before this One who alone is to be exalted,
who alone is to be magnified, who alone is high and lifted
up and supreme, and all others in heaven are flat on their face
before the throne of God. And this is what the redeemed
of the ages are crying out to God in verse 11, worthy are you. This word worthy was used in
the first century of the triumphant procession in Rome when the armies
of Rome would go to battle with a foreign nation and when they
would destroy another kingdom, it would be annexed into the
Roman Empire and all of the defeated soldiers would be captured and
Rome would have the spoils of victory. and they would proceed
back to Rome, and the word would go out far and wide that there
was this triumphant procession, and all of the citizens would
turn out, and they would line the streets, and the returning,
conquering armies of Rome, with their generals, with their standards,
with their banners raised high, They would march down the streets
of Rome until they would come to Caesar's throne and they would
be dragging their enemies behind them and their chariots would
be stuffed full of their triumphs of victory. And they would march
up to the throne of Caesar and they would say, worthy are you,
worthy are you, worthy are you. What we see here is a triumphant
procession. that is magnified infinitely
as the redeemed of all of the ages coming from the battlefields
of this world, marching before the throne of God behind the
blood-red banner of Jesus Christ, and marching up to the throne
of God with the seraphim around that throne, and we come marching
up to the throne of God, and we say to God, worthy are you,
worthy are you. our Lord and our God, to receive
glory and honor and power. All glory to God, all honor to
God, because all power belongs to God. And the evidence of the
power of God is what they say next, for you created all things. In the beginning, God spoke everything
into being out of nothing. He said, let there be light,
and there was light. Literally, galaxies came dripping
out of His fingertips as He spoke it and hurled it into existence
by His own sovereign will. And in heaven, this recognition
that You created all things and because of your will they existed
and were created. The free, absolute, unhindered,
unrivaled will of almighty God who but speaks and it comes to
pass, who makes bare his right arm and carries out his eternal
purposes, No, in heaven, there is no mistaken identity about
how great God is. In heaven, they understand in
small measure the reality of His sovereignty, His splendor,
His severity, His sinlessness, and His supremacy. And here we
have but a glimpse as that door is opened for us to peer through
and see what is invisible to us today, to see the administration
and the government of our God carrying forward His eternal
purposes. There could never be anyone or
anything ever greater that you could devote your life to and
serve than this great God of heaven and earth. Give all that
you are to Him. Serve Him with the entirety of
your life. Present your life as a living
and holy sacrifice to Him. Say to this awesome God, I will
go anywhere, I will do anything that You require. I will pay
any price. I will do it with anyone. Speak,
Lord, Your servant listens. And may we find our greatest
happiness now, and the happiness we derive by looking through
that door and beholding the awesome greatness and glory of our God. This is the greatest happiness
that will ever flood your heart and soul. to see and behold the
King upon His throne, and at His right hand, the Lord Jesus
Christ. Do you have never believed upon
Christ? I call you this moment to be
like these elders, to bow before Christ, to humble yourself before
the Lord Jesus and say, I am a sinner. I am in need of your
mercy and your forgiveness. I repent of my sins. I believe
upon Jesus Christ. Jesus said I am the way, the
truth and the life. No one comes to the father but
through me. And if you will believe upon
Christ. You will follow him in this life
and one day when you die or Christ returns. He will literally take
you by the hand and lead you before the throne of grace. And
He will present you to this one faultless, because you have been
washed in His blood. Whosoever shall call upon the
name of the Lord shall be saved." Let us pray. Father, what a scene this is
recorded for us in Scripture. Father, this is...it's another
world. This is so unlike the world in
which we live. And what makes heaven so different
is the one who is seated on the throne in heaven. He is so different
from us. He is so in charge. He is so
awesome. God, you are the one who was
and who is and who shall be forever. We bless you. your Son is holy,
your Spirit is holy, your Word is holy, your judgments are holy,
your ways are holy, your verdicts are holy, and your people are
becoming increasingly more and more holy. We long for that day
when we will be made fully holy in your presence and no longer
sin And even then, we will recognize that while we are holy, you alone
are holy, holy, holy. Within our hearts, we fall on
our face before you and are in shock and awe over the revelation
of yourself to us. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.