Revelation 6:12-14 (ESV)
12 When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood, 13 and the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale. 14 The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.
The scene that John saw when the sixth seal on the scroll of God was opened was utterly terrifying. The entire created order shook. The earth quaked. The sun went black. The moon shone blood red. The stars fell from the sky. Even the sky itself rolled up like a scroll. The mountains trembled and fled. The islands were displaced.
I can’t describe this. Mankind has never imagined the horror of a scene like this. It does not matter how many movies Hollywood produces, they will never come close to depicting this kind of heart-stopping horror and world-crumbling destruction. This is the Day of the Lord, and nobody has ever seen anything like it.
How will a lost world, a world that has rejected God, respond on this day? How will the strong ruler and the weak peasant react when God finally decides enough is enough and that his justice will be done forever?
Revelation 6:15-17 (ESV)
15 Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, 16 calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, 17 for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”
How will the world react? When the world sees the coming of our Lord to his earth, they will cry out in terror. Rich or poor, small or great, it really does not matter. They will beg for boulders to fall on them and crush them. They will beg for the seas to swallow them up. They would rather be buried alive under a mountain than to see the dreadful face of the Lord God returning to earth in justice and wrath.
The question that the lost ask in the final verse of this chapter is the question that we should seriously consider: “Who can stand?” Who can stand before the Lord? Who can stand when he decides to do justice? Can you stand? Do you think, in the light of a blood red moon and falling stars and trembling mountains that you can boldly stand before God and challenge him? Do you think you can make excuses to him on that day for why you ignored his commands, treated people with cruelty, lived for your lusts, and found entertainment in the things he says he hates?
Let me share with you very simply that nobody who stands on their own will be able to stand on that day. All people have sinned before God. All of us deserve his judgment. If you face God on the day we just read about, and if you do not have an advocate to shield you from God’s wrath, you will be doomed forever. You will go to hell and never finish paying the price for your sins against the holy God whose wrath we see here.
But there is hope. Who can stand? The person who has been cleansed by the blood of Jesus can stand. The child of God can stand. The one who has been forgiven can stand. The one who knows that Jesus was punished in his place can stand. The one who turned from her sins and asked Jesus to save her soul can stand.
None of us is good in ourselves. Certainly none of us is good enough to stand before God on our own. He is holy. We cannot be holy alone. But Jesus, God’s Son, came to earth to make the only way for anybody to be right with God. Jesus died for the sins of all who will ever trust in him. He rose from the grave, proving that anybody who comes to him in faith will truly be able to stand before God. If you will confess your sins and turn from them, if you will trust in Jesus and ask him to save your soul, he will clothe you in his righteousness, forgive you of your sins, and make you able to stand before the Lord.
Giving as a Privilege (1 Chronicles 29:6-ff)
1 Chronicles 29-6-ff
6 Then the leaders of fathers’ houses made their freewill offerings, as did also the leaders of the tribes, the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and the officers over the king’s work… 9 Then the people rejoiced because they had given willingly, for with a whole heart they had offered freely to the Lord. David the king also rejoiced greatly.
10 Therefore David blessed the Lord in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “… 14 “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you.
Giving can be such a sticky subject. Christians can get a little funny when the topic of finances comes up. This is especially true if they have something they don’t like about the local church or a project that the ministry is undertaking.
But look at the scene in 1 Chronicles 29. David and the people of Israel gave to provide for the building of the temple. Notice, especially, that when they gave, they then praised God, thanking him for allowing them the privilege of giving. David and the rest of the people knew what it would do us well to remember. God does not need us or our financial assistance. For God to allow us to financially give for the growth of his kingdom is him being kind to us, not the other way round.
When you give, do you begrudge the gift? Do you wish you didn’t “have to” give? If so, there is a problem in your heart. We do not give because we have to. Instead, we give because God has honored us by allowing us to join him in his kingdom work.
Prayers and Praise (Revelation 5:8-10)
Revelation 5:8-10
8 And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. 9 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 ransomed people for God
from every tribe and language and people and nation,
10 and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God,
and they shall reign on the earth.”
When the Lamb took the scroll, the creatures in heaven fell down and worshipped him. Take note, by the way, that Jesus is worshipped in heaven. Only God is worthy of worship. This, as much as anywhere else, proves that Jesus is truly God and certainly not lower.
The elders have harps and bowls. The harps tell us that they praise and worship Jesus in song. The bowls represent the prayers of God’s children.
Song’s and prayers are ways to worship God. WE sing of God, his glory and might. We sing of who he is and what he has done. WE sing old and new songs, because God is worthy of both.
WE also pray to worship Jesus. Prayer is one way that you can clearly and honestly portray that you are lower and God is higher, that you are weaker and God is stronger. When you pray, you show that you are dependent on God, that you trust him, that you cannot accomplish anything without him. Do you offer God this worship regularly?
The people in heaven praise Jesus because he is the one who is worthy to take the scroll and open its seals. Jesus is the one who is worthy and able to accomplish all that God has planned from before the dawn of time. Jesus was able to accomplish God’s plan through his identity as the Son of God and through his death and resurrection. Jesus is worthy of all our praise. He is worthy of all our lives.
The Lion/Lamb (Revelation 5:5-7)
Revelation 5:5
And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”
One of the elders in heaven said to John that he did not have to weep. No, there was hope. The Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, this one had conquered. Who is this person? It is God’s promised one. It is the one that we saw promised in Genesis 49 and Isaiah 11. It is the Messiah.
In the Old Testament, the people were looking for a strong lion, a conquering king, to come and fulfill God’s promises. They were looking for a military marvel to conquer the world, put down the rebellious nations, and set up the throne of David’s kingdom forever. Here, as John observes the unfolding of God’s eternal plan, the elder tells John that this plan will be accomplished. God’s plan will not fail. The Messiah, the Christ, the promised one, he has conquered. He is the Lion of Judah and the descendant of David. He has done what no angel and no man could have ever done.
Revelation 5:6-7
6 And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7 And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne.
John looks, his eyes searching for this powerful, conquering lion. He sees a lamb; not just any lamb, a lamb that had been slain. This was not just a slain lamb, it was a slain lamb who was standing again. What a mystery.
Our God does what nobody could have ever dreamed. Instead of sending a conquering king to put down the nations, God sent his very own Son, God in flesh, to rescue the nations. Instead of conquering by his might, God’s Son, the Lord Jesus, laid down his life like a sacrificial lamb. Nobody saw this coming, even though God promised it through his prophets.
Isaiah 53:5 (ESV)
But he was wounded for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his stripes we are healed.
Yes, God would accomplish his will, but not by first conquering with power. Jesus went to the cross and took upon himself the guilt for all of the sins of all of the people who would ever become children of God. Now, instead of a physical nation of Israel conquering the world through military power as the Old Testament Jews expected, God was building a spiritual nation of his very own children from every nation on the face of the earth. Jesus did far more than anybody had ever imagined possible, but he did so through his death and resurrection.
Jesus died to pay for the sins of all who would believe in him. Jesus rose to life again, proving that he had totally conquered death and the grave. He, even in his resurrection body, still bears the marks of the cross—John could see the Lamb had been slain. Yet he stands victorious. Jesus is alive. His work is done. He has conquered the sin of humanity by his sacrifice. All praise be to this glorious Savior.
Hate Evil? (Psalm 97:10)
Psalm 97:10
O you who love the Lord, hate evil!
He preserves the lives of his saints;
he delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
It’s funny how, in one verse, we can find things that we love and things that we often ignore. WE love the last two lines of the above verse. We love God providing for and taking care of us. But we are not overly fond of the command to hate evil. That’s so radical. That’s so, well, intolerant.
God commands his followers to actually hate evil. That does not mean that we play with evil. That does not mean that we enjoy just a little evil every now and again. That does not mean that we look at evil and say that we wouldn’t’ do it that way, but to each his own. No, we are actually supposed to have a hard-core heart reaction to evil. We are to hate it.
How does this happen? Does God want us to become angry-faced and cranky all the time? Does he want us to become hunters of all that is imperfect so that we can walk around with a permanent scowl? I know people who seem to have that scowl permanently etched on their faces, who are always looking at seemingly everything, shaking their heads, and saying, “Isn’t that terrible.” (In fact, some of those folks like to read my blog regularly to see if they can catch me saying something that they can use against me—bless their hearts.)
No, God is not telling us to go look for evil so that we can hate it. But God is telling us that, when we see or experience evil, we are to hate it. The way to do this is not to practice on evil. Instead, the way to do this is to more deeply love our God. You see, when we love God, we will learn to react against that which opposes and dishonors him. Just as my wife reacts with deep emotion when somebody is cruel or harsh toward me, the Christian who loves his God will have natural and strong emotion against that which dishonors the Lord. We hate evil by loving God more and more. As we love God more and more, we will naturally stand against what is ungodly.
Worthy Creator (Revelation 4:11)
Revelation 4:11
“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.”
As the elders bow before the throne of God, they break into song just as the living creatures did before them. They declare that God is worthy to receive all good things. God is worthy of glory and honor and power. Why is God worthy of these things? He made all things. He decided, before time began, what he would make. He created all things by his will, by his power, and for his glory. He made all. He owns all. All things that exist owe to God their full allegiance.
Stop and take a moment to remember that you own nothing. Not even your own soul is your own. You were created by God. Your body belongs to God. Your money, your possessions, your emotions, your talents, your time, they all belong to God. He is worthy of all you are and all you have. Give him the praise he deserves.
Christians, once we gain an understanding of the God who is on the throne, we bow to that God and worship him. He is over all creatures. He is holy. He is Almighty. He is eternal. He is over all authorities. He is the Creator who is worthy of worship. Sing his praise. Offer him all that you have and all that you are.
If you do not know this God, you need to. He is glorious. He is majestic. He is holy. He is beautiful. Worshipping him will give you a joy that is beyond anything you can imagine. He made you. He has the right to do anything he wants with you. He offers you mercy and forgiveness for your sins. He only requires that you trust in Jesus, turning away from your sins, and he will make you into his child.
Thrice Holy (Revelation 4:8b)
Revelation 4:8b
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!”
The creatures around God’s throne are not static. No, they are in motion. They are active. Finally, John tells us what they are up to.
Those four creatures in the center, around God’s throne, they have a job to do. Day and night, on and on, forever and ever, these four creatures never stop declaring the glory and majesty of God. Clearly, this is what they were created to do.
When these creatures talk about God, they declare him to be “holy, holy, holy.” God’s holiness tells us that he is perfect, flawless, pure. It also tells us that he is set apart from us, different than us. We are imperfect. We are sinful. We are flawed. God is none of these things. He is as much greater than us as the sky is higher than the earth. This is the God we worship. And when they say that God is holy three times, they are exalting his holiness to the highest possible degree. It is as if they are writing down, “God is holy,” and then underlining it, highlighting it, and following it up with exclamation points.
These creatures call God the Lord God Almighty. His power is limitless. They call him the one who was, who is, and who is to come. God is eternal. He has no beginning. He has no ending. He always is. We worship this eternal God.
Terrifying Worship (Revelation 4:5a)
Revelation 4:5a
From the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder,
When God delivered the Ten Commandments to Moses on mount Sinai, the people of Israel were totally terrified. The mountain smoked and shook. Thunder, lightning, and rumblings reminded the onlookers that the God of the Bible is not a God to trifle with. He is dangerous. He is deadly. His holiness will destroy the sinful.
Here, as john looks at the throne, he lets us know that god has not changed. Whether in the Old Testament or the New, God is still holy. His holiness is still deadly and terrifying. He is still not a God to trifle with. He is still a God we approach with the utmost of reverence.
There is, of course, room in our worship for joyful celebration. Such is present all through Scripture. But, and this is important, the closer we get to the actual glory of God, the more we tremble. There must be reverence and not casualness in our worship. We dare not be flippant about coming before our God. He is far too powerful and far too holy for that.
Beautiful God (Revelation 4:3)
Revelation 4:3
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.
When John tells us about the one who sits on the throne, about the Lord himself, he uses very vague imagery. John does nothing to help us try to get a physical picture of God. Nobody can describe the infinite beauty of our Lord. It would dishonor God for John to try. So John does the best he can with likenesses.
John calls to mind three precious stones to depict God and his throne, jasper, Carnelian, and emerald. Countless commentaries have come up with countless explanations of what these stones symbolize. Sadly, they are often quite different. These stones all come in a variety of colors. They are all used in the breast piece of the high priest from the old Testament. They are all found in the walls of the new Jerusalem in chapter 21. The rainbow, we learn from Genesis, is the symbol of God’s promise of mercy for his children even when he judges.
What are we supposed to see as we think of what John says here in verse 3? God is beautiful and valuable. That is all we can say for sure. His worth is infinite. His loveliness is magnificent. The colors, the hues, the glory, they are simply too much for human words.
When we worship our God, we should remember that we are in the presence of the most beautiful being in existence. There is no end to the wonder and worth of our God. To glimpse him is to glimpse the most breathtaking colors, the most stunning sight, the most aw-inspiring picture.
The Centrality of the Throne (Revelation 4:1-2)
Revelation 4:1-2
1 After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” 2 At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.
One might think that, after hearing and seeing the risen Lord Jesus and taking dictation from him, there would be nothing more spectacular that could occur. However, to think this is to underestimate the Lord we serve. Our God is infinite in his wonder and majesty. There will never be an end to the joys and glories that those who know him will experience. And John was by no means at the end of his glorious experience.
After John finishes writing the seven letters to the seven churches, he hears a resounding voice. Back in chapter one, John heard the voice of Jesus which reminded him of a trumpet. That voice was loud, clear, and commanding. Now, here in chapter 4, the voice of Jesus rings out again.
This time, Jesus calls John to “Come up here.” He promises that, when John follows him, he will learn what must soon take place. But the future is not at hand in this chapter.
John looks to the sky, and he sees a door standing open in heaven. John tells us that he was “in the Spirit,” a phrase which seems to accompany the transitions between the major visions of this book. John was filled with God’s Holy Spirit and made ready to receive the revelation of God.
Then John is caught up through that door and taken into heaven. Did he go physically or was he just having a vision? There is just no way for us to know. Whether in his body or out, John is transported out of the sphere of this world and into the very throne room of God.
Now, take careful note of what John first describes. When John enters heaven, there is something that demands his attention, his focus. There is something that catches his eye and, for a moment, completely consumes his imagination. John sees the throne of God.
Remember, of course, that this is a vision. We cannot begin to imagine what it really looked like. God does not need a chair. He is spirit. He does not get tired and need a seat for a rest. But, whatever it is that John’s Spirit-filled eyes take in, it is clearly the place where God reigns.
Right here is the first key to worship. See the Lord God on his throne. God is enthroned. God is in charge, in command, the ruler of all. Worship centers on God. Worship centers on his authority and majesty. If we miss this fact, we miss worship.
