Family Life Church - Sermon 8-1-99
Some people think of Heaven as being a place where we sit around on clouds, wearing wings and strumming harps for eternity. Some actually claim to have visited Heaven!
John MacArthur records the account of Dr. Richard Eby who reported, on a Christian TV network, that he died and experienced "paradise." He claims the aroma of heaven was especially overwhelming with the sweet smell of sacrifices. He said the human brain has 12 cranial nerves and that those 12 nerves represent the 12 tribes of Israel. He explained that the primary nerve in God's cranium is the sense of smell. Eby learned that the whole purpose of sacrifices was to send a sweet aroma up to heaven to satisfy God's cranial nerve. As Dr. Eby went on, the talk-show host kept saying, "Marvelous! Wonderful! Oh, this is meaty." MacArthur critically commented, "In regard to the 12 cranial nerves representing the 12 tribes of Israel, it would be just about as reasonable to say that because you have 2 eyes, they represent the 2 witnesses of Rev. 11. I checked with a medical doctor on the 12 cranial nerves and found that actually there are 12 pairs, which makes 24. Perhaps, then, it would be better to say they correspond to the 24 elders mentioned in Rev. 4!"
This morning we will look at Rev. 4, and hear from someone who actually did go to Heaven and who tried his best to tell us, in Scripture, what he saw. The Apostle John got a vision of God's Throne.
Over the past few months, we've studied through the first 3 chapters of Revelation. Remember, there is a divine outline given of the book in....
Rev. 1:19 "Write therefore the things which you have seen [chap. 1], and the things which are [chap. 2-3, the 7 messages to the 7 churches - the church age], and the things which shall take place after these things. [Chap. 4-22, the future].
Remember those 3 words, "after these things." (Greek: meta tauta) Because those are the words that start out Rev. Chap. 4...the 3rd section of the divine outline of this book. Look at vs. 1....
Rev. 4:1 After these things [meta tauta] I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had 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 [meta tauta]."
"After" refers to the things written in Chapters 2 & 3 (the Church age, which we currently live in). So, from Chap. 4 to the end of the book, it records the things "what must take place after these things." In other words, in the future - there are some things which "must" happen according to God's plan.
In a sense, Chap. 4 is a preview of what it will be like when we're raptured and taken to Heaven. A sneak peak of the worship we will give to the Lord when we are physically in His presence!
John says he saw "a door standing open in heaven." This reminds us of Ezekiel's vision....
Ezek. 1:1....the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God.
To really understand chapter 4, you need to read Ezekiel 1 and Isaiah 6, because those 2 prophets describe their visions of Heaven, and some similar things to John's vision in Rev. 4.
John had an open door to be able to see heaven. Vs. 1 also says John heard a voice: "the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet." That's the resounding voice of Jesus, which John first heard back in Chap. 1 when He saw the vision of the glorified Christ....
Rev. 1:10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet,
The "trumpet" appears again in both of the 2 famous N.T. Rapture passages (1 Thess. 4; 1 Cor. 15).
1 Thess. 4:16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first.
1 Thess. 4:17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord.
1 Cor. 15:51 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1 Cor. 15:52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.
Here, in Rev. 4:1, Jesus tells him, "Come up here!" That phrase appears only here & in Chap. 11 where God's 2 end-times witnesses will be killed and left in the streets, but then God raises them up alive in view of the whole world (perhaps watching on TV or the Internet)....
Rev. 11:12 And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here." And they went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies beheld them.
The 2 witnesses will hear Jesus' resounding ("come up here") voice and be raptured in the midst of the tribulation, just like the church will be raptured at the beginning of it.
The word "church" (lit. "called out ones") is mentioned 19 times in the 1st three chapters of Rev. The last mention of "church" is in 3:22, then it appears only 1 more time, at the end, in Rev. 22:16, as a summary statement.
J. Vernon McGee said about Chap. 4, "From here on you will not find the word church mentioned....Now the church goes off the air-there is no mention of it. It has gone off the air because it went up in the air; it was caught up in the air to meet the Lord in the air."
So, the absence of the church during the Tribulation period (chap. 4-19) is a strong argument for a pre-tribulational rapture. But rather than start controversies, let's see what John saw, in his vision of the Throne Room of God in Rev. Chap. 4. First of all, He saw, in vss. 2-3....
I. The Throne (1-3)
Rev. 4:2 Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne.
Rev. 4:3 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.
John was "in the Spirit." He was in some kind of trance-like state where he could see this incredible vision. Whether his body was still on Patmos and only his spirit traveled up through the door into heaven, or if his whole being went there, we don't know. We just know he saw the Throne of God.
His vision was similar to the experience of the prophet Isaiah in....
Is. 6:1 In the year of King Uzziah's death, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple.
In John's vision of Heaven, He saw "the throne." The word "throne" appears 45 times in Revelation, 13 times in this chapter. 11 times referring to the throne of God, which it says, "was standing in heaven" - meaning God's sovereign kingship and control stands fixed and permanent. He rules the heavens and the earth - eternally.
Ps. 47:8 God reigns over the nations, God sits on His holy throne.
As J. Vernon McGee said, "The general headquarters of this universe is in heaven, not in Washington D.C., or London or Moscow or any other place down here."
In vs. 3, John describes "He who was sitting" on the throne. But, He doesn't attempt to describe His form (like a man or animal). He only says what he sees. And what he sees are lights and colors.
He describes His vision of God as comparing to "a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance." Later in Revelation (21:11) it says a jasper stone was clear as crystal. So, perhaps it was more like a diamond, reflecting the red colored sardius and the colors of the emerald rainbow.
John said in vs. 3 that "there was a rainbow around the throne, like an emerald in appearance." So, green was the dominant color of the rainbow that encircled the throne. The rainbow itself was a reminder which God gave of His faithfulness (Gen. 9).
The prophet Ezekiel also saw a rainbow in his vision of the glory of God....
Ezek. 1:28 As the appearance of the rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the surrounding radiance. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord....
The Bible says God is light, and He radiantly reflects beautiful colors in John's vision. Again, John was just trying to describe the indescribable. It was obviously quite spectacular and beautiful.
Well, that's the throne of God. Next John sees a throng of living beings in the throne room....
II. The Throng (4-8)
A. Around the Throne (4)
Rev. 4:4 And 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.
1. Twenty-four elders
The Greek word for elders is presbuteros. The word Presbyterian comes from it. A little girl came home from Sunday School and her mother asked her what she learned. She said, "we talked about Heaven today." Her mom asked, "what did you learn about heaven?" "The teacher said that there will only be 24 Presbyterians there."
Most evangelical commentators recognize these 24 elders in Rev. 4 as representing the church - all those redeemed by Christ during the church-age. Some scholars include O.T. believers, saying that the 24 are made up of the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 apostles.
But it seems that what John sees is a representation of redeemed humans, encircling the throne. In his vision, the 24 elders each sit upon thrones. That represents the fact that the church (not angels) will co-reign with Christ, as promised throughout Scripture....
Rev. 3:21 [Christ's offer to the church in Laodicea was] 'He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.
Rev. 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given to them....
The 24 elders around the throne in Rev. 4:4 are clothed in....
2. White Garments
White garments are the uniform of the saints in Heaven. They are emblematic of righteousness. Jesus told the faithful believers in Sardis....
Rev. 3:4-5 '...they will walk with Me in white; for they are worthy. He who overcomes shall thus be clothed in white garments;'....
Besides the white garments, the 24 elders are wearing....
3. Golden Crowns
The word used here refers to the wreath given to the victor of the Greek athletic games. It is the same word used in the New Testament a number of times to refer to a reward for faithful service.
1 Cor. 9:25 And everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath [same Greek word], but we an imperishable.
No Christian will get their crown until the Apostle Paul receives his crown of righteousness....
2 Tim. 4:8 in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.
"On that day" refers to the day of Christ, when He returns to rapture His people and they appear before the Bema seat judgment to receive their rewards.
At the end of Revelation, Jesus tells us....
Rev. 22:12 "Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done.
So, we all receive our rewards, our crowns, on the Day of Christ.
The 24 elder's golden crowns represent the rewards Christians will have in Heaven. As we'll see, the crowns have a purpose, they'll be used to worship God.
So, around the throne are the 24 elders. The first part of vs. 5 tells us what came....
B. Out of the Throne (5a)
Rev. 4:5a And from the throne proceed flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder....
These storm warnings, that come out of the throne, are repeated throughout the book of Revelation. They have to do with God's judgment which He is about to pour out on the earth and its inhabitants (chap. 6-19). If you've ever been in a real lightning storm, it is a frightening thing. You can imagine John's reaction to seeing lightning and thunder come out "from the throne" of God! Terrifying!
Around the throne were the elders, out of the throne came storm warnings, and before the throne there were a couple of things, shown in the 2nd part of vs. 5....
C. Before the Throne (5b-6a)
1. Seven Spirits (5b)
Rev. 4:5b ....And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God;
The "seven Spirits of God" (as we said when we looked at the same phrase in Chap. 1) refers to the Holy Spirit. Isa. 11 discusses 7 attributes of the Holy Spirit. Since 7 means completeness or fullness, the 7 lamps in Rev. 4:5 are the manifestation of the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
In Ezekiel's vision, he seemed to see the lamps of fire and the lightning as well....
Ezek. 1:13 In the midst of the living beings there was something that looked like burning coals of fire, like torches darting back and forth among the living beings. The fire was bright, and lightning was flashing from the fire.
The Holy Spirit was before the Throne of God the Father, and also before the Throne was a....
2. Sea of Glass (6a)
Rev. 4:6a and before the throne there was, as it were, a sea of glass like crystal;....
The "sea" is probably metaphorical since Rev. 21:1 says there is no sea in heaven. Apparently it was a vast pavement of glass, shining brilliantly like crystal. This was the floor of the throne room.
This was similar to what Moses, Aaron and the elders of Israel saw in....
Ex. 24:10...they saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself.
Around the throne were the elders, out of the throne came storm warnings, before the throne was the Seven Spirits of God and the Sea of Glass. Then there were some strange creatures....
D. In and Around the Throne (6b-8)
Rev. 4:6b ....and in the center and around the throne, four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind.
Rev. 4:7 And 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.
Rev. 4:8 And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; 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."
Vs. 6 says these 4 living creatures were "in the center and around the throne." This means that their station is in the inner circle nearest the throne. Some commentators think the 4 actually support God's throne, that it rests upon them.
What were these living creatures? Ezekiel described 4 "living beings" in his vision in Ezekiel 1, calling them "cherubim" (Ezek. 10). Cherubim are not little fat, naked babies with miniwings that fly around and shoot people with love arrows. Cherubim are an exalted order of angels frequently associated in Scripture with God's holy power. Ps. 80 & 99 say God dwells between the cherubim.
John said, in vs. 7, one of the living creatures was like a lion, another like a calf, another with the face of a man, and the 4th was like a flying eagle. Some say these represent God the Father's or Christ's characteristics. Others say they represent the characteristics of the cherubim themselves.
(Lion = strength; calf = service; man - rational, personal; flying eagle = swift in obedience).
Ezekiel's vision saw the same thing, but he noticed that all 4 of them had all 4 characteristics....
Ezek. 1:10 As for the form of their faces, each had the face of a man, all four had the face of a lion on the right and the face of a bull on the left, and all four had the face of an eagle.
Rev. 4:8 says the living creatures "are full of eyes around and within." This would indicate their alertness and awareness. Ezekiel 10:12 also says the cherubim "were completely full of eyes."....
Vs. 8 also says the 4 living creatures each had "six wings." They are similar, if not the same, as the Seraphim, a class of angels that Isaiah saw in his vision of Heaven (some commentators believe seraphim and cherubim are the same)....
Is. 6:2 Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings; with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.
In Isaiah's vision, the 6 wings had purposes: 2 to cover his face (showing reverence for God); 2 to cover his feet (humbleness because they are standing on holy ground); and 2 to fly (showing their readiness to obey God's any command).
This should influence our worship of God as well. We should show reverence to God, humbly recognizing we are in His holy presence, with an attitude of submission and obedience.
These 4 living creatures have the express purpose of praising God all day and night long. Vs. 8 says they never cease praising God.
The praise phrase of the living creatures in Rev. 4:8 is, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty." It is the same as the Seraphim in Isaiah's vision....
Is. 6:3 And one called out to another and said, "Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory."
The praise in Revelation 4:8 is for 3 things about God: His holiness ("holy, holy, holy"), His power ("the Almighty", literally "all-ruler") and His eternality ("who was and who is and who is to come.")
When we worship God, we can focus on the same attributes. That He is absolutely holy (apart from sin, perfectly pure). That He is omnipotent (all-powerful, nothing is difficult for Him). And that He is the eternal One (He has always and will always exist as sovereign Ruler of the Universe).
That's the Throng, in the presence of God on the Throne. Vss. 9-11 show us....
III. The Theme (9-11)
Rev. 4:9 And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever,
The theme of Chapter 4 is worship. That's what happens in the Throne Room of God. The living creatures (possibly angels) worship God constantly. They "give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever." Glory and honor have to do with Who God is. Thanks is offered for what God does.
But, not only do the living creatures praise and worship God, we (the church, i.e. born-again believers) will do the same thing when we're raptured to heaven....
Rev. 4:10 the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
Rev. 4:11 "Worthy art Thou, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for Thou didst create all things, and because of Thy will they existed, and were created."
The church, represented by the 24 elders in John's vision, will rise from our thrones and prostrate ourselves in worship before God. This is the first of 6 times in Rev., it records the 24 elders prostrating themselves before God (5:8, 14; 7:11; 11:16: 19:4). One day we will worship like that.
We will "cast their crowns before the throne," showing that we recognize everything we have, everything we accomplish, is a result of God's grace, and that He alone is worthy of honor and glory.
The first phrase in vs. 11, "Worthy are Thou," is what worship is all about. To "worship" means to "ascribe worth." Our current word came from the word, "worth-ship". When we worship God, we are saying, "God, you are worthy of my praise and adoration. You are worth worshipping!"
Vs. 11 says that God is worthy "to receive" 3 things: "glory and honor and power." "Glory" means to be praised, to be recognized as glorious. "Honor" means to be honored, to be adored. "Power" means to be recognized as having absolute, infinite power.
Why is God worthy of our worship? Vs. 11 says, "for Thou didst create all things, and because of Thy will they existed, and were created." In other words, we worship Him because He created us and this world and everything for His own will and purpose.
Pr 16:4 The LORD has made everything for its own purpose, Even the wicked for the day of evil.
The reason the universe exists has nothing to do with evolution or big explosions in space or whatever. It exists because God had a desire to create it....for His purpose.
And we are part of His creation and therefore should worship Him for His wonderful works. We praise Him for including us in His plan and purpose. We worship Him for Who He is and for what He does. The theme of Rev. 4 is that the Almighty God, Who sits on the throne in Heaven, is worthy of our worship!
J. Vernon McGee comments on the importance of worship: "If you find worship boring down here and you are not interested in worshipping the Lord Jesus and expressing your heart's desire to Him, why in the world do you want to go to heaven? We are going to spend a lot of time up there worshipping Him."
What a scene! What an exciting preview of our future in Heaven! Let's look at a couple of quick application points for our lives today....
IV. Today's Application
Heb. 4:16 Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need.
Too many times, we take prayer lightly, casually. What a privilege to be able to approach the "throne of grace" to find help from the Holy, Almighty God Who is seated there! Christian, you have access to the "holy of holies," through Christ. When you pray, when you worship....recognize where you are - in the presence of Almighty God!
Rev. 1:1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants, the things which must shortly take place;....
Don't just read about the future,....
Rev. Chap. 5 tells how the 24 elders and the 4 living creatures sing a new song to Jesus....
Rev. 5:9 And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy art Thou ...for Thou wast slain, and didst purchase for God with Thy blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.
If you haven't already done so, respond to God's love by receiving Jesus Christ as your Savior.
So, with the vision of Rev. 4 in mind, let's practice for Heaven
right now. (You might even bow down, or prostrate yourself like
the 24 elders). Let's rehearse for the day when we will be near
God's throne....worshipping the Almighty!