Introduction

Rev 4:1-11 ESV  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.  (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.  (4)  Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads.  (5)  From the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of God,  (6)  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:  (7)  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.  (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!”  (9)  And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever,  (10)  the twenty-four 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,  (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.”

Well we have now made it through the seven letters to the seven churches in the book of Revelation.

And we are now going to start getting into some of the heavy stuff of revelation.

Some of the stuff that some Christians find frightening.

Some of the stuff that some Christians think is way to confusing, symbolic, or hard to understand.

Some of the stuff that maybe even some of you think can only be understood by biblical scholars and theologians.

So it is at this point that I want to remind you of who wrote this book, the Book of revelation, and what his purpose was in writing the book of revelation.

You see this book was written by the apostle John, sometimes called Saint John.

John was in the Spirit some Sunday afternoon, as he was living out his last days on the island of Patmos which he had been banished to.

So he is on the island and he is probably worshiping or praying… and all of the sudden he goes into a state which he calls “Being in the spirit”.

Meaning he was at a point where he was so close with God that his spirit was in control, the things of the earth, the cares of the world faded away, and he was just there with God.

I know this to be the case because it has happened to me, and pray that all of you will have times in the spirit.

So while John is in the spirit Jesus talks to him…

Revelation 1:10-11 ESV  I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet  (11)  saying, “Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”

• Jesus says “Write everything you see down in a book” and John did, and this became the book of Revelation.
  • Therefore, hear this as it is so important when reading the book of Revelation and even scholars and theologians miss this, John is NOT the author of revelation.
  • GOD is the author of revelation. Jesus is the author of Revelation.
    • We know that all Scripture is God breathed, it is all His word, but people forget this from time to time.
  • I love this example: If Revelation where a movie… John would not be the director, he would not be a writer, he would not be a producer, he would be the CAMERA.
    • His job is to record what he sees and hears so that others can see and hear the same thing.
    • His job is to RECORD, and that’s it. Simply record everything he sees and hears, much like a camera on a movie set.
      • The camera doesn’t care what it is recording, no matter how wild, it doesn’t try to make sense of it, it doesn’t try to add it’s own spin to things… all it does is record.
• And if that is the case, if John is the camera, then what are we? Well, we are the audience.
• Now if you are the audience, I want to give you a pro tip… you can enjoy something without understanding every single symbolic, theological, or poetic meaning. You can still enjoy it.
  • For example: How many of you know the story of Allice in Wonderland?
    • Maybe you have read it or watched the Disney cartoon?
    • Great movie right…? The original Disney movie got a 7.4 on IMBDB which is a phenomenal score, it is considered one of the greatest cartoons of all time!
    • LOVE THAT MOVIE… did you know it’s about calculus?
      • It was written by a mathematician in 1865, the author was a well respect algebra professor named Charlse Dodgson  who wrote under the Pseudonym Lewis Carroll.
      • Charles loved Algebra and geometry and trigonometry… But then this new thing had come up called Calculus… and Charles HATED IT.
      • He thought it was SO STUPID. He thought it was Ludacris…
        • Maybe if you took calculus in school you know how he feels.
      • In calculus you can use variables in equations that change size as you approach a number.
      • In calculus you can have lines on graphs that disappear at one point and reappear at another. But the line on the graph is never really gone, but it kind of is…
      • In calculus you can model 3d images, but you need 4 variables to do so, height, width, depth… and a 4^th one they call time. Without the 4^th variable you simply chart out an infinitely rotating 2d object.
    • And Charles thought all of this so stupid that he wrote a book about what life would be like if the rules of physics where based on Calculus…
      • So in Alice in wonderland, you have doors that… as you approach them you change in size.
      • You have a cat that disappears and reappears.
      • You have a dinner table that spins endlessly in a circle because no one has time…
      • EVERY LITTLE DETAIL IN ALLICE IN WONDERLAND HAS A MATHAMATICAL MEANING AND COMENTARY, it was all designed to insult calculus as a math form.
  • But I bet a lot of you did not know that… I bet a lot of you had no idea Allice in Wonderland was about math.
    • Here is the kicker: Even though you did not know the depths of the meaning and symbolism, YOU STILL ENJOYED THE MOVIE.
• I don’t know why people think they need to understand every single speck of Revelations symbolism to be able to read it and enjoy it.
  • LISTEN: GOD MADE YOU! He knows what you are going to be able to understand and not understand… and HE STILL want’s you to read Revelation!
    • So what if you don’t understand what the creatures covered in eyes with multiple faces represent…
    • So what if you don’t know who the 24 elders all or what they represent… THEOLOGIANS CAN’T EVEN AGREE ON IT.
    • So what if you can’t grasp every single concept and every symbol and every reference.
    • John recorded what he saw, so just enjoy the show! Let God reveal to you what He will reveal, and keep moving forward letting the Holy Spirit be your guide…
    • Don’t be afraid or overwhelmed…

Revelation 1:3 ESV  Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.

• It says blessed is the one who reads it and blessed is the one who hears… NOT BLESSED IS THE ONE WHO UNDERSTNADS EVERY SINGLE SPEC.
  • I am not saying don’t study, you should study, you should dive in… all I am saying is “Don’t be afraid, this was written for you… enjoy the ride” amen?!
• With that said we are going to go over all of Chapter 4 this morning, and I am not going to dive deep into who the creatures are or who the elders are… instead when I read this passage one thing is made VERY clear to me…

GOD. IS. AWESOME!

God is awesome! I don’t need to know all the references and symbolism in this story to realize that GOD IS AWESOME.

That’s the theme I get from this… GOD IS AWESOME.

Point One – God is Beautiful, Magnificent, Powerful, Royal, Glorious, Exalted… God is AWESOME!

Revelation 4:2-6 ESV  At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.  (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.  (4)  Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads.  (5)  From the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of God,  (6)  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:

• Look, we have this AMAZING image that John is recording of the actual throne room of God.
  • We are getting a glimpse into heaven… into God’s heavenly throne.
  • And John is recording all he sees so we can see it too…
    • But we get so caught up in “What does this represent” and “Who are those guys” and “what is the theology of being covered in eyes” or whatever that we miss the beauty of the sin being painted by John.
    • Can’t we just for a moment take a step back… look at what John is describing… what John is seeing, and say “WOW! GOD IS AWEOMSE!”
• First we see that God is sitting on a throne:

Revelation 4:2 ESV  At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.

• Who sits on a throne? A KING! GOD IS ROYAL! GOD IS POWERFUL. He the head of the Royal family in which we were adopted into.
  • He judges the nations. He rules. He sits enthroned. HE HOLDS THE POWER TO RULE THE NATIONS!

Psalms 47:7-8 ESV  For God is the King of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm!  (8)  God reigns over the nations; God sits on his holy throne.

Psalms 82:8 ESV  Arise, O God, judge the earth; for you shall inherit all the nations!

1 Timothy 1:17 ESV  [God is] the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

• Not only is God a king… but look, surrounding God as He sits on His throne are 24 thrones, with Elders sitting on them, all crowned with golden crowns.
  • In other words, these elders have a very kingly appearance don’t they, yet they are submitted to God… why?
  • Because God is not just any ordinary King… GOD IS THE KING OF KINGS!

Revelation 19:16 ESV  On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

• But not only is God the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the Royal Judge of all the earth… But he is beautiful, Magnificent and glorious.

Revelation 4:3 ESV  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.

• Jasper is a beautiful red stone that honestly can sometimes look scarlet like blood. It is marbled and smooth and radiant.
• Carnelian is also a radiant red stone, but it is translucent, it allows light in and it glows and shines.
  • So God is beautiful, scarlet red, radiant and glorious, shinning brightly.
    • Radiating glory around Him.
• Then you have this rainbow… and I love that God choses to wrap Himself in a rainbow, because the rainbow is a sign of God’s grace and mercy.

Genesis 9:12-15 ESV  And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations:  (13)  I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.  (14)  When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds,  (15)  I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh. And the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh.

• Literally God CREATED THE RAINBOW as a sign of His covenant of mercy with us. And that is what surrounds Him in heaven.
  • And not just any rainbow, but an emerald rainbow.
  • Emerald is a bright green precious stone, a gem that when you put light into it just DAZELS.
    • This is the kind of Rainbow surrounding God. Because He is glorious and beautiful and magnificent.
• I love the way Psalm 104 puts it:

Psalms 104:1-2 ESV  Bless the LORD, O my soul! O LORD my God, you are very great! You are clothed with splendor and majesty,  (2)  covering yourself with light as with a garment, stretching out the heavens like a tent.

• And we see from all this awesomeness that God is exalted.
  • He is lifted high, He is praised…
  • That’s what we see these four living creatures doing… that’s what we see the 24 elders doing…
• God is Beautiful, Magnificent, Powerful, Royal, Glorious, Exalted… God is AWESOME! And because God is awesome, He is worthy of our praise!
• That’s our second point this morning: God’s awesomeness should demand our praise!

Point Two – God’s Awesomeness Should Demand Our Praise

Revelation 4:8-11 ESV  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!”  (9)  And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever,  (10)  the twenty-four 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,  (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.”

• Listen church, the attitude of heaven is an attitude of Praise.
• God is awesome… that means we should be in AWE of Him.
• And because God is Awesome we ought to praise Him.
• That’s what the 24 elders do.
• That’s what the four living creatures do… day an night they praise God saying “HOLY HOLY HOLY, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”.
• You know some people praise God for really dumb reasons.
• They praise God because they want something from Him.
• They praise God because they like the way it feels.
• They praise God because well that is just what everyone else is doing.
• Why are these dumb reasons? LET ME TELL YOU…
• Don’t praise God because you want something from Him.
• Yes God inhabits the praises of His people, and yes sometimes God responds to praise by blessing those who bless Him.
• But it’s not a good reason to praise… why? Because sometimes God doesn’t bless you the way you think you should be blessed.
• Sometimes God doesn’t show up the way you think He should show up… so what then?
• If you are praising to receive then you are going to stop praising…
• Not only is your praise self centered, because you are doing it for you, but it is fickle and fragile and temporary.
• If you are praising God because you like the way it feels you are no better off.
• Sure it feels good to praise… We were created to praise and we feel good doing what we were created to do…
• But our feelings are liars! Jeremiah 17:9 tells us our heart is deceitful and wicked and desperately sick. WE SHOULDN’T TRUST IT.
• Because we may feel down one day… does that mean we shouldn’t praise God…
• I love the Job example… he was worse off than any of us will ever be, I hope, and he still praised God:

Job 1:21 ESV  And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.”

• And of course… we shouldn’t praise God because everyone else is doing it…
  • Because there will come a day. And maybe that day is already here, when everyone else isn’t doing it… And I don’t want to be a part of that in crowd.
• No… that is not why we should praise God… why then should we praise God?
  • We should praise God because He is good.
  • We should praise God because He is merciful.
  • We should praise God because He is just.
  • We should praise God because He is powerful.
  • We should praise God because He is righteous.
  • We should praise God because He is love.
  • We should praise God because HE. IS. AWESOME.

Psalms 145:1-7 ESV   A Song of Praise. Of David. I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever.  (2)  Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever.  (3)  Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable.  (4)  One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts.  (5)  On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.  (6)  They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds, and I will declare your greatness.  (7)  They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

• Would you stand up with me… let’s get the worship team up here… stand with me and turn to psalm 150. Let’s read the whole psalm

Psalms 150:1-6 ESV  Praise the LORD! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens!  (2)  Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness!  (3)  Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp!  (4)  Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe!  (5)  Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals!  (6)  Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!

• If you don’t like praising God… if singing and dancing and pouring out to the Father makes you uncomfortable…
  • Then you need to cry out to Him right now… you need to sacrifice your pride… and cry out that God would change you to enjoy singing His praise.
  • Because if you don’t like praising God then I don’t think you are going to like heaven…
    • Because that is what we are going to be doing.
• If GOD BEING AWESOME is not enough for you to praise Him, then you cry out right now that He would change your heart… and then you sing, sing with us as we praise God, and go crazy like you never have before…
  • And it may hurt the first time… it may be uncomfortable… but that’s ok… that’s why as Hebrews 13 says… it’s a SACRIFICE OF PRAISE.

Hebrews 13:15 ESV  Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.

It’s a sacrifice y’all. So let’s offer up a sacrifice of praise right now.

Conclusion