Revelation 4:8-11

And for the next three weeks, we're going to be looking at passages in Revelation where we read about worship taking place. And in this, our hope is that we don't just read about what worship is like, but that we are drawn to praise and worship God for the same reasons that we read about in these passages. So tonight we're looking at Revelation 4, verses 8 through 11. As Daniel said, this is on page 1030 of your Red Pew Bibles. In Revelation 4, John has entered into the throne room of God and he is recounting what he has witnessed. And in our passage, we see that everyone in the presence of God is so amazed by what they see that they are moved to praise him. So listen to what John sees in Revelation 4.

I'm gonna start at verse one. Follow along with me.

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. At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.

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. 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. From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. And before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of God. And before the throne there was, as it were, a sea of glass, like crystal.

And around the throne, on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind. The first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight. And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come. And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the 24 elders fall down before Him who is seated on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever. they cast their crowns before the throne, saying, worthy are you, 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.

Amazing, right? I mean, where do we begin? God's throne room, God himself in his beauty, majestic creatures, thrones surrounding the throne, What an incredible vision. And notice, everyone in this heavenly throne room has one reason for being there. They are there solely for the praise and worship of God as he sits on his throne. And for us, we are given this vision to read about so that we too can look upon God so that we can bow before him and give him all glory, honor, and praise that he rightfully deserves. So focusing in on these two songs that we see in verses 8 and 11, these two indented stanzas, we see that God is praised simply for who he is, for his character, his attributes, his being. When we look upon God, we witness someone who is truly and completely worthy of our overwhelming amazement and worship. And that's the main idea of what I'm hoping to share with us tonight. That we praise God for who he is because he is worthy of our worship.

God is holy and eternal

Look first at verse eight with me. I'll read it again quickly. It says,

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.

Well, this verse sounds familiar. That's because this is not the first time that we read this refrain in the Bible. No, this is almost exactly what the prophet Isaiah saw in God's throne room in Isaiah 6. Isaiah identified these creatures as seraphim or angels, each with six wings, each calling to one another,

holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. The whole earth is full of his glory.

In John's description here though, he adds an interesting detail. The creatures are full of eyes in front and behind. all around and within.

So no matter where they are, no matter what direction they are facing, they see God on His throne. And as they are constantly seeing God, they are constantly echoing the same refrain.

Day and night they never cease to say, holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty who was and is and is to come.

They never cease to sing this because God never ceases to be holy. God never ceases to exist. from every single vantage point imaginable. God is holy and eternal.

When we look upon God, we first and foremost see someone who is totally and utterly unique. He is above us. He is beyond us. He is most righteous and most pure. And he is most glorious. He is glorious in power, in might, in beauty, in majesty, in everything. Words cannot begin to comprehensively capture the complete uniqueness and transcendence of our God.

So his holiness in scripture is best articulated with this threefold repetition, holy, holy, holy. And God has always been holy, holy, holy. This is not something that he has had to achieve. This is not something that he had to train for or pass a test on. He was and is and will forever be holy, holy, holy. He is eternal.

Before the world began, before time and space began, God sat on his throne. holiness. And no matter what happens now, God will forever sit on his throne, reigning in complete holiness. Nothing can compare to God. Nothing can compete with God. There is nothing that can threaten God. No matter what has happened or is happening or will happen in this world, God will forever reign totally, sovereignly, and undisputedly.

God is worthy

And as these creatures see this and proclaim this, we see that the elders, they respond. They hear these creatures, they turn their attention toward the throne, and they are moved to action. They bow down in praise. and in worship. Look at verses 9 to 11 with me.

Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the 24 elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne saying, worthy are you, 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.

This is worship. As one commentator put it,

worship is ascribing worth-ship.

Or in other words, ascribing or attributing value. recognizing and declaring, not creating or adding, no. When we worship, we do not create something in someone or give to them something that they don't already have. Worship recognizes and declares what is already worthy. And here we see that God is worthy.

Worthy to receive our glory, worthy to receive our honor, worthy to receive our power, worthy to receive everything from us. So these elders, high and lifted up, sitting on thrones in heaven with crowns on their head with all their glory and all their honor and all of their power, they fall down. They lower themselves, humble themselves into a bow They cast their crowns before the Lord, and they proclaim that He alone is worthy to receive it all.

Because apart from God, they would be nothing, and they would have nothing, just like us. Apart from God's will, we would have no breath in our lungs, and we would have no strength in our bones. Apart from God's will, we would have no roof over our heads or food on our tables. We would have none of the amazing things that we talked about at the beginning of this devotional, and we would have no salvation.

The glory of our salvation

But we have all of this and so much more because God created it and willed it to be so. In eternity past, As God sat on his throne in holiness and power and glory, God willed for you to come into this world and to come into his kingdom. He willed to love you and save you from your sin through the death and resurrection of his Son. And he willed that his Holy Spirit would create a new life in you, an eternal life. A life in heaven with Him. A life that would see Him clearly forever and always in all His holiness and glory.

The glory of our salvation. The power of our salvation. Everything about our salvation. It's all because the holy and almighty God willed it to happen. And in response, We bow down like these elders. We cast ourselves before him and give him all glory, all honor, and all our worshipful praise. He is worthy. Let's pray.

Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come. 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.

Lord, amaze us and create in us an overwhelming sense of your holiness and your glory and your grace. May this be our prayer and our song and our praise all of our days, now and forevermore. Amen.