Podcast

Sermon Notes

Read Revelation 4-5

God The Father

Everything centers around God… every facet of life and the universe revolves around God! At the center of the universe, God is surrounded by Eternal Praise!

“The four living creatures…day and night never cease to say, ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!’” Revelation 4:8

“Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power…” Revelation 4:11

When we come together as the church in worship, what we are doing in this room is an earthly expression of a heavenly reality.

Judge Of Every Man

Revelation 4:5 says “from the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder.”

Yet amidst this portrayal of God as Judge, we see that He tempers His wrath and judgment with mercy. The rainbow around the throne resembles God’s promise to show patience and mercy to a fallen world filled with sinners who are, every single one, guilty of sin against Him.

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty” – Revelation 4:8

God Is Infinitely Timeless

He is “the one who was and is and is to come,” and He is “the one who lives forever and ever,” – Revelation 4:8-9

“Worthy to receive glory and honor and power…” – Revelation 4:11

Nothing can overpower His rule, and nothing can outlast His reign. He is supreme above all things. He is the sustainer of all things.

“saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll within and on the back, sealed with seven seals” – Revelation 5:1

God The Son

Chapter 4 highlights the scrolls containing God’s plans for the redemption and restoration of all creation, plans for the ultimate eradication of evil and the defeat of death in the world, plans for the final removal of sin and suffering and pain and persecution. This is the end to all world wars and physical diseases and natural disasters, the coming of God’s kingdom to man, and the re-creation of a new heaven and a new earth where God’s people will enjoy Him and reign with Him forever and ever.

“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.” -Revelation 5:5

Revelation 5 introduces God as The Son.

This conquering Messiah has come! “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” – John 1:29

The people of God were saved from the judgment of God under the banner of the blood of a lamb. This Lamb has endured death, and this Lamb has defeated death. This Lamb who bears the scars of death is ultimately sovereign over death. This is the greatest news in all the world: the slaughtered Lamb of God reigns as the sovereign Lord of all!

“…Obedient to death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” -Philippians 2:8-11

“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.” – Revelation 5:9

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive”—sevenfold, perfect praise in verse 12— “power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” (Rev. 5:12). There is no one like him.

God The Spirit He is omnipresent. He is omniscient. Nothing escapes His searching gaze. He is omnipotent. He has all power to enact judgment and to enable salvation.

His role in the Godhead is to exalt the Son.

The Point For Us…

The glory of God compels us to be SAVED.

The glory of God empowers us to escape temptation.

– Consider Jesus, who conquered sin and who now empowers you to conquer sin. This Jesus lives in you!

– So you and I refuse to compromise in light of the example of Christ, and we resist complacency in view of the excellency of Christ. How can we be complacent before God? How can we be apathetic, affection-less, self-reliant, or self-centered before this God?

The glory of God enables us to endure suffering.

– God is in control

– Our enemy has been conquered

He has “disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame by triumphing over them.”

– Colossians 2:15

The glory of God motivates us to accomplish the mission of God. There’s a mission to be accomplished here, based on this text. Jesus has purchased men and women for God from every tribe and every language and every people and every nation. And if we believe this, then we must work for the spread of the gospel to every tribe and every language and every people and every nation!