WEBVTT 00:00:00.220 --> 00:00:04.350 I'm going to invite you this morning to Revelation, chapter four is where we're at together today. 00:00:04.940 --> 00:00:07.470 If you want to know the rest of the announcements, you're going to have to check those out on your own. 00:00:07.520 --> 00:00:14.620 But I want to dive into Revelation chapter four as we get ready to move into a new a 00:00:14.620 --> 00:00:16.760 new place in the book of Revelation. 00:00:16.880 --> 00:00:24.000 If you remember in chapter one, verse 18 and 19, in Revelation, it 00:00:24.000 --> 00:00:29.300 tells us in that book that Revelation is written really in under two categories. 00:00:29.480 --> 00:00:33.920 One is what is, what is, and then what is to come, right? 00:00:33.920 --> 00:00:40.520 In Revelation, the first three chapters is dealing with what is in chapter four on is dealing with what is to come. 00:00:40.640 --> 00:00:47.640 I want you to know, as we get ready to dive into this chapter today, I want to I want to do a little bit more teaching than so much as preaching, just so we 00:00:47.640 --> 00:00:54.970 can get familiar with what apocalyptic literature is, because Revelation chapter two and three, you kind of get a break from apocalyptic 00:00:55.660 --> 00:00:57.520 literature as we're dealing with what is. 00:00:57.840 --> 00:01:03.200 And then in chapter four, you move into more of what an apocalyptic style of literature is like. 00:01:03.360 --> 00:01:10.500 And I told you when you read this book, people go off the rails in reading this book because they fail to hold what theologians 00:01:10.500 --> 00:01:17.600 would say is a consistent hermeneutic throughout the book, which is kind of a nerdy way of saying they don't apply the same interpretation rules 00:01:17.600 --> 00:01:20.940 throughout the entire book, and that's what gets you into danger. 00:01:21.460 --> 00:01:28.540 And what I mean is, oftentimes when we read the Bible, we are quick to jump to conclusions on 00:01:28.540 --> 00:01:29.390 application. 00:01:29.580 --> 00:01:32.620 We'll read a passage and we'll immediately want to make some application. 00:01:33.280 --> 00:01:37.440 And that's easier to do in certain literary genres than others, right? 00:01:37.480 --> 00:01:44.960 When you're reading an epistle, sometimes it's easier just to jump straight to the application, but you miss something when you just jump 00:01:44.960 --> 00:01:48.160 to application without first doing proper interpretation. 00:01:48.460 --> 00:01:55.520 And that is anytime a book of the Bible is written, it was always written to the people there and then before it was written to us in the here and now. 00:01:55.540 --> 00:01:57.360 Even when you deal with an epistle, right. 00:01:57.360 --> 00:02:04.380 The letters of the New Testament when the epistles are being written, let's say, for example, an epistle like one that the Apostle Paul wrote, the 00:02:04.380 --> 00:02:08.820 Apostle Paul, when he writes an epistle, is dealing with a problem in the early church. 00:02:08.900 --> 00:02:15.980 Typically he's usually addressing a problem, and it's not until you understand the issue at hand that you can fully understand and appreciate what 00:02:15.980 --> 00:02:20.060 Paul is saying in the letter, and then make proper application to your life, right? 00:02:20.060 --> 00:02:24.320 So dealing with the there and then becomes important as you make the application to the here and now. 00:02:24.440 --> 00:02:26.310 Now the beauty of God's Word is that it's timeless. 00:02:26.480 --> 00:02:29.920 So it's relevant for God's people throughout all time periods. 00:02:29.920 --> 00:02:30.360 Right. 00:02:30.380 --> 00:02:36.060 And when you get to the book of Revelation, this is especially true now Revelation is known as apocalyptic literature. 00:02:36.060 --> 00:02:43.140 And the place that you get in danger when you jump to application before interpretation is we typically when we go off the 00:02:43.140 --> 00:02:50.200 rails, when we read Revelation and we try to relate it to something in the 21st century without understanding how a Jewish mind would 00:02:50.200 --> 00:02:51.930 understand it in the first century. 00:02:52.700 --> 00:02:57.900 And when you read Revelation, what's important to do is keep a consistent hermeneutic throughout the book. 00:02:57.940 --> 00:03:04.720 And what typically happens is people will read Revelation and see something that might relate to the 21st century and make that application. 00:03:04.720 --> 00:03:07.320 Then they'll read another part and they'll think, that sounds crazy. 00:03:07.320 --> 00:03:09.410 I have no idea what that means, and just kind of leave that alone. 00:03:10.120 --> 00:03:17.180 And what's important is if you decide the book of Revelation is to be taken literally in every verse, or the book of Revelation should be taken 00:03:17.180 --> 00:03:17.630 literally. 00:03:18.020 --> 00:03:19.760 You need to apply that to every verse. 00:03:19.800 --> 00:03:23.420 And if you think it needs to be taken figuratively, you need to figure out how that works for every verse. 00:03:23.860 --> 00:03:25.310 And when you get in, you get in danger. 00:03:25.380 --> 00:03:28.410 When you start jumping back and forth between figurative and literal. 00:03:28.460 --> 00:03:30.760 Oh, this one's literal, but all that one's not literal. 00:03:30.920 --> 00:03:32.710 And then it leads you to all sorts of weird conclusions. 00:03:32.800 --> 00:03:33.640 Right. 00:03:33.900 --> 00:03:41.080 And so this morning, I want us to walk through the book of Revelation, and I want us to see how apocalyptic literature lays itself 00:03:41.080 --> 00:03:46.550 out for us, because this book has been relevant for God's church throughout all time. 00:03:46.800 --> 00:03:46.820 Right. 00:03:46.900 --> 00:03:48.800 And so what does this mean for us today? 00:03:48.800 --> 00:03:51.010 It was written to the people there and then at the first century. 00:03:51.460 --> 00:03:52.880 But what does it mean for us today? 00:03:53.400 --> 00:03:54.740 And if you remember chapter two. 00:03:54.740 --> 00:03:58.350 Chapter three, we looked at the seven churches of the Book of Revelation was written to. 00:03:58.460 --> 00:04:02.750 And in those seven churches we recognize God picked seven churches, because seven is the number of completeness. 00:04:03.720 --> 00:04:06.990 And those seven churches represent all of God's people throughout history. 00:04:07.560 --> 00:04:10.940 So this is all of God's churches kind of represented from these seven churches. 00:04:11.080 --> 00:04:14.230 And when we read about these seven churches, let me just remind you some of the things that we learned. 00:04:14.720 --> 00:04:17.190 Church of Ephesus I'm going to give you one point from each church. 00:04:17.920 --> 00:04:20.260 Ephesus was a church that left their first love. 00:04:20.420 --> 00:04:22.560 Revelation 2:4. 00:04:22.780 --> 00:04:26.860 Smyrna was the church was about to be killed for their faith. 00:04:27.340 --> 00:04:29.320 Revelation 2:10. 00:04:29.820 --> 00:04:32.560 Pergamum was tempted by false teaching. 00:04:32.560 --> 00:04:34.880 Revelation 2:14. 00:04:35.100 --> 00:04:41.460 Thyatira was tolerating false teaching and sexual sexual immorality, Revelation 2:20. 00:04:41.540 --> 00:04:44.530 Sardis, this church was dead on the inside. 00:04:44.940 --> 00:04:48.360 Philadelphia was being persecuted in Revelation 3. 00:04:48.520 --> 00:04:52.540 Laodicea was a lukewarm church in Revelation 3:16. 00:04:52.680 --> 00:04:56.040 And the question is, you read all of these churches and you see the different places they're at. 00:04:56.040 --> 00:04:56.950 You kind of get to this place. 00:04:57.000 --> 00:04:58.360 You say, okay, so what? 00:04:59.280 --> 00:05:00.600 What does this mean for me? 00:05:00.600 --> 00:05:01.580 What does it mean for them? 00:05:01.580 --> 00:05:02.840 How in the world do you move forward? 00:05:03.020 --> 00:05:10.220 Like God kind of peeled back the curtain on the state of all these churches and gave us a little diary entry of things that were going well for the churches, things 00:05:10.220 --> 00:05:12.980 that weren't, and encouraging them to follow him. 00:05:13.120 --> 00:05:17.300 But as they got to the conclusion of each of those churches, we should be asking ourselves, what does that mean for us? 00:05:17.760 --> 00:05:25.540 And maybe more specifically, in light of challenges we might experience in life, because he's dealing with a first century church that's facing persecution. 00:05:25.620 --> 00:05:25.780 So. 00:05:26.000 --> 00:05:27.900 So what do we do in light of all of that? 00:05:29.160 --> 00:05:32.930 It reminds me of a story in the book of Exodus. 00:05:33.860 --> 00:05:34.980 Exodus chapter 33. 00:05:34.980 --> 00:05:41.980 In fact, when Moses was called to lead the children of Israel, if you know anything about the life of Moses and Moses for 00:05:41.980 --> 00:05:48.980 40 years spent his life growing up under Pharaoh's authority in Pharaoh's household, he was raised like 00:05:48.980 --> 00:05:54.670 royalty, and one day he sees an Egyptian soldier attacking his own people, the Jewish people. 00:05:54.980 --> 00:05:59.490 Even though he was adopted into Pharaoh's family, he sees an Egyptian soldier attacking his own people. 00:05:59.960 --> 00:06:04.420 He rises up against this Egyptian soldier and strikes that soldier down and kills him. 00:06:04.980 --> 00:06:06.280 And Pharaoh finds out. 00:06:06.280 --> 00:06:12.820 And Moses, when he realizes Pharaoh knows, he runs and goes into hiding, and he spends the next 40 years of his life as a shepherd. 00:06:13.300 --> 00:06:18.180 At 80 years old, he's called to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt as slaves. 00:06:18.700 --> 00:06:20.920 And there's all these miraculous events that take place. 00:06:21.320 --> 00:06:28.620 But here, when you get to Exodus 33, Moses finds himself now in a position where he needs to move forward with the Hebrew 00:06:28.620 --> 00:06:29.420 people. 00:06:29.620 --> 00:06:31.030 They've been set free from slavery. 00:06:31.620 --> 00:06:33.240 And now he's got to guide him. 00:06:34.080 --> 00:06:38.990 And in that position, you might wonder if you were Moses, what would you do? 00:06:40.100 --> 00:06:42.980 Or maybe more specifically, what would you ask of God? 00:06:43.940 --> 00:06:47.860 And God took you back to Egypt to set the Hebrew people free. 00:06:47.860 --> 00:06:52.110 And now you've got to transition into that new place in life, leading them forward. 00:06:52.460 --> 00:06:54.960 What would you do and what would you ask of God? 00:06:55.460 --> 00:06:57.580 You can think from Moses's past. 00:06:57.580 --> 00:06:59.040 He's experienced the good life. 00:06:59.040 --> 00:07:06.140 Maybe he could say to God, okay, now that we've defeated Pharaoh and his army, God, why don't you just send us back to Egypt and I'll 00:07:06.140 --> 00:07:07.720 just take control of that? 00:07:07.780 --> 00:07:11.520 And I'll just live, as my life was in the first 40 years. 00:07:11.560 --> 00:07:13.220 Or as he thinks about moving forward. 00:07:13.280 --> 00:07:13.420 Okay. 00:07:13.520 --> 00:07:15.680 God, we've gotten through all the hard stuff now. 00:07:15.680 --> 00:07:17.060 Make everything easy. 00:07:17.080 --> 00:07:17.580 Right? 00:07:17.640 --> 00:07:20.860 Why don't you give me a kingdom to rule? 00:07:20.860 --> 00:07:25.900 You know, a nice little castle and some of these Hebrew people can serve me. 00:07:25.920 --> 00:07:29.960 And, we can lead them into to better things, but make my life comfortable again. 00:07:29.960 --> 00:07:31.100 Maybe that would be his prayer. 00:07:31.800 --> 00:07:36.700 You know, it's interesting when you look in Exodus chapter 33, what Moses actually asks God for. 00:07:37.560 --> 00:07:45.200 It says in Exodus 33 verse 15 and he said to him, if your presence will not go with me, do 00:07:45.200 --> 00:07:46.960 not bring us up from here. 00:07:47.960 --> 00:07:53.200 And in verse 18 he says this to the Lord, Please show me your glory. 00:07:55.300 --> 00:07:57.260 God, please show me your glory. 00:07:58.260 --> 00:08:05.420 In fact, Moses's prayer when you're seeing this is not about what he can get as far as an earthly monetary gain, but 00:08:05.420 --> 00:08:09.700 realizing that the greatest prize he could ever have is the presence of God wherever he goes. 00:08:10.480 --> 00:08:15.460 And recognizing the greatness of this God as he continues to move forward. 00:08:17.060 --> 00:08:24.440 And so Moses's prayer for the Lord is not this creature comfort in an earthly sense, but 00:08:24.440 --> 00:08:29.820 to be sober minded, to the recognition of God in his life? 00:08:31.220 --> 00:08:33.580 God, I don't want to go anywhere unless it be with you. 00:08:34.400 --> 00:08:37.860 And I want all of my days to be marked really by the glory of who you are. 00:08:38.620 --> 00:08:40.909 God, show me your glory. 00:08:41.960 --> 00:08:47.910 And when you when you dive into the book of Revelation, especially as you get to chapter four, this is exactly what God is saying to the church. 00:08:49.140 --> 00:08:51.840 He's dealing with the greatness of God's glory. 00:08:53.000 --> 00:08:54.360 Let me just be honest. 00:08:54.380 --> 00:09:01.560 When we come to a chapter like this, the understanding of this is paramount to what you do as a believer in this world, 00:09:01.640 --> 00:09:09.320 that in light of anything that could carry weight in your life, that the glory of God would be preeminent, that 00:09:09.320 --> 00:09:13.300 you would realize the sacredness of what it is to know God. 00:09:14.000 --> 00:09:16.940 That God would even want to reveal himself to you. 00:09:17.660 --> 00:09:21.910 And in revealing himself what you begin to discover, you're going to see in Revelation four and Revelation five. 00:09:22.400 --> 00:09:29.500 Revelation four is dealing with his glory, but it's showing you in Revelation five how tangible it becomes to the point that he's willing to die for 00:09:29.500 --> 00:09:29.720 you. 00:09:30.900 --> 00:09:32.980 And God goes to the cross for you and for me. 00:09:34.040 --> 00:09:41.160 And when we begin to let that take priority in our lives, the ability to know the creator 00:09:41.160 --> 00:09:48.260 of all things and the weight of his glory, that would take precedent on me, then that is what leads us 00:09:48.260 --> 00:09:49.620 to do great things for God. 00:09:50.880 --> 00:09:57.110 That not only that God can be made known, but he was made known in such a personal way to the point he became flesh and gave his life for me. 00:09:57.660 --> 00:10:04.760 In fact, when you look throughout the Bible, even in the church history, the thing that compelled God's people to 00:10:04.760 --> 00:10:12.260 move forward is a glimpse at the greatness of who this God was and how personal this God became, that we could know 00:10:12.260 --> 00:10:15.300 him and live for him in this world. 00:10:16.260 --> 00:10:21.480 That glorious God desires to connect to us. 00:10:21.620 --> 00:10:29.120 And when you look at Revelation four, it's reminding us that as our hearts might be restless in the struggle of life, 00:10:29.160 --> 00:10:33.370 the King is not in doubt and his kingdom is not in jeopardy. 00:10:34.140 --> 00:10:40.600 And so as we look at this chapter, this we're going to talk about is two steps everyone should take in troubled times. 00:10:40.620 --> 00:10:43.570 In fact, I would say it's more than just simply two steps. 00:10:44.380 --> 00:10:46.380 It's two places to plant your feet. 00:10:47.200 --> 00:10:48.540 No matter where you go in life. 00:10:49.400 --> 00:10:56.460 If you could just plant your feet on these two foundations, this will guide you no matter what the circumstances are, where God 00:10:56.460 --> 00:10:57.120 might lead you. 00:10:57.120 --> 00:11:00.780 And this is exactly what Moses is praying in Exodus 33. 00:11:01.520 --> 00:11:02.640 God, show me your glory. 00:11:02.760 --> 00:11:09.860 I want to recognize that no matter what I'm going through in life, that despite the circumstance, the one sustaining thing that will 00:11:09.860 --> 00:11:14.760 carry me through it all is not circumstantial in this world, but rather it's you, God. 00:11:15.740 --> 00:11:22.740 God, help me be sober to the gift that it is to know you and all of your power and 00:11:22.740 --> 00:11:23.240 authority. 00:11:24.400 --> 00:11:30.620 And so these are these are two places to plant ourselves as we think about moving forward as God's people. 00:11:30.620 --> 00:11:31.780 And so let me give you point number one. 00:11:31.780 --> 00:11:34.100 The first place we plant ourselves is this. 00:11:34.320 --> 00:11:38.020 We've said this already is to focus on God's glory. 00:11:39.640 --> 00:11:42.780 To focus on God's glory. 00:11:42.880 --> 00:11:50.180 Our composure as believers should reflect God's posture and condition in heaven. 00:11:51.540 --> 00:11:58.540 Meaning, if we're following a God today who was worried about the future, 00:11:59.300 --> 00:12:02.720 then we should be in a bit of panic ourselves, right? 00:12:02.720 --> 00:12:09.780 Like if you were to ever look at God and one of the authors of the New Testament was like, hold on a second, I feel this divine revelation 00:12:09.780 --> 00:12:12.720 of God's throne room. 00:12:12.880 --> 00:12:16.950 And then they started articulating to you, God is really worried about tomorrow. 00:12:17.220 --> 00:12:21.940 Like that should that should probably send us all into a panic, right? 00:12:21.940 --> 00:12:29.180 But if we get this picture of God in this posture of peace and in stability and control, 00:12:29.860 --> 00:12:35.750 it helps soothe and calm the heart no matter the circumstances you're going through, because you know, the one that you're trusting in. 00:12:36.240 --> 00:12:43.600 So we should sort of take our posture, our composure from the one that we're following who is in control of all things. 00:12:43.920 --> 00:12:51.240 What I'm saying is Revelation chapter four is written for those whose inner inner spirit animal is a Chihuahua, right? 00:12:51.240 --> 00:12:56.060 Like, you know the you know how a Chihuahua responds to everything, right? 00:12:56.060 --> 00:12:58.440 Like it's just they're just in full panic all the time, right? 00:12:58.540 --> 00:13:05.680 That's this is what Revelation four is that your heart would be calmed with the glory of who God is, and then that you would let that 00:13:05.680 --> 00:13:08.900 lead you, not the circumstances of the world around you. 00:13:09.700 --> 00:13:15.980 In fact, when you read Revelation chapter four, when we're getting into the part of this is what's to come. 00:13:16.460 --> 00:13:23.620 I think what's important to know as you read Revelation chapter four is really Revelation four is pulling back the curtain to show the posture of 00:13:23.620 --> 00:13:25.390 God throughout all of eternity. 00:13:25.900 --> 00:13:32.900 This is not so much a passage of time sequence as it is the authority of his presence made known in to his 00:13:32.900 --> 00:13:34.360 people throughout all of time. 00:13:35.700 --> 00:13:35.880 Right? 00:13:35.880 --> 00:13:43.120 So it's helping our heart be calm next to a God who is in control and recognizing that this God 00:13:43.120 --> 00:13:45.400 wants to reveal his glory to you. 00:13:46.900 --> 00:13:50.460 And so Revelation chapter four, verse one, we should dive into. 00:13:50.460 --> 00:13:50.880 It says this. 00:13:51.720 --> 00:13:58.760 After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the voice which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, 00:13:59.120 --> 00:14:02.880 come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this. 00:14:03.460 --> 00:14:04.840 And at once I was in the spirit. 00:14:04.900 --> 00:14:10.730 And behold, a throne stood in heaven with one seated on the throne. 00:14:11.500 --> 00:14:18.150 When you when you see this picture as John starts to describe it for us, here's something important I want you to know about this. 00:14:18.600 --> 00:14:25.640 sometimes there will become popular in our culture today, a story that someone has written where someone's 00:14:25.640 --> 00:14:27.110 had this near-death experience. 00:14:27.160 --> 00:14:29.300 They died, but they didn't really die. 00:14:29.380 --> 00:14:30.890 They ended up coming back to life. 00:14:31.400 --> 00:14:35.000 But in those moments that no one really knows where they were. 00:14:35.280 --> 00:14:41.000 Somewhere between heaven and earth, in this spiritual state, they saw a vision, right? 00:14:41.000 --> 00:14:42.870 And then they write a book and it becomes a bestseller. 00:14:43.360 --> 00:14:46.860 And they tell you what heaven's going to be like, and it goes on and on, right? 00:14:46.900 --> 00:14:54.820 I'm not going to tell you those things aren't true, but what I want you to see in this, in this passage in Revelation four, is 00:14:54.820 --> 00:14:59.400 very similar to what Isaiah writes in Isaiah chapter six. 00:14:59.620 --> 00:15:06.520 It's very similar to what Ezekiel writes in Ezekiel chapter one, and even what Moses records in Exodus 19. 00:15:06.620 --> 00:15:14.520 Each of those passages they're describing for us coming into the celestial presence of God. 00:15:14.620 --> 00:15:21.780 And with every one of these experiences that are written for us in Scripture, the focal point of all of it is 00:15:21.780 --> 00:15:24.700 the throne room of God, right? 00:15:24.700 --> 00:15:31.720 And you know, when you read other stories about people going to heaven and what their experiences are like, you can decide whether they're true or not. 00:15:31.780 --> 00:15:39.140 But I often find the description they give is very different than what you find in the Old and New Testament, that 00:15:39.140 --> 00:15:41.000 any any eternity. 00:15:41.000 --> 00:15:47.200 What is described more than anything else by far, is just being in the presence of God before his throne. 00:15:47.240 --> 00:15:49.580 In fact, in Revelation chapter four. 00:15:50.000 --> 00:15:57.080 The word throne is mentioned 14 times, and you see everything that's described in heaven pointing to this throne, because 00:15:57.080 --> 00:15:58.740 the throne is the focal piece. 00:15:59.860 --> 00:16:04.560 It goes on throughout the Book of Revelation and mentions the idea of throne over 25 times in this book. 00:16:04.860 --> 00:16:08.020 But John is saying to us, he's caught up before the throne of God. 00:16:08.060 --> 00:16:11.880 In fact, he uses this caught up as being caught up with a trumpet. 00:16:12.460 --> 00:16:15.260 And we could use this word, he's being raptured, right? 00:16:15.260 --> 00:16:18.280 He's being taken up into God's presence. 00:16:18.340 --> 00:16:21.260 Now, let me just say this, and I need to say this and move on. 00:16:21.260 --> 00:16:26.240 For some of you that have been raised in certain Christian traditions, you might be familiar with the idea of a rapture. 00:16:26.800 --> 00:16:26.940 Right? 00:16:26.940 --> 00:16:34.020 And there's this belief that Jesus is going to return and before his second coming, that the God's people 00:16:34.020 --> 00:16:35.890 will be raptured into his presence. 00:16:35.940 --> 00:16:36.620 Right? 00:16:36.660 --> 00:16:38.410 And Jesus will bring his judgment. 00:16:38.900 --> 00:16:41.010 And we'll look at some of this throughout the book of Revelation. 00:16:41.440 --> 00:16:46.530 But people will come to Revelation four and say, okay, if you believe in a rapture, the God's people are going to be called up. 00:16:46.580 --> 00:16:47.470 This is where it happens. 00:16:48.400 --> 00:16:50.310 And they give you a couple reasons for it. 00:16:50.340 --> 00:16:50.940 Okay. 00:16:51.140 --> 00:16:54.360 And let me just say it's worth considering, okay. 00:16:54.360 --> 00:16:56.920 Whether you think it's true or not, it's worth considering. 00:16:57.440 --> 00:16:58.640 And here's why. 00:16:58.980 --> 00:17:00.400 First, there's this trumpet sound. 00:17:00.880 --> 00:17:07.920 And when God's people are quote raptured, if you read in first Thessalonians verse four or chapter four, verses 13 to 00:17:07.920 --> 00:17:13.579 18, there is this picture of the sound of a trumpet, and God's people are called up into God's presence. 00:17:13.660 --> 00:17:13.760 Right. 00:17:13.760 --> 00:17:14.420 They're raptured. 00:17:15.180 --> 00:17:21.300 And then in first Corinthians chapter 15, verse 52, it tells us everything will change in the twinkling of an eye. 00:17:21.300 --> 00:17:22.510 The sound of a trumpet. 00:17:23.300 --> 00:17:23.359 Right. 00:17:23.420 --> 00:17:27.500 And so it carries this idea that we could be raptured into God's presence. 00:17:27.540 --> 00:17:29.280 And then and then they'll go on and say this. 00:17:29.320 --> 00:17:33.080 And the reason, the rapture takes place here, and this is where I think it gets dangerous. 00:17:34.260 --> 00:17:37.480 They'll say, well, if you read the first three chapters of Revelation. 00:17:37.800 --> 00:17:39.800 It talks about the church, the church, the church. 00:17:40.720 --> 00:17:45.060 And then when you read from Revelation chapter four and on, it never mentions the word church again. 00:17:46.320 --> 00:17:53.700 And so the reason for that is because here in chapter four, the first couple of verses, the church has been raptured and which I would say maybe 00:17:53.700 --> 00:17:56.040 that's possible and it's worth considering. 00:17:56.620 --> 00:18:00.380 I don't think that that's accurate, but it's worth considering, right? 00:18:00.460 --> 00:18:01.660 It doesn't mean I don't believe in a rapture. 00:18:01.760 --> 00:18:02.420 Okay, just hold on. 00:18:02.420 --> 00:18:03.750 We'll get to that in chapters ahead. 00:18:03.920 --> 00:18:04.660 Okay. 00:18:04.900 --> 00:18:09.260 But I don't think that's what it's talking about in this passage. 00:18:09.440 --> 00:18:10.430 And let me give you a few reasons. 00:18:10.820 --> 00:18:15.520 One is we're only talking about John here, not an entire church throughout history. 00:18:15.520 --> 00:18:15.840 Right? 00:18:16.180 --> 00:18:17.500 It's just John who's caught up. 00:18:18.260 --> 00:18:25.300 And just because it mentions a trumpet doesn't mean it's a rapture trumpet, because when you go throughout the Old Testament, you find that a common 00:18:25.300 --> 00:18:29.840 way God is heard when he is sharing with his people is through the sound of a trumpet. 00:18:30.460 --> 00:18:31.440 Exodus 19. 00:18:31.460 --> 00:18:36.860 When God speaks to Moses on Mount Sinai, God and Moses describes God's voice as the sound of a trumpet. 00:18:37.380 --> 00:18:44.460 And so what it's saying by describing a trumpet is not that the rapture is taking place here, but what it's saying to us is God's very personal presence is being 00:18:44.460 --> 00:18:45.040 made known. 00:18:45.860 --> 00:18:48.910 This is how intimate this situation is. 00:18:49.540 --> 00:18:54.040 And just because the word church isn't used from this point on doesn't mean God's people aren't described. 00:18:54.860 --> 00:19:02.400 In fact, as we go further into Revelation, I'll show you some pictures of how God's people are being talked about just 00:19:02.400 --> 00:19:03.860 because the word rapture, isn't it? 00:19:03.960 --> 00:19:04.360 Excuse me? 00:19:04.360 --> 00:19:06.830 Just because the word church isn't used doesn't mean the church isn't there. 00:19:07.000 --> 00:19:14.080 In fact, in apocalyptic literature, I think it would be expected that the church is described in a different way than just the word 00:19:14.080 --> 00:19:14.440 church. 00:19:14.560 --> 00:19:16.980 It's used with Hebrew imagery. 00:19:17.620 --> 00:19:20.650 But what John is saying here, here's what he wants us to recognize. 00:19:21.060 --> 00:19:21.910 You enter Chihuahuas. 00:19:23.020 --> 00:19:27.280 He's saying to you, I want you to know how important this moment is. 00:19:28.300 --> 00:19:33.120 It's the glory of God made known in your heart that transforms your life, that leads you to follow him. 00:19:34.360 --> 00:19:39.540 And it's not just his glory, but also his glorious presence promised to be with you wherever you go. 00:19:40.680 --> 00:19:45.480 You're never going to do great things for God until one you recognize how great he is. 00:19:46.620 --> 00:19:49.800 And in addition to that, how much he cares for you personally. 00:19:51.180 --> 00:19:58.680 And this is this is what John desires the readers to understand, not just how great God is, but 00:19:58.680 --> 00:20:01.740 how intimate he becomes in his glory towards you. 00:20:01.840 --> 00:20:08.940 As if to pose the question, why would someone so glorious even take a moment to even have any concern with 00:20:08.940 --> 00:20:09.420 my life? 00:20:10.480 --> 00:20:15.660 And I want you to discover in this chapter is that God is intimately concerned with your life. 00:20:15.700 --> 00:20:16.940 And let me let me move on. 00:20:16.940 --> 00:20:24.240 It says in verse three, 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. 00:20:24.520 --> 00:20:26.100 Around the throne were 24 thrones. 00:20:26.220 --> 00:20:31.980 Seated on the throne were 24 elders, clothed in white garments with golden crowns on their heads. 00:20:33.300 --> 00:20:34.680 Let me say a few things about this one. 00:20:34.960 --> 00:20:39.300 We're going to talk about rainbow rainbows and what that means in a couple of verses from now. 00:20:39.300 --> 00:20:44.620 But I want you to see first the description given about God the Father. 00:20:44.740 --> 00:20:46.910 This is talking about God the Father and His glory. 00:20:47.120 --> 00:20:49.640 And when it describes God, notice it doesn't tell. 00:20:49.660 --> 00:20:51.940 It doesn't give him any physical human form. 00:20:52.820 --> 00:20:55.800 This is true of God the Father throughout the Old and New Testament. 00:20:56.360 --> 00:21:00.720 God the father is never described in physical body form in the Bible. 00:21:01.860 --> 00:21:07.140 the only one that takes on a physical body form out of the Trinity is Jesus. 00:21:07.660 --> 00:21:14.370 Jesus became flesh and dwelt among us, and the reason Jesus took on flesh is so that he could be a sufficient sacrifice for you and for me. 00:21:14.620 --> 00:21:16.840 How could he cover our sin lest he be like us? 00:21:17.220 --> 00:21:20.720 And so therefore he takes a payment for us by becoming like us, by becoming flesh. 00:21:21.180 --> 00:21:24.020 But here describes the father in this appearance. 00:21:24.020 --> 00:21:28.000 He's radiating with these jewels, this image from the throne. 00:21:28.080 --> 00:21:30.820 And it describes it describes God in this way. 00:21:30.820 --> 00:21:34.840 He's sort of this presence of the father is there, but not a physical body form. 00:21:34.840 --> 00:21:39.250 In fact, when you look throughout the Bible, you find, as it describes, God the Father over and over again. 00:21:39.420 --> 00:21:42.550 It tells us he doesn't have a physical body form. 00:21:43.220 --> 00:21:47.300 Colossians 115 Jesus is the image of the invisible God. 00:21:47.300 --> 00:21:49.430 So it's telling us Jesus becomes God in the flesh. 00:21:49.640 --> 00:21:50.500 He takes on the flesh. 00:21:50.780 --> 00:21:52.560 But God the Father is invisible. 00:21:53.760 --> 00:22:01.280 God in first Timothy 117 to the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God in first Timothy 616, God 00:22:01.280 --> 00:22:08.370 who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. 00:22:08.760 --> 00:22:11.700 Or in John four verse 24 tells you, God is spirit. 00:22:11.760 --> 00:22:15.430 Luke 24 verse 39, A spirit has no flesh and bones. 00:22:16.120 --> 00:22:16.140 So. 00:22:16.280 --> 00:22:18.380 So here you see God the Father in a form. 00:22:19.180 --> 00:22:24.980 But what's what's powerful about this form is the way that John describes it as jasper or carnelian. 00:22:25.420 --> 00:22:28.570 Some translations will say sardius, which comes from the same gemstone. 00:22:29.780 --> 00:22:35.380 But this idea of jasper and carnelian are not just two gems just pulled out of out of a hat. 00:22:35.780 --> 00:22:39.360 And this is a very intentional representation of God on this throne. 00:22:39.660 --> 00:22:41.620 Jasper and carnelian. 00:22:41.700 --> 00:22:49.240 And the reason I say that is when you study in the Old Testament, the importance of jewels to God's people, 00:22:49.260 --> 00:22:55.350 God picked particular jewels to represent each of the tribes of Israel. 00:22:55.780 --> 00:23:00.080 In fact, when the high priest would go to the temple before the Lord, he would. 00:23:00.280 --> 00:23:06.560 He would wear on his chest a plate of each of those jewels that represented each of the 12 tribes of Israel. 00:23:07.000 --> 00:23:13.240 And if you know anything about the priests in the Old Testament, the priests represented the people to God. 00:23:13.360 --> 00:23:14.660 It was the opposite of the prophet. 00:23:14.800 --> 00:23:16.660 The prophet represented God to the people. 00:23:17.500 --> 00:23:24.700 But here the priest would wear the representation of all of God's people as he would come before God's throne in the temple representing 00:23:24.700 --> 00:23:25.950 those people. 00:23:26.240 --> 00:23:30.510 And when you would look at the garment that the priest would wear this plate on his chest. 00:23:30.960 --> 00:23:38.040 What's interesting is the first tribe mentioned on the very top corner is the tribe of Reuben, and in the 00:23:38.040 --> 00:23:41.890 very last tribe, on the very bottom left is the tribe of Benjamin. 00:23:42.640 --> 00:23:48.950 And those two jewels on those plates, starting with Reuben, is Jasper, and then Benjamin is carnelian. 00:23:50.160 --> 00:23:56.090 And so what is acknowledging is when God is sitting on his throne, and what John sees on that throne are those two radiating jewels. 00:23:56.180 --> 00:24:00.280 Those jewels sort of encapsulate all of God's people. 00:24:00.760 --> 00:24:06.100 So constantly before God's throne is the thought of his people resting on his heart. 00:24:07.120 --> 00:24:14.680 And so when you think about the greatness of who God is and all of his glory, as his glory is radiating in heaven even right now, 00:24:15.840 --> 00:24:23.000 what's on God's heart and mind are you and me God's concern for your life 00:24:23.300 --> 00:24:23.620 and mine? 00:24:24.700 --> 00:24:32.130 And he goes on and not only describes those jewels, but remember he referred to these 24 elders in verse four, 00:24:32.840 --> 00:24:33.440 and I'll let you know. 00:24:33.460 --> 00:24:37.200 There's a little bit of a discussion over what these 24 elders represent. 00:24:37.600 --> 00:24:39.220 People want it to be a very specific thing. 00:24:39.440 --> 00:24:43.230 What are these 24 elders and some of them speculated, is it talking about angels? 00:24:43.540 --> 00:24:44.890 Is this talking about people? 00:24:45.260 --> 00:24:48.350 And I want to tell you, the people that think it's talking about angels are wrong. 00:24:48.860 --> 00:24:51.700 And the ones that are thinking, it's talking about people, they're right. 00:24:51.760 --> 00:24:58.020 And the reason I say that is when you when you read about these 24 elders, it describes their attire, right? 00:24:58.020 --> 00:25:01.960 They've got these crowns and these white garments. 00:25:02.000 --> 00:25:09.240 And when you read throughout Scripture, you discover that the crown and these garments are painted as a picture of God's 00:25:09.260 --> 00:25:10.800 people that belong to the Lord. 00:25:11.800 --> 00:25:14.420 the angels never receive rewards. 00:25:14.500 --> 00:25:16.410 It's only God's people that receive rewards. 00:25:16.660 --> 00:25:21.560 So you have these crowns and these this robe before God. 00:25:22.160 --> 00:25:29.780 And when you study the idea of 24 throughout the Bible in First Chronicles chapter 24 and 25, you'll see King David divides 00:25:29.780 --> 00:25:36.920 the temple workers, the priests, into groups of 2424 people at a time would do the officiating 00:25:36.920 --> 00:25:38.140 in the temple. 00:25:38.320 --> 00:25:43.300 And then David also created a choir of 24 priestly singers. 00:25:44.160 --> 00:25:51.160 And then when you get to the New Testament in Revelation 21:12-14, what you discover in 00:25:51.160 --> 00:25:56.180 Revelation 21 is that there's this mention in verse 12 of the 12 tribes of Israel. 00:25:56.840 --> 00:26:01.080 And at the same time, verse 14, there's a mention of the 12 apostles and the New Testament. 00:26:02.420 --> 00:26:09.600 And what this 24 represents is the picture of Old and New Testament, all of God's people, throughout all time, worshiping before 00:26:09.600 --> 00:26:10.540 the Lord and his presence. 00:26:11.440 --> 00:26:18.680 And these images that are used here in this passage is this one of white robe, and the crown is the picture of what the priest would 00:26:18.680 --> 00:26:25.700 wear only in royalty, which is exactly the way Peter describes God's people in first Peter chapter two, verse 00:26:25.700 --> 00:26:26.700 nine. 00:26:26.900 --> 00:26:31.390 He says, you are a royal priesthood, a people for God's own possession. 00:26:32.820 --> 00:26:36.150 So here you see at the throne room of God and all of his glory. 00:26:36.420 --> 00:26:41.620 And what's closest to the Lord in all of this is his concern for you and for me. 00:26:42.660 --> 00:26:46.300 So as you see his great glory and you wonder, okay, what's my future hold? 00:26:46.300 --> 00:26:47.310 What are the things going to be like? 00:26:47.600 --> 00:26:49.820 And you get in that place of anxiety and panic. 00:26:50.240 --> 00:26:57.280 And John just wants to peel back the curtain and just say, let's just consider the greatness of who God is, because 00:26:57.280 --> 00:27:02.400 it's the glory of God that compels the people of God to do great things for God. 00:27:02.780 --> 00:27:09.810 And Isaiah chapter six, one of those passages, that famous passage where Isaiah is called before the Lord and God says, 00:27:09.920 --> 00:27:11.920 whom shall I send, and who will go for us? 00:27:11.980 --> 00:27:14.600 And Isaiah says to God, here am I, Lord, send me. 00:27:14.600 --> 00:27:21.760 In verse nine and ten of Isaiah six, but we discover the whole reason that Isaiah steps out for the Lord is because 00:27:21.760 --> 00:27:23.450 at the very beginning of chapter six. 00:27:23.760 --> 00:27:30.300 It describes this great throne room of God and the angels around, singing Holy, holy, holy, and the foundations of heaven shaking. 00:27:30.300 --> 00:27:37.130 And then one of the angels comes down with a tongue from off the altar, and touches Isaiah's lips and says, your sins have been forgiven. 00:27:38.420 --> 00:27:42.560 It's not only seeing the greatness of God, but the grace of God made known in his life. 00:27:42.560 --> 00:27:47.700 The personal representation of the Lord coming down to Isaiah and forgiving him. 00:27:47.720 --> 00:27:52.280 That Isaiah then finds the strength to even desire to want to go out and serve the Lord. 00:27:53.760 --> 00:27:57.620 But having seen his glory and having known his grace. 00:27:58.660 --> 00:28:01.180 Isaiah steps out to do great things for God. 00:28:01.180 --> 00:28:02.260 And so it goes on. 00:28:02.260 --> 00:28:04.780 And verse five, it says this. 00:28:04.820 --> 00:28:09.400 For from the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder. 00:28:09.460 --> 00:28:14.040 And before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of God. 00:28:14.180 --> 00:28:19.580 And before the throne there was, as it were, a sea of glass like crystal. 00:28:20.320 --> 00:28:26.500 Revelation chapter four, verse five here is taking the same description as Moses on Mount Sinai. 00:28:26.500 --> 00:28:32.840 When God came down in Exodus 19, Moses sees the flashes of lightning and the rumblings and peals of thunder. 00:28:32.860 --> 00:28:36.860 And you can maybe imagine what this would be like if you've ever been caught in a terrible storm. 00:28:37.220 --> 00:28:40.380 This is this is to the thousandth degree of that. 00:28:40.420 --> 00:28:42.320 What is going to happen to you in this chaos? 00:28:42.680 --> 00:28:46.480 This is this would be an insane moment to be in the center of it. 00:28:47.440 --> 00:28:52.760 But one of the things it says in the midst of this, there's the seven torches which is represented of the Holy Spirit. 00:28:53.300 --> 00:28:55.100 The power of God's Spirit is there. 00:28:55.480 --> 00:29:00.720 So all of God, in this great force and power being made known to John. 00:29:01.620 --> 00:29:09.120 But then it goes on and says in verse six, but in the midst of that powerful moment, the sea was calm. 00:29:10.360 --> 00:29:13.140 And that's the opposite of what you would expect in a storm, isn't it? 00:29:14.540 --> 00:29:19.340 If you've ever been in a tropical storm or a hurricane, I know as a kid I lived on the ocean for a while. 00:29:19.340 --> 00:29:25.120 I got to go through a few of those, and the last thing that you would expect is a calm sea. 00:29:26.200 --> 00:29:28.790 But here in this passage, the sea is like crystal. 00:29:29.860 --> 00:29:35.200 I don't know if you've ever you ever been to a large body of water when the wind isn't blowing and just seeing? 00:29:35.240 --> 00:29:38.900 Could you imagine it's going to the ocean and not seeing a wave at all? 00:29:38.900 --> 00:29:39.930 That would be so weird. 00:29:40.920 --> 00:29:48.050 But this is, this is this grabs John's attention that here he is in the midst of this chaos, all of God's power and the sea is calm. 00:29:48.320 --> 00:29:49.480 Why is the sea calm? 00:29:50.880 --> 00:29:56.060 You know, for the Hebrew people, the sea always represented this place of chaos. 00:29:56.060 --> 00:29:57.720 Water was this place of chaos. 00:29:58.560 --> 00:30:01.200 And in the Bible, when all of creation began. 00:30:01.240 --> 00:30:08.720 In Genesis chapter one, first two verses, the book of Genesis says, And God created the earth, but the earth was formed, and without void, 00:30:08.980 --> 00:30:12.320 and water covered the deep, and there is chaos over the earth. 00:30:13.760 --> 00:30:19.920 And here's the earth without form and void, and saying it's not serving its purpose, but water and chaos are or covering the earth. 00:30:19.920 --> 00:30:22.080 And out of the chaos, God brings order. 00:30:23.000 --> 00:30:23.920 He creates the land. 00:30:23.920 --> 00:30:24.930 He makes all of creation. 00:30:25.840 --> 00:30:29.180 But unfortunately, humanity didn't want to walk with the Lord. 00:30:29.340 --> 00:30:33.080 And in that sin enters the world and chaos comes back. 00:30:33.900 --> 00:30:41.610 And what you discover when you get to the passages like Genesis chapter six is in Noah's day, it was the flood, the chaos that destroyed everything. 00:30:42.140 --> 00:30:49.480 Or in the book of Exodus chapter 14, when the children of Israel run away from Egypt, they come to the Red sea and Pharaoh 00:30:49.480 --> 00:30:51.720 is pursuing them with his army to kill them. 00:30:51.780 --> 00:30:56.140 And here they find themselves with their backs against the sea, thinking they're just going to die. 00:30:56.160 --> 00:31:03.360 And it takes God parting the waters to bring order out of the chaos, or the children of Israel when they're wandering in the in the wilderness for 40 00:31:03.360 --> 00:31:05.740 years, they need to go to the Promised Land. 00:31:05.740 --> 00:31:06.560 That's where God called them. 00:31:06.580 --> 00:31:10.620 But they can't cross the waters because there's no way to get across the Jordan. 00:31:10.780 --> 00:31:13.020 And so they're stuck in this place of chaos. 00:31:13.060 --> 00:31:20.200 And it's not until in Joshua chapter three that God parts the waters that they're able to walk into the Promised Land, but when they get to the Promised Land, they're 00:31:20.200 --> 00:31:22.040 still not faithful to the Lord. 00:31:22.120 --> 00:31:27.020 In fact, when you get to Matthew chapter three, there is this individual who comes forward known as John the Baptist. 00:31:27.220 --> 00:31:34.080 And John the Baptist calls them back to the Jordan River because he knows they've never lived for the purpose for which they were called in the Lord. 00:31:34.080 --> 00:31:41.260 So he calls them back to the rivers to be repentant and be baptized, to make the way for the Messiah who is to come so they could faithfully 00:31:41.260 --> 00:31:42.020 follow him. 00:31:42.980 --> 00:31:46.340 It's chaos over and over again. 00:31:46.480 --> 00:31:49.340 And then when you get to Revelation 21, here's what's interesting. 00:31:49.340 --> 00:31:50.810 Revelation 21, it says this. 00:31:51.620 --> 00:31:57.180 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. 00:31:57.220 --> 00:31:57.780 And look at this. 00:31:58.460 --> 00:32:01.820 And the sea was no more. 00:32:03.480 --> 00:32:04.220 What is it saying? 00:32:06.040 --> 00:32:08.940 That God is the one who removes the chaos? 00:32:10.620 --> 00:32:17.880 And when we're talking about God's glory in this passage, it's reminding us as God's people, and we spend too 00:32:17.880 --> 00:32:23.390 much time looking at the world around us and too little time looking at the God above us. 00:32:24.690 --> 00:32:31.420 It's our failure to recognize the greatness of who he is that leads us to make a lot of stupid decisions in our lives. 00:32:33.140 --> 00:32:40.380 But when we recognize not only the glory of who he is, but how much he cares for you and for me, that's what leads 00:32:40.380 --> 00:32:44.400 our heart not only to worship, but to, but to also do great things for the Lord. 00:32:45.000 --> 00:32:50.040 In fact, William Carey, the great missionary, said it like this expect great things from God. 00:32:50.560 --> 00:32:52.780 Attempt great things for God. 00:32:53.760 --> 00:33:00.900 I would make the argument that any anyone that ever did anything great for the Lord in this world never did so without first recognizing the glory of who he is 00:33:01.840 --> 00:33:04.360 and what that means for them in light of who he is. 00:33:05.400 --> 00:33:07.960 That God would want to be known in a personal way like God didn't. 00:33:08.060 --> 00:33:15.180 God didn't have to bother with us at all, but the fact that he did gives us the opportunity to know him 00:33:15.180 --> 00:33:19.070 and respond not in our strength, but rather his, because he's in control. 00:33:19.120 --> 00:33:21.360 I mean, you see this by the sea that remains calm. 00:33:22.140 --> 00:33:28.820 I don't think there's any better picture that reminds us of the tension within the human soul than than the story of Matthew 14. 00:33:29.560 --> 00:33:36.640 If you remember in that passage of Scripture, this is the part of in the Bible where Jesus's disciples are out on the boat and they look out and they think there's 00:33:36.640 --> 00:33:37.980 a ghost walking on the water. 00:33:38.660 --> 00:33:42.070 And then Jesus calls Peter to step out of the boat and to walk out to him. 00:33:42.640 --> 00:33:44.720 And Peter steps out and starts walking on the water. 00:33:44.740 --> 00:33:48.160 And then all of a sudden it's like he remembers, oh, no, I'm walking on water, right? 00:33:48.160 --> 00:33:55.480 And he begins to panic because it's when he takes his eyes off the Lord before him that he starts looking at the waves around him, and 00:33:55.480 --> 00:33:59.700 he begins to sink, and it takes the strength of the Lord to rescue him. 00:34:00.440 --> 00:34:07.760 In Matthew chapter 14, verse 33, this is after the Lord pulls him out of the boat, and it says, then those who were in the boat worshiped him and saying, 00:34:08.040 --> 00:34:10.080 truly you are the Son of God. 00:34:12.040 --> 00:34:18.960 So it's in that moment they began to really they see his glory, and he rescues Peter and they're both in the back on the boat again. 00:34:18.960 --> 00:34:22.380 They begin to recognize there's something to this guy. 00:34:23.760 --> 00:34:25.770 And in so doing, worship him. 00:34:26.719 --> 00:34:29.440 Which gives me point number two as we understand God's glory. 00:34:29.440 --> 00:34:33.699 Point number two, in your notes, keep your heart engaged in genuine worship. 00:34:35.980 --> 00:34:39.909 Keep your heart engaged in genuine worship. 00:34:41.420 --> 00:34:46.659 You know, we failed to move forward with the Lord because we focused too little on his greatness and too much on ourselves. 00:34:48.060 --> 00:34:53.340 But it's a heart of worship that reminds us of the greatness of who God is. 00:34:54.699 --> 00:34:55.900 And worship. 00:34:56.679 --> 00:34:58.200 Worship is just more. 00:34:58.220 --> 00:34:59.420 It's more than something you do. 00:34:59.420 --> 00:35:01.060 Sometimes we talk. 00:35:01.140 --> 00:35:04.140 When we talk about worship, people might ask the question, well, how do you worship God? 00:35:04.740 --> 00:35:07.080 And usually this is where we begin a laundry list. 00:35:07.520 --> 00:35:12.090 You know, how do you worship people say things like, well, you got to read your Bible and you got to pray. 00:35:12.600 --> 00:35:16.690 And I guess you should probably go to church and maybe be a part of a small group. 00:35:16.820 --> 00:35:22.000 Or we just list different things that you should do and those things in themselves, they're not wrong, right? 00:35:22.380 --> 00:35:24.230 But I want you to know those things aren't worship. 00:35:24.640 --> 00:35:27.000 Those are rather tools for worship. 00:35:27.880 --> 00:35:29.020 And there's a difference in that. 00:35:29.720 --> 00:35:33.280 Just because you pick up the Bible and read the Bible doesn't mean you're worshiping. 00:35:34.140 --> 00:35:36.940 You might be reading the Bible, but you can. 00:35:37.040 --> 00:35:39.640 You can read the Bible and never truly have a heart of worship. 00:35:40.440 --> 00:35:41.880 Same, same thing is true with prayer. 00:35:42.720 --> 00:35:48.840 You wake up and pray because, well, you feel like you're supposed to pray and that's just what you do, but never truly worship. 00:35:50.100 --> 00:35:57.320 Yeah, if I gave you a definition of worship, I'd say this worship is a mindful surrender to God in every pursuit of 00:35:57.320 --> 00:35:57.760 our heart. 00:35:59.060 --> 00:36:02.440 It is a mindful surrender to God in every pursuit of our hearts. 00:36:02.500 --> 00:36:07.540 So that means no matter what you're doing, the posture of your life is bent towards something. 00:36:07.600 --> 00:36:08.930 It's going to honor something. 00:36:09.040 --> 00:36:11.770 The question is, what are you honoring with your life? 00:36:12.520 --> 00:36:13.450 What are you chasing after? 00:36:14.820 --> 00:36:15.980 What's important to you? 00:36:16.960 --> 00:36:24.000 And in Revelation chapter four is wanting to help us understand the weightiness of who God is so that our heart would truly worship what it 00:36:24.000 --> 00:36:25.360 was created to worship. 00:36:26.820 --> 00:36:27.040 Right. 00:36:27.040 --> 00:36:31.180 So worship for us is a mindful surrender to God in every pursuit of our heart. 00:36:31.280 --> 00:36:38.280 Which means it could be when you read God's Word and you should, but it could also be when you're doing something kind for someone around 00:36:38.280 --> 00:36:44.090 you, or because you because you know who God is and you know, in knowing God, God's given you tremendous worth. 00:36:44.360 --> 00:36:49.210 And not only is he giving you worth, he's giving worth to people around you, intrinsic worth by making him in their image. 00:36:49.460 --> 00:36:54.480 And so the way you treat other people can be a reflection of your worship before the Lord. 00:36:55.560 --> 00:36:58.640 The posture of your heart can remain constant in a state of worship. 00:36:59.340 --> 00:37:04.660 Not basically, not not focused primarily on what you're doing, but why you're doing it. 00:37:04.820 --> 00:37:09.660 And in Revelation, it goes on and says this I need to end this quickly, but it says. 00:37:09.660 --> 00:37:14.090 And around the throne on each side of the throne are four living creatures, full of eyes, in front of and behind. 00:37:14.500 --> 00:37:17.380 The living creatures like a lion and a creature like an ox. 00:37:17.460 --> 00:37:21.560 And there's a creature on the face of a man and a creature like an eagle and flying. 00:37:21.560 --> 00:37:22.760 It's just weird, right? 00:37:22.860 --> 00:37:27.370 Like around God's throne, there are these four angels, and they have these different faces. 00:37:27.980 --> 00:37:30.420 And sometimes they have all of those faces at the same time. 00:37:30.480 --> 00:37:31.080 Remembers what? 00:37:31.120 --> 00:37:33.540 It just matters what passage of the Bible you're reading. 00:37:33.620 --> 00:37:38.900 What on earth is John trying to tell us and why the world is it just four, right? 00:37:38.900 --> 00:37:39.800 Like, why not more? 00:37:39.800 --> 00:37:40.280 Why not less? 00:37:40.400 --> 00:37:41.120 Why does it have to be four? 00:37:42.280 --> 00:37:47.120 Well, in the Jewish mind, four is represented of the four corners of the world. 00:37:48.160 --> 00:37:53.060 And the Jews, when they would describe the earth, they would really describe it as flat and having an end to it. 00:37:53.060 --> 00:37:53.700 And there were four corners. 00:37:54.040 --> 00:37:55.340 They saw it much like a square. 00:37:56.540 --> 00:38:02.600 And so by picking four, he's representing the ends of the earth and then picking these particular animals. 00:38:02.600 --> 00:38:06.320 These animals represent all of God's creatures that he made. 00:38:06.420 --> 00:38:08.280 The lion represents the wild animals. 00:38:08.280 --> 00:38:15.360 The ox represents the farm animals, the eagle represents the air, animals and humanity represents everything else that gets left out of that. 00:38:16.400 --> 00:38:19.260 And so each of these animals represent all of God's creation. 00:38:19.360 --> 00:38:23.020 And their eyes are saying to the ends of the earth, God sees it all. 00:38:23.260 --> 00:38:25.460 So these creatures have all these eyes looking at everything. 00:38:25.480 --> 00:38:30.160 And he's saying that this is representative of all of God's creatures seeing everything. 00:38:30.220 --> 00:38:34.940 So this is this is the totality of God in control of all of human life. 00:38:35.760 --> 00:38:39.860 Now, you may ask the question, when I talk about these creatures, how do I really know that that's what it represents? 00:38:40.920 --> 00:38:42.640 Well, just so you know, I'm not making it up. 00:38:43.120 --> 00:38:50.110 If you go back to the book of Genesis, chapter nine, verse ten, you start to see those images drawn forth in Scripture. 00:38:50.820 --> 00:38:55.100 In Genesis chapter nine is right after the Noah flood when Noah's getting off the boat. 00:38:56.060 --> 00:39:02.210 And this is when God has this moment of setting up his covenant with Noah, saying he will never flood the earth again. 00:39:03.060 --> 00:39:10.400 But he says in chapter nine, verse ten, and with every living creature that is with you talking about man, which we just read. 00:39:10.420 --> 00:39:17.740 The birds represented as an eagle, the livestock as an as an ox, as a farm animal, and every beast, lion of the earth with 00:39:17.740 --> 00:39:18.280 you. 00:39:18.380 --> 00:39:19.760 As many as came out of the ark. 00:39:19.820 --> 00:39:24.610 So you see in this every living creature he's saying to you in verse ten, represented in these four creatures. 00:39:25.460 --> 00:39:27.850 And then in verse 13, I have set my bow. 00:39:27.940 --> 00:39:35.220 Here's the idea of a rainbow, which you read in Revelation four and the cloud, and shall be a sign of the covenant between me and 00:39:35.220 --> 00:39:35.880 the earth. 00:39:35.980 --> 00:39:43.000 When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the 00:39:43.000 --> 00:39:43.220 earth. 00:39:43.240 --> 00:39:43.870 Here's what's interesting. 00:39:44.360 --> 00:39:46.640 You know, every once in a while we can see a rainbow here on earth. 00:39:47.900 --> 00:39:55.200 But before God's throne, that rainbow is there constantly, and around his throne is a representation of all of his creation. 00:39:56.320 --> 00:40:01.040 You want to know what God's concerned about and all of his glory and the calmness of the sea. 00:40:01.980 --> 00:40:08.220 It's the heart of what he has created, and the crown of his creation is you and me in verse 8 to 11. 00:40:08.220 --> 00:40:10.000 It goes on and describes the angels. 00:40:10.080 --> 00:40:12.120 And I need to just give you a summary of this. 00:40:12.200 --> 00:40:15.010 The angels cry, holy, holy, holy. 00:40:15.520 --> 00:40:18.960 And then it goes on at the very bottom there in verse 11. 00:40:18.980 --> 00:40:25.100 You see humanity, the 24 elders saying, worthy are you, Lord, to receive glory and honor and power. 00:40:25.100 --> 00:40:28.970 For you created all things, and by you they all existed and were created. 00:40:29.700 --> 00:40:33.220 So here you see the angels worshiping God in his, in his character. 00:40:34.960 --> 00:40:38.110 But then you see humanity worshiping God in His creation. 00:40:39.060 --> 00:40:43.260 So that what is reflecting is the angels are before his throne and they see him in his holy character. 00:40:44.080 --> 00:40:47.120 But here on earth we see the evidence of who God is and the beauty of his creation. 00:40:48.340 --> 00:40:55.340 But in either case, to recognize the greatness of who God is and the fact that God has become so personally concerned with your life 00:40:55.340 --> 00:41:01.340 should inspire our hearts to surrender to him and to live for his purposes in this world. 00:41:02.140 --> 00:41:04.370 When you take a moment to ponder this passage. 00:41:05.660 --> 00:41:11.320 God didn't reveal himself just to reveal himself, but he reveals himself to us. 00:41:11.320 --> 00:41:15.880 So we recognize his authority and the importance of his authority in our and in our lives. 00:41:16.120 --> 00:41:16.240 He. 00:41:16.580 --> 00:41:17.980 He calms the sea. 00:41:19.400 --> 00:41:21.940 He calms the sea of our hearts. 00:41:22.980 --> 00:41:30.140 And not only does he calm the sea, but he reminds us that you forever remain on his heart through the idea of the jasper 00:41:30.140 --> 00:41:34.960 and the carnelian that as he sits on his throne, his thoughts are towards you. 00:41:36.380 --> 00:41:43.580 And it's important for us to remember that this all powerful God is the same God that dwells 00:41:43.580 --> 00:41:45.280 in his people wherever we go. 00:41:46.220 --> 00:41:52.840 The Bible tells you in first Corinthians 316 and 619 that you are the temple of God, the presence of God made known. 00:41:53.860 --> 00:42:00.060 So as you read about the power of this God over all things, is to recognize that same powerful God dwells within us. 00:42:01.040 --> 00:42:04.620 The problem with our hearts as human beings is that we too quickly forget it. 00:42:05.620 --> 00:42:12.880 In fact, we struggle like Peter on the water, and we easily take our eyes off from the importance for which we are created in him. 00:42:13.040 --> 00:42:14.360 Which leads me to this last illustration. 00:42:14.700 --> 00:42:15.150 And I'll be done. 00:42:15.320 --> 00:42:17.690 But there's a man by the name of Robert Robinson. 00:42:17.940 --> 00:42:23.210 He lived in the middle of the 18th century, in the 1700s, and he had a difficult life. 00:42:23.680 --> 00:42:23.740 His. 00:42:23.820 --> 00:42:26.210 His dad left the family when he was just a child. 00:42:26.520 --> 00:42:29.500 And shortly after he left the family. 00:42:29.500 --> 00:42:33.550 His dad passed away, and he was raised by a single mother in poverty. 00:42:33.800 --> 00:42:34.260 And. 00:42:34.340 --> 00:42:38.720 And he chose a life that was a difficult path. 00:42:38.720 --> 00:42:40.300 He ran with a group of troublemakers. 00:42:40.960 --> 00:42:47.480 And when he was in his teenage years, later teenage years, he had an opportunity to go listen to George Whitefield preach. 00:42:48.380 --> 00:42:52.460 Only he didn't go to listen to George Whitefield preach, to hear him talk about God. 00:42:52.560 --> 00:42:59.680 He wanted to go with his friends in order to make fun of the man while he spoke to the crowd, but when he went to hear George 00:42:59.680 --> 00:43:06.840 Whitefield, God captivated his heart with the truth of God's message, and he surrendered his life to 00:43:06.840 --> 00:43:08.380 the Lord in 1755. 00:43:09.420 --> 00:43:16.340 And then he went on to write a hymn that described who he was before the Lord, and the struggle of his own Christian walk. 00:43:16.960 --> 00:43:24.300 And the song he wrote is called Come Thou Fount, and in verse, verse two or stanza two of that song he says. 00:43:24.480 --> 00:43:24.860 Prone. 00:43:24.920 --> 00:43:26.460 Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it. 00:43:26.460 --> 00:43:27.970 Prone to leave the God of love. 00:43:28.260 --> 00:43:29.140 Here's my heart, Lord. 00:43:29.200 --> 00:43:29.860 Take and seal it. 00:43:29.860 --> 00:43:30.920 Seal it for thy courts above. 00:43:32.440 --> 00:43:38.120 You know, Robert Robinson, one of the things that's known about his life is that his walk with Jesus was not consistent. 00:43:39.000 --> 00:43:42.110 He struggled, and he wrote about it in this stanza. 00:43:42.340 --> 00:43:43.720 God, I'm so prone to wander. 00:43:44.420 --> 00:43:51.600 But it was this one moment in his life where he was on a carriage ride with a few people, and he climbed into this carriage, sort of taken a taxi 00:43:51.600 --> 00:43:52.640 to his next location. 00:43:53.080 --> 00:43:57.180 And when he gets into the carriage, there's a woman in the carriage holding his hymn Come Thou Fount. 00:43:57.720 --> 00:44:02.960 But she didn't know who he was, And she turned to this particular line, prone to wander. 00:44:02.960 --> 00:44:03.820 Lord, I feel it. 00:44:03.880 --> 00:44:06.640 And she just asked him, as a stranger, what do you think of this passage? 00:44:08.120 --> 00:44:15.220 And in those moments, Robert Robinson broke down and he acknowledged that was him, that he had lost his way and 00:44:15.220 --> 00:44:17.120 he forgot the greatness of who God was. 00:44:17.900 --> 00:44:23.530 And he thanked that lady for reminding him of those words that he had written years before. 00:44:23.940 --> 00:44:26.020 And God used that moment to grab his attention. 00:44:27.060 --> 00:44:34.200 And hopefully Revelation chapter four doesn't have to go to that extreme for us, but it's a reminder to all of us as we desire to 00:44:34.200 --> 00:44:37.420 live for God's glory in this world, the greatness of the one that we serve. 00:44:38.260 --> 00:44:45.380 Because it's not until our hearts are captivated by his glory that will take our eyes off the problems around us and look at the greatness of 00:44:45.380 --> 00:44:46.330 God above us.