White Hot Worship
AI Transcript
Good Redemption Parker. Good morning. morning. Happy New Year on Tuesday. Rosh Hashanah, New Year. Happy New Year guys. Why don't you begin by making your way to Revelation chapter 4. Revelation chapter 4 is where we will be.
I received some, some unexpected mail the other day, the September edition to world magazine. I get random magazines here and there that show up in my mailbox. And quite frankly, I have too much stuff to read. Ain't nobody got time for magazines, but the September edition of world magazine. It should be up there. There it is. The world's last night subtitle.
Apocalyptic thinking surges amid worrying trends in culture and technology As I opened up the pages this magazine I was reminded how much the book of Revelation impacts the way we understand everything from from politics to war from vaccines to to conspiracy theories and I was reminded as I read some of these articles how dangerous
Some of these views can be the rapture is coming. say, how, how can we do all we can to speed up this process to usher in the end times? So we look around, we, we read revelation with, one eye on the text and one eye on the world scene. We need to know who are the players, who is our president? Cause of course America has to be at the center when everything goes down.
And the most important question, what in the world is going on with the nation state Israel? One article in September's edition, World Magazine called Trump number four to 45 modern Cyrus who began the restoration process. now Trump number 47 is Darius who will rebuild the temple usher in the Messiah, the rapture, the church, and the end of the ages. the words of one prominent preacher.
The bombing in Iran, for instance, is not just world news, quote, it's end times fulfillment. This is the labor pains and quote for many Christians in our country. Revelation helps us realize the, like one article says, the church must grow in influence, power, and glory so that it can establish and prepare the kingdom for Jesus to return.
This is where we get things like the seven mountains of influence. And though not all of this is bad per se, my fear with these end times understanding is that we can totally miss the point of revelation. With so many wild theories and crazy charts and false predictions on the last book of the Bible, like one theologian says, our batting average is zero.
It's no wonder why someone like Martin Luther, the great Protestant reformer would say, quote, revelation is neither apostolic nor prophetic. I can no way detect that the Holy Spirit produced it. They are supposed to be blessed who keep what is written in this book. And yet no one knows what that is. Christ is neither taught nor known in it. And unlike his anti-Semitic rhetoric towards the end of his life, I can actually be sympathetic.
towards Luther here in Revelation. Though in both cases I think he's wrong. The Holy Spirit did produce it and read correctly. This book is for the church. This book is for us, the bride of Christ and Revelations friends, Revelation friends is all about Christ. If we have ears to hear what
the spirit is saying. Yes, many today use this book to gain influence in politics, wed the church to the state, grow in power and build a kingdom and completely miss the point of revelation, the upside down kingdom of Jesus. But this is no reason to throw the baby out with the bathwater. As we jump into Revelation four this morning, things are going to get a little
crazy, a little apocalyptic. But this should not deter us. Rather, like Mark said in week one, we need to let the apocalyptic genre do what the Holy Spirit intended for this genre to do, namely hit us deep in the core, spark our imagination, evoke worship, white hot.
worship like we've been saying. Revelation is a book that that asks us a question. Are you a citizen of New Jerusalem or Babylon? Are you with team lamb or with the beast? This morning things are going to move from earth to heaven from Satan's throne to God's throne. This morning where we're going to be confronted with another question and that's this where
is your worship? Where is your worship? Like the theologian Bob Dylan sung years ago, you're going to have to serve somebody. Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord, but you're going to have to serve somebody. Through this apocalyptic vision of the throne room of God, that's our question. Who are you serving?
Where is your worship? Well, if you're not already there, Revelation 4, let's jump in. Start here in verse 1.
After this, 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. After what? Well, those who hold to a dispensational theology, a very popular view since the release of content like left behind novels say that that verse one,
of chapter four, what I just read is where the rapture takes place. The time where all the Christians are caught up, zapped up into the sky to be with Jesus as the end times, the tribulation is ushered in. It's right there in the text, they say. Look at verse one. Jesus literally says, come up here. Clear as day.
I remember when I saw Left Behind for the first time, was tripping. I was 20 years old. I'd been a Christian for maybe six months. And in those precious early months of my discipleship, I remember two things were really clear. The presidential nominee that my friends didn't want to win, he was the Antichrist. And don't get Left Behind. Well, first off,
Christians can disagree on these secondary issues, but we shouldn't get our theology from a novel. Second, there's no rapture happening in verse one of chapter four. What we do have in the verse I just read for you was a word that might be the most important word in Revelation if we're going to grasp this book.
Daryl Johnson says, quote, the key to the structure of the whole book of Revelation is the verb open. Let me read verse one again. 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.
This verb open is going to appear four times in revelation, creating for us a beautiful structure for this book. These four windows that that open to John will divide this book into five sections. If you can go back to the last one, divide this book into five sections. The picture of the windows. yeah.
that we're dividing this book into five sections. And then if you're a note taker, you can go to the next slide. Now, if you're a note taker, right, these verses down chapter four, verse one, what I just read chapter 11, verse 19, chapter 15, verse five, chapter 19, verse 11, every verse, every verse you're going to see that word open appear. You, you remember these four verses. You'll be able to keep this entire book in front of you as you read through each
hard. It will help us not see, for instance, Locus as the Apache helicopters and every president we don't vote for as the Antichrist. Well, if the rapture did not happen in verse one, what is going on? John, who is on the island Patmos on planet Earth, is given a vision of heaven. And from verse one here in chapter four,
all the way to the end of the book, Revelation 22 in the New Jerusalem could actually be seen as an expansion of the Lord's Prayer. Hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
This week and next, Revelation 4 and 5, we're going to see the part of the Lord's prayer that confesses God's will be done in heaven as we enter holy ground, the throne room of God. And in these two chapters of Revelation, we're going to see all of heaven acknowledging God's sovereignty, His will, and His reign. And then for the rest of the book,
Revelation 6 through 22 will tell us the story of how heaven becomes a reality on earth. You guys tracking? Cool. All right, let's do this. Look with me at verse 2. At once I was in the spirit and behold the throne stood in heaven with one seated on the throne.
John is taken by the Holy Spirit himself to the throne room of God. Exactly how this occurs I don't know. Whether this is some trance John is in or not, he really is transported to the royal throne. And when exactly is this taking place? Michael Byrd reminds us John is now granted access to the throne room of heaven itself.
He is not as some have supposed looking into the ultimate future rather he is seeing what is going on in God's presence throughout the present time. If you remember from last week Mark ended his sermon with that wonderful promise that Jesus gave the church in Laodicea to the one who overcomes I will grant him to sit with me on my throne.
As I also overcame and sat down with my father on his throne. What a promise, right? God's throne, but the promises don't hit our imagination quite like what we see now. These believers in Asia minor in the first century and us in Parker, Colorado, 2025 are given a vision of well, the throne room itself. 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. The importance of these stones is that they signify divine glory and splendor and God's presence. Some of them also point to stones that will be picked up again in the new restored Eden, new
Jerusalem, paradise of God, where God will once again dwell with his people in all his glory. John's audience, who knew their Old Testaments, would have thought immediately of Ezekiel's vision. It'll be up on the screen. I'll read it. saw, this is Ezekiel, I saw, as it were, gleaming metal.
like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. I saw as it were the appearance of fire and there was brightness around him like the appearance of the rainbow that is in the cloud on the day of rain. So was the appearance of the brightness all around. I love the language of Ezekiel and John here in Revelation. Lots of the appearance of seemed like
I love what New Testament scholar Thomas Schreiner says here, quote, this language demonstrates that no attempt to describe the indescribable God is being made. Or Richard Bauckham on this scene says the image as a whole combined with the fact that the author avoids any direct description for God's appearance conveys the sense of God's transcendence, his total otherness and unfathomable mysteriousness.
Over the course of these next two weeks, we are going to get some revelation. This morning here in chapter four, a revelation of God. And next week, we're going to get a revelation of Christ. And before we go any further, this picture is already showing us deep in our core that God is incomprehensible. In the words of John Calvin, the finite mind cannot
comprehend God in His infinite essence. As John enters the throne room of God in heaven, he's reminded of the good news, that God is holy other, that God is fast, that God is beyond our understanding. And I know we think we're smart, but our finitude
And God's divine incomprehensibility is really good news. In his wonderful book, Light Unapproachable, Ronnie Kurtz quote, the otherness of God means his glorious well of all that he is will never run dry. Contemplating God's beauty will never be exhausted. For for all of eternity, we will never
plumb the depths of God. Each moment will be sweeter than the last or like C.S. Lewis famously says in Narnia's last battle, further up and further in forever. Some of us in here this morning, we need a big God theology.
We can so easily see ourselves, others, our problems, our fears, our worries and anxieties as huge. And God is rather small. but a vision like this is meant to shake us up. When we feel the weight of God's glory, the weight of His transcendence and His beauty, everything else begins to
pale in comparison. Let's keep reading. Verse four. around the throne were 24 thrones and seated on the thrones were 24 elders clothed in white garments with golden crowns on their heads from the throne came flashes of lightning and rumbling
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. What a scene, right? As we read this at our GC on, on Wednesday and the words were read aloud almost on cue, the sky outside cracked with thunder lit up with
lightning. It was intense. If I ever thought the rapture was about to happen, it was on Wednesday night. And as crazy as this scene is, what's at the center of it all? The throne. There's a lot going on here, but there is a throne above all the thrones and the throne will become a major theme in Revelation from here on out. The word throne is literally going to keep
coming up for the rest of this book. It appears 19 times in just chapters four and five alone. But around this throne, John sees 24 other thrones and seated on those thrones, 24 elders. Now these aren't humans. These are heavenly beings and they are representatives. Why 24? 12 tribes of Israel, 12...
apostles of Jesus, these 24 heavenly beings, these elders are representing God's people. They are wearing white, conveying righteousness, victory, worship. They have golden crowns depicting their share in God's reign. All these things Jesus just promised to the churches who overcome.
24 elders are are standing in holy ground. are amidst the presence of God lightning and thunder taking readers back to Mount Sinai when God's presence was seen was was heard was felt don't don't think for a minute that that the presence of God himself is just some warm and fuzzy feeling we get when we go to Estes Park
know that this God is a consuming fire. We also have seven torches of fire, are the seven spirits of God, the Holy Spirit. In this chapter, in chapter five, we have a beautiful vision of the Trinity. Here we see the Father and the Spirit. Next week we will look right at the Son. The scene is mind blowing, really. Can you sense the majesty of our
Triune God. I know many of you guys have been in some pretty impressive rooms with some very important people. Nothing like this. Now as we'll see, the sea in Revelation comes to mean different things at different places. But here the sea of glass like crystal, it's the vault of heaven itself.
The sea of glasses is what seems to separate the one who is transcendent, the one on the throne from, well, everything else in creation. Let's keep reading. Middle of verse six. 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.
Who the heck are these guys? Well in short, like the elders, these are heavenly beings. And as the elders represent the people of God, these creatures seem to represent all of creation. So this scene of God's throne room in heaven. We have this magnificent yet unapproachable light who is the Lord Almighty on His
throne and around the throne you have the people of God and all of creation. And before we move to the climax of this scene and see what these creatures are doing in the throne room of God, we do need to understand what to make of this scene thus far. What is going on? Well, the throne...
is a political image. We're talking sovereignty and kingship here. God's throne portrays God's sovereign rule. think about this for a second in light of the context of revelation written to these seven churches, these struggling.
Christians living in Babylon where Satan's throne is there they're given a vision of the capital T Throne and though they they may have had all sorts of doubts as to who really is in control this picture of God's sovereignty his total control of all things reminds these Christians and us that that the
The one who might seem to be absent at times is far from removed. John's vision here is actually a parody of the Roman court scene. Talk about a Jesus flex. Jesus is countering the imperial claims that these Christians are hearing, namely, Caesar is Lord.
And with this vision of God's throne, he's pulling a coach prime and calling bull junk. Nah, Jesus is Lord. That the gospel is political because God is sovereign because Christ is King. Amen. Well, let's finish out our passage this morning. Let's see what is taking place in the throne room of heaven. Look with me at verse eight and follow me.
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.
white hot worship 24 7 365. Can you imagine like like right now as we speak this is going down these creatures these elders ceaseless praise and worship as revelation scholar Michael Gorman points out the worship of God is the heartbeat of the cosmos.
Even when we humans are do not see it, participate in it or value it. Only God is worthy to receive what others, especially powerful political figures may want or demand our total devotion, our praise, our crowns. love that only God is worthy to receive our total devotion, our praise, our crowns. And this is happening as we speak.
I want you also to see that, that, this epic worship party taking place, this doc thology, namely the praise of God is not happening apart from theology words about God. Many people are like, I don't like theology. just want to worship God, but it's right theology friends of who God is that
produces what we see here. Adoration, affection, praise, white, hot worship. I mean, look at these heavenly hymns. One focuses on God's eternality. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty who was and is and is to come. The other, while on their knees, crowns before the Lord. Zoom in on another doctrine of God as creator. 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. You are the eternal creator before anything was you were and everything exists only because of you theology.
producing doxology. When we realize who this God is, what else can we say but holy
at our GC last week after the lightning and thunder, Frank Mendez had this cool realization after spending time in the text, we broke off into our groups, his realization was simply this, we were created for worship. Yes and amen. And if it's true friends, that all our hearts, every single
one of us that all our hearts are restless until they find rest in God. If that's true, then it's also true that this endless worship party is the most satisfying event possible. And that right now, we friends can get in on this. You don't need to let your FOMO settle in. You don't need to worry about
missing out or being left behind. This is not simply for these four creatures and the elders. This is for all of creation. This is for all of God's people. Where is your worship?
ask yourself, where is your worship? It's unbelievably sad, tragic really. And I'm preaching to myself as well that this is our offer and we settle for so much less. I love what C.S. Lewis said in The Weight of Glory. Many of you guys love and know this quote. It would seem that our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak.
We are half-hearted creatures fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. are far too easily pleased. We are far too easily pleased.
Maybe you're just thinking, can I, how can I access this throne room? I'm not a heavenly creature or one of the elders. I know what I did last week. I'm a sinner. Now next week, we're going to zoom in on, on Jesus in chapter five, but how does a sinner access the throne room of God? What, what does it look like for us to enter into this Holy of
The Bible tells us that God's good creatures, we turned on him. Sin has separated each one of us from this holy, holy, holy God. And yet, the Son of God, who likewise is God, who never had a beginning, who was and is and is to come, took on another nature and began as the God man.
the Son of God incarnate entering into his own creation. Like this is crazy. As Mary was nursing her baby Jesus, he was sustaining her every breath, upholding her very life. Those who yelled, crucify him, only spoke because he, the word himself, gave them a voice. And the soldiers spit.
on Jesus it was spit that he kept flowing in their mouths. When he was struck again and again until his body was unrecognizable it was by men that he fashioned in his own image. When Pilate declared don't you know I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you Jesus Jesus answered you would have
no authority at all unless it had been given you from above. When he was crucified on a piece of wood, it was wood that he once spoke into existence. And then the son of God incarnate died.
that sink in. He died. The son of God incarnate died for you and for me for the purpose that we would have a seat at this table of worship. And even in his death, he was not defeated. He was still in control earlier on in his ministry. He said, I have authority to lay down my life.
and I have authority to take it up again." And take it up again he did. He's alive and well, enthroned as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. So when, for instance, the author of Hebrews says, come boldly to the throne of grace, we can.
church, would we be laid down everything that vies for our attention, our affection, our adoration, and would we come to this throne, this throne of scandalous and sovereign grace, praising the one who was and is and is to come, the one who created all things and the one who by grace alone through
faith alone in Christ alone saved us. Let us like the churches. This letter was read to be encouraged. God is not absent. is far from removed. Matter of fact, quite the opposite. Whatever you might be facing this morning, whatever you might be facing Jesus.
is King. Jesus is sovereign in control of all the details working out everything for the good of his people and for the glory of his name. This is true on the grand scale of world history and this is true over every area of
let's be a church that doesn't let Babylon dictate our worship, but let's give our allegiance, our devotion, our worship to the King of Kings. Let's join in the praises that are already taking place. Holy, holy, holy. Amen. Amen. Let me pray.