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Worthy Is the Lamb (Pt 3)
Revelation 5:11-14
January 26, 2020
Lord’s Day Worship
Sean Higgins
The sermon starts at 17:55 in the audio file.
Or, Worship of Him Who Opens the Scroll
When Jesus gave John a vision of His glorified self in Revelation 1, it was fantastical. His eyes were on fire and His face was shining like the sun at 110%. Jesus was revealing Himself to John, and He intended for John to write the revelation for His people (verse 11). The seven churches, representing all the church of God, needed the encouragement like a mountain needs roots to withstand great winds. As Jesus calls John up to heaven for additional revelation (4:1), about the things that must take place, Jesus wants John to see Jesus worshipped.
In our day, Jesus is worshipped by faith (1 Peter 1:8), and depending on where you look, it doesn’t seem as if He is being worshipped by very many. Even many that use His name do it more like a verbal trinket, a relic of religious taxonomy. His enemies use His name better than many of His baptized people; at least many of them take Him seriously.
As Jesus prepares to show John His judgment (chapters 6-20), the judgments written on the inside of scroll, Jesus gives John a picture of worship around the throne in heaven unlike those seen by any other prophet or apostle. The vision itself is amazing, and the fact that worship comes first makes its own point. Behold the Lion, see the Lamb, listen to the angels sing, sing to Him yourself.
The final paragraph in Revelation 5 (the fourth “And I saw”) describes the response of the heavenly host and of the living cosmos to the recognition of the worthy One. There are two rounds of praise, rippling from the throne throughout the created universe and expanding from the angels to every kind of living creature.
The Host of Heaven (verses 11-12)
When the Lamb stepped forward to take the scroll from the One sitting on the throne, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders went to work in worship. Now John watches the worship circle widen.
And I saw and I heard the voice of many angels, note that the voice is a singular voice blending the the plural; all the channels are mixed into one output. It was a single wall of scads of voices. Around the first two celestial types were many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands. You may have heard this before, but that means a lot.
A myriad is a round number approximating ten-thousand, but more like countless thousands. There are countless thousands of countless thousands. The second word is just a thousand, chilias, and there are thousands of thousands. In Revelation 20:2-6 (5 times, once in each of the five consecutive verses) a similar word is used of Satan being bound and the saints reining with Christ for a thousand years, but it is the cardinal number modifying years: a thousand years (so “Chiliasts” believe in an actual 1,000 year kingdom). Here it is multiplying itself. Again, it’s a big number, a number that Daniel wrote when the Ancient of days took His seat (Daniel 7:9-10).
This is the “host of heaven,” in which “host” has the meaning of a large number.
“You are the LORD, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and you preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you.” (Nehemiah 9:6, ESV)
And it is their united voice that John emphasizes: saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing.” They agree that the Lamb is worthy, but their acknowledgement goes beyond His worth to take the scroll, they claim the Lamb is worthy of the highest worship.
To say that He is worthy…to receive is not saying that He doesn’t already have these attributes. When we praise Him we are not puffing air into a thin balloon, we are wiping off the mirror to reflect the glory of[...]
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By Trinity Evangel ChurchRevelation 5:11-14
January 26, 2020
Lord’s Day Worship
Sean Higgins
The sermon starts at 17:55 in the audio file.
Or, Worship of Him Who Opens the Scroll
When Jesus gave John a vision of His glorified self in Revelation 1, it was fantastical. His eyes were on fire and His face was shining like the sun at 110%. Jesus was revealing Himself to John, and He intended for John to write the revelation for His people (verse 11). The seven churches, representing all the church of God, needed the encouragement like a mountain needs roots to withstand great winds. As Jesus calls John up to heaven for additional revelation (4:1), about the things that must take place, Jesus wants John to see Jesus worshipped.
In our day, Jesus is worshipped by faith (1 Peter 1:8), and depending on where you look, it doesn’t seem as if He is being worshipped by very many. Even many that use His name do it more like a verbal trinket, a relic of religious taxonomy. His enemies use His name better than many of His baptized people; at least many of them take Him seriously.
As Jesus prepares to show John His judgment (chapters 6-20), the judgments written on the inside of scroll, Jesus gives John a picture of worship around the throne in heaven unlike those seen by any other prophet or apostle. The vision itself is amazing, and the fact that worship comes first makes its own point. Behold the Lion, see the Lamb, listen to the angels sing, sing to Him yourself.
The final paragraph in Revelation 5 (the fourth “And I saw”) describes the response of the heavenly host and of the living cosmos to the recognition of the worthy One. There are two rounds of praise, rippling from the throne throughout the created universe and expanding from the angels to every kind of living creature.
The Host of Heaven (verses 11-12)
When the Lamb stepped forward to take the scroll from the One sitting on the throne, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders went to work in worship. Now John watches the worship circle widen.
And I saw and I heard the voice of many angels, note that the voice is a singular voice blending the the plural; all the channels are mixed into one output. It was a single wall of scads of voices. Around the first two celestial types were many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands. You may have heard this before, but that means a lot.
A myriad is a round number approximating ten-thousand, but more like countless thousands. There are countless thousands of countless thousands. The second word is just a thousand, chilias, and there are thousands of thousands. In Revelation 20:2-6 (5 times, once in each of the five consecutive verses) a similar word is used of Satan being bound and the saints reining with Christ for a thousand years, but it is the cardinal number modifying years: a thousand years (so “Chiliasts” believe in an actual 1,000 year kingdom). Here it is multiplying itself. Again, it’s a big number, a number that Daniel wrote when the Ancient of days took His seat (Daniel 7:9-10).
This is the “host of heaven,” in which “host” has the meaning of a large number.
“You are the LORD, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and you preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you.” (Nehemiah 9:6, ESV)
And it is their united voice that John emphasizes: saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing.” They agree that the Lamb is worthy, but their acknowledgement goes beyond His worth to take the scroll, they claim the Lamb is worthy of the highest worship.
To say that He is worthy…to receive is not saying that He doesn’t already have these attributes. When we praise Him we are not puffing air into a thin balloon, we are wiping off the mirror to reflect the glory of[...]