Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne

Transcription

1 1 Rev. 7:9-17 Lessons from the Throne of God Last week, Gil and I had the opportunity to be a part of a production called Back to Bethlehem over at Camp Wesley. It was a reenactment of Mary and Joseph s journey to Bethlehem. The tour started with an entry into the city with the Roman Guards collecting taxes for all the travelers. Then it continued through downtown with shops and hotels and the synagogue, and even the shepherds outside the city and the angel who appeared to them saying, Unto you this day a child is born... And then, the tour ended with a live manger scene. Well, after this the group was directed into a tent where we shared the REAL meaning of Christmas. And every group, Gil and I asked, What is Christmas really about? And usually, a child would say, Baby Jesus, or the birth of Jesus. And we would say, You are right! Christmas is about the birth of this child. But, his birth is only the TIP of the iceberg. There is SO MUCH MORE! So today, I would like to share the SO MUCH MORE of the meaning of Christmas. I would like to approach Christmas from the perspective of a throne. And the reason I do this is because of my quiet time last week. Reading through the book of Revelation, the word throne kept coming up. This word is mentioned 175 times in the Bible. And guess which book mentions it the most. It is the Book of Revelation. And in cp. 7, 7 times. Look with me at Rev. 7. Let s begin reading in v. 9. In this passage alone, we see at least 3 truths about the throne of God. 1. Throne of Sovereignty. What is sovereignty? Webster s dictionary defines it as unlimited power freedom from external control obsolete supreme excellence. In this passage we see this truth over and over. In v. 9, there is a multitude gathered around this throne that NO ONE CAN NUMBER. Also, this multitude is united. In v. 10 we see a multitude from every tribe, nation, and tongue, but with one voice they cry out, Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne... Another point of sovereignty is this: the throne room includes both earthly and heavenly creatures. There are angels and elders and the four living creatures as well as those from the earth. Another evidence of sovereignty is found in vv These creatures WORSHIP the one who sits on the throne. And notice what they say, Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen! There is no one but God who demands or commands such worship from his creation! We have sovereignty over some things. Good Fathers are sovereign over those under their care. Wives and mothers may be sovereign over their house. I wouldn t dare tell Kristen how to set up her kitchen or arrange and decorate our house. She has sovereignty over that area. Parents, we have sovereignty over our children. Bosses and managers have sovereignty over those who work for them. But, only God has sovereignty over ALL things. Listen to these words: Neh. 9:6: 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. Deut. 10:14: Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it. Is. 40:25 To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One. 26 Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name, by the greatness of his might, and because he is strong in power not one is missing. Then in v 28: Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD

2 2 is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. Today, this is the God we serve. He is a sovereign God. He is the Lord of eternity, maker of heaven and earth! He is the King of all kings! He is the Lord of all lords! All authority belongs to Him! This is the first thing we learn about the throne of God. So what is our appropriate response to this truth? I think first of all, we must realize there is no other power that can rival such sovereignty! God commands that we worship Him and him alone. He will not give his allegiance to another. This means He has the right to tell us how to worship him and how we should live. This also means that any allegiance to any other throne is idolatry. Whether it is work, sports, friends, whatever, they must all give way to the ONE who sits on the throne of eternity. 2. Throne of Refuge. This passage speaks of a great multitude of people around the throne of God, from every tribe, every people, and every language. In v. 10, they cry out, Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne. And what does salvation imply? It implies there is something from which we need to be saved. Then in v. 14 we see that these people have come out of the great tribulation. This means hardships and sufferings. Then in v. 15 we read that the one who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. Then in v. 16 and 17 we see that the ONE who sits on the throne will provide all their needs. They will not hunger or thirst and will have shelter from the heat. Then we see that the one who sits on the throne will wipe away all their tears. This is the most beautiful picture of what it will be like around the throne of God. EVERYONE who gathers around this throne will find relief, comfort, REFUGE from all that is bad. There will be no hunger, no thirst, no freezing, no sweltering heat, no sickness, no emotional stress, no back problems, no divorce, no financial difficulties, no bad news from the doctor. It will be a place of safety, peace, shelter, provision. But, there is a great cost, a great sacrifice that must be made in order for us to find this refuge. Do you remember the story of Ruth? Let me tell you about Ruth. She was a foreigner, a widow, who chose to leave her country and her people to follow her mother-in-law Naomi back to the Land of Israel. Though, they had some land, they were poor, and had no way of providing for themselves. In all practicality, they were refugees. But, Ruth found a man named Boaz, one of Naomi s relatives. He owned lands filled with wheat. And she went to the fields and gleaned from the edges to provide for her and Naomi. And one day Boaz saw her and asked one of his workers who she was. And she found favor with Boaz. He went to her and said, Ruth, don t leave my fields to glean anywhere else. You stay with the young girls and men who work for me. You will be safe here. When you are thirsty, you get something to drink. When you are hungry you eat. And after this kindness, Ruth fell on her face before Boaz and said, Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner? And he said, I ve heard about Naomi and all you have done for her and how you have served her. And then he said, The LORD repay you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge (Ruth 2). And he continued to provide for Ruth, and later would take her as his wife, and care for her, and would later give birth to the grandfather of King David.

3 3 In the same way, the throne of God is a place of refuge. There we find safety and security. There we find provision and care. There we find a Boaz who takes us into his care. But, we must stop for a moment and consider something else about the story. You see, in order for Boaz to take Ruth as his wife, he also had to care for Naomi. But, that s not all. By law, he had to purchase all her land before Ruth could become his wife. This was a great price and a great sacrifice for Boaz. Now look back at Rev. 7:9: After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples, and languages, standing before the throne... Then in v. 10: They cry out, Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne... Like Ruth and Naomi, who were rescued, saved from poverty and from the reality that no one would carry on the family name, this great multitude around the throne has also been rescued, saved. Ruth and Naomi were saved because of a great sacrifice, a great price, from Boaz. In the same way, we have been saved because of a great sacrifice, a great price. What is this payment? I have purposely left something out of the picture until now. Look at v. 13: Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come? I said to him, Sir you know. And he said to me, These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the lamb. You see, the God who sits on the throne of the universe is a holy God and he will not allow sin into his presence. For the wages of sin is death and eternal separation from God. You see, you can t just wander into the throne room. This is why I believe the elder s ask John this question in his vision. They are saying, John, how did these sinners get around the throne? What are they doing here? John says, You know the answer. They are clean. Their robes WERE dirty. But now they are beautifully white. Let me ask, How were they cleaned? Did they take them down to the laundry mat and put in a couple dollars? Did they scrub real hard? Did they pay for new robes? No, look at the 2 nd part of v. 14: They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. You see the price of cleansing, the price of our salvation, the source of our ability to enter the throne room is because of a LAMB. And it was the blood of this lamb that cleansed these robes. Today, as we consider Christmas, we celebrate the birth of a child. But, Christmas is so much more than a birth! Before Jesus was born, an angel appeared to Joseph and said, Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel" (which means, God with us) (Matt. 1:20-23). The birth of Jesus is none other than Immanuel, God with us, coming to save his people from their sins. Without a birth there would be no death. Jesus was born to die. This is why he came. Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! Today, the price of our salvation, our ability to enter the throne room of God, the price of our refuge into God s presence is the precious life and death of the Son of God. 3. Throne of Guidance. I get this truth from the first part of v. 17. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water...

4 4 Today, there is no other place to get REAL guidance, REL instruction, REAL help in this life and the life to come than from the Throne of God. Kids, what does a shepherd do? He cares for sheep. He looks after them. He leads them to good water and good pastures. He takes care of them when they are sick. He protects them from wild animals. Without the shepherd the sheep would walk around aimlessly and hurt themselves or be hurt by others. They could not live without the guidance of their shepherd. And this verse says the shepherd is the lamb in the midst of the throne. As we have seen, this lamb is Jesus. But, how can a humble lamb find his way into the midst of the throne of God? It doesn t say he is beside the throne, or around the throne, or below the throne. Instead, He is in the midst of the throne. You see, from one perspective, Jesus has always been in the midst of the throne. God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, have always been on the Throne of eternity. Before the foundations of the world, God existed in this way; 3 persons, one God. Even in this passage we see in v. 17 that God, as a loving Father, will wipe away all our tears. God the Holy Spirit is seen in v. 15 as the One who shelters us with his presence. There is no spiritual life, no living presence living in our lives, except by the Spirit. God the Son is seen throughout as the Lamb of God, who cleanses us and guides us. But in this context, we see A LAMB, that all of sudden becomes the shepherd. Kids, how in the world does a lamb become the shepherd? How does the most humble animal, the one who cannot take care of himself, suddenly become the supreme leader of guidance from the very throne of God? It DOESN T HAPPEN with earthly sheep! They are of this world. But, the Lamb of God is not an ordinary lamb. You see, Jesus rightful place in this universe is ON THE THRONE as supreme ruler and shepherd of his people. It is here that Christmas really comes to life and takes on meaning. God, the supreme shepherd, took on flesh. By the Holy Spirit, he was conceived. And He left the glory that He had from eternity and took on our nature, our flesh. And he pitched his tent here with us. 100% man, tempted as we are, crying as we have cried, feeling as we feel, experiencing the death of his friends, laughing at the funny things of this world, feeling grief when his own people reject him, etc. And he says, If you ve seen me, you ve seen the Father (John 14:9). And then, when his time had come, he did what he came to do. As a sacrificial lamb, he laid down his life. And his sacrifice was acceptable to God. And then he rose again. And where does he sit today? He sits at the right hand of God. And ALL authority has been given to him! All right to rule! All right to give us refuge? And, all right to be our shepherd. The lamb is the shepherd! Doesn t the Apostle Paul say in Eph. 4:9-10: In saying, "He ascended," what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth? 10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things. And then again in Phil. 2:6: Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

5 5 With this in mind, the throne of God is a throne of guidance. This is what Christmas is all about! There is no real guidance except from the throne of God where Jesus sits! There we find sovereignty. There we find refuge. There we find guidance. There is no other throne! All thrones fall. There is no other place of sovereignty. There is no other throne of refuge. There is no other throne of guidance. All idols fall before this throne. "Every knee will bow. Every tongue will confess, Jesus is Lord to the glory of the Father." The Throne of God. It is where we belong. We were made to worship the ONE who sits on this throne. We were made to be in his presence. We were made to be sheltered by Him. We were made to be under his authority and control. We were created to receive comfort and security and rest from Him. But, we lost this privilege in the fall. And we were cast out of his presence. But because of the lamb in the midst of the throne, we say, Worthy is the lamb who was slain! This is what Christmas is about. And it is not that Jesus is more important than the Father or more important than the Holy Spirit. But, for us, practically, God has made himself known through the Son. For He took on our flesh! Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! 34 "For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?" 35 "Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?" 36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen (Rom. 11:33-36).