Revelation 4
November Memory Verse: "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with them, and they with me." Revelation 3:20 (NIV)
Revelation 4
The book of Revelation really opens up the possibilities of our imaginations, and Chapter 4 is no different. The chapter begins with John’s heavenly vision, and the verses that follow detail some amazing sights that show the glory of God. There is a lot going on in this chapter, so let’s look at some of the highlights.
Beginning with verse 1, we see the words “after this.” John’s heavenly vision comes after he has already seen visions from God (as seen in earlier chapters of Revelation). What we can see here is that when we are consistently learning, God prepares us to learn more. John had already had visions from God, and verse 1 shows that he was prepared for God to reveal himself even more. For example, when we have a knowledge and understanding of the Old Testament, that allows us to understand the context of the New Testament that much more. Just like John was prepared for this heavenly vision by what he had seen before, we can be prepared for God to further reveal Himself to us by being in His word and consistently learning from it.
Now that we understand how John was prepared for the vision, let’s dive deeper into the vision itself. We see a throne in heaven with one seated on it (v. 2). This throne is where we see God sitting, in his place of honor, authority and judgment. The way John describes God is a marvelous sight of jasper and carnelian, with a rainbow around the throne (v. 3). The jasper, a transparent stone that magnifies amazing colors, signifies the glorious perfection of God, while the carnelian, a red stone, signifies justice. The rainbow is another reminder of God’s covenant, and that he is always faithful. The power and authority of God’s word is seen in the lighting and thunder of verse 5. As we look at verse 6, what John sees can only be described as other worldly. The four living creatures with six wings and eyes all around must have been a terrifying sight, but they are heard giving praise to God!
The vision that John saw was nothing short of amazing, and we could spend countless hours breaking down everything in this chapter, but let’s look at the last few verses. We hear two separate times from the four living creatures, and both times they are giving praise to God, the object of their worship. “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” Church, in the present, let us have this attitude of praise in us on earth where God has us now! “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.” When He returns or calls us home as the song says, how amazing it will be when we are in Heaven with our Creator giving praise to him for eternity!
Let God be the object of your worship! I encourage all of us to give praise like this to God now, knowing that He is the one who created and sustains all things, and look forward to that time when we will sing praises to God as we behold Him in all His glory as we are in His presence for all of eternity!
By: Scottie Frans
Revelation 4
The book of Revelation really opens up the possibilities of our imaginations, and Chapter 4 is no different. The chapter begins with John’s heavenly vision, and the verses that follow detail some amazing sights that show the glory of God. There is a lot going on in this chapter, so let’s look at some of the highlights.
Beginning with verse 1, we see the words “after this.” John’s heavenly vision comes after he has already seen visions from God (as seen in earlier chapters of Revelation). What we can see here is that when we are consistently learning, God prepares us to learn more. John had already had visions from God, and verse 1 shows that he was prepared for God to reveal himself even more. For example, when we have a knowledge and understanding of the Old Testament, that allows us to understand the context of the New Testament that much more. Just like John was prepared for this heavenly vision by what he had seen before, we can be prepared for God to further reveal Himself to us by being in His word and consistently learning from it.
Now that we understand how John was prepared for the vision, let’s dive deeper into the vision itself. We see a throne in heaven with one seated on it (v. 2). This throne is where we see God sitting, in his place of honor, authority and judgment. The way John describes God is a marvelous sight of jasper and carnelian, with a rainbow around the throne (v. 3). The jasper, a transparent stone that magnifies amazing colors, signifies the glorious perfection of God, while the carnelian, a red stone, signifies justice. The rainbow is another reminder of God’s covenant, and that he is always faithful. The power and authority of God’s word is seen in the lighting and thunder of verse 5. As we look at verse 6, what John sees can only be described as other worldly. The four living creatures with six wings and eyes all around must have been a terrifying sight, but they are heard giving praise to God!
The vision that John saw was nothing short of amazing, and we could spend countless hours breaking down everything in this chapter, but let’s look at the last few verses. We hear two separate times from the four living creatures, and both times they are giving praise to God, the object of their worship. “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” Church, in the present, let us have this attitude of praise in us on earth where God has us now! “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.” When He returns or calls us home as the song says, how amazing it will be when we are in Heaven with our Creator giving praise to him for eternity!
Let God be the object of your worship! I encourage all of us to give praise like this to God now, knowing that He is the one who created and sustains all things, and look forward to that time when we will sing praises to God as we behold Him in all His glory as we are in His presence for all of eternity!
By: Scottie Frans
8 Comments
Amen Scottie! The joy of heaven and endless worship of God without the weight of sin & worries of this world is hard for my mind to conceive. I can just see Tim, Chuck, & Tom praising Jesus as I read scripture this morning. One fine day we will join them for eternity.
Yes! I think so often we let our worship be hampered by our current circumstances. What a joy it must be in Heaven to not have all the negatives weighing us down!
This is awesome Scottie. I really appreciate you breaking this down so I can soak it in even better. And yes! Being in His word and praising Him has gotten me through so many difficult times-I need to make sure that is my focus everyday!
Just imagine if we made it our focus each day to give praise like this. How much would our perspective on this life change?
Good word Scottie! Praising the Lord is one of my favorite things to do. I can't wait to be in the presence of Jesus in eternity and worship Him forever more!
It reminds me of the old song:
"What a day that will be, when my Jesus I shall see.
When I look upon his face, the One who saved me by His grace.
When He takes me by the hand, and leads me through the promised land,
What a day, glorious day, that will be!"
Amen, Scottie!
I found some useful information in my study Bible while reading about the four creatures that surrounded the throne. The creatures are “the fourfold picture of Christ given in the gospel accounts. Matthew is the royal gospel of the King, illustrated by the lion. Mark emphasizes the servant aspect of the Lord’s ministry (the ox). Luke presents Christ as the compassionate Son of Man (the human face). John magnifies the deity of Christ, the Son of God (the eagle).
This was helpful to me. So much symbolism in the Word.
Yes, there was so much more I wanted to put in this post, but it would have turned into a book! So much to break down here, it's awesome to take some time and really study and understand what is going on in Revelation.