The Worthy One

A reward to the person who can tell me when Jesus was first mentioned in the bible.

Revelation 5:1–14 (ESV)

Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”

And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song, saying,

“Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.” Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

So the unnamed angel makes a proclamation for anyone worth enough to open the scroll and reveal its contents to step forward and receive the scroll. As no one is worthy to accept the call John is heartbroken. He begins to cry uncontrollably. Maybe it was because God told him to write down what he saw, and he was afraid it was going to stall out there. Maybe it was because he knew the state of mankind was horrible, and he was afraid that the world would continue on sinfully degrading forever. Whatever the reason for his sobbing he is quickly quieted by one of the elders. The One who is worthy is about to come onto the scene, and John’s tears and groanings are ruining the moment.

The Lion and the Lamb. Notice this really quickly. Jesus appears here as a lamb, but He is called the Lion of the tribe of Judah. Seems kind of a contradictory statement to me. This is why this is so. Back in the early stages of the OT we find the Hebrews (Jews) captive in the land of Egypt. Under God’s direction Moses leads the campaign to free the enslaved Jews from the Pharaoh's grasp by bringing various plagues upon the land. Plagues from turning the Nile to blood, bringing in massive amounts of frogs and insects, causing boils to inflict pain on the people, and the final straw was the death angel entering the kingdom and killing all first born children of all houses that were not covered by the blood. The blood of what you ask? The blood of a little, unblemished, perfect lamb. God sent instructions that the Hebrews were to take a little lamb that was unblemished (Without spot, cuts, flees, anything that makes it undesirable or unperfect), slaughter it, and put its blood over all over the threshold of the outside door of their homes, and when the death angel came by if it saw the blood it would pass on, but if there was no blood on the door post then it would enter the house and take the life of the first born child. Of course Pharoah did not take God seriously and he lost his son that night, and in grief he allowed the children of Israel to go free.

But it all started with the sacrifice of a little lamb. Now every year to commemorate the Passover (The angel passing over the houses that were marked) the people of Israel take an unblemished (perfect) lamb, they spend a week with the lamb within their house getting to know the lamb, searching over it looking for blemishes, making sure it is perfect for sacrifice, and in the time they become attached to the animal. Which makes it that much more of a pain when they give it up for sacrifice. At the end of this week they will kill the lamb as a sacrifice to God for their liberation from Egypt, and ultimately their liberation from sin.

Of course many Jews do not believe that the Christ has come, but that does not stop the fact that He has, and this scene in heaven depicted the Lamb that was Slain for the sins of the world. He was given as the unblemished sacrifice for our sins, and He stands victoriously in heaven having conquered death, and paving a way for all those who believe in Him to triumph over death as well.

Do you know what lambs do not have? Horns. A lamb is a harmless, feeble, dainty animal that does not strike fear in any creature. As a matter of fact the lamb is high on a predators hit list because it tastes wonderful, yet it posses zero chance of fighting back in an attack. But this is no ordinary lamb. Jesus is described here as a lamb who was previously slain, but stands victorious over the attempt to end His life permanently. Not only has He beat death, but He sports 7 prominent horns on His head as well.

Horns were used for battle in the animal kingdom, and an animal without a weapon was usually toast. Jesus is depicted with 7. Not only a formidable weapon, but horns are a symbol of power throughout the Bible. 7 is the number of completion or perfection, so 7 horns symbolizes the absolute and perfect power that Jesus holds.

As for the scroll that Jesus is accepting. This is a deed. It is a deed to the world. It is ultimately His anyways. However, in the garden God gave Adam dominion over the world. When Adam failed to temptation, the ownership of the world was lost to the tempter as well. Adam lost his home, he lost his most intimate relationship with God, he lost his privileges over the world, life became increasingly difficult. But there is One who is coming that will restore Earth to the way it was meant to be. One who will establish an everlasting kingdom, One reestablish the walk with God that we once knew in the Garden, the One who will right all that is wrong, and One who will wipe away every tear from the eyes of those who love Him.

Isaiah 53:4-6 “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”

Power- The authority to do whatever He would like.

Riches- the wealth of God

Wisdom- the natural wisdom of God

Strength- the physical strength to do whatever He wants

Honor- rewards (us and eternal glory)

Glory- the image of God

Blessing- worship, acknowledgement, and commendations

Every single thing in the universe is worshipping the Lord. If that is not the height of power I do not know what is.

Can you praise something that is a failure? Can you praise someone who is weak? Can you praise someone who does not have authority? Not truthfully. We do not praise God because He is weak, or a failure. No, we worship Him because He is victorious. We see the end of the world, and at the end of it is Him. Sitting high, and lighted up. Reigning forever with His enemies vanquished. Restoring peace to the universe. For the rest of eternity all will be perfect. No sadness, no pain, no heartache, no anger, no betrayal, no bitterness, no sin. All will be perfect. Forever.

This is why we praise Him. He is the only One who is worthy of it, because He is the only victor and through Him you and I are victors as well. Whoever stands by His side, will stand in victory forever.

We will break the seals throughout the next couple of weeks to see what claim is within the deed.