What is Heaven Like? (Pt.2)

INTRODUCTION

• Please take your Bible and turn with me to Revelation chapter 4.

• Today we are continuing our look at John’s vision of heaven and asking the question: What is Heaven Like?

• In our last time together, we began looking at Revelation chapter 4.

• John told us that he was “in the Spirit,” and he was given a vision of heaven.

• He saw “a door standing open in heaven.”

• He heard a voice “like the sound of a trumpet” saying, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.”

• John was not dreaming.

• He was not imagining.

• He was being shown heavenly realities by divine revelation.

• In verses 1-3, John saw several features of heaven:

• He saw a door standing open in heaven.

• He saw a throne standing in heaven.

• He saw One sitting on the throne.

• He saw a rainbow around the throne.

• And now, as we come to verse 4, John continues to describe what he saw around the throne of God.

• Before we move further into the details, remember this: the central feature of heaven is not man.

• It is not angels.

• It is not rewards.

• It is not reunions.

• The central feature of heaven is God Himself, seated on His throne.

• Everything in Revelation 4 circles around that throne.

• Everything is positioned in relation to that throne.

• Everything responds to the One who sits on that throne.

Read Revelation 4:4–11…

Revelation 4:4–11 NASB95

⁴ Around the throne were twenty-four thrones; and upon the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white garments, and golden crowns on their heads.

⁵ Out from the throne come flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder. And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God;

⁶ and before the throne there was something like a sea of glass, like crystal; and in the center and around the throne, four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind.

⁷ The first creature was like a lion, and the second creature like a calf, and the third creature had a face like that of a man, and the fourth creature was like a flying eagle.

⁸ And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say,

“HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME.”

⁹ And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever,

¹⁰ the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

¹¹ “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.”

Let’s begin by remembering…

I. How John Responded

John was Astonished (v.1)

Verse 1 says, “After these things I looked, and behold…”

John says “Behold” to introduce something surprising.

The word means “to gaze intently and consider”.

This is a word of vivid emotion.

He saw a door open in heaven.

John Was in the Spirit (v.2)

Verse 2 says, “Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne.”

• John describes this heavenly vision with the same language he used in Revelation 1:10 when he said, “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day.”

• This was a vision given by God.

• John was carried beyond earthly sight and earthly limitation so that he could behold heavenly reality.

• He was not speculating about heaven.

• He was reporting what God permitted him to see.

• And what he saw was so glorious that even inspired language stretches to describe it.

• Again and again, John says “like” and “as,” because he is describing heavenly realities in earthly words.

› Now we come to the heart of the passage…

II. What John Saw

He has already seen in verses 1-3…

A Door Open in Heaven (v.1)

A Throne Set in Heaven (v.2)

The One who Sat on the Throne (vv.2c-3a)

A Rainbow Around the Throne (v.3b)

Next he sees…

Twenty-Four Thrones (v.4a)

“Around the throne were twenty-four thrones.”

• The first thing John sees in verse 4 is that there are twenty-four thrones around the throne.

• The word “throne” refers to a seat of authority.

• It is the seat of a ruler, a monarch, or one who reigns under authority.

Albert Barnes says, “The word, indeed, properly denotes a seat, but it came to be employed to denote particularly the seat on which a monarch sat.”

• These thrones are not the central throne.

• They are around the throne.

• That is important because heaven is not pictured as a democracy.

• Heaven is not pictured as a council where God shares equal authority with others.

• There is one throne at the center, and all other thrones are subordinate to that throne.

• That means all authority in heaven is derived authority.

• God alone reigns absolutely.

• Any other seat of honor, authority, or rule exists only because He grants it.

• John does not tell us the exact arrangement of these thrones.

• He simply says they are “around the throne.”

• We do not need to know more than the text tells us.

• What matters is that even these thrones are positioned in relation to God’s throne.

Around the throne John sees twenty-four thrones. But then he tells us who is sitting on those thrones…

Twenty-Four Elders (v.4b)

“and upon the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white garments, and golden crowns on their heads.”

• John sees twenty-four elders sitting on the twenty-four thrones.

• There has been much discussion about the identity of these twenty-four elders.

• Some believe they represent redeemed humanity, including Old Testament and New Testament saints.

• Some believe they symbolize the people of God in heaven, enthroned and rewarded.

• Some believe they are representatives of the church.

• Others believe they are a special order of heavenly beings.

• We must be careful here.

• The text tells us what they are called, what they wear, where they sit, and what they do.

• But it does not give us a direct statement that settles every question about their identity.

• They are called “elders.”

• They are seated on thrones.

• They are clothed in white garments.

• They have golden crowns on their heads.

• They worship God.

• One of them later speaks to John and gives him instruction.

• Revelation mentions these elders several times.

• They appear in Revelation 4:4 and 4:10; Revelation 5:8 and 5:14; Revelation 11:16; and Revelation 19:4.

• In Revelation 5:5, one of the elders speaks to John concerning the One who is worthy to open the book and its seven seals:

• Revelation 5:5 says, “and one of the elders said to me, ‘Stop weeping; behold, the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals.’”

• Revelation 5:8 says, “When He had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.”

• In Revelation 11:16, they again worship God:

• Revelation 11:16 says, “And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God.”

• In Revelation 19:4, they again fall down in worship:

• Revelation 19:4 says, “And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne saying, ‘Amen. Hallelujah!’”

• So whatever else we say about the twenty-four elders, we can say this: they are heavenly beings who are near the throne, associated with worship, clothed in white, crowned with gold, and positioned in delegated honor before God.

• The number twenty-four may suggest representation.

• In the Old Testament, the priesthood was divided into twenty-four divisions.

• The singers in the temple were also arranged in twenty-four divisions.

John MacArthur says, “Whoever the twenty-four elders are, then, they likely represent a larger group.”

John Walvoord says, “The fact that they are a representative group, however, seems to be clear from the parallel of the Old Testament where the priesthood was represented by twenty-four orders of priests.”

• But we should not press beyond what Scripture clearly states.

• We can say they are twenty-four elders.

• We can say they are around the throne.

• We can say they worship.

• We can say they cast their crowns before God.

• But where the text is silent, we must be cautious.

• What is unmistakable is that heaven is filled with worshipers who know that all honor belongs to God.

John sees twenty-four thrones and twenty-four elders. But then he hears and sees something coming from the throne itself…

Lightning, Sounds, and Peals of Thunder (v.5a)

“Out from the throne come flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder.”

• John now tells us what proceeds from the throne.

• The throne of God is not quiet, casual, or tame.

• From the throne come flashes of lightning, sounds, and peals of thunder.

• This scene communicates majesty, terror, holiness, and judgment.

• This same kind of language appears at other key moments in Revelation.

• Revelation 8:5 says, “Then the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar, and threw it to the earth; and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.”

• Revelation 11:19 says, “And the temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder and an earthquake and a great hailstorm.”

• Revelation 16:18 says, “And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty.”

• This also reminds us of Mount Sinai.

• Exodus 19:16 says, “So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled.”

• At Sinai, God manifested His holiness and majesty before Israel, and the people trembled.

• Here in Revelation 4, John is seeing the heavenly throne from which divine judgment will proceed.

Robert Mounce says these things “are symbolic of the awesome power and majesty of God.”

John Walvoord says, “The lightnings, thunderings, and voices which proceed from the throne are prophetic of the righteous judgment of God upon a sinful world.”

• Heaven is glorious, but it is not sentimental.

• Heaven is beautiful, but it is not casual.

• Heaven is filled with worship, but it is also filled with the majesty and holiness of God.

• The God of heaven is not to be treated lightly.

› From the throne come lightning, sounds, and thunder. But before the throne John sees another feature…

Seven Lamps of Fire (v.5b)

“And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.”

• John sees seven lamps of fire burning before the throne.

• These are not the lampstands of Revelation 1, which represented the churches.

• These are lamps of fire, blazing before the throne.

John MacArthur says, “Unlike the lampstands mentioned in 1:12-13, these were outdoor torches, giving off not the soft, gentle light of an indoor lamp, but the fierce, blazing light of a fiery torch.”

Leon Morris says, “The present participle “blazing denotes continuous activity and the preposition before “nearness” to God.”

• John identifies these seven lamps as “the seven Spirits of God.”

• This does not mean there are seven Holy Spirit’s.

• This is a symbolic description of the fullness and perfection of the Holy Spirit’s ministry.

• Revelation 1:4 also refers to “the seven Spirits who are before His throne.”

• Isaiah 11:2 gives us a sevenfold description associated with the Spirit’s work and says, “The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.”

• Zechariah 4 also connects lamp imagery with the power of the Spirit:

• Zechariah 4:6 says, “Then he said to me, ‘This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel saying, “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,” says the LORD of hosts.’”

• Here in Revelation 4, the Spirit is seen in connection with blazing fire before the throne.

John MacArthur says this description speaks “of fiery judgment.”

• The Holy Spirit is the Comforter of those who belong to Christ.

• But to those who reject Christ, God’s holiness and judgment remain a terror.

• The same God who saves sinners by grace will judge sinners who persist in rebellion.

Before the throne John sees the seven lamps of fire. Then he sees something else before the throne…

A Sea of Glass Like Crystal (v.6a)

“and before the throne there was something like a sea of glass, like crystal.”

• John says that before the throne there was something like a sea of glass, like crystal.

• This does not mean there is an ocean before the throne.

• John is describing what he sees with comparative language: “something like a sea of glass.”

• Revelation 21:1 says, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.”

• The picture is likely that of a vast, shining, crystal-like pavement before the throne of God.

• There is a similar scene in Exodus 24.

• Exodus 24:10 says, “and they saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself.”

• Ezekiel also saw something like an expanse above the living beings.

• Ezekiel 1:22 says, “Now over the heads of the living beings there was something like an expanse, like the awesome gleam of crystal, spread out over their heads.”

• Heaven is not dim, vague, ghostly, or shadowy.

• Heaven is a world of light, brilliance, purity, clarity, and glory.

John MacArthur says, “Heaven is not a shadowy world of mists and indistinct apparitions. It is a world of dazzling brilliant light, refracting and shining as through jewels and crystal in a manner beyond our ability to describe or imagine.”

• That is why John uses language like jasper, sardius, emerald, crystal, lightning, and fire.

• He is trying to describe a realm of glory that exceeds anything we have ever seen.

Before the throne John sees a sea of glass like crystal. Now he turns our attention to the…

Four Living Creatures (vv.6b-8a)

“and in the center and around the throne, four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind.”

• The term “living creatures” comes from a word related to life.

• These are not animals in the ordinary sense.

• They are heavenly beings.

• Ezekiel 10:15 identifies similar living beings as cherubim.

• Ezekiel 10:15 says, “Then the cherubim rose up. They are the living beings that I saw by the river Chebar.”

• Cherubim are an exalted order of angels often associated with the holy presence and power of God.

• Psalm 80:1 says, “Oh, give ear, Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock; You who are enthroned above the cherubim, shine forth!”

• Psalm 99:1 says, “The LORD reigns, let the peoples tremble; He is enthroned above the cherubim, let the earth shake!”

• After Adam and Eve sinned, cherubim were placed at the entrance to Eden.

• Genesis 3:24 says, “So He drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden He stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life.”

• Two carved cherubim were also placed in the Holy of Holies in Solomon’s temple.

• 1 Kings 6:23 says, “Also in the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olive wood, each ten cubits high.”

• Cherubim are connected with the holiness of God and the guarding of access to His presence.

• Ezekiel 28:14 speaks of Satan before his fall as “the anointed cherub who covers.”

• Ezekiel 28:14 says, “You were the anointed cherub who covers, And I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire.”

• John says these four living creatures were “full of eyes in front and behind.”

• Revelation 4:8 says, “And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within.”

• Ezekiel saw similar imagery.

• Ezekiel 1:18 says, “As for their rims they were lofty and awesome, and the rims of all four of them were full of eyes round about.”

• Ezekiel 10:12 says, “Their whole body, their backs, their hands, their wings and the wheels were full of eyes all around, the wheels belonging to all four of them.”

• This does not mean these creatures are omniscient.

• Only God is omniscient.

• The imagery speaks of awareness, alertness, and comprehensive perception in relation to their service before God.

John MacArthur says that the eyes symbolize their “awareness, alertness, and comprehensive knowledge,” and that “nothing pertaining to their duty escapes their scrutiny.”

• Revelation 4:7 says, “The first creature was like a lion, and the second creature like a calf, and the third creature had a face like that of a man, and the fourth creature was like a flying eagle.”

• Ezekiel says each of the living beings he saw had four faces.

• Ezekiel 1:6 says, “Each of them had four faces and four wings.”

• Ezekiel 1:10 says, “As for the form of their faces, each had the face of a man; all four had the face of a lion on the right and the face of a bull on the left, and all four had the face of an eagle.”

• In Revelation 4, John emphasizes one face for each creature.

• The lion suggests majesty and strength.

• The calf or ox suggests service and strength.

• The man suggests intelligence and reason.

• The eagle suggests swiftness and soaring majesty.

• These living creatures represent the highest order of created life serving in the immediate presence of God.

• Revelation 4:8 says, “And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within.”

• Isaiah saw seraphim with six wings before the throne.

• Isaiah 6:2 says, “Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.”

• The point is not to satisfy curiosity about angelic anatomy.

• The point is to show us that heaven is filled with holy beings who exist to serve and worship God.

We have seen the creatures. Now we listen to their song…

The Song of the Living Creatures (v.8b)

“and day and night they do not cease to say, ‘HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME.’”

• The living creatures do not rest day or night.

• Their worship is constant.

• Their praise is centered on the holiness, sovereignty, eternality, and almighty power of God.

• They cry, “Holy, holy, holy.”

• God is not merely holy.

• He is holy, holy, holy.

• The repetition intensifies the declaration.

• Holiness is the only attribute of God repeated three times in this way in Scripture.

• Isaiah 6:3 says, “And one called out to another and said, ‘Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.’”

Leon Morris writes, “The simple repetition is impressive. So is the fact that holiness comes first.”

• God’s holiness means He is utterly separate from sin, infinitely pure, and absolutely distinct from all created beings.

• He is “the Lord God, the Almighty.”

• He is the One “who was and who is and who is to come.”

• He is eternal.

• He has no beginning.

• He will have no end.

• He is not subject to time.

• He is not threatened by history.

• He is not surprised by events.

• Heaven never grows tired of declaring the holiness of God.

• And if heaven never grows tired of God’s holiness, then we must not grow tired of preaching it, singing it, hearing it, fearing it, and loving it.

The song of the living creatures leads to the worship of the elders…

The Worship of the Elders (vv.9-11)

“the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne.”

• The worship of the living creatures prompts the worship of the elders.

• When the living creatures give glory, honor, and thanks to God, the elders fall down before Him.

• They do not merely bow their heads.

• They fall down.

• This is reverent, humble, prostrate worship before the majesty of God.

John MacArthur says, “Such a posture is one of reverential worship, a natural response to the majestic, holy, awe-inspiring glory of God.”

• Then they cast their crowns before the throne.

• Whatever honor they have received, they give it back to God.

• Whatever reward they possess, they acknowledge that it came from Him.

• Whatever dignity they hold, they lay it before His throne.

John MacArthur says, “They are not concerned about their own holiness, honor, or reward. All those things pale into insignificance and become meaningless in the light of the glory of God.”

• This is the heart of true worship.

• True worship does not parade itself before God.

• True worship does not compete for recognition.

• True worship does not cling to crowns.

• True worship gives everything back to the One who is worthy.

• The elders say, “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God.”

• God is worthy to receive glory.

• God is worthy to receive honor.

• God is worthy to receive power.

• Why?

• “For You created all things.”

• God is worshiped as Creator.

• Everything exists because God created it.

• Everything continues because God wills it.

• Everything owes its existence to Him.

• Revelation 4:11 says, “for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.”

• That means you exist by the will of God.

• You were created by God.

• You are sustained by God.

• You are accountable to God.

• And your life will never make sense until it is surrendered to God.

• Heaven understands this perfectly.

• That is why heaven worships.

• The tragedy on earth is that men and women live as though they created themselves, sustain themselves, own themselves, and answer only to themselves.

• But heaven tells the truth.

• God created all things.

• God owns all things.

• God sustains all things.

• God is worthy of all worship.

› So what is heaven like?

Heaven is the place where God is seen, worshiped, obeyed, and adored without interruption.

CONCLUSION

• What a mighty scene this is.

• John sees twenty-four thrones around the throne.

• He sees twenty-four elders clothed in white garments with golden crowns on their heads.

• He sees flashes of lightning and hears sounds and peals of thunder proceeding from the throne.

• He sees seven lamps of fire burning before the throne.

• He sees something like a sea of glass, like crystal.

• He sees four living creatures full of eyes, worshiping day and night.

• And he sees the elders falling down and casting their crowns before God.

• No wonder John had to use language of comparison.

• No wonder he speaks of things “like” jasper, “like” sardius, “like” emerald, and “like” crystal.

• He is describing glory beyond human comprehension.

• But this passage does not merely give us information about heaven.

• It calls us to worship.

• If heaven is consumed with the holiness of God, then the church must be consumed with the holiness of God.

• If heaven casts its crowns before the throne, then we must lay our pride, achievements, honors, and rewards before Him.

• If heaven declares that God is worthy because He created all things, then we must stop living as though life belongs to us.

• Heaven should make us long for God’s presence.

• And if you do not long to be in the presence of God, you need to examine your heart.

• If the thought of God’s throne brings no joy, no reverence, no desire, and no worship, then you need to ask whether you truly know the God of heaven.

• 1 John 3:1 says, “See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.”

• 1 John 3:2 says, “Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.”

• 1 John 3:3 says, “And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”

• That is what the hope of heaven does.

• It purifies.

• It humbles.

• It awakens worship.

• It makes us long to see Christ.

• It makes us say with heaven, “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God.”

› So as we close, let us ask ourselves:

• Do I worship God as holy?

• Do I live as one created by Him and accountable to Him?

• Do I hold my crowns loosely?

• Do I long to be in His presence?

• Do I have this hope fixed on Him?

• May God give us hearts that worship now as heaven worships forever.

Let’s Pray.