Worthy is The Lamb: OK, Let’s Worship Some More! (Part 1)

As we arrive at the 5th chapter of Revelation we come to one of the most glorious chapters in all the bible and the one from which I’ve taken the over-all theme of this sermon series — Worthy is the Lamb. There are any number of people in my life who are worthy of my love, my life, and my all, but none are worthy of my worship. The Triune Godhead is worthy of my love, my life, my all ... AND my worship. We ended last Sunday’s message from Revelation 4:1-11 with a focus on the heart of worship. OK, Let's Worship Some More!

As we begin Revelation chapter five, I want to say three things about our Lord Jesus Christ:

Jesus Is Exclusively Worthy of Worship

Jesus Is Exceedingly Worthy of Worship

Jesus Is Eternally Worthy of Worship

Rather than preaching one really, really long sermon, I’ve opted to break this message in three separate — much shorter — sermons.

I. JESUS IS EXCLUSIVELY WORTHY OF WORSHIP

“Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. 2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” 3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. 4 I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. 5 Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”” (Revelation 5:1–5, NIV84)

1. please remember that when John wrote the Revelation that Jesus gave to him, the chapter divisions and verses were not part of that divine revelation!

a. chapter five continues the glorious vision of heaven that we began looking at last week

b. John has heard a voice command him “ ... Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” (Revelation 4:1, NIV84)

2. John sees God, high and lifted up and sitting on his throne

a. He is surrounded by the Four Living Creatures who sing the Praise Song of the Angels

b. He is surrounded by the Redeemed of the Lord — represented by the twenty-four elders — who ascribe to Him glory and honor and power

c. our God is sovereign, and He is ruling all that He has created

“All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him, 28 for dominion belongs to the LORD and he rules over the nations.” (Psalm 22:27–28, NIV84)

“May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly and guide the nations of the earth. Selah” (Psalm 67:4, NIV84)

“Ah, Sovereign LORD, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.” (Jeremiah 32:17, NIV84)

b. although the earth is filled with turmoil and tumult, natural catastrophe of flood and earthquake, human suffering in terms of famine and disease, wars and conflicts, God remains sovereign

3. when he looks at the throne again, the one sitting on the throne is holding a seven-sealed scroll

A. THE SCROLL

1. the big question of chapter five is what is written upon the seven-sealed scroll God holds in His hand?

a. there are four major interpretations of the scroll’s contents

1) if I were teaching through Revelation as a Bible study, I would spend some time explaining to you what they are

2) but when I preach, I preach my theological convictions, and so I’ll just tell you what I think is the correct view

2. the scroll contains the final story of end-time events

a. this includes the salvation of God’s people and the judgment of the wicked

b. the scroll contains the details of God’s redemptive plan for the resolution of human history, the overthrow of evil, and the gathering of a redeemed people to forever enjoy the blessings of God’s rule

1) interestingly enough, the actual contents of the scroll are never actually revealed, and we have to make some educated assumptions about those contents

c. I believe that the contents of the scroll consist of the events recorded in Revelation 7:1-22:21 — the story of the end of the world and the beginning of eternity

3. the details mentioned in connection with the scroll are all-important

a. 1st, it is God who holds the scroll

1) history, and the end of the world, is in God’s hands and no one else’s

a) God is the author of history ... the One guiding it to the ultimate end He has decreed for it

2) in an era where we hear the nattering-nabobs talk about being on the “right” or “wrong” side of history of this-or-that social issue, there’s only one side of history we need to worry about being on ... that’s God’s side of history

3) for us, the scroll with its seals contains the story of what God has planned for the salvation of his people

4) this plan is a foreordained mystery, according to Paul, and is revealed in the fullness of time

“And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ. 11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will,” (Ephesians 1:9–11, NIV84)

b. 2nd, the scroll in John’s vision is sealed with seven seals

1) everywhere in the Bible seven stands for completeness

2) God’s perfect will for His creation is about to come to fruition — the Father’s redemptive work is about to be finished

3) only the Father knows what is inside — no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it

4) the end of the world and the consummation of all things in Christ has been the most closely guarded secret of all time

"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." (Matthew 24:36, NIV84)

5) when the 6th seal is broken, the contents are revealed and those contents tell the story of God’s wrath unleashed upon a rebellious world that has rejected His rule and His Christ

B. ONE WORTHY TO OPEN THE SCROLL

1. God holds a scroll ... it has writings on both sides ... it’s obviously meant to be read ... a Mighty Angel calls out Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll, but alas no one is found worthy

“But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it.” (Revelation 5:3, NIV84)

a. the Mighty Angel initiates an extensive search to find someone who is worthy to open the book

b. region after region is searched yet no angel, no human, no creature whatsoever could open the book

1) the angels are not worthy ... not even Gabriel or Michael

2) the elders around the throne are not worthy ... not even Paul, or Peter, or James

3) the four living creatures are not worthy ... not even the Seraphim or Cherubim

4) the men of earth are not worthy ... not even Pope Francis, or the Dalai Lama, or Billy Graham, or Beth Moore

c. John weeps with unrestrained emotion because no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth is found worthy enough to reveal God’s decree

1) but John’s weeping is premature

2. one person is worthy to take the scroll and open it

“Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”” (Revelation 5:5, NIV84)

a. those two phrases — Lion of the tribe of Judah, and Root of David — point to the conquering Christ, and sum up the totality of the Old Testament messianic hope

1) the first is a reference to Genesis 49:9-10 and the second to Isaiah 11:1

b. this is the kind of Messiah the Jews were looking for in Jesus’ day, and who will be terrifying when he comes in power and glory, trumpets blaring and angels shouting

c. Jesus is worthy to break the seals and read the scroll because he is an Overcomer

1) at the cross He defeated sin (Rom. 8:3)

2) at the grave He defeated death (Heb. 2:14–15)

3) at the resurrection He defeated all the forces of hell (Col. 2:15; 1 Pet. 3:19)

d. and here is the really cool news ... believers are overcomers through His overcoming

3. The One Worthy to Open the Scroll Is the One Exclusively Worthy of Our Worship

ILLUS. Adrian Rogers once wrote: If you were to take all the 7.6 billion people on the face of the earth today and put them in single file, and put a receptacle at the front of the line, and have each one of them pass by and put into that receptacle all of his inherent goodness, and then take that goodness out and put it into one man, that one man would not be worthy to open this book. There is only one who could do it: our kinsman redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ, who paid the price. Jesus is exclusively worthy.

II. APPLICATION

A. GOD’S REDEMPTIVE HISTORY GIVES MEANING TO WORLD HISTORY

1. here is a simple but profound biblical truth which cannot be overemphasized: Apart from the person and redeeming work of Jesus Christ, history is an enigma — a series of seemingly random events impossible to find meaning in

a. ever since Augustine wrote his magnus opus, City of God, a Christian view of history as having a divinely ordained goal which is inseparable from the redemptive work of Christ, has guided western thought

b. the biblical understanding of history is rooted in the belief that ...

1) God is sovereign and in total control of the created order

2) God has a plan and He’s carrying it out

3) God created man to have fellowship with him

4) Man sinned, and God will judge him for his sins

5) God has entered into human history in the person of Jesus Christ so lost men can be reconciled to God

2. but ever since the days of the Enlightenment, modern philosophers and historians have increasingly rejected the bible, and the bible’s view of history

a. when you reject the biblical view of history you are left with a series of purposeless, meaningless, often disturbing random events that leads to pessimism and fatalism

3. Revelation 5:1 reminds us that all of human history rests in the hand of God

a. however strong evil becomes, however fierce be the satanic evils that assail God’s people on earth, history still rests in God’s hand

4. because God’s redemptive history, gives meaning to world history, it also gives meaning to your history

B. THE SCROLL IS ABOUT DOOM AND JUDGMENT, BUT ALSO REDEMPTION

1. it tells how Christ will redeem the world from the usurper, Satan, and those men and demons who have collaborated with him

2. when we get to the 6th chapter of Revelation, and the breaking of the 6th Seal, all hell is going to break loose

a. a Tribulation, such as the world has never seen, will descend upon the societies of the world

1) chapter eight is about a series of judgments — called the Trumpet Judgements — poured out upon rebellious, wicked, and obstinate sinners

2) and then in chapter fifteen it really starts to get bad with the Bowl Judgements

b. but I believe a great awakening around the globe will also be taking place

“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 and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” 13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” 14 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.” (Revelation 7:9–14, ESV)

C. CHRIST ALONE IS WORTHY TO RULE A WORLD CREATED BY HIM AND FOR HIM

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:15–17, ESV)

1. throughout history there have been many pretenders to earth’s throne who have sought to conquer and rule the world

a. the first and most powerful and notorious usurper was Satan

1) after his rebellion against God was crushed, he and his angelic followers were thrown out of heaven (Luke 10:18; Rev. 12:3–4), and he became the “god of this world” (2 Cor. 4:4)

b. over the millennium, Satan has inspired a host of humans to try their hand at conquest, men such as Nebuchadnezzar, Darius, Alexander the Great, the emperors of Rome, Attila the Hun, Genghis Khan, Napoleon, Lenin, Stalin, and Hitler, and Mao

1) all of those men, and a host of lesser lights, have one thing in common: they failed

2. only one individual has the right, the power, and the authority to rule the earth: the Lord Jesus Christ

ILLUS. In English legends, King Uther Pandragon was an ambitious warring king who doomed his own kingdom by taking a duke's wife by magical deception. That Duke was killed in battle as the affair was going on. Dissatisfaction with King Uther’s reign begins to spread and some of the dukes of the kingdom rebel. In a final battle, King Uther is cornered. His enemies want to kill him, and take Excalibur, the sword of kings for their own. As Uther is dying of a mortal wound he stabs the sword into a large stone and exclaims "If I can't have Excaliber, no one can," and dies. The other knights try to free Excalibur but could not. Merlin the Magician then prophesied, "He who pulls Excalibur from the stone, He shall be king."

After that, each year the knights of the land would gather and hold tournaments to win the right to try to free Excalibur from the stone, and become king. The legends say that twenty years after the event, as the annual tournament is about to commence, a squire loses his knight's sword, and went looking for it. He stumbled upon Excalibur in the stone and merely touched it, and it leaped from the stone into his hand. There was an uproar, but just as Merlin had said, the sword could only be freed by the only one worthy to do so.

Arthur was that young squire, and it turns out, he was actually Uther's Pendragon’s infant son that was taken into hiding two decades before. So, Arthur had the pedigree of a king, and he had the pure heart that the nation needed in her king. He was worthy to pull the sword from the stone.

3. the narrative of chapter five is no legend, but a revelation of actual events

a. the angel is seeking the One who is worthy to open the Scroll

b. John hears a voice say “ ... “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.”” (Revelation 5:5, ESV)

c. no one else is worthy or capable of ruling the world — no evil man, no good man, no demon, and no holy angel

d. Revelation 5 introduces Jesus Christ, earth’s rightful ruler, who is pictured about to return to redeem the world from sin, Satan, death, and the curse

3. because Christ alone is worthy to rule a world created by him and for him, Jesus is exclusively worthy of worship

Conclusion

Jesus is the central theme of John’s second vision of heaven. The question is: Is he the central theme of your life, and the focus of your worship?

Related Media

Related Sermons