The Throne Room Now

Intro

The throne room during the inter-advent period.

Throne room images demonstrate authority structures.

Often someone standing behind the president at a speech.

Images their support for the president

Images the president’s trust for the person (back turned)

PRO TIP

In the ancient world, the trust position was the right hand—complete authority over the kingdom, except over the king himself.

smaller throne, chair, desk/podium to the right of the king or right in front

A way of extending their authority for greater reach (one man can’t do it all)

We’re going to see a striking adaptation of the ‘right hand’ image in the message today.

The images

The Father’s Throne (The almighty, creator, sovereign) sitting on the ornate sea of jeweled floor.

The 4 “Angels” (Divine Beings), specifically the class of Cherubim

cf. Isaiah 6

S&C: Guardians, Worship at God’s Throne

Seraphim: covered eyes (in Isaiah, they burn [root of Seraph] burn Isaiah’s lips with coal to purify him of unclean lips)—not seeing sin.

Cherubim: covered with eyes (Omniscience, all-knowing)

Minor NOTE: Ezekiel 1 and 10, similar beings, identified also Cherubim, appear in a vision to Ezekiel.

7 Lamps (Torches, Lampas in Greek) (ADD!)

cf. 7 churches of 2 and 3 who are called to bring the church into repentance

7 lamps = all churches (the perfect)

Messengers of the churches

representatives of Jesus to the world

those who are called to bring the people before the throne of God

(Not that people do not pray on their own or that they need a priests, but pastors are called to pray for their people and likewise to teach their people to pray. This speaks of spiritual leadership.)

The 24 elders

12 sons of Israel

12 sons of Jesus

24 elders—why are the apostles there? (cf. some of you won’t taste death question from small group)

The totality of God’s people represented by their elders.

Casting crowns when the angels sing holy, holy, holy…(not giving it up as there is an authority they hold in the Kingdom, but they submit their ‘crown’ or authority to the Father.

Why are the 7 lamps (torches) of the Church higher in authority than the 24 elders, who are the sons of Israel and the Apostles?

By the time this narrative played out, the 24 were dead and more literally in the throne room.

The messengers enter the throne room figuratively, through prayer, and are in a sense on active duty unlike the elders who watch from a spiritual distance.

The heavenly host: The rest of the divine beings, angels, other cherubim, seraphim, watchers, etc. What is elsewhere referred to as the heavenly host (armies).

All God’s People: The rest of the people who follow Jesus

NOTE: They give praise and are therefore not just bowing in fear, but of praise and reverence.

NOTE: This is partially figurative in the sense that the narrative covers the throne room scene through the entire period of the church, but includes all of followers of the Lamb (Jesus).

The Lamb

(L) for Lamb on the graphic.

Lamb is Jesus (the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, John TB)

The Lamb comes into the scene among the elders, not at the throne.

(Hebrews 2:7 [Jesus] cf. Psalm 8:5 [humans]) He was made, for a little while a little lower than the angels.

Jesus came to earth as a man at the end of the OT era—a time where God had placed divine beings to rule over the nations.

i.e. Jesus was lower (cf. Temptation of Jesus story)

Jesus advances to the throne to carry out his perfect authority in opening the seals.

It doesn’t say sit down.

John himself is weeping because there is no one to open the scroll—why?—because he loved Jesus and doesn’t initially see him there.

Then Jesus shows up and they recognize Jesus as worthy.

What he looks like.

Lamb who was slaughtered (they recognize him as the one who died and rose and ascended).

7 horns (judicial authority; Alter in Israel’s temple had 4 horns that were covered in blood during a sin offering as a symbol of appeasing God’s wrath).

Seven eyes

All seeing.

The eyes are the 7 spirits sent into the world—cf. 8.2 where 7 angels/spirits deliver 7 trumpets to Jesus.

Notice this immediately places him, not with the elders, but with the 4 all-seeing angels.

Because he is the lamb of God, and because he has the full judicial authority over the earth, and because he is all-seeing, they recognize him as the only one who can break the seals and open the scroll.

So, Jesus goes up to the throne and takes the scroll from the Father.

ALL GLORY BE TO CHRIST OUR KING!

The song: All glory belongs to the Father AND the Lamb

That’s blasphemy if "I and the Father are one” or “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father” are not true.

This is also the problem that the Pharisees had with Jesus on earth—they realized he was equating himself with the divine Father.

Thus they can sing, all glory…

When Jesus conquered death and ascended to the right hand of the Father (Phil 2) he was given ultimate authority and the glory due his name.

cf. Matt 28:18, “All authority has been given to me...”

All of the authority to judge and to rule that was given to other divine beings in past times was taken away and given to Jesus when he came into the throne room of God and sat down at the right hand of the Father.

Remember, at the right hand means full authority.

Foreshadowing, what we ultimately find is that Jesus sat down—not on the throne at the right hand precisely—but on the Father’s throne and that is why the beings can sing, ‘all blessing, all power, all glory, to the one seated on the throne AND to the Lamb, forever and ever.

The implications

Prayer

The prayers for the saints (The Lamb stands between the saints and the throne) — intersession

Pray on your own

Corporate prayer (where two or more are gathered) — there is power here

How do you pray when others are leading? (cf. Amen, truly, I agree)

Ask the elders to pray for you (James?)

Evangelism

Looking at the 7 messengers

Isaiah 6

After Isaiah has been purified, the Lord asks the counsel in his throne room, “Who will I send? Who will go for us?”

Isaiah responds, “Here I am. Send me.”

If you are confident that you have been purified by Jesus, then you should read Isaiah 6, and hear Jesus saying to all of his counsel, “Who will I send? Who will go?” and respond, “Here I am, Lord. Send me.”

cf. Matthew 28:18-20, “All authority…therefore make disciples of every nation...”

Jesus has provided everything—he is enough.

authority

gifting and empowerment by the Spirit

He is sufficient

If you have decided to follow Jesus, you are being called, just like Isaiah, to go and call others to follow Jesus.

Closing song: If the cross is behind you, then the world is before you. There’s no turning back.

Go, therefore, and make disciples of Jesus.