The Sovereign God of Heaven – part 1
Revelation 4:1-11 (1-2a)
July 17, 2016
Well this morning we begin a most anticipated journey.
We are granted the wonderful privilege of seeing
HOW GOD WILL WORK OUT THE END OF ALL THINGS.
(1) “After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.”
That verse leaves absolutely no doubt as to the purpose of the chapter
And the direction we are headed.
In chapter 1 Jesus told John this:
Revelation 1:19 “Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things.”
• “the things which you have seen” refers to the vision of chapter 1
• “the things which are” refers to the church age seen in chapters 2 & 3
• “the things which will take place after these things.” Is the rest of the book.
That is where we now are.
Here in chapter 4 God issues an invitation to the apostle John to “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.”
• John is about to see future things.
• John is about to see things that have not yet happened.
• John is about to see what is coming next.
And as we begin to step into this tremendous revelation,
I think it is important to gain an understanding of what is intended here.
It is important to understand
The entire scope of the redemptive plan of God
So that you and I can fully understand what is happening here.
I want you to remember with me here that
This whole thing did not begin with the church.
It began with Israel.
The story begins with men like Abraham and promises to his descendants.
Even in the New Testament we get verses like this:
John 4:22 “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.”
Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”
This entire plan has always revolved around Israel.
And much of what Scripture deals with
Is actually regarding the redemption of Israel.
That is certainly true as we begin to look towards the end.
And I want to sort of show you that ahead of time
So that you can see exactly what it is we are looking at.
And this is actually made clear here in the first verse.
God tells John, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.”
The “these things” here refers to what we will call “The Church Age”
The Church Age is what was represented in chapters 2 & 3.
• It was there that Jesus addressed the church.
• It was there that Jesus evaluated the church.
Now we are looking at the time frame after that.
We are looking at “what must take place after these things.”
If I could get a little more specific,
We are talking about the plan of God
After the time of the church has run its course.
Let me show you.
TURN TO: ROMANS 11
If you are familiar with Romans 9, 10, &11 you know that
It is a portion of Scripture that deals with the fall and rise of Israel.
Chapter 9 = The Present State of Israel
• And we read about their great rejected privileges
• We read about how Israel did not respond in faith
• We see that Israel is currently lost
Chapter 10 = The Possible State of Israel
• It is in this chapter that we find that if they would simply confess Jesus as Lord, they could be saved since “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Chapter 11 = The Promised State of Israel
• Namely that God is not finished with them.
• That God made irrevocable promises to them.
• And that God will in fact honor His word regarding Israel.
I don’t want to spend a lot of time here,
I just want you to get the highlights.
(1) “I say then, God has not rejected His people, has He? May it never be!”
(2) “God has not rejected His people whom he foreknew.”
(11) “I say then, they did not stumble so as to fall, did they? May it never be!”
(23) “And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again.”
You see statement after statement indicating that
God still has a plan for Israel.
• He made promises to Abraham and to his descendants.
• He made promises to Isaac and to his descendants
• He made promises to Jacob and to his descendants.
GOD HAS NOT FORGOTTEN THOSE PROMISES.
And that leads us to the important passage I want you to see.
(Romans 11:25-29) “For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery — so that you will not be wise in your own estimation — that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION, HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB.” “THIS IS MY COVENANT WITH THEM, WHEN I TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS.” From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers; for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”
And here is the truth.
“a partial hardening has happened to Israel
UNTIL the fullness of the Gentiles has come in”
• But there is coming a day when God will save them.
• Namely because “the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”
• God called them and so God will save them, and according to Romans 11, it will happen after “the fullness of the Gentiles has come in”
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
TURN TO: MATTHEW 21:33-44
I hope you are familiar with the vineyard reference here. It comes from Isaiah 5 in which God revealed that despite all that He had done for Israel, they failed to produce the fruit of righteousness and justice.
Jesus references that reality here in a parable of His own.
• And we find that the vineyard owner (God) went to receive fruit from His vineyard (Israel).
• But when the slaves went they were mistreated and even killed by the vine-growers. (this would have been the O.T. prophets all the way up to John the Baptist)
• So the vineyard owner decides to send His Son to the vineyard, of course this is Christ.
• And there we find that the vine-growers killed the Son in order to try and steal His inheritance.
And look at the announcement of the Lord
(READ 40-44)
Jesus said, I will take it away from you (Israel)
And give it to a new people (Gentiles)
Jesus is referencing the same reality that Paul spoke of in Romans 11, that Israel would be broken off and the Gentiles (a wild olive shoot) would be grafted in.
What we are talking about then was basically a moment in which
The redemptive working of God toward Israel was paused
And a door was opened for the Gentiles.
This reality is clearly seen throughout the book of Acts,
Probably none more than by Paul repeated saying
“from now on I’m going to the Gentiles”
So the reality is that Christ came, Israel rejected Him, and Israel was broken off for a time while the door swung open to the Gentiles.
In Romans 11 Paul taught us
• A day is coming when “the fullness of the Gentiles” will have come in
• Then God will reopen the door to Israel, and will then save them all.
In fact, if we could take it just a brief step further.
The only thing prolonging the return of Christ to reign upon the earth, is in fact the repentance and faith of Israel.
TURN TO: ACTS 3:17-21
• Here Peter was preaching in Jerusalem and he makes an astounding observation.
• He references that Jesus suffered at the hands of Israel just as the prophets said He would.
• But he also reminds them that Jesus fulfilled all that was said regarding His suffering. (Meaning He has no more suffering to endure) Hence Jesus saying, “It is finished!”
All we are waiting for now is the repentance and return of Israel to Christ
So that He can return and reign upon the earth.
(READ: 19-21)
Do you see it?
When Israel finally repents, Jesus will finally return.
The important reality then is that we understand that
Jesus is not going to end this thing without His people Israel.
There will be no final judgment until God has been able
To draw His people Israel back to Himself.
And the main agent God will use to draw Israel back to Himself
Is the period of time which will occur after the church age;
That period known as “The Tribulation”.
The tribulation referenced in the Revelation is not for the church.
In fact, after chapter 3 the church is not seen at all.
Now don’t misunderstand me. That does not mean the church will not have tribulation. More Christians are dying for their faith in this day than at any other point in human history.
• Russia is in the process of passing a law that says no evangelism can take
place outside of the church building.
• Christians are being beheaded in the middle east
Tribulation will occur and perseverance is required.
The church at Smyrna certainly taught us that.
But this tribulation in the book of Revelation
Is God’s tool to draw Israel to Christ and back to Himself.
And that is clearly spelled out in the Old Testament.
Daniel 9:24-27 “Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place.”
If you come back tonight we are going to study that passage
And see that 70 weeks were required to fully redeem Israel.
• 69 weeks have already occurred.
• All that is left is that final week (the final 7) which will be what finally pushes Israel over the edge and back to Christ.
The tribulation is God’s means of bringing Israel to repentance.
TURN TO: ZECHARIAH 11
Again, we don’t have time to fully unpack all of this, but I can skim the mountain tops here and show you the plan of God.
• Zechariah 11:4-6 is a preincarnate conversation between the Father and the Son, where the Father commanded the Son to go and Shepherd His people Israel.
• In Zechariah 11:7 the Son did just that. He became flesh and dwelt among us.
• Verses 7-14 indicate the tremendous struggle that He would have trying to shepherd such a rebellious flock.
• Verse 8 shows us His continual battle with the religious leaders of the day.
• Verses 9-11 show us the rebellion of the sheep and the Shepherd’s rejection of them.
• Verse 12 even shows the price at which the nation would value this good Shepherd.
And finally in verse 14, this flock was broken off.
It’s the same thing Jesus referenced in His parable regarding the vineyard.
The same thing Paul referenced in Romans 11.
• In verses 15-17 we find that God promises to raise up a corrupt shepherd to lead them and ultimately afflict them. (This false shepherd is none other than the Antichrist)
And that leads to a tremendous time of tribulation
Which is what is spelled out in Zechariah 12:1-9.
But the result of this tribulation is what you need to see,
And that is what is revealed in Zechariah 12:10.
Israel, as a result of her tribulation, will finally
Look on the One whom they pierced and will mourn for Him.
Now does that phrase look familiar to you?
It should we actually saw it referenced in the opening chapter of Revelation when we were looking at the preview of the book.
Revelation 1:7 “BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.”
This is what we are talking about.
By means of the tribulation, Israel will finally come to Christ.
And the RESULT of their repentance
Will be the return of the Lord and His earthly reign.
And this reality is seen in Zechariah 14.
(Read 1-5)
SO WHAT ARE YOU GETTING AT PREACHER?
Namely that everything you are about to see
Through the remainder of this book
Is nothing short of the intended plan of the Sovereign God of Heaven.
• We’ve recently studied stories like that of Joseph, whom God directed through enormous suffering and hardship. But God did that in order that He might save Israel.
• We’ve recently studied the story of Job, whom God put through enormous suffering, but God did that in order to humble Job and reveal that a relationship with God cannot be severed.
• We’ve recently seen the story of Daniel, who at 15 years of age God allowed to be kidnapped and thrown into a Babylonian brainwashing system, but God has done this as a means of purifying Israel from her idolatry.
The Tribulation that is about to unfold
Is nothing short of the sovereign plan of the God of Heaven.
Satan is NOT in charge here, God is.
• God is doing this
• God is controlling this
• And as is always true with the affliction God allows, it is only meant for good.
Just as God told Israel before they were exiled to Babylon.
Jeremiah 29:11-13 “For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. ‘Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. ‘You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”
This period of tribulation must been seen in that exact same light.
• This is God’s plan for finally redeeming Israel back to Himself.
• This is God’s plan for finally redeeming creation back to Himself.
• This is God’s plan for finally seeing His Son reign upon the earth.
GOD IS IN TOTAL CONTROL HERE.
I just want you to understand the purpose of what we are about to see.
God told John in verse 1 “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.”
We are about to look at the things that “must take place”
In order to bring about Israel’s repentance and Christ’s return.
And in order to see it all God calls John up to heaven.
NOW THE VISION IS AN EXTENSIVE ONE.
John is going to see all sorts of judgments unfold on the world.
But the beginning of the vision occurs in chapters 4 & 5
And these chapters set the stage.
These chapters serve as the lens through which
We must view the coming destruction.
In Ch. 4 the vision centers on and focuses on THE SOVEREIGN THRONE
• We are drawn not only to the sovereign rule of God,
• But also to the nature and glory of the One who is on the throne.
In fact a quick reading of chapter 4 shows us that
Everything John sees is in regard to the throne.
• (2) “on the throne”
• (3-4) “around the throne”
• (5) “from the throne”
• (5-6) “before the throne”
• (7) “in the center and around the throne” (near the throne)
Everything John sees relates to the throne.
Chapter 4 focuses on THE SOVEREIGN THRONE
Ch. 5 makes a shift and the focus becomes THE SACRIFICIAL LAMB
• This chapter is all about the Lamb who was slain and what the Lamb accomplished through His sacrifice.
• It also focuses on the rise of the Lamb to take the scroll and to begin His work of redeeming the world back to Himself.
These chapters combine as an important foundation
Because they help us bring stability
To the chaos that is about to hit the world.
Despite what you will see, God has not lost control.
Despite what you will see, Redemption remains the purpose.
So we begin looking at the end by first looking at the throne,
Let’s begin looking at it this morning.
We can easily break it down into 6 points. As I said, everything relates to the throne.
#1 THE THRONE
Revelation 4:1-2a
After hearing God’s call to come up and see the things, John says:
“Immediately I was in the Spirit”
This simply means that John was in the spiritual realm.
Somehow by the power of God, John was allowed to see a realm
That is otherwise invisible to you and me.
And John was transported to heaven.
This is not the first time in Scripture that this occurred.
• As the children of Israel were coming out of Egypt, Moses went up on the mountain of God and the elders followed at a distance and Moses records:
Exodus 24:9-10 “Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, 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.”
• In the book of the kings when Ahab was seeking direction from the LORD, the prophet Macaiah came and said:
1 Kings 22:19 “Micaiah said, “Therefore, hear the word of the LORD. I saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by Him on His right and on His left.”
• In Isaiah’s day, King Uzziah died after a 52 year reign and Isaiah was distraught wondering what was going on in the world. He writes:
Isaiah 6:1-4 “In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. 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. And one called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.” And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke.”
• Ezekiel was a prophet of Israel who was actually deported to Babylon (like Daniel) and while there, Ezekiel was granted a vision. It’s too long to read it all right now, but here is part of it:
Ezekiel 1:26-28 “Now above the expanse that was over their heads there was something resembling a throne, like lapis lazuli in appearance; and on that which resembled a throne, high up, was a figure with the appearance of a man. Then I noticed from the appearance of His loins and upward something like glowing metal that looked like fire all around within it, and from the appearance of His loins and downward I saw something like fire; and there was a radiance around Him. As the appearance of the rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the surrounding radiance. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell on my face and heard a voice speaking.”
• Also in Babylon was Daniel, who wrote:
Daniel 7:9 “I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took His seat; His vesture was like white snow And the hair of His head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with flames, Its wheels were a burning fire.”
These were all people of God throughout the course of history
Who were granted the privilege of gazing into heaven.
And no doubt you have probably seen
The STRIKING SIMILARITIES to what all of them saw.
They were all overcome with the sight of the same thing.
It was the throne of God and the utter holiness and wrath
That seemed to radiate from it.
Everything pointed there.
And it was a terrifying scene for all of them.
• Isaiah cried out “Woe is me! For I am undone!”
• Ezekiel fell on his face.
• Daniel said his spirit was distressed within him.
• In 2 Corinthians 12 Paul went and he couldn’t even speak of what he saw.
This is a most sacred and holy and terrifying scene.
And could I add one more important thing for you here?
THIS IS THE ONLY AUTHORITATIVE AND CERTIFIED ACCURATE ACCOUNT OF HEAVEN WE SHOULD EVER LOOK TO.
Have we forgotten what was written at the end of this book?
Revelation 22:18 “I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book;”
But that warning hasn’t stopped the countless charismatic counterfeits
From adding their own heaven experiences to the list of best-selling books.
Yes, you heard me right.
I do not agree with or like or believe accounts like:
• “90 Minutes in Heaven”
• “Heaven is For Real” (I think I already knew that)
• Or any of the other MANY counterfeit preachers who have claimed trips to
heaven and back.
When God wanted to give an authoritative view of heaven,
He ordained to give it to the apostle John
And that revelation came with strict orders that
This vision should never be added to or taken away from.
This is it.
So it’s certainly tragic and terribly disturbing to me that when most of the world wants to know about heaven they go read “Heaven is for Real”
Instead of the book of the Revelation.
THIS is God’s Revelation; I don’t believe those others for a second.
JOHN SEES HERE AN INCREDIBLE SCENE.
And please notice
• He isn’t captivated by loved ones who have gone before.
• He isn’t running down the streets looking for his mansion.
• He doesn’t immediately talk about the amazing golf courses.
You see what captivates his attention.
“Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was standing in heaven,”
“A throne”
Obviously indicates sovereign rule; sovereign authority.
The fact that it was “standing” indicates that
It is fixed, unchanging, unwavering.
The vision reiterates what we have often said:
GOD IS IN CONTROL
The overwhelming testimony of heaven is that there is One who sits supreme and authoritatively in charge over all of creation.
Look down to the end of the chapter at the praise of heaven.
(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.”
Do you know why everything is here?
God told it to be here.
Do you know why everything remains?
God tells it to remain.
God is SOVEREIGN
Psalms 103:19 “The LORD has established His throne in the heavens, And His sovereignty rules over all.”
Isaiah 43:13 “Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?”
Psalms 115:3 “But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases.”
And that is the overwhelming point of this vision.
Don’t look at the chaos of the world
And then wonder if God is somehow in danger.
And you might be tempted to think that.
• World war is coming, followed by intense famine, and death
• ¼ of the world’s population will soon die
• The sun will turn black, the moon to blood, and 1/3 of the stars will fall
• The entire heavens will then roll up like a scroll and the mountains will move
• Meteors are about to hit the earth
• Fresh water will turn bitter
• And a 1/3 of the sea will turn to blood
• A demonic army will spread through the earth inflicting pain
• Followed by a destructive angelic force with 100 million strong army which will kill 1/3 of the remaining people on earth.
• In the middle of the mayhem Antichrist will rise blaspheming God, killing Jews, and starving the faithful.
• And this before things like the malignant sores, and 100lb hailstones
Things are about to appear out of control, but don’t let appearances fool you.
GOD’S THRONE IS FIXED IN THE HEAVENS.
THIS IS ALL PART OF THE PLAN.
I wish we had been able to go a little further this morning,
But it is a good beginning for us to simply recognize that
OUR GOD REIGNS.
That means that you and can take a sigh of relief and rest.
• Isn’t it good to know that a world filled with terrorist attacks have absolutely no bearing on God’s redemptive plan?
• Isn’t it good to know that November’s election has no bearing on God’s redemptive plan?
None of those things can stop a single thing God is doing.
In fact, we learn that God orchestrates all things
In order that His perfect plan will always succeed.
Romans 8:28-31 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?”
That my friends is the earthly response
To the reality of God’s Sovereign Rule.
Psalms 118:5-9 “From my distress I called upon the LORD; The LORD answered me and set me in a large place. The LORD is for me; I will not fear; What can man do to me? The LORD is for me among those who help me; Therefore I will look with satisfaction on those who hate me. It is better to take refuge in the LORD Than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD Than to trust in princes.”
Psalms 11:4-7 “The LORD is in His holy temple; the LORD’S throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men. The LORD tests the righteous and the wicked, And the one who loves violence His soul hates. Upon the wicked He will rain snares; Fire and brimstone and burning wind will be the portion of their cup. For the LORD is righteous, He loves righteousness; The upright will behold His face.”
Psalms 20:6-7 “Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed; He will answer him from His holy heaven With the saving strength of His right hand. Some boast in chariots and some in horses, But we will boast in the name of the LORD, our God.”
That is the point.
Do not fear the appearances of things.
For when John was granted by the mercy of God
To see things that even Paul was not allowed to speak of
He was instantly captivated by one great thing:
“a throne was standing in heaven,”
Take courage, The Sovereign God of Heaven is on His throne.
