WORTHY IS THE LAMB WHO WAS SLAIN. Part2   Rev 5: 8-14.

Heaven’s symphonic orchestra supplied the music for this royal inauguration, ‘ when He had taken the scroll.’  The cherubim ( the four living creatures ) and the twenty four elders ( representing Old and New Testaments ) fell down before the lamb’.  There was spontaneous  obeisance to the One who had been slain.  The recent inauguration of President George E. Bush of the Unites States of America was accompanied by suitable music, especially from the Day of Prayer and Thanksgiving.  However, our finest orchestras paled in contrast with the finely-tuned harp music of heaven.

He is worthy of our highest praise and worship.  Not niggardly overtures.

They also possessed golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of saints.  Gold spoke of the shekinah or heavenly glory, which bowls were receptacles for the precious prayers of God’s people, that is, His saints.  The prayer of the first martyr, Stephen; was in such a bowl.  The supplication of Paul, once the villainous persecutor, now a new man, filled the bowl.  John the author of the Revelation would have some of his heart-felt longings in such a bowl.  Your burdened heart-cries will be in that gold bowl also.  

So were some of Gladys Aylward, the small woman of China; while Corrie Ten Boom of the Netherlands often interceded for the Jewish refugees, hidden in her home; The heart cries of ‘God’s Smuggler would be in that eternal bowl. The cries of John Sung of China, Dr G.D. James of India and Bakht Singh , Chris Marantika of Indonesia, Dr Benjamin Chew of Singapore, Festo Kivengere of Uganda filled those bowls.  This beautiful truth was given  when the ‘bleeding lamb’ showed His omnipotence. ( His all power ) . Isn’t that a powerful inducement to preach ‘The lamb on the throne.?’

An ecstatic lyric filled the courts of heaven, ‘ as they sang a new song, saying, ‘ You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open the seals, for You were slain , and have redeemed us to God by your blood, out of  every tribe and tongue and people and nation. ( v9”  They claimed that His substitutionary death on the cross and spiteful rejection earned their approval.  No wonder that Paul said, ‘God forbid that I should glory, except  in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ ( Galatians 6:14 ) . We must teach the timeless truth of the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.’

A powerful missionary note sounded for the LAMB HAD CLEANSED BY His blood those from ‘every tribe, tongue, people and nation.’This amazing work was reserved not for a few favoured nations, but also, for the 6000 language groups that have been identified, and for every culture that anthropology  has investigated.  During World War11, I was in  our general hospital in Papua New Guinea , where every valley held a different tribe, with a distinct language and culture, many of which have been reduced to writing and the Word of God translated.  Heaven rejoiced in anticipation of the day when the chosen from these and every group would bow before the Lamb of God.

That is not all: for the song added, ‘And has made us kings and priests unto God, and we shall reign on the earth,’   Many of the least privileged peoples  have received the ‘blood cleansing of the lamb’, and would never have hoped that they could become kings and priests unto God.  Yet such is the power of God’s precious LAMB to elevate the meanest of the earth to such a celebrated position.  

In a post-war visit to the highlands of Papua New Guinea, I crawled into the hut of the first pastor of the local church.  While the hut had filled with smoke from the welcome fire,  my camera captured his radiant wife and beautiful baby.  The pastor had been converted as a savage cannibal and polygamist, until the Lamb hasd cleansed him. Now he was truly a king and priest unto His God.   He truly reigned in his village and the highlands of New Guinea.   Do you reign in Christ in your home and personal life?

Heaven’s angelic chorus, which had sung when the baby Jesus was born at Bethlehem now raptured with song, ‘ I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures ( the cherubims ) , and the elders, and the number of them was 100 million (ten thousand times ten thousand) and thousands of thousands. We must learn heaven’s priority , namely, to exalt the Lamb who was slain.

Once again they told how through His death He was worthy , or eligible, to ‘receive every recognition possible for the greatest accomplishment of eternity. The language is striking , ‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honour and glory and blessing.’ ( v12 )  These seven features contrast with all that our Lord Jesus endured on the cross.

He receives power: because He was crucified  in extreme weakness.  Riches: because He had laid aside His heavenly honour to be Son of man. Wisdom: because the world (in Greek thought especially)  regarded the cross as utter foolishness.  Strength: in view of His dignified refusal to answer Pilate and Herod in His trial.  Honour: because of His shameful humiliation from religious leaders .  Glory : for degradation that sinners poured on Him.   Blessing: for  cursed is everyone, who hangs on a tree ( as He did on the cross ).  Heaven’s recognition reversed all the elements of His cross suffering.

Now the whole universe acknowledged His worth, ‘ Every creature who  is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea , and all that are in them, I heard saying, ‘ Blessing and honour and glory and power be to Him, Who sits on the throne, ,and to the LAMB for ever and for ever.’ ( v13, 14 ) .  The Scripture included all who are in heaven ,all who have survived on earth, and all who have been buried in earth or sea. They unanimously acclaimed the Father on the throne and the Lamb for His worth.  We value these majestic utterances.

The eulogy is equally attributed to the Father on the throne and the Lamb, who had been slain.  Our Lord Jesus had claimed while on earth that ‘I and my Father are one’. He also said that ‘If you have seen me you have seen my Father also’.   These statements were confirmed in that momentous happening round heaven’s throne when they acclaimed the Father and the atoning Son. ( v13)   We also noted that the praise was continuing through all eternity,  ‘for ever and ever’.  It was not for centuries or millenia – but enduring when time should be no more.

The cherubim sealed this holy event with an ‘Amen’, that reverberated through the expanse of heaven..  They  endorsed the highest praise and recognition that could be ascribed to the Lamb.  Old and New Testament elders united in ‘falling down and worshipping Him, who lives for  ever and ever.’ ( v14)   We must determine to follow the examples of these saints as we prepare for our eternal home.  Many believers will be unprepared for heaven’s radiance and the undivided worship of the Lamb of God.  Earth is our training ground.  Let’s be serious!

Revelation12:11 is exquisite, ‘ They overcame Him by the blood of the lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.’

Many martyrs, great servants of God and simple-hearted followers of Jesus Christ have been comforted with this precious truth.  It should enrich your life.  It has mine!

The final chapter in the bible has this stirring reference, ‘ He showed me a pure river o0f the water of life,  clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and the LAMB. ( v1 ) . The Lamb shared the throne with His Father., as they filled all heaven.

Rest your confidence in the LAMB, who was slain for you.